The aroma of vellichor -Ruth’s 2025 ramblings

I’m fascinated and repelled by the word, a combination of vellum and ichor. The smell of an old library.

I start the year with a fortunate choice. Eager - 1 is what I would have chosen for last term’s final project if I’d thought of it in time. Goldfarb makes an excellent cheerleader. He presents the awesome natural history of Beavers and brings us up to date on current research and introduces us to the human workers in the fields and ponds. He is entirely engaging. I bought the book as soon as I heard about it, but mostly listened to the audio while I was on the road this past week. Good thing. Cracking open the physical book, the font is smaller than my comfort allows for straight reading. But there are pictures!
I will be recommending it and lending my copy.

Already discontinuing several

The Dahlbe Family Horse at about 30%. The characters and writing don’t deserve more, though I was curious about the fate of old Birdie.

Audio books
The Lost Years of Merlin at 12%. Same flaw.
Long Live Evil also at 12%. I frankly have zero recollection except some boring conversation.

There may be a Bujold to add to this list, but out of respect for our long relationship, I will keep on.

Trapped! - 2 is the third mystery starring Florian Bates and Margaret, and their TOAST methodology. The best scene is when they are in a room with multiple agency investigators who won’t identify themselves. Florian uses his method to correctly identify which agencies and tells personal details about each person. Satisfying.

I’m always pleased to see a new Rainbow Rowell title, so picked up Slow Dance from the library. It seems I’ve sampled it once before. I went a few chapters on and had to agree with myself; it’s not worth reading.

Words you’ve mispronounced

I couldn’t think of any till I read the comments on this Miriam-Webster post

https://www.instagram.com/p/DEh3-vDzgVY/?img_index=6&igsh=b2MxNzZteXI0YXc5

And yes. Most of them.

Yes, I know I misspelled Miriam. It just looks wrong with two Rs

>5 2wonderY: It also has an "e" not an "i". Merriam-Webster

>6 lesmel: Aha! That looks better

I’m sorry. Masquerade in Lodi is being given up at 58%. I tried. Too little action, I think.

I’m not getting any joy from This Will Be Fun, so abandoning it at 8%.

However, Snuff - 3 is delightful. Sam Vimes is my favorite male character on the Discworld. And he is in full flower here.

I’ve had this book on my shelves for decades; and it still attracts me. Meaning to add it to the discard pile, I finally opened it in a serious attempt to finish it. It sucked me right in and I’ve deep-skimmed the majority of the chapters.
The author is an Old Testament scholar; and here he gossips about the oddest collection of characters in an intimate and informal manner.
I will formalize the chapter descriptions on the work page, mainly for my own satisfaction.
Certain People of the Book - 4

I wanted to read about Frances Perkins, and all I found on Libby was a children’s book, The Only Woman In the Photo - 5. Will have to search further.

I ordered two books that I thought were historical biographies of minor characters. One proved so, and I’m moving through it. But The Greatest Nobodies of History is supposed to be humor. If so, it’s not to my taste. Returning it at 4% read.

I’ve got class assignments and need to get ready to drive to WV tomorrow. But I’m sampling The Unsettling of America. It expires tomorrow, but I see I will probably renew it. I’ve only read small pieces of his before this. There are several reasons I want to proceed.
I was in Ag school during the Earl Butz years of USDA, and I worked for the agency for a good part of my life, seeing the results of his policies.
Berry quotes Montaigne right away. This makes me recall another farmer I’ve read who did so extensively, Michael Perry.
Finally, the narrator reminds me of Nick Offerman, whom I’ve nearly always enjoyed listening to.

The Unsettling of America - 6. I’m actually stuck on chapter 7 of 9. I was with him on his analysis of agriculture, culture, agribusiness, capitalism, and so on. But then he started preaching on sexuality, and I think his experience and study are way too narrow for validity. I might bear with through this long chapter, as his ideas tend to build on each other. But I think I will move on to chapter 8 to avoid more annoyance.

It is Nick Offerman reading.
I would classify this book as philosophy.

Quitting Greenglass House at 16%. The cover intrigued me; but the story doesn’t engage me enough.

I picked up local library’s reading challenge today.

104 books, and they lean toward fiction, though more of the descriptors can be used for non-fiction, at my suggestion.

Several I have to research.
One asks for a Rory Gilmore title. Appears people have compiled list of what she was seen reading on Gilmore Girls. Some are over 400 items long. I chose this 100 book list, and I’m sure I will want to read at least one:
https://markham.bibliocommons.com/list/share/204171423/1354901313

What is Booktok? Don’t they know not everyone lives on TikTok? And a book club book? Do I have to find a book club?

You could decide on a book you want to read and create an LT book club group for that book.

For that matter, they have neglected to celebrate Jane Austen's year, you could start a topic in the Austen group for a 'club' read of one of her novels. I would be most likely to participate if you chose Emma or Persuasion.

>16 2wonderY: Read something from my bookclubs!
I don't have everything marked on LT as bookclub reads any longer. I do have them on GR:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/3855005-lesli?shelf=l-bkworms
https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/3855005-lesli?shelf=l-nvldis

>18 lesmel: Good idea! Thanks for the invitation.
The first link requires I sign up. The second link says your list is private.

Well. That is weird. I'll mark the books here in LT in the next few days. I can list them out here, too.

>20 lesmel: I follow your reading thread here and I’m always taking suggestions from it😁

I figured out the private lists thing. I had forgotten I'd made my GR profile semi-private.

These should will work:

Novel Discussions

Bookworms

A bit of humor for later

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DFHyPhwzowD/?igsh=MTd4ZW5nbDRsMTFjNQ==

>23 2wonderY: All the right attitude!

Jan. 26
I managed to discard a handful of books today.
His Official Fiancée - 7 carried the day and I enjoyed the time. It’s an oddly phrased romance and got kinda muddied towards the end. It’s one of those books I’ve had forever and can be released now.

Description:
Monica Trant and her colleagues don’t even consider their employer, William Waters, a man. He’s just “Still Waters,” the abominably accurate “machine” who barks out orders and gives them dictation. So when he calls Monica into his office with a bizarre “job” offer, to pretend to be his fiancée for the next year, it’s little wonder that she is taken completely by surprise.

But when circumstances force Monica to accept this position as Mr. Water’s nominal fiancée she finally finds her backbone. She may be a poor clerk who’s come down in the world, but her new position has perquisites Mr. Waters never could have foreseen: the opportunity for Monica to have the upper hand and needle him every chance she gets, all under her guise as…

His Official Fiancée.

Another from the piles. Searching For Dragons - 8 is a clever modern take on magic and princessing.

Though I paged through some of the middle, I read enough to claim it.
The Vicissitudes of Evangeline - 9 is an obnoxious journal of a coquette who finds true love and money.

A House of Tailors - 10 is a very good story. The author admits that most of it is based on her great-grandmother’s life. I will look for more works by this author.
Ha. I see I listened to the audio in 2014 and rated it highly then too.

Quitting Spells & Shelves at 37%. I keep waiting for it to get better.
My Libby shelves are chaotic. Stuff has probably slipped off without me noting it.

Read approx. 20% of This Disaster Loves You, 10% at the beginning and 10% at the end. A somewhat disjointed story because he tells just a sliver of it and you have to look for clues as to what did happen. Annoying.

20% of So Many Steves.

5% of The Village Library Demon-Hunting Society. I tried, but it didn’t.

I want good reading.

Oh, and 18% of Ikigai, which is only 3 hours, but just not engaging.
This review sums it up:
https://www.librarything.com/work/19398683/reviews/277662835

Picked up yesterday and will drop off again tomorrow Cobb Lane: Commerce with a Sense of History - 11. It’s a glossy, but apparently self-published memoir of a cluster of small shops in Birmingham (Alabama?). Not going to bother adding it to LT.
It does have an author inscription inside to someone named Ruth, which is one of the reasons I took it from a free table.

