January RandomKIT: Home Sweet Home

Mid pleasures and palaces though we may roam
Be it ever so humble, there’s no place like home

--John Howard Payne, from “Home Sweet Home”, 1823

Let’s start out the new year at home: this month’s theme is “home” and whatever that may mean to you. Feel free to interpret this theme as broadly as you like; here are some suggestions:

-Read a book that reminds you of “home”: it could be a beloved childhood book, a book that was always around your home growing up, or any book that makes you think of “home.”

-Read a book where the “house” or “home” feels like a main character in the story, or is the title of the book. Some ideas:
--Jane Austen’s Northanger Abbey
--Rumer Godden’s China Court
--Sandra Cisnero’s The House on Mango Street
--Madeleine L’Engel’s Crosswicks Journals, a series of 4 memoirs that are all set in the vacation home that belonged to her family for generations.

-Read a book that is set in your home town/county/state/province.
-Read a book by an author from your home town/county/state/province.
-Read a book about home decorating, home building or house architecture.
-Read a book about the history of the home, like Bill Bryson’s At Home or Judith Flanders’s The Victorian Home.

-Read a book about people leaving old homes and making new ones, like settlers, pioneers, immigrants, refugees. Some ideas:
--David McCullough’s The Pioneers, about the settling of the Ohio Territory
--Vilhelm Moberg’s The Emigrants, a story of Swedish immigrants to America
--Bui Thi’s The Best We Could Do, a graphic novel (non-fiction) about the author’s refugee experience from Vietnam

-Read a book about homelessness or transient living life-styles, like Evicted by Matthew Desmond, Nomadland by Jessica Bruder, The Glass Castle: a memoir by Jeannette Walls.

-->Still stumped for an idea? Read a book with “house” or “home” in the title.

Looking forward to everyone’s choices!

The 2022 RandomKIT wiki is here:
https://wiki.librarything.com/index.php/RandomKIT_2022

I like this! I've already read it, but my first thought went to one you've recommended:
At Home / Bill Bryson.

Not sure what I'll read, but I have time to figure that out. (I still need to get all my challenges organized!)

This is a great theme! I'm probably going to read one of my last 2 Laura Ingalls Wilder books, not part of the Little House series: West from Home: Letters of Laura Ingalls Wilder, San Francisco, 1915 and/or Pioneer Girl: The Annotated Autobiography

>2 LibraryCin: Actually, I'm planning on reading At Home myself!

>3 Tess_W: Thanks for mentioning the Little House series--I meant to suggest it.

I am going to go with the option of having the word "Home" in the title and I am going to be reading the vintage mystery, Home Sweet Homicide by Craig Rice.

Lovely theme for a time when we spend so much time at home. I'll be browsing the shelf in January.

I think I'm going to read A Small Place in Italy by Eric Newby about how Newby and his wife buy a run-down house in Italy and make it their home.

>1 kac522: This is a wonderful topic...just right for January.

At first glance there are three on my TBR that will work by title
Heaven My Home
The Yellow House
Glass Houses

I suspect that some of the other books I will be reading that month will qualify by content. I will post here if they do.

I might read House of Names by Colm Tóibín

I have House of Shattered Wings and if I can't get The House in the Cerulean Sea this month, I'll read it in January (on library hold forever!)

I am uncertain about this one at the moment, lots of vague ideas, none of the concrete.

I like this theme and have several on the shelf I can choose from. I've had O Come Ye Back to Ireland by Niall Williams and Christine Breen for several years. Niall moved to New York in 1980 but the couple (they met in Dublin) decided to move back to Ireland in 1985 and planned to write full time. This is about their return and life on Niall's grandfather's land.

I think I'll either be reading The Homecoming by Andrew Pyper or The Last House on Needless Street by Catriona Ward, both of which I meant to fit in within 2021 and didn't quite get around to!

>7 dudes22:, >12 clue: These sound fascinating...adding to the Wishlist.

It looks like this one might work. It's the 4th book in Gary Paulsen's "Hatchet" series:
Brian's Return

>5 DeltaQueen50:, >10 majkia: Welcome! Glad you could find something right away.

>9 Robertgreaves: Interesting choice--this one is new to me; I was also thinking Toibin's Brooklyn would work for this theme, too.

>6 MissWatson:, >8 beebeereads: Thanks! It seems appropriate to start with some "familiar" type topics/reads to jump-start the new year reading.

>11 Helenliz: Vague is good! I'm hoping to get people thinking about books that fit the theme, but are a bit tangential.

>15 LibraryCin: Absolutely--good choice!

>15 LibraryCin: I gave that one 3 1/2 stars, enjoy!

I plan to read In This House of Brede by Rumer Godden. The word “house” is in the title, and it is about someone leaving their old home for a new one. I’ve wanted to read this for a long time.

