Mamie's 2018 Madness (Page 11)

I adore these little hardback Puffin Classics - I am collecting them, and they look so gorgeous all lined up on the shelf.

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Books Read in April:
40. Women & Power: A Manifesto by Mary Beard (4 stars), 2018 acquired hardback, non-fiction/essays/feminism - recommended by Charlotte
41. A Room of One's Own by Virginia Woolf, narrated by Juliet Stevenson (5 stars), 2018 acquired audiobook, non-fiction/essays/feminism - recommended by Joe
42. The Hounds of Spring by Lucy Andrews Cummin (5 stars), 2018 acquired paperback, contemporary fiction/utterly delightful
43. The Wendy Project by Melissa Jane Osborne, Illustrated by Veronica Fish (3.5 stars), paperback borrowed from Abby, GN/grief/fairy tale retelling
44. The Dark Angel by Elly Griffiths (4 stars), traveling paperback sent by Katie and going to Beth next, crime fiction/mystery (Ruth Galloway, book 10)

Books Read in March:
23. Not My Father's Son by Alan Cumming, narrated by Alan Cumming (4.5 stars) 2017 acquired audiobook. non-fiction/memoir/abuse - Katie's Dirty Dozen
24. The Strange Death of Fiona Griffiths by Harry Bingham (4.5 stars), 2017 acquired ebook, crime fiction/police procedural (Fiona Griffiths series, book 3)
25. Pictures at a Revolution: Five Movies and the Birth of the New Hollywood by Mark Harris (4.5 stars), 2014 acquired paperback, non-ficiton/film history
26. Slow Horses by Mick Heron, narrated by Gerard Doyle (5 stars), 2018 acquired audiobook, crime fiction/espionage (Slough House, book 1) - recommended by Charlotte and Deborah
27. The Lady Vanishes by Ethel Lina White (3.5 stars), 2016 acquired ebook, crime fiction/mystery - recommended by Heather
28. How to Build a Girl by Caitlin Moran, narrated by Louise Brealey (5 stars), 2017 acquired audiobook, contemporary fiction/coming of age
29. Binti by Nnedi Okorafor (4 stars), 2016 acquired ebook, sci-fi/space opera (Binti, book 1) - recommended by Joe
30. Acceptance by Jeff VanderMeer (4 stars), 2017 acquired paperback, weird fiction (Southern Reach, book 3)
31. Anne of Green Gables by Lucy Maude Montgomery, narrated by Rachel McAdams (4.5 stars), 2017 acquired audiobook, juvenile fiction/classic (Anne of Green Gables, book 1)
32. MI5 and Me: A Coronet Among the Spooks by Charlotte Bingham (3 stars), 2018 acquired ebook, non-fiction/memoir - saw this mentioned on Charlotte's thread and loved the quotes she posted from it
33. Brazen: Rebel Ladies Who Rocked the World by Pénélope Bagleu (5 stars), paperback borrowed from Birdy, GN/non-fiction/history, translated - recommended by Charlotte
34. Octopussy and The Living Daylights by Ian Fleming, narrated by Tom Hiddleston (4 stars), 2018 acquired audiobook, short stories/crime fiction/espionage (James Bond, book 14)
35. Chitty Chitty Bang Bang by Ian Fleming, narrated by David Tennant (3 stars), 2018 acquired audiobook, juvenile fiction
36. Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy by John le Carré (5 stars), 2013 acquired paperback (also listened to the 2017 acquired audiobook), crime fiction/espionage (George Smiley novels, book 5)
37. A Rage in Harlem by Chester Himes, narrated by Samuel Jackson (4.5 stars), 2018 acquired audiobook, crime fiction/noir (Harlem Cycle, book 1)
38. How to Cheat a Dragon's Curse by Cressida Cowell, narrated by David Tennant (4 stars), 2017 acquired audiobook, juvenile fiction (How to Train Your Dragon, book 4)
39. The Moneypenny Diaries: Guardian Angel by Kate Westbrook (4 stars), 2015 acquired ebook, crime fiction/espionage (The Moneypenny Diaries, book 1)

I am planning on walking the cat again this year. That is, I am just going to go where my reading takes me. I am not committing to any challenges except for Katie’s PopReadHarderSugarEtc.Challenges 2018

Books Read in January:
1. Blizzard of Glass: The Halifax Explosion of 1917 by Sally M. Walker (4 stars), library hardback, YA non-fiction/history - mentioned on Julia's thread last year in reference to the 100 year anniversary of the incident
2. March: Book Two by John Lewis, Andrew Aydin, and Nate Powell (5 stars), library paperback, GN non-fiction/memoir/Civil Rights Movement
3. Artemis by Andy Weir (4 stars), 2017 acquired audiobook, sci-fi
4. You Gotta Get Bigger Dreams by Alan Cumming, narrated by Alan Cumming (4.5 stars), 2018 purchased audiobook, non-fiction/vignettes with selfies
5. The Princess Diarist by Carrie Fisher, narrated by Carrie Fisher and Billy Lourd (4 stars), 2018 acquired audiobook - recommended by Mark
6. The White Album by Joan Didion (4 stars), 2017 acquired ebook, non-fiction/essays
7. The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde (3.8 stars), 2012 or earlier acquired paperback, gothic fiction/classic
8. Ties by Domenico Starnone (4 stars), library paperback, literary fiction/relationships - recommended by Lynda, translation
9. God Stalk by P. C. Hodgell (4 stars), 2017 acquired ebook, fantasy - recommended by Roni and read for her GR of it
10. The Jaguar's Children by John Vaillant (4.5 stars), library hardback, contemporary fiction/illegal immigration - recommended by Katie
11. Nightblind by Ragnar Jonasson (3 stars), 2017 acquired ebook, crime fiction/police procedural (Dark Iceland series, book 2), translation

Books Read in February:
12. The Dying Detective by Leif GW Persson (4 stars), library hardback, crime fiction/police procedural (Johansson and Jarnebring series, book 8) - recommended by Charlotte, translation
13. The Year of Magical Thinking by Joan Didion (4.5 stars), library hardback, non-fiction/grief
14. The Girl With All the Gifts by M. R. Carey, narrated by Finty Williams (5 stars), 2017 acquired audiobook, dystopian/zombies - recommended by Mark
15. Chimes at Midnight by Seanan McGuire (4 stars), 2017 acquired ebook, urban fantasy (October Daye series, book seven)
16. March: Book Three by John Lewis, Andrew Aydin, Nate Powell (5 stars), library hardback, non-fiction/The Civil Rights Movement
17. A World Gone Mad: The Diaries of Astrid Lindgren 1939-45 by Astrid Lindgren (4.25 stars), 2016 acquired hardback, non-fiction/diary/WWII, translation
18. Greenglass House by Kate Milford (4 stars), library hardback, juvenile fiction/mystery - recommended by Amber
19. A Vindication of the Rights of Woman by Mary Wollstonecraft, narrated by Fiona Shaw with Jonathan Keeble (4 stars), 2017 acquired audiobook, non-fiction/feminism
20. On Tyranny by Timothy Snyder (4.5 stars), 2018 acquired ebook, non-fiction/democracy - recommended by Joanne
21. The Cold, Cold Ground by Adrian McKinty (4.5 stars), 2018 acquired audiobook, crime fiction/police procedural - recommended by Charlotte
22. My Favorite Thing is Monsters by Emil Ferris (4.5 stars), library paperback, GN - recommended by Mark and Joe

Katie’s Dirty Dozen - That’s right, folks, KAK’s reserved spot is back for a fourth year, let’s see what she gets me with this time

1. The North Water by Ian McGuire - Mark and Judy loved this one, too. And also Richard, though a weentsy tidge less.
2. Brother, I'm Dying by Edwidge Danticat

From 2017:
1. Everyday people by Stewart O'Nan (linked short stories)
2. Exit West by Mohsin Hamid
3. Wait Till Next Year by Doris Kearns Goodwin (memoir)
4. The Golden Legend by Nadeem Aslam
5. Personal History by Katherine Graham
6. Snow Treasure by Marie McSwigan
7. Taft by Ann Patchett
8. Dear Fahrenheit 451 by Annie Spence
9. Alias Grace by Margaret Atwood
10. The Lost Book of the Grail by Charlie Lovett
11. Snow in August by Pete Hamill - Katie mentioned how much she loved this one over on the AAC thread after Mark had posted the list for next year

From 2016:
1. Kamchatka by Marcelo Figueras
2. Destiny of the Republic by Candace Millard
3. The Book of Unknown Americans by Cristina Henríquez - seconded by Charlotte and Susan
4. In the Walled City by Stewart O'Nan COMPLETED 8/12/16 3.8 stars
5. My Reading Life by Pat Conroy - she recommended the audio, and don't speed it up
6. Nobody's Fool by Richard Russo COMPLETED 7/21/16 5 stars
7. Ruby by Cynthia Bond - seconded by Charlotte
8. Not My Father's Son by Alan Cumming - she recommends the audio read by Cummings himself COMPLETED 3/01/18 4.5 stars
9. Songs for the Missing by Stewart O'Nan
10. Jane Steele by Lyndsay Faye - Roberta also loved this, Katie says the audio is great, purchased 5/15/16
11. The Jaguar's Children by John Vaillant COMPLETED 1/2018 4.5 stars
12. Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi COMPLETED 10/2/16 5 stars
13. Breath, Eyes, Memory by Edwidge Danticat - she pointed out that this was only $1.99 on Kindle and that it was one of her very favorites, purchased 7/13/16
14. Tribal: College Football and the Secret Heart of America by Diane Roberts
15. Manhood for Amateurs by Michael Chabon
16. Nutshell by Ian McEwan COMPLETED 1/2017 5 stars
17. Black River by S. M. Hulse

AND, from 2015:
1. The Mermaids Singing by Lisa Carey ($1.99 on Kindle), purchase on 2/18/15 COMPLETED 8/19/16 5 stars
2. Bright's Passage by Josh Ritter (2.99 on Kindle), purchased on 2/23/15
3. The Tilted World by Tom Franklin and Beth Ann Fennelly ($3.79 on Kindle), purchased on 3/31/15 COMPLETED 11/7/15 4.2 stars
4. Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant by Anne Tyler ($12.77 trade paperback), purchased on 4/1/15, COMPLETED read for Mark's AAC in January 2016, 4.25 stars
5. Paradise Alley by Kevin Baker ($.99 on Kindle), purchased on 4/9/15 - second book in a series, first book Dreamland was recommended by Katie and purchased last year
6. Endurance: Shackleton's Incredible Voyage by Alfred Lansing - used an Audible credit COMPLETED 6/16/15 4.9 stars
7. Academy Street by Mary Costello ($9.99 on Kindle), purchased on 6/12/15 COMPLETED 7/2/16 5 stars
8. Just Like Heaven by Julia Quinn ($5.99 on Kindle), purchased on 8/28/15
9. Sweetland by Michael Crummey ($.99 on Kindle), purchased 9/5/15 COMPLETED 11/19/15 4.5 stars
10. If You Only Knew by Kristan Higgins ($7.99 on Kindle), purchased on 10/26/15

Susan’s Summer Shivers - Susan’s suggestions for some cold reading during the hot summer, which lasts about 9 months in Georgia

1. The Terror by Dan Simmons
2. The Abominable by Dan Simmons

Every year, LT is an embarrassment of riches for me. I like to keep track of who recommends what and any other pertinent info that lands a book on The List.