>2 2wonderY: I read The Dahlbe Family Horse, don't recall what happened to Birdie but it wasn't like Old Yeller. I'm pretty sure there was a happy ending.

For class, read most of I Never Thought of It That Way - 12. Teaches how to fruitfully engage with people who disagree.
The best was in chapter 10, a mention of a philosopher and teacher, David Smith, who teaches that we don’t choose our opinions, our beliefs form naturally over the course of our lives. That’s what makes them so resilient to change. That was an aha moment for me. It certainly will modify how I think of these issues.

Realized some cartoons must be added to my “must see cultural films” for my grands

Because this:

>34 2wonderY: What about Coyote falling off a cliff? Is that dangerous coyote activity...or is that post-dangerous coyote activity? LOL

>35 lesmel: It’s probably only dangerous to anyone at the bottom.
Does Juneau have cliffs? Buildings though, yeah?

>36 2wonderY: One would hope that an AIRPORT didn't have cliffs. I mean, as a rule. There are exceptions, I know. So, I rephrase. "What about Coyote falling off a building?"

>34 2wonderY: 😂😂😂

Just a collection of great snippets

https://www.instagram.com/p/DGYpyhMxY4M/?img_index=18&igsh=OHE5N3J3ZmpkejBp

I listened to Dead Beat - 13 yesterday because I wanted to meet Ramirez again for the first time. I misremembered. I thought it was he who rode Sue; but it was Harry, and Ramirez was essential just a bit later in trusting Harry and saving him from Morgan’s misplaced wrath.

People had suggested I try a Chet and Bernie mystery when I asked a while ago about cognizant dogs.
I picked up The Dog Who Knew Too Much yesterday and sampled it. Nope. Not to my taste at all. Oddly, I think the author is too faithful to the dogness of the dog.

For class, we’ve been reading portions of The Purpose of Power - 14, written by one of the women who started the #BlackLivesMatter movement. It’s part autobiography, but with much wisdom about organizing disparate people and accomplishing goals.
I’d meant to donate the book, but there is enough excellent content that I’d like to highlight, I’ll probably keep it. I’ve also been listening some to the audio; as it seems hard for me to spend time with physical books. I think it’s the upsetting times.

>41 2wonderY: I read the first three, maybe four, but petered out.

Like "The Cat Who" series, it's fun at the start, but the novelty dissipates.

I started Braiding Sweetgrass on audio a while back and got to 40% till it had to go back. Ordered it again, but I’m just not jiving with it this time. Discontinued.

The rare author profile page that might induce me to read what they write:

https://www.librarything.com/profile/RussellCameron

Work in Progress has no redeeming qualities. Both main characters are too annoying to spend any more time with. Tossing it at 14% read. Phew!

I’ve like Brandon Sanderson in the past, I think. But The Frugal Wizard’s Handbook for Surviving Medieval England is just annoying me. Quit at 12%.

As recommended by claimary recently, I sampled Excellent Women, but found the characters not to my taste. Left it at 16%.

Also leaving Agent Sonya at 4%.

The Complete Brambly Hedge - 15 is a complete joy. All eight episodes were finally gathered into one large format hardcover in 2020. And my old eyes really appreciate the new size of the illustrations. I decided to keep this and ordered another for daughter 1. Will see if daughter 2 wants one as well. (There are no dinosaurs for T in these)
Back in the day, we even found tiny ceramic figurines at JCPenneys and we built woodsy scenes for them.

We’re studying the Civil Rights Movement in class, and the assigned reading is a set of graphic novels called March trilogy - 16, 17, 18. I don’t like the format, and the style is deliberately vague and sketchy, but my classmates have pursuaded me of certain values inherent in this approach. I do want to learn more around this time period. I was in grade school in an all white town in the 1960s and had no idea this was going on. I was a sophomore before I even met someone of color.

Soul upkeep:

https://www.instagram.com/p/DGVlfZtRhmi/?img_index=2&igsh=bXJ6Znh3OG4ycG1w

How We Learn to Be Brave was an obscure work until the author spoke to President Trump from the pulpit the day after his second inauguration. She asked him to practice mercy, particularly toward immigrants and LGBTQ+. MAGA reviled her afterwards and at least one politician called for her to be deported.

So, of course, I wanted to hear her story. Copies online were scarce and neither of my libraries had a copy; nor could they obtain an ILL copy. So I was surprised to get a notice that my book request was waiting for me at the college library. I just realized that they had purchased a copy. This was after I looked again on AbeBooks and found a reasonably priced hardcover to order. (And there are many more copies available there now.)

Remarkably, the book begins at Lafayette Square, June 1, 2020. She wrote the book because of her first response to the little tyrant.

ETA: And all my Libby libraries now have copies, both ebook and audio.😁
And the local library is processing their copy as well😁😁

And she just showed up on my Instagram feed

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DGg6Ib9OLq9/?igsh=M210bTdobDBueW84

Proven Guilty - 19 is bratty adolescent Molly’s story.

Scientists managed to capture on film a black hole absorbing matter

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DFxq5-uTiI8/?igsh=dW5lNTA4OHNhOTVu

White Night - 20 has a bunch of witches, Elaine, Thomas’ new lifestyle, the White Vampires in their cavern full of ghouls, and Marcone brings help and signs as a member of the accords. Ramirez helps. Molly makes an apprentice breakthrough.
Little Chicago comes in handy.
Lasciel sacrifices herself.

As recommended at the end of the tape, I sampled The Atrocity Archives and quit at 7%

I’m gonna put this somewhere safe…

https://www.instagram.com/p/DG0Y4HrPWEN/?igsh=MXEyMTAxeGRtMjFqOQ==

>56 2wonderY: bwahaha!

How We Learn to Be Brave - 21 (see >52 2wonderY:) is not what I had hoped. Budde has come to national attention despite her mild manner. I respect her hugely. And her reflections on building character are worth reading, especially the choices we make, to go, stay, start, accept, and persevere and then follow through with those life choices. In addition to talking about her own story, she introduces some of her heroes.
I’m probably just too restless at present to benefit from this reading.

Eric Liu is more my speed just now.

I think we were assigned a chapter in class, but I was so taken, I ordered the book; which again, had to be by ILL. Well! I was also able to listen to the author read it and decided to buy my own copy.
You’re More Powerful Than You Think - 22 is one of those AHA! books. It is particularly relevant to the times we live in.
I will recommend it like mad and also try to have a study group within my community.

The Scandalous Sisterhood of Prickwillow Place tossed at 8%.

I have wanted to sample Sector General, an old SF series, for quite some time. But copies are tough to find. Those on AbeBooks usually come from Europe with hefty shipping costs. I finally acquired the first three in Beginning Operations. I don’t like the size of the volume; but I am enjoying the stories. They are knit together from magazine published shorts, so each chapter seems a complete episode. They age remarkably well and with complex exo-biologies and thus a very complicated hospital campus. As well, the psychologies are interesting.

>61 2wonderY: I really enjoyed the stories in that omnibus. Such a great concept, and well-executed.

I listened to 8% of the new Frederick Douglass biography by David W. Blight and found it good. But it’s 37 hours long, and I’m not willing to give it that much time.

>61 2wonderY: I have a copy of Hospital Station and I gave it a try, but never warmed up to it.

Milwaukee Public Library has an admirable public relations team

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DHEJ6c_O5cK/?igsh=dHAxemE5ZThtNnAy

Hospital Station - 23 was very enjoyable!
I liked O’Mara in the first chapter and was sorry to see him a mere administrator in the rest of the book. His main strength seems to be his faith in Conway. Each case is fascinating, particularly the last one.

How to Read the Constitution - And Why - 24 was an informative twelve hours. I then stopped at Barnes & Noble and picked up a pocket Constitution. It was written recently enough to discuss stuff that is still happening.

