1LyndaInOregon
Welcome New Year, New Reads! First thread of 2026.
Contents:
Random thoughts, weird questions, the occasional funny image, and book talk with a purely subjective star rating for reviews, as shown here:
5 = Magnificent!
4.5 = Highly Recommended
4 = Recommended
3.5 = I liked it, YMMV
3 = ~Meh~
2.5 = Okay as a Desperation Read
2 = Obligatory Reading or It Would Have Been DNF’d
1.5 = My Cousin Wrote It
1 = Airborne by Page 20
.5 = Are You F*ing Kidding?
Comments, suggestions, book bullets, and drop-ins welcome!
Contents:
Random thoughts, weird questions, the occasional funny image, and book talk with a purely subjective star rating for reviews, as shown here:
5 = Magnificent!
4.5 = Highly Recommended
4 = Recommended
3.5 = I liked it, YMMV
3 = ~Meh~
2.5 = Okay as a Desperation Read
2 = Obligatory Reading or It Would Have Been DNF’d
1.5 = My Cousin Wrote It
1 = Airborne by Page 20
.5 = Are You F*ing Kidding?
Comments, suggestions, book bullets, and drop-ins welcome!
3PaulCranswick
New Year greetings from Kuala Lumpur. My project is at least physically completed and an addition to the city scape.
Look forward to keeping up with you in 2026
4LyndaInOregon
>3 PaulCranswick: Impressive!
5LyndaInOregon
#1 - Dirty Thirty, Janet Evanovich
3.5 stars
Starting off the year with a Twinkie, mostly because I needed something happy to distract myself from The World As It Is Today.
3.5 stars
Starting off the year with a Twinkie, mostly because I needed something happy to distract myself from The World As It Is Today.
6ArlieS
>1 LyndaInOregon: I love your rating scale!
>5 LyndaInOregon: Distraction is a common need currently.
>5 LyndaInOregon: Distraction is a common need currently.
8PaulCranswick
>6 ArlieS: Yeah, especially from 2 on down - chuckled at least twice. I wouldn't want to read anything much any of my cousins wrote either!
9LyndaInOregon
#2 - Every Living Thing, by James Herriot
4 stars
Herriot's collections are definitely comfort reads, and this one, set in the later years of his career, is no exception.
4 stars
Herriot's collections are definitely comfort reads, and this one, set in the later years of his career, is no exception.
10LyndaInOregon
#3 - Skipping Christmas, John Grisham
3.5 stars
Group Read
Quick read with some funny moments, but there's definitely an undercurrent here that sometimes sits uneasily beneath the humor.
3.5 stars
Group Read
Quick read with some funny moments, but there's definitely an undercurrent here that sometimes sits uneasily beneath the humor.
12Whisper1
>11 LyndaInOregon: This is a great review of Ava!
13LyndaInOregon
#5 - A Billion Years, Mike Rinker
3.5 stars
Author Mike Riker grew up in a Scientology family and entered Hubbard's infamous Sea Org as a teen. He worked to promote the organization for 34 years, finally leaving in 2007 after Hubbard's death, when the controls and inherent abuses of the system became more than he could tolerate. Eventually, he and other apostate members became active in exposing the group's true nature to the public.
3.5 stars
Author Mike Riker grew up in a Scientology family and entered Hubbard's infamous Sea Org as a teen. He worked to promote the organization for 34 years, finally leaving in 2007 after Hubbard's death, when the controls and inherent abuses of the system became more than he could tolerate. Eventually, he and other apostate members became active in exposing the group's true nature to the public.
14LyndaInOregon
#6 - Driving Blind, Ray Bradbury
4/5 stars
Re-read
Part of my personal challenge to re-read my Bradbury collection.
This one has no Martians, no murderous infants, no little men who crunch your bones, but it's prime Bradbury nevertheless. these are quickly but finely drawn snapshots of the human condition, in all its foolishness and longing. My favorite of the bunch this time through was "That Old Dog Lying in the Dust", a tale of a small tatterdemalion Mexican circus that still manages to bring the magic.
4/5 stars
Re-read
Part of my personal challenge to re-read my Bradbury collection.
This one has no Martians, no murderous infants, no little men who crunch your bones, but it's prime Bradbury nevertheless. these are quickly but finely drawn snapshots of the human condition, in all its foolishness and longing. My favorite of the bunch this time through was "That Old Dog Lying in the Dust", a tale of a small tatterdemalion Mexican circus that still manages to bring the magic.
15Whisper1
>14 LyndaInOregon: I also enjoy works by Ray Bradbury. In college w had the assignment of reading There Will Come Soft Rains. If you haven't read this short story, I highly recommend it. I'm adding Driving Blind to my tbr list.
17LyndaInOregon
#7 - Maggie: Or, a Man and a Woman Walk Into a Bar
3/5 stars
This episodic tale of one year in the life of the unnamed narrator, in which her husband tells her he is having an affair, her marriage falls apart, and she receives a life-threatening medical diagnosis, is as unique in construction as its title is to the eye. Yee delivers multiple delightful images, but the brief scenes and meandering progress don't really allow a deep immersion into the story, and it drags a bit toward the end.
Inevitably, this is getting compared to Heartburn, but it's been too long since I read Ephron's novel for me to comment on the validity of that.
3/5 stars
This episodic tale of one year in the life of the unnamed narrator, in which her husband tells her he is having an affair, her marriage falls apart, and she receives a life-threatening medical diagnosis, is as unique in construction as its title is to the eye. Yee delivers multiple delightful images, but the brief scenes and meandering progress don't really allow a deep immersion into the story, and it drags a bit toward the end.
