Tiffin 75 for 2009, Take Two

Continued from my first thread: My First Thread for 2009

Action Central: my den



BOOKS READ



TOTAL PAGES



READING GOALS 2009

1. Read and review more Canadian Lit.
2. Read five unread classics this year.
3. Reread some classics I read so long ago that I can't remember them.
4. Continue to explore literature in translation from other cultures
5. Don't worry one iota if I don't reach 75; it's what I read and how much I enjoy it which really matters.
6. It isn't a competition, it's an exploration. Some books need time to settle into me, their impact and message staying with me for days after I read them. Diving right into another book doesn't work for me while I still have the tendrils of the previous one wrapped around my grey matter.
7. Reviews: review more frequently and in more depth.

JANUARY
1. Embers by Sandor Marai (a forgotten late December read){goal #4}
2. Thus Was Adonis Murdered by Sarah Caudwell
3. Un Lun Dun by China Miéville
4. When You are Engulfed in Flames by David Sedaris
5. The Shortest Way to Hades by Sarah Caudwell
6. The Sirens Sang of Murder by Sarah Caudwell
7. The Blackwater Lightship by Colm Toibin
??. Love's Civil War by Victoria Glendinning - partially read

January: 1904 total pages read PLUS Nigella Lawson's new cookbook read fairly thoroughly PLUS 286 pages read of the ARC "Love's Civil War" to review it but the latter is heavy slogging because I find the love male interest to be a bit of a prat so far and the female love interest is incomprehensibly (to this reader, at any rate) head over heels about him. Lots of online reading of reviews and articles, too numerous to mention and impossible to tally. If I had finished the ARC, I would have been on target for this month. Hello, February!

FEBRUARY
8. Kate's Klassics by Kate Camp
9. The Tortoise and the Hare by Elizabeth Jenkins
10. Choosing Civility: The Twenty-Five Rules of Considerate Conduct by P.M. Forni
11. Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu
12. Lark Rise to Candleford by Flora Thompson
13. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
14. Inside the Whale by Jennie Rooney
15. The Road Home by Rose Tremain

MARCH
16. John Lennon: the Life by Philip Norman
17. The Pendragon Legend by Antal Szerb {goal #4}
18. Death at La Fenice by Donna Leon
19. The Sibyl in Her Grave by Sarah Caudwell
20. The Girl of His Dreams by Donna Leon
21. Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman
22. American Gods by Neil Gaiman

APRIL
23. The Arrival by Shaun Tan
24. The Boys in the Trees by Mary Swan {goal #1}
25. The Great Crash 1929 by John Kenneth Galbraith {goal #1}
26. Death Comes for the Archbishop by Willa Cather
27. Mrs. Dalloway by Virginia Woolf {goal #3}
28. Designer Plant Combinations by Scott Calhoun
29. Mayo Clinic: The Essential Diabetes Book
30. Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese
31. Du Fu: A Life in Poetry by Du Fu, Translated by David Young {goal # 4}
32. Black Sheep by Georgette Heyer
33. Don't Tell Alfred by Nancy Mitford

MAY
34. Souvenir of Canada by Douglas Coupland {goal #1}
35. Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire by Amanda Foreman
36. Will You Take Me As I Am, Joni Mitchell's Blue Period by Michelle Mercer
37. Merry Hall by Beverley Nichols
38. Good Omens by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett
39. Cheerful Weather for the Wedding by Julia Strachey

JUNE
40. The Frozen Thames by Helen Humphreys {goal #1}
41. The Ladies of Grace Adieu by Susanna Clarke
42. Acqua Alta by Donna Leon
43. Summer Lightning by P.G. Wodehouse
44. The Perfect Summer by Juliet Nicolson

Wow, look at that den! Fortunately, there are no ix at the moment of where I hang out.

You can't swing a cat in it, Joyce, but I don't need to...she just curls up in the chair and I sit at the desk here.

Whoa - I go away for two days and arrive back to 75 unread Tiffin messages and a new thread!! Such a chatty lot following you about, Tiffin. It is fun to catch up.

I love the pictures of the bookshelves, your den and your book discussions. I am eying my daughter's room as a possible den/llbrary when she moves away in the next year or too.

I enjoyed The Arrival and The Great Crash, too. I have to admit that I did not understand some of the economic jargon either, and don't look on it as a failing, but rather a lack of interest on my part (and I did really enjoy maths at school). My upbringing also dissuaded interest in the Stock Market as my father believed it was a gambling arena.

I thought The Arrival was a little gem of a graphic novel. That boy can draw and formulate ideas and emotions visually.

I have the Swan book waiting for me, for the right moment.

And thanks for the list of books from the BBC. I noticed quite a variety of books - some kids, some contemporary, a lot of classics (including Moby Dick!!!!!). I think I have read most of them - except Harry Potter and about 15 others.

