LisaCurcio's 2009 reads

Well, this is the first challenge I am joining. I read more than 75 last year, but didn't do a very good job of keeping track. So I hope this helps.

My first two were to finish Ursula Le Guin's Earthsea quartet:

The Farthest Shore
Tehanu




Lisa

ETA Ticker

Excellent choices! Welcome to the challenge.

Welcome! This is my first challenge too. Good luck!

Lisa, how did you like them? I've never got around to reading the Earthsea material, though I watched the horrible TV mini-series they did a few years ago... *shudder* All I know is that the books are loved by many fantasy readers, but can be difficult to get into...

dk_phoenix:

Other than Lord of the Rings and Merlin related books, I only started reading fantasy this past year so I am no judge. I liked the first two better than the second two, although I cannot put my finger on why at this moment. None of the books is really long, and I did not think they were difficult reading. From my perspective, I would say they get 3 stars, but I have always been more of a mystery/historical fiction person, so take that into consideration. Not much help, I know.

I am going back to mystery now. Brat Farrar by Josephine Tey and Woman in White by Wilkie Collins. Many LT'ers have been raving about Woman in White.

Lisa

Woman in White is pretty high on my list -- I read The Moonstone late last year and *loved* it. I'm curious to see what you think of it.

Welcome to the group, Lisa! Looks like you have made a good start on the new reading year.

alynnk,

I really liked The Moonstone, but have to admit that I ended up skimming the lst two narratives to get to the end. It got just a little bit too long there. However, great story and interesting way of presenting it.

alcottacre,

Thanks, and when do you sleep? You are everywhere!

I read The Moonstone many years ago, and have no memory of it,but I read The Woman in White recently and it's very enjoyable.

Lisa

The Woman in White is indeed a great read, one of my Top 20 reads (if I ever make such a list) of 2008.

I didn't care much about the Earthsea series, 2.5 -3 stars for the individual books

#8: Hey I did good today - I slept an hour and a half.

This group is a big problem! I see from all of the threads that alcottacre (Stasia is your real name?) cheats by sleeping at most 2 hours per day. Also, reading these is getting in the way of working, which can cause difficulty from day to day. And of course the additions to the TBR pile and BookMooch wishlist . . . . .

That being said, I have gotten some ideas from reading these threads, and have decided to list the books I am currently reading. That way I will try to remember where I put them so I actually finish the books in 2009.

A Short History of Tractors in Ukrainian by Marina Lewycka
Brat Farrar by Josephine Tey
The Bridal Wreath, Kristen Lavransdatter I, by Sigrid Undset
A Thousand Days in Venice by Marlena De Blasi

#12: Yes, Stasia is my real name. Pronounced stosha

Book #3

Brat Farrar

This is the second Josephine Tey book that I have read, and liked this just as well as The Daughter of Time. Brat Farrar looks amazingly like Simon Ashby, whose twin brother, Patrick, apparently committed suicide when they were 13 years old. The story of how Brat comes to impersonate Patrick and the family reactions and interactions is very well told.

Super work -- I'll be back :) -- Susan

#14: I read Brat Farrar a couple weeks ago and really enjoyed it. I thought Tey did a great job of making you sympathize with the "bad" guy (ie Farrar the impersonator).

The Daughter of Time will forever be my favorite of hers. Great stuff!

Book #4

A Short History of Tractors in Ukrainian

This book won and was short-listed for a number of prizes, and deserves it. However, it was billed as "funny", with which I do not agree! I would agree that is told with wit and caring. The story of the two sisters and their 84 year old widowed father who remarries a 36 year old Ukrainian woman with a 13 year old son would be a tale of a normally dysfunctional family if it were not complicated by the family's history of living in and leaving Ukraine leading up to and after WW II.

In the end, I call it "heart-warming" and recommend this book.

Sounds lovely. I was in Ukraine in 1994 and was horrified by all the fields lying fallow in what was formerly Europe's bread basket. Guess horses weren't available and most folks needed replacement parts for their broken down tractors. Field after field after field was weed covered with an occassional 1/4 acre plot being tended by little old women. It was one of the saddest things I'd seen to that point in my life.

#18
I was in Kiev and Kharkov in 1989, when Ukraine was still part of the Soviet Union. Those were the only places we were able to have decent food on a three week trip to the Soviet Union--so sorry to hear things deteriorated so quickly. You might really appreciate the book.

I think you're right. I'm hopeful that things are better now. I'm next door in Romania and there is a lot of unused (for cultivation or grazing, the latter seemingly and obvious choice for many parcels I've seen). ETA I did see that Heifer Internatational is doing work here, donating sheep, goats, etc. Hoping to get involved in that somehow.

Book #5 Kristin Lavransdatter I: The Bridal Wreath

Well-told story set in medieval Norway. A medieval soap opera, actually, with the rather spoiled girl who does not want to marry the man chosen for her by her father, and, instead, gives herself to one who is a bit of a rake. I am going to go on to Book II to see how they get on.

