Mary's (bell7's) Reads in 2022 - Thread #2

Well that was fast - welcome to thread #2!

For any who don’t know me, I’m Mary and I’ve been with the 75ers since 2010. That time has flown by, and I’ve made many friends, some virtual only and others I’ve had the pleasure of meeting in person.

About me: I’m in my late 30s, single with no kids, but have a large family. My parents, two brothers, two sisters, a sister-in-law, a brother-in-law, a niece and a nephew may be mentioned at various points. I’m a librarian living and working in western Massachusetts, and my job responsibilities include the local history collection, a book club, and buying all the adult fiction for the library. I tend to share a bit of my life here, so you’ll hear about my house (purchased just over a year ago), knitting, sports (primarily football and hockey, Giants and Bruins respectively), and genealogy when I can manage to find time for all that.

About my reading: I generally read above 120 books a year. I gravitate to fantasy most of all, though my reading last year broke down into mostly general fiction, followed by fantasy, historical fiction, nonfiction, and science fiction, plus a smattering in other genres. I have a wide variety of interests and will try just about anything that’s not horror.

My 2022 reading goals:
-Read at least half books by authors of color
-Complete the BookRiot ReadHarder challenge
-Read at least one book a month in the Asian Book Challenge
-Read at least twelve books from countries outside of the US/UK

As you can see, some of those goals will overlap significantly. I also have a lifetime reading goal of reading all the Newbery Award and Honor books, so you’ll see me whittling away at that.

Favorite Books of 2021 -
I couldn't narrow down my top ten titles of 2021, so here's a top ten fiction and a few more categories as well:

Fiction
The Night Tiger by Yangsze Cho
Red at the Bone by Jacqueline Woodson
Black Sun by Rebecca Roanhorse
A Master of Djinn by P. Djeli Clark
Washington Black by Esi Edugyan
Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir
The Dictionary of Lost Words by Pip Williams
Beloved by Toni Morrison
Mistborn: The Final Empire by Brandon Sanderson
A Memory Called Empire by Arkady Martine

Nonfiction
This Time Together by Carol Burnett
The Book of Delights by Ross Gay
Hidden Valley Road by Robert Kolker
The Fire Next Time by James Baldwin
The Anthropocene Reviewed by John Green
Nine Nasty Words by John McWhorter
Somebody’s Daughter by Ashley C. Ford

Graphic Novel
Umma’s Table by Yeon-Sik Hong

Poetry
The Trouble with Poetry and Other Poems by Billy Collins

YA
Instructions for Dancing by Nicola Yoon
Firekeeper’s Daughter by Angeline Boulley
Labyrinth Lost by Zoraida Cordova

Middle Grade
Fighting Words by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley

Rough guide to my rating system:
I'm fairly generous with my star ratings - generally a four is a "like" or "would recommend" for me, while a 4.5 stars is a book I would reread. I break it down roughly like this:

1 star - Forced myself to finish it
2 stars - Dislike
2.5 stars - I really don't know if I liked it or not
3 stars - Sort of liked it; or didn't, but admired something about it despite not liking it
3.5 stars - The splitting hairs rating of less than my last 4 star book or better than my last 3
4 stars - I liked it and recommend it, but probably won't reread it except under special circumstances (ie., a book club or series reread)
4.5 stars - Excellent, ultimately a satisfying read, a title I would consider rereading
5 stars - A book that I absolutely loved, would absolutely reread, and just all-around floored me

I see it more in terms of my like or dislike of a book, rather than how good a book is. My hope is that as a reader I convey what I like or what I don't in such a way that you can still tell if you'll like a book, even if I don't. And I hope for my patrons that I can give them good recommendations for books they will like, even if it's not one I would personally choose.

Random things I'm keeping track of -
Bookish articles:
1. Books Like AND THEN THERE WERE NONE (includes a Japanese book recently translated that may make an interesting Asian Book Challenge choice)
2. Japanese Books in Translation (BookRiot)

How to make pretty block quotes (directions from Richard):
{blockquote}TYPE OR PASTE QUOTED TEXT HERE{/blockquote} and replace the curly braces with pointy brackets.

Number of books read since keeping count on LT:
July - Dec 2008 - 65
2009 - 156 (plus over 70 graphic novels and manga volumes)
2010 - 135 (Note: in June, I started working a second part-time job for full-time hours)
2011 - 150
2012 - 108 (Note: accepted a full-time job in February)
2013 - 107
2014 - 126 (plus 8 Graphic Novels)
2015 - 120 (plus 6 Graphic Novels)
2016 - 141
2017 - 114
2018 - 105 (Note: my first full year as Assistant Director)
2019 - 116
2020 - 153
2021 - 138

2022 Book Club Reads

For work -
January - Whereabouts by Jhumpa Lahiri - COMPLETED
February - Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison
March - Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer
April - Pale Rider by Laura Spinney
May - People We Meet on Vacation by Emily Henry
Summer break
September - Caste by Isabel Wilkerson
October - Harlem Shuffle by Colson Whitehead
November - The Night Watchman by Louise Erdrich
December - Nomadland by Jessica Bruder

The Other Book Club with my SIL and friends -
January/February - The Lager Queen of Minnesota by J. Ryan Stradal

Asian Book Challenge

JANUARY - Europe of Asia - Turkish Authors
Istanbul: Memories and the City by Orhan Pamuk
Dare to Disappoint by Ozge Samanci
FEBRUARY - The Holy Land - Israeli & Palestinian Authors
MARCH - The Arab World - Writers from the Arab world
APRIL - Persia - Iranian writers
Read Dangerously by Azar Nafisi
MAY - The Stans - There are 7 states all in the same region all ending in "Stan"
JUNE - The Indian Sub-Continent - Essentially authors from India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh
JULY - The Asian Superpower - Chinese Authors
AUGUST - Nippon - Japanese Authors
SEPTEMBER - Kimchi - Korean Authors
OCTOBER - INDO CHINE - Authors from Indo-China
NOVEMBER - The Malay Archipelago - Malaysian, Singaporean and Indonesian Authors
DECEMBER - The Asian Diaspora - Ethnic Asian writers from elsewhere
Whereabouts by Jhumpa Lahiri (she was born in the UK to parents from India and grew up in the US; this book was written in Italian and set in Italy)

Other countries I've visited in my reading:
It can get a little dicey to figure out if a book fits as a "global" read or not, so here's how I'm counting it -
-The country I'll identify is that which the book was published in or the author is from, rather than the setting of the book
-The author currently lives in their country of origin, which for my purposes is not the U.S. or U.K.
-If the work had to be translated into English, regardless of where the author is currently living
-If the author is an expatriate, they had to move in adulthood (as a college student, refugee, or any other reason), and I'll count the country of origin as where the book is "from"

Portugal - Ballad for Sophie by Filipe Melo
Spain - City of Mist: Stories by Carlos Ruiz Zafon

Currently reading
These Precious Days: Essays by Ann Patchett
When We Were Birds by Ayanna Lloyd Banwo
The Lager Queen of Minnesota by J. Ryan Stradal

Bible reading/Devotionals
Psalms, Romans
James (my church is reading through it a few times in January/February)

February
14. Ain't Burned All the Bright by Jason Reynolds with artwork by Jason Griffin
13. Dear Haiti, Love Alaine by Maika Moulite and Maritza Moulite
12. Letter to My White Friends and Colleagues by Steven Rogers

January
11. Paperboy by Vince Vawter
10. The Keeper of Night by Kylie Lee Baker
9. Dare to Disappoint: Growing Up in Turkey by Ozge Samanci
8. Read Dangerously: The Subversive Power of Literature in Troubled Times by Azar Nafisi
7. City of Mists: Stories by Carlos Ruiz Zafon
6. Istanbul: Memories and the City by Orhan Pamuk
5. Whereabouts by Jhumpa Lahiri
4. The Lincoln Highway by Amor Towles
3. The River of Consciousness by Oliver Sacks
2. The God of Lost Words by A.J. Hackwith
1. Ballad for Sophie by Filipe Melo

March

DNF in 2022
1. Hell of a Book by Jason Mott
2. The Island of Missing Trees by Elif Shafak

Next one's yours!

Happy new thread!

Happy Sunday!

This morning after quick dog walks (it's still too cold to go far), I headed out to church. Came back, gave the dogs their second walk, and made lunch: salad, flavored rice-in-a-box, and leftover rotisserie chicken, which was all most delicious. I've been spending the afternoon quietly reading Whereabouts for book club and having playoff American football on in the background.

I'll rouse the dogs in a bit to give them dinner and their after-dinner walk for a bit, and then I'll probably read Istanbul until it's time for bedtime walks and bed.

Tomorrow should be more of the same: I'm planning a video call with a friend, will do a little cooking, and reading, then Zoom Bible study in the evening.

>9 thornton37814: Thanks, Lori!

Happy new one!

New thread orisons!

Happy Sunday, Mary. Happy New Thread. Good review of The Lincoln Highway. I am about 380 pages in, so sailing along. It is a big book but it is a fast and enjoyable narrative. I would like more Emmett & Billy.

Happy new thread, Mary!

Happy new thread, Mary.
Great to see your thread chugging along so happily.

Happy new thread, Mary!

Happy new one!

Happy new thread Mary.

>12 drneutron: Thanks, Jim!

>13 richardderus: Thank you, Richard!

>14 msf59: Hope you continue to enjoy it, Mark. I'll look forward to your review.

>15 katiekrug: Thanks, Katie! I've been hate-cheering for certain teams to lose and I'm not sorry that both the Cowboys and Eagles lost ;)

>16 PaulCranswick: Thanks, Paul! This is the fastest I've started a second thread, which bodes well for a chatty year :)

>17 curioussquared: Thank you, Natalie!

>18 figsfromthistle: Thanks, Anita!

>19 fairywings: Thanks, Adrienne!

5. Whereabouts by Jhumpa Lahiri
Why now? This month's book club selection, to be discussed on Wednesday

An unnamed narrator lives in an unnamed Italian city, working as an academic and making her way as a single middle-aged woman through life. The woman heads each short chapter with a location - "At home" or "By the sea" - and recounts the quotidian events of a calendar year.

This was very much outside my comfort zone, and I'm not sure I ever really got into the rhythm of it. I wasn't sure about the narrator. She seems to have a quiet life and on the surface is much like me, but for most of the story she keeps her distance from everyone around her and the reader. She's just observing, not really involved in events or letting you in on her emotions for most of the book, so when they do break through it's quite surprising. I was left at the end wondering if there would be any change for our narrator or if she would continue to go through the motions without really enjoying life. 2 stars.

I do admire the ability of the author to write in multiple languages - this book was written in Italian and she herself translated it into English. I understand it's a bit of a change from her other books, too, so I'd still be interested in reading something a little more typical for her, or the nonfiction book she wrote about learning Italian.

>21 bell7: Clever lady, Jhumpa Lahiri but sometimes she does give me the impression of trying to be too clever.

>22 PaulCranswick: Maybe that was some of it. I was a little frustrated with the character, too. I think it was because she was a middle-aged single lady portrayed as having kind of a sad life, and I got super annoyed because I'm an almost-middle-aged single lady and I enjoy my life greatly thank-you-very-much!

Lahiri's short story collection, Interpreter of Maladies, is excellent. And the only thing I've read by her...

>24 katiekrug: Interpreter of Maladies looks like something I'd enjoy more.

