Berly's ABCs -- Amidst Books and Chums #15

Portland, OR. This is the upside of our recent smoggy weather--a beautiful sunset!!
(Photo by Sheryl Gates)

Reading Now
For We Are Many (A) by Dennis Taylor
In the Time of Butterflies (337 pages) by Julia Alvarez, RL Bookclub August
The Sixth Extinction (276 pages) by Elizabeth Kolbert, July Obama Read
Blue Mind (280 pages) by Wallace Nichols

Plans
AAC Patricia Highsmith -- August
The Sinister Pig -- Roberta's July Western
Junie B. Jones -- August Obama Read
Mr. Rochester (449 pages) by Sarah Shoemaker
I Am No One (LTER) by Patrick Flannery




Read in August
66. This One Summer (L)(GN) by Mark Tamaki 3.0
65. Silent Child (416 pages) (K) by Sarah A. Denzil 3.5
64. Kafka on the Shore (467 pages) by Murakami 5.0

Read in July / 3,010 pages / 19,004 YTD
63. Uprooted (464 pages) by Naomi Novik 4.5
62. Ecotopia (181 pages) by Ernest Callenbach 3.5
61. The Leavers (K) by Lisa Ko, RL Bookclub July read, pearl-ruled at 151 pages
60. The Underground Railroad (306 pages) by Colson Whitehead 3.5
59. Bad Feminist (318 pages) by Roxanne Gay (Thank you, Twin!) 4.0
58. The First Word (330 pages) (K) by Isley Robson 3.75
57. News of the World (224 pages) by Paulette Jiles 3.75
56. Stillhouse Lake (K) (300 pages) by Rachel Caine 4.0
55. Sylvester: or the Wicked Uncle (400 pages) (K)( BAC) Georgette Heyer 3.0
54. The Lost City of the Monkey God (336 pages) (K) by Douglas Preston 3.75

Rating System
You probably won't see many below three because I am less afraid to use the Pearl rule now, but "Anathema" tickled me. So many books, so little time!

Masterpiece 5.0
Stunning 4.5
Excellent 4.0
Very Good 3.5
Good 3.0
Average 2.5
Bad 2.0
Very Bad 1.5
Don't Bother 1.0
Anathema 0.5

A=Audio
L=Library
OTS=Off the shelf
N=New/Gift
GN=Graphic Novel
IR=Indiespensable Readers
K=Kindle
LT=LibraryThing Early Reviewer

Read in June / 2,297pages / 15,994 YTD
53. The Ice Twins (K) (320 pages) by SK Tremayne 4.0
52. Crouching Buzzard, Leaping Loon (320 pages) A Meg Lanslow Mystery by Donna Andrews 3.5
51. The Wailing Wind (304 pages) by Tony Hillerman 4.0
50. The Almost Sisters (339 pages) (LTER) by Joshilyn Jackson 5.0
49. The Strange Death of Fiona Griffiths (504 pages) by Harry Bingham 4.0
48. The Complete Sherlock Holmes Short Story: The Red Headed League (A) by Arthur Conan Doyle, narrated by Simon Vance 3.5
47. The Complete Sherlock Holmes Short Story: A Scandal in Bohemia (A) by Arthur Conan Doyle, narrated by Simon Vance 3.0
46. The Dream Lover (400 pages) (K) by Elizabeth Berg (June RL Bookclub #1) 3.0

Read in May / 2,125 pages / 13,497 YTD
45. Dreams from My Father (480 pages) (A) by Barack Obama 3.5
44. As Time Goes By (335 pages) by Mary Higgins Clark 3.75
43. Borne (336 pages) (IR) by Jeff Vandermeer 3.75
42. A Wild Sheep Chase (353 pages) by Murakami 4.0
41. Hillbilly Elegy (272 pages) by JD Vance, May RL Bookclub 3.5
40. Ordinary Light (349 pages) by Tracy K. Smith 3.5

Read in April / 2,346 pages / 11,372 YTD
39. Love Story, with Murders (K) (400 pages) by Harry Bingham 3.5
38. Harry Potter (309 pages) re-read and April Obama Read 5.0
37. The Captain and the Enemy (A) (192 pages) by Graham Greene, Narrate by Kenneth Branagh
36. Nutshell (208 pages) (L) by Ian McEwan 4.0
35. Being Mortal (OTS) (263 pages) by Atul Gawade -- RL Bookclub 4.0
34. LaRose (384 pages) by Louise Erdrich 4.0
33. We Are Legion (A) (382 pages) by Dennis E. Taylor, Narrated by Ray Porter 4.0
32. milk and honey (208 pages) by rupi kaur 4.0

Read in March / 3,448 pages / 9,026 YTD
31. We Are Called To Rise (305 pages) by Laura McBride 4.0
30. Self-Reliance (117 pages) by Ralph Waldo Emerson, March Obama Read 4.0
29. The Tenant of Wildfell Hall (456 pages) by Anne Brontë 3.0
28. The Obsession (480pages) by Nora Roberts 3.5
27. The Sign of Four (92 pages) (A) by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Read by Stephen Fry 3.0
26. Dr. Mütter's Marvels (304 pages) by Cristin O'Keefe Aptowicz 4.5
25. Insidious (447 pages) by Catherine Coulter 3.5
24. Hunting Badger (324 pages) (K) A Leaphorn Mystery by Tony Hillerman 3.5
23. The Very Persistent Gappers of Frip (84 pages) (IR) by George Saunders 4.0
22. The Madwoman Upstairs (341 pages) by Catherine Lowell 3.75
21. The Globe: The Science of Discworld II (345 pages) by Terry Pratchett, for Paul's BAC 3.0
20. A Study in Scarlett (124 pages) (A) by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, collection read by Stephen Fry 3.0
19. Born a Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood (304 pages) (A) by Trevor Noah 5.0
18. The Night Beat (K) (30 pages?) Short story by Harry Bingham 3.75

Read in February / 2590 pages / 5,273 YTD
17. Talking to the Dead (368 pages)(K) by Harry Bingham 4.0
16. Life on Mars: Poems (76 pages) by Tracy K. Smith 3.5
15. Behind the Beautiful Forevers (256 pages)(OS) by Katherine Boo, for Feb Obama Reading Challenge 4.0
14. Invisible Man (608 pages) (A) by Ralph Ellison, read by Joe Morton, reread of a classic 4.0
13. Nights at the Circus (294 pages) by Angela Carter w/ Cammykitty (Late Bowie read) 2.5
12. The Girl with the Lower Back Tattoo (316 pages) by Amy Schumer 3.5
11. Entwined: Sisters and Secrets in the Silent World of Artist Judith Scott (LT)(215 pages) Joyce Wallace Scott 5.0
10. Jane Eyre, (457 pages)(OS) by Charlotte Bronte, classic reread for RL book group 4.5

Read in January / 2,683 pages
9. The Secret History of Wonder Woman (OTS)(332 pages not incl. the index) by Jill Lepore 4.0
8. Kindred (264 pages)(L)(K) by Octavia Butler 4.0
7. The Vegetarian (201 pages) by Han Kang 4.5
6. Revenge of the Wrought-Iron Flamingos Meg Langslow #3(288 pgs)(L)(K)by Donna Andrews 3.0
5. An Obvious Fact (336 pages)(A)(L) by Craig Johnson 3.5
4. Fun Home. A Family Tragicomic (232 page)(GN) by Alison Bechdel--RL Bookclub 4.0
3. Night of Fire (358 pages) (IR) by Colin Thubron 4.5
2. Fire Touched Mercy Thompson novel #9 (352 pages)(K)(L) by Patricia Briggs 4.0
1. Murder with Peacocks (320 pages)(K)(L) 1st in Meg Langslow series by Donna Andrews 3.0

Welcome to the President Obama Challenge!!