Once Upon a Wardrobe - 25. I think I found it at Goodwill, but I ended listening to the audio. This author wrote a biography of CS Lewis’ wife, Joy. Joy’s son wrote a blurb for this novel. We learn quite a bit of Lewis’s life, meeting him and his brother Warnie. Well done. Heartwarming.

It’s been a long time since I’ve visited Grace Richmond; but this may be the right season.
Of course, I start with Red Pepper Burns - 26. What a good man! We learn about his great heart from the first chapter as he brings Bobby home. And though this is not a romance, we meet Ellen and get to observe their growing mutual regard.
The last chapter begins with this shocking exclamation:

“Shades of Hymen! Red, are you making calls this morning?”
“Why not? I'm not to be married till noon, am I?”

Mrs. Red Pepper - 27 isn’t really about her. It’s about her best friend, Charlotte, and it is a love story. Charlotte comes from South Carolina with her Granny to open a photography portrait studio in the neighborhood.
Dr. and Mrs. Red open their children’s hospital out in the country.

The frankness of this courtship:
“It is these years of effort which have made you what you are. If I had known you in the days before trouble came to you I might have admired your beauty, but I shouldn’t have loved your soul.”
“Then” - she looked up into his face - “I’m glad for everything I’ve suffered.”

The only plot point that set me back was Red encouraging his nurse, Amy, to open her womanly heart to help restore his friend Jack to mental health. That strikes me as manipulative and dangerous.

Revisited When Books Went to War - 28; reminded of it by @MrsLee.

It was as good as I remembered it. Now I must find a copy of Chicken Every Sunday.

For some odd reason, not enjoying Discworld’s Moving Pictures, so sending it back at 19% read.

It has certainly been too long between reads. Book 3 is Red Pepper’s Patients - 29 Not even half way, but I want to take notes. Each of the 17 chapters is a story unto itself. Correction, I think the last chapter will bring them all back.
1. Gardner Coolidge, an old college friend, is faced with divorce. Red sent him to California.
2. Franz, the Hungarian violinist has found temporary work.
3 and 4. Anne Linton arrives selling a book of children’s stories. She has fever and wasting. We are introduced to Jordan King and nurse, Selina Arden.
Okay, the book isn’t going to be as crowded as I first thought.
5. Jordan King and Aleck, his chauffeur, are in a wreck and thus come under Red’s care.
6. Back to Anne Linton’s slow recovery.
7 and 8. Progress in the friendship between Jordan and Anne, mostly in letters. We finally know that she suffered from typhoid fever. She bids farewell and disappears for a while.
9. Jordan’s mother is Red’s patient after she collapses when Jordan speaks clearly to her about his intentions. Of course, Red knows exactly what to say to her.
10 and 11. Red’s persistent nemesis, Dr. James Van Horn, becomes his patient requiring surgery.
12. Jordan locates Anne and they have a day, but she puts him off till spring.
13. Red is fired up about an employee at Sunny Farm and he evicts her peremptorily.
14. Red is scratched in surgery and it is quickly infected and systemic.
15. He battles the illness and the Leavers stop in towards the end. Recovery is a month-long voyage.
16. Red returns to surgery. He orchestrates a trip including Jordan and his mother to visit a patient 200 miles away.
17. It is Anne Linton Coolidge’s housekeeper. Gardner Coolidge is her brother. He and his wife are planning to build a cottage, as prescribed by Red. Anne explains her year of book selling. Trite ending, frankly.

GenZ renames the classics

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DHZpR5btRkP/?igsh=MW01dWV3OGNqb3o0Mw==

Going to look see whether there are more postings like this.

Yep.

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DG4fsEENJGH/?igsh=bDlubzk5ZHNpOW14

Sampled I Got Abducted By Aliens and Now I’m Trapped in a Rom-Com. Leaving it at 2%.

I tried to listen to The Island of Extraordinary Captives in late January. But it started out so grimly while Trump was planning detention at Guantanamo that I couldn’t continue. But it kept arriving in my queue and I kept putting it off till this week. I managed to listen to more than half before it disappeared again. It’s a good WW2 story and I will finish it now that it’s more upbeat.

Randomly picked up at the library, The American Society of Magical Negroes, I couldn’t finish watching. Each scene was built on gratuitous cringe.

A beautiful commercial. I watched it several times

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DHbUPD4yBpm/?igsh=amZnZnJycTFkeGty

I finally borrowed a copy of Swallows and Amazons, having intended to read it since I became aware of it several years ago. The library had to order it by ILL and AbeBooks wanted enough money and shipping from England, that I decided to sample before purchasing.

It is such a gentle and leisurely book that my reading pace may slow as well.

I've already come across two incidents that feature Mother that delight me.

The first is when Roger is approaching her across the field by tacking into the wind; making large zig-zags to get to her. She waits patiently. And then when he heads back to the other children, she hails him "Ship ahoy! You had the wind against you coming up the field. It's a fair wind now. You needn't tack both ways."

And her observation:
"Mrs. Jackson has been good enough to let you have your pillows here," said the female native. "You can sleep without them, I know, but a pillow makes such a lot of difference that I'm sure Christopher Columbus himself always took his own pillow with him."

So true! I have a pillow fetish myself.

A sweet story about Kurt Vonnegut:

https://www.instagram.com/p/DHlGTa7NtWj/?igsh=MWMzNXhhdmpnZ3I4Mw==

>79 2wonderY: Juxtaposed with reading the book, I watched a film from a list I saw of “heartwarming stories.” Captain Fantastic is that, but also complicated with plenty of negatives and conflict. Lots of hard to suspend belief moments too. They dig up a casket and transport it to the wilderness where they burn the body on a pyre and then flush the ashes down the toilet, as specified in her last will and testament. Remarkable children, well played.

I'm clearing old stuff out of my email account; but want to save this comedy from 16 years ago:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3OwfJMkRIfM

And this cool article

The Google Maps alphabet UK: an A to Z of the British Isles

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/picture-galleries/5757548/The-Google-Maps...

>82 2wonderY: oops!

Sampled Pawful Premonitions and chucked it at 6%. Annoying characters and narrator.

Taking credit for Sourcery - 30, though it will expire today and I’ve read only 73%. I’m not at all engaged and only slightly amused. This seems a rehash of The Colour of Magic, which is also weak. The books in between are some of my favorites.

Listened to an NPR podcast series called The Fifth Branch. It featured a new emergency response team in Durham, NC who answer calls that deal with mental illness that don’t involve weapons. Very good.

https://tradeoffs.org/2024/07/11/new-series-trailer-the-fifth-branch/

Because of this new administration’s project to tear down the bureaucracy, I was reminded of Michael Lewis’ The Fifth Risk, where he told fascinating stories of individual bureaucrats. Hoping to find something newer, I merely found a very short item, Has Anyone Seen the President? - 31 in Libby. Curious I listened. It too was about Trump’s first term, but centering on Steve Bannon. Ugh. The only part of interest to me was about an art installation at The Old Post Office done by Robert Irwin in 1983. Titled ‘48 Shadow Planes’ its simplicity annoyed Trump, who couldn’t remove it, so he embellished around it. Ignorant git.
My husband was a subcontractor who worked on the renovations in the 80s.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fAhmGy5BUbM

At the same time, I pulled The Undoing Project, about how we think we are correct, but probably not. Actually, the research behind belief. I abandoned it at 28%. He wasn’t getting to the point.

Fredrik Backman writes good stories. But I’m finding Us Against You is not what I need at the moment. Too many distressed characters. And the wannabe politician is truly icky. Letting it go at 20% read.

I kept renewing the hold and I finally did finish The Island of Extraordinary Captives - 32, and it wasn’t nearly as horrible as I had imagined. There was no torture or forced labor; just the insult of distrust and confinement. There was actually a mechanism or two in place to afford release in some cases. Peter Fleischmann didn’t meet those criteria, but he showed such art talent that multiple people stepped up to afford him opportunities.
There was one intern of the thousands that did turn out to be a German agent. Moderately good story.