>21 LisaCurcio: 'I am going to go on to Book II to see how they get on.' You made me chuckle. :)

>22 suslyn: Chuckles are good! Glad to help.

Besides Kristin Lavransdatter Book II: Mistress of Husaby I am working on:

Three Men in a Boat
A Thousand Days in Venice
Doomsday Book

And I am going to get the French English dictionary out so I can get started on Le Scaphandre et le Papillon in French. That might take me a couple of months, even though it is a really short book!

When I read the first Kristin Lavransdatter book, I was compelled to read them all, one after the other. I was totally fascinated by creation of what day to day life was like in Scandanavia back in Medieval times.

Book #6: A Thousand Days in Venice

This book is not about Venice! Marlena de Blasi's story of how she met and married "the stranger" in Venice is about her, and includes a few good recipes. Iif you have been to Venice you will recognize the places she mentions, but there is not even enough talk of the city to rouse your memories, whether they be fond or foul. It is an easy read, and a good book if you like memoirs about people's love lives. But don't read it to learn anything about Venice! I am thinking of taking the "Italy" tag off.

Edited to fix touchstone.
ET fix run-on sentence!

Book #7 The Darkest Road, book 3 of The Fionavar Tapestry

I really liked this entire trilogy, and, although it took me some time to get into this third book, especially this book. I am not a hard-core fantasy lover, but I do love Kay. Although this story has mages, dwarves, elves and orc-like creatures, (unlike other Kay books I have read: Ysabel and Sailing to Sarantium) the depth and breadth of the story is great and develops the relationships in more interesting ways than other fantasy I have read.

Glad you enjoyed it. I don't remember dwarves, elves or orcs in Kay's Tigana but that doesn't mean they aren't there. It is a super story too.

I, too, loved A History of Tractors in Ukrainian, but wanted to note that while the characters are of Ukrainian heritage, the story is set in England, and is told by a loving, but exasperated daughter. I thought it was witty, funny, and essentially warm-hearted.

Book #8 The Doomsday Book

I come down on the side of those who loved this book. I know someone who did not like it because she felt that the history was not accurate, but I am blissfully ignorant, so was just able to enjoy the characters, the story and the suspense. A very satisfying read.

Lisa

I am currently reading The Doomsday Book, the book being strongly recommended by Susan (whose advice never fails in Fantasy/SF), glad to know that you liked it, I have yet read only a quarter of the book, will be sometime before I manage to finish it.

>31 PiyushC: Piyush,

Susan's is certainly a more reliable recommendation than mine since I read SF/fantasy only sometimes. (although it seems I have a fair number of them on my TBR pile based on recommendations from threads here!) It took at least a quarter of the book to really get all of the story rolling, but I think you will be hooked. You might find yourself needing to read it instead of your War and Peace!

Going to focus on Mistress of Husaby next, and dig out Inferno to get ready for a group read.

ET fix touchstone.

LOL I'm not sure I'd say my advice never fails... buy my thanks Piyush. I've just been to the scifi/fantasy thread for the first time -- what a blast!! Some very divergent opinions there, including some who would hate my fav reads :)

Well, I am reading Mistress of Husaby, but was reading A Thousand Days in Tuscany at the same time and finished it first, so it is Book 9.
I know, why did I read that when I thought so little of A Thousand Days in Venice? Because it was there.

And, I am glad I did. Despite comments that it was not as good as the first one, I found this to be the better book. DeBlasi seemed to stop focusing so much on herself here. When she and her husbanc pick up everything and move to a small town in Tuscany, they find new friends and a life that many of us think we want. Her description of the town and people is so much richer than in her first book, and in fact, we meet real people. It is a short book, and not deep, but a satisfying read.

Ooh sounds good. So does Tuscany ;->

Susan,

I am probably going to give this book away through BookMooch, but if you want it let me know and I can get it to you. It is a paperback with a library stamp on the bottom and top of the pages, but overall in decent condition--certainly readable.

My husband and I love Tuscany. I love to travel, but he never wanted to go anywhere until I dragged him there in 1998. He would go back in a second.
DeBlasi's book captures what it is like in small town Tuscany, IMO.

Two YA quick reads:

Book 10: No More Dead Dogs
Book 11: Time Stops for No Mouse by Michael Hoeye. I have not seen this one mentioned on the threads I am managing to follow, but I recommend it for fun and for young teenagers. Hermux Tantamoq is a meticulous watchmaker mouse whose life is turned upside down when the attractive adventuress Linka Perflinger walks into his shop and demands that he repair her very badly damaged watch by noon the next day. When she does not return, he begins to look for her and is caught up in a dangerous plot to corner the market on eternal youth.

Book 12: Inkheart by Cornelia Funke. The story of Meggie and her father, Mo, who can read characters out of books. This is an especially good YA book for people who love books.