This is a chance to read one of his books, or several; independently or following a monthly theme. Just have fun and let us know what you are reading and what you think about it! There are more books suggestions on the thread.

August--Independent Bookstore Purchases
1. Brown Girl Dreaming, Jacqueline Woodson
2. Heart of Darkness, Joseph Conrad
3. Nora Webster, Colm Toibin
4. The Laughing Monsters, Denis Johnson
5. Age of Ambition: Chasing Fortune, Truth and Faith in the New China, Evan Osnos
6. Being Mortal: Medicine and What Matters in the End, Dr. Atul Gawande
7. Cartwheeling in Thunderstorms, Katherine Rundell
8. The Narrow Road to the Deep North, Richard Flanagan
9. Redwall series, Brian Jacques
10. Junie B. Jones series, Barbara Park
11. Nuts To You, Lynn Rae Perkins

And anytime, any month
By President Obama
1. Dreams from My Father
3. The Audacity of Hope
3. Of Thee I Sing a truly beautiful children's book

By Michelle Obama
1. American Grown: The Story of the White House Kitchen Garden and Gardens Across America
2. Michelle Obama: In Her Own Words
3. We Rise: Speeches by Inspirational Black Women by Michelle Obama, Shirley Chisholm, Barbara Jordan, Rosa Parks
4. Michelle Obama: Speeches on Life, Love, and American Values by Michelle Obama, Stacie Vander Pol (Editor)
5. Michelle Obama: Our First Lady

And here are some other links:

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/18/books/president-obamas-reading-list.html

https://www.wired.com/2016/10/president-obama-reading-list/

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/16/books/obamas-secret-to-surviving-the-white-ho...
(Coinciding with Mark's Poetry Month)

Completed This Year (✔ ✔ are ones I have read)
February -- Behind the Beautiful Forevers by Katherine Boo ✔ ✔
March -- Self-Reliance by Ralph Waldo Emerson ✔ ✔
April -- Harry Potter And the Sorcerer's Stone by JK Rowling ✔ ✔
May -- Dreams from My Father by Barack Obama ✔ ✔
June -- The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead ✔ ✔
July -- The Sixth Extinction by Elizabeth Kolbert -- reading
August -- Being Mortal Dr. Atul Gawande ✔ ✔
Junie B. Jones series, Barbara Park

What are you going to read? Click on the link and tell everyone!!

https://www.librarything.com/topic/250137

Plans for Reading


The President Obama Reading Challenge
https://www.librarything.com/topic/247375
February - Behind the Beautiful Forevers by Katherine Boo ✔ ✔
March - Self-Reliance by Ralph Waldo Emerson ✔ ✔
April - Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by JK Rowling ✔ ✔
May- Dreams From My Father by Barack Obama ✔ ✔
June -- The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead ✔ ✔
July - The Sixth Extinction -- reading
August - Being Mortal by Dr. Atul Gawande ✔ ✔
Junie B. Jones
September -
October -
November -
December -

RL Book Club #1
February - Jane Eyre - Jane Austin ✔ ✔
April - Being Mortal - Atul Gawade ✔ ✔
June - America's First Daughter - Laura Kanole, Stephanie Dray
August - In the Time of Butterflies - Julia Alvarez
October - Commonwealth - Ann Patchett
December - Choose new books! ✔ ✔

And RL Book Club #2
January - snowed out : (
February - Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic by Alison Bechdel ✔ ✔
March - A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman (read last year) ✔ ✔
April - Born A Crime by Trevor Noah ✔ ✔
May- Hillbilly Elegy by JD Vance ✔ ✔
June - Dream Lover by Elizabeth Berg ✔ ✔
July - The Leavers by Lisa Ko ✔ ✔
August - off
September -
October -
November -

And just maybe an occasional one from here, Mark's AAC or Paul's BAC

January AAC - Kindred by Octavia Butler ✔ ✔
February BAC - The Globe: Discworld II by Terry Pratchett ✔ ✔
April - Poetry Month - milk and honey by rupi kaur ✔ ✔
April - Paul's CAC - Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood ✔ ✔
June BAC - Sylvester: or the Wicked Uncle (K) by Georgette Heyer ✔ ✔
August - AAC Patricia Highsmith
September - Short Story Month or The New Millennium
October - AAC Commonwealth (OS) Ann Pratchett and BAC Roald Dahl
November - AAC Russell Banks and BAC Poet Laureates
December - AAC Ernest Hemingway or BAC Neil Gaiman

luvamystery65/Roberta's Tony Hillerman and ???

January - The First Eagle
March - Hunting Badger ✔ ✔
May - The Wailing Wind ✔ ✔
July - The Sinister Pig
September - Skeleton Man
November - The Shape Shifter

Random

August - Kafka on the Shore by Murakami ✔ ✔

October - The Doll's House by Camilla Gudova
The Grip of It by Jac Jemc

These are series I still want to follow. This list will evolve over time...in no particular order.

# / Series / Author / Next Book / Progress
1 Chief Inspector Gamache / Penny, Louise / The Cruellest Month (#3) / 14% (2 of 14)
2 Dublin Murder Squad / French, Tana / The Likeness (#2) / 17% (1 of 6)
3 Constance Kopp / Stewart, Amy / Lady Cop Makes Trouble (#2) / 33% (1 of 3)
4 Cormoran Strike / Galbraith, Robert / Lethal White (#4) / 75% (3 of 4)
5 Alex Cross / Patterson et al / Along Came a Spider (#1) / 7% (2 of 27)
6 Alpha and Omega / Briggs, Patricia /Alpha and Omega (#0) / 38% (3 of 8))
7 Walt Longmire Mysteries / Johnson, Craig / Divorce Horse (#7.5) / 42% (8 of 19)
8 Fall of the Gas-Lit Empire / Duncan, Rod / The Custodian of Marvels (#3) / 67% (2 of 3)
9 Morgue Drawer / Profijt, Jutta / Morgue Drawer: Clink or Cooler? (#5) /80% (4 of 5)
10 Mercy Thompson/ Briggs, Patricia Shif/ting Shadows (#8.5) 83%/ (10 of 12)
11 Meg Langslow / Andrews, Donna/ We'll Always Have Parrots (#5) / 27% (6 of 22)
12 Spenser / Parker, Robert B / Promised Land (#4) / 13% (6 of 46)
13 Maggie Hope / MacNeal, Susan Elia/ Princess Elizabeth's Spy (#2) / 14% (1 of 7)
14 Fiona Griffiths / Bingham, Harry/ This Thing of Darkness (#4) / 50% (3 of 6)
15 Leaphorn & Chee / Hillerman, Tony/ Listening Woman (#3) / 29% (6 of 21)

Finished:
End of Watch in Bill Hodges Trilogy by Stephen King
Miss Peregrine's Peculiar Children

New Books in 2017
✔ ✔ = read

A=Audio
N=New/Gift
GN=Graphic Novel
IR=INDIEspensable Readers
K=Kindle
LT=LibraryThing Early Reviewer

8th Thingaversary
1. Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic (GN) by Alison Bechdel ✔ ✔
2. The Vegetarian by Han Kang ✔ ✔
3. Commonwealth (TBR in October) by Ann Patchett
4. Swing Time by Zadie Smith
5. The Girl with the Lower Back Tattoo by Amy Schumer ✔ ✔
6. The Undoing Project by Michael Lewis
7. Nights at the Circus by Angela Carter ✔ ✔
8. Life on Mars by Tracy K. Smith ✔ ✔
+1. Self-Reliance and other essays by Ralph Waldo Emerson ✔ ✔

