Books Brought Home July/August 2019

New month and more books....

Forgotten Bones by Vivian Barz
What You Did by Claire McGowan

The Lost Plot; an invisible library novel
by Genevieve Cogman

Henry Hudson Discoverer of the Hudson River
by Jeff Young

Cliff Hanger; a Martha's VIneyard Mystery
by Philip Craig

Finished La Vagabonde by Collette. Originally published in 1910, a lyrical stream of consciousness feminist novel that reeks of the writer's talent. Loved every word. Audible book.

Bought and just opened an oldie that I'm interested in reading because we are in the midst of a crisis of cyber security crimes from 2016 and threatening our next national elections. The book is The Cuckoo's Egg by Cliff Stoll, and I imagine a lot of LTers have read it. Stoll "invented" cyber security while investigating German spy hackers' methodology who were selling military secrets accessed through the Lawrence Berkely Lab's ARPNET and gaining entry from there to White Sands that was linked by MILNET to Berkeley.

Have been on a buying binge of e-books, but that one's a tree book. Originally published in 1989.

Fire In The Hole by Elmore Leonard a collection of short stories.

Maresi by Maria Turtschaninoff

Shadowplay by Joseph O'Connor

I was cat sitting for a friend in another part of town this week, which happened to be by a locally-owned bookstore that's usually a bit out of the way, so I had to stop in, and I found used copies of:
Vinegar Girl by Anne Tyler
Ghostbusters by Nancy Holder

Maggie Brown & Others by Peter Orner
The Life All Around Me by Ellen Foster by Kaye Gibbons

Sometimes all it takes is a cover. Sometimes I don't pay attention to the cover. I don't have a plan for bringing home new books whether in tangible or virtual form. The following for Kindle.

Cover-driven Purchase: Jeanette Winterson's The Passion. I've never heard of this author even though the book was originally published in '87, nor have I heard of the John Llewellyn Rhys Prize but she won it or this novel.

Plain Brown Wrapper Purchase: The Two Destinies, a classic by Wilkie Collins who writes the kind of strange Victorian novel I like.

For No Reason Except Curiosity: The James Beard Cookbook by Guess Who. Want to find out what all the fuss is about since he was THE American chef for years and this is THE Bible of basic American cooking.

This listing is only a partial truth, not the whole truth, but it is nothing but the truth about (some of) my new books.

Black Ships by Jo Graham
-- a post Trojan War fiction, from our local
Wai'anae, HI Library

The Hippopotamus in the Marsh by Pauline Gedge
-- on Egypt in the era of the Hyksos; fiction, but
said to be very well-researched, historically

Borrowed Aftershocks by Marko Kloos.

Today at my charity shop.

A Long Long Way by Sebastian Barry

This Must Be The Place by Maggie O'Farrell

From Amazon Prime Day, Dan Abrams' history of Theodore Roosevelt's "legacy" trial, Theodore Roosevelt for the Defense because I watched the book talk interview of him talking about it on C-SPAN Sunday.

Had no idea Abrams is such a Renaissance man, nor did I know his father is Floyd Abrams, the famous Constitutional lawyer and First Ammendment expert/defender. Now I expect to learn some fascinating unknown details about Teddy Roosevelt.

Limited time freebie from tor.com: The Emperor's Blades by Brian Staveley.

At last I received my pre-order Forever Frida: A Celebration of the Life, Art, Loves, Words, and Style of Frida Kahlo by Kathy Cano-Murillo, a local author.

I just got back from Kansas. While there I made a trip just over the Missouri border to the delightful Prospero's Books and Media. I unearthed The Winter of Our Discontent by John Steinbeck from the basement while live Irish music played on the third floor.

More Kindle content:

Dolly (Touchstone screwy) by Anita Brookner because I liked Brookner's Hotel du Lac so much when I read it years ago.

The Three-Body Problem by Cixin Liu because my son rec'd it to me, knowing I'm fascinated by modern phyzz. This is a sort of sci-fi riff.

A Burnt-Out Case by Graham Greene because IIRC, I read somewhere that it is his best or most important novel. Will see!

> 15 Limelite

I also enjoyed Hotel du Lac the movie is also just great, I shall hunt some of her book down at my local library.

>15 Limelite: I know that A Burnt-Out Case is supposed to be Greene's finest and most important book. Speaking as a lifelong fan of Mr. Greene, I would dispute that and point readers towards The Human Factor, which is a beautiful book and highly significant to his writing as a whole. This is just my opinion, and mean no offence to the person who suggested otherwise!