It'll be interesting to see what my book club ladies make of it. One person told me she'd read it several months ago. Another had read her nonfiction, In Other Words, and was interested in this one as a result. So I might be the only one who's new to her writing? And there were no discussion questions available online for this book, so I handed out really generic fiction questions, and part of prep on Tuesday will be reading some reviews and formulating questions more specific to the book.

A comment from your other thread regarding Scott O'Dell

In another life I was a school librarian and the Scott O'Dell books were consistently on the Best of lists from everybody. He is primarily known for writing historical fiction. Sing Down the Moon is a good novel. However, it was published at a time when books about Native American's weren't that popular and didn't really fit into the curriculums. Sing Down the Moon is about the Navajo deportment. Later O'Dell wrote a trilogy that was set in Mayan America for which he was deemed a controversial author. The reason was that he depicted the Mayan culture in all its bloody glory. The subject of one of his books was a human sacrifice and the book caused many letters to be written to places like Booklist and School Library Journal. The book was removed from many a school lilbrary all across the country. Nowadays it is hard to find any of his works in libraries because he was so controversial. I daresay that today most people wouldn't even have batted an eyelash at his choice of topics. Afterall what can you say about a culture that thinks that Hunger Games is a book for children?

Happy Thread Number Two!!!!!

>26 benitastrnad: I can't speak to school libraries in the 1960s-70s, but from my experience in public libraries, I'd say the reason it's harder to find in libraries *today* isn't past controversy but that it's older and there are more current books being written by diverse authors that better reflect, say, the Navajo culture than a white man writing about it in that time period. But again, my experience is all in public libraries and I know there are different challenges in school libraries, including supporting the curriculum.

I'm pretty loose about letting kids read whatever they want - what they can't handle, they'll generally stop reading or it goes over their heads - and when I have my own, my rule is just going to be that they need to be willing to talk about it all with me. As far as The Hunger Games goes, if you're saying it's not for children ages 0-12, I'd generally agree with you, but wouldn't particularly have a hard time giving it to an 8th grader. I was reading an adult book about gangs in New York when I was 12, and adult historical fiction about World War 2 in high school, which are at least as violent as that was.

Edited to add: forgot to mention, things had changed enough by the early 90s that I remember Island of the Blue Dolphins being on our curriculum, and one of my friends really enjoyed his books, so at least at that point in time we had no trouble getting access to his books.

>27 Whisper1: Thank you, Linda!

Happy second thread, Mary!

>30 FAMeulstee: Thanks, Anita!

Morning, Mary, and happy new thread!

>28 bell7: I've always had that same policy with Charlie - he's always been able to pick up whatever book he wants, as long as he's willing to talk about it with me. It's worked out pretty well, I'd say; the kid's a READER. Also, he's in 7th grade and the first Hunger Games book was assigned reading this year. And he loved it.

>32 scaifea: Thanks, Amber! Happy Monday morning to you.

It's been awhile since I last read The Hunger Games, but I remember as dystopian as it was having a lot of interesting things to say that could be applied, for example, to reality TV or any sort of "entertainment" that twisted reality or manipulated the watchers. Much of the violence happens off screen or at a distance from Katniss, until near the end. And I didn't mean 8th grade as a hard-and-fast rule, just a generality. When I'm answering "what should I read?" or "what should my kid read?" I tend to match with what else they're already reading and make an educated guess as to what else the reader in question can handle rather than sticking to grades. I've been enjoying following Charlie's reads and his responses the past few months. I do hope my niece and nephew will also grow up into such readers. Six-year-old Mia is reading on her own now, her mom tells me. I'm looking forward to the possibility of sharing a chapter book over a visit sometime soon, though we still enjoy the bounty of picture books available for her and Matthew.

>33 bell7: Ope, yep, I totally agree that it shouldn't be a hard and fast rule because all readers mature in their own time and in different ways. I'm sorry if it seems like I was being contrary! I know that Charlie is handling some books and movies/shows better than I did at his age, for sure.

>34 scaifea: No not at all, I just wanted to clarify what I meant if it sounded like I was saying kids should read it in 8th grade or older. Like Charlie, I was reading "up" quite a bit when I was a kid, but I don't expect most seven-year-olds to be reading The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, either.

Happy new thread, Mary. The threads are moving right along, aren't they?

>36 BLBera: Thanks, Beth! They sure are!

Today's wrap-up: not much to report, really. It was a quiet day. We had snow overnight that turned to rain. I walked the dogs in the slush in the morning, then video chatted a friend and caught up 'til lunchtime. After lunch and second dog walks, I ran home to shovel and put ice melt on my sidewalk, then came back to hang out and read for a few hours. Dinners to the dogs, walks again, and Bible study. And now I'm watching sports and reading again in the evening before final dog walks and bed.

I'm currently reading Istanbul: Memories and the City by Orhan Pamuk for the Asian Book Challenge, Read Dangerously by Azar Nafisi as an ARC on my Kindle I've been meaning to read (comes out in March), and Hell of a Book by Jason Mott because it's due back at the library tomorrow and I've already renewed it twice.

The mixed reviews on Whereabouts is the reason I haven't pursued that one, Mary. I love her short fiction. I sure wish she would return to that form.

>2 bell7: Oh! I have Ross Gay in my TBR. Glad to know you liked it.

>39 msf59: Nice to know I'm not the only one responding that way, Mark. I'll have to check out her short fiction at some point - I do enjoy a good short story.

>40 AuntieClio: Very much so, Stephanie. I hope you do, too!

Good Tuesday morning! I'm back to work after a three-day weekend and woke up feeling kinda weary - a lot to do, little energy to do it. But the dogs are fed and walked for the morning, and the Australian Open replay is on the TV now. I may or may not try to get some laundry done and make chicken soup with the leftover rotisserie chicken.

>42 bell7: Little energy to do stuff is becoming my default.

Leftover rotisserie chicken soup...mmmmmm

Enjoy the day, and may a sudden surge of energy come your way!

>43 richardderus: Thanks, Richard! Someone must've been listening, because I did manage to do some laundry and make the soup. I've got a little bit of time before I let the dogs run around outside a bit and get ready for work. They're dozing now, and I've just updated my Australian Open draws.

Happy new thread! That soup sounds delicious.

Happy new thread, Mary. With all you do it's no wonder you feel weary! I'm looking forward to the photo of the Pipi Longstocking look.

>45 foggidawn: Thanks, foggi! I hope so - I make it up this morning but probably won't dig in 'til tomorrow. I sometimes make my soups a little on the bland side, but you can always add more spices...

>46 Familyhistorian: Thanks, Meg! Yeah, I think the walking and slightly abbreviated nights are starting to get to me, though the weekend was pretty low key. We'll see how I do this weekend, which will be much busier!

DNF #1
Hell of a Book by Jason Mott - not necessarily a knock on the book, but it's not grabbing me and was due at the library today, so rather than force it I abandoned it at the 67 page mark. With the dog walks, I have limited reading time for the next six weeks, so I'm sticking with things that I'm really engaged with or have to reads like for book club. Not sure what I'll pick up tonight when I get back, as I need a fiction read.

>28 bell7:
The reason that O'Dell was called out had nothing to do with his being white and male - that kind of controversy came later with authors like Michael Doria. At the time it was purely because the story was about human sacrifice and the willingness to be sacrificed. It was the violence of it - not who wrote it that caused the controversy. The O'Dell award is an annual award that was established by O'Dell and funded by money he left for that purpose. It is an award that is recognized by the ALA but isn't sponsored by ALA.

There was another scandal in the 1980's regarding an author that did misrepresent himself. That was Jamake Highwater who won a Newbery Honor Award. He wrote about Native American's and said that he was Cherokee. He wasn't and his exposure was a real scandal in libraryland.

I am not sure about there being plenty of historical fiction for YA's and Children to choose from. Right now it is hard to find good historical fiction for this age group. Even Jennifer Donnelly has said that she was discouraged from writing historical fiction and that is the reason why she started writing fantasy. She could find a publisher for fantasy but not for historical fiction. She told about her experiences, or lack of them, writing historical fiction in an article she did for School Library Journal. She said that she was really happy that authors like Ruta Sepetys were coming on the scene to join her and helping to make the writing of historical fiction more "fashionable" and thus more acceptable to publishers. It appears that sales for YA historical fiction are on the upswing and this is a good thing for the genre.

Sometimes I think that the problem with historical fiction is that it is always an interpretation of lives based on imagining life back then. That means that the author sees the past through their own lenses and that may or may not be the "Truth." This makes them vulnerable to criticism from people in the future who will see the past differently. I often think about this when I hear discussions about Gone With the Wind. I think it is perfectly acceptable to criticize the works of authors no matter what year it is, but we should not dismiss their impact at the time the books were published. I was in school (8th grade) when Sing Down the Moon was new, (published in 1970) and that book had a big impact on me and other students in my school. It was the first time that injustice perpetrated on Native American's was dealt with sympathetically based on historical facts in a book that I read. It was the first time that some of us realized that our country didn't always do things that history would look kindly on in the future. That is not to say that I think that Scott O'Dell was the world's greatest author, I just know that the books he wrote tried to open up history to kids so that they would question the events and the results of decisions made. Not all novels are going to weather well and O'Dell's books may fall into that category. However, they made me look at our Western history in a more enlightened way and try to do a better job of teaching history as something we should question rather than think we are always right and good.

I think that it is interesting that you are revisiting some of these older books and thinking about how they might fit into our modern world - or if they fit. They may not. That's OK with me, as I hope that the world and the world of literature will move on, but in his time and day, O'Dell contributed in a positive way. Some of the new novels I read today will eventually fall into that same category as works of disrepute and somebody is going to say "what were they thinking when they read that trash? It doesn't deserve the time of day." Even though in that time and day it may have been worthwhile.

>49 benitastrnad: No, what I said was not that he was called out for being white and male. I said he's not popular now because his books are older, and when newer books can be found by people from the cultures they're writing about, I see more of an effort to buy their books than one by someone who is not. I didn't mean to limit that comment to historical fiction, it was about children's literature more broadly.

To clarify, I didn't bring up O'Dell for how he fit into the modern world. I responded to Richard's comment about him not particularly meshing with Amor Towles by saying that Scott O'Dell had been an author like that for me. When I read his books in the 90s, as a child and a teen, I never really liked the way his stories tended to cut off without much of an ending. One of my friends loved his books, though - it's a completely personal, subjective opinion, and I'm okay with that. In my reading through the Newbery Award and Honors, I was pleasantly surprised by how much I liked The Island of the Blue Dolphins as a result.

Before I forget, here is the "crazy hair":

Morning, Mary! Happy Wednesday. Both of Lahiri's story collections are wonderful. I own both.

>51 bell7: Great hair!

>52 msf59: That's good to know! I was talking with a co-worker of mine who had read Interpreter of Maladies and while she appreciated some things about it, she felt a little distant from the main characters, too. So I'm thinking Lahiri's short fiction may appeal to me more. And thank you! We had fun haha it was a big hit with the kids. Some of them will find out Friday that the purple is still there :D

>51 bell7: Love it! I bet you had a lot of fun questions/discussion about it with the kids!

>54 foggidawn: Thanks, foggi! Yeah, we had a lot of fun with it :)

>51 bell7: That is indeed crazy hair, Mary!

>56 PaulCranswick: Hahahaha thanks, Paul!

>51 bell7: Ah, so you already know about my new thread, then...and that was my response to a package I received today....

Love the crazy hair pics, Mary. :)

>58 richardderus: I saw your new thread but I'm working the late shift today, so just had the chance to stop in and say hi 😊 Hope you enjoy the magazines!