I MUST get over my bias and read HP soon!! It seems an important book to have read.

Whisper - I did not realize that your hubbie was a doctor - is he a GP. I would love to be able to retire at 59 (9 more years) but fear the cost of my kids post-grad education will not allow it. (It is a taxing and stressful job, for sure)
As well, not buying books anymore - how would I cope?

Starring thread and looking forward to more reviews!
Eliza

#1: I am jealous beyond words of people who actually have shelves on which to put their books!

Stasia, when I had over 3,000 books, I DIDN'T have any shelf space. Books were sitting packaged in boxes, unloved and unread. It didn't seem right. So it was a Good Thing to do a major purge and get them back out there in circulation. Now I just try to keep what I truly love and know I will reread, along with certain sentimental books.

Kiwi, isn't Tad's library to die for? I think all of us swooned with unbridled lust and envy over it.

ETfix word error

But what if you truly love, will reread, and are sentimentally attached to over 2100 books???

Well, then you keep them, love them, reread them and hug them. And find space for them somehow.

I got my books out of storage (where they were for 3+ years) when we bought a house last year, Tui. Unfortunately, I have no shelves on which to put them, so for now they are stacked on the floor, on the 1 bookcase I do have, in boxes, etc. One of these centuries I will have shelves in my library!

ohhhhh what a long time without your books. You must feel good to even have them around you in piles then.

#11: Yes, it does! It feels like old friends come to visit.

Yes Tiffen - I love it when walls are covered with shelves. Any house I see which has such decoration would immediately make me want to buy - it is more appealing than any nice kitchen or bathroom.

However, it seems very rare to find such built-ins here in Vancouver.

26. Death Comes for the Archbishop by Willa Cather



I am surprised at how much I enjoyed this book. Missionary work, the spread of Christianity and its role in settling the American west aren't topics I find particularly interesting. In Cather's work, however, her writing transcends the role Fathers Jean Marie Latour and Joseph Vaillant play as missionaries for the Roman Catholic church, taking it beyond this subject matter to a story which gave me pleasure to read. I remain cynical about the church's role with regard to Mexicans and Indians (sic) but I like the story. A separation of church and state indeed. An interesting read.

Oooh....how lovely to see your library! And I believe I detect LoTR and its hobbity predecessor there...

#13: kiwi, it has had me looking around here to see what I might do to add permanent shelving - love the idea of going over doors and using that lost space. I'm afraid it would take some work to convince the significant other that this would be a good idea. I'd look for a Bookshelves for Dummies but I'm afraid it would require a Bandsaw for Dummies first. It's just me and Ikea.

#15: heya lw3, you do indeed and a boxed set at that. Lyco would be pleased to know that it's in the hallowed zone too.

ooh, all these drool-worthy pictures of shelves... I've posted this on other people's threads before but it seems too on-topic not to repeat-post The Amazing Staircase.

If we ever get round to doing work on our house as we've been talking about for the past 3+ years, I want to hire these people.

#17 Yes, she would indeed. We have that same set here, although "someone" did away with the dust jackets years ago. Don't know how many different editions Laura has in her possession. I also believe I recognize the Pevear translation of War and Peace, no?

Flossie, I had a duh moment there: didn't realise that the first shot was looking DOWN the staircase, so I thought "no way I could go upstairs on the spines of my books". Had to get to the next shots to figure it out. I also thought that those people don't have a dog going up and down those stairs with dog debris getting in their books. *looking at Madam in the corner here*

#19: yep...W&P is my big reread project for the year, this summer. Didn't think I could do the Napoleonic campaigns in the winter.

Tiffin
21 posts within a 24 hour period must be a record! It is always nice to visit here and share the camaraderie.

I am envious of your shelf space. Of course, there is a pattern here re. book collection, book reading, book storage, the love of books!

#4 Kiwidoc..
I met Will when I had my eyes examined. It is a funny story and I have my grandmother to thank for the change in my life. One of Wills office buildings also housed a hearing center. My grandmother was consistently needing her hearing aid repaired...
I decided to have my eyes examined during one of the times I took her for her appointment with the hearing specialist.

What can I say other than he looked in my eyes and, while I didn't see stars, something a bit magical did occur.

#22 - Aaww, Linda, that is one great story - it is like something from a book!

Geez Linda - that is a very sweet romantic story - so he is an opthalmologist, optometrist or something similar??

Tiffin and Flossie - I have the exact same reaction to the first picture, when I thought that it required stepping onto the book spines for stairs. What a great idea!!. That person sure is obsessive - all the books are perfectly lined up, colour coordinated and meticulously organized. I might have to reorganize according to colour!!! Books make the best decorations - but perhaps some glass would reduce the cleaning?

I wish I could remember which magazine I read recently that contained an article re. how to use a small space effectively. A ladder like book case was built and all books were placed by color. It was stunningly beautiful...