Inevitably, this is getting compared to Heartburn, but it's been too long since I read Ephron's novel for me to comment on the validity of that.
18Whisper1
>17 LyndaInOregon: Lynda, have you watched the movie based on the book Heartburn. It is one of my favorites with Meryl Streep and Jack Nicholson.
19LyndaInOregon
>18 Whisper1: I may have, but don't remember any of it! I'm getting "Oldtimerz", also known as CRS (Can't Remember Stuff). If I get a chance to sit down this week, I'll see if I can find it on one of the streaming services.
20LyndaInOregon
#8 - The Storyteller, Jodi Picoult
4 stars with a TW
This was an extremely tough read for me, coming right now, as a good portion of the book involves the experiences of a young Polish girl surviving the death camps of the Holocaust. The descriptions of the wanton cruelties and twisted evil of the Nazi regime, echoes of which seem to be playing out right now on American soil, were at times almost too much to bear. The dark and bloody the fictional story-within-the-story didn't help matters, but I couldn't put it down.
Recommended for its power, but not something that will necessarily leave the reader with a good feeling.
Picoult is noted, of course, for her twist endings. I saw this one coming about 100 pages before the end.
4 stars with a TW
This was an extremely tough read for me, coming right now, as a good portion of the book involves the experiences of a young Polish girl surviving the death camps of the Holocaust. The descriptions of the wanton cruelties and twisted evil of the Nazi regime, echoes of which seem to be playing out right now on American soil, were at times almost too much to bear. The dark and bloody the fictional story-within-the-story didn't help matters, but I couldn't put it down.
Recommended for its power, but not something that will necessarily leave the reader with a good feeling.
Picoult is noted, of course, for her twist endings. I saw this one coming about 100 pages before the end.
21LyndaInOregon
#9 - Close Knit, Jenny Colgan
4 stars
A little slow to get off the ground, but Colgan's writing style and her ability to conjure up the setting go a long way toward making this a fun read.
However... I do have a bone to pick with publishers or promotional departments, or whoever it is that has decided it's now cool to include perky little promotional lines in the title of the book.
When you search the LibraryThing "Add books" database for this title, it comes up as: Close Knit: the brilliant new, feel-good love story about the joy of knitting, community and love!. Same thing happened when I searched for a Dean Koontz title, which came up as Watchers: A thriller of both heart-stopping terror and emotional power
Gimme a break, guys. These aren't even subtitles that might tell you it's book 5 in thus-and-such series. They're just blatant come-ons that look an awful lot like click-bait.
End of rant!
4 stars
A little slow to get off the ground, but Colgan's writing style and her ability to conjure up the setting go a long way toward making this a fun read.
However... I do have a bone to pick with publishers or promotional departments, or whoever it is that has decided it's now cool to include perky little promotional lines in the title of the book.
When you search the LibraryThing "Add books" database for this title, it comes up as: Close Knit: the brilliant new, feel-good love story about the joy of knitting, community and love!. Same thing happened when I searched for a Dean Koontz title, which came up as Watchers: A thriller of both heart-stopping terror and emotional power
Gimme a break, guys. These aren't even subtitles that might tell you it's book 5 in thus-and-such series. They're just blatant come-ons that look an awful lot like click-bait.
End of rant!
22LyndaInOregon
Officially DNF'ing Imago after struggling through the first 50 pages.
Butler's success in creating a workable but totally non-Human species and culture actually ends up working against the casual reader. There is just too much backstory missing here, and about every fifth word is from the Oankali language and deals with concepts unique to their physiology, history, or worldview.
Maybe if I had the time to sit down and get serious with it, or better yet, if I wasn't beginning with the third book in a series (which I didn't know when I picked it up), I could handle it. But with all the other stuff going on in my life right now, this one is just more than I can handle.
Butler's success in creating a workable but totally non-Human species and culture actually ends up working against the casual reader. There is just too much backstory missing here, and about every fifth word is from the Oankali language and deals with concepts unique to their physiology, history, or worldview.
Maybe if I had the time to sit down and get serious with it, or better yet, if I wasn't beginning with the third book in a series (which I didn't know when I picked it up), I could handle it. But with all the other stuff going on in my life right now, this one is just more than I can handle.
23Whisper1
>20 LyndaInOregon: i Have a copy of The Storyteller. I think I know where it is located. I'll find it and read. I watched a movie on HULU today regarding resistance in France by taking children over the alps to escape. It was powerful.
24LyndaInOregon
JANUARY READS
Managed nine books in January, which surprises me because I've also been packing up to move house. But I guess much of it was done between midnight and 3 a.m. or so, when my brain simply would not turn off.
Top read of the month was the Ray Bradbury collection, Driving Blind. I've been re-reading my Bradburys at a leisurely pace, and this one delivers the goods.
Five titles got a 4-star rating --
Ava, by Victoria Dillan, an LTER about a near-future world and a scientific breakthrough that may be more of a nightmare than dream come true.
Every Living Thing, James Herriot, written late in his career as the author contemplates the changes in veterinary medicine.
Close Knit, by Jenny Colgan, a leisurely romance set in Scotland's extreme north country and peopled by wittily-drawn characters.
Dirty Thirty, by Janet Evanovich, a Stephanie Plum romp
The Storyteller, by Jodi Picoult, dealing with a young Polish girl's harrowing survival of the Holocaust and the 21st-century attempts to identify, locate, and prosecute the worst perpetrators.