>19 marell: Wow, I read that one years ago and then reread it! That is one of my faves.

>1 kac522: This is a great topic with so many choices. I will need to browse my shelves for this one.

I might re-read The Mysterious Affair at Styles in audio, because Styles Court, the house at which the book is set, is in the title :)

>20 LadyoftheLodge: I think I’ve put off reading it for so long because of it’s size, so I’m really glad to hear that!

Great theme.

I'm thinking about reading House in the Cerulean Sea. It also fits the BINGO LGBTQ+ square.

I am planning to read Homespun Suspicions by Olivia Newport. That will fit for a couple of other challenges too.

>19 marell: I also love that book and have re-read it multiple times.

>27 susanna.fraser: Thank you for that. I can hardly wait to get started on it.

>19 marell: House of Brede seems popular with this group. I also have read it a couple of times and enjoyed it.

>29 markon: Yes, it does, and I will be picking up my copy from the library tomorrow so I can get started on my 2022 reading. Wishing you a good reading year.

I have Life in the English Country House : A Social and Architectural History on my shelves and may try that.

I'll be re-reading The Borrowed House. It is one of my all-time favorite books that I first read as a youth and I still enjoy it on periodic re-reads. I'm sure my love for it started my fascination with WWII books. Definitely a comfort read for me.

I'm thinking of The Yellow House, which would also fit the January CATWoman.

I'm planning to read Shaking the Gates of Hell: A Search for Family and Truth in the Wake of the Civil Rights Revolution, since the author is from and the events are based in my home state, Alabama, just one county away from where I grew up.

Some really great picks from all of you! I hope these reads kick off a "homey" start to your 2022 reading.

>25 dreamweaver529: The House in the Cerulean Sea was my favorite book of 2020. I have it on audiobook. Most nights I'll put the sleep timer on for an hour and listen to it while I fall asleep.

I'm currently reading Wintering : The Power of Rest and Retreat in Difficult Times by Katherine May. I definitely won't finish it before the end of the year and it seems to fit this challenge.

>36 VioletBramble: Oh I read Wintering a couple of months ago and loved it. I really like Katherine May's writing, her memoir The Electricity of Every Living Thing is excellent too.

I just finished The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien and in my opinion it is a perfect fit for this KIT because to me and many readers of this novel the Shire is the epitome of home, and it runs like a thread through the whole story. In addition, Middle-earth is like a home to me and something that has provided refuge for twenty years while in "real life" I have moved many times.

>38 MissBrangwen: Lovely way to start your reading new year!

I think I'm going to try a book that's been on my To Read list since at least 2014: The Dervish House by Ian McDonald

I read The Night Watchman for this one. It fits in so many ways for me. The author Louise Erdrich is actually from a small town just a little north of where I live in Minnesota. Even tho the story is set in Turtle Mountains of North Dakota it mentions Minnesota many times. And the story is set in the 50s and especially 1953, Thomas Wazhashk, a night watchman at a jewel bearing plant and an Ojibwe Councilor, works to comprehend the consequences of a new termination bill drafted by Arthur Vivian Watkins heading to the floor of the United States Congress in 1953. The year of my birth.

I finished Murder on the Red River which takes places in my home state of Minnesota, and a bit in Fargo, and is by Marcie Rendon. It is a murder mystery but the focus is on Cash, a 19 year old native woman who grew up in foster homes and makes rent money by hustling pool at local bars. I'll read the sequel for sure, 4 stars.

Starting The House on the Strand by Daphne du Maurier

>43 Robertgreaves:, I read that one last year.

I think The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman fits this theme. It is about a man going home and reliving forgotten childhood mysteries, and it features not only his home but also the evocative farmhouse down the lane that comes to feel like home to the boy.

For this one, I'm equating home with family

Forgiveness / Mark Sakamoto
4 stars

Mark Sakamoto’s grandparents were on two different sides of WWII. His maternal grandfather fought in the war and was captured and spent years as a prisoner of war, first in Hong Kong, then in Japan. Mark’s paternal grandmother, a Japanese-Canadian, and her family lost their home and livelihood in BC and were sent to rural Alberta to farm. Mark and his brother were born and raised in Medicine Hat, Alberta. After Mark’s parents marriage ended, his mother had a really hard time (to put it lightly, but trying not to give too much away in my summary).

The summaries of this book make it sound like it’s all WWII, but it’s not. I found the book to be an entire biography of his grandparents, then his own – with a focus on his relationship with his mom. I really liked this. A little “bonus” for me was that Mark’s wife is from Assiniboia, Sask, a small town about 45 minutes from the town I grew up in.

I started reading West From Home last night, and I'm loving the letters by Laura Ingalls Wilder about her visit to San Francisco in 1915.