Book 13: The Traveler by John Twelve Hawks. I would call this fantasy, or perhaps alternative reality. Travelers are people who, through the centuries, have had the ability to leave their bodies on earth (The Fourth Realm) and travel to other realms. Jesus and Mohammed were "travelers". Travelers inherit their abilities. Harlequins devote their lives to protecting travelers. They train from childhood in fighting and use of weapons. Their abilities are not hereditary, but the child of a Harlequin can choose to follow in his or her parent's footsteps. Both Travelers and Harlequins are hunted by the Tabula who want to eliminate them because the Travelers interfere with the desire of the members of the Tabula to inflict their order on the world.

This is a world in which everyone is under surveillance through cameras in almost all public places, where library usage, purchases and communication is monitored by the government, and anyone who does not agree that these things are necessary to control terrorism must be a terrorist. Maybe this is not alternative reality?

The story is really well written, and the suspense and tension hold up through the entire book. I recommend it.

The Traveler sounds intriguing to me, so on to the Continent it goes along with Time Stops for No Mouse. Thanks for the reviews and recommendations!

The Traveler made my list of favorites from last year. I recommend the sequel which I will add as soon as the name comes to me. I am awaiting the third. The books are like Jason Bourne meets Charles de Lint.

ETA: The Dark River

Jason Bourne meets Charles de Lint?!?! *frantically scribbles title of aforementioned book onto TBR list*

BDB,

I must show my ignorance--I do not know of either Jason Bourne (although I am guessing "The Bourne Identity" books which I have not read) or Charles de Lint. Can you enlighten me so I can add to the TBR which has not yet reached continent size, but only country.

Also, some have said The Dark River really leaves the reader hanging at the end and recommend waiting until the third book is out to read the second. What do you think?

Can't disagree with the cliff hanger part. I wanted to scream alound at the end. So, not a bad idea. I have been checking around and have heard no talk yet of the third book publication date.

You got the Jason Bourne reference right. De Lint writes urban type fantasy/scifi. He is a lighter, more optomistic, and happier version of Stephen King, with other worlds just out of the common sight of the masses; good vs. evil stuff but with more certainty that good is always going to win. One of my newest favorites. He writes about one mythical town in particular where most of his stories take place, Newforde. I have been collecting them up to read in the order he suggests on his website.

>39 blackdogbooks:: Hmmm. I'm not a particular fan of Jason Bourne (first OK, next two didn't like), but I am a huge de Lint fan. Maybe I'll try this.

I didn't care for the Bourne books, I quit after the first one. I enjoyed the movies a bunch. The Traveler is heavy on the Bourne action and the mythical thread was very interesting to me. I wouldn't say that John Twelve Hawks is a writer of the caliber of De Lint, but there is a feel to his story that reminded me of De Lint's work.

>42 blackdogbooks: BDB, with you and Tad not caring for the Bourne books, I think I will continue to ignore them. De Lint sounds interesting, however. Stephen King terrifies me, however, and I can no longer read his books. Do you think I will be okay with De Lint? When I was in my teens and 20's I read King and other horror type books, but I don't think I have been able to read one in about 30 years!

Lisa, did you ever get to Three Men in a boat? You mentioned it a while ago.

You will have no probelm with the De Lint books. Like I said, he is much cheerier on the whole and not anywhere as horror oriented.

>45 LisaCurcio:: Maybe try Moonheart or Mulengro. They are both stand-alone books. The Newford stuff does better if you read it in quantity...which you can do if you find you like the author.

Ronincats, I am about half way through. It is easy reading, so I am carrying it around with me which means I only read it for ten or fifteen minutes at a time at best. Fun, but I want to use my concentrated reading time for meatier reading!

BDB and Tad, thanks for the recommendation. I am going to look for Moonheart.

Just stopping by to say hi and I've starred your thread. Very interesting reading going on here.

Book #14: The Belly of Paris by Emile Zola.

This is the third book in Zola's 21 novel series about the Rougon-Macquart family, but it does not matter if you have read the first two. The book is centers around Les Halles during the Second Empire. Florent was deported after being arrested during the revolution of 1848, although he did not actually participate in it. He has escaped and made his way back to Paris where he finds the newly built Les Halles and his prosperous half-brother and sister-in-law who own a successful charcuterie on the edge of the markets. Florent moves in with them, and reluctantly takes a job as an inspector in the fish markets, but he never fits into the society of excess which Zola paints so vividly. The descriptions are in some cases overwhelming. An interesting depiction of the life of the "Fat" bourgeousie of the time in contrast with the "Thin" Florent who dreams of revolution.

I particularly recommend this book if you have an interest in the history of France.

Book #15: An Arsonist's Guide to Writers' Homes in New England

Sam Pulsifer, a self-described bumbler, goes to prison for "accidentally" burning down the Emily Dickinson house and killing two people in the process. When he gets out, he continues his life of bumbling. He and just about every character in the book are, IMO, pathetic. I kept hoping the story would improve, but it did not. The last chapter is not bad, though.