1. Curse of the Narrows by Laura m. MacDonald - about the Halifax explosion of 1917. Recommended by Bonnie, Meg, and Susan
2. Greenglass House by Kate Milford - recommended by Amber (she gave it an A!) COMPLETED 4 stars
3. In America: Travels With John Steinbeck by Geert Mak - recommended by Anita
4. The Miniaturist by Jessie Burton - recommended by Barbara
5. Darktown by Thomas Mullen - Jim, and he says the second book Lightning Men is just as good
6. The Book of Dust by Philip Pullman, audio narrated by Michael Sheen - recommended by Traci
7. Number 17 by Jefferson Farjeon - Harry recommended this series on his thread
8. Lillian Boxfish Takes a Walk by Kathleen Rooney - recommended by Lisa (jonesli)
9. Slow Horses by Mick Herron - recommended by Deborah and Charlotte COMPLETED 5 stars
10. The City of Falling Angels by John Berendt - recommended by Carrie
11. Lily and the Octopus by Steven Rowley - recommended by Caro
12. For the Time Being: A Christmas Oratorio by W.H. Auden - recommended by Christina
13. Under Another Sky: Journeys in Roman Britain by Charlotte Higgins - recommended by Beth
14. The Good People by Hannah Kent - recommended by Bonnie
15. Good Morning, Midnight by Lily Brooks-Dalton - recommended by Shannon
16. How to Build an Android The True Story of Philip K Dick's Robotic Resurrection by David F. Dufty - recommended by Victoria
17. The Confession by Jo Spain - recommended by Susan (Irish noir, she says!!)
18. Four-Day Planet by H. Beam Piper - recommended by Richard
19. Black Hammer by Jeff Lemire - recommended by Jim (GN)
20. Hedy's Folly by Richard Rhodes - Jim again (the doctor is IN)
21. The Wandering Falcon by Pakistani author Jamil Ahmad - recommended by Judy - interlinked short stories
22. Exposure by Helen Dunmore - recommended by Anne
23. Silent Days, Silent Dreams by Allen Say - recommended by Richard
24. Dead Wake by Erik Larson - recommended by Karen
25. The Passage by Justin Cronin - recommended by Lori (ikernagh)
26. Drawing From Memory by Allen Say - recommended by Richard
27. A Catalog of Birds by Laura Harrington - recommended by Beth
28. The Largesse of the Sea Maiden: Stories by Denis Johnson - recommended by Mark
29. The Twelve-Mile Straight by Eleanor Henderson - recommended by Susan, it's Southern Gothic
30. Autonomous by Annalee Newitz - recommended by pammab
31. Brazen: Rebel Ladies Who Rocked the World by Pénélope Bagieu - recommended by Charlotte (GN) COMPLETED 5 stars
32. Women and Power by Mary Beard - recommended by Charlotte COMPLETED 4 stars
33. Go Down Together: The True Untold Story of Bonnie and Clyde by Jeff Guinn - recommended by Mark and Jim
34. Twenty Thousand Streets Under The Sky by Patrick Hamilton - recommended by Susan
35. 1939: The Making of Six Great Films from Hollywood's Greatest Year by Charles F. Adams - recommended by LittleTaiko
36. MI5 and Me: A Coronet Among the Spooks by Charlotte Bingham - saw this mentioned on Charlotte's thread, and I loved the quotes she posted from it COMPLETED
37. Enchanted Islands by Allison Amend - recommended by Chelle
38. A Time of Gifts by Patrick Leigh Fermor - recommended by Megan (evilmoose)
39. The Berlin Stories by Christopher Isherwood - recommended by Vivienne (VivienneR)
40. Conclave by Robert Harris - recommended by Vivienne (VivienneR)
41 The Girl with the Make-Believe Husband by Julia Quinn - recommended by Meg, she says it's a prequel to The Bridgertons series! *happy dance*
42. The Reapers Are the Angels by Alden Bell - recommended by Shannon (sturlington) - zombies!
43. Lonely Hearts by John Harvey - series recommended by Charlotte (she reviewed book 12 on her thread)
44. Nevermoor: The Trials of Morrigan Crow by Jessica Townsend - recommended by Anne
45. Time After Time by Jack Finney - recommended by Richard (time travel)
46. Time on My Hands by Peter Delacourt - Richard again (time travel)
47. The Grass Dancer by Susan Power - recommended by Charlotte
48. The Dry by Jane Harper - recommended by Charlotte
49. The Last Man in Europe by Dennis Glover - saw this mentioned on Charlotte's thread - "April, 1947. In a run-down farmhouse on a remote Scottish island, George Orwell begins his last and greatest work: Nineteen Eighty-Four"
50. Miss Burma by Charmaine Craig - recommended by Deborah and Charlotte
51. The Gentleman's Guide to Vice and Virtue by Mackenzi Lee - recommended by Meg
52. Road to the Isles: Travellers in the Hebrides 1770-1914 by Derek Cooper - Meg again!
53. Three Men in a Boat by Jerome K. Jerome - recommended by Lucy, and Reba also loved it
54. Bitten by Kelley Armstrong - recommended by Chelle
55. The lost by Claire McGowan - recommended by Charlotte for those who like Ruth Galloway
56. Astrid Lindgren: The Woman Behind Pippi Longstocking by Jens Andersen - saw this on Charlotte's thread in the Guardian reviews
57. Euphoria by Lily King - recommended by Karen

2018 PopSugar Reading Challenge

1. A book made into a movie you've already seen Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy by John le Carré
2. True crime
3. The next book in a series you started The Dark Angel by Elly Griffiths
4. A book involving a heist Greenglass House by Kate Milford
5. Nordic noir Nightblind by Ragnar Jonasson
6. A novel based on a real person
7. A book set in a country that fascinates you
8. A book with a time of day in the title - Chimes at Midnight by Seanan McGuire
9. A book about a villain or antihero - The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde
10. A book about death or grief - The Year of Magical Thinking by Joan Didion
11. A book with a female author who uses a male pseudonym
12. A book with an LGBTQ+ protagonist
13. A book that is also a stage play or musical Chitty Chitty Bang Bang by Ian Fleming
14. A book by an author of a different ethnicity than you - March: Book Three by John Lewis, Andrew Aydin, Nate Powell
15. A book about feminism A Vindication of the Rights of Woman by Mary Wollstonecraft
16. A book about mental health
17. A book you borrowed or that was given to you as a gift
18. A book by two authors
19. A book about or involving a sport
20. A book by a local author - March: Book Two by John Lewis, Andrew Aydin, and Nate Powell
21. A book with your favorite color in the title
22. A book with alliteration in the title - The Dying Detective by Leif GW Persson
23. A book about time travel
24. A book with a weather element in the title
25. A book set at sea
26. A book with an animal in the title The Jaguar's Children by John Vaillant
27. A book set on a different planet
28. A book with song lyrics in the title The Cold, Cold Ground by Adrian McKinty
29. A book about or set on Halloween
30. A book with characters who are twins God Stalk by P. C. Hodgell
31. A book mentioned in another book
32. A book from a celebrity book club
33. A childhood classic you've never read Anne of Green Gables by L. M. Montgomery
34. A book that's published in 2018 MI5 and Me: A Coronet Among the Spooks by Charlotte Bingham
35. A past Goodreads Choice Awards winner Artemis by Andy Weir
36. A book set in the decade you were born - The White Album by Joan Didion
37. A book you meant to read in 2017 but didn't get to - The Girl With All the Gifts by M. R. Carey
38. A book with an ugly cover The Strange Death of Fiona Griffiths by Harry Bingham
39. A book that involves a bookstore or library
40. Your favorite prompt from the 2015, 2016, or 2017 POPSUGAR Reading Challenges (you can easily Google these)

Advanced Reading Challenge

1. A bestseller from the year you graduated high school
2. A cyberpunk book
3. A book that was being read by a stranger in a public place
4. A book tied to your ancestry
5. A book with a fruit or vegetable in the title
6. An allegory
7. A book by an author with the same first or last name as you Binti by Nnedi Okorafor
8. A microhistory - Blizzard of Glass: The Halifax Explosion of 1917 by Sally M. Walker
9. A book about a problem facing society today On Tyranny by Timothy Snyder
10. A book recommended by someone else taking the POPSUGAR Reading Challenge Slow Horses by Mick Herron (Charlotte)

My 2018 Data:

Books read: 44
Group Read: 1
Formatted Challenge: 1
PopSugar Challenge: 25

Books that are part of a series: 21
In Translation: 5
Rereads: 0
GNs: 5

Format:
hardback: 8
paperback: 10
ebook: 10
audio: 15
audio/print or ebook combo: 1

Borrowed: 9 (public library), 1 (Birdy's library), 1 (Abby's library), 1 (traveling LT book)
Archive (Purchased in 2012 or earlier): 1
Purchased in 2013: 1
Purchased in 2014: 1
Purchased in 2015: 1
Purchased in 2016: 3
Purchased in 2017: 13
Purchased in 2018: 12

Authors:
Living: 34
Dead: 10

Male: 21
Female: 23

American: 18
Canadian: 2
English: 15
French: 1
Icelandic: 1
Irish: 2
Italian: 1
Scottish: 2
Swedish: 2

New to me authors: 26
Rereads: 0

fiction: 29
non-fiction: 16

Genres/category:
non-fiction/memoir: 8
non-fiction/essays: 4
non-fiction/film history: 1
non-fiction/history: 2
non-fiction/politics: 1
classic: 1
literary fiction/contemporary fiction: 3
literary fiction/historical fiction: 1
crime fiction/espionage: 4
crime fiction/mystery: 2
crime fiction/noir: 1
crime fiction/police procedural: 4
weird fiction: 1
dystopian: 1
fantasy: 2
urban fantasy: 1
sci fi: 2
juvenile fiction: 5

LT Recommendations Read:
Amber: 1
Charlotte: 6
Deborah: 1
Heather: 1
Katie: 2
Lynda: 1
Mark: 3
Joanne: 1
Joe: 3
Roni: 1

.

Book #37: A Rage in Harlem by Chester Himes, narrated by Samuel Jackson (4.5 stars), 2018 acquired audiobook, crime fiction/noir (The Harlem Cycle, book 1)

"She held him at arms’ length, looked at the pipe still gripped in his hand, then looked at his face and read him like a book. She ran the tip of her red tongue slowly across her full cushiony, sensuous lips, making them wet-red and looked him straight in the eyes with her own glassy, speckled bedroom eyes.

The man drowned."

This is the perfect pairing of story and narrator - like all fabulous audiobooks, the narrator here elevates the reading experience. This was written in the late fifties and is set (as the title tells us) in Harlem. Himes does a very good job of establishing a sense of place, but more than that he establishes a sense of atmosphere - we can feel the undercurrents of anger and frustration in a community where equality is a very distant dream. The tale is dark and gritty with a definite noir feel, and yet it is loaded with humor. A very tricky act, and Jackson pulls it off with ease - his voice seems born to the story. He brings every character and every nuance to life. I just cannot recommend this version highly enough.

Am I one of the first in? Happy new thread!

You are first, Helen! And thank you! Let's celebrate with some lemon cake:

Happy New Thread, Mamie!

Love the Peter Pan-centric photo up there of the Puffin classics.

>12 Crazymamie: Clever cake, and it looks tasty, too.

Happy new one, Mamie!

My Dirty Dozen is seriously lacking so far this year. I am loving Brother I'm Dying by Edwidge Danticat, so maybe that will make the cut.....

>13 jnwelch: Thank you, Joe! Hooray for the topper love.

I have actually made that cake multiple times, believe it or not. I have that cake mold pan:



>14 katiekrug: Thanks, Katie! Your Dirty Dozen does not have to be something you have read this year - you can always suggest books you think I might love, and I will add them to the list. Some of the ones that made the cuts in previous years were books you'd mentioned on other's threads when an author name came up.

