MarthaJeanne - Books 2026

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year!

Green Mansions I hardly know what rating to give. The earlier part of the book fascinates with such well-written descriptions that you hardly notice that nithing happens. Then things start happening, the descriptions fade away. The actions become dark and the racism that was always there becomes more and more evident. I had totally forgotten this part of the book. Maybe 2* even though I greatly enjoyed the first part of the book.

I thought I would try to stay at two books a week this year. My current nonfiction is SPQR which, so far is at least as good as The Roman Emperor, but is 550 pages. So I chose a highly rated and reviewed fiction book to move things along. Good Material. Now why did this get such good ratings and reviews? Wait a minute, those reviews loved the second half or the ending. Is it worth wading through more of this guy's sad excuse for a life in the hope that it will get better?

I thought I would try to stay at two books a week this year. My current nonfiction is SPQR which, so far is at least as good as The Roman Emperor, but is 550 pages. So I chose a highly rated and reviewed fiction book to move things along. Good Material. Now why did this get such good ratings and reviews? Wait a minute, those reviews loved the second half or the ending. Is it worth wading through more of this guy's sad excuse for a life in the hope that it will get better?

I was downtown yesterday and went to the bookstore looking mostly for English language chick lit and nonfiction. I ended up with a stacj of eight books. One was a mistake. (The wifi stopped working, and my brain had a bad memory.) One was for Jerry. But the others look at least promosing, although one of the fiction books is recommended for people who like my current fiction book.

For the curious: https://www.librarything.com/catalog/MarthaJeanne?collection=-1&filter=added...

This will only be accurate until I enter more books.

>5 MarthaJeanne: Now into the second part of the book, and over half of pages read. Andy is a total idiot, and I would have more respect for Jen breaking up with him if she hadn't stuck with him for 4 years. The couple of times he has seen her, he has made a point of showing that breaking up was the best decision she ever made. (Does not occur to him that he is showing off his worst side.) He is obsessed with her, wants to get back with her at almost any cost, but I don't think he likes her or respects her.

Also, if he is supposed to be on a low carb diet, drinking pint after pint at the pub to drown his sorrows is not a good idea. Not a good idea anyway, but skipping the bread and pasta to max out on veer is really stupid.

Well, I've found a connection between my two books. On p252f Beard tells of twostand-up comedians in Asculum in 91BCE. The second one seems to be much better than Andy, because he manages to joke his way out after the first one is killed for telling a joke part of the crowd doesn't like. I don't much like Andy, but I'm glad that his audiences so far have not attacked him for his bad jokes.
SPQR
Good Material

Good Material *2 Yes, the ending is wonderful. but the final 30 pages don't make up for the 300 that came before.

Week 1 2 books read, 5 books discarded.

Not sure this was really a good use of the evening, but I got my not set authors down to 35. Several of these were either recent additions or the result of combining/splitting since the last time I went through the last time.There are still several that I will never get, but since I have over 6,000 authors, I think this is pretty good.

The Chequer Board Always a delight to reread. I'm happy to sray with 4 1/2*.

Side note: Jerry saw it lying next to me and commented on it. He had recognized the cover picture.

The Thread that Connects Us can go back to the library after 2 or three pages. I don't care about how cultural this book is about Somalia when it starts with teens spending the first day of their holidays glued to screens in the UK.

Lord Turn me into an Ant These are weird stories. I think I'm reading it mostly because I'm the first person to enter it. Very typical folk tales so far (two stories out of 19).

>13 MarthaJeanne: The third and fourth stories are very confusing, partly because of very poor translation.

SPQR 4 1/2* I enjoyed this as much as her more recent Emperor of Rome, but I am rather glad to have gotten through it.

Lord, Turn me into an Ant 1/2* Disjointed stories badly translated. They got worse as the book went on.

Week 2
Books read 3 (5)
Books discarded 7 (12)

I often dream of becoming a swamp witch and disappearing with my family into the woods to live an off-grid lifestyle. But then I remember that without the use of my smartphone, how would I Google 'how to live off the land?'

From The life-affirming magic of birds ?