Starting Jane Austen At Home by Lucy Worsley

I finished Homespun Suspicions by Olivia Newport, a clean read in the Sugarcreek Amish Mysteries series.

I read In This House of Brede by Rumer Godden. Not only is house in the title, but Brede, a monastery, is the home of around 100 nuns, too.

I finished The Good House by Tananarive Due, which fits this theme as well as the ScaredyKIT Haunted House theme for this month.

West From Home turned out to be a 4 star read for me. I love reading old letters, and Wilder had such a way with describing the things around her.

>52 fuzzi: That's the one I'm currently reading!

>53 Tess_W: and...?

:)

I read A Thousand Acres by Jane Smiley. I feel that it fits home sweet home. I lived in Clear Lake Iowa for a few years and this farm was located real close to Mason City Iowa and Clear Lake is mentioned as well as Minneapolis/St. Paul and Interstate 35 is mentions.

One more for this theme: The Last House on Needless Street by Catriona Ward

>54 fuzzi: I just now finished!

I read Laura Ingalls Wilder's West From Home. In this set of letters Laura is at her daughter's home in San Francisco and writes often to her husband back in Missouri. She is definitely homesick.

I've read Nella Last's Peace by Nella Last, compiled from her diaries written from 1945 through 1948. The first book in this series is taken from Nella's war diary. She was an ordinary housewife who during the war became a volunteer. Having been a homemaker all of her adult life Nella wasn't sure how she would do as a volunteer but she quickly learned she was an asset in organizing and managing.

In this second book the war is over and she's no longer needed as a volunteer. The transition back to full time at home is rather difficult for Nella and other women she worked with. She writes about her disatisfaction and the difficulties of running a home during those years when rations were so small and supplies of everything so low and erratic.

>58 clue: Sounds really good! On my WL it goes!

>58 clue: I read Nella Last’s War a few years ago and will never forget it. Thank you for reminding me of her. I look forward to reading the second book in the near future.

I read The Dutch House by Ann Patchett for this month's theme.

The Dutch House is about a pair of siblings and the house that has always loomed large in their life. I listened to the audiobook and Tom Hanks did an excellent job reading this book. Danny and Maeve were characters that I found myself constantly rooting for despite their flaws. The one theme that I took away from the book was the power of forgiveness and how moving forward people that did unforgivable things can later have a positive influence if you allow them to. It was an interesting story that kept me interested and looking forward to picking up the story again and again.

COMPLETED Jane Austen At Home by Lucy Worsley

>57 Tess_W: her homesickness does show in her writings.

One of the things I liked about West From Home is that Ingalls' style of writing in her letters puts to rest the rumor that her daughter Rose wrote the Little House books.

I thoroughly enjoyed Laura's descriptions of San Francisco.

I have completed my read of the enjoyable mystery, Home Sweet Homicide by Craig Rice.

I am reading Christmas in Oklahoma for this challenge. I live in Oklahoma so it is home.

I read Ten Pollitt Place by C. H. B. Kitchin (1957)

A forgotten story out of print for a long time and deservedly brought back by Valancourt Books gives an account of the residents of the posh apartment house at Ten Pollitt Place. The building and neighbourhood was based on Kitchin's own neighbourhood at 23 Montpelier Street (where, coincidentally Thomas Hardy lived in 1870) and is described well enough that it may be recognized by locals. Harrod's appears as Garrow's department store where Dorothy Fawley shops and has lunch. Justin Bray, a less than successful author, resembles Kitchin enough that he could be seen as a self portrait. Hugo, a disabled teenager with an odd crush on the dustman, predicts that someone in the house will die within the year. The dated chapter headings work as a countdown through a dismal Christmas to a dramatic turn at the end of the year. There is much to ponder over in this ostensibly simple story that reveals more complexity as it progresses. Kitchin is better known for detective novels, which is what drew me to his work, but this muted story is my favourite of what I've read so far.

I have finished Paris-Brest where a young man returns to his hometown Brest in Brittany, reminiscing about the time he lived near his grandmother.

February thread is here:
https://www.librarything.com/topic/338783

>68 kac522: thank you!

I read The House at Pooh Corner for this month.
Awww. Loved it. Again.

>70 Helenliz: Awww!!! Great choice! Brings back happy childhood memories. One of my all time faves.

>71 LadyoftheLodge: It was just lovely. I listened to it, for the full return to childhood experience.

I added this here, as it seems the part of the "plot" that I missed is that he was trying to make enough money to travel home to the rez. There certainly was a lot of talk of the rez, and particularly his kokum (grandmother).

Jonny Appleseed / Joshua Whitehead
2 stars

Not really much of a story to this – Jonny is a gay indigenous boy growing up on the rez, and he moves to Winnipeg when he gets older, where he becomes a prostitute (my mistake – apparently not a prostitute, but a cybersex worker).