I've been buying a lot of e-books for my reader, most of them from the bargain basement section of the web store, so I have a lot of schlocky thrillers to read when I find myself unable to concentrate on anything else!

But today - my new books arrived from Amazon - I ordered two new hardcovers on a bit of a splurge and I'm thrilled. Bridge of Clay by Markus Zusak, and Knife by Jo Nesbo - two new books by two of my favourite authors. The full-page author picture on the back cover of the Nesbo is worth the price of the book on it's own - he's aging gorgeously.

I don't think Nesbo's new book is in touchstones yet, and I have no idea how to add one, so there.

>17 ahef1963:

I'm a fan of Greene's writing. His quiet but vivid style, or something, the reason I'm unable to express about why I like it, keeps me seeking out his books. I'll be happy to get to "Human" and will probably conclude that whatever book by Greene that I read next is going to be the best one.

However, tomorrow, I'll be glued to the Mueller hearings in House Judiciary Committee, starting at 8:30!

Coming Soon by Thomas Savage

The Redeemed by Tim Pears

The Tie That Bindsby Kent Haruf

The Quiet Spectacular by Laurence Fearnley

The Thief by Megan Whalen Turner

The Lager Queen of Minnesota by J Ryan Stradal

cdyankeefan, I just bought that one myself. Let me know how you like it!

From Thriftbooks, The Rosie Effect by Graeme Simsion. Time for a good laugh supplied by highly eccentric and interesting characters. Book two in 3-book series about Don, who suffers mental illness and is on the autism spectrum and a very understanding "unsuitable" woman, Rosie, who has her own quirks.

>25 Limelite: I loved that book!

From the eLibrary:
The Bookshop of Yesterdays by Amy Meyerson and London The Novel
by Edward Rutherfurd. The London book is 1154 pages long. I may be a while!

>26 JulieLill:

I'm chortling my way through it. Really enjoyed The Rosie Project. Simsion does a good job of creating what seems like a realistic picture of what it's like to live in the "normal" world when one is different brained.

Rainwater by Sandra Brown
River, Cross My Heart by Breena Clarke

Brought home on my Kindle:

The Hundred Wells of Salaga, by Ayesha Harruna. Historical fiction set in pre-colonial Ghana about two women from contrasting backgrounds and the impact of the slave trade on their village.
The Mercy Seat, by Rilla Askew. More historical fiction set in Louisiana in the 1940s. About the impact of racism and of the electrocution of a young black man on the African American community.

The Man With No Borders by Richard C. Morais

I had my annual mammogram and I always treat myself after if I'm good since there's a Half-Price Books right by.

The Invisible Man by H. G. Wells (vintage edition)
In the Days of the Comet by H. G. Wells (vintage edition)
Britt-Marie Was Here by Fredrik Backman
Breakfast of Champions by Kurt Vonnegut (been scouring bookstores for this all year)
The City of Falling Angels by John Berendt
Skeletons: The Extraordinary Form & Function of Bones by Andrew Kirk (impulse purchase at $2.70)

Also I wanted to shout myself out because I had to drop off my summer reading challenge raffle entry at my locally owned bookstore the other day and I didn't buy ANYTHING!

Impressed by Amazon's delivery: ordered two books on Thursday night around 11 pm and had them in hand by Friday lunch hour. That's good service!

Bought:
Voices from Chernobyl by Svetlana Alexievich
and The Man who loved Children by Christina Stead

Am enjoying a light reference book. 200+ French Idioms, Phrases, and Expressions. Je ne l'invente pas.

At the very end of the July, I purchased the following books: Never Look Back by Alison Gaylin, The Death of Mrs. Westaway by Ruth Ware, Girls Like Us by Cristina Alger, Chain by Adrian McKinty, House Next Door by James Patterson, Before We Were Yours by Lisa Wingate & Layover by David Bell. I am also waiting on my book of the month club selections - The Turn of the Key by Ruth Ware & The Whisper Man by Alex North.

>24 momom248: hi Maureen- loving it so far. He was at the Westport library last week- I got a chance to meet him. Very nice guy

A Dangerous Man an Elvis Cole-Joe Pike detective novel by Robert Crais
Time Song: Journeys in Search of a Submerged Land by Julia Blackburn

In order to raise my purchase to the over $25/free purchase rate, I picked up two inexpensive classics which I've never read: Confessions of an English Opium Eater and The Legend of Sleepy Hollow and other Stories.