>59 MickyFine: thanks, Micky!

>51 bell7: Thanks for sharing, Mary! Besides the lovely Pippi look, the purple part is perfectly visible :-)

>61 FAMeulstee: Hahaha yes it is, it made for a fun combo, Anita!

Well, it's been an interesting couple of days at work. I was in charge yesterday with my boss out, and kept busy on the desk when someone had to call out. Today we had two people (the same person and another) out, so my boss came in earlier than planned, and one of the other reference folks took a bunch of hours to cover. I worked 12-8 instead of 9-5 because I had book group.

Book club was pretty good - we had four altogether, including one person online. It was tough to do hybrid - she couldn't figure out her camera, so we couldn't see her and she couldn't see us. I tried to project, but I don't think she heard the other comments as well. Aside from that, though, we had a good discussion. The other three liked the book more than I did. One said it was like reading poetry. They thought they'd recommend it to others, though one added the caveat that it would be to someone who didn't mind the lack of plot. We discussed the unnamed narrator and her arc, the lack of names for any character and the setting leading to a "universal" quality to the book. We were finished up early - around 7:30, when we usually go a full hour to close to 8, and afterwards I went back into the library to finish out the night. One of the attendees is someone who had come years ago until her work schedule changed, but now she can come back. I gave her our list for the year and we talked a bit about some of the books that are upcoming. Next up is Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison, which will be only my second book by her, after reading Beloved several times.

I'm still reading my two nonfiction books, and now I've added the short story collection City of Mist by Carlos Ruiz Zafon.

Hiya, Mary. I’m reading one of your top ten books: Project Hail Mary. I’m, of course, having a good time with it. One of the things Weir does well is show the scientist (Ray Grace) test theories that don’t work, on the way to figuring out the truth. It’s quite an accomplishment to make that entertaining for the reader.

Even Jennifer Donnelly has said that she was discouraged from writing historical fiction and that is the reason why she started writing fantasy. She could find a publisher for fantasy but not for historical fiction.

That bothered me but as Debbi just said, if publishers don’t sell their books, they go out of business. I said, authors should write what they want, and she said, they can, they just might not get published. Game, set, match to her. But the thought of our not having historical fiction by the likes of Jennifer Donnelly and Ruth Sepetys because it’s not the most popular flavor is disturbing.

>51 bell7: That's awesome! Love the braids and the purple hair!

>64 jnwelch: This right there is why the Kindle deserves the positive attitude it started its life with: disrupting the gatekeeping that Publishing has always been famous for!

That the scum who run the place squandered said positivity for cash is to be regretted but hardly a surprise.

>63 bell7: Song of Solomon...wow. An excellent story. Have a smoochtastic day!

>64 jnwelch: Glad to see you're enjoying Project Hail Mary, Joe! I did like his patient testing of theories and working things out along the way, and thought his process was made engaging in the writing as well. Hope you continue to like it.

I couldn't find the article Benita was referencing regarding Jennifer Donnelly, and since I work primarily with adult fiction, I also can't speak to children's and YA publishing. I will say, however, that for my library's collection development, we have a whole section of historical fiction shelved separately in YA because middle schoolers were regularly looking for that genre for a school assignment. And orders always include a few titles in that genre as well. Jennifer Donnelly, Ruta Sepetys, and Sheila Cameron (I read The Light in Hidden Places last year) are all current authors, though as far as I can tell Donnelly's last book came out in 2019, and the one before that (2018) was historical fiction. And in middle grade, I thought Kimberly Brubaker Bradley's books were excellent. Certainly by the time you get into adult fiction, historical fiction is a hot market. It's all I can do to buy enough World War 2 historical fiction books to keep my patrons happy.

>65 figsfromthistle: Thanks, Anita!

>66 richardderus: That is one thing we have to thank for indie publishing for sure, Richard. It seems like the traditionally-published-after-indie-published books I've seen tend to take some risks and be different from the run-of-the-mill, and it's a good thing to see the variety. And yes, I'm really looking forward to Song of Solomon. Should be a good read and a good discussion.

Just had a patron call and ask about our fine policy. It's a little tricky, so I started to explain that after a 28 day grace period after the due date, they would be charged a replacement cost, but when the item was returned there is a $3 fine at that point. I didn't even finish the explanation before she started reaming me out for having a complicated explanation, and didn't I know that I should start with a simple answer to a simple question and expand from there. I couldn't get a word in edgewise for a full minute, at which point I said, "yes, it is a little complicated, but you have a grace period of 28 days after the due date." "Put that another way," she demanded. "You won't have fines for six weeks after checking something out." She said she still didn't get it, so at that point I gave her to my director.

Turns out she was concerned about something out on her card and wanted to make sure that she didn't get fines on it. But I think that's the first time we've ever been yelled at while not charging for something 🤷‍♀️

>68 bell7: - Oy vey.

>69 katiekrug: yeah it was something... Especially since there was another, in-person interaction happening with one of my coworkers simultaneously. I'm recovering on my lunch break 😂

I have spent several hours this afternoon cruising through multiple searches of Horn Book, SLJ, Publisher's Weekly, and Booklist - all journals that I look at on a regular basis and have for years, trying to find that letter from Jennifer Donnelly about historical fiction. I know that it was a long time ago and I found that SLJ, my main source of library news for 40 years, doesn't index the gray material back that far. I don't think I am going to spend much more time looking through the databases for that specific letter. But it is going to bug me that I can't find it. I had the same trouble a few years ago trying to find a letter from Lois Duncan to SLJ.

I did find a very good article on historical revisionism that makes its way into historical fiction. Here is the citation for that article.

MacLeod, A. S. (1998). Writing backward: modern models in historical fiction. Horn Book Magazine, 74, 26-33.

I am not going to copy the whole article here, but did find this statement that comes at the end of the article that is worth thinking about. "Historical fiction writers who want their protagonists to reflect twentieth-century ideologies, however, end by making them exceptions to their cultures, so that in many a historical novel the reader learns nearly nothing - or at least nothing sympathetic - of how the people of the past society saw their world. Characters are divided into right - those who believe as we do - and wrong; that is, those who believe something that we now disavow. Such stories suggest that people of another time either did understand or should have understood the world as we do now, and outlook that quickly devolves into the belief that people are the same everywhere and in every time, draining human history of its nuance and variety."

I think that we as readers do have to remember that books are a product of their time and read them as such. We can then choose to disagree with the authors if we want to do so.

I know that none of this addresses the fact that for a time historical fiction was not a genre that got much attention from publishers or readers who were delighting in dystopia and reaping the benefits of it. I like to read historical fiction and read a great deal of it, so I am one of those readers who is happy to see more works of historical fiction appearing.

>68 bell7: Good job on dealing with the crotchety customer. I definitely don't miss that part of being public facing.

Hey, Mary, sounds like you've had a busy start to the year! Glad you had a little time to settle in and enjoy your house before heading out to this dog-sitting job.

>71 benitastrnad: Sure, it's always a tension writing and reading historical fiction for a current audience while accurately portraying the mindset of a different time. I do enjoy reading historical fiction as a way of exploring a time period or culture I know little about, and I get annoyed if too much of the historical timeline is fussed with to make a more "exciting" story too.

>72 MickyFine: Ha, thanks, Micky. My director took the brunt of it, I'm afraid, and was able to figure out what she actually wanted. I think she was still unhappy about the policy itself in the end.

>73 ronincats: Oh yes, keeping busy as always, Roni! I should count up how many night away versus at home this winter and spring - I'm going to be in and out quite a bit through April, at least.

It's been a day, folks. Work went by quickly, at least. I had a lot of different projects to keep me going, and I expect more of the same tomorrow.

I came home to the dogs and found that one had thrown up in her crate. So I cleaned that up and cooked up turkey and rice for her upset stomach. She seems fine now, but I'll give her more of the same tomorrow and make sure she's okay. Then I made my own dinner and walked the dogs. The Australian Open isn't on TV until 9 after a college basketball game, and the Bruins are only on the Internet, too, so I've got a little over an hour to read, then a little time to catch up on tennis, and I'll walk the dogs for the night and head to bed.

Tomorrow is a long day, work and then church volunteering. That means the dog walker will come twice and feed them, and I'll literally get back, walk them, and go to bed. To be fair, when I'm home, I usually come home from volunteering and also go right to bed so that part's no different!

>68 bell7:
Back in the day when we checked out lots of books we had people in all the building and calling on the phone all the time about overdue books. We told students who worked at our circulation desk that if they made it through the first week without having an unhappy person in front of them that was something to talk about. I often had to deal with fines in the hundreds of dollars and a couple times in the thousands. I don't know why college students were so awful about overdue books - but they were. And parents. And don't even get me started about professors with overdue books.

>68 bell7: Wow. People, eh? And to follow all that with the worry of a poorly pooch seems unfair. Hope it has been followed by a calmer day.

>75 bell7: Happy Friyay, Mary my dear, I hope your Australian Open-watching didn't suffer from Djerkovich's disease-spreading self's absence.

Long, busy day, so I will look forward to seeing you tomorrow.

>76 benitastrnad: Wow, that's a lot of dealing with unhappy people about overdues. We have a handful of interactions like that, but really it's mostly people being very conscientious and concerned that they would be overdue. Automatic renewals and now making it that fines don't kick in until after a 28 day grace period have eliminated even more of that discussion. We're generally pretty willing to give extra renewals for our own items when they don't have holds on them. And this person wasn't even arguing about a fine (she didn't have one, and as a senior she wouldn't get one), she just wanted to argue that the policy itself was stupid.

>77 charl08: Yeah... yesterday was quite the day. Today so far is smoother all around, hopefully it stays that way! The doggie woke up in good spirits, and hopefully when the dog walker feeds her in the middle of the day she'll keep her rice and turkey down.

>78 richardderus: Nahhh, I'm more sad to see that Federer isn't playing. Both the women's and men's draw is shaping up to be very interesting. Nadal is the only one in the men's draw to have won the tournament before, and the women's side is deep and has already had a few upsets. I have a busy weekend lined up, too, hanging out with my Little tomorrow and working on Sunday, so weekend *smooches* to you and I'll check in as I can.

Hi Mary - When my sister worked at the public library, she had a lot of stories about people complaining about fines. Since COVID, the library has done away with fines.

I'm enjoying glimpses of tennis.

>80 BLBera: yeah complaining about fines I get but complaining about the policy that meant she didn't have a fine was definitely a first! I'm glad you're getting a chance to get glimpses of tennis 😁 I won't get to watch any today, but I'm hoping to glimpse some replay myself tomorrow morning. And I'll DVR the finals, since 3:30 a.m. is just not happening.

Good Saturday morning! Kicking off a busy weekend here, and already planning a potential nap on Monday.

Today I'm planning to head out around 10 to stop at home and water my plants, followed by hanging out with my Little for the afternoon. I'll get back to the dogs in time to give them a walk in hopefully warmer temps than this morning. I might try to get a little meal planning and grocery shopping in tonight. Tomorrow is nursery, church, work, so basically a 9-5. And Monday I'm off, thank goodness.

Reading update:
Istanbul by Orhan Pamuk is interesting but slow. I'm debating switching to audio while I knit for awhile to try to make a dent over the next few days. I'm a little over the halfway point. I've been reading my own paper copy and listening to the audiobook before bed.

City of Mist by Carlos Ruiz Zafon has been a fun way to get some reading in via short stories. So far all of them are somehow connected to his Cemetery of Lost Books quartet, and add intriguing details to that setting. It's making me want to reread the series.