Hope Comes to Emmerdale 4* This is a rather different WWII books because soldiers only play a very minor role. This book takes place in a farming village that is effected by the war, but mostly the people just get on with living with the difficulties they face, both those caused by the war, and the normal troubles of life.

The first few chapters are quite dense as you are brought up to speed on the various characters, but then it is easy to follow even if you don't know the series.

In author gender I have my 'Not Set' down to 31, which is under 0.5%. I know there are some that can never be honestly set., so getting down this far feels good.

The life-affirming magic of birds 4* This is a very cute book. The author is a British single mother in her thirties. She also has an adult-diagnosis if ADHD. She has obviously taken on board the message, 'I think differently, I can't expect to see things the way other people do.' She isn't quite as firm on 'I can't expect other people to see things the way I do.' There isn't a lot here about ADHD, except just the way she sees things.

It's not really a book about birds. It's really a memoir of her last few years organised by what birds the various episodes remind her of. sometimes by very eccentric paths. I think most of us would want to order these memories by time (which she usually knows) or by place, and it can be disconcerting the way she jumps around. It also gets repetitious when she yet agains get upset at how most people ignore birds, and admonishes us to look at nature more. The illustrations at the start of each chapter are not helpful. Still, the overall impression is cute, and you have to admire her enthusiasm.

I was quite ready to bond with her over the idea that kingfishers might be the unicorns of the bird world. But she changed her mind.

You are having better fortunes in book selection so far this month.
Now I want to visit Emmerdale.

>22 2wonderY: I want to go back! These were very nice people, most of the time. Fewer men around, so the women got to do things. But I know where I got that one. A shop that sells discounted books also has an English table. And you have to slog through a lot of suspense and classics to find the very few chick lit and romances. Chances of another book from that series showing up is minimal.

>23 MarthaJeanne: I ordered the first in the series from AbeBooks just now.
I wish postage rates were reasonable.

>22 2wonderY: I do seem to be on a roll right now. The color of milk is really pulling me in, and Mit Männern leben is going to be easier going than the other bookI read by Manon Garcia. I really would like to understand the whole Pelicot thing, and I trust Garcia to make me see it better. The translation seems quite smooth. And I decided I have to reread Hawkmistress which is always a joy. I'm not putting into my normal sequence, just reading a chapter or two a day as it grabs me.

The Colour of Milk 4 1/2*

Week 3
Books finished 3 (8)
Books discarded 10 (22)

Apparently The Wedding People gets less depressing. I'll give it a bit longer.

Mit Männern leben This is not an easy read. Luckily the German translation is very smooth, so I just had to deal with the content. Manon Garcia brings in a lot of detail from the Pelicot trial, but also wider aspects of 'rape culture', and what it means to be a woman living in a man's world. I do recommend this highly, but it is rather horrifying.

The wedding people 3 1/2* I have to admit that I don't get the whole idea of a week long wedding. The whole idea seems very weird to me. And this one is even weirder than most because of Phoebe crashing it. And some of the things that happen are just so beyond weird. But actually, I find myself wondering how Phoebe gets on with life, now that the wedding has given her a second (or maybe really first) chance at it.

Week 4
Books finished 3 (11)
Books discarded 9 (31)

Had to enter The Rachel incident 1* because I recognized it within a few pages. I stopped after 50 pages in August, but without an LT entry just borrowed it from the library again.

I guess I'll enter Shuggie Bain as well, but I rather doubt that I will want to read the whole thing.

Read one page. Will not enter, just hope I have the sense not to borrow this again.

After the first few pages of The Air Raid Book Club it looks like I will be able to read the whole thing. That's a felief.

Henry V, Jones 4*

The air raid book club 4 1/2* This is the second book about England in WWII that I have read recently that does not focus on the military, but on people getting on with their lives in spite of the war. The characters become good friends.

Somehow I let The Air Raid Book Club convince me to download Treasure Island and start to read it. My impression is that I had attempted it before, but never finished it. So far I have read a chapter a day for three days. Not sure how long I can stand keeping that up.

I'm also currently reading Niemandsland zwischen Krieg und Frieden: Österreich im Jahr 1945. An Austrian historian born 1961 repeats the stories he heard growing up of the end of WWII. It is well written and quite interesting, but grim. I think I need to also start Smoke and Ashes, which may also be grim, but at least differently.

