Alcott Acre's Home, Room 8

Let's get the introduction out of the way. My name is Stasia and I have been happily married to the recently retired Kerry for 37 years in June. We have 6 children, 4 of whom are my stepchildren and 2 of whom are ours together. We also have 8 grandchildren. We lost our daughter Nichole in 2023.

I love to read, it goes without saying and Kerry is very good about all of the books strewn throughout our house. Since Kerry retired in late 2023, we have spent a lot of time over the course of 2024 and 2025 playing board games (my other hobby) and despite that, my reading has continued apace.

I suffer from both insomnia and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (known to me familiarly as 'stupid CFS') so to say my sleeping is haphazard may be an understatement, lol. Generally speaking, if I get 4 hours of sleep a night I am happy. Unfortunately when my CFS hits, I get about 14. Ugh.

I love to travel and Kerry and I have trips planned for 2025. The first one was in March and we had a great time. In June, I headed (by myself) to Pennsylvania to meet Linda (Whisper) and several other 75ers. Our Chicago trip is this month when I will get to meet Joe and Mark for the first time. Looking forward to it!

That's about it, I think, so come on in and grab a cuppa!

Excellent Reads from 2025 (in the order in which I read them):

5 Stars
Archaeology of the Bible: The Greatest Discoveries from Genesis to the Roman Era by Jean-Pierre Isbouts
All Creatures Great and Small by James Herriot
The Library at Night by Alberto Manguel
The Novels of the Harlem Renaissance: Twelve Black Writers, 1923-1933 by Amritjit Singh
Stride Toward Freedom: The Montgomery Story by Martin Luther King, Jr.
The City and Its Uncertain Walls by Haruki Murakami
There Once Was a World by Yaffa Eliach
The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick
Quiet Girl in a Noisy World: An Introvert's Story by Debbie Tung
The Beautiful Mystery by Louise Penny
Memorial Days: A Memoir by Geraldine Brooks
Doomsday Book by Connie Willis

4.5 Stars
Go Tell the Bees That I Am Gone by Diana Gabaldon
Farewell Espana by Howard M. Sachar
Time's Echo: The Second World War, The Holocaust, and The Music of Remembrance by Jeremy Eichler
Middlemarch by George Eliot
Our Riches by Kaouther Adimi
My Antonia by Willa Cather
Born a Crime by Trevor Noah
The Wildes: A Novel in Five Acts by Louis Bayard
Kristin Lavransdatter by Sigrid Undset
Our Daily War by Andrei Kourkov
Sylvia Beach and the Lost Generation by Noel Riley Fitch
The Lost: A Search for Six of Six Million by Daniel Mendelsohn
A Fire in the Mind: The Life of Joseph Campbell by Stephen Larsen and Robin Larsen
Home Fire by Kamila Shamsie
Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer
Jane Austen's Bookshelf by Rebecca Romney
The Speed of Dark by Elizabeth Moon
All My Rage by Sabaa Tahir
Bookish: How Reading Shapes Our Lives by Lucy Mangan
The Tomb of Dragons by Katherine Addison
How to Read a Book by Monica Wood
Freedom's Daughters by Lynne Olson
The Free by Willy Vlautin
Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie
Bibliophile: An Illustrated Miscellany by Jane Mount
I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith
Isola by Allegra Goodman
Bibliophile: Diverse Spines by Jamise Harper and Jane Mount
Beneath a Ruthless Sun by Gilbert King
There Are Rivers in the Sky by Elif Shafak
How We Learn To Be Brave by Mariann Edgar Budde
Behold the Dreamers by Imbolo Mbue
Once Upon a Wardrobe by Patti Callahan

4.25 Stars
Making It So by Patrick Stewart
Salt Sugar Fat: How the Food Giants Hooked Us by Michael Moss
Eleanore of Avignon by Elizabeth DeLozier
The Choice: Embrace the Possible by Dr. Edith Eva Eger
The God of the Woods by Liz Moore
Darius the Great Is Not Okay by Adib Khorram
The Harlem Renaissance Remembered: Essays Edited with a Memoir by Arna Bontemps
Children of Time by Adrian Tchaikovsky
Mornings in Jenin by Susan Abulhawa
And the Rest is History by Jodi Taylor
My Family and Other Animals by Gerald Durrell
Till Human Voices Wake Us by Victoria Goddard
In the Enemy's House by Howard Blum
Pilgrim at Tinker Creek by Annie Dillard
The Age of Revolution, 1789-1848 by E. J. Hobsbawm
The Wildcat Behind Glass by Alki Zei
Mountain Path by Harriette Simpson Arnow
Everything is Tuberculosis by John Green
The Foxglove King by Hannah Whitten
Emily, Alone by Stewart O'Nan
The Five: The Untold Lives of the Women Killed by Jack the Ripper by Hallie Rubenhold
Papillon by Henri Charriere
A Closed and Common Orbit by Becky Chambers
Among the Righteous by Robert Satloff
Chenneville by Paulette Jiles
The Riddle of the Labyrinth by Margalit Fox
We Remember with Reverence and Love by Hasia R. Diner
Gormenghast by Mervyn Peake
War & Turpentine by Stefan Hertmans
The Last Report on the Miracles at Little No Horse by Louise Erdrich

THIS POST KEEPS TIMING OUT, SO UNFORTUNATELY I CANNOT POST THE TOUCHSTONES. I AM SORRY FOR ANY INCONVENIENCE.

August TIOLI Challenges:

Challenge #1: Read a book with a title containing only two or three words of which at least two of the words have the same number of letters
Big Sky by Kate Atkinson - Completed August 22, 2025
Harlem Speaks by Cary D. Wintz - Completed August 6, 2025

Challenge #2 : Read a book written by a Benelux author
War & Turpentine by Stefan Hertmans - Completed August 24, 2025

Challenge #3 : Read a story or essay collection
A Cat in the Ghetto: Stories by Rachmil Bryks - Completed August 4, 2025
Round Mountain by Castle Freeman Jr - Completed August 11, 2025

Challenge #4: Read a book where the title (not including subtitles) has at least one word with 3 consonants in a row
Backwards & In Heels by Alicia Malone - Completed August 28, 2025
Gormenghast by Mervyn Peake - Completed August 9, 2025
The Last Report on the Miracles at Little No Horse by Louise Erdrich - Completed August 25, 2025
Wordslut by Amanda Montell - Completed August 19, 2025

Challenge #5: Read a book that has something to do with my son
Some Desperate Glory by Emily Tesh - Completed August 13, 2025
Stone Speaks to Stone by Victoria Goddard - Completed August 1, 2025

Challenge #6: Read a book where the majority of it is set in a landlocked country
The Sewing Circles of Herat by Christina Lamb - Completed August 30, 2025

Challenge #7: The EIEIO Challenge: Read a book with the vowels E, I, and O (in that order) somewhere in the title
Foreign Correspondence by Geraldine Brooks - Completed August 14, 2025

Challenge #8: Read a book you'd planned to read earlier this summer
Hana Khan Carries On by Uzma Jalaluddin - Completed August 31, 2025

Challenge #9: Read a book with a vehicle in the title
Last Trolley from Beethoven Straat by Grete Weil - Completed August 26, 2025

Challenge #10: The Booker Longlist will be announced Tuesday, July 29, 2025, according to The Booker Prizes. Read any book by an author from the longlist.
The Inheritance of Loss by Kiran Desai - Completed August 18, 2025

Challenge #11: Read a book where you have more than one book by that author on your TBR
Old Baggage by Lissa Evans - Completed August 26, 2025

Challenge #12: Read a book whose title features a cartographic, geological or geographic term
Rivers of London by Ben Aaronovitch - Completed August 12, 2025

Challenge #13: Read a book with a connection to the number 8
American Sherlock by Kate Winkler Dawson - Completed August 28, 2025
A Lesson in Secrets by Jacqueline Winspear - Completed August 29, 2025
Toms, Coons, Mulattoes, Mammies, and Bucks by Donald Bogle - Completed August 16, 2025

Challenge #14: Read a book with a title that is a command or instruction
Behold the Dreamers by Imbolo Mbue - Completed August 3, 2025

Challenge #15: Read a book by an author with an Irish or Scottish name or descent.
Once Upon a Wardrobe by Patti Callahan Henry - Completed August 13, 2025

Shared reads:

Terec and the Wall by Victoria Goddard - Completed January 4, 2025
Balancing Stone by Victoria Goddard - February with Mary - Completed February 8, 2025
My Antonia by Willa Cather - Completed February 4, 2025
The Spoilt City by Olivia Manning - Completed February 24, 2025
Till Human Voices Wake Us by Victoria Goddard - Completed March 26, 2025
Friends and Heroes by Olivia Manning - Completed March 29, 2025
The Crimson Petal and the White by Michel Faber - April with Mark DNF
In the Realms of Gold by Victoria Goddard - Completed April 1, 2025
The Library at Night by Alberto Manguel - Completed April 5, 2025
The City and Its Uncertain Walls by Haruki Murakami - Completed May 17, 2025
The Glassblower by Victoria Goddard - Completed May 3, 2025
Mother London by Michael Moorcock - Shared read with Peggy and Karen DNF
The Weaver of the Middle Desert by Victoria Goddard - Completed June 17, 2025
Stargazy Pie by Victoria Goddard - Completed July 4, 2025
Stone Speaks to Stone by Victoria Goddard - Completed August 1, 2025
The Love Songs of W.E.B. Du Bois by Honoree Fanonne Jeffers - Shared read with Mark, Ellen, Beth, Benita, Kristel, Paul, Caroline, and Marianne in September
Bee Sting Cake by Victoria Goddard - September with Mary
The Adventures of Kavalier & Clay by Michael Chabon - Shared read with Mark in December

