AlisonY - In Search of the Artist's Way in 2025

Welcome friends, old and new, to my 2025 thread. If we've not met before, I live in the outskirts of a village around 4 miles from the suburbs of Belfast, Northern Ireland. I work in health tech and am mum to two teenagers. My working life is demanding with long hours, and as well as reading I unwind by doing strength and conditioning gym training a few evenings each week.

I can't believe that this is my 10th year as a member of CR, and what a wonderful ten years of reading you have all encouraged in me. When I opened up my first thread back in 2015, my goal was to start reading regularly again and I had a set list of books which I wanted to work my way through. In subsequent years my reading has become more fluid and I prefer to go where the reading winds take me. Like a magpie I can be drawn to a shiny new cover in a mainstream bookshop, a random book might speak to me in a secondhand shop, or an article somewhere can spark a random interest in something I want to find out more about. And of course, I've discovered many new authors and titles through Club Read and accounts I follow in other groups on LT.

Fiction-wise I tend to stay in the lane of literary fiction. I also enjoy a good memoir - not necessarily of particularly famous people, but more of people who have done interesting things. In recent years at least a third of my reading in the year will fall into the non-fiction category, ranging from personal development to science to art / design. Over the last few years a few books of poetry usually slip in somewhere too.

In recent years I've become more and more drawn to the arts in general, and it's becoming something increasingly important to me to make time for. In 2025, I hope to plan in some more artistic pursuits, including getting back to writing more myself.

This year I'm planning to use the linocut art of Annie Soudain as my thread toppers.

Last year's thread can be found at: https://www.librarything.com/topic/356390#n8711642

January
1. The Bell by Iris Murdoch - read (4 stars). 1973.
2. Our Evenings by Alan Hollinghurst - read (4 stars). 2024.

February
3. The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie - read (3.5 stars). 1926.
4. Went to London, Took the Dog: The Diary of a 60-Year-Old Runaway by Nina Stibbe - read (3.5 stars). 2023.
5. Heartburn by Nora Ephron - read (3.5 stars). 1983.
6. Letters to Camondo by Edmund de Waal read (4.5 stars). 2021.
7. The Man on the Third Floor by Anne Bernays read (3.5 stars). 2012.
8. The Italian Teacher by Tom Rachman. read (4 stars). 2018

March
9. A Swim in a Pond in the Rain by George Saunders. read (4 stars). 2021
10. The Plague by Albert Camus - read (4 stars). 1947.
11. Beyond the Shallows: Life is Better in the Deep End by Jason Mundley -read 3.5 stars (2025)
12. The Untethered Soul by Michael A. Singer - read (4.5 stars). 2007
13. The Autobiography of Alice B. Toklas by Gertrude Stein read (3 stars). 1933.

NF - 6
F - 7
P -
A - 5

Published year:
2020-2025: 5
2010-2019:2
2000-2009: 1
1980s - 1
1970s - 1
1960s -
1950s -
1940s - 1
1930s - 1
1920s - 1

love you picture - the linocut.

Love seeing the linocut, my Christmas present was the supplies to start learning it. I should find some inspiration here!

I love that you are making time for the arts as well.

I sincerely wish you a happy, healthy and fulfilling new year. May all your wishes come true. Happy reading 2025.

Happy New Year, Alison. I love the linocut at the top.

Happy New Year! I look forward to following your reading again this year.

Hello, Allison - love the picture in your top post. Have a great year of books!

Eye-catching linocut. I hope you keep us apprised of your artistic endeavors, as well as literary. Happy New Year!

>2 AlisonY:, >3 dchaikin:, >4 ursula:, >5 Ameise1:, >6 BLBera:, .7, >8 Nickelini:, >9 labfs39: welcome all! Thanks for stopping by. Glad you're enjoying the linocut art as much as I am. My 2025 wall calendar for this year is of Annie Soudain's art, and I love looking at it.

I recently watched Maggie Gyllenhaal's director debut film The Lost Daughter on Netflix, an adaptation of Elena Ferrante's book. Whilst general public reviews of this film are decidedly mixed, critically it was a success. I thoroughly enjoyed it (my husband not so much). Olivia Coleman was wonderful as always. I would say recommended to those who have enjoyed Ferrante's novels in the past.

>1 AlisonY: Happy New Year, and thank you for the introduction to Annie Soudain's work. Marvellous!

Happy New Year, Alison!

As others have said, wonderful linocut. The technique is one of my favourite forms of image making. Sadly, I feel this need to protect my hands, which has kept me from trying that, and also glasswork.

Anyway, it sounds as if you are off to an interesting start with Iris Murdoch and Maggie Gyllenhaal. Coleman was excellent in it.

>4 ursula: I'll be following to see how your linocuts go.

Adding in my Happy New Years greeting. Looking forward to seeing where those reading winds carry you this year. Cheers!

>11 AlisonY: Interestingly I enjoyed the film Alison, but didn't get into the first of the series of books so stopped there. I think it is because I am not a fan of 'coming of age' novels. Maybe if I got past the first all would be well, I know I am in the minority.

Hopefully it's a great reading year! Looking forward to seeing what you get to.

I enjoyed the first book in the Neapolitan series, but less so the second, and the third was a DNF.

I only read the first book, but the others are on my shelf, so I should at least pick them up, I guess. Another resolution for this year. :)

I've also felt the itch to get back into linocut (back = I did it in sixth grade) lately... probably all those Instgram reels of people making and printing from them. That one's a beauty—I'll check out the artist's other work.

Happy semi-new year, and looking forward to seeing what you read.

>12 rasdhar:, >13 SassyLassy:, >14 rocketjk:, >15 Caroline_McElwee:, >16 mabith:, >17 labfs39:, >18 BLBera:, >19 lisapeet: Happy New Year all! Thanks for stopping by. Terrible to already be behind on my own thread!

Time for the first completed book of the year:



1. The Bell by Iris Murdoch

This is my third Murdoch title and it didn't disappoint. The Bell is set around a manor house which is home to a fledgling Christian community as well as housing a closed order of nuns in an abbey within its grounds. Both bodies are looking forward to a service of dedication for a new bell which is to be erected at the abbey, but dynamics between the community members are not as they might appear on the surface and it becomes increasingly pressured to ensure all skeletons remain tightly shut away in the closet.

A wry and fun read, this was a great start to the reading year. Murdoch knows how to quickly reel in her readers, and a solid plot coupled with her dry wit kept me engaged from start to finish.

4 stars - amusing and entertaining.

Keep Donate Bin

>20 AlisonY: This one sounds interesting. I really need to get to Iris Murdoch at some point, though I've had The Sea, The Sea sat on my shelf waiting to be read for a long time now so I probably should start there.

>21 valkyrdeath: That's the first one I started with too. From memory I found it a little harder to get into, and the protagonist is fairly hateful, but the further I got in it became a great read.

The Black Prince was the second one I read, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. It's my favourite so far.

>20 AlisonY: We read that for my book club (aka the Iris Murdoch Fight Club) a few years ago. What a strange, fun book. Every so often scenes from it still float into my head.

>20 AlisonY: You've sold The Bell to me. I've been wanting to read some Iris Murdoch for ages but the 2 books of hers I've had on my TBR shelves for years don't really appeal (perhaps in part because they are both battered old copies I picked up in a second hand shop), whereas this does.

>20 AlisonY: nice to see Murdoch and an encouraging review. I’ve been thinking about how I still haven’t read her. I need to fix that.

I’m glad I’m not the only one with good intentions but poor follow through on reading Murdock. >20 AlisonY: enticing review

The Bell sounds great! I am also among the numbers of people who keep meaning to read Murdoch. This year for sure!

>23 lisapeet: It is a strange book but it works - it examines some quite serious themes without taking itself remotely seriously.

>24 rachbxl:, >25 dchaikin:, >26 labfs39:, >27 mabith: Hopefully you'll enjoy Murdoch as well when you get to one of her books. I believe in her first few books she was still settling into what later became her trademark style, so I would suggest perhaps not starting with any of those and picking one of the more widely known titles from later in her career instead.

I loved The Black Prince as well; I need to get back to Murdoch. I have some on my shelves, but The Bell sounds like one I would enjoy. What a great way to start the year.

>20 AlisonY: Dropping a star.
I think I read The Bell some time ago. Last century. Oh dear, that’s made me realize for the 100th time today, how old I am. But in any case I enjoyed your review and so might re-read it. I am enjoying 20th century literature- oh for the god old days of plots and storylines and cabbages and things…*

*Apologies to Lewis Carroll.

>20 AlisonY: That review makes the book sound a lot more appealing than the few descriptions of it I had seen before... Iris Murdoch is one of those authors I always think I should read and yet somehow never quite get around to...

Interested in your three options of keep/donate/bin - what makes the difference between the second two?

>20 AlisonY: Great review - I haven't got around to The Bell yet but you've certainly made a case for it.

Joining in to say thanks for the Murdoch encouragement. I own a bunch of her books but never seem to get to them

>20 AlisonY: I have this Murdoch waiting for me on my shelf along with several others. Need to get to one or more of them as I think several are on the 1001 list. The most recent one I read was The Nice and the Good, which I liked a lot, but I think my favorite so far is The Sea, The Sea, unlikeable characters and all.

>25 dchaikin: Murdoch might be a good author to explore after Wharton winds up. (on Litsy I mean). I find Murdoch harder to read than Wharton, but very rewarding.

>29 BLBera: The Black Prince was so much fun, Beth.

>30 kjuliff: Also a fan of mid-century literature here, Kate. There's something very comforting about it.

>31 AnnieMod:, >33 rasdhar:, >34 Nickelini:, >35 arubabookwoman: Well I hope I haven't oversold The Bell if you get to it! But if you like mid-century books with that classic old school 'Britishness' to them I think you'll enjoy it.