Others
10. Wait for Signs (A) by Craig Johnson (Free--Audible)
11. The Night Bird (K) by Brian Freeman (Free--Kindle First Pre-Release)
12. Night of Fire by Colin Thubron, INDIEspensible Reader #63 ✔ ✔
13. Moonglow (IR) by Michael Chabon
14. The Madwoman Upstairs by Catherine Lowell (from MichiganTrumpet) ✔ ✔
15: History of Wolves by Emily Fredlund, INDIEspensible Reader #64
16: Ordinary Light by Tracy K. Smith ✔ ✔
17. Talking as Fast as I Can by Lauren Graham
18. Dr. Mutter's Marvels by Christen O'Keefe Aptowicz ✔ ✔
19. Talking to the Dead (K) by Harry Bingham ✔ ✔
20. Love Story, With Murders (K) by Harry Bingham ✔ ✔
21. The Strange Death of Fiona Griffiths (K) by Harry Bingham ✔ ✔
22. This Thing of Darkness (K) by Harry Bingham
23. The Dead House (K) by Harry Bingham
24. The Lost City of the Monkey God: A True Story (K) by Douglas Preston ✔ ✔
25. Sherlock Holmes Collection (A) read by Stephen Fry (have read book 1, 2 ✔ ✔)
26. The Very Persistent Gappers of Frip by George Saunders, INDIEspensible Reader #65 ✔ ✔
27. Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders, Powell's INDIEspensible Reader #65
28. A Criminal Defense by William L Meyers, Jr (Free-K) no touchstone
29. 100 Books You Must Read Before You Die (A)
30. The Ice Twins: A Novel (K) by S. K. Tremayne ✔ ✔
31. Insidious by Catherine Coulter ✔ ✔
31. The Last Mile by David Baldacci
32. The Obsession BY Nora Roberts ✔ ✔
33. We Are Called to Rise by Laura McBride ✔ ✔
34. Good poems selected by Garrison Keillor
33. Bad Feminist by Roxanne Gay Thank you BLBera!! ✔ ✔
35. Milk and Honey poetry by rupi kaur ✔ ✔
36. The Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys (I am on a Brontë tear this year!)
37. Consider the Lobster by David Foster Wallace
38. Why Science Does Not Disprove God by Amir Aczel
39. Seamus Heaney collected works 1966-1987 (April--Mark's Poetry Month)
40. Kafka on the Shore by Murakami ✔ ✔
41. A Wild Sheep Chase by Murakami ✔ ✔
42. Babayaga by Toby Barlow
43. Sweet Lamb of Heaven by Lydia Millet (Tournament of Books)
44. Pond by Clare-Louise Bennett
45. All About Love: New Visions by Bell Hooks
46. The Double by Fyodor Dostoevsky
47. For We Are Many: Bobiverse, Book 2 (A) by Dennis E. Taylor
48. The Almost Sisters: A Novel (LT ER) by Joshilyn Jackson ✔ ✔
49. Tenant of Wildfell Hall by Anne Brontë ✔ ✔
50. The Crossing Places (Ruth Galloway Mysteries) by Elly Griffiths
51. A Small Revolution (K) by Jimin Han (Free Kindle First)
52. News of the World (K) by Paulette Jiles (Ellen's Fault) ✔ ✔
53. Hillbillly Elegy by JD Vance ✔ ✔
54. The First Word by Isley Robson (Kindle First Reader-Free) ✔ ✔
55. As Time Goes By by Mary Higgins Clark
56. The Grip of It by Jac Jemc, Powell's INDIEspensible Reader #66
57. Borne by Jeff Vandermeer, Powell's INDIEspensible Reader #66 ✔ ✔
58. Mr. Rochester by Sarah Shoemaker
59. The Sound of Gravel, by a Portland author Ruth Wariner
60. Sylvester: or the Wicked Uncle (K) by Georgette Heyer ✔ ✔
61. The Deepest Grave (K) Fiona Griffiths #6 by Harry Bingham
62. Stillhouse Lake by Rachel Caine (June Free Kindle Read) ✔ ✔
63. The Leavers by Lisa Ko
64. The Doll's Alphabet by Camilla Grudoba, Powell's INDIEspensable #67
65. Stephen Florida by Gabe Habash, Powell's INDIEspensable #67
66. The Sky Below: A True Story of Summits, Space, and Speed by astronaut Scoot Parazynski (Amazon Kindle Free July Pick)
67. The Silent Child by Sarah A. Denzil

Favorites from this year:
Kafka on the Shore Haruki Murakami 5.0
Uprooted (464 pages) by Naomi Novik 4.5
Born a Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood (A) by Trevor Noah 5.0
Dr. Mütter's Marvels by Cristin O'Keefe Aptowicz 4.5
We Are Legion (A) by Dennis E. Taylor, Narrated by Ray Porter 4.5
Entwined: Sisters and Secrets in the Silent World of Artist Judith Scott by Joyce Wallace Scott 5.0
The Vegetarian by Han Kang 4.5

Favorites from last year:

Thunder Dog by Michael Hingson 4.5
A Dirty Job by Christopher Moore 4.5
A History of the World In 100 Objects by Neil MacGregor 4.5
Flaubert's Parrot by Julian Barnes 4.5
A Man Called Ove by Fredrick Backman 5.0
The Guise of Another by Allen Eskens 4.5
Library of Souls by Ransom Riggs 4.5
The Life We Bury by Allen Eskens 4.5
Good Omens by Neil Gaiman & Terry Pratchet 5.0
Eleanor Jason Gurley 4.5
Fingersmith by Sarah Waters 5.0
Why Be Happy When You Could Be Normal by Jeannete Winterson 5.0
And Again by Jessica Chiarella 4.5
As I Lay Dying by Faulkner 5.0

Come hang out with me this August!! Another shot of summer flowers in my neighborhood.

Happy New Thread, Kim. Definitely hanging out with you, despite the smoke.

>10 ronincats: LOL. A medal for you -- I am so glad you are brave. Thanks!

Happy new one, Twin. Love the sunset and the flowers. Hope the air quality improves soon.

Hi Twinster! Thank you. I hope you are right about the air. It is better, but still so hazy. Ugh.

So the smog. Why is it a summer thing? Air conditioners run on diesel generators? (srsly, I would have no idea as our smog is always a winter thing and mainly from homeowners wood burners). It does make a pretty sunset though...*conflicted*

>14 LovingLit: Ours is from wood burning, too. Wildfires due to the dry, hot weather. Right now we have fires blowing down from Canada and up from SE Oregon, defending on which way the wind has been blowing. We need a nice, strong sea breeze.

I saw the pretty sunset. Now the smog can go away. LOL

Super excited about this year's lineup at Literary Arts!



Also, I have been invited to join the Patron Advisory Board!! Yay! First meeting in September. : )

Happy New Thread, Kim!

Beautiful topper - sorry it's due to smog, but it is lovely.

Congrats on joining the Patron Advisory Board. That's one heck of a lineup.

Congrats on the advisory board appointment. They are lucky to have you. Nice line-up.

Hiya hiya. :-) Just leaving you a smile. Life is good.

>19 weird_O: I did indeed get the smile!! Glad life is good. Happy Wednesday.

I went to the chiropractor yesterday. Progress on the back, but I am still thinking no TKD this week. That's okay. I did enough last week for this week. ; )

Very impressive sunset even though the cause is troubling.

Hi Eric--I thought so, too! The photo was taken by Sheryl Gates and I snagged if from this amazing FB site of photography in Oregon. Really amazing stuff! Take a look.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/oregon.images/

Happy new thread!

Hi Berly and happy new thread!

Congratulations on getting asked to join the Patron Advisory Board.

>1 Berly: Gorgeous photo. Did you take it?

The Literary Arts lineup looks awesome. I need to look at the website and see what the dates are.....

Happy New Thread!
Oh, and back to your prior thread, the cat torture and murder scene in {Kafka on the Shore bothered me less than I feared it might. It was gruesome but I could keep my intellectual distance from it..... :-)

Good morning, Berly! I hope all is well with you.