Black Studies Reading
1. Madness: Race and Insanity in a Jim Crow Asylum by Antonia Hylton - Completed January 9, 2025
2. Born a Crime by Trevor Noah Completed February 8, 2025
3. Stride Toward Freedom: The Montgomery Story by Martin Luther King, Jr. Completed April 26, 2025
4. Freedom's Daughters by Lynne Olson Completed May 28, 2025
5. The Lost Eleven by Denise George and Robert Child Completed June 25, 2025
6. Beneath a Ruthless Sun by Gilbert King Completed July 17, 2025
7. Toms, Coons, Mulattoes, Mammies, and Bucks by Donald Bogle - Completed August 16, 2025

Jewish Studies Reading
1. Farewell Espana by Howard M. Sachar - Completed January 18, 2025
2. Time's Echo: The Second World War, The Holocaust, and The Music of Remembrance by Jeremy Eichler - Completed January 24, 2025
3. The Lost: A Search for Six of Six Million by Daniel Mendelsohn - Completed March 29, 2025
4. What I Wish My Christian Friends Knew About Judaism by Robert Schoen - Completed April 1, 2025
5. Prince of the Press: How One Collector Built History's Most Enduring and Remarkable Jewish Library by Joshua Teplitsky - Completed May 7, 2025
6. There Once Was a World by Yaffa Eliach - Completed May 21, 2025
7. Among the Righteous by Robert Satloff - Completed June 9, 2025
8. We Remember with Reverence and Love by Hasia R. Diner - Completed July 24, 2025
9. A Cat in the Ghetto: Stories by Rachmil Bryks - Completed August 4, 2025

The American Authors Challenge - This is one that I dip into and out of as the case may be
January A Sudden Light by Garth Stein - Completed January 11, 2025
February Mornings in Jenin by Susan Abulhawa - Completed February 26, 2025
March Wish You Were Here by Stewart O'Nan - Completed March 25, 2025
April Mountain Path by Harriette Simpson Arnow - Completed April 17, 2025
May Across the Wide Missouri by Bernard DeVoto - Completed May 5, 2025
June The Free by Willy Vlautin - Completed June 18, 2025
July The Winter Lodge by Susan Wiggs - Completed July 19, 2025
August American Sherlock by Kate Winkler Dawson - Completed August 28, 2025

The British Authors Challenge - Same as the American Authors Challenge
January Theatre by W. Somerset Maugham - Completed January 13, 2025
February Children of Time by Adrian Tchaikovsky - Completed February 20, 2025
March My Family and Other Animals by Gerald Durrell - Completed March 12, 2025
April The Children of Men by P. D. James - Completed April 23, 2025
May Staying On by Paul Scott - Completed June 11, 2025
July I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith - Completed July 8, 2025
July Titus Groan by Mervyn Peake - Completed July 11, 2025
August Some Desperate Glory by Emily Tesh - Completed August 13, 2025

Paul's Grand Tour Challenge

JANUARY
Middlemarch by George Eliot - Completed January 25, 2025

FEBRUARY
Kristin Lavransdatter by Sigrid Undset - Completed February 18, 2025

MARCH
Embers by Sandor Marai - Completed March 3, 2025

APRIL
The Wildcat Behind Glass by Alki Zei - Completed April 11, 2025

MAY
Enemies: A Love Story by Isaac Bashevis Singer - Completed May 16, 2025

JUNE
Metamorphoses by Ovid - Completed June 26, 2025

JULY
Fearless by Cornelia Funke - Completed July 5, 2025

AUGUST
War and Turpentine by Stefan Hertmans - Completed August 24, 2025

SEPTEMBER
A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles

The “Read More Sci-Fi” Challenge - using the Esquire list found here (https://www.esquire.com/entertainment/books/g39358054/best-sci-fi-books/) - which has now been expanded - and the book Science Fiction, The 101 Best Novels, 1985-2010 by Damien Broderick and Paul di Filippo as guides. Also adding in Hugo & Nebula Award winners and nominees.
1. The Steerswoman by Rosemary Kirstein - Completed January 15, 2025 (from the book)
2. Children of Time by Adrian Tchaikovsky - Completed February 20, 2025 (number 54 on the Esquire list)
3. Solaris by Stanislaw Lem - Completed February 23, 2025 (number 53 on the Esquire list)
4. The Children of Men by P. D. James - Completed April 23, 2025 (number 36 on the Esquire list)
5. The Speed of Dark by Elizabeth Moon - Completed April 24, 2025 (Nebula Award Winner, 2004)
6. The Spare Man by Mary Robinette Kowal - Completed May 17, 2025 (Nominated for a Hugo Award, 2023)
7. Radio Free Albemuth by Philip K. Dick - Completed June 9, 2025 (from the book)
8. Doomsday Book by Connie Willis - Completed June 29, 2025 (Won both the Hugo and Nebula Awards)
9. Cyteen by C. J. Cherryh - Completed July 2, 2025 (from the book)
10. Some Desperate Glory by Emily Tesh - Completed August 13, 2025 (Won the Hugo Award for Best Novel, 2024)

Monthly Nonfiction Challenges - I try to read at least 100 nonfiction books a year and this challenge is instrumental in helping me achieve that goal. In 2024, I was able to read 133 nonfiction books.
January Pearl Buck in China by Hilary Spurling - Completed January 21, 2025
January Time's Echo: The Second World War, The Holocaust, and The Music of Remembrance by Jeremy Eichler - Completed January 24, 2025
January Atlas of Vanishing Places by Travis Elborough - Completed January 24, 2025
March In the Enemy's House by Howard Blum - Completed March 28, 2025
April The Age of Revolution, 1789-1848 by E. J. Hobsbawm - Completed April 4, 2025
June The Storm of the Century by Al Roker - Completed June 4, 2025
July Blind White Fish in Persia by Anthony Smith - Completed July 16, 2025
August Toms, Coons, Mulattoes, Mammies, and Bucks by Donald Bogle - Completed August 16, 2025

Series Reading - I will post these as I read them:

The In Death series by J.D. Robb
Thankless in Death - Completed January 27, 2025
Bonded in Death - Completed February 9, 2025
Concealed in Death - Completed March 4, 2025
Festive in Death - Completed March 11, 2025
Obsession in Death - Completed March 18, 2025
Devoted in Death - Completed June 4, 2025
Apprentice in Death - Completed July 19, 2025
Echoes in Death - Completed July 31, 2025
Secrets in Death -

The St. Mary’s books by Jodi Taylor
And the Rest is History - Completed March 8, 2025
An Argumentation of Historians - Completed July 10, 2025
Hope for the Best

The Decker/Lazarus series by Faye Kellerman
Justice - Completed March 16, 2025
Prayers for the Dead -

The Three Pines series by Louise Penny
The Hangman - Completed March 21, 2025
A Trick of the Light - Completed April 14, 2025
The Beautiful Mystery - Completed June 16, 2025
How the Light Gets In -

The Maisie Dobbs series by Jacqueline Winspear
Among the Mad - Completed February 27, 2025
The Mapping of Love and Death - Completed March 16, 2025
A Lesson in Secrets - Completed August 29, 2025
Elegy for Eddie

The Jackson Brodie series - Completed August 6, 2025 by Kate Atkinson
When Will There Be Good News? - Completed June 29, 2025
Started Early, Took My Dog - Completed July 23, 2025
Big Sky - Completed August 22, 2025

The Shetland Series by Ann Cleeves
Blue Lightning - Completed January 18, 2025
Dead Water - Completed March 20, 2025
Thin Air -

The Wayfarers Series by Becky Chambers
A Closed and Common Orbit - Completed May 27, 2025
Record of a Spaceborn Few

The Rivers of London Series by Ben Aaronovitch
Rivers of London aka Midnight Riot - Completed August 12, 2025
Moon Over Soho

Harlem Renaissance Reading (as an adjunct to my Black Studies reading):
1. My Soul's High Song: The Collected Writings of Countee Cullen edited by Gerald Early - Completed January 7, 2025
2. The Harlem Renaissance Remembered: Essays Edited with a Memoir by Arna Bontemps Completed February 12, 2025
3. Harlem Rhapsody by Victoria Christopher Murray Completed March 5, 2025
4. The Novels of the Harlem Renaissance: Twelve Black Writers, 1923-1933 by Amritjit Singh Completed April 10, 2025
5. The New Negro edited by Alain Locke - Completed June 19, 2025
6. Hitting a Straight Lick with a Crooked Stick by Zora Neale Hurston - Completed July 9, 2025
7. Harlem Speaks by Cary D. Wintz - Completed August 6, 2025

Louise Erdrich Challenge (featuring the Love Medicine series: https://www.librarything.com/nseries/2972/Love-Medicine)
1. Love Medicine Completed February 15, 2025
2. The Beet Queen Completed April 20, 2025
3. Tracks Completed May 23, 2025
4. The Bingo Palace Completed June 14, 2025
5. Four Souls - Completed July 26, 2025
6. The Last Report on the Miracles at Little No Horse - Completed August 25, 2025
7. The Painted Drum -

The “Lists” Challenges: Reading from the lists, nonfiction and fiction, that are growing rapidly at my local library

Nonfiction:
1. All In by Billie Jean King - Completed January 5, 2025
2. Archaeology of the Bible: The Greatest Discoveries From Genesis to the Roman Era by Jean-Pierre Isbouts - Completed January 19, 2025
3. Sailor and Fiddler by Herman Wouk Completed February 2, 2025
4. Born a Crime by Trevor Noah Completed February 8, 2025
5. Sylvia Beach and the Lost Generation by Noel Riley Fitch Completed March 28, 2025
6. The Bookseller of Florence by Ross King Completed April 15, 2025
7. The Five: The Untold Lives of the Women Killed by Jack the Ripper by Hallie Rubenhold - Completed May 13, 2025
8. Brilliant Blunders by Mario Livio - Completed July 15, 2025

Fiction:
1. Darius the Great Is Not Okay by Adib Khorram Completed February 6, 2025
2. Virgil Wander by Leif Enger - Completed April 1, 2025
3. The Bookshop on the Shore by Jenny Colgan - Completed April 8, 2025
4. Assistant to the Villain by Hannah Nicole Maehrer - Completed May 6, 2025
5. Barkskins by Annie Proulx - Completed July 9, 2025
6. Behold the Dreamers by Imbolo Mbue - Completed August 3, 2025
7. Once Upon a Wardrobe by Patti Callahan Henry - Completed August 13, 2025

Now to load all of the Touchstones. . .