It was educator night at my locally owned bookstore so with my 20% discount I got:

Minority Report by Philip K. Dick
Wolves of the Calla by Stephen King
Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng

After seeing and coveting my sister's vintage pop-up book I ordered
Peter Pan: A Hallmark Pop-Up Book by David Harrison

As long as Amazon has incredible good deals ($1.99), I fall for them. Two more for my Kindle:

The Good Lord Bird by James McBride, an NBA winner.
Dollbaby by Laura Lane McNeal, 60s civil rights era in New Orleans.

Tor.com freebie: The Necessary Beggar by Susan Palwick

Redemption's Blade by Adrian Tchaikovsky

Passing by Nella larson

The Idiot: A Novel by Elif Batuman, existential and not popular with all readers. Pulitzer finalist and probably going to be a "hard" read -- think Fyodor Dostoevsky.

Before the Poison by Peter Robinson, stand alone mystery thriller by author known for Alan Banks series set in Yorkshire. (None of which I've read. New-to-me author)

cdyankeefan that's cool you got to meet him. I hope the book was good!

Borrowed Pandemic by A. G. Riddle.

Last week I won a contest on Instagram from Penguin Books! They sent me:
A Discovery of Witches
Shadow of Night
The Book of Life
Time's Convert
all by Deborah Harkness and a tote bag with a quote from one of her books.

>49 PaperbackPirate:

Guess you'll have to change your User Name to "Bookaneer." Congrats, nice haul!

Dream Stuff by David Malouf a collection of short stories.

The Sandman by Miles Gibson I expect a scary read.

Foe by J.M. Coetzee he is the winner of many awards.

The Escape by Katherine Mansfield a mini collection of short stories.

All purchased from my local charity shop for a grand $4.50.

>50 Limelite: LOL, considering it...

>51 aussieh:

Coetzee seems to be a writer-not-for-everyone. But I like him a lot! Most of his novels that I've read are small, tightly focused but devastating. I don't forget them. Disgrace and In the Heart of the Country come to mind. Still haven't got to Elizabeth Costello.

Look forward to hearing what you think of Foe.

>53 Limelite:
I enjoyed Disgrace and have today ordered from my local library chain Elizabeth Costello lot's of stars from Goodreads. I find his novellas a little darkish (this I like).
Foe is next on my list.

Yes it is mommom!!

>54 aussieh:

Yes, he is dark because his major theme is -- racism. But his books, while often harrowing, are also socially conscious eye-openers and important character studies, IMO.

Not sure why, but I find his voice also reminds me of another of my favorite writers whose books are often dark, and while he explores racism often, does so with a lighter touch than Coetzee, Michael Ondaatje.

The Need by Helen Phillips
Inland by Tea Obreht
Fen: Stories by Daisy Johnson

Replacement copies for four old favorites:

Daniel Martin by John Fowles
The Magus by John Fowles
The French Lieutenant's Woman by John Fowles
Angle of Repose by Wallace Stegner

>57 mollygrace: The French Lieutenant's Woman and Angle of Repose are two of my all-time favourites. I'm also very fond of The Magus - I felt at the time I read it, when I was around 16 or 17, that it was the first "grown-up" book I'd ever read. I've not read Daniel Martin although I own a copy of it.

Pride and Prejudice and other Flavors by Sonali Dev
Big Sister by Gunnar Staalesen
The Man who Died (no touchstone) by Antti Tuomainen
In Patagonia by Bruce Chatwin
Nights at the Circus by Angela Carter

Waiting to hear how you like Henry Hudson book.

>58 ahef1963: The Magus was an important book for me -- I almost immediately decided to reread it, but then came news that Fowles was publishing a revised version and there was a certain amount of controversy regarding his decision to do that. I put off my reread and I'm not sure I ever read either version again, but I've always intended to do so . . .

Daniel Martin was a pleasure for me. One of my favorite parts of the book included a description of the ancient ruins of Palmyra. The site has been in the news in recent years due to the war in Syria and damage and destruction of the ruins. https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/23/

I see you've brought home In Patagonia -- I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

>58 ahef1963:

A favorite of mine by Bruce Chatwin is On The Black Hill , the opening line captured me !!!

I was at my local independent bookstore looking for my book club's next selection. They didn't have it so instead I came away with They Called Us Enemy by George Takei.

>62 PaperbackPirate: On my reading list!

C. S. Forester's Hornblower Series was my father's favorite. Of course, he was an Englishman. I tried them but Patrick O'Brian's Aubrey and Maturin Napoleanic naval warfare books are more to my taste.