Will is a retired opthomologist. Actually, the story is a bit more complex. When I mentioned severe re-occurring headaches and blurry vision, he recommended an appointment with a neurologist who then, via a cat scan, discovered a somewhat rare birth defect called an Arnold Chiari Malformation which can create intercranial pressure on the optic nerve. So, as a result of that one appointment, I joke that had my eyes and my head examined.

Wow, we are really getting far afield here, aren't we? My brother has a variation of the Chiari defect, too. He calls it the "hole in my head".

Linda
Getting back on track to the subject of books, you might recommend the following to your brother:

http://www.librarything.com/work/2610412/book/27369234

>Great to see a picture of your den, tiffin! It looks comfy:-)

>27 Whisper1: Thank you, Linda. I'll look for that.

Sorry to read that you had Chiari Syndrome, Linda. I have never had a patient with that condition before - but the big positive side is you met your husband through it all.

>#25 Linda, I'm amazed it took so long for you to be diagnosed.Where I work we yearly have a couple dozen admissions for patients with complications of ACM - and most of them are under 6 years old. You must have a high pain tolerance. What a great story.
Kelly

and I'm amazed at what I learn around here...honestly, every day I pick up something new.
#26: I read that as YOU having a hole in YOUR head being your brother's problem...glad Whisp caught it the right way around.
#28: thanks, Lois, but it's actually incredibly small. I want Tad's library.

Tiffin
I'm with Lois, I like your comfy den and if it is incredibly small, then it must feel all the more cozy.

Kelly, I was diagnosed in mid life when the symptoms appeared. And, yes, I am blessed with a high tolerance for pain. In the last 13 years I've been relatively high functioning and there are only a few times when I'm laid low by the migranes.

I've had shunt surgery, multiple spinal taps and the eventual removal of the shunt.

Now, back to books. Tiffin, I have added Death Comes to the Archbishop to my tbr pile. Willa Cather is an author mentioned frequently and I've never read any of her books. Thanks for your recommendation.

Any time, Whisp! I've had my medical crosses to bear too and have a lot of sympathy for others in that boat. We don't take life for granted, do we.

I don't know if "Death Comes to the Archbishop" is a typical Cather or not. Like you, she isn't someone I've read. But I liked this book. I have serious reservations (*groan* that is an awful unintentional pun and you'll understand how bad once you've read the book) about the church's treatment of the North American indigenous people which I think Cather unwittingly glosses over or mythologises - although, to be fair, she does have Father Latour rejoice that he has lived to see the policy of Indian genocide halted in his lifetime. The story did have its negatives for me. But in many instances missionaries were the first interface with the indigenous peoples so her look at these two French priests working with the Mexican and indigenous populations before this area of America was part of the US was very well done. I got the sense of America (the east) just waiting to come rolling in like a giant tsunami, smashing down on this quiet world in New Mexico, sweeping it all away. Let me know what you think when you do read it.

ETA: If Cather wasn't Roman Catholic herself, her research into the religion was stunning. And her style was really compelling (nodding at Lisa).
ETA2: I keep editing this as I think further about it...

Don't forget that Willa Cather was born in 1873 and died in 1947, and Death Comes for the Archbishop was published in 1927. What seems wrong to us today was an accepted part of the culture of the time.

If you like her style (I do) do read O Pioneers and My Antonia. Both are stories of early immigrants to Nebraska. I also recently read Shadows on the Rock which was a set in late 17th century Quebec.

I hadn't been aware that Shadows on the Rock was set in Quebec. Thanks, Lisa. Will try to find a copy.

Wow, Lisa, I don't think I've even known of Shadows on the Rock! Thanks!

I think that Cather was one of those authors who wrote about things as she found them, with great empathy for the people involved. I never get the feeling, when I'm reading her, that she is in any way judgmental, just writing with tremendous insight.

It seems to be out in a Vintage Classic, which was also the copy I had for "Death Comes for the Archbishop", so it appears that Vintage has released her works in this series (with lovely water colour covers too, btw). It would be nice to collect them as a set.

Actually, the Vintage Classic is the one I have of "Shadows on the Rock". (A BookMooch book) The water color cover is very nice. My others were part of a Book of the Month Club deal.

Joyce, I think you are entirely right about Cather's writing. She also must have done some research about the area and culture. "Shadows" is in such a different setting than the others we have been discussing. It is also a relatively slim book and a quick and satisfying read.

I just finished Cather's Sapphira and the Slave Girl last night, which I read for Reading Globally. I haven't had a chance to think about it in great depth yet, but my initial thoughts were that she created a variety of complex characters, and although this was clearly an anti-slavery book, the slave owners were not necessarily depicted as cardboard one-dimensional, evil people. And of course, her writing was beautiful.