I guess I should know better when the cover of the book includes quotes like "Wildly, unpredictably funny" and "Absurdly hilarious . . Searingly funny". I did not think it was even amusing, and, in case you cannot guess, really did not like the book!

>52 LisaCurcio:: oh, what a shame. Such a great title.

Thank you, thank you.....it's actually great to find someone to say a book isn't worth reading....my TBR pile would probably topple over if I tried to put anything else on it. Sorry you didn't like it, but thanks for being honest

Lisa

I saw this book mentioned on another thread last year. I seem to remember the person felt the same way about the book because I did not add it to my TBR pile.

I agree with tututhefirst...I'm sorry you didn't like it, but I'm glad there is one less book to add to the pile.

I'll look for your next post and hope that you find something that is refreshingly good.

Rachael, Tina and Linda, If you look at the reviews posted on LT on this one, you will see that people either loved it or hated it. The difficulty is in trying to figure out into which category you will fall.

Working on The Children and Tigana, both of which I am enjoying. I am thinking when I finish I will recommend both.

Great Lisa! I look forward to reading your reviews and I'm glad you found books that you like.

Hi Lisa,

I'll be watching for your thoughts on Tigana. I may want to add it to my TBR pile.

Hi Lisa

I came by because LoriePhillips sent me here and now I can see why--I'm only on message 23 and I have so many comments i could write a book! Don't worry--I won't.

I am currently trying to read all of Josephine Tey--have To Love and be Wise and Brat Farrar still to read and The Franchise Affair to buy and read. Thanks for the comments on BF--I'll get to that one next.

I also appreciate your comments on Short History of Tractors--we are setting up a used book sale at our church this week and I can get a good PB copy of that for a quarter--guess I'll grab it!

I also had the opportunity to visit the Ukraine while it was still part of the Soviet Union--we had 3 weeks in USSR and the Ukraine was my favorite part of that trip. We also went to Romania, which I also enjoyed. It's sad to hear of a place deteriorating so far so fast. I hope the plan for revitalizing the agriculture there work out.

I'm halfway through Book II of Kristan Lavransdatter but have put it aside for a while because of so many other pressing reads. I hope to finish it this summer when things slow down. I'm enjoying it, but sometimes I just want to "shake" Kristan--she can be so foolish!

Doomsday Book was one of the first books I read this year and I think it will definitely make my top 5 fiction reads this year. I loved it! I hope you enjoy it.

I'm reading Three Men in a Boat right now--I'll get to see if you enjoyed it! I'm reading it in preparation to read To Say Nothing of the Dog by Connie Willis.

Going on to see what else you have done this year! We must have similar tastes! :-)

#43 & 44 re Jason Bourne

Books are definitely Bad! I never met a Ludlum I could finish and when i was young and foolish I wasted plenty of time trying them because so many people raved about them!

I found the movies very watchable--and for me to say that has got to mean something--because i don't usually care much for watching movies that aren't at least 50 years old--the older the better--especially ones made before i was born! ;-)

I'm reading Tigana this week also. I'm not a very experienced fantasy reader but I am really enjoying this book. I've added Moonheart to my list of fantasy to try this year, also. It sounds good.

I'm anxious to hear your view on The Children by Halberton. That sounds like one I may want to add to my TBR but I have never read anything by him. Does he write well?! Does he give a more or less balanced view of the subject? I'm leery where politics or recent history are involved.

Did you ever finish Three Men on a Boat? I'm finding it amusing in a Wodehouse sort of way.

I've really enjoyed reading your thread and am starring it so I don't get so far behind! We can compare notes on Tigana.

#51: I have never read any of Zola's books, so I think I will try In the Belly of Paris. You mentioned that it is the 3rd book in the series. What are the other two?

#52- I liked An Arsonist's Guide to Writers' Homes in New England even less than you did. Well, the parts I did actually manage to read. I wanted it to be good but, alas, it wasn't so for me.

I'm debating whether or not to read the third John Twelve Hawks book. I enjoyed the first two but don't think they are worthy of any reread time. I might pick up the third one see if I'm lost or not. I tend to read the first one or two books in a series and have a tendency to stop at that point. Did anybody ever figure out who John Twelve Hawks is?

#63: Did anybody ever figure out who John Twelve Hawks is?

Do you have a theory, VG?

No, I don't have a theory on who John Twelve Hawks is. Maybe it's not even a person but a computer program spitting out the books.

My theory is that the scanty information "known" about him is largely manufactured to give an aura of mystery and eccentricity. Otherwise, how do you reconcile "he lives completely off the grid" with "he communicates only via the Internet" or "he lives in New York & London."

The little search I did on the name after reading the first book suggested that it was a nom de plume for a couple of different authors, names I don't remember now. I agree with TadAD's theory. Frankly, it didn't matter to me because I enjoyed the books so much.

#62 There are 20 books in the series, some quite well-known (Germinal, Nana, La Terre, La Bete Humaine). I've read several of the well-known novels, and hope to read the whole series some day. I highly recommend Zola.