Okay, well maybe someone will mention Kevin Baker and I can go all fan-girly on Dreamland... :D

>16 katiekrug: That one's already on the list.

Oh. How embarrassing.

Happy new thread, Mamie! Your Puffins are Bee-utiful!

ETA: I'm sure Samuel L Jackson can do no wrong. i'll keep that audio in mind

Happy new thread, Mamie!

Deckled edges...make of white chocolate.

Happy new thread!

>12 Crazymamie: I find myself hoping that's a honey cake in there >:-)

Happy new thread, Mamie! Scrumptious looking, so far! (Lindt, mmmmm)

>18 katiekrug: *blinks*

>19 Carmenere: Thank you, Lynda! I love those Puffins!

Agreed about Samuel Jackson - so fabulous!

>20 FAMeulstee: Thank you, Anita!

>21 richardderus: How clever! I love me some deckled edge pages! Thanks, BigDaddy!

>22 charl08: Thank you, Charlotte!

>23 Helenliz: Let's just say that Pooh was approve, Helen.

>24 jessibud2: Thanks, Shelley! Hard to go wrong with scrumptious! And bonus points for catching up with the previous thread.

>1 Crazymamie: No. That is not fair. I’m already collecting children’s classics for the kids in Vintage and Puffin Classic paperbacks.

Happy new thread Mamie!

>21 richardderus: To be honest, I’m not completely convinced that that one is edible.

>12 Crazymamie: >15 Crazymamie: 😍

>21 richardderus: 😍😍😍

>27 humouress: But they are so pretty, Nina. And the spines!



And thank you for those good wishes.

>28 quondame: I take you are in favor of cake, Susan. *grin*

What about this one, then?

>29 Crazymamie: No, no, no! Not fair. You know I’m a collecterphile.

They do look pretty. But I’ve already got about half of those titles. (And bought 4 more this week because, you know, the sale was on. So it made sense. Really.)

You’re welcome. :0)

>31 richardderus: Aaagghh!

ETA : Ooh, yum!

Happy new thread, Mamie, and thanks. ;) >29 Crazymamie: They are so pretty! I want them.

>30 Crazymamie: All of the cake!

>31 richardderus: It is indeed monstrously good!

>31 richardderus: Whoa!

>32 humouress: Oh, all right. I love the Treasure Island one, and my Charlotte's Web has just arrived...

.

>33 humouress: *grin*

>34 BLBera: Thank you, Beth! They are the perfect size for holding, too. I am completely charmed by them.

>35 quondame: *belly laugh*

Happy new thread! Love the cakes and the cute books :)

I wrote >32 humouress: and when I posted it, >31 richardderus: suddenly popped up. It was a bit startling.

>36 Crazymamie: I say!

Those Puffins are super cute! Are they all children's books (she asked hopefully, because the last thing she needs is more books)?

Happy New Thread, Mamie! I like those Puffin classics. They are adorable.

>38 RebaRelishesReading: Thank you, Reba!

>39 humouress: Oh, I have had that happen to me on more than one occasion, Nina, but never with a cake that looks like it would like to take a bite out of me.

Yep. I am completely besotted with them.

>40 rosalita: Ha! Yep - they are all children's books - Puffin is the children's line of Penguin, I believe.

>41 msf59: Thanks, Mark! Me, too, with the Puffins.

Happy new thread, Mamie! Those Puffins do look quite appealing.

>12 Crazymamie: Beehive cake is a regular offering at the local "Amish" markets, but they don't look like beehives, nor are they lemon. The cakes have two layers of cake sandwiching a custardy filling.

Oh, gorgeous Puffins and cakes! I confess, I've already been looking at Charlotte's Web and A Wrinkle in Time for Melissa. But given that she is only two weeks old and there is only so much storage space, I'll wait til she is a wee bit older.

>43 harrygbutler: Thank you, Harry! The Puffin love is making me happy.

SO interesting - no Amish population down here, as anyone who followed my thread my first year here would remember. I was looking everywhere for those Amish noodles, to make chicken and noodles for Abby, but fresh egg noodles are not to be found down here. In Indiana, where I am originally from, there is a very large Amish population, and the noodles were available in every market. I had to order an entire case and have them shipped.

>44 vancouverdeb: Hello, Deborah! A Wrinkle in Time is one of Birdy's favorite books from childhood - we were so disappointed with the newest movie version of it. We were just saying that we hope the Puffin hardback line will eventually offer that one. She has a very old ratty paperback copy, and so to cheer her up after the movie fiasco, we ordered these:



This is a better look at the gorgeous cover art:



I bought my niece lovely hardback editions of my childhood favorites, and I gave one to her every year on her birthdays - she is in her 30s and just recently had a daughter of her own. She still has all of the books I gave her, which means as much to me as it does to her.

Happy new thread!

Thank you, Anita!

Happy NEW Thread, Mamie!

Unfortunately, my treasured childhood editions were not that kind of binding. Some were this kind

and this is my copy of A Wrinkle in Time

But most were inexpensive Whitman editions with the cardboard with shiny finish construction like this one:

They did not hold up well (the Bobbsey Twins fell completely apart) but I still have many of them, including a copy of this one.

I need to find the box in the attic where they reside.

Happy new thread, Mamie. This one looks full of deliciousness!

Happy new thread, Mamie! I don't think I've ever read A Wrinkle in Time but I saw the bad reviews for the film. Sorry they wrecked Birdy's favourite book. I can't bear to watch Outlander because the actors just aren't Jamie and Claire...

>51 susanj67: - LOL! I love Outlander, but only the books. I watched a couple of episodes of the tv series but had such a difficult time with the Scottish accent, I gave up. Maybe if there had been subtitles.....! And you are right, the actors AREN'T Jamie and Claire! ;-)

Happy new thread!

happy new thread!

>10 Crazymamie: I love that and need it for my front door!!
My current welcome mat needs a good cleaning but says Beware of Children :)

Happy Friday, Mamie!

What a shame about the Wrinkle in Time movie. Like Birdy, I'm a fan of the book. Jeez, how could they screw it up? Too bad. Does Birdy know that there's a very good Wrinkle in Time Graphic Novel out there? That might help ease the pain.

It reminds me of when The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy movie came out. Our teen son loved that book (still does) and was so excited. Then the movie turned out to be so-so at best. We felt so bad for the guy.

>49 ronincats: Thank you, Roni! And look at all the book bling you brought! I have just a few tattered paperbacks from my childhood - books we bought from the Scholastic book order. My mom also got those Reader's Digest Condensed Books in the mail, so I would read those. I felt totally rooked when I learned years later that condensed meant that part of the story was missing. Heh.

They did a 50th Anniversary reissue of that cover - did you see it?



My sister had the complete set of the Cherry Ames books, which she was generous enough to let me read.

Mostly we had to borrow books from the library - six girls, and my Dad was a factory worker, so not a lot of extra money hanging around.

>50 Familyhistorian: Thank you, Meg! Help yourself to cake!

>51 susanj67: Thanks, Susan! The film was truly terrible. Birdy was spitting by the time it was finished.

Here's where I confess I never made it all the way through the first Outlander book...

>52 jessibud2: Oh, I love a Scottish accent, but yeah, you do kind of need to know what they are saying. *grin*

>53 drneutron: Thank you, Jim!

>54 ChelleBearss: Thanks, Chelle! I could use it, too. We are currently without mat. It's the Deep South, so no one uses the front door anyway, but still...

>55 jnwelch: Happy Friday, Joe! Birdy was so disappointed. Don't get me started on how they mixed things up. Birdy could give you an ear-full. And she already has that graphic novel edition, and I agree they did a good job with it.

I remember hearing that Hitchhiker's Guide movie was not very good - we never watched that one, although Birdy and I both thought the book was a hoot. It's excellent on audio read by Stephen Fry.

Book #38: How to Cheat a Dragon's Curse by Cressida Cowell, narrated by David Tennant (4 stars), 2017 acquired audiobook, juvenile fiction (How to Train Your Dragon, book 4)

This is book four in Cressida Cowell's How to Train a Dragon series, and it is a worthy entry. These books are so fun on audio, narrated by David Tennant and will have you laughing out loud regardless of your age. I especially love the insults and the miscellaneous information, like the cures for common illnesses - my favorite: for common cold: "Stuff a small carrot up each nostril to stop a running nose. Remember to breathe through mouth." Be warned, the books are very different from the movies if you are already familiar with those. And be sure to start with book one.

Happy Friday! Start of a long weekend here, so I have happily spent the morning doing very little. Hot cross buns for lunch, prior to breaking into the easter eggs. >:-)

>60 Helenliz: Happy Friday, Helen! Ooh, I like the sound of yours! It started storming here in the wee hours, and I was awake from 3-5 am, which was so very fun. NOT. Supposed to rain on and off all day, which is fine by me.

Happy Friday to you, Mamie, and happy new thread.

From your previous thread: >286 They are somewhat like jelly beans, but don’t have a hard coating. They have scrumptious nonpareils instead. Here’s how See’s describes them: Delightful spring bites. Chewy lime, lemon and cherry jellies coated in candy beads. I just looked them up on the website, they’re out of stock. 



>10 Crazymamie: Yes! Our public Library has a paver program, and my favorite one of all, and one I always stop and look at when I’m going into the Library is “The Wand Chooses the Wizard”. HP forever.

>56 Crazymamie: I have some of my Scholastic books from childhood too. And I also felt rooked when I learned what ‘condensed’ meant.

>51 susanj67:, >52 jessibud2:, >57 Crazymamie: I love the Outlander books and the TV series. Jamie and Claire look exactly right to me for some reason. Ah well, to each her/his own.

>61 Crazymamie: It’s overcast and sprinkly here too, Mamie. Sorry about the insomnia.

Thank you, Karen! Happy Friday to you!

Oh, thanks for getting back to me about the eggs - they're so pretty! I bet they are very addictive.

Agreed. HP forever. SO cool about your library's paver program.

*grin* My favorite book from the program is The Wednesday Witch - the pages are barely attached anymore because I read it so many times. It is such a great memory for me. And I know, right, with the condensing?!

I have no Outlander opinion, as I bailed on the first book.

The insomnia is a forever thing - I worked night shift for many years, and it messed up my internal clock, I think. Usually I do fine with it, as I just read on my Kindle in bed or get up, but it's tough when I am really wanting to sleep, too tired to do anything else, but CAN. NOT. SLEEP. At least there was a lovely rain storm to keep me company.

Morning, Mamie. Happy Friday. Did you you finish Brazen? I am still making my way through it but I am loving every page.

>64 msf59: Morning, Mark! Happy Friday to you! I did finish Brazen Ladies - I gave it the full five stars. Did you see the article in the NYT Book Review last Sunday? I didn't realize that in the French version, Bagleu hand wrote all the text - very cool.

You bailed on Jamie and Claire? How did I never know that before? Or had I simply blocked it from my memory...possible.

I think what Gabaldon did with that series was terrific. She legitimized, darn near single-handedly, an entire subgenre. Absent her books, time-travel romances wouldn't exist in anything like today's numbers. (Which would be fine by some, I suppose.) I like time travel stories in general, so I'm glad she expanded the field of use for the trope.

>66 richardderus: It might not have come up before, as it was in my pre-LT days. I got more than halfway through, but it just kept going on and on...I would maybe try it again some time.

I have not read a lot of time travel, and I would like to read more. Suggestions? OTHER than Outlander, which I might try again but not right this moment. I have read the Jodi Taylor series, well, part of it.

Time After Time, the Jack Finney novel, is excellent. Time on My Hands, a Peter Delacorte story, involves an attempt to eradicate Ronald Reagan in the 1930s. I ***loved*** it.