Happy new thread, Stasia.

And have fun among the tombtouchstones!

>12 alcottacre: Thanks, Susan!

Happy New Thread!

Here's the next readathon: https://www.librarything.com/topic/372777

Happy New Thread, Stasia!

Happy new thread Stasia!

Happy New Thread, 🧵, Stasia!

Happy new one, Juana. xx

>15 SilverWolf28: >17 Kristelh: >18 humouress: >19 vancouverdeb: >20 PaulCranswick: Thank you all!

>16 SilverWolf28: I will be in as much as I can be, Silver!

Happy new thread, Stasia!

>22 drneutron: Thank you, Jim!

I am happy to report that reading is going much better for me today than it has for the past 10 days or so. I am really sinking my teeth into Harlem Speaks, which comes with an accompanying CD and for things not on the CD, there is always YouTube, so reading the book has become an immersive experience.

A new thread of manageable (to me) length. Hurrah! I'm always astonished by your charge through the world's stock of books. I would need a decade to trudge what you've listed in posts 2 thru 11. All hail! Or maybe Aw hell. With a smile.

>23 alcottacre: yay!

>24 weird_O: Hey, Bill! Thanks for dropping by while my thread is a manageable length. I completely understand that, lol.

>25 humouress: Yeah really, Nina. About time!

Rosie is now happily ensconced at our house as we received the insurance monies a couple of days ago. I cannot remember whether I posted that or not on the old thread and am too lazy to look.

Happy new one!!

Happy new thread!

Happy new thread, Stasia!

>27 RebaRelishesReading: >28 foggidawn: >29 AMQS: Thank you, Reba, Misty, and Anne!

Happy new thread!

Happy new thread, Stasia!

Glad to hear you finally got the money from your insurance, and hope for no more car troubles or accidents for a good long time now!

I finished Stone Speaks to Stone tonight, as it was so short. I hadn't reviewed it the last time we read it, so wrote up something quick and posted a review. It was good to revisit it, as I'd forgotten much of the details.

Happy new thread, Stasia!

>23 alcottacre: I am very glad to hear that your reading has picked up again. And also that you finally got the insurance money and your car. Having that resolved should certainly help your mood and your reading mojo.

>31 figsfromthistle: Thanks, Anita!

>32 bell7: Thanks, Mary!

I finished Stone Speaks to Stone as well, which I liked better on my re-reading. I will post thoughts in a minute.

>33 atozgrl: Thank you, Irene, on all counts!

Finished tonight:

207 - Stone Speaks to Stone by Victoria Goddard - Novella; Mary and I are currently reading through the Greenwing & Dart series in preparation for new books coming out soon and this is book 1.5 in the series. This short novella fills in the blanks about the experiences of Jemis' father, Jakory. One thing that struck me on this reading is how much Jakory's love of his son - and the few glimpses we have of young Jemis - come through, just as Jemis' love for his largely absent father comes through in the first book of the series. As I remarked above to Mary, I enjoyed the book better on this second reading; Recommended (4 stars) Mine

"He touched the book, pressed it to his heart. Thought again of his son, asking question after question, learning to read."

Happy Saturday, Stasia. Happy New Thread. I hope your August is off to a fine, healthy start. 🤞🤞

Happy new thread, Stasia. Wishing you a lovely weekend!

Like a long distance runner breaking free for the finish line. Happy reading in August! Glad the insurance money came through.

>36 msf59: The reading is going better anyway, Mark. Harlem Speaks as I mentioned above has turned into an immersive experience. Yesterday I also started Behold the Dreamers a book Richard recommended a while back and am finding it to be very good.

>37 MickyFine: Thanks, Micky! Same to you.

>38 Kristelh: Thank you, Kristel!

Enjoy the weekend, Stasia and glad the insurance money came through.

>40 vancouverdeb: Thanks so much, Deborah!

Today is my traditional 'day off' technology which is rather ironic today. Rosie, the new-to-us car, did not come with a nav unit, so we bought a stand alone Garmin unit and Kerry wants to get both it and the Bluetooth set up today.

I hope everyone has a lovely Sunday!

Happy new thread, Stasia. I hope you are feeling better and your book funk is slipping away.

>43 Familyhistorian: Thanks, Meg!

Finished this evening:

208 - Behold the Dreamers by Imbolo Mbue - This was a recommendation from Richard a while back (no idea how long ago!) and I am so glad that I finally got to it. The book rings so true in today's political climate, with its examination of what it is like to be an immigrant to America, especially if you are unable to deal with the machinations of getting a green card and all that entails. Jende Jonga is just such a person - someone who is trusting in his lawyer to deal with immigration. Meanwhile his wife, Neni, has a student visa as she is studying to be a pharmacist. Both of them have rose-colored glasses on at the beginning of the book. Jende goes to work for a man who works for Lehman Brothers, and then the world falls to pieces, as Jende loses his good job. Cracks start appearing everywhere in their lives - and they have to decide whether pursuing the American dream is worth it after all. I thought this book was terrific. The characters of Jende, Neni, the Edwards, et al rang true; Highly Recommended (4.5 stars) Library Book

----- a quick fly-by, Stasia. I'm glad to hear that August is beginning as an improvement over July. It's time!

Hmph. I see that you mention Linda's name in your June travel and Joe and Mark for this month's. You didn't forget who you saw in March, did you? *sigh*

>46 LizzieD: Things are improving slowly (way too slowly for me) but surely, Peggy!

I would never forget who I saw in March, Peggy. You and Karen are definitely unforgettable!

*sigh* Another new thread, Stasia. Must be nice to have people come visit you. *mournful Stasialess sigh*

>48 richardderus: Yeah, because no one ever visits you, right, mister 100 threads and counting. . .

((Hugs)) and **smooches**

Finished tonight:

209 - A Cat in the Ghetto: Stories by Rachmil Bryks - Short Stories; This book was mentioned in one of my recent reads, We Remember with Reverence and Love, as the author Hasia R. Diner, talks about authors who wrote about the Holocaust almost immediately after liberation of the concentration camps in 1945. Bryks was one such writer and he began writing both short stories and poetry about the Holocaust as he was working with YIVO after the war had ended. This book contains 4 of his short stories and 1 of his poems. The longest story in the book is right at about 80 pages long. Bryks tells his stories with very dry, fatalistic humor - I kind of thought of it as the kind of humor that police officers, doctors, and coroners have to have in order to carry on with their jobs; Recommended (4 stars) Mine

>49 alcottacre: I'm my own most frequent visitor, posting my angry angsty growls.

Not like you, who hear from us all, smoochling.

>45 alcottacre: Happy Tuesday, Stasia. Well, now it looks like I should get to Behold the Dreamers. I also missed it the first time around.

>51 richardderus: Well, I visit you as I can, Richard, which these days is not nearly often enough. ((Hugs)) and **smooches**

>52 msf59: Mark, be sure and check out Richard's excellent review of the book. He liked it marginally better than I did, giving it 5 stars to my 4.5, and he gives a great idea of how the book reads.

OK, people I need help with a problem. I want to do a challenge next year based on American Ethnic Writers and Bibliophile: Diverse Spines, using them as my references, but I need a name for the challenge. I thought of calling it 'Marginalized Writers' but I honestly hate the term 'marginalized.' It seems like it makes the writers not important or that they have nothing to say.

Thoughts? Ideas?

>54 alcottacre: - "Marginalized" indicates that they have been treated as such, not that they are (which would be "marginal").

>54 alcottacre: Building blocks?
Building bridges?
Diversity? Diversities?

>55 katiekrug: You are entirely correct, Katie. I guess I just never thought of it that way.

>56 humouress: Good ideas, Nina! I really like the "Building Bridges" idea since that is what I am trying to do - build bridges from the way I used to think to the way I am starting to think trying to start thinking.

>54 alcottacre: Eclectic Eminence? Heterogeneous History?

>58 ReneeMarie: More great suggestions!! Thanks, ReneeMarie!

I have a DNF tonight for the first time in a while, Behold the Monster by Jillian Lauren. I did not care for the writing style at all.

A DNF, well, I hope your next read is much better, Stasia.

>61 vancouverdeb: Thanks, Deborah. It has been!

Finished this morning:

210 - Harlem Speaks edited by Cary D. Wintz - Nonfiction; This is one of the books that helped get me out of my book funk, largely because of the audio CD that is included with the book, making the reading that much more immersive. As with many books with multiple essayists, there are chapters that are better than others but overall I very much enjoyed this read (although I do question the inclusion of a couple of the people in a book on the Harlem Renaissance). I have looked at the Harlem Renaissance strictly as a literary movement, but it was so much more than that - besides poetry and fiction, it included music and art. The essays in the book are on the artists themselves and the relation that they had to the Harlem Renaissance; Recommended (4 stars) Library Book

"There would be no common literary style or political ideology associated with the Harlem Renaissance. It was far more an identity than an ideology or a literary or artistic school. What united participants was their sense of taking part in a common endeavor and their commitment to giving artistic expression to the African American experience."

Happy Wednesday, Stasia. I will have to check out Richard's review but you pretty much sold me on it.

Our Cubbies have been playing AWFUL baseball. I hope they turn this thing around soon. WTH?

>64 msf59: I told Kerry yesterday that the Cubs were letting the season slip away from them. They had the hardest schedule in baseball before the break and the easiest after it and they are not taking advantage of it!