>32 wandering_star: Well now, my keep/donate/bin is new this year and very arbitrary! Donate is a book I don't feel the need to keep but which I think others might enjoy. Included in that are books which I like well enough to lend to friends on the assumption that I'll probably never see them again, but won't lose sleep over that fact. Bin is reserved for those particularly awful books which don't deserve to be inflicted on anyone.

I'm trialling how bothered I am about keeping it up this year. I may decide it's useless quite quickly as my star rating probably says enough.

I like the keep/donate/bin! I find I keep relatively few books anymore.

I have keep/trade/donate the second because my local indie gives me trade credit. as does my used book store

>35 arubabookwoman: i’ve thought about that. I’ll have to try something first, probably The Sea, the Sea

Haven't ever read any Murdoch before. The Bell sounds like a good place to start.

>37 BLBera: Unfortunately I'm still in book hoarding mode. I enjoy them around the house - they don't feel like clutter, more objects I can admire which add to the decor. But I am running out of space, although I'm quite creative about where I put them.

>38 cindydavid4: Nice getting some trade credit. That would definitely inspire me to purge a bit more I expect.

>39 dchaikin: I think you'd enjoy Murdoch, Dan, based on some of your previous author likes.

>40 Fourpawz2: I can definitely recommend her. There's a wryness to her writing which I enjoy.

Our first all red storm warning across the island of Ireland tomorrow - eek. All schools in the country shut, most businesses have told staff to work from home, supermarkets, etc. are closing. I know this is nothing new in hurricane prone places, but certainly not the norm for these parts!

Pardon the pun, but hoping it's a storm in a teacup. Officially I don't know we have a red weather warning, as my mobile is so old my Android release doesn't support the new government phone alert warning...

I read about it in The Guardian. Apparently people are advised to keep their mobiles fully charged in case of electricity outages. Keep safe Alison!

Out of curiosity I checked, and, as I suspected, Éowyn is largely due to our Winter Storm Enzo earlier this week, which deposited historic amounts of snow in areas along the Gulf of Mexico, including a record breaking and completely unfathomable 8-10 inches (20-25 cm) of snow in New Orleans, which is twice as much snow as my city in the northern suburbs of Philadelphia has had all year combined. Hopefully Éowyn will weaken significantly before it gets to your area.

Fingers crossed for teacup-sized storms. Stay warm!

Stay safe and dry Alison.

>42 AlisonY: Have been following the storm coverage online, and it appears to be much the same in Scotland: ferries, planes and trains cancelled, trains not venturing out of England - not going north of Preston or York, schools shut.

Just checked BBC for NI and see all the power outages. I hope you're not one of them.

What's the best book to read in the circumstances?

>47 SassyLassy: Light a Single Candle

>48 labfs39: Lisa!

>43 kjuliff:, >44 kidzdoc:, >45 labfs39:, >46 Caroline_McElwee:, >47 SassyLassy: Thanks all. We are back out the other side. We lost electricity and had no mobile service for the whole of yesterday, but thankfully all was back on when we woke up this morning. It's amazing how cut off you suddenly feel - we were back to the old days of gathering around the wireless on the hour to catch the news! Although the kids felt the world had ended without the internet, it was the loss of the telephone which really made me feel cut off, as the mobile masts were out. My parents are still without power even though they only live on the other side of the village to me, so going over with power banks for their phones, etc.

Unfortunately we lost 10 trees, 8 of which will have a big impact on the view from our house - they were nicely shielding the water treatment plant adjacent to our property, but once we get the trees removed from where they've fallen we're going to be looking straight into that (and them into us). Especially annoying as we are planning on selling in the next few years, but what can you do - things could be worse. Our greenhouse caught the brunt of half of our big ash tree in the yard coming down so that's looking a little pitiful too.

On the positive, as the whole area was without electric, we'd a wonderful dark sky last night to view the planetary alignment. My husband was able to see the rings on Saturn and some of its moons with just his bird-watching telescope. Mars was also very visible to the naked eye.

>48 labfs39: Ha! Not a single candle, though - we needed quite a few going yesterday.

We all felt really tired quite early last night once it got dark, and were musing if this is what our natural circadian rhythms would feel like if we didn't live in a world where we're keeping our brains unnaturally active in the evenings with TV and the internet.

2. Our Evenings by Alan Hollinghurst

This is my sixth Hollinghurst novel (out of seven), and I'm delighted that this is up there with some of his strongest work, especially since it's been a wait - 7 years - since his last book.

As always to be expected in a Hollinghurst novel, his protagonist is a gay man navigating the trials of living life as a gay man in modern Britain, but the main character in this novel is decidedly more lower middle class than many of his previous protagonists, although a scholarship to a public boarding school and onward education at Oxford keeps him circling around the fringes of the upper class echelons which is usual Hollinghurst territory.

Our Evenings is expansive, both in terms of size (nearly 500 pages) and the breadth of the life period of the protagonist it covers, from the 1960s right up to the pandemic. New territory in this novel is Hollinghurst's extra 'outsider' dimension of the main character being mixed-race (half Burmese), encountering racism from his castings as an actor in plays to misplaced comments by friends and family, as well as in-your-face racism from strangers. Another interesting element is the development of his mother's sexuality. One senses from Hollinghurst a feeling that it was perhaps easier for lesbians to remain quietly 'non-outed' during the same period when two men living together would have raised questions.

A constant thread in this life story is the family who are the benefactors of the scholarship the protagonist wins to boarding school. The son - also at the same school - is a detestable bully who grows up to be an equally detestable senior Tory cabinet member, and Hollinghurst masterfully deals with him as a side character.

It's an enjoyable novel, thought-provoking and quite moving at times. Hollinghurst writes honest and complex characters, which is probably the draw for me to his novels, although somehow I never entirely emotionally commit to them. Aside from Hollinghurst carrying the flag for writing about homosexual characters, I draw many parallels between his style of writing and Ian McEwan's. Both are masters of prose and born storytellers, but somehow, although I enjoy both their work, I never quite fall in love with it.

4 stars - a sweeping and engaging whole life novel.

Keep Donate Bin

>51 AlisonY: Great review of a book (and author) I've never read. Do you have a favorite Hollinghurst that you recommend I read first? P.S. I love the "Keep Donate Bin" addition to your reviews.

>52 labfs39: I'd probably recommend starting with his Booker prize-winner The Line of Beauty, Lisa.

>53 AlisonY: Thanks. Onto the wish list it goes.

>50 AlisonY: I'm glad you came through the storm all right, although I'm sorry about those trees and your view. A night free of light pollution, though, is a nice, if small, gift to the family, though.

I, too, really liked The Line of Beauty, though it's the only Hollinghurst I've read as yet.

>50 AlisonY: Sorry to hear about the loss of your trees. I'm wondering if a short term solution might be to plant some fast-growing, tall, ornamental grasses? I have some that grow to be about 8' tall. Every spring I cut them back nearly to the ground, and they shoot back up again. I choose to leave them over the winter, rather than cut back in the fall, because the birds and little critters like the cover, and it gives some nice visuals against the snowy expanse. Just a thought. Will you plant some trees too? The girls planted some white birches on my lawn for Earth Day, and in two years they've grown to about 9'. Not sure what would work best in your climate.

>55 rocketjk: Thanks Jerry. I've enjoyed most of Hollinghurst's books. The only one not so much was The Spell, but everything else has been a solid 4 star read for me.

>56 labfs39: Yes that might be an option, Lisa, although there's quite a width to cover. The fallen trees were firs, which whilst not a favourite tree by any means did at least provide good thick screening. It's going to look odd now, as there are still a number of tall firs remaining on each side with a massive gap in the middle.

This is our second storm damage in two months - suffice to say I'm over it. Last month we had an 8x5 feet panel rip off the front of the barn down to the block work and several chunks of plaster rip off exposed corners of the house. We've just noticed that part of our front fence has also gone. I think this is going to be par for the course with climate change.

My sister (who is about 3 miles away) lives on a hill and has a glass conservatory end to her main living room. The glass slipped down (but luckily didn't break) and a bunch of them had to hold onto the frame for over an hour while her husband and son went off to find something to stop the corner of the house completely ripping off, as all the metal work was buckling under the wind pressure. Luckily they managed to bolt in some big supports to save it, but she said it was incredible - it was about to come down like a pack of cards.

>57 AlisonY: Yikes, Alison, that sounds awful. Did you get much snow, or mostly wind?

When I lived in Washington State, we had lots of very tall Douglas firs, and they have notoriously shallow root systems. We lived in fear of one coming down on our house.

I watched a story on BBC News America last night about Éowyn. The videos were harrowing, and I'm glad that the damage to your property wasn't as bad as it apparently could have been.

Great review of Our Evenings. I've only read one novel by Alan Hollinghurst, The Stranger's Child, and I'd like to read more of his works.

>50 AlisonY: I'm glad you made it through the storm, but I am very sorry about your trees.

I have got to read something by Hollinghurst.

>58 labfs39: Just very strong winds and a bit of rain, Lisa. Today has now turned very cold and frosty, so the house is taking a while to heat back up again.

>59 kidzdoc: Thanks Darryl. One young man in County Donegal sadly lost his life, but I'm relieved the number wasn't higher. We've lived in this house for 13 years now, and before that my parents lived here since 1978 - we've never had damage like this before, but this is the second year in a row now we've had trees down (although not as bad as yesterday). Global warming is here for sure with its crazy weather patterns.

I also enjoyed The Stranger's Child (although it dragged a little in the middle from memory, but I really enjoyed the country house setting).

>60 RidgewayGirl: I always recommend Hollinghurst. At times he can be a little graphic with his sex descriptions which might cause offence to some, but not if you're fairly broadminded (although sex in The Spell did spill into TMI territory for me as it was on practically every other page and I really didn't need to know that much about the sex lives of young gay men in London).