>1 Berly: I saw that last night and was completely amazed. The sun has been very colorful of late. (Monroe, WA.)

>6 Berly: I've been a long time Spenser fan and Promised Land is a good one. It was also adapted as the pilot for the Spenser: For Hire television series.

Happy new thread. Glad to hear your back is improving -hope the smog does too.

Wow! is that sunset topper for real?! Stunning!
Happy new thread, by the way :0)

Happy new thread Kim! Sorry to hear about the smoke/smog but it does make for a very pretty sunset!

Happy new thread, Kim.

It is a beautiful suset at the top and I hope the smog will go away now.
>9 Berly: Nice colored Hydrangea!

>23 drneutron: Thanks Doc!

>24 karenmarie: Hi! I am pretty darn psyched to be joining Literary Arts. Not sure what the Patron Advisory Council is specifically tasked with this year. I think something to do with the archives of past presenters and maybe with the weekly broadcast on radio with OPB.

>25 EBT1002: I did not take the sunset photo, but did take the flowers. The sunset is one I grabbed from a FB website of Oregon photos--there are some simply gorgeous ones! Check out >22 Berly: for the website.

Let me know about the dates and I am glad you survived that scene in Kafka!

Happy new thread Kim my dear and a lovely sunset photo at the top of the thread. Thanks for stopping by my thread and leaving a message, I replied to it and it is a bit long. Leo is doing well and is obviously leaning to cope with his loss and we let him outside when we are around to keep a check on him.

Hope all is well with you and the family dear friend and that the high temperatures have eased a bit for you. It was dreadful yesterday with heavy rain all day but today has been bright and sunny and tomorrow is supposed to be the same which is good as we are taking Hannah to York as she is staying over tonight. Sending love and hugs.

>26 brodiew2: Well, hello there! Very nice to see you here. So, you've been getting some of the same wacky weather as I have. The sunsets have been a nice perk, but I vote clean air. ; )

Do you have a thread somewhere?

Spenser: For Hire series? Is that a thing already or does the series start soon? And, yes, I need to read another on of those soon. Thank for the plug for Promised Land!

>27 charl08: Thanks for popping in the new joint. ; ) And for the good wishes.

>28 Carmenere: Yup! A real photo. Stunning is right!

>29 souloftherose: Welcome! And the smog has certainly made for some stunning scenery.

>30 FAMeulstee: Thanks! For stopping by, the good wishes and the photo compliment.

>32 johnsimpson: Hi John! I almost missed you there. I will head over to your thread to read your longish reply, which BTW is far and away preferable to no reply!! LOL. Hope you have fun with Hannah today and enjoy your nice weather.

>34 Berly: Thanks Kim, i'll let you know what we got up to tomorrow my dear.

Happy New Thread, Kimmers! LOVE the smoky sunset!

I posted this to you, over on my thread too. I think it was worth repeating:

I am on the last 30 minutes of Kafka, Kimmers. I will find time to finish it tomorrow, on my day off. Waiting 10 years was a good idea, because I could not remember everything that happened, which is perfect.

Joe lent me his copy of Men Without Women. This is Murakami's latest story collection and I hope to bookhorn it in, in the coming weeks.

Have you read any of his short stuff?

Happy new thread, Kimmers.

That is a lovely sunset up top but the sun is certainly not setting on your threads this year. xx

Got my copy of Kafka from the library today. Gonna start it as soon as I get caught up on LT!

>35 johnsimpson: John -- ; )

>36 msf59: Mark--I have not read any of Murakami's short stuff. Ellen and I are tossing ideas back and forth for the next Murakami read. I will check with her and see if Men Without Women sounds good. I know I have The Windup Bird Chronicles here somewhere, but short stories would be really fun for a group read, too. Ellen?

>37 PaulCranswick: Good one, Paul! LOL.

>38 drneutron: Jim--Wait. What? No, no, no, no. No one is EVER caught up on LT. Just start Kafka. Go ahead. Open it. : )

>38 drneutron: and >39 Berly: *snork* Catching up on LT? That's getting up there with "read all the books on my shelves."

>40 nittnut: Exactly!! Ain't gonna happen. (And I might have a panic attack if it did.)

>39 Berly: Ha. Go on Jim, do what @Berly says. *smile*

Happy new one, Kim and wishing you a lovely day.

>42 karenmarie: Yeah!!

>43 Ameise1: Thanks. Hope your Thursday is going well. : )

Made it to the chiropractor yesterday. Not back to 100% yet, but making progress. I hadn't seen the guy in about 6 years, so that's not bad. Another appointment tomorrow.

Today I am going with daughter #2 to talk with her college advisor. They are discontinuing the degree she is going for in spring of 2018 and we have to see if she can complete the requirements by then. Or come up with a plan B. Sigh.

Way behind on reviews. Hope to get a few done this weekend!!

" Not back to 100% yet, but making progress." You are always a 100% in my book! Happy Friday, Kimmers.

Once again, thanks for the inspiration to revisit Kafka. I loved it...once again.

>45 msf59: Awwww! Thanks, Mark. Happy Friday to you. And you're welcome. Ellen gets credit, too. We got Murakami together at Powell's when she was down here last time. Our first read was the A Wild Sheep Chase. We are currently thinking Windup Bird Chronicles next. Novemberish. BAG

>44 Berly: Too bad about your daughter's degree. Usually, when they discontinue degrees, they grandfather in students already enrolled, allowing them to finish. Fingers crossed.

>47 BLBera: I think it will work out. At least there is a good chance. And the councilor talked about getting a tutor if there were only 1 or 2 kids left who needed particular class or making class substitutions if scheduling doesn't work out. Fingers crossed here, too. Thanks. She is all signed up for 3 classes this fall.

Hi, Kim.

I love the idea of a The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle group read in November. I'm in if it happens.

Howdy Kim! Excited about Windup in Novemberish.

>16 Berly: What a great lineup and congrats on the board.

>49 jnwelch: The Wind-up Bird Chronicles is on for November! Ellen is going to take the lead and put up this thread. Can't wait!

>50 luvamystery65: I am really excited to get to this one, especially since the current group read of Kafka has been so much fun. Glad to have you aboard!

And thanks! Super excited to be joining the Lit Arts Board. And I have signed up to help volunteer at WordStock which happens in November.

Hi Kim, congrats on being on the Patron Advisory Board my dear, i'm sure you will love it. Sending love and hugs dear friend.

Finally starting The Sixth Extinction. I am already dismayed.

"Today, amphibians enjoy the dubious distinction of being the world's most endangered class of animals...it is estimated that one-third of all reef building corals, a third of all fresh-water mollusks, a third of sharks and rays, a quarter of all mammals, a fifth of reptiles, and a sixth of all birds are headed toward oblivion." (p.18)

Hello Dear Kim

I think of you so often. I hope you are feeling well. I note you are reading some incredible books.

I'm glad to see that Dr. Mutter's Mavels is high on your list! It is an amazing story. I actually visited the museum a few years ago.

Linda is here!!! Yay! I have missed you a ton! : )

You are right--I have had a number of really good reads this year. It's hard not to with all the great recommendations here. Dr Mutter was one of them and I am so jealous you got to see the actual museum. If I ever get out that way again, I want to go.

Hope all is well with you. I will pop over to your thread and see if you've left us an update. Hugs.

>92 Berly: Well, at least it showed that it can still rain and it is also a bit cooler, at least here it is. I felt raindrops when I went for a walk but they were few and far between. It really doesn't seem that the rain did much good but will we remember this in a few months time when we are wondering when the rain will ever stop?

I'm never going to get caught up on your thread, but here's to good reading, Kim! Like Meg, I'm quite happy that it rained and we got rid of the smoke from the wildfires. But yes, I hardly know what to wear today!

Hi Berly! Sorry that the 1/10th of an inch ruined the dry spell record and didn't do any good.