Stasia,

The first two are La Fortune des Rougon and La Curee. The ones noted by abw #68 are certainly more well known, but part of the series. I think they all stand on their own from what I have read. The only other Zola book I read was Therese Raquin in French for a French literature class when I was working on a minor in French. It has been so long ago that I don't remember anything about it and now guess I will have to reread it.

Everyone else who has stopped by, thanks! I have comments, but need to go back to work. "Talk" to you later.

> 58, Lorie, I don't know what chapter I was on when I left off last night, but so far I am liking Tigana even more than the others of his that I have read. I am much like Carolyn in that I had not read much fantasy other than Lord of the Rings repeatedly, but am truly enjoying Kay. I have also put DeLint's Moonheart on the TBR based upon recommendations here.

>59 MusicMom41:, 60, 61, Carolyn, Book II of Kristin Lavransdatter is sitting on the nightstand. I pick it up occasionally, but not only do I want to shake Kristin, I would like to give her husband, Erlend, a kick! I am so far maintaining my view that this is a medieval soap opera, and don't know whether I will finish the book, much less the trilogy.

Three Men in a Boat is Wodehousian! I like it, but I just pick it up when I have just a few minutes. I am about two-thirds of the way through. I did want to read it before going on to To Say Nothing of the Dog.

I am hoping to finish The Children this week, along with Tigana in preparation for the Dante group read starting next week. Not that I won't read anything else, but I will probably have to move to other books that take less thought.

I am only about 100 pages into The Children, and so far Halberstam is introducing the individuals who were leaders in the sit-ins. Although the college students who joined in were "The Children" of the title, the leaders are complex individuals whose histories were important to how they arrived at that point in their lives. I don't know how much the book will get into politics. Halberstam was a young reporter at the time of the sit-ins, so my guess is his empathy or sympathy will be with the demonstrators. I will let you know when I finish.

>63 VisibleGhost:, VG et. seq., I must admit that it did not occur to me to care who John Twelve Hawks "really" is. I am voting that Tad is right.

Whew! Now back to work again.

Lisa, and Carolyn, I gave up on Kristin Lavrandsdatter years ago- I had even bought the whole series when we lived in Japan and I thought they looked like good reads. I think tho, that Lisa's approach of looking at it as a soap opera might shed a different light. I have put them back on the 'someday take another look at them' pile. I love reading both your comments. Someday one of you may even convince me to try a fantasy. So far, I'm not interested, but then, I read lots of stuff other people probably gag at.

>62 alcottacre:: Stasia

you can see all books of a serie on the series page. There are links to the series pages from the author page, the work page and your own series coverage page.
link to the Zola serie (Les Rougon-Macquart)

#16 Tigana by Guy Gavriel Kay.

Tigana is unknown to all of the people of the Palm other than those who were from there when the King of Ygrath cursed the province when the Prince of Tigana killed the King's son. This fantasy novel tells the story of very complex characters and the quest of the Prince's son to restore the freedom of the people of Tigana and the other peoples of the Palm.

Kay is a master, and this fantasy novel is among his best. Although there are wizards and sorcery in this story, they are not the most important part of the telling. I highly recommend.

#73 re Tigana

I'm 2/3 through the book but had to put it on hold because this week was a nightmare for both my jobs and the only thing I had the energy to read was a chapter of Three Men in a Boat every night before "collapsing." Next week doesn't appear to be much better--in fact maybe worse!--but I plan to find time to finish Tigana because I've enjoyed it so much and I don;t want to lose the "flow!" This looks like it will be one of my top reads this year. It's ironic--I don't consider myself a fantasy fan but so far this year it looks like my 2 top reads are fantasy books! The other was Doomsday Book--maybe that is supposed to be scifi? I get them confused unless I there are space ships involved! :-)

I'll be starting Tigana hopefully sometime this week after finishing up some of my current reading. It's getting a lot of good reviews here, and I can't wait to read it.

Carolyn, do finish Tigana, and Lorie, do start it. I have read a few of Kay's books and liked all of them, but this one is the best so far IMO. It certainly does require concentration because there are so many characters who are integral to the development of the story.

I am glad I finished it. I still need to finish The Children by Halberstam, and am hoping to do it in the next couple of days. Beginning Wednesday, I will have to devote my "serious" reading time to the group read of The Inferno.

#76: The Children looks like it would fit in nicely with my reading for this year. I am going to give it a try.

The Children looks really fascinating. I'm going to have to figure out where to put it in my categories? I think it would fit into biographies/history, altho I'm not sure which one I'd dump to fit it in. I guess I might just have to expand that list to more than 9. I started out with almost 30 in that category and had to whittle that down, so I'll just throw into the "next time' pile.