Read Dangerously by Azar Nafisi is my e-book, an ARC of a book coming out in March. She's mainly reflecting on events of 2020 through literature she's read, and the format is letters to her deceased father. It's very personal, dealing with all of the challenges of the division in her adopted country which she often discusses in light of her experiences in Iran, and processing the pandemic, politics, and more through books that she has read. I'm not sure I'm really ready to process the pandemic through my reading, but I'm glad there are books out there like this that are.

Enjoy your busy weekend and that nap on Monday!

The Nafisi book sounds good. I loved Reading Lolita in Tehran and have an ARC of The Republic of Imagination that I really need to get to... You know how that goes :-P

>82 bell7: Oof, split weekends are hard. Hope you find some down time today, Mary.

Somehow I am just now stumbling on to your new thread, Mary. I hope you have a lovely Sunday!

>85 alcottacre: Me, too. Not sure how I missed it. I wish we lived close enough for you to pet sit here. We're trying to make spring break plans and pet sitting seems to be the hardest part. She since we have cats, we don't even need anyone to stay - just visit. It was different when we had Whistler.

>84 MickyFine: yeah, it's not my favorite but nights and weekends are part of the job 🙂 and thanks, I am indeed planning a nap tomorrow.

>85 alcottacre: glad you stumbled in, Stasia! Hope you're having a good Sunday.

>86 AMQS: nice to see you, too, Anne. I'd love to live close enough to catsit for you. I checked in on a cat for two weeks over Christmas and New Year's, and while I could tell she was there because I had to get her clean water and fresh litter, I never did see hide or hair of the cat! Best of luck finding someone to stop in over spring break.

Happy Monday! It's my day off for working yesterday, and I want to run home to swap out some clothes and do a grocery shopping. I'm also hoping to fit in a nap today, if I feel tired enough this afternoon. I finished Istanbul: Memories and the City late last night and I'm going to try to wrap my head around it enough for a review. I'm also in the point in my other two reads where finishing them both today would be very manageable. And then I can start fresh with brand-new books! I always love that sort of "turnover" that comes with finishing a few books close together :)

6. Istanbul: Memories and the City by Orhan Pamuk
Why now? This was my first choice for the January Asian Book Challenge (hereafter referred to as ABC), as a book off my shelf that I acquired used sometime after reading Snow by the same author in 2013

Author Orhan Pamuk writes of his city, Istanbul, where he has lived all his life in this memoir-history-personal history blend.

Reading this book was like taking a meandering walk through the city while Pamuk reflected on his own life in it, moving tangentially from one point to another to discuss his family, the Bosphorus, Istanbul as reflected through the western gaze, the beauty of poor neighborhoods. Pamuk himself refers to the symmetry of it, and there is a sort of symmetry and folding in on itself as some of the topics get repeated in slightly different ways. His love for the city is palpable, even while the story is shot through with melancholy. It was often hard for me to follow, in part because of my lack of knowledge*, but also because of his habit of writing very long lists and sentences, using multiple semicolons. The audio, read by John Lee, helped me along, especially because I could hear the pronunciation of unfamiliar locations. 3.5 stars.

*I sometimes thought to myself that the format would have worked better for me as a reader if I had more familiarity with the history or the place, if it were a city I'd been to such as Boston or even Washington DC. I imagine for someone who knows and loves Istanbul, it would be a wonderful way of seeing it through one individual's eyes.

>89 bell7: - Nice comments, Mary. Istanbul is on my short list of places I would like to visit.

Enjoy your day off!

>90 katiekrug: Thanks, Katie! I could see it being a pretty amazing place to visit. I don't know enough about its history to fully appreciate it, though, and should definitely rectify that.

7. The City of Mist: Stories by Carlos Ruiz Zafon
Why now? I loved The Shadow of the Wind and enjoyed the whole quartet of books in the series, so I was excited to read the posthumous collection of short stories, many of which are set in the same world.

The City of Mist collects eleven short stories of Carlos Ruiz Zafon, published posthumously, many of which are set in the same world as The Cemetery of Forgotten Books.

A doomed friendship between a rich girl and a poor boy. A young woman giving birth on a dark wintry night. The diabolical agreement that allows Cervantes to write a classic. A creepy Christmas chess game. These stories and more can be found on Ruiz Zafon's collection. Most of the stories are set in Barcelona at various historical periods and translated by Lucia Graves; two were translated by the author himself, and one was written in English. My personal favorite was "Rose of Fire" which is set up as a story by David Martin of "books, dragons and roses" for his fellow prisoners. The stories are in varying lengths from a few pages to about 40 pages long, most set in winter and appropriately Gothic, atmospheric, and with a touch (ore more) of the fantastical. It made me want to reread The Cemetery of Forgotten Books series all over again. 4 stars.

Ooh, I want to read The City of Mist: Stories but I have still not read the finale, The Labyrinth of Spirits. I have no excuse, even a weak one. I need to remedy that oversight by mid-year.

Both sound like really good reads, Mary, despite the nagging sense of not getting the whole value out of the Pamuk.

Enjoy your Mmmday!

>93 msf59: I think you would like both, Mark, and look forward to your thoughts when you get to The Labyrinth of Spirits.

>94 richardderus: I certainly thought so, Richard. Well worth reading, certainly, and after so many people loved My Name Is Red, I've added that to the TBR list as well. Excellent Mmmday wishes to you!

8. Read Dangerously: The Subversive Power of Literature in Troubled Times by Azar Nafisi
Why now? I really liked two of her previous books and was intrigued by the write-up of her new one, due out in March - chose to read the e-ARC on my Kindle now, in time to nominate it (if I so choose) for LibraryReads

*E-book ARC received from the publisher through Edelweiss Plus - thank you!*

Azar Nafisi writes letters to her deceased father, reflecting on events in America in 2020 - the pandemic, George Floyd protests, Trump, and most of all the growing divide between people who don't agree politically - through the books that she is reading.

Many of the books about books I read are optimistic and lighthearted in tone, celebrating the power of reading and its ability to bring people together. Nafisi, however, doesn't make it that easy. Oh, she believes in the power of books and reading and insists that it should allow us not to dehumanize the enemy. But the topics she's tackling and the books she's reading are not at all lighthearted, and while she leaves room for hope in the end, the pandemic, polarization, racism, and totalitarianism (often comparing American trends with the Islamic Republic in Iran) discussed in her letters make for sometimes difficult and challenging reading. Writing letters to her father allow her to be very personal in tone, but sometimes stretch in awkward ways to accommodate the strangers reading along - such as when she explains something about her mother, or reminds her father about something he'd said in ways that she wouldn't have to do if she were only writing to him. I'd read few of the books she references, and she's not averse to spoilers, so be forewarned. If you're not quite ready to process various events of 2020, you may want to wait on this one. 3 stars.

9. Dare to Disappoint: Growing Up in Turkey by Ozge Samanci
Why now? Read on Stasia's recommendation for the January ABC challenge to read a book by a Turkish author

Ozge Samanci's graphic novel memoir tells the story of her growing up, going to school, and deciding what she wanted to do with her life.

This was such a fun story! I enjoyed the collage drawings, using stamps and repeating certain pieces of images throughout. I rooted for Ozge as she navigates her own ambitions of doing well in school like her sister, and struggles to gain her father's approval. The details of Turkish history and current events as they impacted Ozge and her family rounded out the story well. An enjoyable coming-of-age and finding-one's-way story. 4.5 stars.

She's a little younger than Orhan Pamuk, and grew up away from Istanbul, but there was definitely some interesting overlap in their memoirs as they struggled between their own interests and what their parents wanted for their lives.

And with that, I've nearly doubled my January reading in the last 24 hours (granted, with books that I'd been reading for days or even weeks).

>97 bell7: You got me with this one, though we're generally not very pro-Turkey at my house, given that my husband was made a refugee when they invaded Cyprus when he was a boy. But... I make a point of displaying the Enchantment of the World books at school, particularly of countries that are in the news because they're "enemies" - Syria, Iran, North Korea, etc, because I want kids to know those countries are filled with normal people like us. And I suppose Turkey is, too:)

>98 AMQS: I think you'd like the book, Anne, and you may find it interesting to see ways in which she pushes back against some of the things she's taught in classes about her own country. (Samanci now lives in the U.S. and as far I could tell the graphic novel was originally written in English.) I confess I don't know much about the history of this area of the world and its conflicts, and it's one of the benefits of reading books for the Asian Book Challenge and challenging myself to read books by people around the world that I'm learning a lot more. Any recommendations for Cypriot authors? :)

Oh happy day! I'm back to work today, 12-8, and somehow it's always nice to start the work week on a Tuesday knowing that tomorrow is Wednesday and I'll already be halfway done. I don't yet have a plan for how I'll use my time, other than working with some volunteers coming in this afternoon and desk time.

The dogs have been walked for the morning and I'm watching the replay of the Australian Open quarterfinals. I was going to try to make some soup and salad before work, but I'm feeling kinda lazy today so I'll probably just bring a can of soup and cook tomorrow night.

I finished all the books I'd been in the middle of yesterday, and only started Paperboy by Vince Vawter, a Newbery Honor, as my e-book/audio combo before bed. The next books I'm planning on starting are The Keeper of Night and A Letter to My White Friends and Colleagues. Both were books I had as ARCs on my Kindle and never got to, so now I'm reading the published versions and catching up on old owed reviews.

I read a Slate article about the Newbery on the occasion of its hundredth birthday: https://slate.com/culture/2022/01/newbery-award-100-racism-childrens-books.html

I really hadn't known it was as important as it was/is in the firmament of kids' publishing! Like, I believe, every kid in the US born before 1970, I read Johnny Tremaine and noticed that the gold medal on the front meant something to my mother. Never troubled myself about it much, though.

I didn't know Nafisi had a new one coming out! That goes right on my WL. The Pamuk book about Istanbul sounds great. It is a city I would like to visit. What great reading you've done lately!

>101 richardderus: Thanks for that article, Richard! It has a lot of good points to wrestle with, not only with the Newbery but also with other books that have won awards in the past or are part of the canon. Not that we get rid of the books entirely, but maybe that the ones that are focused on or assigned in classes are more updated and reflective of the diverse world we live in.

I paid some attention to the Newberys even as a kid, it was a list of good books to read and even then I couldn't turn down a list. And certainly some of the books have aged better than others. It's interesting, for example, to think of what was acceptable for a "biography" - Amos Fortune, Free Man includes a made-up "African" ceremony at the beginning and a third wife that the historical record doesn't support, while Carry On, Mr. Bowditch has a lot of dialogue. They were both shelved in nonfiction when I read them, but are categorized as fiction now. Nonfiction for kids has changed a lot over the years.

>102 BLBera: Glad I could put the Nafisi book on your radar, Beth! It's definitely worth a look, as is Istanbul: Memories and the City. I really have had a string of good reads so far this month. Here's hoping it continues!

Happy Wednesday, Mary. It looks like we both enjoyed Dare to Disappoint. I love graphic memoirs. I hope the work week is going well.

>89 bell7: I read this a few years ago (more than a few?), before I knew anything about the city and I felt a little lost too. I am planning to re-read it sometime soon. I'm sure it will be extra interesting because Pamuk lives not far from me, and his books are frequently set in the immediate area. (I'm just a few blocks from his Museum of Innocence, which I understand is open again and I hope to go to soon.)