Tossing Losers Club at 41%. It’s a murder mystery with a romance tossed in. At least I assume they will connect. Don’t care. Very mediocre all around.

I was looking forward to listening to The Lost Flock. It’s about Orkney Boreray sheep. But it plods; and the author is the narrator. The publisher shouldn’t have allowed that. Quitting at 7%.

How to Love a Forest - 33 has some interesting passages; but it did get repetitive. The author tries to look beyond what has been lost and the odd species that have swarmed in and radically changed the forest ecology. But he still mourns. Reminds me a bit of Wendell Berry, but not nearly that caliber.

Rose asked me this week to recommend audio books for T, as she is enthusiastically embracing them. One I mentioned was The Princess and the Goblin, but I borrowed it on Libby and decided to quit it at 51% and de-suggest it. Not sure if it’s the narration or the story itself that is turning me off.

Sampled Stolen Focus and quit at 9%. More memoir than anything to begin with; and not at all interesting.

The future of audiobooks —- transcripts!

What a concept!

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DIwSvZSMqMT/?igsh=MTBhdDFpeXY2NDJmMw==

Someone mentioned a book in The Spellman Files - 34 series, and I had thought I might read the second book. But I listened to the first again to recall the story. This second read annoyed me more than I expected. But I will at least try the second.

>96 2wonderY: bwahaha!

The Curse of the Spellmans tossed at 17% or sooner if I had hands free. They are not at all charming this time around. No evidence that affection underlies how poorly they treat each other.

The college students have largely finished signing up for their classes, so it's time for me to look at the class schedule and decide what I want to take in the fall. There is no point in me doing so sooner, as I can just ignore those that are Full, even if they seem interesting.

I did not see Fencing listed, though I saw the class practicing recently on the quad. Must be a Spring class only.
But there are temptations such as Mediaeval Animals or Legal Reasoning.

In general, I noted
Botany
Dendrology & Forest Ecology - 9 hours a week obliged!
Cross-cultural Family Studies
Microeconomics
Intersectional Justice

But then, there is also
Crime & Justice, taught by the same professor I studied with this term
Citizen Politics - possibly too much like the course I just took
Decolonizing Feminism
Lost Literature: Women's Texts

I sent an email inquiry about the last one. It may get dropped, with only 2 of 15 seats taken thus far.

I can’t take any more! Shadow Beasts offered a magical librarian named Paige Turner. I should know better. That is the only positive appeal. Even the miniature dragon named Dewey is lame. She carts him around in a cat carrier.
I kept hoping it would improve and finally said enough at 62%. Wasted time.

When McKinsey Comes to Town - 35 is the exposé of a lifetime. This management consultancy is famously closed to outsider scrutiny; these authors managed to penetrate the veil and obtain documents and interviews that tell 14 stories of unethical practices in the most notorious industries. The company likes to attract idealistic business graduates and then twist their brilliance for short term profit. We’re talking Enron, opioids, health care, insurance, vaping, coal, the Saudis and China, and of course, ICE. Reduce costs, streamline, don’t worry about human costs or safety. One employee made the comparison to the mythic Illuminati. Evil.

I read Soon I Will Be Invincible back in the day. I thought I’d try it again. It wasn’t as good as I remembered. Quit at 6%.

A very good accompanying book to being on the road this weekend. I had Whoopie Goldberg in the car with me; and she rambled on about her life , and mostly about her mother in Bits and Pieces - 36. Very personable and relaxed. Not like a book at all.

Not read sequentially, but I’ve been poring through it for two days making lists, and will continue for a few more days. Silverplated Flatware - 37.

A lovely music video

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DJn47zBKCX_/?igsh=YmZrNjhqMXN1ODY0

Fuzzi reminded me to read more Richard Peck.
Here Lies the Librarian - 38 was predictable, but mostly fun. Well, except for the very awful rival mechanics. The narrator was not a good choice. She droned, almost mournfully. Someone with some vim and vigor would have made the story better.

A dose of joy

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DIRNWSkRu36/?igsh=OWR1MjAxeHJvczFy

I’m discarding lots of audio books partially read. I’m keeping a partial paper list.

I did finish Grave Mercy: His Fair Assassin - 39, though it was just mediocre.

I would have preferred just a narrator, but accepted a BBC full cast production.
Rumpole: The Penge Bungalow Murders and Other Stories - 40. I don’t really care for his relationship with his wife, Hilda. I’m reminded of Sam Vimes and Lady Sybil; but the latter have much more mutual affection, I think.

Daughter Rose was excited about a Kentucky natural history book from the library. Of course I hopped on AbeBooks to try to find it. Found two others by the same photographer and sent them to her house.
I just had a chance to see them.
Rare Wildflowers of Kentucky - 41 is stunning! STUNNING! He is a master taking photos in place; possibly sometimes using tools of lights and velvet backgrounds, now that I think on it. But that’s not obvious at all. It’s like finding jewels of color in hidden crannies.
I will try to post my favorite image. Googling him, I see he contributed to the USDA plant database in a large way.

The meek inheriting the earth

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DKjv635MMx7/?igsh=NDVpOGtudXI4dGQ=

Confirmed that Red and Black - 42 is Richmond’s weakest book. Her introduction of new characters with the telling incident is quite good; but she twisted Red into someone almost unrecognizable for this plot.
The back end of the book is cloying.

Red of the Redfields - 43 moves along at a much better pace. Red is the anchor, but the story revolves around the young people in cousins Lincoln and Marcia Redfield’s home. Robert Black returns for a cameo. Richmond has gotten wiser about her characters and allows for serious defects of judgement. That’s so they can play against each other.

Red Pepper Returns - 44. I frankly wish he hadn’t. Richmond shows her ass in a few places. She deliberately assigns Red some character defects, such as raging jealousy. But she inadvertently gives him others that are just ugly. He keeps nagging his sister to stop eating chocolates because of her weight gain. He is satisfied that a wife of a friend died instead of the friend; because the friend possesses brilliance.
As well, Richmond disappears Max Buller midway through; though his story predominates in the first half. He leaves a note that he is going west to eventually die. Nothing more is resolved and his best friend just accepts it. Kinda creepy.

Worst Date Ever - 45 was short but cute. Though I think authors don’t respect the time it takes to recover from becoming a widow (two years in this case), that’s a minor point here. Jennie signs up on an online dating app and schedules a date for every day for a week, always met at a local coffee shop. The author admits that one of the dates reflects her own experience. Ha!

Rufus - 46 appears only briefly in the book. It’s the story of war widow, Nancy Ramsey and her Uncle Lynn Bruce, who was profoundly injured in the war.
Housekeeper, Mrs. Cole, is terribly annoying until Aunt Maria Bruce arrives and is even more of a b*tch.
The story holds up well.

Introverts : socializing drains my energy

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DLESLP_T2hS/?igsh=aTg3MnpnaGd5bXk4

>117 2wonderY: Two years matches what I have seen. While dripping black for long periods is hardly helpful, neither is the idea I've seen pushed a lot that within a few weeks, or if you insist, maybe months, you should be ready to pick up your life as if nothing had happened or even that decades of a relationship had happened.

For me, it was almost exactly five years. And I didn’t even know I was so deeply in mourning till I was suddenly shocked back to life by another family crisis.
And within that time, I functioned at a very high level, getting all sorts of important work done and raising my girls with love and laughter.

My siblings saw and remarked on the abrupt changes too.

How Democracies Die - 47. Lent to me by a member of my now defunct book group. I wanted to read it anyway, and it popped up in Libby at the same moment. So I was able to listen and then reference the physical book. Written during Trump’s first term, it foresees much of what is going on this year.
Sigh.