>61 AlisonY: Yes, climate change has already had a major impact on the weather in 2025. The fact that New Orleans has had twice as much snow as Philadelphia this month is beyond anyone's comprehension.

I just looked at my LibraryThing review of The Stranger's Child. Apparently I loved it until its end, which I described as "flat and contrived," but I still gave it 4½ stars.

>61 AlisonY: At times he can be a little graphic with his sex descriptions which might cause offence to some

I’m not offended at all by graphic sex depictions, but I find them boring, and don’t skip them because I don’t like skipping parts of books as if a book is worth reading, all of it is important.

I’m the same with all sex description, gay, bi, queer … I’m just not interested. The sexual preferences of characters is often very important to an appreciation of a book, but I don’t go for detailed step by step descriptions of sex acts or fantasies.

With Our Evenings I put the book aside as a “maybe later” read, though it was beautifully written I was not interested in the gay sex that seemed at times to permeate the book.

Glad that you and yours got through that storm safely. I hate a terrible storm. I feel so vulnerable. It was okay a thousand years ago when I was a child, but in these times, knowing just how bad things can get, I kind of freak out. I was born a pessimist, I'm afraid, which is a bad thing to be in climate change times.

What a crazy storm. I’m so sorry about your trees!

I’m listening to Our Evenings, still 3 hours left. It’s gorgeous but slow. I love your review. All that is interesting to me and so spot on. The sex doesn’t feel bothersome to me all. It’s mild. But the constant wandering eye and constant thinking about sex is interesting. This is my first by Hollinghurst.

>20 AlisonY: I finally stopped in to wish you a wonderful 2025, and I've already taken a bullet. The Bell sounds interesting.

>65 dchaikin: The sexual preferences of characters is often very important to an appreciation of a book, but I don’t go for detailed step by step descriptions of sex acts or fantasies.
- my comment ( >63 kjuliff: )

My word “fantasies” was better expressed by your constant wandering eye and constant thinking about sex .

It was not just the sex act descriptions that bored me, but the constant presence of sex in both acts and imaginings. I was looking for the book to emerge, but put it aside as I was becoming impatient of this happening.

Our Evenings sounds great, Alison. I will look for it. I've only read one Hollinghurt and he writes beautifully.

I am sorry to hear about your trees. Thanks goodness none fell on your house.

Oh wow! I'm sorry for the loss of your trees, especially since they blocked an unpleasant view. Glad you came through otherwise fine.

I've enjoyed the Hollinghurst I've read too.

>62 kidzdoc: I just looked at my LibraryThing review of The Stranger's Child. Apparently I loved it until its end, which I described as "flat and contrived," but I still gave it 4½ stars.

That's why I compare him in my head to Ian McEwan. He doesn't always get it right throughout his books, but there's enough magic in the good stuff, and the good writing far outweighs any weak points, so I always return to his novels and ultimately usually consider them at least 4 star reads. To be fair, Our Evenings felt fairly solid throughout.

>63 kjuliff:, >65 dchaikin:, >67 kjuliff: Sex for me is necessary in many novels, as it's such an intrinsic part of our human makeup. It can be pivotal in driving decisions by the characters, not always for the good, so can lead to some interesting plot developments where a path is taken for the wrong reasons. With Hollinghurst's work, I get why there's always a fair bit of sexual description, as Hollinghurst wants to put us in the head of a gay man (or men), and that's part and parcel of the thought processes and actions when two guys are attracted to each other. The unwritten 'mating' rules around sex are so different when it's Mars and Mars versus Mars and Venus, and that feels intrinsic and necessary to the honesty of the story for me.

In The Spell, Hollinghurst's story was much more centred on the decadence and promiscuity of the London gay scene for young men, so I get why it was chock full of sexual descriptions but there was so much of it I got bored by it and the scene it was describing after a while.

A story does emerge in Our Evenings, Kate, albeit more of a quiet story of the development of an everyday life, but hey - not every book is for everyone, so if it wasn't working for you absolutely forget about.

Dan - hope you continue to enjoy the rest of the book.

>66 Jim53: Murdoch wrote wonderful mid-century novels. If you enjoy those I think you'd very much enjoy her work.

>68 BLBera: Hollinghurst does write beautifully, and I always enjoy his insights into lives of privilege around big English country houses, boarding schools and private clubs.

>68 BLBera: >69 Nickelini: No point in us crying over the trees. It's done now - we just have to figure out next steps.

>70 AlisonY: That's a great comparison, Alison. I don't always love Ian McEwan's books, but they are enjoyable almost without exception. I've got away from him in recent years, though.

>71 kidzdoc: I'm a bit the same, Darryl. I decide I'm not going to read anything more by McEwan, but then a few years later I pick up with him again. Odd that although I see flaws in both Hollinghurst's and McEwan's novels, I've read almost everything both have written.

>72 AlisonY: "Odd that although I see flaws in both Hollinghurst's and McEwan's novels, I've read almost everything both have written."

Maybe I'm just playing with semantics, but I don't see that as odd. For me, an important definition of great fiction is not fiction that's flawless, but fiction that overcomes its flaws.

>73 rocketjk: Like it, Jerry. I think you're right.

>70 AlisonY: Interesting thoughts on Ian McEwan and Hollinghurst in that they don’t always “get it right”. McEwan used to be one of my favorite writers but some of his later works have been dashed off too quickly. I think he wrote The Cockroach in a week according to an interview I saw some years back. I agree with you about his inconsistency. And yes, I too always get something from his books .

I usually enjoy Hollinghurst as well. I enjoy his prose and the way his books flow. I have read most of them. Maybe it was my mood when I started Our Evenings but to me the sexual acts and longings dominated the book. It’s not a DNF for me. I just put it aside as I wasn’t getting a lot from it apart from the prose. It wasn’t about the apparent lack of a storyline when I put it aside. It was just that sexual themes seemed to dominate and as I’m straight I didn’t relate. But even if it was about heterosexual attraction I think I would have tired with it.

I will be picking it up again as I own my 🎧 copy.

Back to M cEwan. Have you read his latest Lessons ?

>75 kjuliff: Maybe at another time it will work for you more, Kate. Or maybe it's just not meant to be!

Yes, I read Lessons not long after it came out, as McEwan was speaking about it at a book festival I went too (very disappointing he did no signings). I actually found parallels with Our Evenings - probably as they were both (almost) whole life novels.

>76 AlisonY: Hmmm, interesting. I didn’t much like Lessons either. But for different reasons. I get scared when writers write whole life novels as I fear they are going to die.

>72 AlisonY: That's good to hear. I'll have to revisit McEwan at some point, and read the two novels I have by Hollinghurst I have on my Kindle, The Folding Star and The Line of Beauty.

Great discussion. This reminds me of a topic I had wanted to post, in order to get others' opinions: who are your favorite living novelists? I have already marked my favorite writers, living or deceased, and regardless of genre, and my criterion was that the author had to write five or more novels or short story collections that earned at least four stars from me. This is my list:

Javier Cercas
JMG Le Clézio
JM Coetzee
Jean Echenoz
Annie Ernaux
Abdulrazak Gurnah
Mario Vargas Llosa
Sarah Moss
Salman Rushdie
Ngugi wa Thiong'o

Annie Ernaux would have also made the list if her major works are considered to be in the fiction category. Several other female authors would have been included if I made four novels the cut off point, such as Edwidge Danticat, Aminatta Forna, Hillary Mantel.

I'll post this to the Just Lists thread shortly.

>77 kjuliff: Yes, it feels like some of these authors get to a stage in life where they feel they have to write 'the big one' before it's too late. I'm hoping they both have a few good novels in them yet.

>78 kidzdoc: Ooh - interesting discussion. I'll probably reply in the Lists threads rather than here as it's a broad topic.

3. The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie

(Audio book)

Murder mysteries are not my bag, but this particular Agatha Christie was recommended on a writing podcast I listened to recently as a particularly good example of a particular style of narration. Also, I've decided to try listening to audiobooks on my commute going forward, and as I've only dipped my toe in once before, this short, plot driven book seemed like a good starting point.

This is classic whodunnit in true Cluedo style. A murder in the study - which of the characters, who all had a potential motive, did it? And of course, good old Hercule Poirot, gathering up the crumbs of clues overlooked by the regular police detectives.

Given that this isn't a genre I typically read, I tried to read it with an open mind. It's all a little silly and dramatic to the modern reader, but it's a classic of its era by the queen of the genre. To that end, I appreciated her cleverness in how she weaved the clues together and tried to throw the reader off the scent at numerous points until the twist at the end.

3.5 stars - not really my thing, but I enjoyed it for what it was

(I often read other LT reviews when I'm starting a book to get a general sense of whether others have enjoyed the book. I was extremely annoyed to read a spoiler on the first page of reviews which spoilt the whodunnit for me, which is the whole point of a murder mystery. Grrrr.)

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>80 AlisonY:
spoiling a murder mystery is just evil

I think that was the book that made me quit Agatha Christie. I figured out whodidit and thought it was . . . disappointing. That was 40 years ago, and I'm thinking of trying her again just for fun

>81 Nickelini: Yep, I think I would have figured it out too. I've nothing to compare it to as I've never read any other Agatha Christie's, but I think this one will be enough.

Great comments on the Christie, Alison. Spoilers for a mystery? That is wrong. I read a lot of the Christies when I was in middle school and don't feel any compulsion to revisit them. I think there are better mysteries out there.

>84 BLBera: I agree (with all - the spoiler bad etiquette and that there are better mysteries out there). But I'd not read an Agatha Christie before, which felt a bit lacking as a reader, so I'm happy I can now tick that box. It was good enough for a few trots backwards and forwards to work.

The odd thing, I guess, about me as a dedicated mystery reader is that I never bother myself with trying to deduce "who-done-it?". We all know that the author always designs the answer to be a surprise anyhow.