>89 msf59: I remember my poor 8th grade English teacher trying to pound into our thick skulls the difference between plot and theme without actually defining them for us. She tried and tried and tried to extract what we thought The Good Earth byPearl Buck was about without telling the plot. It was painful for all of us.

Hey Twinnie - Sorry about the rain.

I LOVE In the Time of the Butterflies! People still talk about las Mariposas in the Dominican Republic. There's a film, too, but it's not very good.

Trying to catch up now that I am home. Enjoying discussion with majleavy.

>97 Berly: That must have been a painful class episode. It left some kind of impression on you, just not the one the teacher intended!

>97 Berly: That confusion still holds by the time my students hit 11th - in their minds, the theme is "the point" of it all, but when they can't figure out the plot, they ask, "what's the point?"

>100 Berly: Cool!

G'mornin', Kim.

Did I see somewhere that you're almost in the 100% totality for the solar eclipse? We're about 85%. The last one I remember that large was in Feb of 1979, where, as a college freshman, I watched it get darker and darker.

HS starts on Wed for niece and nephew (nephew will be a freshman and niece a junior). A good turnout for the girls' swim team, which started 2-a-days last Wed. Seems like every year, they're getting more freshmen than they're losing to senior graduation and underclassmen injuries. The first meet is on Aug 24 and I'm looking forward to that.

>93 BLBera: Lynda--Thanks. Hopefully her major will work out. Fingers crossed!! I hope your son has great fun with the Russian Major. Does he want to teach when he graduates? Or does he have another plan? Happy Monday!

>94 PaulCranswick: Michael--Excellent! When you say "it" do you mean And the Earth Did Not Devour Him? Let the know so I can get my hands on a copy and so we clue other people in. This will be fun! Thanks.

Now look who is excited! LOL. My RL Bookclub is reading In the Time Of Butterflies for August. That is also one of your books for teaching as I recall. So far, I am enjoying it very much. : )

>95 streamsong: Meg--Teh few raindrops that fell were just enough to ruin a longer record, but we did manage to finally cool down a bit. High of only 74 today--Yippee!! We can remind each other of our whining when we get rain, rain, rain, this fall and winter.

>96 ChelleBearss: Deb--It is so nice to see you round these parts again. : ) Don't worry about catching up. Just concentrate on figuring out your wardrobe!! LOL

>97 Berly: Karen--Your poor teacher. You poor kids!! It is painful when a teacher tries to lead the students to answers without giving the whole thing away...and yet nothing comes of it. ; )

>99 PaulCranswick: Hi Twin! Glad to hear you enjoyed the Butterflies, too. I think I will skip the film. Thanks for the heads up.

>100 Berly: Hi Lucy! Welcome back home. Glad you are enjoying the discussion: Michael is contributing far more than I am!

>101 msf59: Oh, and here is the man himself! Be nice to your 11th graders. LOL ; )

>102 Berly: Linda--99.6% for the Solar Eclipse on Monday. The only problem is that after all this sunshine and heat, we may be getting clouds and rain that day. Seriously?

Yay for HS swimming season!! Good luck to both your niece and nephew.

Reading The Sixth Extinction, I was surprised to learn that the theory of extraterrestrial (read comet) mass extinction was not put forth until 1981 (by the Alvarezes) and that it took another decade and a series of discoveries to win over many scientists. Don't get me wrong. We believed that the dinosaurs had been wiped out, but not by an extraterrestrial event and many still thought this extinction took place over a longer period of time and that it didn't necessarily affect other species. A single calamitous event causing mass extinction was new. To me, it seems like we have known this forever and was surprised it happened when I was a teen!

Just lurking. Hope your week is good. :)

Hi Jenn! Lurk away. It's nice to see you here. Are the kids getting excited for back to school? I always was. But then I was/am a nerd. I still want to go out and get new notebooks and pens and stuff. And clothes. But the other stuff first. : )

Oooh! I just got my ARC of Start Without Me by Joshua Max Feldman, author of The Book of Jonah!! It centers around two people who meet during the Thanksgiving holidays. It would be fun to read around that time, but I don't think I can wait that long.

Fun Fact: Feldman was born and raised in Amherst, MA where I went to college. : )

Hope the ARC goes well. New school stationary! Lovely. By the second week mine always looked like it had been through a terrible weather event. Think this is why I have a stash of untouched notebooks I don't want to write in!

Hi Kim!

I'm almost half-way through Kafka on the Shore and enjoying it (even when I'm not at all sure what's going on). I have the group read thread starred but I'm only reading up to the point I am in the book so probably won't comment there until I've finished.

>51 Berly: Definitely up for The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle in November!

Hi Berly!

I know what you mean about not being able to wait to read a book - we're discussing Born a Crime at September book club but I listened to it in July. I have every intention of re-listening to it, but we'll see if I can actually sit down and do it.

>103 msf59: By "it," I do mean "...atedndh." Worth noting for people, is that the standard edition contains both the original Spanish text as well as the authorized English translation - which adds a fun extra element for the appropriately bi-lingual.

>109 Berly: Charlotte--Well, it is nice to have a stash, unused and pristine. You can think about it when you need a pick-me-up. LOL

>110 LovingLit: Heather--Happy reading! Although I am finished, I keep checking back on the thread to see what other people have posted and to ask more questions. See you there, too, at some point! And in November for Wind-Up Bird Chronicles. ; )

>111 ffortsa: Karen--I remember you saying you just couldn't wait! BaC was soooo good wasn't it? You'll have a great time discussing that one, re-read or no.

>112 johnsimpson: Michael--I am inappropriately (for this book) more proficient in French. Ah well.

Happy Tuesday everyone!!

Book Bullet with The Sixth Extinction! I've had it on my wishlist for quite a while now, but your comments have just moved it up quite a few spaces. Perhaps it will be my audio as I travel down to totality for the eclipse (93% here where I live).

>89 msf59: majleavy: I would definitely be in if you do a tutored read!

I'm enjoying Kafka but reading slowly. It's an amazing book, and I'll be in for The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle, too.

I may be in Portland mid-September. My very talented cousin has an art exhibit opening September 14th at the Oregon Historical Society. I've never seen any of her shows and would love to go.

>114 majleavy: How far down are you traveling to see the eclipse?

Yay for another fan of the tutored (by majleavy) read of And the Earth Did Not Devour Him in 2018 and the WUBC in November!!

The art exhibit sounds very interesting. Do you know what the focus of her exhibit is? You'll have to let me know when you are down this way and if you can squeeze in time for Powell's and/or a meetup. : )

Hi, Kimmers! I am enjoying your thoughts on The Sixth Extinction. It is a good read, with plenty to chew on.

I am listening to Astrophysics for People in a Hurry and nearly finished with it. It is a shorty. You WILL LOVE IT! This is my first Tyson and a perfect introduction to him.

Hi Mark! Thanks. Of course you have already read it. And then what do you do? Try to shoot me with a book bullet on my own thread! LOL. Now that's a friend. : )

I know you like your science, my friend. My job here, is done...saunters off into the Midwestern sunset.

And there he goes. The Warbler.

LOL! I LOVE IT! I just snagged a copy of The Gene: An Intimate History, which I know Joe just warbled about too. I really wanted to read his cancer book too, but have not got to it.

>119 Berly: The darkening light is obscuring the beer mug in his right hand and the mail bag in his left.

>120 Berly: Mark--BAG!! I have The Gene around here somewhere. I want to get to it soon. Give me a heads up when you start and I'll try to wrangle it in. Because, yes!, Joe did such a good job warbling and I have to give credit to Darryl too. And it has been sitting on my shelf a while.

>121 vancouverdeb: Paul--you are so right. But what could I do? The sun was setting, The Warbler was leaving...I had to just grab the best shot I could.