Strawberry Acres - 48. Four young adult siblings live happily enough in a cramped apartment after their parents have died. But when their Uncle Maxwell leaves them the big old home and acres in the country, they find ways to more happily live out there. Sally, recovering from typhoid, regains her strength living in a very nice tent for the summer. The tent is provided by the well to do Burnside family; who have been friends since childhood.
There is a fair amount of farming talk and the author does a pretty convincing job of it.

Ghost - 49 is a middle school book. Each book in the series explores the story of the new kids on the track team. Some pretty serious issues in their lives, and a sterling coach.

A Cathedral of Myth and Bone discarded at 2%. The concept of the first story just creeped me out. The main character’s boyfriend would take bits and pieces of her (and sometimes much more) for his characters; and she would loose those parts and that time.

Zach Anner popped up in my Instagram feed today:

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DLLZ0xNpO_X/?igsh=MzlvYXZnOWw0a3Bt

Quite a guy! Good message. Perhaps I will re-visit his book, If at Birth You Don’t Succeed.
There are too few copies here on LT.
Go! Read his book. You won’t be sorry.

The Lost Bookshop is going to drop off my Libby, and at 15% read, I can’t be bothered to renew it.

Daughter recently read Nothing to See Here - 50 and wanted another recommendation. I was not impressed by Now is Not the Time to Panic, but decided to try another.

I’ve been listening to Run for the Hills - 51; but had to pause for technical problems with the upload. Meanwhile, I was able to borrow the first one again and confirmed that it was as good as I remembered.

At 66% on the latest one, it’s at least 3.5 stars. Premise and characters ✔ ✔

Round the Corner in Gay Street - 52 stands up to a re-read. We meet the Bell family when they move into a modest house off of Worthington Square. Their nearest neighbors are the much more prosperous Townsend family. The Bells know how to live and love with gusto, and they become treasured neighbors.
My only regret is that my copy of the book lacks the pictorial front cover.

I thought I’d try another by Melodie Campbell. The Italian Cure - 53 had possibilities, but the short format robbed the story and the ending was trite. She’s not a travel writer either.

Quit Never Enough Cowboy at 24%. The mixed signals and the hot to trot action are trite. Though the librarian did have good T-shirts:
“Librarian because Book Wizard isn’t an official title”
“I’m a mom and a librarian - Nothing scares me”

I finished the physical book I brought with me and had no others. A quick stop at the library Saturday a minute before they closed. I snatched Grief in the Fourth Dimension. I got perhaps a quarter of the way in. It was mediocre in its delivery. The few reviews here are positive; and one reveals a plot twist that seems lame. Returning it today on my way out of town.

>128 2wonderY:. I finally did finish Run For the Hills. And it was satisfying. The literal “found family” trope. Extremely low key.

I have the physical book, but audio is just so much easier for me nowadays. It was a recording of King’s actual speech, Where Do We Go From Here? - 54. The book contains other speeches, so I will have to use my eyes for them.
This speech began ploddingly, but the second half was uplifting.

I had an urge to listen to Kobna Holdbrook-Smith, so I borrowed Whispers Underground - 55. It’s fairly early in the series (3?). Soothing and satisfying.

This is a season of re-visiting favorite characters.
Exit Strategy - 56 was available.

I added the novelette , Ender’s Game to this month’s featured list. So I revisited it and the other short stories in First Meetings - 57. I usually love to listen to Stefan Rudnicki, but he did not suit the story in this circumstance.

I thought I’d try fiction by Peter Mayle, prompted by a comment in MrsLee’s reading thread.
Quitting The Vintage Caper at 11%. Flat, uninteresting characters.
I will keep his nonfiction for savoring, I think.

>136 2wonderY: love Murderbot!

Abandoning A Bad Deal for the Whole Galaxy at 3%. The first scene was interesting, but the second plods tiresomely.

It was a relief to finish Bachelor’s Bounty - 58, mostly because Caroline irritated me immensely. Though Scott’s relationship with Barbara was refreshing, it didn’t get the attention it needed to convince me entirely.
I’m considering breaking up the shelf and discarding the Richmond books that don’t satisfy anymore.

The New Jim Crow is a 17 hour read. I’ve listened to 28% and I’m still at chapter 1. This edition has been updated after a decade, and the prefacing materials are voluminous. It’s due today and others are waiting. So I will try the paper version at some point. There were other titles and authors mentioned that I didn’t catch. I will probably skim read the book.
It’s important political information; but progress seems like a dim hope. Alexander jumps to immigration detention in this book and it came out before Trump 2.

I’m semi involved with a KY Abolish Slavery group that aims to remove felon labor from our Constitution.

The Little Paris Bookshop is scheduled to disappear in a few hours. I’ve read 15%.

>143 2wonderY: That one didn't do it for me either. I finished it so I can tell you that you are not missing anything.

>144 Sakerfalcon: And I thank you very much!!!

The next Richmond book is The Brown Study - 59. A successful and wealthy city preacher retires for a year to a low-income community and befriends his neighbors.

I didn’t recall that the book also contains The Time of His Life - 60. Julius meets an old schoolmate and determines this is the man his sister, Dorothy, must meet. Kirke Waldron agrees.

Next book - The Second Violin. Of course there are doctors! But the main characters are a family of five teens who are left in charge while their father takes their mother to Arizona for a rest cure. Celia falls down the cellar steps and breaks a patella.

I did follow through and read a Peter Mayle non-fiction, French Lessons - 61. It was good company with occasional wit. I’d have a difficult time spitting out good wine. Heaven will be drinking fine wines with no consequences, eh?

The Second Violin - 62 is also broken into two stories, but here they form a series. The first book tells of the year that the Birch children step up and keep the household going while their father takes mother to Arizona for a rest cure. Lansing drops out of school to work in a railroad shop. The girls defer their school plans to run the household and the two adolescent boys offer various support as needed. Their uncle, Captain Rayburn, comes to spend the winter with them. Celia, the capable older sister, breaks her knee; and is laid up for months. Charlotte, who has always just scooted by, must stand and deliver. She does learn rapidly with help from her neighbor, Hepzibah Fields. Mrs. Fields is housekeeper to young doctor Anthony Churchill. Charlotte has always played second violin in family performances. Brother Jeff calls her “Fiddle.”

The second book, The Churchill Latch-string, begins four years later, as Charlotte and Anthony are married. They return from their honeymoon to welcome five unexpected guests to extended stays. The three adolescents do stay for the bulk of the next year, while the newlyweds help guide them into health and maturity. The conclusion is somewhat overwrought, with the entire group plus old friend, Dr. Forester and his son, Fred, having an extended riverside holiday that morphs into a trip to Washington DC. Jeff shines in this section.

One of the themes is genuine friendship between the genders, but that usually seems to morph into romance. I guess the message is to know the person you want to marry in a fundamental friendship first. This is a worthy ideal for young people that is rarely expressed so explicitly in fiction.

This appears to be one of Richmond’s first publications. She becomes more adept, less obvious in later works.

The Great A’Tuin

https://www.instagram.com/p/DM3QTSXsM_D/?igsh=MWRoaWszZjdqb2ExaA==

Listened to Stone and Sky - 63 and enjoyed the chaos of the entire crew, including Peter’s father’s jazz band, trekking up to Aberdeen, Scotland for a mystery and a vacation.
Abigail and Peter take turns narrating the story. I will listen again to catch more details before returning it.

Daughter has been wanting to listen to it, so I borrowed the audio again and offered to share my library card so she could access it on Libby. She is too busy just now, getting ready for her second trip to Antarctica. So I indulged once more, finishing just before it was snatched back.
The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet - 64. Great to hang with the crew once more. Should I follow up with Lovey’s story?

Someone mentioned Charlaine Harris and she sounded interesting. Nope. An Easy Death is just gruesome and disturbing. Quit at 14%.

>153 2wonderY: If you haven't read the Sookie books, you might like them better than the Gunnie Rose books. I didn't like either series much...but I know a number of people that really like the Sookie books.