Happy Wednesday, everyone! I got up pretty quickly this morning, so the animals are all fed and the dogs are walked. I had enough time to let them out of their kennels and I'm watching the Australian Open highlights before heading upstairs to get ready for work. It's a 9-5, and then I've gotta stop at home to pick up some dill and cook dinner tonight. I'm planning on making both a Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup and Rotisserie Chicken Cucumber Dill Salad to have lunch and dinner options for the next couple of days.

I started reading Paperboy Monday night as my e-book/audio combo, a Newbery Honor from a couple of years ago. It's okay so far, a fictionalized account of the author's own experience taking a friend's paper route over the summer and struggling with stuttering.

Yesterday I started A Letter to My White Friends and Colleagues, which I'd won in a publisher's ARC giveaway some time ago and couldn't get the format on my Kindle, so I'm reading it now as a paper book. I'm not very far, but his main argument is that white people can support the Black community by helping to close the wealth gap: buying at Black-owned businesses, putting money in Black banks, donating to historical Black colleges and universities, and supporting reparations. I'm only in the first chapter, where he's laying out his own experiences and background. One story that really stood out was that in the 80s he lived with his backyard facing a golf course that in 1982 did not allow Black people to become members or eat in the dining room. His protest against it was featured in Sports Illustrated and everything.

And finally, I started The Keeper of Night by Kylie Lee Baker, the story of a half-Reaper, half-Shinigami who when bullied by other Reapers accidentally blinds them with her power over light and, knowing that she'll get in huge trouble for her actions, goes on the run. This was another book I had as an ARC; I'm attempting to catch up on some "owed" reviews from last year.

If I finish one of the paper books I'm reading before Saturday, the next book I'll start will be The Island of Missing Trees by Elif Shafak for the ABC challenge; if I'm still reading these same titles over the weekend, though, I'll leave it unread and move on to other things. Probably The Lager Queen of Minnesota for my own TIOLI challenge, though our book club got postponed to next month.

>104 msf59: Happy Wednesday, Mark! Glad to see you enjoyed Dare to Disappoint too. I'm not sure how I missed it on your thread, Stasia got me with that particular book bullet. But it's a good one, and I'm glad to see so many people enjoying it. I do like a good graphic memoir.

>105 ursula: I'll look forward to your thoughts on a reread, Ursula. I bet your familiarity with the area will make it much more personal and interesting. I really enjoy reading books when I recognize that the author knows an area as well as (if not better) than I do; it always adds depth to the story.

Hiya, Mary.

Dare to Disappoint is waiting for me at the library. Good to see that both you and Mark liked it.

>67 bell7:. I’m a big Kimberly Brubaker Bradley fan, especially The War That Saved My Life.

>108 jnwelch: Hi, Joe! I really liked The War That Saved My Life, too. At this point, she's an author I'd look for to read just about anything she writes. And I'll look forward to your thoughts on Dare to Disappoint! It's fun to see how Paul's ABC challenge and word of mouth got so many of us to read it at once.

Happy Humpday, Mary! Sounds like it got started just right, so it should trundle along well, too.

*smooch*

>110 richardderus: *smooch* back, Richard. A good start, and a steady day at work made the day pass quickly. I am, alas, not very energized to do a lot of cooking, but I've finished the chicken salad and I'm boiling the bones. I can stick the stock in the fridge tonight and finish the soup tomorrow.

>99 bell7: Alas, I don’t. I asked my husband and he said he has lived here so long he’s not really up on Cypriot literature. There’s a book I’d like to read by Panos Ioannides called Gregory and Other Stories. He’s a Cypriot author born in Famagusta, which is now a ghost city (https://www.insider.com/ghost-town-varosha-cyprus-photos-2020-9). Perhaps this is the nudge I need to expand my reading and learning.

>112 AMQS: Oh that one sounds intriguing and though it's not in my library system, I can get it for my Kindle for $5.99. Let me know when you might want to read it and I'll try to join you.

Sweet Thursday as Mark would say. Hope you're all having a good week! It's freezing here (-2 F), and I let the dogs out in their gated area before feeding them to pee/poop quickly. I'm about to bundle up and take them for a very quick walk around the backyard and then get ready for work. My boss it out today, so I'm in charge. I have volunteers coming in and I'm on the desk the last two hours of the day. That generally adds up to a pretty fast day. Tonight between dog walks, I'm planning on making soup for dinner, and I should catch up adding my mileage from the past two weeks to my spreadsheet (driving from work straight to a dogsitting job is mileage I can claim on my taxes, so I track it every year). I've recorded the women's semifinals, so I'm gonna try to watch those as well.

Tomorrow is a little up in the air. I expect to work, but depending on when the snow hits my volunteer commitment may be canceled. I wouldn't be sorry to have the night off, actually, and then over the weekend I have to figure out going home to shovel, since we're getting a snowstorm overnight.

All caught up with you, Mary, and I love the purple in your hair - it's full of fabulous! Hoping that work goes quickly and smoothly for you today.

Have a good day being the grown up in charge, Mary! Fingers crossed the day goes as quickly as you hope.

>115 Crazymamie: Thanks, Mamie! I'm loving it, though if anything it turned out just a little too subtle for me hehe. I did have a really sweet little girl compliment me on it, so that made my day yesterday. And thanks for the work wishes, too. So far the day has had enough challenges to move fast without being highly stressful, the best combo!

>116 MickyFine: Thanks, Micky! So far so good. I had a virtual reference chat that was all about local history and genealogy this morning, so that was fun, and I finished one of the three desk hours. No major catastrophes have happened while I was the adult in charge (one of my staff yesterday facetiously said that she'd rather die here than at the ER, and I told her not to do it while I was the senior staff member, I've had enough major things happen without anyone dying on my watch!), so fingers crossed the rest of the day goes smoothly and quickly. I'm back on the desk in 30 minutes, and I have two more volunteers coming in.

I can't remember if I mentioned here last year, but one of the things I needed to do before purchasing the house was "fix a leak" by getting some flashing repaired and putting chimney caps on, and getting someone else to paint over the water damage and confirm that there was no mold to satisfy the bank underwriter. Well, the caps weren't put on properly and blew off within three weeks (thankfully after the closing, and there was no further water problem). They've been sitting on my porch for over a year, and I've been periodically telling the person at my church who recommended the roof guy that they were still on my porch because I was done with the roof guy putting me off. Well, they've finally been put back on! I stopped by yesterday to pick up a few things, and there they were sitting pretty in the chimneys. I told my friend they were back and that I'd keep an eye on them coming off, but I think the chimney cap saga is finally over. Hooray!

>117 bell7: I've had some really good genealogy reference questions this week. One wasn't actually a genealogy one, but I used death certificates to find the answer, so it counted!

>119 thornton37814: Oh how fun! Those are some of my favorite questions, especially when I have info in our collection :)

>118 bell7: Ah, yes, the fun of getting people to finish their jobs. Bathroom remodel went very quickly until time to install glass (shower and mirrors). Sure enough, they ordered one piece at a time from the glass company, including several rebuilds. Then when they were done, we realized they hadn't replaced the drawer pulls and knobs on the vanity. So they ordered the pulls, but not the knobs. Then installed the pulls and ordered the knobs. Then came back to install the knobs. *Sigh*

Glad you finally got the caps back on!

>121 drneutron: Oh nooooo. What a pain getting it done piecemeal like that! I got the sense with this guy that he thought of me as a nagging woman, though it was also true that I lived pretty far from where he was based and it was difficult to get out to me. But I finally just stopped dealing with him and had the friend who recommended him (and through which I had paid him) go to bat for me.

>122 bell7:, >121 drneutron: *sigh* I'm glad all that is behind me, even if I do live in a government home for the indigent and elderly!

I'm back online, Mary. *smooch* for a good weekend's reads while it snows the hell outta us.

>123 richardderus: I actually read that first as "indignant"... 😂

>124 drneutron: ...that too...

>123 richardderus: For the moment, I'll take it for the upside of owning my own home. When I decide it's not worth it, it'll be time to sell and look into assisted living or a condo. Certainly a "someday" consideration for me. As far as the snow goes, I'm prepping just in case the power goes out where I'm dogsitting, and they have a plow guy. I called up my neighbor's plow guy and I'm having someone come to my house for me on Saturday or Sunday so I don't have to travel home (and have nowhere to park after a foot of snow is dumped down and the plows have been by) to shovel. Plenty of books (and tennis, if the power stays on) to keep me busy between dog walks over the weekend.

>124 drneutron: and >125 richardderus: *snort*

Not trying to catch up, Mary, but I wanted to come by and thank you for dropping by my thread while I have been sick. It is much appreciated.

Have a great weekend!

Happy to do so, Stasia, and hoping you continue to recover!

Happy Sunday, folks!

We ended up with probably around 10 inches of snow where I am, and I woke up to a cold morning and the plow has not arrived yet. So I'm planning on a quiet morning with the dogs and online church. I have the recorded Australian Open mens' final on the TV right now (and hoping it didn't go so long the recording ended before the match, like one of the semis I recorded did).

Yesterday was extremely laid back and pleasant, one of the first really relaxed days I've had since the dogsitting job started. I caught up on tidying and laundry in the morning (especially since I wasn't sure if I'd have power, but we never lost it) and watched the women's final, which was a lot of fun. I was delighted to discover going through some of my photos that I'd seen some of Danielle Collins' match at the US Open last year.

The afternoon was snow-filled and quiet. I took the dogs for quick pee breaks in the backyard since I couldn't really beat my way through the snow to fully walk them. I took a nap. I finished a book. In the evening, they were ready to go out before I was ready for bed, so I ended up getting them all settled and reading in bed for an hour before I fell asleep myself, figuring if I was short on sleep in the end I could nap again today. But then I slept in 'til 8, so I'm feeling good and looking forward to another chill day to end the weekend.

>129 bell7: I won't tell you what happens in the tennis but suffice to say you are in for a treat.

Have a lovely Sunday. x

10 inches of snow? Grrrrrrr

>130 PaulCranswick: Actually, Paul, my parents texted me in the last moment to tell me it was still on live, so knowing that the DVR hadn't recorded the whole match, I switched and I know ;) But I'll go back and watch what I can of the recording and afternoon replay to see how it happened.

10. The Keeper of Night by Kylie Lee Baker
Why now? I had an eARC on my Kindle and didn't get to it before the pub date, so I borrowed a library copy after it came out to write the review I still "owe"

*E-book ARC received from the publisher through NetGalley - thank you!*

Ren Scarborough lives and works in London - as a Reaper, collecting souls at the moment of death. But she's never been accepted there, because she's only half Reaper. Her mother was a Shinigami. She's managed to make a life despite being an outsider, but when bullies hurt her and she reacts, exploding a light and blinding them, she knows she has to leave before she's killed by the High Reapers for her actions. With only her brother, Neven, with her she leaves for Japan to try to find acceptance there.

I loved the premise and the elements of Japanese mythology that were included in the book. It's truly original, and the only similar book I could think of was Grave Mercy, but the comparison is superficial. The Keeper of Night is much darker and descriptively violent. Ren has always felt like, and been treated like, and outsider and she's angry about it. Her brother, Neven, was my favorite character: a soft heart, despite being a Reaper, and someone who truly loves his sister, though she can be cold and calculating. The love interest was a little forced, but the author does a good job of creating tension of should she or should she not trust him. 3.5 stars.

11. Paperboy by Vince Vawter
Why now? Newbery Honor that was available when I was looking for an e-book/audio combo

An eleven-year-old boy in Memphis, 1959, takes over his friend's paper route for a month. He's looking forward to the deliveries, but as a boy with a stutter, he's nervous about collecting payment on Fridays and has to navigate that and other challenges that come his way.