>68 richardderus: Ooh! Thanks for that - adding both of those to The List! *smooch*

>67 Crazymamie:, >68 richardderus: - The only sci-fi I read is time travel and it has to be good. Probably my #1 favourite is Jack Finney's Time and Again. I believe that From Time to Time is the sequel, which I own but, inexplicably, have not yet read. Another good one that involves Mark Twain and baseball is Darryl Brock's If I Never Get Back and its sequel Two in the Field which I haven't read, either. Maybe I'm afraid to be disappointed by sequels? I do have a book called Time After Time but the author is Allen Appel. Oh, in checking my shelf now, I see that I have yet another one I loved, Replay by Ken Grimwood (and its as yet unread sequel, Into the Deep. Hmmm, maybe I need to get back to those.

As far as trying to change history, I once read one called A Time to Remember by Stanley Shapiro, about the Kennedy assassination.

I got way behind . . . and I wasn't away that long. Your thread really explodes quickly. You mentioned the Amish noodles. We have an "Amish" store up the road in Bulls Gap. I usually purchase my egg noodles there. I purchase almost all my spices there too.

>70 jessibud2: Thanks for sharing, Shelley! Making a note of those. I am wanting to reread A Wrinkle in Time and then reread When You Reach Me, which is an homage to A Wrinkle in Time and so cleverly done. LOVED that one when Birdy and I read it years ago. And I have read and loved 11/23/63 by Stephen King, which also involves the Kennedy assassination.

>71 thornton37814: Hello, Lori! I bet the kitties were happy to be back home again. I miss being able to get some of the stuff that was readily available in the Indiana markets - the Amish noodles, red cream soda, Marzetti Honey French Dressing...*sigh* You can, however, purchase every single part of a pig down here - I freaked out a bit the first time I saw pigs ears in the meat section.

>72 Crazymamie: - I also have that one by King, but haven't got to it yet. It's a chunkster!

Hi, Mamie! Time travel books ... Connie Willis' Oxford Time Travel series is pretty good — the first one is Doomsday Book. I've read the first two books of another series that sends a modern-day female FBI agent back to Regency England to solve crimes (the first is Murder in Time), and they are good but not spectacular. And of course there's Stephen King's 11/22/63...

Cherry Ames! - Madame MBH loved them as a kid, and has the whole set, too.

>62 karenmarie: >63 Crazymamie: I have exactly 1 of my 1960s Scholastic books left, a disintegrating copy of The Hidden Treasure of Glaston. I was very into medieval even then.

>63 Crazymamie: I finished Outlander, threw it across the room and left Claire and Jamie on their fans. I have read several of Gabaldon's short stories, as they show up in anthologies and non have approached the ghastly pain of Outlander.

>66 richardderus: I'm pretty sure there was time travel romance well before Outlander. A Knight in Shining Armor goes way back! And as much as I've enjoyed Jody Taylor no one can do it like Connie Willis. But Connie Willis does not fall neatly into Romance. Or any other genre.

>73 jessibud2: Yes, it is, but it is SO good!

>74 rosalita: Hello, Julia! I've read the King, but I am making a note of the others. Thanks so much!

>75 jnwelch: I also loved them, Joe, but I don't own any of them.

>76 quondame: I've not heard of that one, Susan - was it a mystery?

So no, then for you and Outlander, huh? YIKES to the "ghastly pain". Read no further, I say.

>78 Crazymamie: A YA which had a bit of mystery. Young boy left at monastery because his dad killed Thomas Beckett. It was fighting off wolves with a stick and the whole nailed hand business that finished it for me, but the way people gossip Jamie's not knowing exactly what happened to his sister was beyond absurd. Absurd I can often deal with, but there have to be some limits.

There’s always The Time Machine :0)

>79 quondame: It has been WAY too long since I read it, and I only made it about halfway through, so I cannot recall those incidents. I think you feel about Outlander the way I feel about the Spenser books. *grin*

>80 humouress: I have actually read that one, Nina. I liked it okay but didn't love it.

>76 quondame: Oh no no, Susan, the books existed as far back as Gutenberg! It's the *GENRE* that's down to Gabaldon, the marketing niche is what she created not the books.

You may have all the Connie Willis books that were destined for me. I have enjoyed exactly one of her books: Inside Job featuring HL Mencken as a possessing spirit. Hilarious! Apart from that, I fear, every time I've read a Willis book I've been tempted to go all Fahrenheit 451 on it.

>82 richardderus: I have not read any Connie Willis, so I will reserve judgement, but I loved reading yours. Totally stealing "...tempted to go all Fahrenheit 451 on it."

>81 Crazymamie: Spenser?

>82 richardderus: >83 Crazymamie: Connie Willis comes in at least couple of flavors. There is always humor, but sometimes it is madcap and others it is stress relief. But both are very high on incident density - the characters are almost always overwhelmed and the reader likewise. Bellwether and To say Nothing of the Dog are light, Doomsday Book and Firewatch more serious. Lincoln's Dreams is unclassifiable. But she is very intelligent and knows how to write about intelligent people who have interests other than what's between their legs.

Yeah. Don't get me started. Spenser refers to the lead character in Robert B. Parker's books about the Boston private eye - the first book in the series is The Godwulf Manuscript.

Okay. So I need to get Connie Willis so I can have an opinion. Challenge accepted. This group is full of fabulous!

>85 Crazymamie: I was completely ignorant. Not surprising for mysteries written after the 1960s. Except for Dick Francis and historical mysteries I haven't read much after I stopped stealing them off my dad's stack.

I love that you stole mysteries off of your dad's stack! There were a small group of us reading the Spenser books a few years ago, and the highlight for me was getting to rant about the books. I might have become slightly addicted to it.

The Egg Hunt has begun!!

Hi, Mamie! Happy Friday! Those Amish noodles are great; they show up in at least one regular grocery around here, as well as at the Amish market.

Hello, Harry! I agree about the Amish noodles - so yummy!

>87 Crazymamie: He'd steal from me in a minute if he heard me come in with a Dorothy Sayer's inter library loan. You can imagine a bit about our family if the assumption was that returning after dark meant returning with library books. No one ever thought to ask who I walked home with, or how long the walk had been.

Oh, you made me laugh, Susan!

>88 Crazymamie: Thanks, Mamie. I come in straight to the Talk page and so don't always see the notices. I've got 14 pretty straightforwardly (and I read the right books for #s3, 9,11, 13, 14, 15 and 21 and I'm old enough to remember #22).

>93 ronincats: Sure thing, Roni. I still need 5 and 7, and 7 is making me slightly crazy because I think I know the answer, but I have obviously not gone to the correct spot.

>93 ronincats: Oh! *thudding sounds of penny falling*

I’m off to have a look. Though I’m pretty hopeless at cryptic crosswords because I never know how the author is thinking. Let’s see ....

>95 humouress: May the odds be ever in your favor, Nina! *grin*

>94 Crazymamie: Read #5 literally and check tags. 7 has me flummoxed--a bunch of beach somethings and Thor. I may not have read whatever this is.
(and I've added 10 and 17 to the solved ones)

And now I've only #12 to go. Felt dumb when I solved #2--I starred in that in high school!

All done!

Good God A'mighty, Mamie. Yet another new thread.

You know, I never have figured out that Dirty Dozen thing that's always included in your introductory posts. And somehow, Katie is a goad behind it. What's up with that?

I'm just starting a Eudora Welty novel I acquired at a library book-sale last Saturday. The Robber Bridegroom. Featuring keel-boat legend Mike Fink. Go figure.

Belated happy new thread Mamie! I seem to have blinked and missed your last one.

>88 Crazymamie: I spent some happy time this morning trying to guess clues. Think I got all but four by myself and then resorted to the hints thread for the final ones. #7 I also found really difficult.

Happy Saturday, Mamie!! What wonderful memories the older cover of A Wrinkle in Time brought back!! Mine was purchased through Scholastic, as well. I got my books thru them or the school library. I didn't visit a public library till we moved to the burbs. My mom also subscribed to Readers Digest Book Club and my dad, also a factory worker and bald plus there's the color red. Seems like we live in a parallel universe ;0)

When I saw the trailer for the current movie version I thought 'woe, what is this about?! not the way I visualized the book!' So I can understand Birdie's disappointment. What a great mom to have purchased those beautiful editions for her.

*snort* I took one look at the egg hunt clues and said "uh uh, this ain't happening". Have your fun, my friend!

>100 Carmenere: I did the first one and decided that I don't need to waste the next few hours wandering round the site from page to page. Though I applaud the idea.

>57 Crazymamie: I feel Birdy's pain, although I refuse to go see the new film. I have loved A Wrinkle in Time for as long as I can remember, and my kids love it, and it doesn't need any additional anything. It's perfect just as it is. I love the gorgeous covers of all the editions you've got. So tempting...

>76 quondame: YES!! I am not alone. Outlander was the awful-est.

>97 ronincats: Thanks, Roni - got 5 with your help! I did finally get 7 after looking at the hints. Never heard of it.

>98 weird_O: Hello, Bill! Katie's Dirty Dozen is something that evolved because she kept hitting me with book bullets, so I decided to give her a separate post from the LT recommended list I keep each year. Then I tried to come up with a clever name for it and settled on the Dirty Dozen.

I have not read The Robber Bridegroom, but I have read What There is to Say We Have Said: The Correspondence of Eudora Welty and William Maxwell, which I highly recommend - so sad we will never have gems like this in the future as no one writes letters anymore.

>99 souloftherose: Thank you, Heather - I could have sworn you made an appearance on the previous thread.

I found most of them pretty quickly, but 5 and 7 were tricky. Got them this morning thanks to Roni and additional hints on the egg hunt thread.

>103 Crazymamie: I also needed the Talk page for #7. Very tough one! Some were pretty clever!

Hope you have a great weekend!

>100 Carmenere: Happy Saturday, Lynda! One of my favorite childhood memories is walking to the public library - there was a branch that was just a few miles from our house, and my sisters and I would walk there. It was like magic because right next to the library was a little drug store that had a fabulous selection of individual candy bars for sale, and outside they had pop machines. So, I could save my money and treat myself to a candy bar and a Coke after visiting the library - I would drink the Coke on the way home but save the candy bar for later. And look at us being practically twins!!

Yes, you can skip the movie. They got pretty much everything wrong, although Birdy and I did like the actress they got to play Meg.

I was doing the egg hunt last night while we were watching The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, which is as delightful as everyone here has been saying.

>101 Helenliz: *grin* It's a fun diversion - I love riddles, so it's fun trying to figure them out.

>102 nittnut: Good thinking, Jenn! I wasn't really interested in seeing it, but Birdy wanted to and no one else wanted to go. The book almost always outshines any movie version, but every once in a while, you get treated to a wonderful rendering of a story - like the Harry Potter movies. And also sometimes the movie is even better than the book, like To Have and Have Not.

We are very excited about the Wrinkle in Time hardbacks - can't wait to see them in person. And I think we might have to get her a hardback of When You Reach Me, which we both loved when we read it years ago. We read the library copy, and we are both wanting to reread it.

>104 ChelleBearss: I think a lot of people had trouble with that one, Chelle. I agree that some were pretty clever. I love word games.

Thanks for the weekend wishes - hoping yours is full of fabulous! I kind of miss egg hunts - my kids used to love that.

Morning, Mamie. Happy Saturday. Cold and rainy here. I will try to block out the yuckiness, with thoughts of owls and books.

Enjoy your day.