And finishing off with three 3.5 star entries --
A Billion Years, by Mike Ringer, who rose through the ranks of Scientology until the abusive power structure led him to renounce the organization and campaign against its darkest practices.
Maggie: or, A Man and a Woman Walk Into a Bar, by Katie Yee, which is getting a lot of buzz, but I found the style choppy and the pace somewhat sluggish toward the end.
Skipping Christmas, John Grisham, which was a re-read for me via my RL book club. This is a quick read (I think I finished it in an afternoon) and of course is meant to be funny and/or heartwarming (come on, it's a Christmas book), but there were some dark undertones in there about being peer pressure and social expectations.
Wish me luck as I continue to sort & pack -- will be starting on the books, CDs, and DVDs next week.
Managed nine books in January, which surprises me because I've also been packing up to move house. But I guess much of it was done between midnight and 3 a.m. or so, when my brain simply would not turn off.
Top read of the month was the Ray Bradbury collection, Driving Blind. I've been re-reading my Bradburys at a leisurely pace, and this one delivers the goods.
Five titles got a 4-star rating --
Ava, by Victoria Dillan, an LTER about a near-future world and a scientific breakthrough that may be more of a nightmare than dream come true.
Every Living Thing, James Herriot, written late in his career as the author contemplates the changes in veterinary medicine.
Close Knit, by Jenny Colgan, a leisurely romance set in Scotland's extreme north country and peopled by wittily-drawn characters.
Dirty Thirty, by Janet Evanovich, a Stephanie Plum romp
The Storyteller, by Jodi Picoult, dealing with a young Polish girl's harrowing survival of the Holocaust and the 21st-century attempts to identify, locate, and prosecute the worst perpetrators.
And finishing off with three 3.5 star entries --
A Billion Years, by Mike Ringer, who rose through the ranks of Scientology until the abusive power structure led him to renounce the organization and campaign against its darkest practices.
Maggie: or, A Man and a Woman Walk Into a Bar, by Katie Yee, which is getting a lot of buzz, but I found the style choppy and the pace somewhat sluggish toward the end.
Skipping Christmas, John Grisham, which was a re-read for me via my RL book club. This is a quick read (I think I finished it in an afternoon) and of course is meant to be funny and/or heartwarming (come on, it's a Christmas book), but there were some dark undertones in there about being peer pressure and social expectations.
Wish me luck as I continue to sort & pack -- will be starting on the books, CDs, and DVDs next week.
25LyndaInOregon
#10 - The Dutch Wife, Ellen Keith
3.5 stars
I found this a well-written but ultimately disturbing story. Narrated from the perspective of three main characters, it moves from the Buchenwald concentration camp of WWII to Argentina's "Dirty War" of the mid-1970s. In both cases, someone is imprisoned for their political activities and subjected to horrible physical and mental atrocities.
The title character, Marijke de Graaf, is arrested along with her husband in Amsterdam and eventually winds up in Buchenwald, where she is forced into a brothel within the camp. It's there she meets the SS officer who is second-in-command over the camp and they begin a strange and really creepy relationship that never quite approaches love but which goes far beyond convenience. Her lover, the second of the three main narrators, is a disturbing blend of early and whole-hearted acceptance of the Nazi philosophy, and fleeting moments of kindness, which he conveniently abandons at the first sign that they might endanger his military rank and privilege.
The third character, Luciano Wagner, is a journalism student in Argentina in 1977, whose participation in leftist anti-government activity results in his becoming one of the "desaparecidos" whose fates remained generally unknown.
TW to anyone considering it -- the Argentinian segments in particular include very graphic descriptions of torture.
3.5 stars
I found this a well-written but ultimately disturbing story. Narrated from the perspective of three main characters, it moves from the Buchenwald concentration camp of WWII to Argentina's "Dirty War" of the mid-1970s. In both cases, someone is imprisoned for their political activities and subjected to horrible physical and mental atrocities.
The title character, Marijke de Graaf, is arrested along with her husband in Amsterdam and eventually winds up in Buchenwald, where she is forced into a brothel within the camp. It's there she meets the SS officer who is second-in-command over the camp and they begin a strange and really creepy relationship that never quite approaches love but which goes far beyond convenience. Her lover, the second of the three main narrators, is a disturbing blend of early and whole-hearted acceptance of the Nazi philosophy, and fleeting moments of kindness, which he conveniently abandons at the first sign that they might endanger his military rank and privilege.
The third character, Luciano Wagner, is a journalism student in Argentina in 1977, whose participation in leftist anti-government activity results in his becoming one of the "desaparecidos" whose fates remained generally unknown.
TW to anyone considering it -- the Argentinian segments in particular include very graphic descriptions of torture.
26Whisper1
I ordered a copy of Ray Bradbury's Driving Blind. It should arrive in the next few days. I'll be sure to put it on the pile of TBR ASAP.
27LyndaInOregon
#11 - The Skeptical Feminist, Barbara G. Walker
3.5 stars
Walker's personal definition of a feminist is "one who believes the moral and ethical standards of matrifocal, woman-oriented societies are intrinsically better for more people than the moral and ethical standards of patriarchal societies", but the 279 pages that follow are mostly rants about how pernicious the patriarchal religious systems of the world are.
While I can't disagree on many of the points, I was really looking for something a bit ... chewier, if you understand what I'm saying. This one will go back to the trade stack rather than the permanent library.