Charlaine Harris is an author I enjoy and consider rather light on the horror scale, though not quite lite. I always look forward to her new books. I prefer Midnight Texas to True Blood or Gunnie Rose

>154 lesmel: I think I might have read one or two Sookie Stackhouse books a long while back. Southern vampire? Yeah. They were okay.

The next book on my Richmond shelf is The Indifference of Juliet - 65. It appears to have been serialized starting 1902 and published as a book in 1905. Of course it’s a romance, chiefly about Anthony and Juliet. The first premise made me gasp this time. He lied to her!!! Big time lie!
They’ve been friends since childhood, but Anthony’s family fortune was destroyed. He asks Juliet to help him prepare a modest home for his fiancée, met when he went out to California. The entire budget after purchase is $500 for repairs and furnishings.

The other two couples are Wayne and Judith, and Roger and Rachel.
There is drama and good times. Lots of good times.

Wisdom and generosity are modeled.

Discontinuing Hubris Maximus at 18%. I already know Musk is a nasty piece of work. I don’t need even more details.

Finna - 66 is a science fiction novella that begins in an IKEA type furnishings store and breaks out into the multiverse. Though it has possibilities, I thing they were mostly wasted. Captain Nouresh was worth meeting.

A Bad Deal for the Whole Galaxy sounded promising, and I’ve tried it as an ebook. Can’t stand it and sending it back at .08% read.
Too much chatter from too many characters without a coherent exposition. It seems there should be a prior volume for introductions, as there seems to be lots of personal history referenced.

Oh. There is a prior book!

>156 2wonderY: Yep, Southern Vampire.

>160 2wonderY: I think I had/have the first book on my "I Hunt Books" list (this is my sounds interesting, might read it before I die list....which is not my To Be Read list).

Listened to the six episodes of the podcast Sold A Story: How Teaching Kids to Read Went So Wrong - 66. The website seems to indicate there is at least one more season of this story, but I’m unwilling to subscribe just now. I may later though.
Whole language reading has been debunked and the evidence of brain research and classroom testing is proving that phonics is the best way to go.

A reviewer recommends her own book that builds further on the literacy question, The Knowledge Gap.

I’m 3/4 through When Paris Went Dark - 68. Most of the first half details what the common people experienced and how they coped with the German Occupation. It seems very intimate; much of the material tapping private letters and journals.
Chapter 7 deals with the campaign rounding up and removing the Jewish people. It is devastating especially because this is all happening in the US right now.

Toward the end of chapter 8, he examines The Plague and Colette’s contemporary writings.

Chapter 9 details the liberation of the city. Chapter 10 is aftermaths - guilt, accusations and purification.

Chapter 11 - looking back

This should be a must read.

Busman’s Honeymoon returned at 4% read. Ah well.

A Big Ship at the Edge of the Universe sampled and discarded at 3%. Just not to my taste.

But I did listen to All Systems Red - 69 again.

I was glad to start Sisters in Law, about two female Supreme Court justices.
But I went on to other books and left it at 19%. It will be gone from my queue tomorrow.

Tried another Peter Mayle fiction. And while this has more potential, I’m letting it go at 21% A Good Year

A Brief History of Equality - 70. I love this man’s mind. There are a lot of numbers in his discussion; which I suppose is unavoidable. I would rather spend more time on philosophy of economics.
I’ve been wanting to read more on economic systems, but not in a traditional way. I should track down the college department and ask. The catalog gives little indication of what riches may be found. Which is why I stay near the history department.

Fanfiction as a genre?

Paradise Lost is fan fiction of the book of Genesis.

The Matter of Black Lives is a collection of short pieces, written by a wide variety of black writers. I was attracted by the editor, Jelani Cobb, as I’ve seen him comment intelligently and reasonably on social media.
I’m letting the book go back at 25% read; though I will listen to the two remaining pieces by Cobb first.

I’ve been only half listening to Building the New American Economy - 71, as the author was recommended by Rose’s in-laws last month. I’ve gotten to chapter 10 where he makes recommendations to newly elected Trump and Congress in 2017. Ha! Every bit of it has been destroyed in this year’s DOGE exercise.
Sachs does point to my next reading, something by Robert Dahl, I think.

In the last chapter, Sachs quotes JF Kennedy multiple times. The narrator chose to mimic the Massachusetts pronunciation. I would have counseled him not to.

What Went Wrong with Capitalism is more out there than I expected. Sharma is a peak capitalist. Yet his analysis of the present system faults government bailouts for fostering the survival of weak managers and too high risk taking investing.
He is from India, but operates in the US and writes for the NYT, Fortune, etc.

Chapter 5 discusses central bank manipulations and how they have not accomplished their best goals, but bailout guarantees have warped markets and industries.

When I see a book on my shelf that I haven’t read yet, I look for it in audio format nowadays.
That’s how I discovered and watch the film The Desire of the Everlasting Hills; which has no connection to Thomas Cahill’s book. It is an hour long documentary featuring several cradle Catholics who discovered they were gay, and pursued that sexuality for decades. Each of them return to celibacy.

Letting The Dutch House expire at 22% read. It’s okay, and Tom Hanks narrates, which is nice. But I don’t see where this is going and I don’t care enough to find out right now. The two principal characters are in young adulthood and have been banished (did their dad die?) and the house is occupied by step-mother and step-sisters. Why are they so obsessed with the house if they didn’t really enjoy it?

I will sit outside my grandmother’s house when I go to Milwaukee, but it’s because of entirely good memories.

Native Nations - 72 is a slim book. But it contains biographical materials and describes criticisms. The picture quality is poor.

I think whoever chooses pictures for books often does not take into consideration what a picture will look like in reduced size and printed on paper and not shiny photo paper. A lot of detail gets lost. If I'm interested enough I search the web for the picture. Oh! That's what that is supposed to show! But usually I'm too lazy.

>176 MarthaJeanne: I’ve had larger format books of Curtis’ work and felt no guilt in disassembling them for the pleasure of framing them to hang. Daughter Rose now has full custody, though they are probably in storage. The addition of bookcases and unpacking her books has been the first stage of owning the space that they technically don’t own.

Sampled How to Invent Everything. Exhausting in its twee-ness. Quit at 3%.

>178 2wonderY: You didn't like him either.

A very short beginner chapter book, Lighthouse Family: The Turtle - 73. I picked it up in the LFL in front of the education department. This found family meet a sea turtle who has swum far enough north to see the Aurora Borealis.

It doesn’t happen often. I encountered a new word.

Sonsy
“ strong and healthy; robust. · agreeable; good-natured”
Scotch-Irish slang

I’m not pursuing the WW1 history class, so I’m dropping All Quiet on the Western Front at 18%. It’s fine, as far as I got. My husband’s collection of photos from his time in the army is what kept popping up in my head while listening to the first chapters.

Also quitting What Went Wrong With Capitalism at 40%. He makes all kinds of sense. I’m glad he’s a market commentator. I just don’t see a need to renew and go the rest of the way this week.

It took me weeks to get through With Juliet in England - 74, partly because I took a dislike to Diantha, who seemed immature and flighty and too willing to flirt. Turns out she was immature, but also trying very hard to not flirt but to offer friendship. That had to be spelled out later in the book, so the author wasn’t quite successful.
However, there were a few very good scenes described that were enchanting.

O M G!!!!
First reading assignment for Victorian England course is to read Frankenstein. I suffered through it with daughter when she had to read it in middle school. I’m listening to the audio book and I can’t stand it!!
Overblown prose. Obnoxious storyline and absurd characters.
I’m still on chapter 1.

I’m half way through Frankenstein. The class discussion was interesting because we were talking about the larger themes important during the Victorian era. However, I’m still dreading having to read the rest of it for Tuesday’s class.
Interestingly, it was time for me to re-read A Closed and Common Orbit - 75, a much more cheerful take on made sentient beings.