However, this Forester novel set during the Battle of the Atlantic in WW II was a bargain for Kindle and I got The Good Shepard (touchstone goes to wrong book) for $0.99. I may become a fan of his war novels, just a different war. After all, he wrote The African Queen, which I've enjoyed as a book and (better), a movie.

Also got two-in-one volume by John le Carré, a hardcover edition of The Looking-Glass War and A Small Town in Germany. I've already started the first and am firmly hooked! Wish my dad had lived long enough to read all le Carré's fiction. We might have shared a favorite author.

The Cement Garden by Ian McEwan

The Sitters by Alex Miller

Patiently waiting for me on my reader this morning was A Better Man by Louise Penny.

>63 JulieLill: I didn't realize it was a graphic novel until I saw it in the store. Looks like it's going to be good.

I went to a different local independent bookstore and found my book club's next selection, Pope Joan by Donna Woolfolk Cross.
I also picked up Hollow Kingdom by Kira Jane Buxton and Cibola Burn by James S. A. Corey. I got all 3 for $3 with my trade credit!

New denizens on my Kindle:

On Beauty by Zadie Smith
The Last Gentleman by Walker Percy
One Hundred Names by Cecelia Ahern
The Good Shepherd by C S Forester

>67 PaperbackPirate: Have you read his other book - To the Stars: The Autobiography of George Takei, Star Trek's Mr. Sulu - that was interesting. He talked about his life as a young boy in re-location camps during WWII and his career etc.

From my local library.

Summertime by J.M. Coetzee
Three Stories by J.M. Coetzee
Elizabeth Costelllo by J.M. Coetzee

Sunday was my 11th Thingaversary, so, I picked 11 recent book bullets (+1 to grow on) from fellow LTers:

Solace Lost by Michael Sliter
Hold by Bob Hicok
Dark Chapter by Winnie M. Li
First Test by Tamora Pierce
Where Late the Sweet Birds Sang by Kate Wilhem
The Crystal Cave by Mary Stewart
The Old Gods Waken by Manly Wade Wellman
The Invisible Library by Genevieve Cogman
Evil: The Science Behind Humanity's Dark Side by Julia Shaw
Bad Stories: What the Hell Just Happened to Our Country by Steve Almond
Rosemary and Rue by Seanan McGuire
Curiosity Thrilled the Cat by Sofie Kelly

My NYRB book club selection came this week: The Corner That Held Them by Sylvia Townsend Warner.

And I was intrigued enough by a Book Riot email to pick up A Book of Book Lists by Alex Johnson, because of course I need more book recommendations...

Crossers by Philip Caputo
Hunter's Moon by Philip Caputo
Unto Us a Son is Given by Donna Leon
The Memory Police by Yoko Ogawa
Late Migrations: A Natural History of Love and Loss by Margaret Renkl
Once the Shore by Paul Yoon

>61 aussieh: I've ordered a copy of On the Black Hill by Bruce Chatwin at your recommendation. Thank you! I'm really loving In Patagonia; the language is so beautiful and the scenes he paints such vivid ones. I am enjoying his attention to the smallest of details.

>60 mollygrace: I've not read Daniel Martin. My mum always told me that I wouldn't appreciate it until I was middle-aged. I'm still not sure how I got to middle age, but here I am, 56 years old, and haven't read it yet. I will do so sometime before I enter old age, whenever that is!

Have been receiving books in the mail as a result of a reckless bout of book-buying a month or so back - ordered most of them from Blackwell's in the UK.

Italian Shoes by Henning Mankell
The Snow Leopard by Peter Matthiessen
House of Evidence by Viktor Arnar Ingolfsson
The Shadow District by Arnaldur Indridason
Quicksand by Henning Mankell - a memoir of his diagnosis of lung cancer and his life and thoughts thereafter.

and The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides - bought at the mall.

>73 ahef1963: I thought you might like In Patagonia. On the Black Hill is great, too. There's another novel by Chatwin that I treasure: Utz

A couple more books about books: Best Fiction and The Book of Books.

>73 ahef1963:

I hope you enjoy On The Black Hill it is a favorite reread of mine.

Divergent by Veronica Roth

An Alchemy of Masques and Mirrors by Curtis Craddock

I explained to myself last week: Allie, you don't need any more books.

I ignored myself and bought three more today.

Headhunters by Jo Nesbo
Paranoid by Lisa Jackson - can't find a touchstone for the book.
The Skeleton Road by Val McDermid

Allie: no more books!

>78 ahef1963:

Join my club, to stop collecting means that I have lost a very special part of my life.

NEW THREAD: https://www.librarything.com/topic/310796