The Children is very good, so far. I have a fascination with the various aspects of the civil rights movement, and this one is particularly enlightening about the early days of the lunch counter sit-ins and the young people who were involved. I never realized that Nashville was such an important place in the history of that movement. Stasia, it certainly fits into your civil rights reading. Tina, of course it would fit into history, as well. And the "next time" pile works, too!

I've only read one Halberstam, The Best and the Brightest but, based on that, he is an amazing wrtier. He was able to make what could be very dry history come alive.

Abandoned: Mort by Terry Pratchett. I thought I might like Pratchett based upon his collaboration with Gaiman on Good Omens, but I absolutely could not finish this book. I did not mind the first twenty or thirty pages, but the writing and story then started to irritate me--cannot tell you why. If this is representative of the writing I will pass on more Pratchett.

#17 The Children by David Halberstam. This one warrants a bit of discussion, so will be back to it later.

#18 Something Rotten by Jasper Fforde. I had liked The Eyre Affair and Lost in a Good Book. Somehow skipped Well of Lost Plots. This will be the last of Fforde for me. The devices that were so entertaining in the first two are now just overworked IMO.

Lisa
I'll watch for your review of The Children. I'm curious about this book.

#17 The Children by David Halberstam
719 pages in paperback Fawcett edition

In 1959, James Lawson, a Methodist minister who spent several years in India studying the methods of Gandhi, organized a group of college students to protest segregation in Nashville through lunch counter sit-ins.. The original group of students attended various local schools including American Baptist College, Fisk University and Tennessee A & I—all primarily black colleges. Among them were the later infamous Marion Barry and John Lewis, who became a Congressman from Georgia. Several of the others became prominent in the larger civil rights movement. Many of them were interested in ministry, or came from backgrounds which gave them deep religious convictions. Halberstam tells the story of these individuals and of others who joined them along the way. He reports on and analyzes the development of the non-violent direct action movement during the early 1960s.

The largest focus is on the students' involvement in the lunch-counter sit-ins that began in early 1960 and in the Freedom Rides that began somewhat later. The students’ movement started in Nashville--which was a relatively liberal city with regard to segregation—and expanded to cities and towns of the “Deep South” in Alabama and Mississippi. There were relatively peaceful mass arrests in Nashville and vicious beatings sanctioned by the local governments in Alabama and Mississippi. Until the later 1960s, these protesters reacted non-violently, and many of them suffered serious injury.

Halberstam comments on the almost complete lack of involvement by the Kennedy administration until confronted with the extreme violence perpetrated on the protestors by law enforcement officials. He discusses the connection between some of the local police and the Ku Klux Klan. He also calls attention to the relatively new phenomenon of television broadcasting these scenes to the average American, and the significant impact on the populace and on the federal government of that visual evidence.

Halberstam was a reporter for the Nashville Tennesseean when the sit-ins started and moved to the New York Times in the early 1960s where his emphasis shifted to the Vietnam War. The writing is that of a very good reporter, but it is not a scholarly investigation and analysis. It is based upon anecdote and interviews with participants in the events and can be taken as a well written factual account. My one criticism is that he spends approximately 200 pages at the end of the book briefly recounting what happened afterward to all of the individuals he saw as key players. Since I was reading it for information about the civil rights movement, I was not so interested in the "after" stories.

I do, however, highly recommend this very readable book, particularly as one that covers the contributions of the less well known young participants in the early civil rights movement.

ET fix numbers

Just posting here so I don't lose this thread, you like so many books I do!! I'll be hanging round here much more :)

Thanks for the great review!

#84: I am definitely going to try and fit that one in this year. Thanks for the great review!

#19 Three Men in a Boat

Finally decided to just finish this instead of carrying it around with me to read a few pages at a time! I can say nothing new about this classic--Funny, fun, easy read, Wodehousian. Actually, it made me want to take a boat trip on the Thames, but not rowing! I am more of the "steam launch" type.

So now I have to pick something else from the pile to carry around with me. It needs to be thin and something I can read a few pages at a time.

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So glad you enjoyed Three Men in a Boat! Don't forget read To Say Nothing of the Dog by Connie Willis? It piggybacks directly onto Three Men in a Boat in a Victorian time travel comedy/romance in the most delightful fashion, and you even get to wave at the "Three Men" on the Thames. Highly recommended. Same author as The Doomsday Book, but totally different affect, even though the time travel is the same. Don't know how thin it is, but it is light reading.

#20 Graveyard Dust by Barbara Hambly

Third in the Benjamin January series which started with A Free Man of Color. January is a free man of color in 1830s New Orleans, and these are somewhat historical mystery fiction. In this book, January's sister is a "voodoo" who is accused of giving poison to a woman to kill her husband, and January sets out to prove her innocence. Unfortunately, I am already finding the narrative repetitive and predictable in this third book. The story is somewhat interesting, and the evocation of what it was like to be free or slave and "of color" in that place and time is well done. January seems not to be developing as a character in these books, however, and keeps getting himself beat up in the same locations and by the same type of people. I do not think I will move on in this series.