A good mystery for me is: 1) the process being followed in solving the mystery, and 2) the insights into the characters involved. It is also very important to realize that mystery isn't synonymous with crime. Many mysteries begin with knowledge of the 'bad guy' .

My favorite Literary Mysteries (like Possession) don't really involve crime.

>86 JoeB1934: That's true, Joe, and I did appreciate the complexity of Christie's mystery plotting, including the numerous deliberate dead ends.

I'm not the ideal reader for an Agatha Christie as it's not a favourite genre for me, so it would have been nice to not know from the off who did it.

I did not like mysteries for many, many, many years, but my late aunt loved them; she rarely read anything else. For a long time after she returned from Florida back in the 90s we couldn't talk about books because we just really did not read the same thing. I decided in the aughts that I had to be missing something; the genre is enormous and there had to be something in it that I could like, so I decided that I was going to make myself like mysteries and began by reading Agatha Christie's starting with The Mysterious Affair at Styles on New Year's Day, 2009. I am still in the process of reading the Christies in order and although I am still not done with Christie (The next one I will be reading is Towards Zero published in 1944) I can report that I finally was successful in making myself like mysteries.

I used to read Agatha Christie when I was very young. She was the first adult writer whose books I read. From what I remember her characters and plots were very simplistic. I think Alison you were smart to read one of her books to get the flavor. She used to be so popular and would have introduced many people to reading fiction.

>80 AlisonY: Roger Ackroyd is an awfully hard book to talk about without spoilers, though. The resolution of the plot, which was incredibly controversial in its day, really is the most interesting thing about the book; if you can't talk about that, what is there to say?

>88 Fourpawz2: That's an impressive project. I do get why people enjoy mysteries - for me, it's just that my reading time is short enough as it is and there are other genres I prefer.

>89 kjuliff: I agree - Agatha Christie's style is definitely dated in terms of preferred writing approaches now, but I can live with that so long as I'm half expecting it before I go into the book. To be fair, though, I never really enjoyed watching films based on Agatha Christie novels, so I always knew this novel was unlikely to blow me away.

>90 KeithChaffee: If it's not possible to talk about a book without spoiling it for others, say nothing is my take! Or at least put it behind a spoiler alert.

>91 AlisonY: - I entirely get not spending time on stuff that does not really interest you when there are so many other books that really do interest you. I’ve tried to be a bit more judicious when it comes to mysteries. To that end I ditched all of Evanovich’s Stephanie Plum books - both read and unread as well the Hannah-what’s-her-name books by Fluke several years ago and have no intention of borrowing them from the library in the future.

4. Went to London, Took the Dog: The Diary of a 60-Year-Old Runaway by Nina Stibbe

When I venture into my local Waterstones, I find myself more and more eschewing the fiction sections in favour of the small section covering essays and memoirs. I'm not really interested in autobiographies or biographies about famous lives, but I do enjoy memoirs that focus on certain periods in people's live. Less 'look what I did' and more 'look who I am'.. Anyway, t'was on a recent trip foraging on the shelves in this section that I came across this book.

Nina Stibbe came late to writing, which made me like her already - there's hope for the rest of us yet. She is most famous for her book Love, Nina, which was adapted into a BBC series in 2016. 30 years on from coming to Primrose Hill in London as a nanny for the director Stephen Frears, that book was a collection of her letters back to her sister in Leicestershire with tales of her experiencing life in Gloucestershire Crescent, which was home to a number of artistic and literary characters.

She's since written a few fiction titles, but this book is a return almost to the roots of Love, Nina. In the middle of divorcing her husband, Stibbes decide to move to London for a year, renting a room from the author Debbie Moggarch (author who penned the book adapted into the film and play The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel).

As it says on the cover, it is essentially her diary from that year. Nothing monumental happens - it's just full of wry vignettes and observations from every day life, including time spent with her adult children who are studying in London, as well as lunches and dinners out with a number of literary friends, such as Nick Hornby and Cathy Retzenbrink.

Nina Stibbe writes with warm humour - a modern day Helen Hanff of sorts - but at times the humour grew a little tiring, or rather the humour often wasn't enough on its own to sustain the book. From the title I expected Stibbe to bear her soul about what this year 'running away' meant emotionally, but she firmly keeps a lid on that and really doesn't let us in to her vulnerabilities, so without that after a while the little humorous anecdotes felt a little repetitive.

Having said that, I did enjoy the book when I picked it up, but it was the type of book to read in fits and starts rather than to commit yourself to for long in one sitting.

3.5 stars - witty and enjoyable, but could have been more.

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5. Heartburn by Nora Ephron
Audiobook narrated by Meryl Streep

I haven't quite hit my stride yet with audiobooks. I can't mentally cope with anything beyond 8 hours, and this, coupled with a relatively poor choice of books available from my library, means my choices are a bit limited. Nonetheless, I enjoyed the Nora Ephron book of short stories I read a few years ago, so knew I was probably on safe ground with this choice.

I started listening to this on slightly the wrong premise. I'd thought it was a memoir, but I was only partly wrong, as the book is a fictional account of the collapse of Ephron's own second marriage. The narrator, a pregnant Jewish food writer, discovers that her husband is having an affair with the wife of a couple they are friends with. Our protagonist moves in the kind of influential circles that Ephron and her husband did, and the novel chronicles her reaction to discovering the affair and the different thought processes she goes through as she tries to determine whether she wants to stay and fight for her man or leave.

Meryl Streep was undoubtedly a great narrator, but I think this is a book I would have got more out of from reading it myself. Streep has such a distinctive voice that she physically personified the protagonist in my head and it became more about Streep than Ephron for me. My other bug bear was that the novel is peppered with mundane recipes which I would have skipped over if reading the book physically, but had to put up with listening to in the audiobook.

Naturally, being an Ephron novel there was plenty of dry wit, but the cost of this humorous approach was that there wasn't much depth to the characters and I didn't overly care what happened to them. It was very much a setting of well-off power couples, so it was hard to figure out if the protagonist was genuinely heartbroken by her husband's affair, or whether it was more hurt pride from the deception.

3.5 stars - a fun companion on my drives over the past week, but not a book I'm going to think too much about.

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>94 AlisonY: Insightful review Alison. I read this book in print and I’m sure you would enjoy it more in that media. It’s light, funny, Revenge Literature. I was interested in in your comment:
Streep has such a distinctive voice that she physically personified the protagonist in my head and it became more about Streep than Ephron for me

I dislike audio books narrated by screen actors as they insert themselves into the book, obscuring, enhancing or flattening the writer’s work. Actors just can’t help themselves. They have to interpret the book, and in doing so inevitably take something from it.

>94 AlisonY: I’ve thought about this. I adore her memoirs/personal essays/whatever they are.

>95 kjuliff: i hate audio awards that go to prominent actors reading bad books. That’s a little selfish to in that i want recommendations from awards, and haven’t found a good audio award. But Tom Hanks was a terrific reader of The Dutch House. It depends on the actor and how much they can, you know, humble themselves to being a reader.

>96 dchaikin: I agree with you about the Tom Hanks audio. I listened to that audio and didn’t even pick up that it was him. And yes I fully agree with you on Audible’s advertising. They are catering to the mass market.

Many of the audio books I read are from the National Library Talking Books program. Though it does contain many current commercial audio books, it has other recordings and I’ll often choose those over the commercial ones.

I haven’t found a reliable audio award yet. Recently I subscribed to the WSJ and was pleased to se they judged audio books on book plus narrator quality.

>95 kjuliff: I dislike audio books narrated by screen actors as they insert themselves into the book, obscuring, enhancing or flattening the writer’s work.

That's interesting. Streep being the narrator for this one attracted me to the book as I felt she'd add a lot to my listening experience, but it definitely became a distraction for me.

>96 dchaikin: I think I preferred Ephron's collection of stories which felt more like comedic essays, but I did still get something out of listening to this novel. Interesting your comment on Tom Hanks, as I've tagged a fiction Audiobook that he both wrote and reads.

>97 kjuliff: That's exactly the problem I'm having with Libby - although my library is able to offer a large number of fiction titles, they do predominantly seem to fall into the mass market fiction bucket.

>98 AlisonY: That’s not Libby itself. Libby is just an app through which you can se books that your library or libraries offer. You aren’t borrrowing through Libby. You are borrowing from the library you selected when you set up the app.Put pressure on your library.

>99 kjuliff: Yes, I realise that. NI Library Services have had budgets slashed so I have little hope of any development in that area.

>100 AlisonY: I wasn’t talking about NLS in terms of borrowing books directlyy. I was just explaining Libby was a listening app and doesn’t have books. It’s associated with the library you are registered with. So what I see in my Libby are the books - audio, e or print available at the NYC Public library. You will not see the same set of books in your Libby.

I can use NLS as it has books for the blind and outs own app called BARD. Naturally it has many audio books available, including the old “Talking Boks”.

>101 kjuliff: I know what you meant! In my reply I was meaning that there's little hope of me leaning on my local library services to expand the options available (either directly or through Libby) as money has been cut for services. Mass market fiction obviously is the area of demand for them - shame it's just not the area I generally read too much from. That sounds terribly book snobbish, but there's an awful lot of chic lit in there that just doesn't interest me.

>102 AlisonY: there's an awful lot of chic lit in there that just doesn't interest me. My sympathies. That seems to be the way too many libraries are going now.
Is there any possibility of getting a card from a university library?

I can make a suggestion to those that don't have a good local library. You can obtain access to numerous other libraries by paying a nominal fee per year. I subscribed to the Brooklyn public library a couple of years ago and in Libby you just define other libraries you have such an arrangement with. Of course this will only work for audio, and e-books.