3.5 stars
Walker's personal definition of a feminist is "one who believes the moral and ethical standards of matrifocal, woman-oriented societies are intrinsically better for more people than the moral and ethical standards of patriarchal societies", but the 279 pages that follow are mostly rants about how pernicious the patriarchal religious systems of the world are.
While I can't disagree on many of the points, I was really looking for something a bit ... chewier, if you understand what I'm saying. This one will go back to the trade stack rather than the permanent library.
28LyndaInOregon
#12 - The Book Woman's Daughter, Kim Michele Richardson
3 stars
Interesting setting (early 50s), following "The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek" tale into the next generation. Spunky, likeable main character, but her endless woes and setbacks become a bit tedious by the end.
3 stars
Interesting setting (early 50s), following "The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek" tale into the next generation. Spunky, likeable main character, but her endless woes and setbacks become a bit tedious by the end.
29Berly
Better late than never -- Found you! : ) I have only read The Storyteller from this year's collection thus far. Happy reading!
30LyndaInOregon
>29 Berly: Between your health issues and my moving house, it's a wonder we managed to reconnect!
We are now in Walla Walla, Washington (but I will still be "LyndaInOregon" online), essentially unpacked but still fine-tuning where things go best. Big downsize (is that a contradiction in terms?) as we sold our 3-br home with shop & garage and are in an apartment that's just under 900 sq ft.
Unsurprisingly, reading has taken a big hit as most evenings I can't keep my eyes open for more than 10 pages. Working on a so-so LTER, and picked up a copy of Margaret Atwood's Book of Lives which fortunately lends itself to short-spurt reading.
We are now in Walla Walla, Washington (but I will still be "LyndaInOregon" online), essentially unpacked but still fine-tuning where things go best. Big downsize (is that a contradiction in terms?) as we sold our 3-br home with shop & garage and are in an apartment that's just under 900 sq ft.
Unsurprisingly, reading has taken a big hit as most evenings I can't keep my eyes open for more than 10 pages. Working on a so-so LTER, and picked up a copy of Margaret Atwood's Book of Lives which fortunately lends itself to short-spurt reading.
32LyndaInOregon
#14 - Horseplay, Judy Reene Singer
4 stars
Enjoyable romance with a horsey background. Reading along, I probably would have rated this 3 stars, but about midway through the tale, it took a wonderful turn into screwball comedy, which kicked it up a whole level.
4 stars
Enjoyable romance with a horsey background. Reading along, I probably would have rated this 3 stars, but about midway through the tale, it took a wonderful turn into screwball comedy, which kicked it up a whole level.
33LyndaInOregon
I have officially DNF'd 3 by Flannery O'Connor, after struggling with it for two weeks.
O'Connor's fiction is beyond dark. Her characters are either brutal, vicious, and ignorant, or naïve, ignorant victims of the other class. O'Connor's disdain for the pernicious and anti-intellectual influence of the type of Fundamentalist Christianity found in so much of the American South oozes from every story as a sham that teaches its victims to not only embrace but seek out its fraudulent promises.
O'Connor has officially joined the list of "authors I don't want to spend any more time with". Her undeniable technical skill does not make up for the nasty undertone and unrelenting train-wrecks of the lives of her characters.
I'm working my way through Margaret Atwood's Book of Lives, dipping into it whenever I needed relief from O'Connor's unrelenting nihilism, and this afternoon picked up I Thought You Said This Would Work, which is a welcome relief.
This move and the inadvertent choice of heavy "ose" material (as in "mor-ose") has kicked my hiney in terms of numbers. Looks like I've read a grand total of four titles in February and March.
The good news is, I've found a lively book club here at Wheatland (the senior community we moved into a month ago), so things are definitely looking up on the reading front.
O'Connor's fiction is beyond dark. Her characters are either brutal, vicious, and ignorant, or naïve, ignorant victims of the other class. O'Connor's disdain for the pernicious and anti-intellectual influence of the type of Fundamentalist Christianity found in so much of the American South oozes from every story as a sham that teaches its victims to not only embrace but seek out its fraudulent promises.
O'Connor has officially joined the list of "authors I don't want to spend any more time with". Her undeniable technical skill does not make up for the nasty undertone and unrelenting train-wrecks of the lives of her characters.
I'm working my way through Margaret Atwood's Book of Lives, dipping into it whenever I needed relief from O'Connor's unrelenting nihilism, and this afternoon picked up I Thought You Said This Would Work, which is a welcome relief.
This move and the inadvertent choice of heavy "ose" material (as in "mor-ose") has kicked my hiney in terms of numbers. Looks like I've read a grand total of four titles in February and March.
The good news is, I've found a lively book club here at Wheatland (the senior community we moved into a month ago), so things are definitely looking up on the reading front.
34ffortsa
>33 LyndaInOregon: Oh dear, sorry you found you had to DNF O'Connor. But it's great that you've already found a reading group in your new community!
35LyndaInOregon
#15 - I Thought You Said This Would Work, Ann Garvin
4 stars
Part road trip, part romance, part screwball comedy, and pretty well what I needed to get me out of the O'Connor funk.
4 stars
Part road trip, part romance, part screwball comedy, and pretty well what I needed to get me out of the O'Connor funk.
36LyndaInOregon
#16 - Salt: A Novel in Memories, Michael Albanese
ARC from Brooktrovert
2 stars
Blech. You can safely skip this one.
ARC from Brooktrovert
2 stars
Blech. You can safely skip this one.