The author's note declares that this is "more memoir than fiction", and I think ultimately I would have liked if the author had gone all one way or the other. As it was, I was uncomfortable with the way he portrayed the Black characters - one, Miss Nellie whom he called "Mam", was someone who looked after him and disposed wisdom and the other, Ara T, was a no-good, stealing junk man Mam wanted him to stay away from. They speak a sort-of AAVE, and I'm no expert, but the way she used "be" didn't follow the rules of its usage that I've heard, which made me wonder how accurate it was. But since I don't know how much was exactly the author's lived experience and how much was made up, I was just left with this unsettling feeling that he was unconsciously playing into common stereotypes. The story itself, about one month that was transformative in a boy's life, was episodic and occasionally threw in some elements out of left field, though the bones were good. I enjoyed the relationship he forges with Mr. Spiro on his route, in particular, and liked to see the boy's growing confidence in himself, though the stutter never goes away. The representation of the stutter was the best I've ever seen in a book, realistic and addressing some of the common difficult sounds and the techniques the character (and author) could use to work around it. The audiobook, read by Lincoln Hoppe, works especially well for getting the sense of the boy's speech patterns. A mixed bag, but worth the read. 3.5 stars.

Happy Sunday, Mary. I am just about packed. It is nice going to a warmer clime, so you can pack all light clothes. I also plan on getting some reading time in, along with plenty of football. Enjoy your day.

Sunday shivers, Mary! We got around a foot, maybe a little less, of accumulation. I'm happy, anyway, that I don't gotta go outside for nothin'. It's still really cold. 17° isn't toasty even by your hardy, Massachusetts-y standards.

I am feeling so smug I'm (more) intolerable (than usual): To meet my stretch goal of 275 reviews, Burgoines, and Pearl-Rulers, I need to post 23 of them a month...this month's total is 29! Good start, no?

You are really fortunate you only ended up with 10 inches. I had several Boston-area friends who reported 19 inches. One said it was about 14 where she lived; another said 18.

>134 msf59: Can't wait to hear about your travels, Mark. Safe journey! I'll be putting on the football soon as well; hopefully the games are as good as last weekend!

>135 richardderus: Yep, I did virtual church this morning and I'm not going anywhere 'til tomorrow. Hooray for other people doing the shoveling, too, though I do need to stop in at home and clean up the sidewalk, I think. And yep, teens is pretty cold! We've got a high of 20 today and the wind chill is a bit colder. Congrats on 29 reviews! An excellent start to the year, and isn't it wonderful to take some of the pressure off?

>136 thornton37814: Yeah, Boston and the Cape really got the brunt of it. We had steady snow throughout the day and a few gusts of wind, but not nearly as bad as it could have been.

Happy Sunday, Mary! Hooray for a quiet morning and for yesterday being so relaxing.

>138 Crazymamie: Thanks, Mamie! Happy Sunday to you as well :)

DNF #2
The Island of Missing Trees by Elif Shafak

Basically she won't use one word when five will do, and as a result I was having trouble following the story, though it did seem interesting. Oh well... I read two different authors for the ABC Challenge this month, and it's nearly February so I'll start focusing on Israeli/Palestinian reads.

>132 bell7: descriptively violent That alone would keep me away from the book. I do not care for graphic violence in books TBH.

>133 bell7: Sounds like one I can safely miss! I hope your next read is better for you!

Have a wonderful week, Mary!

Hi, Mary. I’m glad your chimney cap story had a happy ending (so far), and 10 inches of snow sounds better than it could have been. Still a big hassle, no doubt.

Debbi isreading that ten and a half minute one by Elif Shafak. Sorry to hear this one is wordy and hard to follow. The one Debbi’s reading is fairly slim and she’s liking it.

>141 alcottacre: yeah, it's really only because it was fantasy violence that it wasn't knocked down worse for me. I don't do well with violent stuff either.

>142 jnwelch: I'm glad Debbi is liking her read! I may have tried to push through if I had more time in the month or wasn't at my particular dogsitting job, since I often need books that take less concentration. I'll check on my house today on my way back from work, but I've been told by the plow company I hired that they plowed me out and couldn't find the walkways (?) so I may need to shovel a short sidewalk, but that's it. When I left for work this morning, the plow guy still hadn't come, but fortunately one of the neighbors had snow blowed most of the driveway so I was able to get out of the garage!

Internet went down at the house where I'm staying today, so I'm a little late in my daily check-in.

Today is working 9-2, so no dog walker and four dog walks for me. It was cold this morning, but thankfully all the dogs did their business quick and we got morning "walks" in quickly. I didn't take them outside the backyard. The plow guy still hasn't shown up there, but a neighbor snowblowed enough of the driveway for me to get out this morning.

I'm stopping at home this afternoon to pick up a couple of jerseys (Friday night volunteering is "Support Your Team" night) for myself and to share with others. I should be plowed out, and may have to shovel the sidewalk, but I'll find out when I arrive. I also need to stop to pick up my mail at the post office. After that, back to the dogs and a walk for them, and then I should do a grocery shopping. Bible study is canceled for the night, so it should be a quiet one hanging out with the dogs. No more tennis and the Bruins aren't on (and the Olympics haven't started yet), so probably reading. I expect I can finish A Letter to My White Friends and Colleagues if I focus.

That sounds like a lot of snow to me, Mary. Hope the plough has made it to you!

Hope you get plowed soon, Mary. We have an Xcel (local electricity company) worker who lives in our neighborhood so we've always been plowed and I know we're very lucky. We are between storms now, with 10-12 inched expected tomorrow evening and all day Wednesday. Hoping for a snow day somehow. I really enjoyed the last Bruins game I watched. Against the Avalanche. Sorry, couldn't resist, but the Avs are doing really well this year and it's a fun time to be a fan:)

Hope you have an excellent afternoon and evening in with the dogs, Mary. Fingers crossed the internet is back up when you get back after work!

Oh dear...hoping for you to have internet when you get home. *smooch*

>145 charl08: It's on the higher side for one storm - thankful that I was plowed out at home, at least, and the neighbor did enough of the driveway here for me to get out!

>146 AMQS: That's a nice set up for the plow, Anne! The company that I had plow my house is a local business that my neighbor uses, and they plowed out both my driveways but weren't sure where my sidewalk was, so for $50 all I had to worry about today was a path from the door to the road (primarily for my mailman, though my mail is being held now). I don't think we're supposed to get snow again until Friday, and I'll hope for a snow day then.

>147 MickyFine: Thanks, Micky! I had to unplug the router and modem when I got back, but all's well now.

>148 richardderus: Just getting a chance to check in now, Richard, but yes, the Internet is back up after restarting the router and modem. I'm not fully plowed out yet though, so walking the dogs has been treacherous. Grrr

After work catchup: picked up my mail; stopped at home to water the plants, pick up jerseys, and shovel the sidewalk; came back to walk the dogs; grocery shopped. I got back to feed the dogs, unpack the groceries, and feed myself. And now I can sit down and read... sadly I left A Letter to My White Friends and Colleagues at work, and I just discovered that. So I'll be reading The Lager Queen of Minnesota and Dear Haiti, Love Alaine this evening, and I won't be finishing else this month. Month in review post to follow!

January in review -

11. Paperboy by Vince Vawter
10. The Keeper of Night by Kylie Lee Baker
9. Dare to Disappoint: Growing Up in Turkey by Ozge Samanci
8. Read Dangerously: The Subversive Power of Literature in Troubled Times by Azar Nafisi
7. City of Mists: Stories by Carlos Ruiz Zafon
6. Istanbul: Memories and the City by Orhan Pamuk
5. Whereabouts by Jhumpa Lahiri
4. The Lincoln Highway by Amor Towles
3. The River of Consciousness by Oliver Sacks
2. The God of Lost Words by A.J. Hackwith
1. Ballad for Sophie by Filipe Melo

Did Not Finish
Hell of a Book by Jason Mott
The Island of Missing Trees by Elif Shafak

Books read: 11
Rereads: 0
Children's/Teen/Adult: 1/2/8
Fiction/Nonfiction/Plays/Poetry: 7/4/0/0
ABC Challenge: Two books by Turkish authors

Because I want to awards:
Ballad for Sophie and Dare to Disappoint: Growing Up in Turkey both tie for excellent graphic novels of the month
The God of Lost Words was so much fun to read, and a great wrap up to a trilogy

YTD stats -
Pages read: 3332
Avg pages a day: 111
Books by POC authors: 2 (18%)
DNF: 2

Thoughts:
I read some really good books this month, and even the ones I gave more mixed reviews to I generally am glad I read. I successfully read two books by Turkish authors for the ABC Challenge, and indeed only 63% of the books I read were originally published in the US (compare to 78% for all of 2021). Unfortunately, only 2 books were by authors of color (the US census defines people of Turkish and Middle Eastern descent as white, so I'm following that for most definitions of race), so I'm going to have to step that up in future months if I want to reach my goal of 50% authors of color. The qualifying authors, by the way, were Jhumpa Lahiri and Kylie Lee Baker.

By the way, I'm getting more and more aware of how difficult it is to define these things. I'm generally counting an author of color if they would experience life in the US as non-white, including Asian American, Black, Hispanic/Latinx. But as you can see above, Middle Eastern gets a little dicey, and some mixed race authors can be tough to place. I feel uncomfortable being the arbiter of such things, and as a result I'm going one book and one author at a time. The idea is to expand my reading, though, so I'm not going to be too annoyed if the percentage as I count it comes in under 50% but I've been reading authors like Azar Nafisi, Orhan Pamuk, and others from around the world who may be considered white for US census purposes but certainly still provide a different story and point of view.

>151 bell7: Excellent stats!

Have a wonderful week!

>140 bell7: Basically she won't use one word when five will do

Yes, this is the problem I have had. I got through one and DNF another, so we can part ways.

>140 bell7: In the end I didn't get to it, Mary, but I am rather struck by the very different reactions to it. Some people, Rhian for example simply loved it whilst Ursula and yourself were not alone in believing her to be something of a windbag. I will read it one day soon and reserve judgement as to what camp I will end up in!

Still you had a pretty decent reading month anyway.

>153 ursula: Thanks, Anita! Hope you're having a good week.

>154 PaulCranswick: Yeah, I could try her again when I'm not dogsitting, but I was having a really tough time focusing, she'd stop the action for a couple paragraphs of description, and then drop back into the present moment of what was happening in the story and I just couldn't follow it.

>154 PaulCranswick: I'll look forward to your thoughts on it, Paul. You can see from my comments to Ursula that I didn't hate it, necessarily, but it was definitely a style that takes some focused reading time, and I don't have that right now. I need books that take less concentration and can be broken up by dogs insisting on being pet. I thought it was a pretty good reading month, all told, and was especially pleased at how many books I read in translation.

Morning, Mary! Glad the internet got sorted and that you were mostly dug out after the snow.

Happy February! The dogs are walked for the morning, and about half an hour I'm logging in to a librarian group to discuss the books we're reading lately, which should be fun. I'm then working 12-8, including meeting one of our new senior tax people that will be working as pages this year. The one scheduled today had actually been on staff prior to my own hire date, but she was friendly with some of the staff members, a regular, and came to some Christmas parties after she no longer worked with us, so I actually know her. She worked in children's, so I'm having the children's librarian work with her, and she's really excited to have someone helping out on a regular basis. Unfortunately, neither of us will be in for her first two hours. Oops. So my director is giving her the grand tour and giving her a task to get her started before we get in today.