Maybe we will bring them some luck - although they need it long before - when we go to watch them play!

I hope you have a wonderful Wednesday!

Hi Stasia, and happy new thread. Happy Wednesday, too.

From your last thread, so glad you got a ‘new to you’ 2017 Nissan Sentra SV. I’m also sorry that you were in a book funk and life funk.

It sounds like things are more on track with you. I hope Kerry continues to improve and you are out of both funks.

>54 alcottacre: >55 katiekrug: I tumbled terms in my head yesterday, trying to come up with a snappy suggestion or two. I did have D.E.I. in play, and diversity too. Is "Pushed to the Margins" an accurate articulation of your endeavor?

Unjustly Remaindered???

HI, (((((STASIA)))))! Thank you for visiting. I miss you and am glad when things look up for you. AND, Chicago is there waiting for you!

Today I passed a car accident , not a bad one , but enough to get an ambulance and fire truck and the police attending. Even though the cars didn't look badly damaged, I prayed for all involved, since you and I know and many other know that even those smaller accidents can really result in pain and heartache. I'm sorry your library doesn't carry any of the Booker titles, so far at least.

I do hope that your life and book funks (and Kerry's) will be banished post haste.

*smoochiesmoochsmooch*

>66 karenmarie: The book funk is gone. The life funk continues. . .

>67 weird_O: I am not sure, Bill. I will have to think on it.

>68 LizzieD: Yeah, Chicago cannot come soon enough, Peggy. Thanks for the suggestion! I will have to take it under advisement :)

>69 vancouverdeb: Every time I hear the sirens of an emergency vehicle, I immediately send up prayers. I figure every little bit helps!

Yeah, I am disappointed about the Booker longlist books although not terribly surprised.

>70 PaulCranswick: Thank you, Paul!

>71 richardderus: ((Hugs)) and **smooches** for today, RD!

So, I went to bed early last night - about 8pm - and slept until about 11:30 - and then was up for hours. While I was up, one of my teeth decided it was high time that it broke.

So now I have not only a broken toe on my left foot, but I also have a broken tooth - and I leave for Chicago on the 16th. Geez louise.

OMG Stasia!! I hope this means you're getting all of your bad luck taken care of in one go!!

Here's the next readathon: https://www.librarything.com/topic/372924

>73 alcottacre: Not cool, Universe! (Did I miss something---broken toe? How did that happen?)

>72 alcottacre: I'm glad the book funk is gone. I hope it helps the life funk disappear too.

>73 alcottacre: omigosh!

(ETA >76 laytonwoman3rd: Yes, I was wondering that. I just thought I missed it because I've had to skip ahead in lots of threads to catch up)

Happy Friday, Stasia. Stop breaking stuff, will ya! We want you in tip-top shape and keep that book funk at bay too. Come on Cubbies! We need to beat up on those Cardinals and turn this ship around. 🤞🤞

>73 alcottacre: Oh, no! I missed the broken toe, and now a broken tooth as well? I sure hope you can get everything taken care of before you have to leave. Life funk begone!

Thanks for checking in on me, everyone. I had not mentioned the broken toe because at the time it was a minor irritant. Unfortunately right now it is just one more thing and it is contributing to the black dog. I am pretty much useless at the moment. I do not want to do anything but sleep and hope the world goes away soon. If there is a symptom of clinical depression that I do not have right now, I do not know what it is - and I am mad at myself for being depressed over trivialities.

>80 alcottacre: That's true. A broken toe is just a triviality ;0)

I hope it heals soon.

Stasia, cut yourself some slack. This has been a hell of a year for you and it's barely half over. You've had so much on your plate. Just try to be kind and gentle with yourself. It's what you'd advise anyone else, right?

{{hugs}}

Nibbled to death by ducks! Sometimes it feels that way, but a broken toe HURTS!!!!! Jumping rope when I was about 8, my right Buster Brown came down hard on the 2nd toe of my left foot. I remember how it hurt, and it's strange looking to this day. I agree with Shelley: cut yourself some slack. (I vaguely recall saying this to you in times past - like maybe 50 times!) You are good, and you deal with a LOT of things all at once all the time.
Love you!

OK, in cutting myself some slack, I decided that since I do not feel like reading, I would finish an audiobook tonight (I only had 2 hours and 3 minutes left when I started listening):

211 - Gormenghast by Mervyn Peake - Audiobook; I listened to Titus Groan last month for the BAC and was happy to continue with the trilogy this month; I remarked to Amanda about the fact that Titus Groan seemed like a character study of Gormenghast instead of really being about Titus Groan himself. In this book we learn more about the character of Titus and his immediate family - and of course, Steerpike, the bad guy from the first book. I enjoyed this one more than I enjoyed the first and am hopeful of reading the last book in the trilogy next month; Recommended (4.25 stars) Mine

>81 humouress: Thank you, Nina.

>82 jessibud2: As I continue to prove to myself, I am not very good at cutting myself any amount of slack although I am trying :)

>83 LizzieD: It is not just the broken toe and broken tooth - the IBS continues and the ulnar neuropathy is getting steadily worse. I am just trying to make it through life one day at a time these days. Yes, I know you keep saying it :)

Happy Saturday, Stasia. I hope you can enjoy a book-filled weekend. Our Cubbies...OMG!!!

Sending gentle hugs and hoping there are good things in store for you today. ❤️

Hi Stasia, lots happening over here (toe, tooth, D , reading funk, sleep, IBS, neuropathy). Oh boy! I know, not easy but fingers crossed, it will sort soon. Take care!

*hugs* to you, Stasia, and hope you're able to take it easy and feel better, mentally and physically.

I don't have any clever titles for a challenge for you, but I also like to read books about race and racism and just regular fiction by authors of color, so I'll be following your reading choices with interest.

*smooch* on account

Good morning, Stasia. It is Sunday and a day of technology for you. I am sorry that you're feeling depressed. Take care!

Sunday-off *smooch*

I'll offer a welcome back for when you tune in here Monday morning. I really, really hope for things to STOP HURTING!!!!!!!!

Well, it was an odd weekend for me. I sat around and did a whole lot of nothing. I gave myself permission to not read - other than my audiobooks because I still did my 5 miles of walking a day - for the first time ever, I think. I did not feel like reading anyway, but actually giving myself leave not to do it was healthy for me probably?

I played lots of games, some with Kerry and some just solo, and then sat around and did nothing. Obviously I did my chores and things that have to be done, but other than that, nothing.

Thank you all so much for your concern and dropping by to check on me.

>94 alcottacre: Permission not to do things is key to feeling in control of yourself, your time, and your emotional reality. Brava!

An R&R weekend is very much the order of the days it would seem Juana! I am sure that time will right all ills currently being faced down.

On a positive note, congratulations on the last post by RD being the 2,000th on your threads this year.

What a good one for #2000! I agree with Richard and Paul completely - as you know.

>95 richardderus: >96 PaulCranswick: >97 LizzieD: I felt like I needed to do something. I have Secrets in Death sitting on the secretary in my room and I just kept passing it by because I did not even feel like reading it - a book in my favorite all-time series - because reading was starting to feel like work, which is a definite problem. Now that I have had several "days off" reading, I can come back to it refreshed. Other than audiobooks, I had not read anything since the 8th. It took me over a week to finish up the book of short stories I was reading - and I had not read it since the 6th (until today). When a book that has 12 stories in it takes over a week to finish, I know that there is a real problem, lol.

Thank you all for the encouragement.

Finished tonight:

212 - Round Mountain by Castle Freeman, Jr. - This is such a good collection of short stories. Each story stands alone, but there is definitely an arc to the stories as they are all bound together in the person of Homer and the other people - not to mention the location of Round Mountain (somewhere in Vermont); Recommended (4 stars) Mine

A bookstore that I really want to visit:

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/UnOYwGXHlhk

>98 alcottacre: Eeeek, reading feeling like work would be the end. No!
Granted, sometimes in the middle of a book I find that getting to the end is very close to, if not real, work. But at worst I can then dive into a known favorite, and let familiar friendly words take massage out that kink!

>99 alcottacre: Something about this one rings a faint bell in my head. Was there something about Bookcrossing, or some distribution like that...? Anyway, I'm really glad you liked the experience even though it came at the same time as a slump.

Happy Tuesday, Stasia. I also thought Round Mountain was excellent. I read it way back in 2012. I should look him up and see if he has written anything new. Good luck with those books.

>100 alcottacre: - Where is this magical shop??!! The narrator is British so I thought maybe England. But the guy at the end is American, so??? Did I miss it?

>104 jessibud2: Going by the sign on the door, it's Moon's Rare Bookstore in Utah (though it might actually be a museum).

>105 humouress: - Thanks. Off to google more. :-) If trump ever disappears and I can once again cross the border, that would be a place I'd love to visit. Not gonna happen, though, while he lives and breathes and wreaks havoc.

>106 jessibud2: Hoping you get the chance soon.

>100 alcottacre: Oh, wow. The Hume owned by Adams. Yummy. I don't usually care who owned what, but THAT is really cool.

Didn't see it on the site. So either it's sold, or it was in the owner's personal collection. Not that I woulda, but...

Hi Stasia my dear, a belated Happy New Thread dear friend.

>102 richardderus: According to the back of the book, Richard, it is "a special project of the Concord Free Press, Kodak, and Vermont author Castle Freeman Jr.. The book's proceeds went to Hurricane Irene relief.

>103 msf59: I know he has written other books, Mark, because I took a look when I started this one, but I could not name a single title currently :)

>104 jessibud2: I have no idea of the location of this magical shop! I want to go so badly!!

>105 humouress: Really? I will have to check it out! Thanks, Nina!

>106 jessibud2: >107 ReneeMarie: >108 ReneeMarie: Cool beans! Once Trump goes, Shelley, I expect to see you in the U.S. posthaste!

>109 johnsimpson: Thank you, John!!