Week 5
Books finished 2 (13)
Books discarded 13 (44)

>32 MarthaJeanne: Managed to borrow it just now.

>36 2wonderY: I think you will enjoy it.

My husband has found an AI description of Swedish novels on Google that assures me that The Shadow Girls is a true Swedish novel except for not being a crime novel. Of course everyone in the book is busy writing crime novels except for the main character whose publisher has announced that he is writing a crime novel. Most importantly, it does not seem unusual that all the Swedish characters are not very attractive. One has to almost forgive him his weaknesses when you consider the woman who raised him.

I decided back 6 weeks ago that this year I would make a big effort to finish at least two books every week this year.

I also decided that this was the year to reread all the Seuss books we have left. Several years ago we separated ourselves from many because we discovered that two of Jerry's colleagues with young English-speaking children were not familiar with Seuss. We decided that we needed to remedy that, but could not bear to do without some of them.

Today I start the Seuss reread with You're only old once! I lowered my rating to 4*.

Week 6
Books finished 2 (15)
Books discarded 16 (60)

The Shadow Girls 3* because the girls' stories are good even if the poet is pretty ghastly.

No, I do not want to read a book about a boring French woman who married a Moroccan and then discovered that she didn't like life in Morocco. Das Land der Anderen This is good because somebody has reserved it, and now I can tale it back on Monday.

Niemandsland zwischen Krieg und Frieden 4* As expected, this has not been easy to read. I know too many of the places that are described in the book. Bauer has taken the oral history he grew up with and diaries various people connected to Austria kept during 1945 and told these stories in sections more or less according to the period described. So the reading got easier as the year progressed. One problem with this is that certain people's stories were broken up into various sections, and I am not always able to reconstruct the individual characters. Still, reading about specific individuals without attempts at generalities makes it hit harder. I'm glad I read this. It is a good book have read. I just don't want to repeat the experience.

Perhaps the impression that remains is how few of these people seem to have been aware, or wanted to be aware of how much suffering Nazi Germany had caused.

Cover Story Got to page 50. If you are going to read a book about three people interacting in a dingy Manchester (northern England) newspaper office, at least one of them ought to feel like somebody you want to spend time with.

The Greek Islands Cookbook Not impressed. dnf.

Smoke and Ashes 4 1/2* A history of opium

Week 7
Books finished 3 (18)
Books discarded 16 (76)

I'll be finishing Das Gespräch der Geschlechter tomorrow, and I'm trying to get my thoughts together. I think this will get 3*. I see three major problems.

First, I have been reading this in German, and several times I have have had to skip arguments because I just couldn't follow them. I don't think one can really blame the translator. The original is in French, but often is based on English language concepts. When related concepts have to move across language barriers twice it is very hard to keep the nuances clear.

Second, the text very carefully avoids the fact that sex is related to reproduction. A few times it is mentioned that historically certain restrictions were based on men wanting to know that their offspring were really theirs. But there is no mention of contraception or desire for a child influencing consent. Or the needs of pregnancy and early childhood needing to be considered (except once regarding women having sex too early after birth to 'keep' the partner, which really shocked me, and would have shocked my gynecologist as well.) Nor was any mention made of the chances of catching STDs. OK, maybe too much attention was paid in my youth to, "If you have sex you might get pregnant. You might get 'VD'." But neither of these possibilities has gone away.

Most of the examples after we got through the BDSM material had to do with two strangers meeting at a party and what they get up to afterwards, which is not my personal experience. I cannot readily conceive of sexual encounters within a few hours of meeting somebody. Call me old-fashioned, but back in my youth I considered a certain emotional connection to be required before sex was considered.

>56 MarthaJeanne: Finished.

The Colony 3*

Week 8
Books finished 3 (21)
Books discarded 24 (100)

I'm finding the chapter in How migration really works on development and migration to fit very well with The Colony. de Haas doesn't specifically discuss language as one of the qualifications that can lead to migratioon.

Blue Sisters 3 1/2*

Gave up on The Garden Party without ever getting to the title story. Boring.