In the evening, I'll find out if there will be two or three of us working, as the third person had a flight cancellation from her trip to her daughter's because of the snowstorm we had this weekend. But Tuesday nights have been incredibly quiet (one memorable night, all the patrons left at 6:30 and we had maybe 3 people walk in to quickly pick up and check out holds and then leave again), so either way should be fine, it just affects what I'll be doing with my time.

>156 katiekrug: Morning, Katie! Yeah, mostly plowed and shoveled out, primarily thanks to the neighbors. But at least I was able to take the dogs for their walks this morning without tripping down snowy steps!

>151 bell7: Well done you! And have a nice work-evening. Having someone new who's actually old is kind of fun, isn't it?

*smooch*

>159 richardderus: Thank you! And yes, it is. Though I messed up her start date, and she'll actually be coming in on February 8. Two others folks are starting this week though, tomorrow and Thursday.

>160 bell7: *whew*

>161 richardderus: Heh. Actually, I'm running out of things for volunteers to do. We have a healthy amount of books to put away tomorrow, but Thursday will probably be pretty challenging.

12. A Letter to My White Friends and Colleagues by Steven S. Rogers
Why now? I won an e-ARC in a publisher giveaway over the summer, but it was in a format I couldn't read on my Kindle. I got the published book from the library to make up for it and review.

Along with many other white people, I've been reading literature by and about Black people and racism in the U.S. In the many books that were published in 2021 in the wake of George Floyd's murder and the Black Lives Matter protest, this one takes a unique tack in focusing on "what you can do right now to help the Black community" as the subtitle says: specifically, monetarily.

Rogers lays out his credentials as a race man and someone who used to teach for the Harvard Business School and gives readers a brief history lesson in what created the wealth gap between Black and white Americans. He then addresses how to affect that gap advocating that white people intentionally buy from Black-owned businesses, put money in Black-owned banks, donate to historically Black colleges and universities, and support reparations. He even includes a template letter to send to your representatives, and discussion questions at the end for individuals or book groups to ponder. The style is conversational, but his academic background shows in the extensive notes for each chapter, giving readers plenty of articles to read on each subject. A good starting point for anyone asking "what can I do?" in the face of a challenging problem. 4.5 stars.

Happy hump day!

Today's morning has flown by with dog walks and volunteers coming into the library. The first of the four senior tax workers we'll have this season (two starting this week, one starting next week, and one starting in May) has started her shift, and I'll finish out the work day with two hours on the desk.

Tonight dinner is either leftover taco soup or pita bread pizzas, depending on what I'm in the mood for. I'm leaning towards pizza with sliced bella mushrooms and Parmesan cheese right now, though. Reading The Lager Queen of Minnesota and Dear Haiti, Love Alaine, but not really far enough to say much about either. And I'm hoping to start Ann Patchett's latest essay collection, These Precious Days tonight, with the plan of reading a couple of essays a day. (It has a similar beat in my head to Small Things Like These, and now I'm confusing different words from the titles - I wanted to call it These Precious Things.)

"Small Precious Thises and Thatses" sounds just *corking*! Pizzapitas deffo get my vote...sound just yummers to me.

...tax workers in May...? Isn't that a bit "barn door/bolted horse" of y'all?

Schmoozle some dogears for me! *smooch*

>165 richardderus: ah no, that's our shorthand for seniors who work here for a set number of hours and essentially get paid by a rebate on their property taxes. There are a couple of other town departments that offer work too - my mom did it at the senior center one year. I'll give the dogs all the belly rubs for you. *Smooch*

>166 bell7: OIC!

What a great idea. I think there's a great deal to gain from that kind of plan. Keep the oldsters busy, and get some expensive work that needs doing done.

>167 richardderus: Yeah, it's a good program put in place by a state law. I used the wrong word, it's "abatement" not rebate. Basically, at the rate of $12/hour they can work for 125 hours to get up to $1500 off their taxes. Each town or city can do it a little differently (rate needs to be under minimum wage, amount of time or total they can earn varies), and it's up to each department to supervise the work. One of the ladies is returning for her second year, and she's a phenomenal volunteer. I can give her tasks that I think will take awhile, and she'll have them done - and accurate - quickly. And I can give her more complicated multi-step tasks and know that she'll do it right or ask me if she has any questions. That's who was here today.

That is a really cool program, though I’m sure it makes extra work for you all, trying to find enough tasks. And it’s great that the volunteer you mentioned is so reliable!

>169 foggidawn: Agreed on all counts, foggi! The volunteer program in general is a lot of work. One thing that's nice about the senior tax program is we do get people returning, so there's not as much training on my side when that's the case.

Gooood morning (it is still morning? Yes, okay)!

Normal busy morning of dog walks and getting ready. LOTS of volunteer stuff happening today, including training a new senior tax worker. But I'm not scheduled for the reference desk at all, which gives me some freedom to wander around and find enough projects for all. Should go by quickly, and then dogs and dinner and Olympics (figure skating starts!) tonight. I'm planning on making chicken breast, boxed rice and a veggie for supper tonight.

Happy Friday! I'm working today but my volunteer commitment is canceled tonight, so I'll get to hang out with the dogs and read or watch Olympics tonight.

I'm still reading the same books as I mentioned a few days ago. I forgot to say that I've started the ARC of When We Were Birds by Ayanna Lloyd Banwo on my Kindle. And though I'm not very far, I've very much enjoyed what I've read in These Precious Days: Essays by Ann Patchett. We'll see what reading I can do this weekend, as I have plans to visit my parents' tomorrow and have nursery and work on Sunday.

>163 bell7: This looks like a good one, Beth, and one to add to So You Want to Talk About Race and Uncomfortable Conversations With a Black Man. Still so much to learn and the problems seem so overwhelming.

It's always fun catching up with you, Mary. You make me realize how easy my life is these days. We have snow on the ground and I don't have to go anywhere! I just open the door and let Penny out. She loves the snow, but she also loves her warm house so she romps for a bit and then comes back inside. Easy Peasy.

You had a very good first month of reading. Keep up the good work. I enjoy hearing about life in the library. Maybe I should look into our local library's volunteer opportunities. I will right after I get my personal library under control. Last week I took my stacks of read books to the library for the spring book sale. I found another full box in my "hiding place" under the stairwell this morning. I may not go to the book sale as it looks like it will be made up of my rejects. ;-)

>173 AMQS: I thought So You Want to Talk About Race was really good, but I haven't (yet) read Uncomfortable Conversations with a Black Man. I'll have to add that to the list as well. Thanks, Anne!

>174 Donna828: Aw, thanks, Donna! I can let the dogs in their gated yard, but the girls like to eat poop (and one already got sick from doing that) so I don't leave them unsupervised. The walks vary in length, though they'll be longer when I'm not working. I really should try to read some of my own books and bring some to the library sale myself, but there are always so many good books calling my name that it's hard to be that disciplined. I currently have 12 books out and two more on the way. Oops!

Have a happy weekend-ahad's reads, Mary. I'm not sure how you'll survive until the Ultra Bowl or whatever next weekend. Football-less-ness? The horror, the horror.

>176 richardderus: Thanks, Richard! Never fear, we have plans to hold us over on All-Star weekend (I never watch the All Star game hahaha). I'm going over my parents today to watch Super Bowl 46 on this, the ten-year anniversary of the Giants beating the Patriots. And tomorrow, since I'm working, it's not really going to feel like a Sunday at all, so I won't miss much and I'll have the Olympics to keep me occupied in the evening :)

Happy weekend, everyone! It's been an interesting morning already. I walked the dogs and went out to buy a coffee as a treat, stop at home and bring my recycling to the center for the one day a month we can do that. I spilled some of the coffee in my car right when I picked it up (fortunately most of it stayed in the cup), and then the recycling folks (volunteers, really) were locked out of highway department and couldn't get in because of the ice buildup we got overnight. So I'm back with the dogs, and I'm planning on a second run of errands on the way to my parents today - recycling center again, post office to pick up mail, and home to bring back the empty recycling containers, water all my plants, and take a quick look through the house to make sure all's well.

This afternoon, I'm going to my parents to hang out with family and watch the tape of Super Bowl 46, the one I went to with my dad and brothers to see the Giants beat the Patriots. We'll get a pizza and enjoy reliving the game. Then I'm back to the dogs and hanging out, reading and watching the Olympics in the evening.

Tomorrow I have nursery, church, and work to keep me busy. I am planning on training a new volunteer during the shift, and hope it will be busy enough to go quickly. Off on Monday - hooray!

I'm still reading the same four books, and hoping to make some progress over the weekend (I'm counting Monday in "weekend"). I do have a tendency to have 2-3 books going at once - 4 is a lot and kinda stressing me out, honestly - and finish them all up over the weekend, or some other stretch of 2-3 days. I expect I'll be doing the same through Monday. I'm about halfway through Dear Haiti, Love Elaine and around a quarter into the rest. The exception to that "finish everything at once" is going to be Ann Patchett's essays. I'm really enjoying them and don't want to rush.

Another busy weekend for you, Mary. I hope you finish the books you're hoping to get through!

>178 bell7: You're a kinetic sort, aren't you? *wipes brow*

I hope you're going to have a lovely time and can knock out one of the one-too-many reads over your weekend.

Mary, I am tired just reading about all you are doing. Your plans for this afternoon sound fun. I can't believe it's been ten years since that game!

R-watching that Super Bowl is a great idea!

I am indulging in my quadrennial love fest with winter sports. Wasn't that Biathalon finish something!? It is a good thing I have my knitting to keep myself somewhat calm. Tonight will be just as exciting.

>179 MickyFine: Thanks, Micky! I should manage to finish at least one in the end :)

>180 richardderus: Yeahhhh... I'd blame it all on this particular dogsitting job but that's not really at fault as I'm sure you know, Richard. I seem to need a certain amount of time pressure to do my best work hahaha.

>181 Crazymamie: My brother said today that sometimes it feels like a long time ago and others it's surprising to think it was already 10 years ago. Time can be a funny thing, no? I watched the game and couldn't really remember what was going to happen from one play to another, but I have some very specific memories of buying the tickets, going through security, dealing with nerves before the game, and my reactions to certain plays that still stand out.

>182 katiekrug: Thank you, Katie, we had a blast doing it! (My dad has the DVD of the game, which if you knew him wouldn't surprise you at all lol.)

>183 benitastrnad: I had to watch the replay of the Biathlon, Benita, but it was quite a finish! I've mostly been watching curling and figure skating so far, and I have the speed skating on now.

Wishing you a lovely weekend, Mary.

>185 PaulCranswick: Thank you, Paul! Hope you had a wonderful weekend as well.

I've fed all the animals and had a coffee, which I enjoyed while watching women's moguls. I'm about to really get going for the day, putting lunch together and heading out for nursery, church, and work. At work, I have a volunteer that comes in at noon and I'm training a new volunteer at 1. It's anyone's guess how busy we'll be, but as there's no playoff football today and the weather sounds miserable tomorrow, we may just have more people walking in? I kind of hope so, 'cause those last couple of hours drag and I'm scrambling to find things for the two temps to do when it gets quiet.

The evening should be fairly relaxed, and I'm planning on making more pita bread pizza - this time with pesto, tomatoes and basil as toppings - for dinner tonight.

I slept miserably last night, so I'm kinda dragging and looking forward to not having to go anywhere tomorrow. I need to sort through the mail I picked up yesterday, pay some bills, and call the plow company because I haven't yet received the email invoice from a week ago.