: )

Frantically trying to clean house before BIL and family come for a visit Thursday night. Where does the time go?

>123 Berly: Well, don't do what I did and overdo the cleaning and decluttering! :) We have our furnace installers in on Friday for the entire day and I'm sure they will be in every room, checking that the new furnace works correctly. sigh.

>39 Berly: Whooops, totally missed that inquiry. I am finding myself wanting to read everything Murakami ever wrote so I'm totally up for whatever. I don't have a copy of Men Without Women (hey, that is also the title of a work by Hemingway) and I do have a copy of The Windup Bird Chronicle. But I can be persuaded. :-)

BTW, I've started reading Master and Margarita. But it won't be a quick read.

>124 BLBera: Okay. I won't clean out my closet or get rid of any of my clothes!! LOL Good luck on Friday; I hope the new furnace works great. And they installers won't care what your place looks like.

>125 Berly: I saw that Hemingway also used that title!! Well, since we both have TWBC and everyone is psyche for that one, let's do November and then see where we go next!! I don't think I want to do one every month, but I can see a steady stream of them in the future.

>126 Familyhistorian: I haven't budged on the library wait list. Sadness.

"The sun was setting, The Warbler was leaving...I had to just grab the best shot I could."

^This brought a tear to my eye. Sniffs...

>119 Berly: Love it! Does Kim get a ninja outline to go with it? (I may have misunderstood what TKD actually involves. Sorry).

Hi, Kim. I'm glad Darryl's and my warbling encouraged you on The Gene. Can't wait to hear what you think of it.

>128 karenmarie: There, there...

>129 nittnut: You mean like this? : ) Good morning!



>130 Berly: It was already on my list and in the piles--you guys have just kept it near the top!! LOL

Hey Twinnie - The Sixth Extinction sounds interesting. :( that your waitlist isn't moving.

>131 jessibud2: Now I know that is not the Postie with the Mostie!

>115 PaulCranswick: My eclipse-watching plans are that I hope to be meeting up with my brother and sister-in-law in Jackson Hole and the Grand Tetons Park (about six hours south of here). My plans aren't going very well though. I'm having trouble finding critter sitters since the usual suspects have taken temporary jobs at fire camps.

My cousin's name is Helen Brown. Her exhibit at the historical society focuses on Lewis and Clark. Here are images on her website: http://www.hbrownart.com/lewis-clark-series/

>123 Berly: hope the cleaning went well. Not my favourite thing! I am in need a massive closet clean out but have been putting it off for a very long time.

>132 Berly: Beth--I am very much enjoying The Sixth Extinction. If you are into science or history at all, it's a winner! I know. Boo on the waitlist. I might have to go but The Master and the Margarita if the line doesn't move soon!

>133 drneutron: What's wrong with my post?! : (

>134 lindapanzo:. I hope you find a critter sitter!!! I love Jackson Hole and the Grand Tetons. Man, that would be cool. Good luck.

I like your cousin's work--my favorite is the Buffalo! That would be fun to see her stuff on display.

>135 Berly:. OH! Don't get me started on closets. NOT tackling that right now. I still have the main room and kitchen area left, but since those get messed up so quickly, I thought I'd save those for the last minute and have the kids help me. Whew!

>133 drneutron: The Postie with the Mostie is Mark, Kimmers not your post. I just don't see him getting his leg up quite that high!

>138 nittnut: Gotcha. Mark has the most posts, and he can't get his leg up that high -- it must be me high up on that rock!! LOL

>139 vancouverdeb: Hey, stop picking on me. I agree, my flexibility is a liability but I have other charms.

>140 PaulCranswick: Yes, you do. : )

I just did a quiz on Rosalita's thread and I am a Dedicated Reader. Yup!!

>143 Berly: Going over to Julia's to see how Dedicated a Reader I am too.

>143 Berly: I am also a dedicated reader, but that's no surprise because we are twins, right?

>144 msf59: You could be an Obsessive-Compulsive Bookworm, Paul, like me :-)

>143 Berly:, I couldn't find the quiz on Julia's thread and I looked at the one you found but as it is an American site and the questions were mainly for Americans I could not go ahead but I believe I am a dedicated reader.

Hope your week is going well my dear and send love and hugs to you and the family.

>144 msf59: So what was the verdict? Dedicated reader? Obsessive-Compulsive Bookworm> Other?

>145 karenmarie: Of course! Twinnie.

>146 majleavy: Yeah! Nice job on the OCB.

>147 Carmenere: I will give you a bye and second your nomination for Dedicated Reader. ; )

Hey Berly,

Just checking in. In-between transcribing interviews.....my second interview was 55 minutes, involved three people, i.e. every second od the 55 minutes was filled with talk. And it is taking me ages to transcribe. Usually its 4x the interview time to transcribe it, this one is longer.

>137 EBT1002: Don't get me started on closets. NOT tackling that right now.
So, what exactly is in your closet....? ;) Sounds like a lot of secrets.

>105 PaulCranswick: Speaking of things we thought we knew all along, I was shocked to find out that the whole idea of plate techtonics was fairly new - somewhere in the 20th century. Ok, maybe we didn't know the mechanism before that, but the fit across the globe was obvious to me as a grade school student. Maybe it's because my dad and I did so many jigsaw puzzles.

Hi Kim, hope you have had good week my dear and hope you have a great weekend dear friend, sending love and hugs.

>80 Berly: I think there is a list of tutored reads on the Wiki. As I recall, Lyzard taught a few, so you might check her thread. I'd really be interested in what you have to teach us.

>152 cameling: Thanks for the info!

Hi, Kim!

>148 Berly: I was the same as you Kimmers!

Have a wonderful weekend dear lady. xx

>107 FAMeulstee: The kids say they are not excited for school. I don't know if I buy that. They are getting pretty bored. My youngest started today, but the funny part is that I didn't realize that today was the first day of school. I thought it was Monday until last night, when I realized that was not the case. Mom for the win! I am looking forward to a week of just my daughter home for most of the day. I don't get a lot of one on one time with her, and it should be fun.

>143 Berly: *running off to Julia's thread* Bye!!

Lucky you being where the total eclipse happens. We will get to see quite a bit of it here too. Hope you are enjoying the cooler weather.

Hi Berly!

>143 Berly: Literate Good Citizen. Huh. I think I missed out on Obsessive-Compulsive Bookworm because I don't take books with me hardly at all any more when I have to wait at post offices or the doctor's office or whatever - I read news and etc. on my cell phone then.

I hope you're having a good day!

>149 Berly: Megan--That must have taken forever to transcribe! But hopefully you got some good material out of it.

In my closet? Nothing. No really...nothing...

>150 Carmenere: Another good example! And our base of knowledge keeps increasing at an astronomical rate. Now if only our politics would catch up...

>151 Berly: Hi, John!

>152 cameling: >153 Berly: Thanks, Judy. I couldn't remember Lyzard's name. Michael--looking forward to a tutored read, but lead it any ol' way you want!

>154 EBT1002: Paul--You are a Dedicated Reader for sure!! Good luck tomorrow with the tooth. I hate going to the dentist. : (

>155 jnwelch: Jenn--You caught that start date in the nick of time! LOL. I hope you enjoy your alone time with your daughter. It's nice to have that. Did you take the quiz? : )

>156 Berly: Meg--I am very excited for the eclipse!!! We are at 99.6% in my zip code. I know that isn't a total eclipse, but it is close enough for me. I don't want to pay the exorbitant prices to stay overnight an hour south of me in order to get to 100%, nor do I want to deal with the traffic. I think it is going to be gridlocked. People are crazy around here for this event!! Nope. I am going to walk to the field at our nearby school, with a blanket and my glasses and enjoy. : )



Monday 10:19am!!!