Morning, Mamie. Isn't The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel great? Can't wait for season 2. I wasn't familiar with Rachel Brosnahan, and she's terrific. What a nice surprise to find Tony Shaloub in it, too.

*Just putting this here so I can find it later...



Time Travel Book Recommendations:

1. Time And Again by Jack Finney - Richard (ask Richard if he meant the Time and Again book or if this is different), Shelley, Joe and Debbi also loved this
2. Time on My Hands by Peter Delacorte - Richard
3. If I Never Get Back by Darryl Brock - Shelley, but it involves Mark Twain AND baseball, so maybe not
4. Replay by Kevin Grimwood - Shelley and a BIIIIG second from Richard
5. A Time to Remember by Stanley Shapiro, about the Kennedy assassination - Shelley
6. Doomsday Book by Connie Willis - Julia
7. Murder in Time by Julie McElwain (they are good but not spectacular) - Julia
8. The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffeneggar - Beth (and Helen says DO NOT read the coda) and Chelle
9. Gods, Monsters, and the Lucky Peach by Kelly Robson - Susan (quondame)
10. The Dechronization of Sam Magruder by George Gaylord Simpson - Karen
11. The House on the Strand by Daphne du Maurier - Karen
12. 11,000 Years Lost by Peni R. Griffin - Karen
13. The Shining Girls by Lauren Beukes - Karen
14. Kindred by Octavia E. Butler - Karen
15. Household Gods by Judith Parr and Harry Turtledove - Richard loathed it but Susan says yes
16. How To Stop Time by Matt Haig - Chelle
17. To Say Nothing of the Dog by Connie Willis - Lucy says, "Helps (but not at all essential) to have read Three Men in a Boat by Jerome K. Jerome. Highly recommended. A hoot! I actually listened to it on Audible."

>107 msf59: Morning, Mark! Happy Saturday! It's sunny but very windy here today, and chilly right now (56F), but it's going to 74 today. Should be good reading weather! Hoping your day is also full of joy!

>108 jnwelch: Morning, Joe! We really enjoyed watching The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel last night - the costumes and sets were wonderful, and the writing! The casting is great, and I agree about Tony Shaloub - love him.

The St. Marys series by Jodi Taylor are good time travel books. I also liked The Time Traveler's Wife.

>111 BLBera: I have read some of those Jodi Taylor books, Beth - I need to get back to the series. I'll add The Time Traveler's Wife to the list. Thanks!

May I recommend that you don't read the coda to The Time Traveller's wife? That last chapter was awful and so saccharine and sentimental that it undermined the whole of the rest of the book. Up until that point I'd loved it.

>113 Helenliz: You may, Helen. The coda - like an epilogue?

>109 Crazymamie: Jack Finney's Time and Again is one Debbi and I loved. I'm pretty sure it precedes From Time to Time.

>115 jnwelch: Okay, I'm confused, Joe - start with Time and Again? Is this a series that includes the one Richard mentioned, or are they separate things?

>116 Crazymamie: Yes - Time and Again is first, and From Time to Time is the "long-awaited sequel" (Amazon). Start with Time and Again.

>57 Crazymamie: But Mamie, at least you started with the first one :-)

I need a time travel book for the PopSugar challenge, and had thought about that 11/22/1963 one by Stephen King, but I might investigate your list too :-)

Got it! Thanks, Joe!

>118 susanj67: So true, Susan! 11/23/63 is excellent, but it is also longish. I loved it, though.

>103 Crazymamie: It's true letters are mostly gone, but blogs have somewhat covered the breech - Jo Walton's What Makes This Book So Great being the first one that comes to mind.

>110 Crazymamie: A Knight in Shining Armor is a bit hokey, but classic!

>111 BLBera: Those are such a hoot!

Gods, Monsters, and the Lucky Peach is also TT and really not the same old same old. The target time has it's own interesting goings on.

I'm reading A Knight in Shining Armor for the time travel prompt, because it also fits the "Classic of genre fiction" prompt in the BookRiot Read Harder challenge... :)

Hi Mamie and happy Saturday to you!

One of my favorite time travel romances is A Knight in Shining Armor by Jude Devereaux - I see that Katie's reading it. Another one of my favorite time travel books although not a romance, is The Dechronization of Sam Magruder by George Gaylord Simpson. I also like the Jack Finney books, The House on the Strand by Daphne du Maurier, a YA book 11,000 Years Lost by Peni R. Griffin, The Time Traveler’s Wife by Audrey Niffenegger, (already on your list) and just pulled The Shining Girls by Lauren Beukes off my shelves. I also have Kindred by Octavia Butler, a time travel book, that I haven’t read yet. It looks really good, too…

I need to go back and tag 11/22/63 as time travel.

>121 quondame: True, Susan, but there is something more personal about private letters between two individuals. They were writing not for public consumption but for an intimate sharing of their lives with one another. Not to mention the actual physical letter part.

I have What Makes This Book So Great! I love dipping in and out of it.

I have actually read A Knight in Shining Armor! Pre-LT, so many years ago, and I actually remember it, so I guess that says something. I'll add that second one to the list. Thanks!

>122 katiekrug: I had no idea it was a classic, Katie!

>123 karenmarie: Hello, Karen! Happy Saturday! A Knight in Shining Armor was fun, wasn't it? And look at you with the suggestions! I'll add those to the list - thanks so much!

>109 Crazymamie: >109 Crazymamie: BIIIIG second on Replay, which I'd forgotten about! Also, although I loathed it, many persons of female persuasion have offered copious encomia to Household Gods by one Judith Tarr. Permaybehaps it won't offend you like it did me.

>126 richardderus: Okay! Let's wait and see if anyone else chimes in with some love for Household Gods before adding it to the list since you loathed it. And what about the Finney - did you mean the one Joe mentioned Time and Again or is Time After Time a different book? I can force a touchstone, but I can't find mention of it on Amazon.

>127 Crazymamie: No, they're the same book, I got the title wrong.

I got my ARC of Circe today and it is **gorgeous**! I'm going to figure out Litsy's bloody counterintuitive photo-uploading interface so go look at it.

>126 richardderus: I am one of those females who would put in a vote for Household Gods - you are omitting Harry Turtledove as an author.
>127 Crazymamie: So, yes, lots of love for HG. I don't know if its depiction of Roman Gaul and Marcus Aurelius were accurate, but it reads well and makes its rather sharp points about how the good old days weren't.

>128 richardderus: Okay, thanks so much! Um...I think maybe it's going to the wrong touchstone for Circe. I'm assuming that you're referring to the new one by Madeline Miller, which I agree is gorgeous. I want!

*OIC joint authors. Got it.

>129 quondame: So yes for Household Gods by Judith Tarr and add Harry Turtledove to the list? Any specific book or series by him? Pretend I know nothing because...um...yeah.

>131 Crazymamie: Harry Turtledove is one of the authors of Household Gods. He rewrites history mostly though rather than time traveling. He has several WWII and Civil War what-ifs. I can't judge those beyond saying that I don't think, in the one CW one I read, that you can have anywhere near the same battle with crossbows as with rifles. Those bolts are heavy and bulky in comparison with bullets, and I'd guess reload rate a lot longer. I love his straight historical, pure fantasies, and SF though.

>128 richardderus: You speak of counter-intuitive photo loading - other than covers, LT seems a bit difficult to me. I've been going to profile photos and sticking non-cover pictures I want to link in my thread into the junk drawer. Is their a better way?

Wow that was a lot to catch up with, Mamie!
It makes me post a rare second msg on your thread :-)

I mildly liked Outlander, did read the second book and that was enough.

I just finished a YA book that involves (an other kind of?) time travel The Dream Merchant. I loved it, but it got mixed ratings on LT.
It is a tome, I think over 600 pages in the English translation, it is originaly a Dutch book.

>133 quondame: That's how I do it, Susan - gotta love that junk drawer!

>134 FAMeulstee: Hello, Anita! A rare second post - I am most honored. I'm intrigued - what other kind of time travel?

>135 Crazymamie: Time travel backwards, starting in a kind of dreamland, it is fantasy with a quest.

>136 FAMeulstee: That sounds very intriguing.

I always thought Time and Again by Finney would make a terrific film if done by someone like Spielberg. But maybe it's just as well it hasn't been done. Some stories are best left in books and not *translated* to screen.

>133 quondame: The easiest way to post photos is {img src="PASTE TEXT HERE"width=500} with pointy brackets in place of braces. To get the text, right-click on the photo to be copied and select "Copy Image Address" or "Photo Address" then paste in the format. It's no different than the junk-drawer method except for the address copied.

>138 jessibud2: It's still in development. Been there since 2012. I ain't a-holdin' my breath to see it before I get old and doolally.

May I second The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffeneggar as well as Outlander!
As well I really enjoyed the one I used for the prompt How to Stop Time by Matt Haig

>139 richardderus: Sorry about the confusion. I wanted to know if there is a better way of storing and organizing on LT photos uploaded from my Mac. I don't have a web page or blog at this time. I've got how to display pictures, though it I admit, my HTML skills are rust bound but I still keep the manuals within arm's reach.

>142 quondame: OIC

The junk drawer system is plain old terrible but there's no better one I know of in that concatenation of circumstances. Paying for photo storage is an outrage to me.

>143 richardderus: Thanks. I guess I'll just go feel stupid about something else, like why it took me so long to complete Easter Egg #18.

I am in the unusual position of really being able to say that I can't keep up these days, Mamie.

Happy new(ish) thread and here's wishing all at the Pecan Paradisio a fabulous weekend.

I'm loving all the time-travel recs you're compiling, Mamie. I've favorited that posts with the list for future reference.

Hi Mamie. Happy Sunday!

Special Easter plans or just another lovely day at the Pecan Paradisio?

Happy Easter, Mamie! I hope you've been having a great weekend.

I wish I had enjoyed How to Stop Time more. I was hoping for better.

>142 quondame: I’m not sure if you can use Pinterest, which is a lot easier to upload photos to I think. Then your images would be on the net and you can use the old HTML thingy.

ETA: I mean, I think you should be able to post from Pinterest to here.

>140 richardderus: Which will be in about, what, 5 minutes?

(You know, living up to this Evildoer moniker is hard work. But it could get to be fun 😈)

We were disappointed by A Wrinkle in Time too. Nobody wanted to be mean about it, but it was just too dressed up and fiddled about with-the ladies mainly.

I have the same book as Roni. And all L'Engle's other novels too. Camilla is one of my all time favorites of hers.

I hated Outlander from the start, never got past page 50 or so . . . but I was encouraged to try the TV series -- have watched a number of episodes and liked them although for some reason I stopped watching. Maybe the same phenom as with GoT where the pressure of storytelling efficiently actually improves the story.

Something else . . . I'll be back -- even better than Willis's Doomsday Book is To Say Nothing of the Dog -- I think that is her best book by miles. Helps (but not at all essential) to have read Three Men in a Boat by Jerome K. Jerome. Highly recommended. A hoot! I actually listened to it on Audible.

>150 humouress: I tried using a Pinterest URL I'd {Copy Link Location'd} and it just gave the broke link blot.

https://pin.it/sqe4ca75chtcl4

https://i.pinimg.com/736x/1e/ef/fa/1eeffa20b581b811119c71c121327479.jpg

Sorry Mamie; just hijacking your thread :0)

So that first link is to a photo I posted in my Pinterest account when I was logged into the app. The second one is the same photo via Safari after I logged out. Using the second one:

>153 humouress: I was trying to do the {img src="https://pin.it/sqe4ca75chtcl4"} thing to get my non LT junk drawer pics inline.