>roni, I have To Say Nothing of the Dog on the list, but there are just so many things ahead of it!

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It's just that there are so many allusions to three men in a boat in TSNOTD that if you wait too long, you will miss them! (or at least I would)

#90: I am sorry to hear that January is not developing as a character throughout the series because I really liked A Free Man of Color.

Yes, Stasia, I agree. I can recommend the second, Fever Season, but was disappointed in this one. I know in the long run he ends up marrying again, but the woman he ends up marrying, who was a real person in the second book, seems terribly one-dimensional in Graveyard Dust. Perhaps there is someone out there who has gone on reading and could give us some encouragement.

Great review of the Children - thanks! I will throw it onto my library list. Have you read Parting the Waters by Taylor Branch? (Sorry if I've asked you that already on another thread!) I really enjoyed it, but it took me aaaaaages. I haven't tackled Volumes 2 and 3 yet.

Cushla,

I read Parting the Waters shortly after it came out, and also have read Pillar of Fire. The last, At Canaan's Edge is sitting on my nightstand, and has been for a while, although I think I am going to tackle it soon. Branch's work is very good and very thorough, but, for me, slow going to truly appreciate it. Although The Children is long, it is primarily anecdotal and much easier reading. Enjoyable in a different way!

That's good news... PTW took me forever. I have Pillar of Fire but am not ready yet!

#21 Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

How does one get to one's mid-fifties without having read this book? I am just glad I finally did, and will go on to read more Austen for pure entertainment.

#22 Cold Comfort Farm by Stella Gibbons is absolutely laugh-out-loud funny and such a quick read. Good thing no one was around when I was reading it on Sunday afternoon! If you have not read the story of Flora Poste's stay with the her relatives, the uproariously dysfunctional Starkadder family, you should. You really should.

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>97 LisaCurcio: also just started my first Austen - Emma - so I'm glad to know that if I like it there'll also be other great ones in store :)

#97: I loved Cold Comfort Farm, too, when I read it last year. It was also made into a very good movie and on Cariola's recommendation, I bought it. My hubby and I were laughing ourselves silly by the time it was done - you might want to check it out as well.

Just popping in, seeing a lot of good books here.
I love everything by Guy Gavriel Kay. His original Fionavar Tapestry trilogy is probably my absolute favorite, but I love all of them. I started with the Sarantine Mosaic duology. I read The Last Light of the Sun last year and I read Ysabel this year. I also enjoyed A Song for Arbonne.

I have read To Say Nothing of the Dog but need to get around to Three Men in a Boat.

And I'm adding The Doomsday Book to my list now.

I have read Sense and Sensibility but haven't gotten to others. I want to read Emma, Pride and Prejudice and Persuasion. Not sure how I'll fit it all in, but some day I'll get to them all.

>99 alcottacre: Stasia,

Thanks for the recommendation. I bet the movie was funny, but I have not been to a movie or watched a movie since "My Cousin Vinny"! I just cannot sit still in front of a television for some reason. If I am alone, the television does not even go on. I am one of those people who has no idea what is going on in pop culture, who does not recognize the names of currently popular television programs, actors, etc. I don't miss it, but sometimes I can't participate in conversations because I am clueless. Oh well, I would rather read when I have leisure time, so I just suffer looking like an idiot.

#101: My television viewing is about nonexistent as well, so I can relate. Actually, if I did not have a husband and kids, I probably would not even own a television set :)

Book #23: My Dearest Friend: Letters of Abigail and John Adams

See my review: http://www.librarything.com/work/4110618/reviews

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Catching up here:

#24 Shadows on the Rock by Willa Cather tells the story of a young girl and her widowed father in 1600's Quebec. As always, Cather captures the history and the scene. A shorter book than those set in the American west, you will like it if you liked Cather's books set there.

#25 Fatal Remedies by Donna Leon. I like the Brunetti books, and this is another in the series. If you would like to read an excellent review, I refer you to the one written by Joycepa.

#26 Mornings on Horseback by David McCullough

Although billed as a biography of the early life of Theodore Roosevelt, it really is as much a social history as a biography. As one expects from McCullough, the work is well researched and well written.

It is a particularly engaging work because he has taken the time and effort to clearly develop the stories and characters of Theodore Roosevelt, Sr. and his wife, Martha Bulloch Roosevelt, known as Mittie. To a lesser extent, one comes to know the future president's siblings and his large and close extended family.

TR senior comes through as a philanthropist in the best sense of the word--dispensing not only his money but his time. Mittie was a true southern belle. One comes to appreciate the effect of the family's wealth and the personalities of the parents on the development of the younger TR. The political events and jockeying of the day are also an important part of this history.

This book gives the reader an excellent understanding of how Teddy Roosevelt came to be the larger than life man who was the 26th president.