McElligot's Pool 4 1/* This was fun.

Week 9
Books finished 2 (23)
Books discarded 12 (112)

I've got a Thingaversary coming up. (Monday week) I will probably make a point of buying a stack of books, but not 20.

How Migration Really Works 3* Sad, because there is a lot of really useful information in here, and I learned a lot. But the book is so boring. Each chapter can be read on its own, so it gets really repetitive.

I finished Treasure Island 1* I did not enjoy it.

Kultur, puchner can go back to the library tomorrow. I've tried the first chapter and don't think I can wade through a whole book of that, and someone else is waiting for it. Did a bit of combining, though, so not a total loss.

I don't cry over books. I don't. But it has been so hard to read the last twenty pages of Atmosphere with my eyes all blurry from tears. OK 5*

At the library today, they had Strudelei out on display. Ooops, I not only have read it before, but I own it. Oh, well. Blunzenstrudel for supper again tomorrow.

Week 10
Books finished 3 (26)
Books discarded 17 (129)

The Far Country I'll stand by the 4 1/2* rating it had on it. Besides the lovely story, This time I admired the craftsmanship. So many of the details that fit together to make the story work could feel like deus ex machina in the hands of a lessor writer, but Shute makes them feel reasonable. I did find one place where he slipped up and the details don't quite fit, but it doesn't really matter.

Basil, Hazen Cute little book, but I'm still discarding it. However, if I find pesto in the refrigerator, I may add it and some Gorgonzola and walnuts to pasta tonight. Fairly typical San Fransisco of the late 20th century.

Had to reenter it to my account to keep the books read this year right. But not keeping the book.

>68 MarthaJeanne: I bought 7 books on Friday, and three or four more will be arriving in the next few weeks. Best I can do.

>77 MarthaJeanne: Of course, the disadvantage to buying the new books on display at the bookstoes is that they are not yet in the library collections and if they are translations there is a lot of combining to do. Not made easier if the English publisher neglects to include the original title.

Hang on, need to get the translators on, too. And this is just the first two.

The Healing Season of Pottery
The Distinctly Competent District Councillor

Borrowed a lovely book on Unicorns from the library, Einhorn das Fabeltier in der Kunst based on a thumbnail on the website. It's an exhibition catalogue, and has to go back unread. Too big and heavy for me to deal with.

I'm very torn about A History of the Roman Empire in 21 Women. On the one hand there is a lot of good material in here and Southon's work is a good balance from all of the old white men histories. On the other hand, her style id very informal, sometimes refreshing, but more often irritating. I should not need to be googling 21 century actors to figure out what she is saying about ancient Rome. Not to mention that this book is going to age very quickly. I am still considering 3 or 3 1/2*.

>78 MarthaJeanne: Alive: An Alternative Anatomy
Two Women Living Together
We All Live Here
The Paris Express
The science of racism

I am very tired of cleaning up Amazon entries. At least one book I was able to get into Overcat for the next person.

>80 MarthaJeanne: A history of the Roman Empire in 21 women 3* now finished. Discarding. For what it's worth, she says early on that Somebody or other is probably the only one most people have heard of. I did not recognize her, but certainly had heard of most of the Christian women she writes about.

At two thirds, I am really enjoying The Matzah Ball. First off it has several really good characters and the plot keeps moving along.

But really, I have read (and enjoyed) enough Christmas romances to 'get' the genre. Jacob, the Oh so handsome, hot, rich guy is a standard. So are all the misunderstandings between him and Rachel. Not to mention the chaos threatening the festivities. Love it!

Now, throwing a black practicing Jew with two moms into the mix is not standard. But finding something weird to throw in is. (That Mickey is also gay, actually simplifies the story.)

Oh, wait a minute! Rachel is supposed to be getting out of the Christmas romance business. Just not quite.

I think, though, what has really caught me is the bit about bing an INvalid making you feel inVALid. Now even if I weren't enjoying it, I would have to finish it to see whether Rachel gets herself out of that one.

So, thank you, Ruth, for pointing me in this direction.

Not actually a book, but looking for something to lighten my ironing, I came across Das Fest des Huhnes? It remains as funny as I found it back in 1992.