37LyndaInOregon
#17 - Nerve Damage, Annakeara Stinson
2.5 stars
Early Review
Somebody in the Alfred Knopf publicity department insists on calling this "a riotous revenge novel". It's one of those blurbs that makes you wonder if they read the same book you did, because I for some reason, I don't find being stalked and thinking your stalker has followed you across a continent to finish the job just ... isn't ... funny. Nor are endless reminiscences of manipulative sex, deep depression, or memories of inappropriate sexualization of a preadolescent girl by her abusive, alcoholic, emotionally distant father.
Gee, some people just can't take a joke. Apparently, I'm one of them.
2.5 stars
Early Review
Somebody in the Alfred Knopf publicity department insists on calling this "a riotous revenge novel". It's one of those blurbs that makes you wonder if they read the same book you did, because I for some reason, I don't find being stalked and thinking your stalker has followed you across a continent to finish the job just ... isn't ... funny. Nor are endless reminiscences of manipulative sex, deep depression, or memories of inappropriate sexualization of a preadolescent girl by her abusive, alcoholic, emotionally distant father.
Gee, some people just can't take a joke. Apparently, I'm one of them.
38RebaRelishesReading
Wow! That sounds horrible. I'll be sure to not read that.
39LyndaInOregon
#18 - The Missing Frame, Eli Lazar
5 stars
LTER
Finally! This is why I keep requesting review books. Once in a while you hit pay dirt.
5 stars
LTER
Finally! This is why I keep requesting review books. Once in a while you hit pay dirt.
40LyndaInOregon
#19 - Open Season, C.J. Box
3.5 stars
Taking a break from review books with the first book in the Joe Pickett series, which several friends have recommended, based on my enjoyment of the Longmire series. It's not great literature, and the McGuffin was obvious early on, but it was a relaxing read with an interesting lead character.
Next up is a review read of Richard Russo's new novel, Under the Falls, so I'm gearing up for that.
3.5 stars
Taking a break from review books with the first book in the Joe Pickett series, which several friends have recommended, based on my enjoyment of the Longmire series. It's not great literature, and the McGuffin was obvious early on, but it was a relaxing read with an interesting lead character.
Next up is a review read of Richard Russo's new novel, Under the Falls, so I'm gearing up for that.
41RebaRelishesReading
>40 LyndaInOregon: OMG, Russo has a new novel?!? He's a favorite of mine and here I completely missed this. Must get to the bookstore!
42Whisper1
>39 LyndaInOregon: Your review of The Missing Frame is exceptional. Your wonderful skill of writing is what drew me to sending a message to you regarding joining the 75 challenge group. I am so very glad you joined, and we get the chance to share you talent. I hope you are snuggled in your new abode.
I haven't done much reading, or visiting of threads. The house is empty without our cat Meow, Meow. But soon, Kayla will share a brand new baby boy. She began pregnancy with the weight of 101 pounds. She gained 45-50 lbs thus far. The doctors are considering a c section. She is very uncomfortable.
I'll head to the library tomorrow to find a copy of The Missing Frame.
I haven't done much reading, or visiting of threads. The house is empty without our cat Meow, Meow. But soon, Kayla will share a brand new baby boy. She began pregnancy with the weight of 101 pounds. She gained 45-50 lbs thus far. The doctors are considering a c section. She is very uncomfortable.
I'll head to the library tomorrow to find a copy of The Missing Frame.
43LyndaInOregon
>41 RebaRelishesReading: The new Russo novel is Under the Falls, and I think it is scheduled for release in early August. I got an ARC from Net Galley.
44LyndaInOregon
>42 Whisper1: Did you lose Meow Meow kitty? I know she had been having some health problems.
They are such good company, and it's so hard to lose them. I think, however, that Thumper will be our last cat. In the normal course of events, he probably has 6 or 8 more years with us, by which time John will be 90 and I won't be far behind him. Pets whose people have passed away often end up being put down because it's hard to re-home them, so we'll just bypass that issue by going petless after Thumper.
His current "thing" is racing me for my recliner. if he sees me heading in that direction, he will dash over there and take possession of the seat. His victory tends to be short-lived, however, as I am still bigger than he is and if I'm not interested in providing a lap at the moment, I make him get down.
I hope Kayla soon has her baby boy to cuddle. Those last few weeks are so hard. My granddaughter Tori will be having a C-section the last week in May (probably). Her first baby required an emergency C-section, so they are being cautious with this second pregnancy. She is also having a boy. I ordered the yarn last night to make him a "baseball jacket". Of course, he will be a summer baby without much use for it, so I'll make a 6-month size.
They are such good company, and it's so hard to lose them. I think, however, that Thumper will be our last cat. In the normal course of events, he probably has 6 or 8 more years with us, by which time John will be 90 and I won't be far behind him. Pets whose people have passed away often end up being put down because it's hard to re-home them, so we'll just bypass that issue by going petless after Thumper.
His current "thing" is racing me for my recliner. if he sees me heading in that direction, he will dash over there and take possession of the seat. His victory tends to be short-lived, however, as I am still bigger than he is and if I'm not interested in providing a lap at the moment, I make him get down.
I hope Kayla soon has her baby boy to cuddle. Those last few weeks are so hard. My granddaughter Tori will be having a C-section the last week in May (probably). Her first baby required an emergency C-section, so they are being cautious with this second pregnancy. She is also having a boy. I ordered the yarn last night to make him a "baseball jacket". Of course, he will be a summer baby without much use for it, so I'll make a 6-month size.
45LyndaInOregon
MARCH READS
Seven reads and one DNF this month -- at least better than February, when I only managed to finish two books -- probably the lowest monthly number since I started journaling. Moving will do that to you!