Vanishing Treasures: A Bestiary Picked up from a library display; but it’s more clickbait than informative or interesting.
Tossed it back with only a few chapters read.

I will take a point for Frankenstein - 76, just for having to attempt it again. Thank God I was able to return it to the library.

This guy kicked an angular rock daily for months till it was a sphere. The comments are possibly worth more than his allegory

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DOJfPn0iegD/?igsh=MWRiZG1vaTJ4bTQwbg==

The Knowledge Gap - 77, prompted by my listen to the podcast at >162 2wonderY:. Content teaching, of course. Where did the educators get it so wrong? And do it with enthusiasm, of course. Makes me want to jump in again. Not that I was a school teacher; but I taught Sunday school for a chunk of time and also participated as a children’s librarian for 5 years.

Tossing Who Cooked the Last Supper? at 28%. I was attracted by the title, but the author neglects to address this question. She covers early matriarchy in theoretical terms; and starts to sound screechy introducing the patriarchy. Not the historical survey I was hoping for.

Welcome to Glorious Tuga tossed at 5%. Not grabbing my attention at all.

On the other hand, though
Peace Like A River - 78 is heartbreakingly beautiful. Please, go read it!

How to be a Saint discontinued at 17%. Rehashes a lot of old mildly funny tropes from Catholic grade and high school. Introduction by Stephen Colbert because the author is a writer on his show.

>189 2wonderY: Sorry! I'm eagerly awaiting the third book in the series, whenever it gets published.

Peace... isn't in my library.

It’s been several years since I read the first two in the series, and I just noticed there is a third. The Poe Estate - 79 introduces its main character, Sookie, at a distance from NYC. It does come around and introduces some fun literary tropes. I’m going to get hands on a physical copy first so I can share them accurately. The quest adventure was a bit long-winded and not particularly interesting. I downloaded the first book again to revisit it and I see there are character arcs that span the books.

The Grimm Legacy - 80 is the first book. Again, the set-up and characters and premise are the attractions rather than the quest itself. This is enlivened by the younger siblings of the library pages.
Of course I now need to re-visit the middle book.

I did return to The Enchanted Greenhouse - 81. And despite the fact it could have used a harsh editing, I did enjoy it. Except for the last 10 minutes which I lost because Libby snatched it back.

For class, The Time Machine - 82; which was even more excruciating this time around because I had to try to tie it to class discussion of Victorian times. Argh!

But followed up with The Wells Bequest - 83, which is the bridge story for The New-York Circulating Material Repository (think Warehouse 13). This time, the plot was better; and now I have the cast mapped out adequately in my head.

And again for class, A Study in Scarlet - 84. Not a bad story, but I am not interested in reading more. Beth and I had a fruitful discussion when we presented for the class.
I will not be taking more classes from Dr. Bates. I think this is an awful way to learn about a particular era.

Father and Son - 85 was also for class; and for once, I ended enjoying it. Could it have used editing? Yes. But then I discovered just how well constructed the book is; so I was able to appreciate it more. Lots of commentary outside of the book claim that the facts as reported are not accurate. But the author was very clear that this consisted of HIS memories, and he also showed a remarkable degree of reflection and self-awareness and also keen insight into his father.
I may not have technically finished it, but it’s overdue.

The Button Industry - 86 has sat unread for several decades. This class finally prompted me. I’m doing a Victorian household presentation this week, including darning, smocking, buttons and other fasteners.
It did give me some good information about the industry in Birmingham and when particular materials began to be utilized.

Another full listen to Stone and Sky because it was still in the queue and I could.

Discontinued Tilt because of the continued stupid decisions of the main character. Took it till 45% because I could excuse her because of shock.

>199 2wonderY: Stone and Sky is one I'm looking forward to - though I wasn't impressed by the last Rivers book.

>201 quondame: I think it’s a good one. The whole crew travels to Scotland. Abigail plays a significant part.

Off and on, I’ve been listening to Dinosaurs at the Dinner Party - 87. I got bogged down in the middle chapters where the author was offensively dismissive of religious faith. Now he compares the layers of geology to the floor of a teenager’s room. *eye roll*
Though it does hold interest, the title is the best part.

I learned about spiritual warfare in the latter part of the 1990s, when my older daughter went through a traumatic adolescence.
I’m sure that’s when I picked up Deliverance from Evil Spirits - 88. I did a quick re-read, but moving on to other items.
I must have picked up Let the Fire Fall - 89 in the meantime but never read it. I regularly bought boxes and boxes of book to save for later reading. Odd that I didn’t, as the cover references Franciscan University of Steubenville. I attended Steubie U my freshman year.
This book is mostly autobiographical. I attended ‘72-‘73; between the times Scanlon served as chancellor, left, and then returned as college president.
My view of the college spirit is completely counter to his description.
Admittedly, he reformed the campus mightily. I attended a teen conference there with that same daughter in the 90s, and it was a powerful experience for both of us.
It’s not a book I’d keep if it wasn’t for the memories it has dredged up.
Looking up his Wikipedia page, I've never read such a personalized fan-biased entry.

Skimmed Public Moralists for class. It’s a bit too scholarly and rarefied for my purposes.

I finally finished Martyr! - 90. It was a very satisfying book. Multiple important characters who become beloved.

As assigned, I finished The Reluctant Mr. Darwin - 91.
Reluctant because he knew what reception his theory would have; and he continued to study for years to extract as much data as possible. He was figuratively kicked in the rear end by young, unschooled but brash Alfred Russel Wallace, who sent Darwin a monograph asking his assistance getting it published.
Quammen shows his own prejudice against theism in some of his choices and phrasings. Calling John Henry Newman a religious zealot without being acquainted with Newman’s opinion of evolution theory for instance.

Last call for Kentucky lineman, Kyle Ferree.

https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZTMcW9T1T/

It’s quite a relief to get back to my Grace Richmond shelf. I have no memory of previous acquaintance with At the South Gate - 92, but it’s a good one. The Paige’s are simple, elegant and poor, and devoted to each other. They are models and help mates for their hosts, the rich but dissipated Braithwaites. There is true tragedy and struggle.

The Listening Post - 93 is one of Richmond’s best, I think. The focus bounces back and forth, from downstairs observers to upstairs events. The husband, Rawley, has been absent for months and is not heard from while his wife is deathly ill. The servants don’t know how to contact him. The doctor who saved her life and health becomes a very good friend. He also prescribes a full change of scene for the summer, renting a home by the ocean.
We are slowly introduced to the conundrum at the center of this marriage. Drawn with skill and sympathy, Richmond captures a moment that I too experienced:
“ For the moment things again were moving swiftly, a strange acceleration of her whole being amazed her. From inaction into action in the twinkling of an eye; that was life, out of which it seemed to her she had been so long.”

The structure plays upon stage dramas, with a descriptive cast list at the front, and commentaries at the top of each scene. Richmond had fun with this.

The characters in my current book just played ‘Air for the G String’ so I went and found it:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GMkmQlfOJDk

I didn’t know the name, but I recognize and love the piece.

>210 2wonderY: My current character made herself a big pot of bean soup. That sounded really good so guess what's for supper tonight.

>211 MarthaJeanne: Oooh! Good idea!

I’m not sure I claimed it above, but I never finished Dinosaurs at the Dinner Party. He turned me off with his treatment of religious belief somewhere in the middle (chapter 8?). Dismissing God because there are laws of nature is just stupid.

Also returning The Cross and the Lynching Tree unread. Scanned it and got the general concept.

I am too ambitious. I downloaded the 23 hour audio of The Origins of Totalitarianism. I will not continue it this year at least. They chose a female narrator with a brisk, though soft British accent. That’s annoying, but not fatally so. In the preface, one statement held me; that Britain voluntarily gave up its colonial possessions - I think crediting Churchill, and that the rest of Europe, minus Portugal, followed suit. Certainly a simplification, but not quite germaine anyway.
My Libby list is full of other materials.