>154 quondame: They have to end with .jpg or .gif (or possibly .png - I’ll have to check)

There are a coupe of threads that should help; back in a mo’ ....

https://www.librarything.com/topic/177029 In the Green Dragon

Or https://www.librarything.com/topic/129158#6321069 from the 2012 75er group.

Also a wiki page attached to one of them.

Morning, Mamie! Gulping down my second cup of coffee, before heading out. At least I am off tomorrow, so that will break up the work week.

Hope your day goes smoothly.

Hi Mamie! Happy yesterday's tomorrow to you.

>151 sibylline: Mornin' Mamie!!

I bought To Say Nothing of the Dog when Lucy recommended it after I read Three Men in a Boat but haven't read it yet. Maybe I'll go to it next after I finish the tome I'm currently reading.

Have a happy Baja Tuesday!

I shall Loftily Ignore calumnies upon my seasoned citizenness.

Go on then. Ignore. :0)

>137 Crazymamie: I've got nothing to contribute regarding this particular post, Mamie, but I do note that it's the last post you posted. Talk about having a party line. I also note that your friends don't talk about you behind your back (so to speak).

Well, poop! I typed a whole big long post and then lost it. I really hate when that happens. Anyway, something abut how the weather has been gorgeous here - bright and sunny but NOT hot and humid, which is kind of like a miracle. And how I try to soak up ANY kind of weather that is not hot and humid because once that gets here it lingers for pretty much forever, or at least that is how it feels. Easter Sunday was lovely and relaxed but yesterday way definitely a Pre-Tuesday - full of Things That Did Not Go Quite Right. Most annoying.

On the reading front, I finished up The Moneypenny Diaries: Guardian Angel, which was my final read for March - making my total for the month 17 books, which I was most pleased about. And April is off to an excellent start, as I have already added three books to the totals. One of them was Lucy's book, The Hounds of Spring, which was utterly charming - I really loved it. So here's what April looks like so far:

..
Books Read in April:
40. Women & Power: A Manifesto by Mary Beard (4 stars), 2018 acquired hardback, non-fiction/essays/feminism - recommended by Charlotte
41. A Room of One's Own by Virginia Woolf, narrated by Juliet Stevenson (5 stars), 2018 acquired audiobook, non-fiction/essays/feminism - recommended by Joe
42. The Hounds of Spring by Lucy Andrews Cummin (5 stars), 2018 acquired paperback, contemporary fiction/utterly charming

Catching up with the thread:

>138 jessibud2: I get what you're saying about books and their movies, Shelley, but I have BIG love for films. It's so great when they do get it right, and it feels like magic to see something that you love so much come to life. On the other side you have Tom Cruise pretending that he is Jack Reacher. Just No. And every great once in a while, you get a movie that is so much more than the book ever was - like To Have and Have Not and High Road to China.

>139 richardderus: Yep, that's how I do it a lot of times, too, except I learned it with the width part in front.

>140 richardderus: Wow! Since 2012?

>141 ChelleBearss: You may, Chelle! I added your name to that recommendation and added the Haig book - I loved his The Radleys.

>142 quondame: I keep any photos I might want to reuse and that I don't want to disappear on me in my junk drawer, Susan. Others I just upload the way that Richard showed you.

>143 richardderus: Amazon Prime has photo storage included.

>144 quondame: *grin*

>145 PaulCranswick: I hope life slows down for you soon, Paul. I am having trouble keeping up with the threads myownself. Thanks for those good wishes - wishing you a week full of fabulous!

>146 rosalita: Hooray, Julia! I am going to post it up with the beginning posts the next time I start a new thread.

>147 karenmarie: Hello, Karen! Happy Tuesday - Sunday was lovely, indeed!

>148 harrygbutler: Thank you, Harry! It was very laid back and relaxing. And gorgeous weather to go with it, so I spent a lot of time reading on the screened-in porch.

>149 jnwelch: Bummer, Joe. I'll probably give it a go at some point since I liked The Radleys so much.

>150 humouress: *grin* Hello, Nina!

>151 sibylline: Hello, Lucy! I LOVED your book! I am hoping to write up a review of it later today.

Agreed with about A Wrinkle in Time. And Birdy was most annoyed that Meg could tesser, which she is unable to do in the book. Birdy has read all the other book in the series - she really loved A Swiftly Tilting Planet. Have you read When You Reach Me? It's YA, and it's an homage to Wrinkle - beautifully done both Birdy and I thought. I will have to add Camilla to the list - neither of us has read that one.

I have not seen the Outlander tv series - just the advertisements. It looked gorgeous. Abby and I are both fans of the Game of Thrones tv series, and I agree with you about how compression works wonders with the storyline.

Adding To Say Nothing of the Dog to the list and making a note of The Three Men in a Boat tip - thanks so much for that.

Did I mention that I really loved your book?

>152 quondame:, >153 humouress:, >154 quondame:, >155 humouress: No worries - hijack away. *grin*

>156 msf59: Morning, Mark! I am on my third cup of coffee, and starting to feel coherent. *grin* I missed you yesterday, so today is your day off. Hoping it is full of fabulous!

>157 karenmarie: Thank you, Karen! Alas, yesterday was a typical yesterday's tomorrow.

>158 RebaRelishesReading: Hello, Reba! I am going to take her advice and listen to Three Men in a Boat first. I saw that Audible had it narrated by Martin Jarvis, so I might use a credit and pick that up.

>159 richardderus: Well, I didn't make it to my own thread yesterday, so you make a clean getaway this time, oh Brave One.

>160 humouress: Hello, Nina!

>161 weird_O: Hello, Bill! I know - Bad Mamie for getting behind on my won thread. You post made me smile BIG. I love the idea that my thread is a party line!! And hooray for them not talking about me behind my back (so to speak). Heh. Of course you made me think of this:

Happy new day Mamie. I've got this week off, so I'm relying on other sources to know what day it is. Tuesday, apparently.

I quite enjoyed A Room of One's Own when I read it last year.

Hi, Mamie! Both Erika and I quite like Three Men in a Boat; it's very funny. I hope you enjoy it as well.

>169 Crazymamie: Three Men in a Boat is hilarious. I first encountered it when we were traveling in England with friends. The husband of the other couple wasn't a "reader" but we were staying in a cottage with no TV and no radio but which did have a bookcase full of things to read. The rest of us were reading so he picked up Three Men in a Boat and before long was laughing like crazy and reading us bits of it which then had all of us laughing like crazy. It's a very, very funny book IMHO.

>170 Helenliz: Thanks, Helen! Happy new day to you! A week off sounds lovely. And yes- Tuesday.

I really loved A Room of One's Own - I listened to it narrated by the fabulous Juliet Stevenson, but I want to go back and grab quotes from the paperback copy I have lying around here somewhere. Anyway my LY catalog says I have a print copy.

>171 harrygbutler: Hello, Harry! Good to know about Three Men in a Boat - I am looking forward to it, and your praise has convinced me to snag the audio of it.

>172 RebaRelishesReading: Hello, Reba! Hooray for all the love for Three Men in a Boat! Now I am wondering how I have not run across it before. I love books that beg you to share like that - great story.

Hi, Mamie. Sadly, I have never read Mary Beard. One of the glaring holes in my reading. I know she is highly respected. I also have A Room of One's Own , also thanks to Joe, on my T.R. list.

Hi Mamie, happy Tuesday. Thanks for asking about time travel books. Now I have a lot more books to look out for. That's helpful (in an overwhelming book way).

>174 msf59: Hello, Mark! It's my first by Mary Beard, too. You will love A Room of One's Own when you get to it - the audiobook narrated by Juliet Stevenson is really fabulous. Just saying...

>175 Familyhistorian: Hey, Meg! Ha! That's the great thing about LT - an abundance of book suggestions 24/7.

March Stats:

Books read: 17
PopSugar Challenge: 6

Books that are part of a series: 10
In Translation: 1
Rereads: 0
GNs: 1

Format
hardback: 0
paperback: 3
ebook: 5
audio: 8
audio/print or ebook combo: 1

Borrowed: (public library), 1 (Birdy’s library)
Archive (Purchased in 2012 or earlier):
Purchased in 2013: 1
Purchased in 2014: 1
Purchased in 2015: 1
Purchased in 2016: 2
Purchased in 2017: 6
Purchased in 2018: 5

Authors
Living: 12
Dead: 5

Male: 9
Female: 8

American: 4
Canadian: 1
English: 10
French: 1
Scottish: 1

New to me authors: 9
Rereads: 0

fiction: 13
non-fiction: 4

Genres/category
non-fiction/biography: 1
non-fiction/memoir: 2
non-fiction/film history: 1

literary fiction/contemporary fiction: 1

crime fiction/espionage: 4
crime fiction/mystery: 1
crime fiction/noir: 1
crime fiction/police procedural: 1
weird fiction: 1

science fiction/space opera: 1
juvenile fiction: 3

LT Recommendations Read

Charlotte: 3
Deborah: 1
Heather: 1
Katie: 1
Joe: 1

Oh! March book stats. I should do those, too. Tomorrow ...

So I made the potato soup tonight. Since I was trying to see if I could get close to my Mom's recipe I changed the potatoes to Russets (also because I prefer the potatoes to be nice and soft in soup). We also never had cheese or bacon on potato soup but they were a great addition. Anyway it was a big hit and I thank you hugely for sharing the recipe which is now in my recipe file as "Mamie's Potato Soup" :)

Happy Wednesday, Mamie!

Coingrats on an excellent reading month!

Great March stats! Looks like you are making good progress with PopSugar too :)

>178 rosalita: *grin* I actually have cumulative stats that are up to date, which is amazing for me. Usually I am very good for about the first ten books or so, and then havoc ensues. Heh.

>179 RebaRelishesReading: Oh, Reba, thanks for telling me. I am so happy you liked it. And I am thrilled to be featured in your recipe book.

>180 karenmarie: Happy Wednesday, Karen! And thank you - I was very pleased with March.

>181 ChelleBearss: Thanks, Chelle! PopSugar is coming along, but of course I have filled all the easiest slots for me first.

Forgot to mention that we opened the Pecan Paradisio pool this past weekend. Please bring your own towel. Drinks will be provided.

>183 Crazymamie: Jealous!! It’s snowing here :(

>183 Crazymamie: Oh my, that looks good, Mamie. It's snowing here, too. Is that Dan flying through the air?

Lining up for a swim, Mamie :-)

>184 ChelleBearss: Just 70 here today and overcast, but the pool is heated, so...

>185 jnwelch: Good eyes, Joe! Yep, that's Dan. Snowing there - I wonder if it is snowing in Indiana.

>186 charl08: That made me laugh out loud, Charlotte! LOVE it!

>186 charl08: Love it!

>187 Crazymamie: I've no doubt it's at least snowing in NW Indiana, which is right by Chicago. I know it's snowing just north of there in Michigan, because that's where daughter #1 is right now, wearing layers.

I just found this weather report:

Indianapolis, IN
Wednesday
Scattered Snow Showers

You picked a good place to live, my friend.

>183 Crazymamie: how lovely.

>186 charl08: >:-D

We have sunshine today and blue skies, but I'm not going to describe it as warm out. No discarding a coat quite yet.

Hi Mamie!

>183 Crazymamie: Very nice.

"we opened the Pecan Paradisio pool this past weekend. Please bring your own towel. Drinks will be provided." This is where I wanna be.

Morning, Mamie! Sweet Thursday. 41 today with more wind. Yippee!

Hi, Mamie! I hope your week is going well. It will be several weeks before pool weather here, I suspect.

Your pool is open, sigh. 20 degrees F here. At least it is sunny.