A group of African Ethnologists visits darkest Upper Austria to try to understand the native population. They come up with wonderful theories that remind me so of my scepticism about many ethnological and archaeological discoveries. Fun to watch again.

>83 MarthaJeanne: Oh, my, It got better and better. I'm groggy today because when it was time to put the book down last night, I couldn't, and kept reading to the end - after 01:00. 4 1/2* The Matzah Ball

Oh! She's written more! And the library has two of them!

Week 11
Books finished 4 (30)
Books discarded 27 (156)

Beyond the Black Stump 4 1/2*

The Battle Against COVID-19

As is evident from the subtitle 'Filipino American Healthcare Workers on the Frontlines of the Pandemic Response', this concentrates on a small slice of the pandemic. However, a meaningful one. Filipino Americans make up only 1% of the US population, but 4% of the healthcare workers, and over a quarter of the deaths of healthcare workers from Covid.
The world has moved on since 2022 when this was first published. How quickly we forget. Reading this took me back to the days when shopping felt risky. When testing was frequent. I have never recovered the energy levels I had before, although they are a lot better than they were during the active infection. The spookiest picture is one of a typical Manhattan intersection - with no cars.

Delia concentrates on the experiences of specific filipino American healthcare workers, making this a very personal read. She also goes into the specific aspects of Filipino culture that she feels made them such an asset during the pandemic.

Discloser notice: I was given a copy of this book by the primary author who works closely with my husband serving UN retirees, and I can certainly bear witness that she is a good example of the capacity for hard work that she praises in her country men and women.

Hmmm. I was wondering whether to quit Mad Honey at 1/3, so I read reviews until I found the spoiler. Now I know who did it, and now I have to read the rest to find out the details. But I think I may switch in another book for a break when I get to 1/2. It's heavy.

Week 12
Books finished 3 (33)
Books discarded 12 (168)

>88 MarthaJeanne: Delia liked my review.

Two women living Together 4*

I bought this expecting fiction. It's not, it's the story of two Korean women who decide to buy a house together after years of living as singles. Chapters alternate between the two authors. It is a slow comfortable read. Even the cats (4) didn't break it for me.

It's worth noting that the last few chapters have been written to bring the story up to date for this translation. I don't think they match the original.

An African History of Africa This was a second read, this time in English.

Mad Honey 4*

Week 13 = First quarter.
Books finished 3 (36)
Books discarded 10 (178)

If you have been reading Mad Honey, and are not satisfied with rhe depiction of trans surgery, Try Alive for a much more detailed depiction.
Alive, Gabriel

Every now and again one reads two books together that complement each other.

BTW, although I'm still early in the book, I love Gabriel Weston's take on Anatomy.

Alive : An Alternative Anatomy 4*

So you want to learn Anatomy? Better pick a different book. Oh, depending on your current knowledge, you may well pick up some basics, and a few details, here and there. But that's not the purpose of this book. It aims to give a humanistic view of anatomy; to inject emotion, subjectivity, anecdote, and diversity into a sterile environment. It certainly succeeds.

If you want something cuddly ,comfortable, and bloodless, you also need to pick a different book. Gabriel Weston is a surgeon, and a curious one at that. She attends all sorts of operations, and takes us with her as organs are transplanted, excess blood removed from her son's brain, a young male body is transformed into a female one... She takes us with her showing us more than we would see if we were there. If medical terminology upsets you, she uses a lot more than I can understand.

So why 4*? Because she does succeed in taking us with her to make the whole thing seem human.

Gave up on Endlose Ketten. French translated into German can be difficult. I did some combining to get all the French and German editions together. There are two ratings. one each of 1 and 5.

Gave up on Endlose Ketten. French translated into German can be difficult. I did some combining to get all the French and German editions together. There are two ratings. one each of 1 and 5.

Gave up on Endlose Ketten. French translated into German can be difficult. I did some combining to get all the French and German editions together. There are two ratings. one each of 1 and 5.

Gave up on Endlose Ketten. French translated into German can be difficult. I did some combining to get all the French and German editions together. There are two ratings. one each of 1 and 5.