You can do a search to identify which libraries have a lot of what you might want. I did that for @kjuliff last year
This year I subscribed to the Fairfax County Public Library. Can't remember the cost, but it isn't much.

>102 AlisonY: Yep.

There are also free public domain audiobook sites like LibreVox. I don't know what the narrators are like though. I imagine there is quiet a range in quality.

>103 SassyLassy: I doubt I can get one from a university library in the UK, but I will have a look.

>104 JoeB1934: Didn't know that, Joe. Thanks. Any tips for searching by library?

>106 labfs39: Didn't know that either. You people are marvellous! :)

On the topic of Nora Ephron, Meryl Streep and celebrity audio readers . . .

I love Ephron, and I own Heartburn (it's a Virago Modern Classic, even), but the book never really interested me. I first learned about it after it was made into a film starring Meryl Streep and Jack Nicholson. I'm pretty much done with watching anything with Jack in it -- he doesn't actually act, in my opinion. It seems like a natural fit that Meryl would narrate the audiobook after being the star of the film. Be glad that Jack Nicholson wasn't the narrator?

The only celebrity reader I think I've listened to was Colin Firth doing Graham Greene's The End of the Affair. I thought it was terrific, but then I love Firth's voice. It would also depend on how much one likes Greene novels. I'm pretty sure it won an award too, for what that's worth.

I'll stop rambling now.

>108 Nickelini: Interesting - that's the only Graham Greene novel I've read too.

I didn't know Streep was in a movie of the book. I can see then why she was especially animated doing the reading.

>106 labfs39: The problem is that the books are only those in the public domain. From the LibreVox site
- “ LibriVox volunteers record chapters of books in the public domain”.

I don’t find many recent books in the public domain. Plus having different voices for chapters would be disconcerting for many.

I used to be a volunteer well before I had an inkling I’d read such books. I read non-fiction books for the Australian equivalent of the NLS Talking Books. The NLS already has public domain books on audio available and it’s bit hit and miss listening to well-meaning volunteers.

>107 AlisonY: I apologize for taking so long to respond to your question. I have been very busy finishing my life history module about my professional life.

Today I tried to remember how I found something for @kjuliff but couldn't find that exercise. So, I started from scratch using Copilot. I found that the best library when looking at libraries with the most audio books per patron is the Los Angeles Public Library. They do provide for out of state readers BUT you can obtain ONLY IN PERSON at the library. If you could do that it is a big winner.

Another excellent choice is the Brooklyn Public Library which I used a couple of years ago. BUT, they don't allow it anymore for non-residents of New York.

I currently am using Fairfax County Public Library and they are still available.

I can get books there in some instances faster than at my Denver Public Library.

>111 JoeB1934: Thanks a million for looking into this, Joe. Clearly a valid reason for me to go Stateside on holiday again sometime soon!

6. Letters to Camondo by Edmund de Waal

This is a book which reminds you why physical bookshops are still so important. I wouldn't have necessarily come across this book on an Amazon search for new titles, but I was mesmerised by it when I started flicking through it in a bookshop and I remain mesmerised by it having now read it.

What Edmund de Waal has achieved in this book is a thing of beauty. His forebears were distant relatives of the Camondo family, living in the same impressive Parisian boulevard, and working his way through the elaborate home of Count Moïse de Camondo (now a museum) and the archives he's allowed access to, he writes letters to Camondo as he begins to uncover his life and his legacy.

De Waal is a potter when he's not writing, and in his hands the Camondo family story is handled with the same delicacy, respect and artistry as a piece of fragile porcelain. Like a piece of art he builds up the layers. We're not sure where he's going to begin with; is this a book on art / decor? Why should the average reader care about the life of this privileged rich banker Jew from Constantinople? But this is the mastery of de Waal's artistry. Using the objects in each room and his letters to Camondo he begins to reveal the full picture of this family. As the story of the family's life develops and ends so finally in the tragedy of the Holocaust, we step back and see the full picture of the tapestry that de Waal has been weaving. This book is a homage to the Camondo family name, an attempt to put right the besmirching of not just this family but of every other Jewish family whose legacy was sullied with untruths and the whitewashing of their contribution to the society in which they lived.

It's such a beautiful book. Sprinkled with photos of various objets from the life of this family, it feels like a wondrous piece of intimate art which touches you deeply in so many different ways.

4.5 stars - a very special book which I will not be in a hurry to tuck away on a bookshelf any time soon.

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>113 AlisonY: That sounds great. Thanks for the review.

>112 AlisonY: The Houston Public Library has 60,000 audiobooks and you can obtain an annual card for non-residence at $50/year. I am thinking of adding that to my library's in Libby

>114 rocketjk: It's the kind of book that I could totally understand if people don't love it, but it really spoke to me.

>115 JoeB1934: Excellent - going to take a look. Thanks!

>115 JoeB1934: Sadly it seems you have to be resident within the US. Ah well - was worth a try!

Update - all is not lost! Through a search on Reddit I discovered that anyone can apply for a Sunshine Coast Libraries in Australia card. I'll share this to the Audio chat as well.

>117 AlisonY: That’s interesting. I’ll apply out of interest. As an Australian citizen it should be ok.

Oh btw - I’m starting yo appreciate Carol Oates

>118 kjuliff: Glad JCO is working out now.

The Aussie library just asked for name and email address (and DOB) - I'm up and running.

>119 AlisonY: I was interested in the library because it covers such a small area in terms of population. It covers several very small coastal libraries -small towns like Maroochydore. It’ll be interesting to see its collection and range.

>120 kjuliff: I've already bookmarked some from it. Even if it's not vast it's still offering me up additional titles of interest that I don't get from NI Libraries.

Hope it's useful.

>113 AlisonY: I would never have thought this was a book for me, but you make this sound alluring!

>113 AlisonY: This sounds lovely. Did he also write The Hare with Amber Eyes? I really enjoyed that one.

I read Heartburn when it came out and remember liking it, but I was pretty young. I like Ephron's essays much more.

I agree that wandering through bookstores often leads to wonderful and unexpected discoveries.

>122 FlorenceArt: I don't know that it will appeal to everyone, but it ticked a lot of boxes for me.

>123 BLBera: Yes, de Waal did write The Hare With the Amber Eyes. I've not read it, so now putting it firmly on my wish list.

Snap on preferring Ephron's essays.

Let us know how you get along with the Australian library. It’s often hard to find Australian books outside of their country

>125 Nickelini: True. Maybe I will be able to get all the books I’ve been missing out on because of copyright problems.

>125 Nickelini: I had a good look today and tagged quite a few books for future loans. Some international writers, others Australian. The NI Library choice is quite limited, so definitely appreciating the wider options with the second card. A lot of mass market fiction in there too of course, but I think it's a better choice than I have with my home library card (not that that's saying anything).

>113 AlisonY: It's a good one. If you ever get the chance to hear him speak live I highly recommend it Alison.

>117 AlisonY: I can’t see that it’s possible to borrow from Sunshine Coast Libraries from the USA after all.

I joined and was given a temporary id number. To get a membership number you have to visit on of the physical libraries.

To borrow your reader e.g. Libby (which IS supported by Sunshine Coast Libraries) you need your reader to recognize the library. Libby doesn’t recognize Sunshine Coast Libraries.

I’m not surprised. It seemed unlikely that this small library, supported by the local councils in a number of small towns in QLD Australia, would extend memberships outside Australia.

>130 kjuliff: Strange - I got Libby to recognise it as a library. I also got a temporary ID but it worked OK to add it as a library on Libby. However, how long it works for is another matter.

>131 AlisonY: Interesting. What did you type in to get Libby to recognize it?bi typed in the library’s name. I’m suspecting it may be open to Commonwealth countries?

ETA
I note that the library’s website states -
“Membership is free for Gold Coasters and most Queenslanders, and if you're an interstate visitor, sign up for temporary membership while you're visiting our city.”

So I’m intrigued.

I have friends on the Sunshine Coast. I wonder if there is a way I can get in through that channel. Otherwise, it is a lovely place to visit. Highly recommended.

>132 kjuliff: I can't imagine it knew I was in the Commonwealth from the little info I supplied.

Can't successfully put a pic here as on my phone and hurrying out to work, but if you go into my profile I've added a photo of what it looks like for me in Libby from a screenshot. From memory I just started to type the name and it auto came up as an option.

>134 AlisonY: Got it. I wasn’t seeing it as my font size is set so large that it didn’t show on the page.

But I still can’t log in as it asks for a PIN which I don’t have. I’m assuming you need to go to one of the branches to get a physical card and pin.

But after reading membership requirements I’m not trying anymore as I don’t qualify.

Did you log in and borrow anything?

>133 Nickelini: Yes it is a lovely place and I’m sure a friend in the area could get a card and give you their details. But though I have friends in the vicinity, I’m not trying anymore as it’s against their rules.

All of this discussion about difficulty in obtaining a remote library card has stimulated me to sign up for a card at the Houston Public library which has a quite large digital library. Of utmost importance is that they will provide what they call a temporary card good for 12 months for $40.

But, most importantly for many of you is that they DO ALLOW non-US residences. I will let you know more about this after I obtain my card today.

>134 AlisonY: : I can't imagine it knew I was in the Commonwealth from the little info I supplied.
Correct. But although they wouldn’t know you individually, all they need to do is not let Libby list their library in certain countries.

But that’s irrelevant now as I have found out that their membership rules only allow for residents..

>135 kjuliff: I'm logged in. I didn't get asked for a pin?

Haven't borrowed anything yet as I'm mid book with my own library. I suspect my access may be short-lived as it does state temporary membership number.

>139 AlisonY: I answered in All things audio. I suspect it won’t let you borrow anything.

>137 JoeB1934: Interesting. When I tried it I fell at the first hurdle as the first question was to supply a US phone number. Let us know if you find out anything further.

