What are you reading now?: December 28, 2024

Halfway through Descendant Machine. There will be a forced march through The Fatal Fortress, Empire of Rubber, and Absolution to wrap up the year.

Come the first of the new year I expect to be reading The Battle of Britain in the Modern Age, 1965-2020.

I finished up Shift and then Dust by Hugh Howey. The second and third books in the Silo trilogy. I wasn't very fond of the second book (I found it rather boring). I was much happier with the third novel although it resorted to some common cliches of the genre.

Now I'm starting the more serious Autocracy, Inc. by Anne Applebaum.

Ellie And the Harp Maker – Hazel Prior
Digital audiobook performed by Katherine Lee McEwan and Philip Battley
4****

Ellie Jacob goes for a walk on the anniversary of her father’s death and stumbles upon a barn. Dan Hollis is a harp maker who uses the barn as his workshop. Dan isn’t like most people, but he is a kind and generous man. When he learns that Ellie has “playing the harp” on her “to do before I turn forty” list, he gives her one of the harps, and thus begins their relationship.

I really enjoyed this modern-day fable. I loved seeing how Ellie grew emotionally throughout the book, how she became more self-confident and came to recognize her situation clearly. Dan also grew throughout the book. He is clearly on the spectrum, but as he gets to know Ellie, he learns that he can expand his horizons beyond the barn and harps.

Both Ellie and Dan have loved ones who are fiercely (and perhaps, unwarrantedly) protective of them. Dan’s sister is suspicious of Ellie and of Dan’s girlfriend Rhoda (aka Roe Deer). Ellie’s husband Clive is suspicious of anyone/anything that takes attention away from him.

I loved spending time with these characters in the English moors. There are several bumps in the road here, but I was with them all along and Prior gave the reader a perfect heart-warming ending.

Katherine Lee McEwan and Philip Battley perform the audio edition of this work, alternating as the book’s point of view shifts between Ellie and Dan. This was very effective, and I’m glad the producers chose two narrators. Battley does a particularly good job of bringing Dan to life.

A Snow Country Christmas– Linda Lael Miller
3***

A typical cowboy Christmas romance. Hollywood A-lister producer Mick Branson is coming back to Mustang Creek, Wyoming, to discuss a possible job offer with Raine McCall, a talented and fiercely independent woman he first met when he was in town overseeing a documentary filmed by Raine’s ex-squeeze (and father of her daughter). But Mick has an ulterior motive, because he fell in love with Raine the day he met her, and he’s contrived this visit to ensure that she also feels that spark.

The tropes are all here, but who cares. Love the snowy setting, the Christmas cheer, the uber wealthy Branson who has managed to get unique and spectacularly appropriate gifts for virtually everyone, and the fiercely independent Raine who is ready to succumb to “Mr Hollywood.”

I think this is first Miller romance I’ve read, though she is a VERY prolific writer, with scores of books. She provides plenty of romance and a little, very discreet, sex.

I just finished up Autocracy, Inc., The Dictators Who Want to Run the World by Anne Applebaum. It was short and informative. It's final chapter was intended to provide advice on what liberal democracies can do to combat autocratic powers, but her suggestions were vague or impractical.

Artificial Condition – Martha Wells
Digital audiobook narrated by Kevin R Free
4****

Book two in the Murderbot series. Determined to discover what happened when it “went rogue,” Murderbot leaves his human team behind and ventures out to discover the truth, helped by “ART” it’s transport vehicle.

Science fiction is not really my jam, but I am enjoying this series. It feels fresh and inventive, and I’m surprised by how much I connect with Muderbot and ART – two non-human characters that fully support this story. I loved their back-and-forth discussions / arguments. I’m also glad to get more background on Murderbot, and looking forward now to further adventures with Dr. Mensah.

Kevin R Free does a wonderful job of narrating the audiobook. I really like how he interprets Murderbot.

To Kill a Mockingbird – Harper Lee
Audio book narrated by Sissy Spacek
5***** and a ❤

Is this the quintessential American Novel? Will it stand the test of time as Mark Twain’s The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn has done? Time will tell.

I do know this, however. This is a singularly powerful novel that had a great impact on me when I first read it at age 13 (shortly after it was first published) and has never failed to move and inspire me as I’ve re-read it over the years (at least 20 times by now). It has touched generations of readers in the 50-something years since it was first released and remains high on many “must be read” lists.

There are many reasons for this. It’s a well-paced novel, a fast read with elements of suspense, family drama, humor and moral lessons. Scout is a wonderful narrator, both as a child and as an adult looking back on her childhood; and the fact that Lee was able to seamlessly move between these two viewpoints is a testament to her skill as a writer.

Many people feel this is a book about racism. I don’t think that is the core theme of the book, though it is the central plot device Lee uses. I think the major theme of the novel is personal integrity and courage – doing what you know is right when all about you seemingly disagree and even when it may be dangerous to do so, being true to your own moral compass, and instilling those values in your children by example not just words.