>157 cameling: Karen--Well, obviously you can't be OC if you don't bring a book with you to the post office! What are you thinking! ; ) I really should try a podcast to two, but I don't have enough time as it is. Sigh. Happy Saturday.

A dedicated reader here! We are not much in the path of the solar eclipse in my part of Canada.

<159 My friend Ruta is somewhere near St. Louis Obispo at the moment, and she says it's like a ghost town - everyone has headed north for the eclipse. She's moving to NYC soon, so she has plenty to do getting rid of stuff (we all know that song, but she's good at it). The remnant that stayed behind is playing poker tonight. Sounds good to me.

This weekend with the cousins (who are 12 and 9) has included Lazertag, Legoland, lots of eating, Sky High trampolines, the zoo and more eating! Off to brunch with everyone then they are going out somewhere while I grocery shop and get stuff ready for the BBQ at my house tonight. Keep my thread warm while I'm gone okay? ; )

Have fun, Twinnie.

>160 Berly: I am sure the eclipse will be in the news and so you can watch it that way, you Didicated Reader, you!!

>161 Berly: So you have a friend moving to NYC? Now that will be fun! Poker does sound good...another night though. Don't want to corrupt the my young nieces and nephews too soon!

>163 msf59: Thanks! A brief respite before they all show up for dinner. : )

Hmm, I seem to remember another total eclipse of the sun. If the words to You're So Vain are correct, wasn't the best place to view it in Nova Scotia?

>160 Berly: Maybe not in the direct path, Deb, but 90% ain't bad.

Ooh, lazertag is so much fun! Much better than paintball because at least it's indoors, you don't get rained on and the zaps from the lasers don't hurt like getting shot from a paintgun sometimes can.

and what's on the bbq menu for dinner ... a curious stomach inquires.

Hi Berly! I hope your 99.6% is exciting. We're in the 93% range, good enough for me. My husband poked holes in one piece of cardboard and cut another the same size for me to view, took me outside yesterday to show me how to safely and properly view the eclipse, then recommended going outside every 15 minutes starting about 1:30 - 1:45 to get the entire experience. Not sure I'll do all that, but still, it was very sweet of him. He has to work today.

Regarding children and poker - I have lots of fond memories of visiting Dad's cousin Pat, his wife, and daughter/husband/kids, and us all playing poker around their dining room table when I was young, certainly before my teenage years. Every child who could articulate got to choose the game when it was her/his turn, so we played everything from 7-card stud to no-see-'em. Adults helped children, lots of fun and hilarity.

>159 banjo123: I took the quiz. I am a dedicated reader (of course) but I found that I could tick more than one box on more than one question, so I am not sure how that affects my results. I mean, a question like the one that asked if we had read all the books on a series of lists, and we could only tick one list? Sigh.

I am looking forward to watching the eclipse with the kids. We have viewing boxes and glasses, although if the kids try the glasses I am going to have them sort of glance past, swoosh, rather than look straight at it.

Ready to celebrate this awesome event!!



This is the sun just before the eclipse starts...



Chairs set up 100 feet from our front door



And glasses on!!



Taken with my iPhone camera with the special sunglasses covering the lens



Through the glasses...



Eclipse!!



It was so awesome!! 99.6% eclipse here in Portland. The temperature dropped. The colors got all weird and very blue. We saw stars in the sky. The street lamps came on. We could the sun's corona shadows rippling on the ground. Just amazing!! WOW!!

It is such a steamy hot day here in Toronto today that although they were saying that the temperature dropped here, too, I don't believe it for a moment. I opened my front door, to check and that blast furnace of heat still hit me. I went back to watching live coverage on tv (I don't have the visual protection to watch outside). We only had 70-something % here and it is officially over now. So happy that you got to see so much of it!

I think the temperature only drops significantly if the % blockage is really high. I am still sitting here watching the recorded coverage on TV. : )

>169 jnwelch: Cool!

It was hot and muggy here. A few dozen co-workers and I went outside after 1 pm. Thick clouds but, about 1:15, near the peak here (which was about 86%), the clouds thinned for a moment and we quickly passed around the glasses and saw the eclipse. It was amazing.

Still hot and humid but it did seem darker than it ordinarily would, even with that kind of cloud cover.

>173 johnsimpson: Glad you got to go outside and catch a glimpse!! We voted to take the day off of work. Lots of coworkers made the trek down to Salem or elsewhere for the Totality.

>172 charl08: Damn right!!!

Watched our news reporting on your eclipse enthusiasm. Local mayor in the path saying goes they'd known nothing about it until 'the scientists' started booking rooms - ten years ago ! Talk about everyone planning ahead! Love your prep for the watching session. I saw a partial one years and years ago and it was very weird everything went dark and rather creepy. Can imagine why folk pre-science got so worked up about it having deeper meanings.

>169 jnwelch: Awesome!

We are in the 92% range and I hadn't really done anything about it..... Well, there were dozens of folks out on red square here on campus and folks were happily sharing their glasses. I got to look at it quite a bit and it was really amazing. LOTS of people took the day off here, I think, as the light rail was really uncrowded this morning.

I'm bummed that you haven't gotten your copy of Master and Margarita yet. I think you had texted me a while back that you were something like # 5 in the queue and you said "hurry up!" and I thought you meant that you were just about to get your copy and I should hurry up and finish Kafka on the Shore..... I think now that you were talking to the queue....

Anyway, I'm a bit more than halfway through.

We got rain. There was a thunderstorm right over Greensboro. Good grief. We had to drive south about 20 miles. We found an obliging church parking lot, and caught a glimpse. Kids had a look and were done. *shrug* At least we got to see it. I thought it was so cool how the color of the air changed and got kind of fuzzy and it cooled off so much. Now it's bright and sunny.

Wow! FAbulous pictures of the eclipse, Kim! It makes up for the fact that I did not view - my own fault as I was inside ( and I did not have any eclipse glasses.

>169 jnwelch: Wow! I was watching it on the news last night here. It must be quite a feeling having the sun disappear for a short while and all going colder and dark.

Happy Total Eclipse Day, Kimmers. I love your photos up there. It was cloudy here, in Chicagoland, so that sapped some of our enjoyment, but I did see it briefly, so I am pleased with that.

I am nearly sixty pages into Master and Margarita. Pretty impressive so far...

Your eclipse experience sounds fabulous. Nothing quite so cool here. Great photos.

I will probably still be reading Master and Margarita when you get your copy from the library.

>175 rosalita: Apparently there was a guy here in Oregon who bought land like 25 (?) years ago to build a house just to watch this eclipse from. He installed a telescope in his attic and invited lot of friends to come celebrate with him. Can you imagine if it had been cloudy?

I totally get how older civilizations read deep, soul meanings into solar events of this magnitude. And why not use it as a moment to reevaluate? How small are we next to amazing celestial events like this?!

>176 ffortsa: Glad you got a chance to borrow some glasses and have a peek. So cool!!! I am still #5 on two copies at the library. Sigh. Maybe I can sneak off to Powell's and find a cheap copy.

>177 jessibud2: Well, I am glad you found a backup location with better weather. I thought the changes in the lighting and the change in temperature were so amazing, at least as cool as seeing the moon blocking the sun's silhouette.

>178 BLBera: Glad you did not look since you didn't have the right eye protection!! Glad you enjoyed my brief celebration of the event here. : )

>179 lkernagh: I loved it! Definitely memorable.

>180 Berly: Glad you got to enjoy the eclipse, at least a little. : ) I don't have my copy of The M&M yet. : (

>181 humouress: I hope someone is still reading it when I finally get a copy!! At least I can go back and read the comments on Ellen's thread.

Bummer on waiting for M & M. I might want to own a copy of this one. Just sayin'...

Hi Berly!

I'm glad you had such a great experience with the eclipse. I didn't have glasses for it (what was I thinking?) but it got darkish, a bit eerie, and that was cool.