The War that saved my Life 4 1/2* Very moving YA dealing with child abuse, handicaps, and the power of love under the background of the beginning of WWII in England.

Easy Indien 2 1/2* Wahi was raised in Germany by an Indian father who ran an Indian restaurant and a German mother. It shows. These recipes are geared to the German reader, often borrowing influences from other 'exotic' cuisines.

Week 14
Books finished 4 (4, 40)
Books discarded 15 (15, 193)

By quarter
Books finished 36,
Books discarded 178,

I'm not sure how long I'm going to stick with The Science of Racism. The material is good, but it feels as is the book is aimed at a high school classroom, and tries not to leave anybody behind. He tells you what he's going to tell you about science, then he tells you, then he tells you what he told you. Then in the next chapter he reminds you what he told you, and recaps in case you might have missed some of the details. I knew all of this before he was born.

While he may be correct that this is not common knowledge among the majority of adults, when you limit yourself to those who might enter a bookstore or library and chose a book of nonfiction the percentage who need any of this will be quite low.

Die Geburt des Vampirs 3* Well, I mostly read it. Why did vampires become popular in the 19th century, and how did Vlad the Impaler get so altered? Turns out, I don't really care.

The Paris Express 3* Those who complain that the book has too many characters have missed the point. The book is an excuse to depict a wide range of characters who were or might have bee in that train rolling towards doom on that particular day. The character studies are very well done. Repeat entrances of characters are skilfully done, with reminders to help the reader remember who this is. The suspense is skilfully built up. I have just one major complaint. None of the characters feels French.

The Science of Racism 3* see >106 MarthaJeanne:.

Week 15
Books finished 3 (7, 43)
Books discarded 40 (55, 233)

By quarter
Books finished 36,
Books discarded 178,

The Meal Jesus Gave Us 3 1/2* This is a reduction from 11 years ago. I think at that time I appreciated the bishop writting for teenagers. Now it seems overly simplified.

Herculaneum, Pappalardo 2*

I have never visited Herculaneum. The author has convinced me that I made the right decision.

Herculaneum, Pappalardo 2*

I have never visited Herculaneum. The author has convinced me that I made the right decision.

The book itself is ranther hard to place. It lists a translatot, but there is no reference to an Italian title, nor is there anything in LT that could be the original. Several places in the text make me suspect that it was written with a German speaking public in mind. But who? The fornat is not suitable to carry as a guidebook, nor is it set up for that. People without a firm grasp of first century art and architecture will have difficulties with the terminology, but those who do will want more than can be covered in 112 pages. It's main use would seem to be on a coffee table to show off where somebody went on holiday last year.

We watched The Mouse that Roared video tonight. I wish I still access to the book. But still good fun.

The Cat in the Hat Comes Back

Week 16
Books finished 3 (10, 46)
Books discarded 65 (120, 298)

By quarter
Books finished 36,
Books discarded 178,

Sea of Poppies 4 1/2*

Guess I'd better order the second book in the trilogy. Oh, dear, it's even longer than the first volume. But I can't leave these people out in the middle of the ocean.

Gott Essen 4 1/2* A reread from 2018. I will keep the rating and review from then, and keep the book.

I kept wondering why Princess of Aminabad feels so bland. Whatever happens, the main dharacter just walks through it without thoughts or emotions. Then I read the author blurb. A man living in Alberta, Canada. He doesn't seem to have any insight into how women in India of the 20th century thought and felt.

Deleting, discarding.

Das Auge des Krokodils goes back to the library unfinished. The event the book is based on only gets mentioned in passing. I'm not up tight now for reading and Australian feminist philosopher in German translation.

Too bed, actually as these were two quite short books, but I can't get through them.

Das Weihnachtsbuch 2 1/2

The book in English, in the UK, is probably a very good collection of information about Christmas. Translating it out of its original context is a different matter. It almost works in German because there is a lot of cross-cultural mixing, and I suspect that the translator has added things now and again. But even so it only almost works. I also doubt that the original really works in the USA. My rating is based on the German translation.

Week 17
Books finished 3 (13, 49)
Books discarded 11 (131, 309)

By quarter
Books finished 36,
Books discarded 178,

Freckles

I guess I'll leave the paper book on the shelf even though the print is too small for me. I read this from Gutenberg.