In this respect Atticus Finch shines as the protagonist of this work. He is a man of strong moral fiber, a man who is “the same in his house as he is on the public street,” a man “who was born to do our unpleasant jobs for us.” He embodies the lessons he tries to impart to his children: that courage is not a man with a gun in his hands but rather, “It’s when you know you’re licked before you begin but you begin anyway and you see it through no matter what.”

The novel aims a spotlight on a particular time and place in America’s history. Lee writes with clarity and colors this world for the reader with descriptions that put us squarely in Maycomb, Alabama circa 1935: Somehow it was hotter then: a black dog suffered on a summer’s day; bony mules hitched to Hoover carts flicked flies in the sweltering shade of the live oaks on the square. Men’s stiff collars wilted by nine in the morning. Ladies bathed before noon, after their three-o’clock naps, and by nightfall were like soft teacakes with frostings of sweat and sweet talcum.”

The minor characters, especially the women, are as richly drawn as the major players. I was struck by what a wide range of personalities, strengths, weaknesses and ethics Lee was able to express using characters such as Calpurnia, Aunt Alexandra, Helen Robinson, Mrs Grace Merriweather, Lula, Miss Maudie, Mrs Dubose, Miss Caroline and Mayella Ewell. Some of them appear for only a page or two, but they come alive on the page and remain in the reader’s memories.

The audio book is performed by Academy-Award-winning actress Sissy Spacek. She does an admirable job, though her accent is wrong. She is a Texan, and the Southern Alabama accent is softer than her twang. Still, by the second disc I had stopped noticing this, and allowed myself to be carried into the story by her expert reading.

Well, I finished Look Homeward, Angel with a couple of days of 2024 to spare! The reading started going pretty quickly because I began mostly enjoying the novel quite a lot, despite its flaws. I've posted my longer review on my 50-Book Challenge thread.

Since I have a couple of days left in this calendar year, I've decided to put off my "first books in 2025" selections off and start something else first. So I've now begun Dawn Watch: Joseph Conrad in a Global World by Maya Jasanoff. This biography was published in 2017. I came upon a very positive review in the Guardian a couple of years ago while looking for something else. I bought the book then and now I'm finally getting to it. I read one or two Conrad biographies back in grad school days, which is getting on 35 years ago now, and I'm interested to see if Jasanoff really has found new things to say. For what it's worth, my edition's cover announces that the book was included in The New York Times Book Review's "100 Notable Books of 2017."

Jacqueline In Paris – Ann Mah
3.5***

Mah’s novel is a work of historical fiction that gives the readers a glimpse into the life of a young Jacqueline Bouvier, spending a year as a student in Paris shortly after the end of WW2.

Mah did extensive research, and while most of Jackie Kennedy Onassis’s private papers have remained private, many of the people she came in contact with have made their remembrances available. So, while a significant number of characters portrayed are/were real people, readers are wise to remember that this is a work of fiction. And, as a work of fiction, it is a marvelous coming-of-age story.

What we see is a young woman just beginning to spread her wings and try independence from family. This young Jacqueline is obviously intelligent and observant, but also naïve about certain things. She is shocked by the political scene in Paris, especially the role of communism in that country. She is stunned to discover that her hostess was part of the Resistance and that several people she comes to know and admire served time as prisoners of war.

Jacqueline is uncomfortable with certain restrictions and expectations (a bath only once a week) but comes to understand how the post-war circumstances necessitate these strictures. Still, her set is a privileged one. She enjoys forays to the opera or concerts or a getaway at a country house with a stable and horses. More often, however, she and her fellow students find inexpensive, out-of-the-way cafes and bistros in which to enjoy the wine and foods they can afford. Mah brings the post-war Paris scene to life with jazz clubs, art, vibrant discussions, and the pleasure of good food enjoyed with friends.

The year Jacqueline spent in Paris was a formative one. It was a time when she was free to discover and explore her own passions and dreams, to find what it was that moved and inspired her.

Having Christmas midweek was lovely. Same for New Year!

Finished: An Honorable Deception by Roseanna M. White
Finale and #3 in the "Imposters" trilogy. Characters from "Shadows Over England" and "The Codebreakers" series appear in this novel! Also, there's mention of characters from The Lost Heiress, the 1st book in the "Ladies of the Manor" trilogy.
I've enjoyed reading all of the author's UK historical series.

Next up: Cloaked in Beauty by Karen Witemeyer
New and #3 in the "Texas Ever After" trilogy.

Hello everyone, I am new to this group and this site. I am currently reading Amorphous Breaking the Mold by Steven Burgess

>11 GrammyTammyM: Welcome to LibraryThing!

This week I finished The Wizard of Sun City: The Strange True Story of Charles Hatfield, the Rainmaker Who Drowned a City's Dreams by Garry Jenkins. This was an interesting piece of history, written as nonfiction in a novelistic style. A fast read!