Finished this afternoon:

213 - Rivers of London (aka Midnight Riot) by Ben Aaronovitch - Audiobook; The first book in the Rivers of London series and my third read of it, lol. For some reason I keep getting distracted midway through the series, but I am bound and determined to catch up this time around. The story centers around Peter Grant, a police constable (bobby?) in England who runs into a spot of bother when called to a murder scene - he encounters a ghost and from there on, antics ensue. He is transferred to a division which as near as I can tell, has only one other member, and this division is X Files like specializing in the supernatural and abnormal, which Grant gets in spades; Recommended (4 stars) Mine

>80 alcottacre: Oh no! Sorry to hear about the broken toe. Quite frustrating. Sending you many healing vibes and hugs your way. One day at a time :)

I'm glad to see that you're reading again. I am distracted from Aaronovitch too, I'm sorry to say. I trust that one day I'll get back. One of my lifelong friends sent a meme by text yesterday that said, "I fully intend to read all those books I've bought, and I'm on track to finish them by my 592nd birthday." That's me. Yesterday I got two more, started one of them, and will indulge in Fugitive Telemetry (which I've been hoarding) before getting to the second. Fun and games! Long may we all continue!!!!!

>112 figsfromthistle: Thanks, Anita!

>113 LizzieD: I am never allowed to die, Peggy, based on the size of the BlackHole (currently 16,000+ books and counting) - as if I have any choice in the matter.

I have a couple books showing up today at some point and am firmly blaming Nina on their purchase, lol.

Long may we all continue!!!!! From your lips to God's ears!

I can't help but wonder why there's no TV show of Rivers of London. Seems like a perfect series to make a series from.

Wednesday orisons!

Yesterday was Ark Nova/Meet up day with Beth and Catey. Then Kerry and I playing games. I spent about 4 hours doing nothing but gaming yesterday. It was great!

Today is normal - at least for me, but tomorrow dentistry ensues. I have to have 2 teeth extracted and am getting a temporary partial. Ouch.

As far as reading goes, I am currently listening to Wordslut by Amanda Montell, a recent recommendation by Mary (bell7). On the reading front, I have two library books that I have to finish before I head out of town, Some Desperate Glory, which I should be finishing today, and Once Upon a Wardrobe. I am also currently reading Foreign Correspondence and Toms, Coons, Mulattoes, Mammies, and Bucks. I am hoping to start The Inheritance of Desire tonight.

I hope you all have a wonderful Wednesday!

Finished this afternoon:

214 - Some Desperate Glory by Emily Tesh - I have had the privilege of reading 2 good debut novels in August, Behold the Dreamers by Imbolo Mbue which won the PEN/Faulkner Award several years ago, and this one which won the 2024 Hugo Award for Best Novel. Interestingly enough, both books deal with the subject of loss: Behold the Dreamers approaches it in the good old USA and this book approaches it in a space opera. We discover Gaea, a space station built to house humanity after Earth is destroyed. The inhabitants of Gaea are never allowed to forget that fact - their entire lives are built on destroying those who destroyed Earth. Among those inhabitants is Kyr and her twin brother, Magnus, and the book is really their story. This is a true space opera in the fact that there is a lot that happens here - deception, murder, suicide, coming out, destruction and self-destruction. Not to mention time slips. You get the picture. I could tell you what all goes on but it would take a novel to do that; Recommended (4 stars) Library Book

BTW - Kyr, the lead character, is not very likable at times. I ended up liking her anyway :)

Also, thanks to Amanda for choosing Emily Tesh as an author for the British Author Challenge or I might never have gotten to this book!

I read Emily Tesh's first book. It was a novella published by Tordotcom. Silver in the Wood and thought it was great fun. I haven't read any more of her books since then, so I added this novel to my equally huge TBR list.

>117 alcottacre: Tesh is on my list of authors to get to. It's quite a long list...

>118 benitastrnad: I will be curious to see what you think of it when you have read Some Desperate Glory, Benita. I will have to see if I can find Silver in the Wood.

>119 ReneeMarie: I understand all about long lists, ReneeMarie. That is how the BlackHole started - as an extremely long list.

Silver in the Wood is very good, a quick read. I also read Some Desperate Glory and I agree that Kyr isn’t always likable but the author does make her one you end up cheering for.

>117 alcottacre: Some Desperate Glory would not have been my pick for last year's Hugo. I liked it well enough but not so much as half a dozen others. When I look the nominees I liked all but Starter Villain more, and of 2023 books I thought Chain Gang All-Stars, though I didn't enjoy it as much as Translation State or Witch King should have won the prize.

>121 Kristelh: Thanks for the input on Silver in the Wood, Kristel. I am definitely going to have to track down a copy!

>122 quondame: I will have to look at the other Hugo nominees, Susan. I have not paid a lot of attention to anything other than the winners and even then I only look now and again. Thanks for bringing Translation Slate and Witch King to my attention. I had not ever heard of those two, I do not think.

Finished tonight:

215 - Once Upon a Wardrobe by Patti Callahan - A huge thanks to Anita for her recommendation of this one! I freely admit to being predisposed to love this book. After all, I have been reading The Chronicles of Narnia since childhood and I appreciate so much more of C. S. Lewis' work as an adult including such books as The Screwtape Letters. However, I was not prepared for how well Callahan told this story within a story. Douglas Gresham, C. S. Lewis' stepson, says in his note near the end of the book, "This is not merely a book worth reading, it is a book that will drive us through the difficulties of love and of sorrow, to struggle, gasping onward and upward, our emotions surging with us until we are brought, once again, to love." This story of Megs and her brother, George, who is in search of the magic of Narnia was excellent - as was the story within the story; Highly Recommended (4.5 stars) Library Book

". . .Because by now he (Jack) understood that all books worth loving were worth rereading over and over."

Amen to that!

>113 LizzieD: 🤣🤣🤣

>114 alcottacre: Wait ... what?!

>116 alcottacre: Good luck with the dentist.

>118 benitastrnad: Ooh, I have that one ... somewhere.

>124 alcottacre: Hmm. Maybe.

ETA - what was the story of the broken toe?

>125 humouress: Yep, all your fault that I bought 2 books - one of which is not even out until October - in the Flame Tree Collections.

I ran into a door when I was walking and broke my toe. It does not sound like much but when I walk, I WALK. I go about 3 miles an hour and running into a door hurts.

Off to the dentist in 15 minutes. Wish me luck! Or the dentist! One or the other! Or both!

Sorry about your toe (that does sound painful) and good luck with the dentist. (he or she can fend for themselves lol)

I wish you and your dentist a very successful session - I'm pretty sure it's happening now even as I type. I hope that you will let Kerry baby you for the rest of the day. That sounds like a lot to put up with.

>126 alcottacre: I'll take that.

Oof on the toe.

>128 RebaRelishesReading: >129 LizzieD: >130 humouress: I survived the dentist - or the dentist survived me depending on your POV. I slept a lot this afternoon, primarily due to only sleeping 30 minutes last night. I also finished a book, but am too tired to write up a review tonight:

216 - Foreign Correspondence by Geraldine Brooks - Nonfiction; This is a reread for me of the very first book by Brooks that I ever read; Recommended (4 stars) Mine

>131 alcottacre: - Phew, re the dentist and the sleep. I loved that book by Brooks. I have read most others by her though not all.

Here's the next readathon https://www.librarything.com/topic/373094

>132 jessibud2: I was introduced to Geraldine Brooks through her husband, Tony Horwitz, whose books I read first. I know for sure that I have not read all of her books because I have not yet read Caleb's Crossing and I am sure that there are others. I am glad to have found another fan of Foreign Correspondence, Shelley!

>133 SilverWolf28: Unfortunately I cannot take part this weekend or next, Silver, due to traveling.

Beth is now in-house! She got here about 3 hours ago. I still need to pack yet. Chicago is now firmly in our sights though!

>117 alcottacre: This one is on my list already... someday, perhaps, I will read it. I will take some comfort in that my ever-growing TBR list is "only" a quarter the size of your Black Hole hehe

Have a great time in Chicago. You've had a busy summer. Hope you'll have time to relax.

>135 alcottacre: Go and pack, woman!

>135 alcottacre: Have an excellent time, Stasia!

Have a great time in Chicago, Stasia!

Have a wonderful time in Chicago, Stasia! No more breaking anything unless it's something fun.

Have a great time in Chicago, Stasia!

Enjoy your trip!

Ooooo, Chicago. It's a great city. Been there two or three times in my life and basically saw none of it. There are a lot of enchanting LT members in that area. You could look 'em up, have a meetup. That would be something. Have a swell time.

We arrived after 3am this morning and I am walking around on less than 4 hours sleep. It was absolutely pouring rain when we finally made it to Chicago, lol.

I finished a book while traveling and will report on it later. Lunch is on the way! Thank you all for your good thoughts and wishes!

Glad you made it safely. How long will you be gone and do you have any specifics planned?

>146 Kristelh: We will be heading home next Saturday. We have quite a few things planned but the biggest is the meet up with Mark and Joe at the Cubs game on Thursday!

Finished yesterday:

217 - Toms, Coons, Mulattoes, Mammies, and Bucks by Donald Bogle - Nonfiction; I read the fifth edition of this book which was originally published in 1973 and updated in 1989, 1994, 2001, and lastly 2016. The subtitle of the book is "An Interpretive History of Blacks in American Films," and Bogle goes all the way back to the beginning of the American film industry. Bogle looks not only at films but the actors who starred in them and the way that the African American actors were portrayed in film. Yes, progress has been made in the way that the portraiture is but there is much more that can be done - they are people and in a lot of cases, the backstory and acceptance of their race does matter, but somehow is never acknowledged. My biggest problem with the book is that it is written to make a point, but Bogle on several occasions makes snarky remarks that completely takes away from the point he is trying to make and takes me as the reader out of the narrative. If you have any interest in the history of film though, I would recommend this one as a good place to start; Recommended (4 stars) Mine

"In the 1990s, critics loved to talk about black actors who managed to 'transcend' race. . .Yet those same critics never seemed to comment on white actors transcending their race."