#27 Miss Pym Disposes by Josephine Tey

True to form, Tey wrote an unconventional mystery. This one is set at a girls' college where Miss Lucy Pym has been invited by her old friend who is the head of the school to be what we might today call a guest lecturer for a day. She ends up staying on for various reasons, becoming friends with some of the students. The murder occurs about two-thirds of the way through the tale, but the book is less about the mystery than about Miss Pym's thought processes. A quick, but engaging read. I recommend it, but not as highly as Brat Farrar.

#28 Death at Gallows Green by Robin Paige

Robin Paige is the pen name of the husband and wife team of Susan Wittig Albert and Bill Albert writing mysteries set in Victorian England. The protagonist is Kate Ardleigh, an orphaned and independent American woman who first traveled to England to be secretary to one of her late father's sisters.

This is the second book. In these pretty typical murder mysteries, someone gets killed on the first page or two, Miss Ardleigh gets involved and ultimately solves the case. Of course there is a developing love interest. No deep thoughts to be found, and that is part of the charm when trying to take a break from more engrossing reading.

So far, I like these better than Susan Wittig Albert's China Bayles mysteries, mainly because so much time is spent in the China Bayles books describing what people are wearing. I have yet to figure out why.

#29 Italian Lessons by Peter Pezzelli

I generally like Pezzelli's books for light reading about first generation Italian Americans who have made a good life in the U.S., but maintain an emotional tie to Italy. His writing is a bit uneven, and there is no depth to these stories, but I find them fun to read because they remind me of good things from my growing up years, and ignore the dysfunctional parts. I liked this one well enough, but it certainly won't make a top 100 reads of 2009 list.

And a real clunker:

#30 The Reluctant Tuscan by Phil Doran

The story of a couple who buys a run down, ancient building in the hills and renovates it is not unique. The appeal when I picked up this book was the claim by Doran, a former Hollywood screenwriter, that he was telling the story of how he came to love Italy after he and his wife renovated a house near Pisa.

I don't believe him. From the beginning, when he reluctantly joined his wife after she bought the house, to the end, when they are living in the house, his tone is sarcastic and his description of the culture and people is derogatory. He is the classic "Ugly American" at the outset; in the end he is only slightly less ugly.

The book might have been redeemed had he related the stories of the local people in a believable way. All of them, however, are caricatures. Every odd characteristic is exaggerated. In the end, Doran could not overcome his screenwriter training and mentality.

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Lisa if you keep this up, I'll have to remove the star from your thread---everytime you review something, it ends up on my evergrowing TBR pile! A great selection here. Keep it up. I look forward to what's next.

#104: I am with Tina - man, are you dangerous to my Continent! Luckily, I have already read 3 of them, and so only have to add 2 (I am not adding the clunker and the Donna Leon books are already on the Continent thanks to Joyce).

Tina, Stasia;

Tit-for-tat, you know. My TBR has been blessed by many offerings from both of you.

If all of the talk about possible retirements from the Supreme Court has you thinking about reading about the Supreme Court, skip my book #31, The Nine: Inside the Secret World of the Supreme Court by Jeffrey Toobin. Many better books, including an oldie but goodie: The Brethren by Bob Woodward, discussed above.

For my review of Toobin's book:

http://www.librarything.com/profile_reviews.php?view=LisaCurcio

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Hi Lisa
While I don't often post here, I lurk every day. You read such great books, and your reviews are spot on.
By the way, did you know that you rec'd. a "hot" review for your comments regarding The Nine: Inside the Secret World of the Supreme Court? Congats!

And, I agree with Tina and Stasia...Your thread is dangerous if I am ever going to whittle down the tbr pile.

Hi Linda,

I lurk a lot, too, and am constantly adding books from people's threads, including yours. Nice to hear from you.

And thanks for the heads up on the hot review. Further thanks to those who voted for the review!

Lisa--

Really enjoyed your reading list this week. I loved Miss Pym Disposes last year and I have Brat Farrar on tap for my mystery category this year. Now I can hardly wait! I'm saving it for a time when I can read it over a short period of time--end of May or June when my life slows down.

I own both Shadows on the Rock and Mornings on Horseback which will now be put on the TBR pile (my physical pile--books I have on hand and need to read). I've never read anything by Cather set in Canada, but I love her writing and that one will fit in my classics category, so it will get read soon. I love McCullough--I hope to read everything he has written before I die.

I'm feeling "smug" because the books I'm adding to my pile I already own so I don't have to hunt them down! :-D

The Donna Leon books are on my "to read" list already, but I may have to wait a while to get started.

I had a good time visiting your thread today!

I've been toying with trying McCulloughs book on John Adams but don't know if I can fit that in this year with all of the classics I am trying to finish. The TR book sounds great.

BDB, If you decide to try one this year, TR is very good and a faster read, but Adams is better. Personally, I have given up on discipline. Every time I decide on a goal, something else comes along that I simply must read NOW.

Ahhh discipline. The forgotten art for bibliophiles like us. thanks for the suggestion but I have Adams here at home and don't yet have a copy of TR. We'll see if I get around to it this year.