It was not in chronological order, and it was quite sexually graphic at times. The author narrated the audio – I rarely lost focus, but he did have a monotone voice. Turns out there might have been more of a “plot” than I thought (although, still kind of flimsy, I think), so maybe I did miss more than I thought. For some reason, I had it in my head that indigenous 2-spirit people were more accepted in indigenous cultures than gay people in white cultures, but (at least in this book) that doesn’t appear to be the case.

Like >62 Robertgreaves:, I read Lucy Worsley's Jane Austen at Home. Not only is "home" in the title, but Worsley examines Austen's life through the lens of the various homes she lived in.

I grew up in Saskatchewan and my parents are still there. I still call it "home"

Ghost Stories of Saskatchewan 3 / Jo-Anne Christensen
4 stars

This is the third book of Saskatchewan ghost stories written by this author. This one had a few chapters that were a bit different, though. In addition to the ghost stories from around the province, she interviewed a few groups of ghost hunters based in Saskatchewan.

This had me scared enough – when reading by myself at night – to not head down to the basement after reading, before bed, to scoop the cat’s litter box down there! The chapters on the ghost hunters was unexpected, but surprisingly interesting. Although (sadly), none of the ghost stories were really near where I grew up, I quite liked this one.

I've finished Objects of Our Affection by Lisa Tracy about a woman's search to find out more about the contents of the house she grew up in.

>76 dudes22: That looks so interesting. It reminds me of the show Legacy List, where Matt Paxton goes through people's old stuff (generally after a family member has died or needs to drastically downsize), and pulls out the treasures from the junk, and along the way finds more about the family's history.
https://www.pbs.org/show/legacy-list/

Finished The Homecoming by Andrew Pyper--if you like character-driven horror that gives you some genuinely eerie scenes/characters and keeps you turning pages, Pyper's one to look up. This one probably lands on the horror side of suspense more so than the suspense side of horror (if that makes sense), but I adored it. I can't wait to read more of his work.

>78 whitewavedarling: I just read this toward the end of last year and also really liked it!

I'm counting Royal Escape in this category as well. In King Charles II's escape to France after the battle of Worcester, he ends up trying to take a ship from my home village, a fishing port. There was no captain considered suitable trustworthy, which I think reflects well on us. >;-)

I read Slade House by David Mitchell. I'd say the house is certainly a character of sorts (though not the sort that would prompt me to say "home sweet home"). I picked it up because I'd read his Cloud Atlas. Not as solid as Cloud Atlas, in my opinion, but I liked the way the story revealed itself through multiple POV characters over the years. It's tied into another series, but it holds up on its own.

I'm counting My brilliant career for this because Sybylla considers her grandmother's house and station of Caddagat her real home.

Finished All the Children are Home by Patry Francis,
a sad and wonderful story with unforgettable characters.

Brian's Return / Gary Paulsen
3 stars

This fourth book in the series has Brian back at home in the city, but longing to be back in nature and really not fitting in. He manages to convince his counsellor and his mom that he should head back out to the wilderness.

This one was super short, so only about ½ of it was in the wilderness. Which for me is the most interesting part. Also, very unrealistic – to think the adults would let him go back on his own (he was supposed to be meeting up with someone, but how come an adult didn’t accompany him that far?). I did find the author’s note at the end very interesting, though.

Meg does not live in the dorm, but there are things going on at home, too. Her father has been living with her and her roommate/crush, and is moving out.

Big Boned / Meg Cabot
4 stars

In the 3rd book in the Heather Wells mystery series, the dorm Heather works at is once again the scene of a murder – this time it’s her new boss. Of course, Heather is the one who finds him. It seems not too many people liked him. Heather has been dating Tad, the perfect guy, but he likes running, herbal tea, and is a vegetarian – and is her remedial math instructor.

I really liked this. This was a lot of fun, but they are as much (or maybe more so) chick lit as mystery, with humour thrown in. And there were parts that made me laugh.

I am about half-way through Bill Bryson's At Home, so will be taking this homey book with me into February. Bryson gives us a walk-through of the history of the home using his 1851 English house, formerly a vicar's residence. We walk through each of the rooms (drawing room, dining room, kitchen, cellar, etc.) as Bryson gives us the history of the rooms and things used in each room. Bryson can go off on tangents, but they are always interesting. My only quibble is that his tangents, although always entertaining and informative, aren't necessarily the ones I would have chosen, so I guess I'll have to write my own book!

I want to thank everyone for participating in this month's challenge. It was moving to read how many people were able to find books that took them back to familiar places and people and memories. I hope this helped you get into a good reading mood for the year, and wishing everyone some great reads (and a few more homey ones) for the rest of 2022!