>147 alcottacre:, How fun. I hope they win. It's always more fun if they win!!!

I'm not sure how I missed your departure and arrival, but I was somehow away after the teeth!

I hope you're feeling very well and that you are seeing sights and having a marvelous time! You're meeting Mark and Joe at a Cubs' game - WOW!!!!!

>150 LizzieD: I actually got a decent night's sleep last night, Peggy - probably from sheer exhaustion - so a good start to today. We are off to Trader Joe's here shortly. We went yesterday and managed to forget stuff.

Mark, Joe, and my family are all meeting up on the Cubs game on Thursday. If it decides to rain here I am not going to be happy, lol.

I had you down for joining us with The Love Songs of W.E.B. DuBois, in September. I am starting it this week, due to a crazy busy schedule next month. I hope that is okay.

When do you take off for Chi-town? We are getting excited.

>152 msf59: Mark, we arrived in Chicago about 3am Sunday morning, lol. We spent most of Sunday and Monday just resting. We were supposed to go to the zoo today but it did not happen.

I will be joining in the group read, but I will not be starting until next month due to a crazy busy schedule this month :)

Finished tonight:

218 - The Inheritance of Loss by Kiran Desai - This book has been in the BlackHole for a while now and although I am glad to have finally read it, I am extremely disappointed in the book itself. The title is very appropriate to the book - in the end, everyone loses something whether it is just the dog, their significant other, respect, belongings, etc. The first part of the book I found took a while to get through - it just dragged on and on for me - and by the time I got to the second part of the book, which did move along slightly faster, I found my thoughts drifting to things other than the book (although that could be because of traveling, lol). It did not help that I really did not care overmuch for any of the characters in the book and while Desai does inject humor into the book (of the ironic variety) the loss of the title weighs the book down, but that could have been the point of the whole thing all along; Guardedly Recommended (3.5 stars) Mine - Kindle

"This was how history moved, the quick burn, and in an incoherence, the leaping both backward and forward, swallowing the young into old hate. The space between life and death, in the end, too small to measure."

"Books were making her restless. She was beginning to read, faster, more, until she was inside the narrative inside her, the pages going by so fast, her heart in her chest - she couldn't stop."

>154 alcottacre: "Books were making her restless. She was beginning to read, faster, more, until she was inside the narrative inside her, the pages going by so fast, her heart in her chest - she couldn't stop."

Switch genders and that's me; probably everyone on LT, honestly. I'd feel the whole read was justified by discovering that one insight. Still ain't a-readin' it though. Having fun in Chicagoland, smoochling?

>154 alcottacre: Hmmm. I have a copy, but your review moves it farther onto the plain that surrounds Mt. Bookpile. I agree with Richard though. That's a great couple of sentences. I find when I'm reading like that that I dream about the book, and I'm there too. I don't think I ever do anything significant in my dreams, but I walk where the characters walk and watch them interact.

Hope today is SO MUCH FUN FOR YOU ALL!!!!!!

>155 richardderus: I agree that it is probably everyone on LT, Richard.

Chicago is a blast! Lots of stuff to do and a very vibrant neighborhood in which we are currently ensconced. Beth and I are walking to a local bookstore tomorrow.

>156 LizzieD: There is some wonderful prose in the book, Peggy. The author can certainly write - she is on the Booker Longlist right now - but writing beautiful sentences does not a wonderful book make, IMHO.

Aside from a minor disappointment, IT WAS!

Finished tonight:

219 - Wordslut by Amanda Montell - Nonfiction; Mary recently recommended this book and since I could borrow it from Hoopla, I did. Mary's wonderful review of the book is here: https://www.librarything.com/work/22702769/reviews/291382205. Now, I have to say that despite my interest in the subject matter, I found the road hard going at first due to my personal aversion to profanity, of which there is a lot in this book. However, it is not gratuitous profanity, it is profanity with a point for the most part. The subtitle of the book is "A Feminist Guide to Taking Back the English Language," that is, taking back the words aimed at women that are baseless at best and insulting at worst. She also addresses the problems that gay people find themselves fighting in regarding to language as well. She mentioned journalist David Thorpe and his 'Do I Sound Gay?' project - I actually went out to YouTube and watched a video of Thorpe talking about it and I have no idea if he sounds gay or not since I really do not know how someone sounds gay, either male or female. There is a lot to digest in this book and I admit that for someone like me, some of it is difficult: I never could use the pronoun ze correctly - not that I do not want to, I am just unsure of how?; Recommended (4 stars) Hoopla Digital

I hope to read the new book by Kiran Desai when it comes out in December, Stasia. I'm glad you enjoyed The Inheritance of Loss.

Sounds like you're having a blast!

>158 alcottacre: A solid recommendation for the Wordslut! Thanks for putting it on my radar.

Enjoy the trip. *smooch*

Don't forget to post pictures of the LT meet-up. And have a good time with the Chicago gang.

Absolutely give us pictures!!!! Let one somebody else take a picture with you in it, please. (All I can do is ask.) I'll bet Chicago bookstores are wonderful!!!

>159 vancouverdeb: I hope the new Kiran Desai book is worth the wait, Deborah!

>160 humouress: We are, Nina!

>161 richardderus: I hope you enjoy it if and when you get a chance to read Wordslut, Richard!

((Hugs)) and **smooches** and thanks

>162 benitastrnad: We are meeting up tomorrow to head to the Cubs game. I am sure we will have a great time together - unless the Cubs lose, that is.

>163 LizzieD: They can take a picture with me in it. That does not mean it will show up on LT though.

Roscoe Books certainly is wonderful (full list of the books I bought are below). Beth bought 6 books and I bought 5.

Books I purchased today at Roscoe Books:

In the Time of Butterflies by Julia Alvarez - for my Building Bridges challenge, 2026

Uncomfortable Conversations with a Jew by Emmanuel Acho and Noa Tishby - I read and loved Acho's Uncomfortable Conversations with a Black Man last year; for my Jewish Studies reading

There's Always This Year by Hanif Abdurraqib - There was a great review of this book posted at the bookstore and once I checked LT, I knew I would be buying it despite the fact that I am not really a basketball fan

The Art Thief by Michael Finkel - one of those books that has been in the BlackHole forever

Antisemitism in America: A Warning by Chuck Schumer - For my Jewish Studies reading

Have a fabulous time tomorrow, Stasia!!

What Shelley said, Stasia. Good book haul! So glad you enjoyed our favorite neighborhood bookstore. The owner does the reviews you see there on the shelves. She’s an impressive reader and very nice.

See you tomorrow!

Nice book haul up there, Stasia. Glad you enjoyed the local bookstore. Looking forward to tomorrow. Long time coming...😀

>166 jessibud2: Thanks, Shelley!

>167 jnwelch: Looking forward to it, Joe! Yeah, if I shopped at that bookstore all the time, I would be bankrupt shortly.

>168 msf59: Thanks, Mark. Yeah, it is a long time coming, isn't it?

>158 alcottacre: Yay! Glad to see you generally enjoyed it. She is pretty swear-y but it fits the book and her narration, I think. Her other books Cultish and The Age of Magical Overthinking are both on my TBR list and I'm going to try to get to them soon-ish.

Glad to hear your Chicago trip is going well. Enjoy your meetup!

>170 bell7: It does fit the book and her narration, Mary. I agree with that entirely. I am especially interested in her The Age of Magical Overthinking as I tend to do that, lol.

Meet up is happening today!

Heading off to my first ever Cubs game today along with Kerry, Beth, and oh yeah, Joe and Mark :)

I have been a Cubs fan for almost 50 years so to say that I am excited to visit Wrigley Field for the first time is probably beyond an understatement, if there is such a thing!

Here's the next readathon: https://www.librarything.com/topic/373266

Today is our last full day in Chicago. We had a blast yesterday with Mark and Joe at the Cubs game, despite the fact that the Cubbies lost. We are meeting up for breakfast this morning and then we are heading to the Chicago Botanic Garden this afternoon.

I am hoping to finish both Big Sky and War & Turpentine, which I am really liking, at some point today but I have to be in bed early tonight - tomorrow is going to be a very long day - so we will see.

I hope everyone has a fantastic Friday!

>173 SilverWolf28: Sorry, Silver, I cannot make that one.

>174 alcottacre: Those both sound like very good reads, Stasia, so I hope you're enjoying your trip on every front. (Despite the Cubbies letting you down.)

*smooch*

>176 richardderus: Thanks, RD. Yeah, it was a shame about the Cubs.

((Hugs)) and **smooches** back at you

>174 alcottacre: Glad you are having a wonderful time in Chicago! The botanic garden sounds beautiful.

Safe travels back home.

>178 figsfromthistle: Thanks, Anita!

Finished this afternoon:

220 - Big Sky by Kate Atkinson - This is the fifth book in the Jackson Brodie series. In this one, about 10 years have elapsed between it and the previous book. In the last book, Jackson's son Nathan was a precocious 3-year-old. In this book, he is now 13 and being a typical son entering teenagehood. Jackson is 10 years older and feeling all of those 10 years. He is still a private investigator, trailing a guilty husband until he rescues a man bent on self-destruction as he is convinced that he is an utter failure - and now accused of killing his soon-to-be ex-wife. Jackson's rescue of Vince has ramifications, of course. Of the books in the series, this has been my favorite thus far and only one more (to date) remains; Recommended (4 stars) Mine

It was such a good time hanging out with you, Stasia and so nice to meet Kerry and Beth. Hopefully we can meet up again, sometime in our future. Safe travels home.

Hope you sleep just the right amount to get home comfortably and safely, Stasia! Thanks for keeping us in the Chicago Loop.

Sorry the Cubs lost, but glad you had such a great time! Safe travels.