I find it amusing that Freckes is thought to have come from good people and have inherited his honour and honesty and good character. From whom? From his grandfather? I still love the book, though, even if the ending overstretches my ability to believe it.

Not going to read Detransitioning, Baby. In the first 20 pages I did not know what was going on because I have never watched Sex and the City, and then didn't know what was going on because I have never watched Cheers.

Also in these same 20 pages I have met all of the three main characters and dislike all three of them. Nope Not going to read this book.

Motherdom 4*

When my sister and I were pregnant with our first chilren, we both read multiple books on childcare. We both discovered that the different 'experts' did not agree. I found this to be very liberating. I could pick and choose what suited me and my baby from all these options. My suster found it terrifying. How was she to know which ideas were 'right'? Looking back, I feel that part of the difference is that livinb as an expat in Vienna, I did not feel onligated to accept every part of the local culture. Not only that, but living in an unternational community I had various models from around the world to condider.

I remember well after our first Sunday in church one of the older women coming up and saying how she had enjoyed hearing the baby breastfeed during the semon. The very metallic soung of the milk hitting the stomach brought back memories for her. And after that, just let antone dare to suggest that it was not suitable!

After reading this book I feel that I was very blessed in my experiences. The book is full of nightmarish stories of how women and babies both as individuals and as a group have been mistreated. The book centres on UK and US experiences, and I remember at the time being horrified at some of what my sister and mothers in general had to go through. Here women are paid to stay home from two months before the dur date until the baby's first birthday. With job protection. This makes for a very different experience.

The one thing I really missed in this book was for the author to vome out and say that babies are different. She continually says that mothers have different situations and that you can't have an 'optimal' way or raising babies. Of course not. I have three sons, and I had to learn different ways ofmothering for each one. It was quite a shock to learn that things that had worked with both older boys, different as they were, just did not work with the third one.

I was also constantly reminded of The Science of Racism. Both books make similar criticisms of invalid uses of studies that are made on animals, too small numbers, and just not proving what is claimed. I was particularly hit that there are more and better studies available for erectile disfunction than there are for PMS.

Apology. She spends one paragraph on the next to last page on the fact that children are different.

Discarding.

Week 18
Books finished 3 (16, 52)
Books discarded 11 (142, 320)

By quarter
Books finished 36,
Books discarded 178,

Nearl done with Pearl. 2* The further in I get, the worse the main character's mental health issues get. That might be because
a) she inherited them from her mother
b) she was brought up and homeschooled by a mother with mental health issues
c) she was damaged when her mother walked out and disappeared when she was 8
d) the poor housing she lived in throughout her childhood
e) The drugs she was involved with as a teenager

Even recognizing all these factors that she had to deal with does not make her any more attractive.

Finished. The emding did not make the book better.

Magisches Räuchern 2* I will finish this tonoght. No matter how shallow it is. I should have noticed the publisher before borrowing it. Servus belongs to the same people as Red Bull.

I have fixed the really bad Amazon entry, but have not managed to get the computer to give up 'unknown author' I'll check it again tomorrow.

Embroidered Treasures - Birds Not sure why this was in a 'to read' pile, as I had read it a few years ago, shortly after I bought it. Still 4 1/2*.

Week 19
Books finished 3 (19, 55)
Books discarded 10 (152, 330)

By quarter
Books finished 36,
Books discarded 178,

Oh, bah! I bought three books this morning. Not only did all three of them have issues - work combination, author combination, correcting bad Amazon data, bad CK data even. but it brought my female and male authors closer, when the difference is already very small. How did I end up with three books by male authors, only one of which is already in my catalogue? I guess nonfiction is still mostly male authors. I have read several really great exceptions lately, but they weren't highly visible on the table of English-language nonfiction offerings today.

Scrambled Eggs Super 2* may be more than this one is worth. Peter seems to me to epitimize the repeated line from The Authority Gap that confidence is not competance.

Green Eggs and Ham That Sam-I-am is a bit of a brat, but still good fun.

The King's Stilts 4* This is a good one, just not Suess's usual play with language. Love the drawings, though.