>141 AlisonY: Alison, I really feel that most public libraries will require residency at local government, state or country lever. I usually don’t even try outside my current country, USA, unless I’m an alumni member of one of the universities I attended.

Even my Melbourne library - where I was a member for a decade won’t let me back in, and the New York Public Library requires me to renew my card by a physical visit every three or so years.

>142 kjuliff: You are right that _most_ public libraries only offer cards to local or state residents. But there are a several that, for a fee, offer cards to out-of-state US residents, and a handful that offer international residents an ecard. Queens Public Library does (I think a couple of European CR members have a QPL card). According to this https://www.9thstreetbooks.com/how-to-get-a-library-card-online/#3-libraries-off... and this: https://bookriot.com/out-of-state-library-cards/ Orange County FL and Charleston Library SC also offer out-of-country cards. New Orleans might do as well -- their registration form had a dropdown by the zip code field to choose Canada, Europe or UK.

>143 ELiz_M: That is a fantastic resource list for everyone in U.S. or elsewhere. I just applied yesterday for Houston Public Library and expect a card today.

One interesting thing I found by accident is that if you go to Libby and add a card for almost any library part of their system, you can scan that new library for any book you might be interested in! Without having a card. This searching of any library even if you haven't got a card there is a way to test out if you do want that card.

>143 ELiz_M: what I said see (- >142 kjuliff:) was -
i really feel that most public libraries will require residency at local government, state or country lever
And I stand by that; FL and SC are both in the same country. I’ve yet to find a country that slows borrowing books for ppl outside. I joined thr Gold Coast Library but could not borrow a book. I’m interested in seeing if anyone has borrowed books from a country that they were neither citizen of or residing in.

>144 JoeB1934: Yes, good point Joe. That was the case with the Gold Coast library - I could look, tag, reserve but not borrow.

I have applied but not yet received a Houston card, but as to foreign residency they said:

Hello Joseph Bozovich,

Thank you for using the Houston Public Library's AskHPL service.

You do not have to be a resident of the USA to obtain an HPL account to access digital materials, but you do need to have a valid, current photo ID. Please note that there is an annual fee of $40USD, payable online with a credit or debit card. Please note also that some restrictions may apply to our overseas customers in terms of copyrighted materials, particularly on the streaming platforms (Hoopla, etc.).

You can apply for an electronic library card here. Select your language and residency option on the page to begin the application.

>145 kjuliff: rachbxl (resident of Belgium for 20ish years) has a Queens Card and borrows eBooks from them, see her post here:
https://www.librarything.com/topic/356567#8380661

>148 ELiz_M: Thanks. I see she’s paying a fee. Good to know.

I am now subscribed to the Houston Public Library and started to place holds on the DPL, or the HPL. Interesting result on 12 books I am interested in and the DPL had the shortest wait time, all audio books.

What is at play here is the ratio of audio holdings per patron. HPL probably has more audio books, but also a lot more patrons. HPL did have all the books I was interested in but more readers also.

In spite of this outcome, the HPL remains a good choice for any non-US readers, or any that don't have as good a library as the DPL.

>150 JoeB1934: Sounds good, Joe. Thanks for the update.

>150 JoeB1934: I could access HPL for free by just driving to a branch and getting a new card (or finding my 20 yr old lost one…or at least the number). But i’m not in the city limits, so i use the county library system (which likely is not as good).

>129 Caroline_McElwee: Will certainly look out for any events with de Waal, Caroline. I loved this book in many ways.

7. The Man on the Third Floor by Anne Bernays
Audiobook narrated by Paul Michael

This slim novel is set in 1950s New York. The protagonist, Walter Samson, is a successful book editor and married with two children when he begins an affair with a blue collar worker who comes to lay a new carpet in his office one day. Besotted with his new paramour, and with his finances on the up, he persuades his wife that they need to employ a driver, and with that his lover moves into the third floor of their home.

This was an interesting book. Having read plenty of books written in the 1950s by male writers such as Updike and Richard Yates, I had to check once I got into the swing of the novel that (a) it was definitely written by a woman and (b) it was definitely written relatively recently (2012). Written in the first person narrative, Bernays captures very succinctly an appropriate male voice for the time, an era of trophy housewives and self-important men slugging back martinis at noon on expenses and having affairs with their secretaries.

I see some complaints in other reviews across various platforms that Bernays choice of first person narrative was unsuccessful, given the protagonist was somewhat aloof and hiding of his feelings, but I thought she captured well the no-nonsense emotionally constrained sensibility of a slightly pompous, successful businessman in the post-war era.

It's a slim book which I warmed to the more I got into it. Some may have preferred a more drawn out climax to the novel, but I think I get why Bernays kept that aspect constrained - it somehow fitted better with the overall arc of the novel.

3.5 stars - I'm not sure I'd hugely go out of my way to recommend this, but I found it a worthwhile audio listen. Almost 4 stars for me.

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8. The Italian Teacher by Tom Rachman

Bear Bavinsky is a globally revered artist so absorbed in his own self-importance that he leaves a trail of family devastation in his wake. Spawning multiple children from a string of failed relationships and marriages, there is only one child - Pinch, the narrator of the story - who he keeps up any kind of meaningful relationship with. Pinch worships the ground his father walks on from an early age, which Bear takes advantage of, ensuring that Pinch remains forever in the his shadow and the ultimate protector of the lifelong vanity project of his art.

This is a wonderful novel, quick to pull you in. Bear is a fantastically unlikeable alpha character who bursts in and out of the novel creating hurt on nearly every page he's on, whilst Pinch is his antithesis, frustrating to the reader as he consistently holds himself back through life, convinced he's not good at anything as he never receives the validation he craves from his father.

4 stars - one of those books that's just a blooming good read and will keep you turning the pages way longer than you'd planned to. Will be looking out for more from this author.

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Enjoyed these. Very intriguing review about The Man on the Third Floor

>155 AlisonY: Great and enticing review. I read his first book The Imperfectionists when it first came out. I remember its publication created quite a buzz at the time. I also read The Italian Teacher which I also liked, but I haven’t come across any of his books since. I’ll have to take a look to see what he’s up to now.

>155 AlisonY: I second Kate in recommending The Imperfectionists. I liked The Italian Teacher quite a bit, too, but somehow haven't read anything else by him.

>156 dchaikin: Thanks Dan. It was an interesting book with a good narrator.

>157 kjuliff:, >158 RidgewayGirl: Will add The Imperfectionists to my wish list. Seems he has a couple of short story collections out too, but no other novels. I'd not heard of him before reading this book.

>155 AlisonY: Great review, it certainly sounds like an interesting book.

9. A Swim in the Pond in the Rain: In Which Four Russians Give a Master Class on Writing, Reading and Life by George Saunders

I'm left feeling more than a little inadequate after reading this book. Not just inadequate versus the skill of these Russian short story masters, but inadequate versus Saunders' skills of writing and literary criticism.

It's taken me a while to read this book. There was a lot to take in and concentrate on - the stories themselves and the two parts to Saunders' analysis afterwards. Saunders opened up every story in a way I was unable to do myself, and there was much to assimilate, particularly as a reader who did not take study literature at tertiary education level. Although I've always enjoyed Tolstoy's writing, I must admit that Chekhov's short stories have not always held my attention, but through Saunders' eyes I now have much more appreciation for them.

It's a rewarding read, and I suspect one which requires multiple reads for any aspiring writer. I wish I could retain all Saunders' golden nuggets of technique from these giants of literature; on a second read I think I would spend more time on each story, reading and rereading them with Saunders' criticism fresh in my mind.

4 stars - much to learn and take in, but after a full day at work it sometimes felt like brain overload. One I will return to at a later point when work is not so all-consuming.

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>162 RidgewayGirl: I think it took me at least a month to read that and my copy is filled with underlining and post-it tabs and notes in the margins. Definitely brain overload.

>161 AlisonY: I looked for this one recently in the bookstore, but ended up passing it over. I really must get to it, although I've been saying that since I read a review when it came out!

>161 AlisonY: I’ve been so close to reading this as I am so impressed by George Saunders’s writing. But I’ve been putting it off in much the same way as Lisa >163 labfs39:. Do you think it’d work reading one story at a time with long gaps in between? . I don’t think my mind could tackle working my way through the book.

>162 RidgewayGirl: My brain definitely hurt at times.

>161 AlisonY: I think you'd enjoy it, Lisa, but it's one of those books you have to pick up when you're in the right frame of mind.

>162 RidgewayGirl: Yes, you can definitely split the book up, Kate. I started it in early January so you can see my reading was sporadic. He does sometimes refer back to earlier stories in his analysis, so I wouldn't spread the book out over a very long time, but I think you almost have to read it in bursts as it's just too much to take in in one go. Ideally you want to read each story along with the two pieces of analysis from Saunders at the same time, but I didn't even always do that as the stories with the analyses average about 45 pages and sometimes I just wasn't in the mood for close reading for that amount of pages (one of the Tolstoy stories with analysis is around 80 pages).

Today there was a definite feel of spring in the air. It was positively balmy at 14 degrees C, so I got back out in the garden for the first time in months. There's so much that needs cutting back and weeds coming up everywhere so I hardly felt like I put a dent in it, but it's a start, and it was nice being out without a coat for the first time this year and feeling the sun on my face. Winter's been a drag this year with so many storms, so I'm definitely ready for some better weather. My early daffodils are out, along with the crocuses, and the tulips are starting to poke up a bit of greenery in the containers. I need to get my annuals sown inside soon, which means we'll need to push on with repairing the broken panes of glass in the greenhouse after our mega storm in January.

These little flashes of spring in early March always give everyone a false sense of security about winter being over - looking at the forecast it seems to have been a blip as we're back to single figures for the rest of the week.

How's everyone else doing weather-wise?