Happy Thursday, Mamie.
Lunch out with the husband (his treat for me) and then shopping. I could get used to this week of business, even if I have a spot of bother working out what day it is >;-)
Warm here*, I've got a load of washing on the line and the solar panels are doing their stuff nicely.

*for April and compared to how it has been. 15C is not yet, shed-the-cardigan weather!

>188 jnwelch: Thank you for that weather information, Joe - unusual to snow in June in Indiana but not unheard of. I can remember getting really dumped on several times in March when we lived there.

Georgia is lovely, but I would not want to live here forever - too hot.

>189 Helenliz: If we get two weeks of weather requiring a light jacket, I am giddy, Helen. I miss the cold. But still, we are enjoying some very beautiful weather currently.

>190 karenmarie: Hello, Karen! It's a saltwater pool, so the water is silky smooth.

>191 msf59: *Grin* Morning, Mark! YIKES to 41! It's only 53F here, which is cool for Georgia, but I am loving it - I have the French doors open. Only going to 73F today, but tomorrow is supposed to reach 80F.

>192 harrygbutler: Hello, Harry! So far so good with the week. Our pool would not be open yet if it weren't heated. Craig likes to get it up and running as soon as possible because he loves to be in it.

>193 sibylline: Whoa! Only 20?! Sending you warm thoughts, Lucy. By the way, Rae is reading your book and loving it.

>194 Helenliz: Hello, Helen! Happy Thursday! Your plans sound full of wonder. We have an outing tomorrow - Abby, Birdy, Craig and I are going to Columbus for the day. We will eat out and hit the big bookstore along with anything else we decide on. Should be fun!

You dream of shedding the cardigan, and I dream of needing to don it!

Hello Mamie

I've been MIA, and today I'm visiting some threads to try to ease back in. I see posts regarding weather, so I'll jump in to say that here in NE Pennsylvania, we have had a real weird winter. Lots of snow, lots of missed days of schools for the children, lots of sliding around on the streets for adults, and lots of thanking our wonderful neighbor who shovels are sidewalks and driveway. I find ways of thanking him, still, I hope he knows how much we appreciate him.

Easter weekend brought the sound of birds..It was a joyous sound. Then, Monday brought snow. Will asked what kind of bird it was that was perched on the snow on the sand cherry tree by our deck. I laughed and said it was the first Robin of spring.

All good wishes to you!

Hooray for open pools! We are definitely having spring (finally) here in NORTH Carolina. Meaning, Monday was hot, Tuesday was warm, Wednesday was wet and Thursday is cool, but sunny. I have no complaints as long as we are done with the white stuff.

Isn't Lucy's book wonderful? I am buying it as a gift for everyone on my list this year.

Morning, Mamie. (Well it's still morning here on the Pacific coast.) All the weather talk on your thread had me looking at the weather forecast. I had to go to the 14 day forecast to see some days of sun in a row but that will likely change.

You are doing well with the PopSugar challenge. Me, not so good. Maybe I should look more closely at the books I have read and see if any of them fit. How is your stepping going?

>197 Whisper1: Linda! So great to see you here, and what a lovely post. We have had a weird winter, too, in that we actually got snow one morning. And more days of cold than is usual in these parts. I loved it. Currently our weather is very fickle - very warm one day and then much cooler and rainy the next. I love anything that lacks humidity.

Hooray for your robin - hoping you get to see more of him and of the Spring that you are longing for. We have been blessed with some days just perfect for sitting on the screened-in porch and staring out at the pecan trees in the grove behind our house - I'll take it.

>198 nittnut: Hello, Jenn! That sounds a lot like our weather. Minus the white stuff, which we just got the one beautiful morning of before it melted away as if it had been a dream.

I absolutely adored Lucy's book, and I was thrilled that Rae asked if she could read it. I love that you are buying it for everyone on your list this year - what a fabulous idea!

>199 Familyhistorian: Morning, Meg! I actually love the rainy and the overcast days here, but that is because we get SO MUCH sun. I can remember living in Indiana and longing for the sun, so I get your wanting to enjoy multiple days of it in a row. If I could send you some of mine, I would.

I am getting to where I will have to decided how much I want to work at getting the remaining spots in the PopSugar challenge or just let it play out and see how many I end up with. Currently, I just check the open spots when I finish a book and see if it fits anywhere.

The stepping is going really well - I have gotten all of my steps in for each day in April. My goal is to get 300,000 for the month (at least) and to get the rest of my flights of stairs for my next stair badge - I need 330 more flights. I am also counting my calories and not drinking any alcohol for the month. Only five days in, but so far, so good.

So behind on all the threads, Mamie, but just wanted to pop in quick to say Hi as I dash around.
We are still in the middle of winter in my neck of the woods...cold and more snow coming. What month are we in?? April? No stinkin' way. It still feels like January to me... :(

>210 Familyhistorian: Hello, Valerie! What a lovely surprise! Sorry about the lingering of January - sending my warmest thoughts your way post haste.

>162 Crazymamie: The Hounds of Spring huh? I heard it was a good'un ;)

Enjoy Columbus tomorrow, Mamie. Sound lovely! Our temperatures here are okay, but we sure have had a LOT of rain!!

Hi, Mamie! Enjoy your sunny day today. It's a dreary wintery morning here today.

'Morning, Mamie, and happy Friday to you.

A saltwater pool. Very nice.

Hi.

That is all.

This is a video rather than an image so I can't show it here, but it's about procrastiwining.

https://www.facebook.com/brocheckitout/videos/1344461418987609/

>207 richardderus: Sort of what RD said. xx

You are living healthy, Mamie. Good luck with the stepping and healthy eating and drinking. Have a great weekend.

>203 LovingLit: Yeppers, Megan! Rae and I both loved it. Rae is getting her own copy.

>204 vancouverdeb: It was a perfect day for Columbus, Deborah. 80F and sunny - we got to enjoy the shops and eating out, and I brought home a lovely stack of new books.

>205 ChelleBearss: Hello, Chelle! It worked out perfectly - warm and sunny for the road trip and the shopping, and then Saturday was cold and rainy, so perfect for staying in and reading the new books we had just purchased.

>206 karenmarie: Thank you, Karen! I had my doubts about the saltwater pool, but Craig had his heart set on it, and he was right. It's a wonderful thing.

>207 richardderus: Hello. Your post made me laugh!

>208 ronincats: Okay, I loved that, Roni! I will be doing that just as soon as I am drinking alcohol again. I am trying to behave myself for April and May.

>209 PaulCranswick: Sort of hello. xx

>210 Familyhistorian: Well, for April anyway, Meg. SO far so good with the healthy living. I am already feeling so much more energetic - funny how that works, isn't it? You have to expend energy to get it. I am in the groove now, so if I can just keep from injuring anything, I should be fine. I appreciate the good wishes - thank you!

>211 weird_O: That made me laugh out loud, Bill! You find the greatest stuff to post!

Morning, Mamie!

>215 katiekrug: Morning, Katie! I finished the Ruth book, so now I can send it on to Beth! I feel like Griffiths is toying with us.

>216 Crazymamie: - Yeah, I was rather annoyed at the end bit with the message from the ex-lover or whatever. I know if Ruth and Harry ever end up together, the series won't be as good - it's the tension I love - but for the love of God, let's not turn it into a soap opera!

Exactly.

Hiya, Mamie. Just checking in. Still snowing here - can you believe it? It is supposed to get better as the week goes on.

>219 jnwelch: Heya, Joe! Thanks for checking in. And no, I cannot believe it is still snowing in April. Yowza. It's 64F here today, which is as cool as it's gonna get this week.

>214 Crazymamie: Glad you liked it, Mamie. We don't have a cat, but I do occasionally watch them on the caternet.

Glad it is warm for you. Wed are supposed to get a dusting of overnight snow, then be up to 70 by the weekend. I'll settle for that.

>221 weird_O: We have three cats, Bill, and they are highly entertaining. Hoping you get your 70 by the weekend - that sounds lovely. We will of course be 80s by the weekend. I can't complain though, as we have had some very nice days of low humidity weather. I'll take it!

Hi Mamie!

Happy day to you.

Hello, Karen! Counting down to Tuesday. * grin*

I was awakened this morning to the septic tank alarm going off. Let me just say that there is no way you are ever going to miss that one. VERY loud and right outside the bedroom window, which was open - the better to hear you, my dear. Hoping that the tank is just full because getting it emptied would be the cheapest and least labor intensive thing. Please cross your fingers for us. Craig has already called the people that installed it, and we are second on their list this morning, so I'm hoping they can get to us before noon.

On the reading front, so far I have finished five books this month and reviewed none of them. Bad Mamie. I need to get on that. Here's the list:

Books Read in April:
40. Women & Power: A Manifesto by Mary Beard (4 stars), 2018 acquired hardback, non-fiction/essays/feminism - recommended by Charlotte
41. A Room of One's Own by Virginia Woolf, narrated by Juliet Stevenson (5 stars), 2018 acquired audiobook, non-fiction/essays/feminism - recommended by Joe
42. The Hounds of Spring by Lucy Andrews Cummin (5 stars), 2018 acquired paperback, contemporary fiction/utterly delightful
43. The Wendy Project by Melissa Jane Osborne, Illustrated by Veronica Fish (3.5 stars), paperback borrowed from Abby, GN/grief/fairy tale retelling
44. The Dark Angel by Elly Griffiths (4 stars), traveling paperback sent by Katie and going to Beth next, crime fiction/mystery (Ruth Galloway, book 10)

Currently working on the regulars plus:

Hi Mamie! I hope you have a wonderful day.

I didn't know there was such a thing as a septic tank alarm. We have a septic tank. I'll have to ask Bill if we have an alarm.

I, too, had no idea septic tanks had alarms now. It makes sense. We had one when I was a kid, and it backed up on Thanksgiving. Fun.

Good morning, Mamie. Woo, tough way to start the day. Maybe this will help.



Five stars for Lucy's book! It's gotten a lot of raves. I'll have to track it down. I hope A Room of One's Own was a good one for you.

>226 karenmarie: Hello, Karen! Thank you - hopefully it only gets better, as it is off to a shaky start.

The alarm is to signal when the tank is full or when the pump has stopped working.

>227 katiekrug: We have bad septic tank mojo - we had to put in a new field and tank in the last house we lived in in Indiana (which made sense as the house was built in the 1940s), and we just put in a new field with a pumping station here about three years ago. I am hoping the house we retire to will have no septic tank.

>228 jnwelch: Morning, Joe! Right - rough start to the morning. Luckily we have no appointments this morning, and Craig and Rae had already showered before the alarm went off.

Look at you saving the day! Thanks for the pumpkin chocolate chip muffins and the latte!! My favorites!

Lucy's book is so very full of fabulous - I need to write up a review of it. Rae read it, too, and she also gave it five stars.

I LOVED A Room of One's Own - it was so great on audio narrated by Juliet Stevenson. Definitely one I will read again.

Yay!

Hope your septic just needs a pump out! With a family of 6 it could get full pretty quick. When we lived in NS our alarm went off about 6 months after moving into the brand new house so we knew it could not have been full with just Nate and I living there. The dummy builder had forgotten to plug in a cord lol

Good morning, Mamie! Best of luck with the septic tank situation.

I was a big fan of Helen MacInnes when I was younger, but over time I let all her books get away. I've gradually reacquired some of them, including Above Suspicion, though I haven't reread it since getting it again. Have you seen the movie version, with Joan Crawford and Fred MacMurray? I don't think I have.

Morning, Harry! Thank you - the septic guys just arrived, so hopefully they will get it all sorted out. Quickly.