We arrived home about 15 minutes ago. We left Chicago about 6:15 this morning. It has been a long day and we are pretty knackered.

Catey will be heading home tomorrow after her week of housesitting. Beth will be flying home to Arizona on Monday. We will be spending as much time as we can with them over the next couple of days :)

Hi Stasia! Happy Sunday.

>73 alcottacre: Ugh to the broken tooth. I had that earlier this year.

>80 alcottacre: Large things or small things, there’s definitely a snowball effect, at least for me. Wanting to sleep and hope the world goes away is completely understandable.

>85 alcottacre: We are sometimes our own worst enemies, aren’t we?

>95 richardderus: What RD said about >94 alcottacre:.

>100 alcottacre: Oh my. Alexander Hamilton’s Law Ledger!! Jane Austen, Bibles! Tolkien doesn’t do it for me, but pretty much everything else does. And how cool are the brass hands that hold open some of the books? Meetup at Moon's in Provo, UT next year?

>111 alcottacre: Peggy gave this book to me for Christmas last year.

>114 alcottacre: BlackHole of 16K+ books… Beyond my comprehension.

>116 alcottacre: I just downloaded the KindleUnlimited ebook of Wordslut and have made a note to get it for my friend Karen either for her birthday or Christmas.

I hope things are going well for you!

>185 karenmarie: Things are going well for me today, Karen, thanks! It has been a busy day - we saw Beth off today on her way back to Phoenix and then I had a lot of catch up work around the house to do.

Great to see you had a great time with Joe and Mark even though the Cubs lost the game. Have a good rest after your long trip - don't work too hard in the house, Sis. xx

Books finished yesterday and today:

221 - War & Turpentine by Stefan Hertmans - I have owned this book for a couple of years and am glad that the Grand Tour Challenge finally spurred me to get it read! I enjoyed this novel tremendously with its jumps between the narrator's timeline and his grandfather's writing about his own time. Hertmans manages to paint pictures of both timelines, although I will say that the grandfather's pictures in time are exquisite - I can actually see that history as it is unfolding - the descriptions of WWI are outstanding. The book faltered for me a bit in its last bits, but up until that point I was absolutely captivated by it; Recommended (4.25 stars) Mine

222 - The Last Report on the Miracles at Little No Horse by Louise Erdrich - Audiobook; Long trips by car make ideal circumstances for listening to audiobooks, lol. This is a re-read for me as I am making my way through Erdich's Love Medicine series. We meet Father Damien, a Catholic priest, who has been attending his flock at the local church for quite a long time. What his parishioners do not know is that Father Damien is in actuality a woman who used to be a nun; Recommended (4.25 stars) Mine

I hope you will all bear with me as I get caught up both here and in real life!

>187 PaulCranswick: Work hard? Me? Never happens. . .

Thanks, Paul!

Good luck getting caught up on LT and in real life, Stasia. I enjoyed Big Sky very much.

Happy Tuesday, Stasia. I hope you are getting back into the groove back home. Starting the second half of The Love Songs. It has been excellent and I am glad I started it early.

After being away for almost two weeks, I'm getting caught up on LT too. It sure sounds like you had a great trip to Chicago! Sorry the Cubs game went the wrong way. But how wonderful to have another meet-up! Get some rest, and get caught up around here when you can.

>191 vancouverdeb: Thanks, Deborah! Glad to see the love for the Jackson Brodie book.

>192 msf59: I am glad to hear that you are enjoying the book so much. I added it to one of the TIOLI challenges for September so additional incentive to get it read next month :)

>193 atozgrl: I am getting caught up as I can, Irene, both here and in real life. The laundry is seemingly unending. . . I wish you luck in getting caught up too!

Today is my meet up day with Beth and Catey. Even though I just saw both of them in person, it will be good to see them again even if only online.

I am hoping to finish up at least one of my current reads today, Old Baggage by Lissa Evans. I may finish another book as well, but we will see how the day goes.

Your trip to Chicago sounds like it was great, Stasia. Hard to get caught up with regular life, isn’t it?

>195 alcottacre: Can't wait to hear what you thought of that read, Stasia!

Finished this afternoon:

223 - Old Baggage by Lissa Evans - This is one of those books that has been languishing in the BlackHole for years. It was originally recommended to me by James (eyejaybee) who is no longer part of the 75ers, unfortunately. The book introduces us to Mattie (Matilda) Simpkin, a former suffragette, who is at a bit of loose ends in 1928, when the novel begins. She forms a girls club called the Amazons, teaching the girls both physical and intellectual pursuits. However, one day a girl joins up who brings back memories that Mattie struggles to deal with, even as she hopes to make inroads with the girl; Recommended (4 stars) Mine

BTW - The Old Baggage of the title seems to have a double meaning in the book: Simpkina refers to herself by the title early in the book and as the book unfolds, we learn that she is carrying some old baggage. I thought this was kind of clever, but what do I know?

>196 Familyhistorian: Yes, it is, Meg!

>197 richardderus: See my thoughts above, Richard. . .

>194 alcottacre: Ha! I know what you mean about the laundry. We've got a lot after almost two weeks away. But it's slowly getting there.

>200 atozgrl: Yep. It does pile up, doesn't it?

Finished tonight:

224 - Last Trolley from Beethovenstraat by Grete Weil - After owning this novella for a mere 16 years, I have finally gotten it read! The book makes interesting reading n light of Weil's own experiences during WWII - she and her husband move to Holland (as does the main character of the novel, Andreas) and while there, her husband is arrested and sent to a concentration camp in which he is killed (as is Daniel, the boy that Andreas tries desperately to protect). Andreas is a German writer and moves to Holland during the war as he is unable to serve in the army - nor does he want to. While there, he befriends Miep, who is working with the underground, and Daniel, a Jew seeking his protection, which he eventually gives up to work with Miep in the underground. Andreas cannot protect Daniel and after the war, marries Daniel's sister Susanne, almost as a memorial to the dead boy. While I found the book interesting, it lacked just a little something for me; Guardedly Recommended (3.75 stars) Mine

"Mankind - you murderers. Mankind, you murderers for pleasure. Mankind, you who have contrived the belief that murder is permissible, who drape your fellow murderers with medals, pay them with pensions, erect monuments to them, force children to learn their names by heart. . .

Mankind - you murderers. Hopeless."

CFS, I hate you. Enough said.

>203 alcottacre: Hang in there Juana. I have been feeling excessively tired these days myself. The last two days I lasted less than half an hour with a book in bed. Last night I slept for 8 hours which is frankly almost unheard of.

>203 alcottacre: Sending sympathy.

>204 PaulCranswick: I was in bed for almost 14 hours, Paul. I know that this is not as a result of the trip because 1) CFS just feels different and 2) even when I was dead tired after traveling I did not sleep that long. *sigh*

I am glad you got 8 hours in though! You probably really needed it. You hang in there too!

>205 humouress: Thanks, Nina!

I just saw on the Library of Congress website that Geraldine Brooks is going to receive the 2025 Library of Congress prize for American fiction. I never knew that there even was such a thing!

I very much enjoy Brooks' books so if you have not read any, I would highly recommend them to you. My favorite is probably still People of the Book.

>207 alcottacre: I never heard of that either -- but nice to know. I also like Brooks very much. I've read 6 of her books and rated them all 5* except The Secret Chord which I "only" gave 4 1/2*.

>208 RebaRelishesReading: I have yet to read The Secret Chord, Reba, so I am sorry to hear that it was such a disappointment for you :)

Finished this afternoon:

225 - American Sherlock by Kate Winkler Dawson - Nonfiction; Finally got this one down off my shelf to read for the American Authors challenge this month. This book, essentially the biography of Oscar Heinrich and the birth of American forensics, was interesting although a bit repetitive. Dawson looks at the career of Heinrich and the impact he had on criminalistics as in his life, Heinrich was instrumental in submitting his findings in a wide range of disciplines in some 2000 cases. Many of the techniques that he discovered and developed throughout his career are still in use today. If you are interested at all in the history of forensic science, I would consider this book a must read; Recommended (3.75 stars) Mine

"We can still learn so many crucial lessons from the nascent development of forensic sciences. Investigations must start with honest, intelligent officers willing to do good detective work in the field. . . Confessions should not be enough to convict."

Finished tonight:

226 - Backwards & In Heels by Alicia Malone - Nonfiction; Having recently read Toms, Coons, Mulattoes, Mammies, and Bucks by Donald Bogle, a hard look at the way the American film industry has treated black actors through the years, I was prepared for this look at how the industry has treated females since its inception - but I did not realize that it had gone backwards. Malone starts off with, "What if I told you that in the 1900s through to the early 1920s, there were more female filmmakers actively working at the top of Hollywood than there are today?" Personally, I would not have believed it. As in the case of African American and other people of color in Hollywood, there is much to be done for gender representation in the industry. Most of Malone's book is told in snippets - small portraits of the people she is discussing - and I wish that there had been more about fewer number of people, but I understand that she was trying to get as many people included as possible. Good reading and thought provoking at that; Recommended (4 stars) Mine

BTW - this was a gift from my 75ers Secret Santa last year, Benita. Thank you!

"Without different genders, races, sexualities, disabilities, and ages displayed on screen, audiences miss out on experiencing a variety of perspectives and stories which reflect our diverse world."

I do so love ezeekat:

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/ywxmQDpQcH4

>212 alcottacre: I would never stop reading! Of course, pbs and ebooks don't have jackets, so....

>207 alcottacre: Well, I saw your post about this over on the Group Announcements thread and commented, but I thought it was your own thread. So I'm moving my comment from there to here, since it's more appropriate here:

I've still got most of Brooks' books to read yet. I was disappointed in People of the Book. I liked Year of Wonders better.

Here's the Labor Day readathon: https://www.librarything.com/topic/373396

>210 alcottacre: I'm just behind you on American Sherlock, Stasia. >211 alcottacre: The television industry also went backwards on the inclusion of females at the same time according to When Women Invented Television.