Standout this month was The Missing Frame, with a rare 5-star rating.
Coming in at 4 stars each were Horseplay by Judy Renee Singer, and I Thought You Said This Would Work, by Ann Garvin.
Open Season, by C.J. Box gets 3.5 and it's pretty much downhill from there.
LTERs Nerve Damage, by Annakeara Stinson, Birthing Pains, by Denise Raynor, each get 2.5 stars, and Salt: A Novel in Memories, by Michael Albanese, barely rates two stars.
Three by Flannery O'Connor didn't even make that grade, as I DNF'd it based on the incredibly dark story lines and unlikeable characters, unredeemable even by Flannery's technical skills.
Seven reads and one DNF this month -- at least better than February, when I only managed to finish two books -- probably the lowest monthly number since I started journaling. Moving will do that to you!
Standout this month was The Missing Frame, with a rare 5-star rating.
Coming in at 4 stars each were Horseplay by Judy Renee Singer, and I Thought You Said This Would Work, by Ann Garvin.
Open Season, by C.J. Box gets 3.5 and it's pretty much downhill from there.
LTERs Nerve Damage, by Annakeara Stinson, Birthing Pains, by Denise Raynor, each get 2.5 stars, and Salt: A Novel in Memories, by Michael Albanese, barely rates two stars.
Three by Flannery O'Connor didn't even make that grade, as I DNF'd it based on the incredibly dark story lines and unlikeable characters, unredeemable even by Flannery's technical skills.
46RebaRelishesReading
>43 LyndaInOregon: Thanks. I think I'll pre-order it with my local bookstore so I can have it as soon as possible. It's been too long since I had a new Russo :)
48LyndaInOregon
#21 - Catch-22, Joseph Heller
4 stars
Finally finished this -- I think it took me a week. I tried to read this back in the 70s and just wasn't ready then to see past the Dali-esque view of warfare, to the deep and angry cynicism that underlies it. It's still not a happy read, but probably an important one.
4 stars
Finally finished this -- I think it took me a week. I tried to read this back in the 70s and just wasn't ready then to see past the Dali-esque view of warfare, to the deep and angry cynicism that underlies it. It's still not a happy read, but probably an important one.
50LyndaInOregon
#23 - Catch-22, Joseph Heller
3.5 stars
I originally tried to read this in the 70s and couldn't get past the veneer of nonsense. Lo these many years later, I guess I have a finer (if more cynical) appreciation of the particular insanity of war. It's a dark, dark book, and Yossarian's waking nightmare as he walks through the bombed-out streets of Rome is one of the most powerful anti-war statements I've ever read. Not for everyone, or maybe not for everyone at everytime.
3.5 stars
I originally tried to read this in the 70s and couldn't get past the veneer of nonsense. Lo these many years later, I guess I have a finer (if more cynical) appreciation of the particular insanity of war. It's a dark, dark book, and Yossarian's waking nightmare as he walks through the bombed-out streets of Rome is one of the most powerful anti-war statements I've ever read. Not for everyone, or maybe not for everyone at everytime.
51LyndaInOregon
#24 - Havoc: Trouble on the Trail, Cam Torrens
4 stars
This is the fourth in Torrens' Tyler Zahn mystery-suspense series, set in Colorado (or maybe the fifth; depends on how you count them) and he continues to deliver the good, although I saw the Big Reveal coming about a third of the way through the book. Lots of flashbacks in this one, and multiple narrators, but there's really no other way to unfold this particular story.
There's also a "prequel" out, so Havoc is technically the fifth book in the series. I'm guessing, having read the series debut, Stable, that the prequel is the spiffied-up version of what Torrens meant to be the first novel but couldn't get published. I may circle back and read that one -- Damaged -- as I enjoy his writing. (Having trouble getting that last one to link in Touchstones.)
4 stars
This is the fourth in Torrens' Tyler Zahn mystery-suspense series, set in Colorado (or maybe the fifth; depends on how you count them) and he continues to deliver the good, although I saw the Big Reveal coming about a third of the way through the book. Lots of flashbacks in this one, and multiple narrators, but there's really no other way to unfold this particular story.
There's also a "prequel" out, so Havoc is technically the fifth book in the series. I'm guessing, having read the series debut, Stable, that the prequel is the spiffied-up version of what Torrens meant to be the first novel but couldn't get published. I may circle back and read that one -- Damaged -- as I enjoy his writing. (Having trouble getting that last one to link in Touchstones.)
53LyndaInOregon
If it seems like I'm playing catch-up here, it's because I am. A fried computer and a week away from home have combined to put me way behind on timely postings. Things should settle down a little now, but it looks like I'm going to be counting on "My Books" from LT to reconstruct the last 6 months or so of my reading journal, which couldn't be retrieved from the dead computer.
Phooey.
Phooey.
54RebaRelishesReading
Ugh -- dead computer with data you can't get too -- good luck and hope reconstruction goes well
55ffortsa
>54 RebaRelishesReading: terrible that no one could read the hard drive, or ssi drive, or whatever you have. Sigh. A reminder to back my stuff up.
56Whisper1
>53 LyndaInOregon: Linda, I'm sorry that the reading journal data of six months could not be traced and that you were not able to save this precious information.
I can imagine the frustration you feel!
Sincerely,
Linda
I can imagine the frustration you feel!
Sincerely,
Linda
57LyndaInOregon
>55 ffortsa: He got most of the text documents back -- 16 hours of whatever voodo they do do... and the programs for Access and Excel were there but the data was gone.