This is my first Helen MacInnes - it was mentioned in Astrid Lindgren's war diaries, and I had picked it up on Kindle a few years ago, so I decided to read it for one of the PopSugar prompts. It's very good so far. I do not know if I have seen that movie or not - I'll have to look it up. Thanks so much for letting me know!

>234 Crazymamie: Morning, Mamie. Hooray for the septic tank guys. I hope they quickly and efficiently take care of this problem.

No snow today. Yah!!

Morning, Mark! Me, too - right now they are still digging up the tank. Heh.

Hooray for no snow - I know you are longing for Spring.

Hope you are enjoying the slightly old fashioned charms of Helen MacInnes,Mamie.

Since the weekend was a complete LT washout, it is incumbent upon me to wish you a happy Tuesday. xx

>237 PaulCranswick: I am, Paul. This is my first one by her, but it is very good so far. And thanks for those good wishes - Happy Tuesdaying to you, too! xx

*Important Update*

They have located the tank and they are pumping!!! Progress!

>239 Crazymamie: Excellent news, Mamie! I have been crossing my fingers for you. Did you post the photo of the truck with "Septic tanks emptied - swimming pools filled - not same truck" written on it? I remember it from ages ago and I wondered whether that truck had come :-)

Or was it this one?



I am refraining from posting a photo of the truck emblazoned with "Stool Bus" with accompanying cartoon poos.....

>240 susanj67: Thank you, Susan! I did not post that photo, but I wish I had - how funny!!

>241 katiekrug: Oh, that made us all laugh, Katie! Daniel, Abby, Birdy and I were sitting here when I pulled up you and Susan's posts. I love that truck! And "Stool Bus"! *belly laugh*

All finished. We're now good to go. Literally.

>241 katiekrug: That reminds me of seeing a service truck for a port-a-potty business on the interstate a couple of years ago. I forget the company's name, but the slogan emblazoned on the back of the tanker was "Drop a deuce in our juice". Ew.

>243 Crazymamie: - Phew!

>244 rosalita: - That is so gross! Potty humor has such a fine line between amusing and disgusting, doesn't it?

>245 katiekrug: Yeah, it's pretty easy to slip from "ha ha" to "oh gross"! And port-a-potties are just gross to begin with; I don't know anyone who has fond memories of ever using one, so you're already operating at a disadvantage.

Mamie, great news that you're, um, good to go. Have a coffee!

Hooray for being good to go!

Good news! Glad it just needed pumping.

Whoa! Septic tank alarm. We've heard ours three times in 28 years. First time was occasioned by a stone swept into the pump that jammed it. Second time was in a abnormal rain that saturated the ground and swamped the drain field. Third time was a dead pump.

Glad your problem was quickly fixed.

Septic tank alarm -- who knew?!? Glad it just needed pumping.

Fittingly, The Grass is Always Greener Over the Septic Tank by Erma Bombeck is on sale today for US Kindle users.

>244 rosalita: Ew! But(t) of course, I laughed anyway.

>245 katiekrug: So very true.

>246 rosalita: Also true.

>247 susanj67: Ha! Thanks, Susan!

>248 jnwelch: Indeed, Joe! And that we were second on the list!

>249 karenmarie: Me, too, Karen.

>250 weird_O: Yep. Not something you want to hear, but I am thankful for the opportunity to know right away that something is wrong. And thank you - me, too!

>251 RebaRelishesReading: See, now you learned something new, Reba. And yes, thank goodness it was a quick fix.

>252 katiekrug: Haha! Too funny, Katie!

I'm glad the septic tank alarm has been successfully resolved. Never knew they came with alarms, but I can see that would be sensible. Both educational and entertaining around here.

A belated happy Tuesday. Be careful with all that coffee.

Also news to me that they come with alarms - can see that would be handy though! Love the van slogans, too.

>256 Helenliz: Thank you, Helen. I am delighted to host and educational and entertaining thread!

The coffee is long gone, and it was delish. Now I am drinking very boring but very healthy water. *sigh*

Happy Tuesdaying to you, too!

>257 charl08: Right, Charlotte. Because you REALLY do not want to have a problem with your septic system that manifests in other ways. Yikes. At our last house we got a GIANT sinkhole, which signaled the problem with the old field. So not fun.

Good news about the septic tank, Mamie.

Glad to hear the new Ruth Galloway is a good one. Can't wait. Thanks.

I love the Fred Vargas books, but The Chalk Circle Man was the weakest one I've read, so don't give up if you don't like that one.

Helen MacInness! A blast from the past.

>259 BLBera: It was indeed, Beth.

Like Susan and Katie have mentioned, the mystery was nothing to write home about, but some very interesting things happened. My only regret was that I was reading Ruth while abstaining from wine - I feel like Ruth and wine belong together. It's just not the same with cranberry lime seltzer. *sigh* Popping the book in the mail to you tomorrow.

Good to know about the Vargas book - I started with that one because it's the first in the series. *nods to Susan*

And I am really liking the MacInnes' book. Plus, I'll get to check one off from the PopSugar challenge when I finish it.

Glad to see you got the septic issues worked out and it wasn't a big issue!
(I think you missed me up there >232 ChelleBearss: but I won't hold a grudge *wanders off to cry in a corner*)

Making a much belated scan of this thread before you start a new one and what do I see??
Cherry Ames!! Our neighbors had most of them and I devoured all they had. Loved that series.

Oh jeez on the septic tank thing. Glad it was an easy fix.

>232 ChelleBearss:, >261 ChelleBearss: Oh, Chelle, my apologies! *hands Chelle a tissue* You are right that it fills up more quickly with a family of six - we had the tank emptied about three years ago, so... And yes, I was very thankful that it just needed emptied. Those pumps are expensive.

>262 SuziQoregon: Hello, Juli! Me, too with the Cherry Ames love.

It was a most unwelcome surprise to be awakened by the alarm this morning. I could not figure out what it was at first.

Good that it was a quick fix, Mamie. Hope the rest of your week comes with no more questionable surprises.

>260 Crazymamie: *waves at Mamie*

Welcome to Wednesday. Hoping that it looks better with you than with us. It's a grey old day and very wet.

Morning, Mamie! Happy Wednesday. I am enjoying the day off and will be taking full advantage of the warmer temps, by getting out for a bird stroll.

Enjoy your day.

Good morning, Mamie! Glad there was a quick resolution of the septic tank issue. Have an enjoyable Wednesday.

Hi Mamie! Happy Wednesday to you.

>264 Familyhistorian: Thanks, Meg! And I love your good wishes for the rest of the week - please may it be so.

>265 susanj67: *waves back at Susan*

>266 Helenliz: Hello, Helen! Wednesday is looking pretty gorgeous here - sunny and going to 74F (23C) today, so I won't complain.

>267 msf59: Morning, Mark! Happy Wednesday! Hooray for your day off being a nice one. Hoping the birding is good. Hopefully a great day in store for both of us.

>268 harrygbutler: Morning, Harry! Thank you - me, too! Hoping your Wednesday is full of fabulous!

>269 karenmarie: Hello, Karen! Happy Wednesday! How did the doctor visit go yesterday - weren't you getting your foot looked at?

Happy Wednesday, Mamie. Hope you had an alarm-free start to the day.

I did, Joe! Happy Wednesday to you!

Trying this for dinner tonight - Country Captain baked in a cast iron skillet. I found the recipe in the Spring 2017 issue of Cast Iron Skillet Magazine.

>260 Crazymamie: Yes, wine and Ruth go together. Thanks!

>274 Crazymamie: How did you like it? If it's a winner, please share recipe because that looks awesome.

>275 BLBera: *grin*

>276 RebaRelishesReading: Will do, Reba! We are making it tonight, so I'll report back.

Hey Mamie!
The Pecan Paradisio Pool looks amazing! The weather outside my window is large snowflakes. Ugh! No matter how cold it is I've sworn off winter coats. I've had enough!

Thankful we do not have a septic tank. Hope all's going well now.

>211 weird_O: love that pick, Bill!

>278 Carmenere: Hello, Lynda! Glad you like the looks of the pool - we were thrilled with how it turned out. And sorry about the continuing snow - April is SO late for that.

Most of the time, a septic tank is no worry as long as you know how to treat it properly, but they are usually very expensive when something goes wrong. Luckily, it just needed emptying this time.

Reporting back that the Country Captain recipe was a hit at the Pecan Paradisio - we all really liked it. As promised, here's the recipe:



Country Captain baked in a cast iron skillet. I found the recipe in the Spring 2017 issue of Cast Iron Skillet Magazine.

Country Captain

Makes 4 to 6 servings

Ingredients
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
4 bone-in skin-on chicken thighs, trimmed (about 1½ pounds)
4 chicken drumsticks
2 teaspoons kosher salt, divided
1 teaspoon ground black pepper, divided
1 cup chopped onion
½ cup chopped green bell pepper
½ cup chopped celery
2 cloves garlic, minced
1¼ cups long-grain rice
2 tablespoons firmly packed light brown sugar
1½ teaspoons curry powder
½ teaspoon ground ginger
½ teaspoon smoked paprika
⅛ teaspoon crushed red pepper
3 cups chicken broth
½ cup golden raisins
1 (14.5-ounce) can petite diced tomatoes, drained
2 teaspoons distilled white vinegar
3 tablespoons chopped toasted almonds
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350°.
In a 12-inch cast-iron skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to medium. Sprinkle chicken with 1½ teaspoons salt and ½ teaspoon black pepper. Add chicken to skillet; cook, turning occasionally, until browned, about 8 minutes. Remove from skillet.
Add onion, bell pepper, and celery to skillet; cook, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Add garlic; cook for 1 minute. Stir in rice, brown sugar, curry powder, ginger, paprika, and red pepper. Stir in broth, raisins, remaining ½ teaspoon salt, and remaining ½ teaspoon black pepper; nestle chicken into rice mixture. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat.
Bake, covered, until rice is tender and a meat thermometer inserted in thickest portion of chicken registers 165°, about 40 minutes. Remove chicken from skillet. Add tomatoes and vinegar; gently fluff rice mixture with a fork. Arrange chicken over rice mixture. Cover and let stand for 10 minutes before serving. Sprinkle with almonds and parsley.

Mamie, I love that there's a Cast Iron Skillet magazine :-) And yay for something that all of you liked.

Happy Thursday, Mamie!
I thought I'd posted something re. the septic tank incident, but see I didn't, probably got interrupted. Anyway, very glad for you everything is working again!

I'll copy the recipe and try it with tofu (sorry!) and veggie stock, maybe also some chickpeas. I love spicy-and-sweet rice recipes, and those toasted almonds will add a nice crunch. So the tomatoes and vinegar are added cold to the hot rice?

>280 Crazymamie: It's kind of a risotto, isn't it.. Looks delicious.

>281 susanj67: Me, too, Susan, although I now see that I misnamed the magazine - it's Southern Cast Iron. It's a great magazine, too - filled with all kinds of recipes, tips on how to use and care for your cast iron, a chef interview, sometimes a historical piece, and loads of photos.

And yes - we really lucked out that everyone liked it - I was expecting Rae to eat the chicken but not the rice. I had even made her some plain jasmine rice just in case, but she loved all of it.

>282 Deern: Happy Thursday, Nathalie! Thank you - that a working septic tank is a must.

I have no problems with tofu - I just don't care for it myself. Let me know how it turns out - the blend of sweet and spicy was delicious.And yes - the tomatoes and vinegar were added cold to the hot rice. You stir them in and then place the chicken back on top of the rice, then put the lid back on the pan and let it set for 10 minutes. It was perfect - the tomatoes were warm but not mushy.

>283 charl08: Exactly, Charlotte, except you don't have to stir it constantly. It was very good - I will definitely make it again.