When I was a teenager I ended up doing several things at church that I 'volunteered' for. Usually an hour or so before Dad would have told me that he needed me to do it. It made me feel better to be doing it on my say so. I think a lot of the UK giving up its empire was similar. They had the choice of giving it up graciously or having it taken away.

The Utopia of Rules is due tomorrow. And, though I respect Graeber immensely, this one is not capturing me this season. I’m letting it go at 20% read. Next year…

Though it is billed as The People’s History of the United States, the preface makes clear this 9 hour recording by Matt Damon is merely the 20th century section.
I read this way back in the 70s, and thought to re-read it since everyone else seems to have discovered it. At 20%, and deep in the Vietnam atrocities, I’ve decided “Nah!”

Listened to Agent Most Wanted - 94. Quite an inspiring story. The author came across as targeting a YA audience in my perception; but I could be wrong.
Ah. It is an adaptation of a lengthier book on the subject.

The Twenty-Fourth of June - 95 is one of her earlier works, but it mostly satisfies. There’s an interesting tension of common man versus the natural aristocracy. Richmond wants to believe in democratic equality, but she doesn’t seem convinced; falling back on “blood will tell.”

Richmond is consistent in her message throughout her writing career. Her characters always value living useful lives. Their goals are to improve themselves intellectually and spiritually and find ways to share their gifts and talents. They are always worth spending time with. Under the Country Sky - 96 focuses on Georgiana, daughter of a country parson who has left college to care for her ailing father. She is fiercely independent and resourceful, and she also knows how to squeeze fun into her long days. One of her particular talents is using cast-off clothing from a rich cousin to dress herself with appropriate finery.
Richmond is a bit heavy handed with the lessons here in 1915, but not too badly. Her eventual love story is remarkable for their compatibility.

>220 2wonderY: This quote in the last chapter caught me by a memory:

“And when I saw you I thought — with the greatest reverence, darling: ‘If she might be my son's mother!'”

My husband said something very similar to me. Before we were even engaged he asked me to be the mother of his children. I sat with that memory today.

Sampled The Lies of Locke Lamora. Not in the mood for nasty. Quit at 3%.

How Democracies Die - 97 is very pertinent to today’s world, but it suffers from being published in 2018. The authors must be shitting bricks this year. I see I had it on a wishlist a while ago but it wasn’t available back when it first came to my attention.
The final chapter is extremely uplifting. I’d like to get a hard copy of just that.

Cherry Square - 98 was difficult for me because one of the main characters is losing his sight; which I dread is happening to me.
Schuyler Chase is a renowned preacher in an important church in New York City. Though he is sincere, his character weakness places an enormous burden on his wife, Sally. When he has a total breakdown, Sally is glad to have found Jo Jenney as employee and friend. Self sacrifice is the overwhelming theme here. Each character struggles with life decisions that support each other, even the minor character of Dr. Fiske.

Abandoning The Knights of Crystallia at 22%. I remember enjoying the first of the series, but this one is just too cute and lacks plot drive.

Oh, and young Sleigh Bells Ring at 33%. Was hoping for a heartwarming Christmas romance. This is purely run of the mill.

Bernie Sanders’ Guide to Political Revolution at 27%. Though I honor his political work and enjoy hearing him speak, the book is doing nothing for me.

I bring dvds home from the library; but I seldom watch them.
I quit The Invention of Lying. The writers turned truth into an ugly thing. Also quit Fantastic 4: First Steps. It doesn’t deserve the attention.
I did finish Men in Black: international, though it too doesn’t measure up to its predecessors.

Fifty pages into the next Richmond book, and there is a sour taste in my mouth. Foursquare was published in 1922, so early mid career. I’m finding the main characters shallow, self-absorbed and not fully wholesome. Yes, we can expect growth. But the only positive descriptors are of their looks and intelligence. Not much to go by to want to spend time with them.

>229 2wonderY: Another 40 pages, and I’m still finding the main character unattractive. Mary is an accomplished writer who is suffering in spirit; but there’s no clear reason for it. She’s unbearable. Two men, in opposite lifestyles, want to be of service.

I wonder if Richmond is describing an experience of her own or if she is being clumsy here.

Looking for something other, I downloaded The Friend Zone - 99. It was a good choice. A serious part of the plot is the heroine dealing with fibroid tumors. Enough depth to make me cry once or twice.

Enjoyed listening to The Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion, volume 1 - 100. Very curious for the next volume.

Sampled Katabasis - 7% and The Sword of Shanarra 3%. Both very bad.

Tossing One for the Money at 43%. Really? So many people rate the series positively.
The Christmas Guest -28% is not the innocent romance I’d hoped for. Turned distasteful.

>233 2wonderY: I hope your next read is more satisfactory. If I have to toss four right after each other I get downtight bad tempered.

>234 MarthaJeanne: It’s my own fault. I have always been susceptible to picking up anything. This is only the second year that I’ve been keeping track.

That said, I’m quitting Foursquare with a lot of disappointment at page 120 (of 358; 33%). The heroine is just too unstable and dependent. Male #1 is somewhat malignant, though it’s subtle. Male #2 is passive and his character hasn’t been exposed adequately. These characters do not encourage me to open the book.

>235 2wonderY: When you find yourself not wanting to pick up the book, it's high time to give up. Reading is supposed to be enjoyable.

>236 MarthaJeanne: I will get back to it later, just to see the resolution. I did not expect to feel at all critical of Richmond. I will not finish the shelf by the end of the year, but the next one, High Fences, is already a guaranteed delight. However, I’m putting it aside to take up her very short Christmas trilogy plus 1.
Brought On Christmas Day in the Morning with me to daughter’s house.

Waiting for the grandbaby to wake up, I managed to finish On Christmas Day in the Morning - 101. A very lovely story.

Merry Christmas my good friends!

Reminder to re-read The Ladies of Mandrigyn

https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZTr39Eeqa/

I forgot to record that I finished listening to The Happy Ever After Playlist - 102 yesterday. Book 2 of The Friend Zone. There was one point it tipped way over into weird and unbelievable; but it righted itself. Not as good as the first though.

Sampled The Nine Lives of Christmas on the drive home today. Dropped it at 7% because the few characters introduced were self absorbed and unpleasant.

And glad to follow up with On Christmas Day in the Evening - 103 and Under the Christmas Stars - 104. Heartwarming stories of family dynamics. In the last story, even the generally lovable sisters can’t fathom the innate value of Ralph’s new bride, Molly, because she presents as so unconventional.

And to round out the Christmas stories, also revisited Brotherly House - 105. Very satisfying.

I finished listening to Part of Your World - 106, which may be book 4 in the series. Lola is a secondary character in book 2, and is infrequently mentioned in this book, fresh from her own happily ever after.
The book spends time examining the varieties of spousal abuse beyond the love story. Three stars.

Daughter found a very pleasing jigsaw puzzle for me. I’d been rooting around in my stash because I thought I had a new one already.
500 pieces is about all I want to tackle anymore.



Her crew is working on another and we’ve agreed to trade off.

The Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion, volume 2 - 107. A small story, or continuation of the story. Charming.

High Fences - 108 was a very satisfying read. Each chapter gets a chirpy few sentences of introduction from the author. A charming touch.
Humor, tragedy, real life struggles, philosophy, the question of marriage versus career. And Charlie Higgins, innkeeper, (He wasn’t important enough to go into the list of Characters, but he’s been looking on with interest for a good while.) And he gets the last word.

The last one on the Richmond shelf, Lights Up - 109 is only okay. The cast of young adult characters have complicated feelings for each other, but more like adolescents than the experienced and mature people they should be by now.
This 1927 publication is presenting class and gender questions somewhat awkwardly and unconvincingly.