>209 alcottacre: I don't think of 4 1/2 stars as a disappointment...just a tick less than the "perfect" score I gave her others.

>213 quondame: There you go! If you read only paperbacks and ebooks, it would not matter, right?

>214 atozgrl: I have a few of hers left to read as well. The one of hers that I was disappointed in was March.

>215 SilverWolf28: Thanks, Silver! I will be able to participate this weekend, but not for the next couple.

>216 Familyhistorian: I will have to see if I can locate a copy of When Women Invented Television, Meg. Thanks for the mention, Meg. I will be curious to see what you think of American Sherlock.

>217 RebaRelishesReading: I did not really think of it as a disappointment either, Reba, I was just having some fun with you :)

So today is part of our monthly gaming marathon. Kerry and I have gotten in a couple of games despite my naps (I have already had 2 today). I also managed to finish an audiobook:

227 - A Lesson in Secrets by Jacqueline Winspear - Audiobook; The second of the 'new to me' books in my read of the Maisie Dobbs series, this book finds Maisie working as a junior lecturer at the behest of Scotland Yard to investigate the doings at a college where the founder, a known pacifist, is suspect. However, when he is murdered, the case takes a different turn. In the meantime, Maisie's friend Sandra is widowed when her husband suffers a terrible accident and Maisie takes her on as a secretary of sorts in her office. For some reason, this book fell just a bit short of the 4-star mark for me. I cannot put my finger on why precisely, only that it did; Guardedly Recommended (3.75 stars) Mine

I have two books yet to finish for TIOLI challenges before the end of the month. Fingers crossed! Back to gaming (and napping as I feel another one coming on. . .*sigh*)

>211 alcottacre: ...and that's exactly how "They" want it...so, well, who cares about what's right, or good for society, or just plain better?

>218 alcottacre: Sorry, Stasia, I should have picked up on that. Duh!!

>221 RebaRelishesReading: No worries, Reba. Nuances and tones of voice are difficult on forums such as this one.

Please pray for my stepdaughter, Felisha. She was diagnosed with COVID this past week and had to go to the emergency room today. She has been admitted to the hospital with pneumonia.

Thank you!

Oh dear. I'm sorry that Felisha is ill enough to need to be admitted. You know I pray. I pray for you too and hope the CFS is going away. It's always something. You know that I think we treat COVID way too cavalierly these days. I have no words for the current Sec. of Health.

I'm happy to know that G. Brooks is getting an award. I like those of hers that I've read very much, but I guess I don't quite love them. I have yet *Caleb* and *Chord*, I think.
I could never read Winspear although I enjoy writers who are far worse, I'm sure.

Off to feed cats!

>223 alcottacre: Oh no! I hope she recovers pronto!

>224 LizzieD: We got word last night that Felisha checked herself out of the hospital, so not sure what is going on with her. Kerry is trying to reach her today, but has not yet been able to connect.

>225 figsfromthistle: Thank you, Anita!

>226 alcottacre:. I hope Kerry can reach her soon. I am sure it is causing worry. Keep us updated. Our thoughts are with you and Kerry.

>223 alcottacre: Oh no. So sorry. Sending her good thoughts.

>227 Kristelh: >228 RebaRelishesReading: No word from Felisha yet although Kerry has left messages for her to call. To say we are concerned is an understatement. Thanks for the good thoughts, ladies!

Finished this evening:

228 - The Sewing Circles of Herat by Christina Lamb - Nonfiction; This is not a book to read if you are depressed because it will make you even more so. Even though this book was published back in 2002, it is still relevant today. The Taliban were pushed out of power in Afghanistan but they are now back in charge. I cannot imagine the lives of the people in Afghanistan either then or now. Lamb paints a brutal picture of what it was like to live there back in the 1990s into the early 2000s and I am pretty sure that things are not any better now with the Taliban back in power as their only mission in life seems to be making everything and everyone else miserable. The Sewing Circles of the misleading title are about the women who secretly read and studied because under the Taliban education for women and girls is forbidden. However, the book only dedicates a minimal amount of space to them so I am not sure why the title? A good, if depressing (and now dated) read; Recommended (4 stars) Mine

" 'My city is in ruins,' he replied. 'But it is not just physical problems we must deal with. Our young have known only war, a man of thirty in my city is illiterate after twenty-three years' war and knows nothing but how to fight. Both with the Russians and the Taliban, hatred and violence became the language and we must reinstil the value of words.' "

>223 alcottacre:, >229 alcottacre: Oh, dear...I hope Felisha is just resting at home with her phone turned off. The anxiety of being out of touch is miserable.

>231 laytonwoman3rd: Yeah, it is. Hopefully we will hear from her soon.

Please keep us posted, Stasia.

>233 LizzieD: I will, Peggy. Kerry tried again tonight to reach her, but so far he has not been successful.

I’ve been praying for you, Kerry and Felisha . I read earlier that you could not get hold of her by phone and that she has covid. I pray all is well with Felisha and Kerry and you are able to contact her soon . Perhaps she is just resting and turned her phone off.

I’ve been praying for you, Kerry and Felisha . I read earlier that you could not get hold of her by phone and that she has covid. I pray all is well with Felisha and Kerry and you are able to contact her soon . Perhaps she is just resting and turned her phone off.

Sorry, double post.

>235 vancouverdeb: >236 vancouverdeb: >237 vancouverdeb: No worries about the double post, Deborah. It happens to me all the time, lol.

Kerry has tried to reach her again today and still no luck. It is getting beyond the worrisome stage. Thank you for your thoughts and prayers.

Finished tonight:

229 - Hana Khan Carries On by Uzma Jalaluddin - This book first came onto my radar when it hit the Canada Reads Longlist in 2023. I will admit that for the first bit of the book I was wondering why as it was reading almost like a heavier Harlequin romance. However, once cousin Rashid, Kawkab Khala, and Afsana Aunty showed up, the book took on a different flavor, one that I appreciated more. The 'us against them' mentality shows up (even in contemporary Canada, I guess - I thought it was more of an American thing) and simply reiterates to me how very wrong it is. I now understand why this made the Canada Reads Longlist and I ended up liking it more than I thought I would when I started the book - even though I could have lived without the romance portion altogether, lol; Recommended (4 stars) Mine

Catey came into town today to surprise Kerry for his birthday - it is on Friday, but she had today, tomorrow, and Tuesday off - so she is one of the reasons I have not been online at all today. Plus, it is my normal 'tech free' Sunday.

I hope everyone is having a lovely day!

Oh, Stasia, such anxiety to not be able to reach her. I hope Kerry was able to enjoy his birthday but it must be hard.

>241 Kristelh: Yeah, it is not fun and we cannot figure out what is going on.

Kerry's birthday is Friday, the 5th - as is Felisha's.

>242 alcottacre: This is all so disturbing! I'll keep you and Kerry and Felisha in my prayers. I surely hope that you can reach her soon.

I'm glad to see you tonight, Stasia. I was about to bother you, but now I'll hold off until I check here tomorrow. Would her mom know about Felisha? I hope you get a good word soon.

Hooray for Catey! What a treat to have her with you!!!

Sending birthday wishes for Kerry and healing wishes for Felisha. I hope you make contact soon.

Sending you good vibrations for September! Happy reading, news from Felisha, and no CFS!

I went to the doctor today worried about my constant state of tiredness and expecting a diagnosis of CFS. Didn't get it and I'm not sure my homely GP would have even heard of it. Prescribed fresh air and more vitamin C. I'm still tired.

Hoping for a happy message from Felisha soon.

Stasia...gotten word yet? I'm with you on the awfulness of no news, not being one of the folk who thinks no news is good news. Sending big hugs!

>243 atozgrl: Thank you, Irene. Catey said she saw a post from Felisha on Facebook saying that she is feeling better. It would still be nice to hear from her directly though.

>244 LizzieD: Yes, it is a treat to have Catey here. She is heading back tomorrow though. Not nearly a long enough visit, but then it never is!

>245 humouress: Thanks, Nina!

>246 Kristelh: I think this may have been a short bout of CFS. We shall see. Thanks, Kristel!

>247 PaulCranswick: Did they check your iron levels, Paul? There are so many things that cause fatigue that I am not surprised if your GP has not heard of CFS. You might also ask to be checked out for Epstein Barr.

>248 RebaRelishesReading: Thanks, Reba!

>249 richardderus: Yeah, I completely understand, Richard. We are of the same mind there. Big hugs are very much appreciated!

We have been enjoying Catey's company both yesterday and today, so I apologize for being out of touch here on LT.

The latest on Felisha is a lone Facebook post that Catey saw saying that Felisha is feeling better, but that is it. Hopefully we will here from her soon!

I hope everyone is having a marvelous Monday!

Sorry to hear about Felisha getting Covid, Stasia, and joining everyone else in hoping you hear from her soon.

Well. Having Catey for even a day or two is very good. I'm also glad that she spotted the fb post from Felisha. Doggone it! I wish she'd return her daddy's call.
I'm glad that you haven't been sleeping through Catey's visit, and I wonder what you're planning for Kerry on Friday.

I have nothing going on here until a haircut Thursday and eye shots Friday. I'm reading a chunkster of a fantasy by Kate Elliott and enjoying it to pieces.

>250 alcottacre: No I am guessing that she didn't know Stasia. She did take a sample of my blood though and is actually a good doctor.

Sorry to hear about Felisha.

>252 bell7: Thank you, Mary!

>253 LizzieD: I wish Felisha would return the calls too, Peggy. It is maddening to say the least. On Friday, Kerry and I will be going to lunch at his favorite restaurant :)

Yay for enjoying a book to pieces!

>254 PaulCranswick: Well, maybe the blood work will produce some help so that you can get treated for whatever is causing the fatigue, Paul.

Thanks.