13. Dear Haiti, Love Alaine by Maika Moulite and Maritza Moulite
Why now? The audio was available through the library when I was ready for that format, read by Bahni Turpin who is one of my favorite narrators.

Alaine Beauparlant is a first-generation Haitian American living with her dad in Miami. Her mother is a famous journalist and though she doesn't really know how to relate to her daughter, Alaine is nonetheless proud of her and wants to become a journalist. When Alaine's assignment of a presentation on the history of a Latin American country goes spectacularly wrong, her father sends her to Haiti to intern with her Tati Estelle's non-profit app supporting poor Haitian children through donations from around the world. Her mother is already in Haiti, reeling from an early-onset Alzheimers diagnosis, which Alaine's extended family is convinced is only the latest result of the family curse.

This first book by sisters Maika and Maritza Moulite is a sprawling story written as a school assignment, as Alaine explains in her letter to one of the nuns at her elite private school. Composed of texts, emails, and most often Alaine's own diary entries, the format - and Alaine's snark - keeps the pages turning fast. But there is a lot happening in this book. The history of Haiti and Alaine's family, her mother's Alzheimers, the cute intern at her aunt's nonprofit, all vie for attention and none end up being explored very deeply as a result. 3.5 stars.

Good morning! It may be Monday, but since I worked yesterday it's actually my weekend. The dogs are snoozing and I have the Olympics on. And I finished a book!

I have a few things on the to-do list today and can't quite seem to get motivated. Mostly I need to go through some mail and bills and tidy up around the place, nothing too critical but always nice to do it on a day off instead of rushing around between work and dog walks. I'm sure once I start I'll get a bunch done.

>189 bell7: All the way around a positive day-start.

>188 bell7: Oh HELL.

Not a positive day-start for me, since the library has that on loan now! I'm next.

>190 richardderus: Looking forward to your thoughts when you get to it, Richard!

>189 bell7: Lack of motivation sign that maybe you should just take a lazy day? I know that's not your default position but some lounging around sounds like it might be in order.

>192 MickyFine: I didn't go with the same drive I usually do, but I got what I needed to done and I'm relaxing (other than signing into Bible study and finishing the laundry) the rest of the day. I'd love to take a completely lazy day, but it's hard with the dogs to fit other things in on work days, leaving all the other tasks for days off like today. I can take a lazy morning tomorrow to make up for it though!

>193 bell7: Woohoo for a lazy morning!

>194 MickyFine: Indeed!

Happy Tuesday! I woke up today with a headache and not feeling particularly well-rested. I've had Ibuprofen and coffee and breakfast now. I'm feeling better, though still tired, and as I told Micky above I'll be taking a fairly lazy morning before working 12-8 today. I fell on the ice yesterday when I was bringing trash across the street in such a way that I hurt my right quad which isn't helping anything either.

And yes, in case you're wondering, when I don't feel great I can in fact rest without guilt :)

Oh boo to the headache and your fall yesterday. Glad to hear you can have a chill start to your day at least.

>196 bell7: I hope the owwies leave you alone from 8-midnight so you can get to sleep.

*smooch*

>197 MickyFine: Thanks, Micky!

>198 richardderus: *smooch* Thanks, Richard. I slept okay, but woke up at 6:30 to one of the dogs whining to be let out/fed, and I couldn't get back to sleep but I stubbornly stuck it out 'til 7 a.m.

Happy hump day! Today's work will be primarily keeping volunteers busy and time on the desk. I'll be the senior staff 'til my boss comes in at 3, which always makes the day go by fast somehow.

The book I'm enjoying the most right now is Ann Patchett's essays, so I may just let myself read as much as I can of that tonight between dog walks and Olympic watching. I've got to start Song of Solomon for book club soon, too.

That's about all I have to report - same old, I'm afraid, though it does keep me busy. I tried a new recipe today - overnight chia pudding for breakfast, and it was simple but delicious, using the recipe from Buen Provecho that I reviewed last year.

Mary, sorry about the headache and the fall - not good. I feel like you are in desperate need of a day in which the only thing you have to worry about it pampering yourself a bit. When is your dog sitting gig up? Hoping today behaves itself for you.

Oh, I'd forgotten chia pudding! I enjoyed it with piloncillo sugar back when. Great way to start your day, plenty of energy and it lasts, too.

I was up at 3a, then slept 5a-7a and *blink* 100% awake and no going back. Got a review done! (You would hate the book, Olga Dies Dreaming, so skip it.)

Morning, Mary!

>201 Crazymamie: The dogsitting gig is up in 27 days, Mamie. It's always a tough one, but it's also a very nice check that's paying for my part of our Giants season tickets and building some savings besides. Unless they come back early (which has happened before), I won't really get a full free day until March 7. But you better believe I'm looking ahead to potential days off from work to do just that :)

>202 richardderus: It was delicious, Richard, I'll be making it a regular rotation in the morning (I am boring and just make oatmeal with milk and fruit in the microwave most mornings). The recipe had maple syrup and vanilla added, so with the brown sugar I added it was almost a little too sweet. Added some banana slices and nuts and *slurp* so good. And thanks for the comments on Olga Dies Dreaming. I've been on the fence about it, and was still after reading your review, but with that I can safely keep it off the list. Fortunately there are a lot of other good books calling my name! And a pox on this messed up sleep cycle! What gives? (In my case, perimenopause and whiny dogs, but I think I can safely say that's not your problem!)

>203 katiekrug: Morning, Katie!

>204 bell7: I think my version of perimenopause is the thyroid...I need to get my meds adjusted. Something's not right when I'm losing weight I don't want to and sleeping patchily...classic thyroid-med imbalance symptoms.

>205 richardderus: Ooof, hope you're able to find a solution to that soon, Richard!

14. Ain't Burned All the Bright by Jason Reynolds with artwork by Jason Griffin
Why now? A new book by Jason Reynolds is pretty much a must-read. My co-worker who processes the teen books showed it to me when it came in, and I got it right after she finished it.

A boy reflects on the events of 2020: his mom keeps watching the news on TV, his brother won't stop playing video games, and his sister plans on going to a protest with her friends.

Wow. This book is an incredible blend of art and poetic language. The family deals with difficult challenges - sickness and a world in chaos - but ultimately finds hope and the courage to keep breathing. Powerful and uplifting. 5 stars.

Oh I love Jason Reynolds - thanks for this recommendation.

>205 richardderus: some years ago I inexplicably lost about 8 pounds and was thrilled... until my thyroid levels came back and needed adjusting. I guess it's a good thing not to randomly lose weight but I was happy about it for a time.

Sleep sympathies from me. I'll ask the library for a copy of the Jason Reynolds too, very tempting.

>208 AMQS: I hope you enjoy it when you get to it, Anne!

>209 charl08: thanks for the sleep sympathy, Charlotte! And I hope you enjoy Ain't burned all the bright when you get to it. I'm putting it on my wishlist.

Edited to get touchstone to work

Good Thursday morning, and thank goodness the weekend is almost here! I'm tired...

Today is work and making dinner, plus enough to have lunch for tomorrow, and of course dog walking and feeding. One of the dogs threw up a little last night, but seemed fine and I gave him his snack before bed, but he still had bile this morning from an empty stomach 🙁 I cleaned him up before work but didn't have enough time for coffee and breakfast before I left, so coffee at work it is! Busy weekend ahead and I've got to read my book club book, so if I don't check in often, you know why.

>211 bell7: Coffee at work, Mary? Is there *good* coffee there, or is this like eating Cheetos because that's what's in the machine?

I hope Poochie is all better when you get back!

>208 AMQS: I wasn't entirely displeased until I got to a point that I could see ribs. That is, for me, A Not-Good Thing. I am among life's naturally ample persons.

>212 richardderus: we have a Keurig and pods, which is fine for my not so refined tastes. I picked hazelnut, which is the best.

>213 bell7: The Keurig is a great invention for offices, esp. since they invented reusable pods. And hazelnut ANYthing gets my vote! (I had a jar of Nutella at my desk so I could spoon a heap into my mug, pour the baked, bitter coffeepot dreggings atop it, and make wondrous ho cho.)

The Wayne doesn't like flavored coffee, so I always use hazelnut creamer in my coffee :)

>214 richardderus: I like the Sboly I purchased as an alternative to the Keurig for my office when the Keurig quit pumping. The Sboly includes a filter basket for ground coffee rather than having to clean one of those tiny reusable pods. It's so much easier to clean!

>216 thornton37814: I can't even imagine what this device looks like!

>215 katiekrug: I can't even imagine what this device looks like....

>217 richardderus: Try this link: https://www.sboly.com/collections/coffee-maker/products/1177-coffee-maker-with-c...

>218 thornton37814: That's fascinating, I've never heard of that device at all. Me and my 1920s-tech french press are muddling along, 34 ounces at a time.

>215 katiekrug: When I'm at home, I tend to have just regular coffee of a brand that I like, but if I buy coffee I prefer hazelnut as a treat. I'm weird and like it with just milk in it :P

>216 thornton37814: >217 richardderus: >218 thornton37814: >219 richardderus: Ooooh, that looks like a handy device. I got my Keurig at a tag sale ($10 with no tray) and I paid more for the pair of reusable pods that go with it. My brother uses a French press and the silly man likes to buy iced coffee all year round (I can't stand it cold, so I'm the opposite weirdo who will still drink hot coffee when it's 90 degrees out).

Good Friday morning! I confess I'm a little excited to be gone all day and have very little dog walking to do as a result. I'm working 9-5 and heading right out to my regular volunteer gig, so I won't be back 'til close to 9. I'll wrap up some tasks (cat litter, water plants...) and go to bed.

Tomorrow I'm hanging out with my Little for the afternoon. We're planning on tie-dying t-shirts at her place. And Sunday is church and a Super Bowl party at my brother and sister-in-law's.

Reading is coming along. I had to start Song of Solomon to make sure I finished it in time for book club on Wednesday. I got past page 100 last night, and I'm very pleased to find myself a third of the way in, knowing that I should have enough time to read steadily and finish it Monday/Tuesday if I focus on it. Then I'll get back to The Lager Queen of Minnesota for my SIL's book club later in the month and These Precious Days, which I've enjoyed so much I've been telling my co-workers about it.

Morning, Mary! Happy Friday. Yep, I am back. Catching up with the threads is a monumental task. I also loved the Patchett collection. She rocks. Have a good weekend.

>222 msf59: Welcome back, Mark! I'll catch up with your thread and look for trip updates later this weekend. So far I've only read two books by Patchett, but of the two I prefer her essays to her fiction.

Happy Rush Week! I mean "weekend" (though honestly I can't perceive a lot of difference between your weekends and my Rush Weeks).

Do you think the population where you are would like Today Hong Kong, Tomorrow the World: What China's Crackdown Reveals About Its Plans to End Freedom Everywhere? I gave it 4.5* because the author's journalism background kept the pages turning, and his evident anguish over the fate of Hong Kong was very moving.

>220 bell7:
I with you on the hot coffee. I drink hot coffee year round. There is something comforting about the heat - especially in the morning.

Just trying to catch up on some threads, Mary. Happy weekend!

>224 richardderus: Yeahhh, this is not going to be a relaxing set of days. Next weekend, though. It'll be a three-day weekend and not a lot of responsibilities outside of dogsitting. Maybe I can even fit a nap in?

>225 benitastrnad: Yep... doesn't matter if it makes me sweat or not, I need it hot. I don't like the taste cold at all. Same with tea.

>226 aktakukac: Happy weekend, Rachel! Nice to see you :)