We are also having our first taste of spring and I'll be doing some yard work. Today was 60F (about 15 C) and we're supposed to get up to 70F (20 C) later in the week. We had a cold, snowy winter for Virginia, so I'm ready for spring as well.

March is a bit of a whiplash month in Minnesota. We had our coldest week ever, followed by 60s, then our biggest snowstorm of the season, now that's almost melted, and another big snowstorm forecast for this next weekend.

>166 AlisonY: " It was positively balmy at 14 degrees C" love that while here our winter was maybe six weeks, had one freeze that killed off much of our crop and spring time has me dreading the coming summer! we have had 100 in Febrary so crossing my fingers. tho we seem to have broken every record possible last year, particulaly in the high morning temps

Actually it has gottten cool enough for some gardening, in the 70s,80s in the day a balmy 50 in the morn. my signal for the season was our chinese elm tree, that had finally dropping her leaves early last month and was completely bare, I woke up in the morning to see it turn completly green! seeded up some carrots sweet peas, cucumbers, will get tomatos soon.praying I have time to harvest before the the high temps burn them all up.

We still have a foot of snow on the ground. Last week was warmer and rainy (40F), but then we had three days of bitter cold with ferocious winds. It was forecast to snow a bit overnight, but it doesn't appear to have. I'm ready for some warm weather when I visit my dad in Florida later this week. 80s there.

>155 AlisonY: I really liked The Imperfectionists but haven't read anything else by Rachman. This one sounds like one I would like.

The Saunders collection also sounds like one I would like. I do like literary criticism. Yes, I am a nerd.

>166 AlisonY: We had 4 days of sun, which is a minor miracle, and the temperatures were around 16-18C. Today is a transition day, 13C and cloudy, and then we're back to the usual, 6-7C and no sun to be found.

>166 AlisonY: How's everyone else doing weather-wise?


Here in Vancouver we had a lovely spell of early spring weather about a week ago. It felt great to be sitting outside on a patio in the sunshine again. Now we are back to more grey skies and temps 5-10 degrees Celsius. Early cherry and plum trees are in blossom, and my garden is full of gorgeous hellebores, crocus, and the early daffodils are up and flowering.

>167 japaul22:, >168 WelshBookworm:, >169 cindydavid4:, >170 labfs39:, >172 ursula:, >173 Nickelini: Quite the spring weather mix! Like a few of you, our lovely Sunday was a blip and now we're back down in temperature. This morning was just 1 degree when I went out to work, and there's a cold northerly wind.

>169 cindydavid4: 100 degrees F in February? What in the blazes? I forgot that you're in Arizona, but still. Do you even refer to that as winter?

>170 labfs39: I assume winter snow grows wearisome after a while. How long do you generally enjoy it for before you get fed up with it?

I've been looking forward to a weekend trip to the Tucson Book Festival in Arizona, deciding on breezy linen outfits and packing sunscreen, only to see that the time I'm there corresponds to a cold spell.

>161 AlisonY: This sounds great, and I think I will take the advice in the comments to split it up and not try to read it all at once. Great review.

>166 AlisonY: Feeling my usual envy for people living in climates that have actual seasons, and don't just vary between 'extremely hot' and 'extremely rainy and hot'. I saw someone wear a sweater in the metro last month because it had dropped to 25C (77F) from our usual 29C-31C (84-87F). Happy gardening!

>175 RidgewayGirl: But how cold is a cold spell in Arizona?

>176 rasdhar: It always makes me chuckle when people used to hot climates find low to mid twenties cool. When it was 14 here the other day I noticed so many people out in shorts. 16-18 and you're in swimsuit on the beach territory.

>177 AlisonY: 12 Celcius as the high, going down to 5 at night, which sounds perfectly lovely in the highlands of Scotland, and miserable in the desert. Still, I'm happy to be going back there and hope to have time to go see San Xavier del Bac, one of the oldest buildings in Arizona and a lovely example of Spanish Colonial architecture. And, of course, the book festival and bookstores and restaurants.

>179 RidgewayGirl: Oh that's not linen weather for sure. Hopefully it will still be bright and sunny.

10. The Plague by Albert Camus

(Audiobook - Narrator James Jenner)

This was my longest audiobook yet (11 hours - which I was rather startled to look up and find out only equates to 272 pages in print), but it worked OK for me (I think this is about my max listening limit, though). James Jenner was my favourite reader yet out of the four books I've listened to this year, so anything else he reads in my genre will certainly be going onto my wish list.

I think a lot of people have already read this, but in case you haven't it's a fictional account of the outbreak of bubonic plague in the Algerian town of Oran (which was actually decimated by bubonic plague outbreaks several hundred years ago, and suffered small outbreaks in the early decades of the twentieth century). Camus gets straight into the action from the first page with rats coming out to die all over the town, and from there the novel focuses on the impact of the plague on the locked-down inhabitants of Oran, both mentally and physically, ultimately culminating in the main characters soul-searching and considering what constitutes a good life.

It is of course impossible to read such a book now without drawing parallels to our individual experiences of the Covid pandemic. I can't decide if that experience enhanced or detracted from my enjoyment of The Plague - it would have been interesting to have read it before I knew anything of what it felt like to be locked down and separated from loved ones. As Covid was emotionally very negative for my family (and much worse for many, many people), at times the book brought up memories I'd rather forget, which I think impacted upon my enjoyment of it here and there. It felt less fictional than it might have done had I read it pre-Covid.

Overall I enjoyed it, though. The different perspectives of the main characters were interesting - how they ultimately responded to the threat of catching the disease (although all male - a female viewpoint felt lacking). Somehow I never felt as emotionally drawn in as I'd hoped, but I'm not sure if that's the book itself or the fact that I was listening to it rather than reading it myself. With audiobooks I feel my emotional response is limited to the emotion the reader puts in, and although I very much enjoyed James Jenner's tone of voice and style it's different to what I think my emotional experience would be if reading it myself. I always hear the reader's voice on audiobooks, rather than the character's.

I also struggled initially in this audiobook version with how so many of the names had a stress on the letter 'r', which meant that it took me a while (whilst concentrating on driving at the same time) to distinguish between the names. Oron, Rieux, Tarrou, Rambert, Grand. In print they look very different, but when listening to someone pronouncing them in a French accent whilst being distracted with another activity at the same time, they melded into one in my ears for a while.

4 stars - an enjoyable and unique read / listen

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>181 AlisonY: Great review, Alison. I agree that names in audios can sometimes be difficult when they are in a foreign language.
I generally enjoy listening to audios (in German). I also have no problem immersing myself emotionally with the spoken language. Maybe it's also because I've been listening to audios regularly for years.

>182 Ameise1: Maybe it's also because I've been listening to audios regularly for years.

I think you're on to something there, Barbara. I do feel as if I need to develop my audiobook listening muscle, and that it will come the more I listen to audiobooks. It's still very new to me.

>182 Ameise1: >183 AlisonY: I agree, the more you listen the easier it is to remember the names of people in audio books, when they aren’t names you’re familiar with. Or to follow the plot.

As someone who is physically unable to read print, it always saddens me when people complain about an audio book because of not understanding names or places, or the plot. I hear of people listening to audiobooks while making toast, or doing housework. I think we need to concentrate on reading whatever the media. Would such people read a paperback while preparing school lunches or talking to their partner?

>184 kjuliff: Oh I completely agree with what you're saying. I've just had to accept that as my audiobook window is on my commute that I'm going to miss maybe 10%. I actually find that it's not the driving that makes my attention wander, but rather work problems popping up in my head. If I'm especially tired at night I've occasionally listened to the audiobook I'm on rather than pick up my physical book, and I definitely take a lot more in.

>174 AlisonY: yeah we have about 6 months of summer with the rest of the seasons fighting over the rest This is just in the high deserts, other areas in the state have normal seasons. winter comes when you put a sweater on at 60 degrees spring is when you see the first shirtless guy waling around in shorts, we used to have a monsoon season from July to Oct with great rainstorms, but climate change have stopped those, which is why we are in a drought

>175 RidgewayGirl: yup its gonna be in the 50s mostly and rainy, actually thats shorts weather for you! Ill be bringing warm clothes and an umbrella and enjoying it!

11. Beyond the Shallows by Jason Hundley

NetGalley obtained read

An interesting read (perfect for Lent) which focuses on all aspects of the heart from a spiritual perspective. Divided in three parts, the first section helps the Christian reader to understand the why behind getting to know your heart, the second examines the various levels of the heart, and the third focuses on how to become more in tune with your heart and to use it as a vessel for good.

The reference to the heart can be interpreted as understanding ourselves and our own psyche and how we can in turn open our heart to be more vulnerable with God and to let the Holy Spirit in. What is it that we are defensive about? What are we holding on to that is stopping us from having a deeper relationship with God and getting in the way of bringing other people to God? How can we stop ourselves getting in the way of allowing God in?

This is a thought-provoking read that made me stop and consider how I often harden myself against God and other people, and I particularly enjoyed the chapter around practising holding off our list of wants from God and being more available in prayer to just listen.

If I have one criticism, it is that one chapter had an introduction based around the author being in the forest treetops trying to hunt a buck with a bow and arrow. Whilst this may be a common pastime in some parts of the world, it is not something that is considered widely acceptable in other regions, so it felt somewhat distasteful and unexpected to come across it in this book, and a strange editing decision to include it.

3.5 stars - an interesting Christian read for those wishing to take their spiritual practice further.

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Beyond the Shallows - workID::title in the brackets will find the ones that Search had not indexed yet. In this case it is "33793164::Beyond the Shallows". Note that the title part is just for display purposes so "33793164::whatever" will achieve the same thing :)

Edit: Apparently I made a typo and had just one : in the pattern but :: in the examples. Sigh. Sorry. It is 2 :)

>189 AnnieMod: I'm doing something wrong - I'm getting this: 33793164:Beyond the Shallows and above it looked half OK in preview but then reverted to not being a touchstone when I saved it. What did you do differently?