Well, I have finished three books this week - all Seuss, but I should finish some adult books by next Wednesday.

Week 20
Books finished 3 (22, 58)
Books discarded 20 (172, 350)

By quarter
Books finished 36,
Books discarded 178,

BTW, when I was a little girl, I would often go to the bookstore with my father, and while he checked out other books I would go to the children's department. Obviously, I would often, maybe even usually find something I wanted. He would write the title and author down, and I would have tp check if the library had it. If it didn't, he would buy it for me on our next visit. There was only one exception to this rile: Books by Dr. Suess got purchased immediately. They would be read and reread until we knew them as well as the others we already had. Except I only rrarely discovered them. Dad was almost always faster.

On one of my last visits to Vermont my sister and I got onto the suject of Fox in Socks. One of us started reciting it, and the other joined in. Sometimes one of us would pause for a few lines, but between us, we got through the whole thing. Without the book.

My husband's family must have been similar. Many of our copies came from his parents' home. But then, several years ago he discovered something shocking. A few of his staff had small children, English mother tongue, and they didn't know Dr. Suess! By then our youngest was in high school, and the three of us went through the pile. Some were in awful shape, like Scrambled Eggs Super. Some we couldn't part with, like The King's Stilts. But over half our collection was taken to the office and divided up between those families. I have to admit that a few have since been replaced.

So reading Suess this year isn't just about filling up my numbers.

I certainly am grateful to Keon West for recommending The Authority Gap. He is forgiven much in retirn.

4 1/2*

River of Smoke 4 1/2* I'm not keeping this, as the Vienna libraries have the other two volumes of the trilogy, so I will donate it.

and the shepherd Benezet 2 1/2* This is a guidebook to the bridge at Avignon. I'm not sure who it is actually designed for. It is blown up to 80 pages by many illustrations which might be more helpful if they had clearer captions, but maybe not. The amount of text is also inflated by side explanations of anyone and anything mentioned in the main text. So-and-so donated a large sum of money to the bridge, so you need a few paragfaphs about who he was. A different brifge built somewhere else had a very similar legend about it. That must be worth a good deal of explanation. And the main text needs a lot about the river and how it has moved several times over the past 900 years.

But it's time to actually look at the bridge itself. There may or may not have been a Roman bridge at the same place, but if there was, it was probably destroyed at an unknown time. We do however know various times at which the 12th century bridge was partially destroyed, and maybe rebuilt. If you stand at a specific spot in modern Avignon, you are probably right where the end of the bridge was if there was the extra arch they think there may have been. And if you look around, you can imagine how it all must have looked before this part of town was torn down and rebuilt at least half a dozen times since then.

I must have bought this when we went to Avignon for a wonderful exhibit of vestments in the papal palace. We saw the bridge, or what remains of it. The founding legend is fun, but could easily fit on one page.

Week 21
Books finished 3 (25, 61)
Books discarded 44 (216, 394)

By quarter
Books finished 36,
Books discarded 178,

The Caretaker, Ron Rash 4 1/2*

I'm not sure what I expected. But not this. The story is very carefully crafted to keep you wanting to know whether it will come out OK in the end. If you haven't read it yet, you should.

The Rest is History 2*

Holland and Sandbrook think they are funny and clever. They think they prove this by putting others down and by showing a great disregard for actual history.

Daisy Jones and the Six 3 1/2* It's not Reid, it's me. Her writing is great, but I just can't care about rock star druggies.

Week 22
Books finished 3 (28, 64)
Books discarded 25 (241, 419)

By quarter
Books finished 36,
Books discarded 178,

Machonomics 3 1/2* I would like to be able to give this a higher rating, because I think what Marçal is saying is important, but trying to read Swedish feminist economy in German is just very difficult.

Jerry bought me We, the Women, Norah when he was in New York. It is a lovely read except... I so want to send my mother a copy, as it would be right up her alley. Mom died just before Christmas 2024, which makes that a bit difficult.

This other Eden 4 1/2*

Week 23
Books finished 3 (31, 67)
Books discarded 15 (256, 434)

By quarter
Books finished 36,
Books discarded 178,