I have printouts of the Excel stuff through 2025 -- I use it to track expenses for income tax prep, and that info was all printed out. Picking up the non-reimbursed medical for 2026 to date was just a matter of going through credit card statements and my check register -- took me less than 3 hours.
The Access Reading Journal, with over 3,000 entries was recoverable from my backup, up to October of 2025. So I've been deep-mining Library Thing and my Paperback Swap online records for 6 months of what I got, when I read it, and how it was rated. Worked on it most of yesterday and hope to finish the restoration tonight. (Depends on how long I can stay awake!)
Back. Up. Your. Data. Frequently!
I have printouts of the Excel stuff through 2025 -- I use it to track expenses for income tax prep, and that info was all printed out. Picking up the non-reimbursed medical for 2026 to date was just a matter of going through credit card statements and my check register -- took me less than 3 hours.
The Access Reading Journal, with over 3,000 entries was recoverable from my backup, up to October of 2025. So I've been deep-mining Library Thing and my Paperback Swap online records for 6 months of what I got, when I read it, and how it was rated. Worked on it most of yesterday and hope to finish the restoration tonight. (Depends on how long I can stay awake!)
Back. Up. Your. Data. Frequently!
58LyndaInOregon
#26 - Book of Lives, Margaret Atwood
4.5 stars
This lively and sassy memoir from Margaret Atwood takes an in-depth look at her life and her development as a writer, but it is looooooong. She either has an eidetic memory or kept copious notes from the moment of her birth.
4.5 stars
This lively and sassy memoir from Margaret Atwood takes an in-depth look at her life and her development as a writer, but it is looooooong. She either has an eidetic memory or kept copious notes from the moment of her birth.
59Whisper1
Hi Lynda. As usual, I visit your thread and add many books. I had the same thoughts about Catch 22 when I previously read it in the 70's. I trust your judgement, and I'll give this book another try. Book of Lives is a book I saw when I visited Barnes and Noble a few weeks ago. I'll check this one out from my local library.
As always, your reviews are stellar!
As always, your reviews are stellar!
60Whisper1
Thanks for asking about Kayla. The baby boy, weighed 8 lbs, 7 oz., and was born via C-Section. Together with Christian, who stayed with her the entire time, and was present behind a curtain barrier, to hear baby Carter Anthony DeAngelo's first cry. He told me that he and Kayla cried when they heard the baby's first cry.
They were exhausted when I visited them in the hospital and held Carter. It was a very long delivery, and provides conversation to tell Carter when he is a lot older.
I walked in the room and saw my daughter holding the baby with a look of sheer happiness. We all love this baby. Kayla and Christian are now home with him, and taking turns changing diapers and giving him his every two- hour-feeding.
>45 LyndaInOregon: Flannery O'Conner tends to be dark and maudlin. I think the only time I read one of her books in entirety was in college when it was assigned.
They were exhausted when I visited them in the hospital and held Carter. It was a very long delivery, and provides conversation to tell Carter when he is a lot older.
I walked in the room and saw my daughter holding the baby with a look of sheer happiness. We all love this baby. Kayla and Christian are now home with him, and taking turns changing diapers and giving him his every two- hour-feeding.
>45 LyndaInOregon: Flannery O'Conner tends to be dark and maudlin. I think the only time I read one of her books in entirety was in college when it was assigned.
61RebaRelishesReading
>60 Whisper1: Congratulations to all on the birth of Carter Anthony! That was quite a journey. Guess he figured he was just fine where he was and saw no need to leave lol.
63LyndaInOregon
#28 - Go Help Yourself, Daniel Pope
3.5 stars - LTER ARC
This may be an age thing, but I somehow fail to find it "rollicking", let alone "hilarious and ultimately deeply moving".
3.5 stars - LTER ARC
This may be an age thing, but I somehow fail to find it "rollicking", let alone "hilarious and ultimately deeply moving".
64LyndaInOregon
#29 - There Are Rivers in the Sky, Elif Shafak
4 stars - Group Read
Interesting structure, connecting several story lines through the rivers Euphrates and Tigris, but equally built around connections between cultures and generations via artifacts from ancient Nineveh. Of the two, I found the artifact connection more compelling.
It was also depressing in part because one of the story lines had to do with the religious and ethnic genocides still plaguing the Middle East, but it's well worth a read. The book club meeting is Monday and it will be interesting to see what other members thought of it.
Hmmm ..... I'm listing this as #29 for 2026, but my journal only shows 28, and I'll be doggoned if I can locate the missing title. Will just have to chalk this one up as a result of my computer crash and a data recovery that apparently didn't pick up everything from the database. Not going to spend any more time obsessing over it, but it's like an itch that I can't quite reach to scratch!
4 stars - Group Read
Interesting structure, connecting several story lines through the rivers Euphrates and Tigris, but equally built around connections between cultures and generations via artifacts from ancient Nineveh. Of the two, I found the artifact connection more compelling.
It was also depressing in part because one of the story lines had to do with the religious and ethnic genocides still plaguing the Middle East, but it's well worth a read. The book club meeting is Monday and it will be interesting to see what other members thought of it.
Hmmm ..... I'm listing this as #29 for 2026, but my journal only shows 28, and I'll be doggoned if I can locate the missing title. Will just have to chalk this one up as a result of my computer crash and a data recovery that apparently didn't pick up everything from the database. Not going to spend any more time obsessing over it, but it's like an itch that I can't quite reach to scratch!