(and I have square brackets around it in the line above)

>190 AlisonY: Two ":", not just one. :)

>191 AnnieMod: You're a marvel - thank you.

>161 AlisonY: in defense of your writing - your write terrific reviews - Saunders is pretty good at this. 🙂

>181 AlisonY: very interesting review. I haven’t read Camus yet

>188 AlisonY: not being religious or Christian, I’ll stick with Tolstoys anti-materialist religious advice for the moment. Interesting thought about a religious hunter.

>183 AlisonY: I've been trying to hone my audiobook listening ear as well. I do think it's a skill that improves with practice. I find that I am particularly enjoying listening to books that I have already read (i.e. Austen's novels).

>188 AlisonY: I think bow hunting is definitely a culturally-specific activity. Around here, it's not as common as deer-hunting with rifles, but Maine has a bow-hunting season. Venison is consumed fairly widely.

>193 dchaikin: That's only the second Camus I've read, Dan, but I did enjoy both of them. I don't think he's going to make it to my favourite author pile, but his books are certainly worthwhile from what I've read so far.

>194 labfs39: I think each week I'm getting a bit better on the audiobooks, Lisa, with more going in (or at least I'm getting better at more quickly catching myself on when my attention drifts).

12. The Untethered Soul by Michael A. Singer
(Audiobook)

I've been skirting around this book for a little while now as it's had so much hype, but here was a bit of a borrowing queue at my library for it and when it came round to my turn I wasn't really in the mood for a personal development read / listen. However, I'm glad I persevered as it was very insightful and worthwhile.

I quite enjoy a good old personal development book, so having read a few was there anything particularly new or startling in this one? Yes and no. There was certainly a lot of ground that's been covered in many other books, but perhaps Singer comes at common issues from a different angle. If I was to sum up the messaging in one line, it would be that happiness lies in stopping trying to fix and control everything and learning instead to allow feelings and experiences to pass through you.

I'm one of life's worriers. When I was four and got my first school report I distinctly remember the teacher commented "Alison must learn to stop worrying". Sage advice, but unfortunately I'm still work in progress in that regard. I thought it interesting how Singer zones in on fear being at the root of so many negative emotions, not just worry but other emotions such as anger and jealousy. Much of it is about control, or lack of control - a need to create a sense of safety which results in life feeling more frightening than it needs to. Life lived in this way, according to Singer, starts to become something that to be endured and battled with rather than enjoyed, and the solution is apparently to learn to let things go right away; issues become much harder to deal with if you continually are trying to process everything first.

Singer refers a lot to the heart / the spirit within / the chakra. To some ears that probably sounds very woo woo, but it definitely resonated with me when he talks of how continually churning things over and over-analysing results in a lot of negative energy being trapped inside. You cannot find happiness until you allow difficult emotions and things which have happened to you to pass through you, rather than holding on to them. That made me think of how many victims of terrible traumas who have spoken of the need to forgive the perpetrators, otherwise holding onto the hatred and anger will destroy you. That's one extreme end of the spectrum, but I think it holds true for holding onto all sorts of small things which annoy you as well. Singer gives examples of getting annoyed with someone cutting up your car on your drive to work, and allowing your anger at the selfishness of the other driver to completely negatively shift your mood for the rest of the day, rather than just letting that pass through.

People generally either love personal development writing or they don't. If you're in the former camp, this is definitely a book I would recommend. It's well written, with the points explained well yet concisely.

4.5 stars - up there with the best of personal development titles.

>196 AlisonY: Great review of The Untethered Soul, Alison. This book is right uo my alley, as I have often been consumed and occasionally emotionally paralyzed by worry, often times far in excess of what was truly happening. I just requested a copy of it from my local library.

>197 kidzdoc: I look forward to your thoughts, Darryl. A lot of other books that touch on worry focus on breaking down and analysing the thought processes behind worrying, but I liked how Singer takes a very different approach of learning to just stop with the analysing once and for all. Start learning to recognise your unhelpful inner chatter which has an opinion on everything and learn instead how to accept your feelings, allow them to happen and then let them pass through. Easier said than done, obviously, but I liked this alternative viewpoint to always trying to fix everything which becomes exhausting when you're a natural worrier.

>198 AlisonY: That is a lesson I sorely need to learn, Alison.

>196 AlisonY: Excellent review. Thanks, Alison.

"You cannot find happiness until you allow difficult emotions and things which have happened to you to pass through you, rather than holding on to them."

I'm generally not one for passing along memes I've seen on Facebook, but one I've always liked a lot (and of course this didn't originate on FB) is . . .

"Holding onto anger is like swallowing poison and expecting the other person to get sick."

>196 AlisonY: Great review. I know I won't read this book (as much as it may be useful and I can recognize myself in the description, I just cannot read that kind of books without getting annoyed at them within pages) but I enjoyed your review.

>199 kidzdoc: That is a lesson I sorely need to learn
Given that this book has sold over a million copies, I don't think we're the only ones, Darryl.

>200 rocketjk: Holding onto anger is like swallowing poison and expecting the other person to get sick
Great phrase - I like that, Jerry.

>201 AnnieMod: These kind of books are definitely not everyone's cup of tea, Annie. I go through phases where I'm in the mood for them, and then I can't go near them again for a while.

>196 AlisonY: My catalogue says I do have this. I came upon similar advice somewhere recently Alison. I can be a worrier, but then I can set things aside. I do use the Hawaiian ritual the ho'oponopono prayer as part of my preparation for sleep now, and think it is helpful.

https://www.centreofexcellence.com/what-is-hooponopono/#:~:text=Ho'oponopono%20w....

>204 Caroline_McElwee: I've not heard of the ho'oponopono prayer before, Caroline. Interesting. We used to teach a simple version of something similar to our kids when they were small called a teaspoon (tsp) prayer, which stood for Thanks, Sorry, and Please.

13. The Autobiography of Alice B. Toklas by Gertrude Stein

Oh boy, this book and I had some kind of love / hate relationship going on (or rather like / hate - love is far too strong).

For those unfamiliar with this piece of work, Alice B. Toklas was Gertrude Stein's life partner, and Stein used the writing of Toklas' autobiography as a device for really writing her own memoir, starting briefly with her life in America prior to moving to Paris, but mostly concentrating on the period in Paris from 1903 to 1932.

Why not just write her own memoir? Oh I'm very clear on that point having now read the book - she couldn't possibly have been anywhere near as boastful about herself if she'd written a straightforward autobiography compared to how much she could when adopting the voice of Toklas writing about her. I don't think I've ever read such a display of egotism in all my life's reading, and when you consider that Gertrude Stein really didn't make it into mainstream popularity until the publication of this very book, her unwavering self-belief and self-promotion is really quite something.

Stein was certainly an interesting character and undoubtedly an instrumental figure in the Paris arts scene in the early twentieth century, an early champion and friend of artists such as Picasso and Juan Gris and influential in the literary scene of that period. The Saturday salon sessions she held became renowned in Paris for the art collection she owned and displayed with her brother and the arts discussions that took place there. However, given how interesting this period in Paris was for art and literature, Gertrude Stein is so caught up in the orbiting of others around her own self-importance that despite this book being only 272 pages long, it's a dull and boring slog for large swathes of it. Page after page of supposed comments of others on Gertrude Stein's brilliance and importance became utterly tedious no matter how famous the name-dropping. And despite certainly many famous names popping up regularly, you also have to wade through pages about visits from and to people whose names have been largely eroded from popular history with the passage of time, where nothing more interesting happened than someone commenting on how fascinating Gertrude Stein's work was.

The second half of the book interested me much more than the first. The First World War broke out, and as Stein and Toklas took on volunteer roles with the American Fund for the French Wounded, the focus of the autobiography expanded beyond the circle of the group in Paris and became more interesting. Given how much I lapped up Hemingway's description of the Paris literary scene of this era in The Sun Also Rises, it's incredible that Stein managed to make this so tedious with excessive detail and odd punctuation thrown in every now and then. I found it telling that in this book she writes at length about the Parisian artists, yet Hemingway only gets a few pages (and in those any compliments are matched with twice as many put-downs), Fitzgerald is only mentioned in two or three paragraphs and the likes of James Joyce doesn't get a mention at all. Stein tells it that she was a great mentor to Hemingway and that his writing needed so much work, yet consider that he had great success with The Sun Also Rises in 1926 and that Stein had yet to have wide commercial success until The Autobiography of Alice B. Toklas was published in 1933. I suspect that Stein's ego around the publication of her own work up to that point couldn't allow her to dwell on these literary success of others during this time for too long.

3 stars - this should have been such an interesting memoir to read, but Gertrude Stein's ego far surpassed the quality of her writing.

>206 AlisonY: Years since I read but think I felt similar to you Alison. It was an interesting time creatively (writing and art) in Paris, but that ego bears resemblance to a certain President me thinks, if less internationally compromising.

>207 Caroline_McElwee: Indeed. Poor Alice Toklas - how did she stick her.

>206 AlisonY: wow Ive had this book on my shelves for decades. guess Ill pur another book in its place

>209 cindydavid4: I wouldn't rush to dust it off the shelf unless you've a bad case of insomnia.

>206 AlisonY: how interesting! She might have been right about Hemingway. She had a lot of influence on those rebellious modernists. I guess she had an ego to go with it.

>211 dchaikin: She definitely was hugely influential, but between Stein and Hemingway who is most remembered for their literature?

>212 AlisonY: they’re associated. But, of course, Hemingway is read much more. Stein is known more for her personal influence than her work.

>213 dchaikin: Indeed. But from this book one gets the impression that she felt her writing was what she was famed for. Who knows - it's always possible that this was the case back then, but that the tide of popularity has swung towards Hemingway since then.