Greetings. I had to miss the eclipse. The Los Angeles school district locked all of its students in the buildings, unless they had a permission slip to see it and were equipped with NASA-approved glasses.

I admire your enthusiasm over the eclipse, Kim! Maybe if we sprung for the glasses I would be. I maybe now's the time to buy glasses for 2024! It looks like Cleveland is near the 100% totality range :0)

>183 Mark--Good to know...now if I can find the time to get to a bookstore....

>184 Karen--Clearly you weren't thinking!! LOL. I thought the atmosphere was the coolest part because I could turn to the TV for the images of the sun and moon, but TV couldn't capture the change in lighting or the shadows very well. Glad you got to enjoy it!

>185 Michael--Sorry you had to miss it, but good move on your school's part. I hope people protected their eyes.

>186 They say the glasses are only good for 3 years, so you might want to wait until 2024. LT meet-up in Cleveland?! : )

I finished a graphic novel, This One Summer. It wasn't fantasy, but kinda dark and I didn't enjoy it all that much to be frank. I can't tell if it was because I needed something lighter content-wise or because I found it rather hard to read on my computer--the print was very small. Perhaps a little of both. The plot revolves around two girls who have summered together for years by the beach. This summer they grow apart as one of them deals with more adult issues and family drama. I gave it a 3.0 but it was a A New York Times bestseller, a 2015 Caldecott Honor Book, a 2015 Michael L. Printz Honor Book and an Eisner Award Winner. So what do I know?

>186 Ohhhh! Thanks for that insight, Kim! 4/8/24 could be a meet up in the making!

>189 Awesome!! Remind me when we get a little closer. My calendar doesn't go out that far. LOL

>188 I think you may have enjoyed it more in print form. I read this in a bookstore while I was waiting for the hubster and dark thought it was, I thought it was good.

Caro--Bummer. That means I missed out. Well, thank you for the insight. I think that will be the last GN I read on the computer. Also, was it in B&W or color in print format? It was just B&W on the computer.

>182 "Maybe I can sneak off to Powell's and find a cheap copy." Yes!

>188 Oh, too bad, Kim. I'm a fan of the Tamakis and This One Summer. It is kinda dark, but it really worked for me. I sure can understand a book's mood hitting you at the wrong time, though.

I don't read graphic novels on computer - they lose a lot. Not long from now, you know we're going to have better e-reading available when it comes to graphics. But not yet, IMO.

>193 Gave in and bought a copy. The upside of back-to-school shopping with my son at the mall. : )



>194 I think it was a double whammy. Wrong time and wrong platform. I am going to stick to GNs in the flesh, or rather on paper. Oh well...

>192 I second Joe's comment about not reading GNs on a computer or Kindle. They don't translate well in that medium, I have found, not even Manga. This One Summer in print was in washed color.

So, you posted this on the M&M thread, I responded, and then I looked at your thread and for a minute I thought I responded to someone else. I guess I should go to bed.

Hi Kim! The eclipse was really cool, wasn't it?

>196 Dang it!! Nope. Black and white on my computer. A disservice to This One Summer I am sure. Not using the computer again for GNs.

>197 Good night, Twin!! LOL

>198 The eclipse was AMAZING!! Did you enjoy it?

Just got my latest Powell's INDIEspenable Book: The Burning Girl: A Novel by Claire Messud. It sounds really good! From Amazon:

A bracing, hypnotic, coming-of-age story about the bond of best friends, from the New York Times best-selling author of The Emperor’s Children.
Julia and Cassie have been friends since nursery school. They have shared everything, including their desire to escape the stifling limitations of their birthplace, the quiet town of Royston, Massachusetts. But as the two girls enter adolescence, their paths diverge and Cassie sets out on a journey that will put her life in danger and shatter her oldest friendship.
Claire Messud, one of our finest novelists, is as accomplished at weaving a compelling fictional world as she is at asking the big questions: To what extent can we know ourselves and others? What are the stories we create to comprehend our lives and relationships? Brilliantly mixing fable and coming-of-age tale, The Burning Girl gets to the heart of these matters in an absolutely irresistible way.
“Messud’s prose grabs the reader by the collar.”―New York Times Book Review
“Adept at evoking complex psychological territory.”―The New Yorker
“Messud writes about happiness, and about infatuation―about love―more convincingly than any author I’ve encountered in years.”―NPR

And also a really cool Powell's mug. : )

Just chiming in on the reading GNs on electronic devices - the only one that survived this on my b&w kindle was John Lewis' bio, and that was only because I couldn't get hold of it in print, and it was such a great story. But I'm sure I missed out on some of the graphic punch because of the medium.

>195 I love that cover. Can't say I loved the book, but I've certainly remembered it, and am tempted to buy it in that edition just for beautiful shelf value!

>200 The name sounds familiar, but I don't think I've read anything by her. Look forward to hearing more.

>195 Hooray for buckling to the pressure! Cool cover too! I had mixed feelings about Messud's last book, so I will have to see what my fellow LTers think before committing.

**^Wrong touchstone. Just sayin'...

I love the idea of getting a surprise package every month. I might have to treat myself...

I bought a Powell's mug and drink coffee from it almost every morning. Good memories.

Hi guys. ^^ ER Hospital visit last night for GI stuff. A wreck today. Going back to bed. Zzzzzzzzz

>204 Oh no! Hope the recovery is quick.

>105 PaulCranswick: My wife was impressed by that book but I have failed myself in not following up and reading it. truthfully I think I would find it too depressing. I would have thought the theory would have been around a while also. Even the most obvious things however can be relatively new. One of the last college classes I took in the 74-75 school year at UC Davis was a geology one taught by a guy named James Valentine. It was all about his then revolutionary theories with continental drift! I had some great teachers in my last couple years at Davis.

Yuck. Sorry to hear that. I hope you're resting well and back to normal soon.

Hope you are feeling better now. Ugh.

HS swim season starts today, at least the competitive portion of the season. I'm going to Jill's dual meet this afternoon. She is doing her two "off" events, fly and back, along with two relays.

They are a very sophomore/freshman heavy team so it'll be interesting.

Hope the GI situation gets way better for you, Kim. ER: that had to be major.

Hope the GI situation gets better for you, Kim. ER: that had to be major.

>204 oh no! I hope you're okay.

Kim, hope you're on the road to recovery now. Sounds unpleasant.

Hi Kim, hope you are recovering ok my dear, ER means it had to be major. Sending love and hugs from both of us dear friend.

>204 Hope you're feeling better, Kim. For sure, you're getting closer to the time you will feel better.

Feel better soon, Kim!

Oh no. Another ER trip. I hope you're feeling better today.

Jim is a comic book aficionado, and recently began to read them on his tablet, which is a great advantage to him. I assume it would work equally well with GFs. Maybe you need a special reader app for them?

Hope you are bouncing back quickly, Kim!

Get better soon, Twinnie. A hug for you. Take care.

Hey Kim! I have finally managed to make my way over here to get caught up. Happy new thread! Yup, the smoke from the wildfires have been giving us some pretty sunsets (and sunrises). Too bad that is the only upside to the burning. ;-(

>16 Berly: - Congrats!

Rain is on my weather wishlist. None in the forecast so far....

>169 jnwelch: - Looks like you had a great eclipse watching day! I had the day off and enjoyed it as well. Victoria was in the 90% and I was really surprised that while the light level did dim, it was still really quite light out at the peak of the eclipse. Still, pretty cool to witness.

Sorry to read about the trip to the hospital for GI stuff. Hope you are feeling better.

Hi Guys! I love, love, love that you all kept my thread warm for me and I really appreciate the good wishes. I am back to about 85% healthy, just still a little tired. So to lighten my load and leave this all behind...it's time for a new thread!!

I have to get it going first....

: )

>169 jnwelch: WOW!

>204 Sorry to hear that.