65LyndaInOregon
#30 - Separation of Church and Hate, John Fugelsang
4 stars
"A sane person's guide to taking back the Bible from fundamentalists, fascists, and flock-fleecing frauds" - The subtitle pretty well says it all. Fugelsang provides plenty of talking points for those who use partial quotations and out-of context scriptural guidance to justify hate, violence, and marginalization in the name of Christianity.
The copy I read was a loaner, so I had to resist underlining and highlighting, but when I handed it over to hubby to read, it had so many sticky-note flags hanging out of the margin that it looks like the book has eyelashes! :-) Very much worth the time.
4 stars
"A sane person's guide to taking back the Bible from fundamentalists, fascists, and flock-fleecing frauds" - The subtitle pretty well says it all. Fugelsang provides plenty of talking points for those who use partial quotations and out-of context scriptural guidance to justify hate, violence, and marginalization in the name of Christianity.
The copy I read was a loaner, so I had to resist underlining and highlighting, but when I handed it over to hubby to read, it had so many sticky-note flags hanging out of the margin that it looks like the book has eyelashes! :-) Very much worth the time.
66LyndaInOregon
#31 - The Keeper of Lost Art, Laura Morelli
2.5 stars
Set in Tuscany during the waning days of WWII, the story centers around a villa chosen by the directors of the Uffizi Gallery to store and protect dozens of priceless paintings against looting and destruction. The people of the villa and the ways in which they survive the hardships and uncertainties of the time form the story.
Unfortunately, it is incredibly slow until the last hundred or so pages, and I nearly bailed out several times. Morelli does a good job of bringing it all together in a satisfying but realistic conclusion, but it was a chore to drag myself to that point.
2.5 stars
Set in Tuscany during the waning days of WWII, the story centers around a villa chosen by the directors of the Uffizi Gallery to store and protect dozens of priceless paintings against looting and destruction. The people of the villa and the ways in which they survive the hardships and uncertainties of the time form the story.
Unfortunately, it is incredibly slow until the last hundred or so pages, and I nearly bailed out several times. Morelli does a good job of bringing it all together in a satisfying but realistic conclusion, but it was a chore to drag myself to that point.
67LyndaInOregon
#32 - Boogers Are My Beat, Dave Barry
3 stars
This is typical "headboard" reading ... one of the books I keep on the head of the bookcase headboard to read for a few minutes at a time when I'm too tired to read anything that requires attention. It's a typical humor collection of Barry's newspaper columns, differing only in that this one ends with two serious columns he wrote after 9/11.
3 stars
This is typical "headboard" reading ... one of the books I keep on the head of the bookcase headboard to read for a few minutes at a time when I'm too tired to read anything that requires attention. It's a typical humor collection of Barry's newspaper columns, differing only in that this one ends with two serious columns he wrote after 9/11.
68LyndaInOregon
#33 - West With Giraffes, Lynda Rutledge
4.5 stars
In 1938, America's first giraffes arrived in New York, bound for the San Diego Zoo, via an overland truck trip. Rutledge has taken this real-life event and embellished it with the fictional tale of a hardscrabble Dust Bowl kid who finagles a job as a driver and an ambitious young woman who shadows the group across the country, hoping to break into photojournalism with an exclusive.
4.5 stars
In 1938, America's first giraffes arrived in New York, bound for the San Diego Zoo, via an overland truck trip. Rutledge has taken this real-life event and embellished it with the fictional tale of a hardscrabble Dust Bowl kid who finagles a job as a driver and an ambitious young woman who shadows the group across the country, hoping to break into photojournalism with an exclusive.
69RebaRelishesReading
>68 LyndaInOregon: That's a fun one, isn't it Lynda? I read it a few years ago when the San Diego Zoo was a regular part of my neighborhood walk route which made it rather special.
70Berly
>68 LyndaInOregon: Hi there! Trying to get back in the LT groove. That was a good one!
So we are having an LT meetup in July. BLBera is coming out here. Not sure you'd want to make the trek, but didn't want to leave you out. : )
https://www.librarything.com/topic/384682#n9208120
Happy reading!
So we are having an LT meetup in July. BLBera is coming out here. Not sure you'd want to make the trek, but didn't want to leave you out. : )
https://www.librarything.com/topic/384682#n9208120
Happy reading!
71LyndaInOregon
>70 Berly: I appreciate the thought, but will pass. Even though I'm not changing my handle, I'm in Washington state now. Between the extra hour added to the commute, the price of ga$ (!!!) and some medical conditions my hubster is dealing with that make it inadvisable for him to be left alone for more than a couple of hours at a time ... let's just say that my suitcase is pretty permanently unpacked.
Have a great get-together.
Have a great get-together.
72Berly
>71 LyndaInOregon: Totally understand. Best wishes to you and your hubby. I'll keep checking here if I need some book bullets. ; )
73RebaRelishesReading
>71 LyndaInOregon: At least two more of us live in Vancouver -- does that make mini-WA group meet-ups possible?
76LyndaInOregon
Just officially DNF'd Naomi Alderman's The Future. The further I dragged myself into it, the more I realized I don't give a rip about the Mysterious Event that is going to destroy civilization, the multibillionaire techboys who have a plan to survive Armageddon, or what that plan is.
I'm about a fourth of the way through a re-read of The Once and Future King, so will turn my attention to that until it's time to start this month's book club selection, Kristin Hannah's Four Winds.
I'm about a fourth of the way through a re-read of The Once and Future King, so will turn my attention to that until it's time to start this month's book club selection, Kristin Hannah's Four Winds.