I'm also trying to squeeze in one more before the new year, Island Wisdom: Hawaiian Traditions and Practices for a Meaningful Life by Annie Daly.

Frontier Christmas – Ana Leigh, Carolyn Davidson & Kate Bridges
3***

There are three novellas in this collection of Christmas stories set in the latter part of the 19th century: Ana Leigh’s The Mackenzies: Lily, A Time for Angels by Carolyn Davidson, and Kate Bridges’ The Long Journey Home.

Leigh’s story focuses on a young woman who has been trying to succeed far from her Texas home as a Harvey Girl in New Mexico. She’s taken to two waif-like children whose mother died and whose father, the sheriff, seems to neglect. But not everything is as it seems.

In “A Time for Angels” Davidson gives us Honey Morris, a young woman barely out of her teens who is struggling to keep the family farm and provide for her younger sister after the tragic accidental death of their parents. When a near-frozen stranger appears at their door one wintry December night, Honey takes him in, leading to significant changes.

Kate Bridges begins a new series on Canadian Mounties with “The Long Journey Home.” Logan Sutcliffe has been missing (and presumed dead) for two years, and when he arrives back in town he discovers his wife is now engaged to another man. Can he win her back?

They are all predictable historical holiday romances, and suitably entertaining.

Hark! The Herald Angel Falls – Tricia Goyer
3***

This is number 31 in the Sugarcreek Amish Mystery series (I think), but the first one of the group that I’ve read. It is a charming cozy mystery featuring an Englischer woman, and her Amish mother-in-law as the amateur sleuths. Levi is a carpenter who has volunteered to build a stable for the local church’s live Nativity scene. But when the man who is to play the angel climbs atop the structure, it collapses. Many witnesses saw Rudy and Levi arguing before the event, and the police discover that the platform had been purposely sabotaged to collapse under the weight of a full-grown man. But Levi maintains his innocence, and his wife Cheryl and his mother Naomi are determined to find out who framed their husband / son.

It’s really a rather gentle mystery, and I like how the women go about gathering information and deliberating about possibilities. For the most part they refrain from taking unusually daring chances, relying instead on observation, conversation with a wide number of townspeople and their faith – in God and in Levi. I figured out the perpetrator the minute the character was introduced, but still enjoyed watching how the women (and law enforcement) came to the same conclusion.

I just happened upon this at the library, and didn’t realize I’d be jumping into a well-established series. I felt a little lost because it’s clear that Cheryl and Naomi have helped the local law enforcement many times. I also felt that some of the relationships in the town have developed over the course of the series, and, of course, I was clueless.

The series is published by Guidepost, a firm that “shares stories of hope and inspiration. We focus on spreading positive thinking and uplifting content to people across the globe.” The individual mysteries are written by several different authors.

The Book of Dragons – E Nesbit
3***

This collection of short fairy tales was first published in 1899. E Nesbit came to writing children’s books later in her career, but she excelled at it. Many of her books are still in print today, more than a century after they were first published.

The first story is The Book of Beasts, about a young boy who finds a book and learns that when he opens the page, he releases the depicted being into the real world. Of course, the first one he releases is the dragon and that is NOT good. He has to open several other pages before he arrives at a solution.

Nesbit populates her stories with all manner of dragons … big, small, hungry, kind, fierce, curious, sleeping. One involves an ice dragon and two intrepid children who seek to find the source of the Aurora Borealis. Another involves a princess trapped on an enchanted island guarded by nine whirlpools and a fierce dragon, whose spell can only be broken by an extremely clever and worthy man. All of them are delightful and all feature marvelous illustrations by H. R. Millar. (5-stars for the illustrations.)

Just finished Strongmen: Mussolini To The Present by Ruth Ben-Ghiat. It was enlightening and I filled many pages with notes highlighting all the ways our first experience with a Trump administration should have warned us, “Don’t let him back in!” I wish I could find other readers of this book to talk to.

Raymie Nightingale – Kate DiCamillo
Book on CD narrated by Jenna Lamia.
4****

Raymie Clarke has decided to join (and win) the Little Miss Central Florida Tire competition. She believes if she wins her father, who recently left home with a dental hygienist, will return. Her first step is to learn to twirl a baton, and at her first lesson she meets her competition: Louisiana Elefante (who claims a show-business background) and Beverly Tapinski (who says she is there simply to sabotage the contest).

This is a lovely coming-of-age tale suitable for the middle-school crowd, where three girls with different circumstances form a bond of friendship. Raymie is a bright, curious, determined girl. And she has a relatively stable home life, despite her father’s recent departure. But Louisiana and Beverly have challenges at home that Raymie barely understands. I loved how accepting they all were of one another, and how they supported and helped each other despite their differences. I won’t give away the results of the Little Miss Central Florida Tire competition, but in the things that matter, they are all winners.

Jenna Lamia does a fine job of narrating the audiobook. I particularly liked how she voiced Louisiana.

The new thread is up over here.