So far behind with posting reads but posting this anyway...stolen from lycomayflower's thread:

Copy the questions into your own post and answer the questions.

1) What author do you own the most books by?
E.F. Benson

2) What book do you own the most copies of?
probably Pride and Prejudice...possibly Paradise Lost

3) Did it bother you that both those questions ended with prepositions?
Not particularly, although I don't do it myself, kind of. hehe

4) What fictional character are you secretly in love with?
Oh cripes...well, of course Mr. Darcy but I loved Mr. Jarndyce's sense of humour in Bleak House and Atticus Finch's incredible sense of justice in To Kill a Mockingbird and thought Sherlock Holmes was a total hottie when I was about ten and...

5) What book have you read the most times in your life (excluding picture books read to children; i.e., Goodnight Moon does not count)?
Hmmm read Lord of the Rings at least eleven times in my teens but not once since; Pride and Prejudice every couple of years; the Mapp & Lucia series by Benson about seven times

6) What was your favorite book when you were ten years old?
I had several: the Sherlock Holmes collection, because the stories fascinated me, as did Holmes himself; The Once and Future King, because I loved the character of Merlin; David Copperfield, because it was all so sad.

7) What is the worst book you've read in the past year?
Haven't read a bad one this past year but The Dante Club just drove me bonkers the year or so before. Bored to utter tears.

8) What is the best book you've read in the past year?
at this point, The Book Thief

9) If you could force everyone you tagged to read one book, what would it be?
The Master and Margarita The Handmaid's Tale Fifth Business You get the picture... oh, and To Kill a Mockingbird

10) Who deserves to win the next Nobel Prize for Literature?
Not a clue.

11) What book would you most like to see made into a movie?
The Pendragon Legend - the special effects would be stupendous

12) What book would you least like to see made into a movie?
The Boys in the Trees out of this year's reads - oh, and The Book Thief. Actually, any book I rate higher than a four, in case it gets wrecked.

13) Describe your weirdest dream involving a writer, book, or literary character.
not the kind of thing I dream about

14) What is the most lowbrow book you've read as an adult?
Hmmm lowbrow...not sure what this means...probably something in science fiction?

15) What is the most difficult book you've ever read?
The Divine Comedy by Dante - I read it while I was quite young and it was hard work

16) What is the most obscure Shakespeare play you've seen?
Timon of Athens...maybe Coriolanus...

17) Do you prefer the French or the Russians?
oh cripes...sometimes you feel like a Beaujolais and sometimes a V&O will do....and besides, I actually prefer the English

18) Roth or Updike?
Neither.

19) David Sedaris or Dave Eggers?
Neither.

20) Shakespeare, Milton, or Chaucer?
Shakespeare, deffo (sorry, Milton and Chaucer)

21) Austen or Eliot?
Austen, without a moment's hesitation - I love Middlemarch but I adore Pride and Prejudice

22) What is the biggest or most embarrassing gap in your reading?
Modern Canadian Lit.,

23) What is your favorite novel?
I don't have only one favourite novel. This is an impossible question.

24) Play?
The Tempest, perhaps, but again, an impossible question because it leaves out Stoppard, Brecht, Miller, Williams, et. al

25) Poem?
Another impossible question.

26) Essay?
Classic: An Apology for Poetry by Sir Philip Sidney
Twixt and tween: Essays of Elia by Charles Lamb
Modern: Ex Libris by Anne Fadiman - any of hers

27) Short story?
A Child's Christmas in Wales - this is one of my top lifetime reads (and listens...Dylan Thomas reading it himself is as close to heaven as I'm going to get in this lifetime)

28) Work of nonfiction?
The Gardener's Essential by Gertrude Jekyll because she's SO impossible and yet I love her.

29) Who is your favorite writer?
Yet another unanswerable question.

30) Who is the most overrated writer alive today?
alive, key word: the one who wrote that vampire series...Stephenie Meyer Oh and that one who writes the best selling dreck and appears on the back dripping with jewellery....crumb, what is her name? Big print on the covers too....

31) What is your desert island book?
no way I'm taking just one, forget it, I'll just stay home with my little library. What is a desert island anyway?

32) And... what are you reading right now?
Designer Plant Combinations by Scott Calhoun, Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese

>42 tiffin:: E.F. Benson! How fabulous.

This is so amusing - I thought I was the only one who had a crush on Sherlock Holmes!! :D

I'm reading about four books at once. Consequently none of them is getting finished very quickly. However, I did complete my reread of:

27. Mrs. Dalloway by Virginia Woolf



I hadn't read any Virginia Woolf since the 70s when I read much of her work for an intense modern novel course. Reading Mrs Dalloway brought back that rush of affection I had - and continue to have - for her writing.

My Review

28. Designer Plant Combinations by Scott Calhoun



A very useful gardening book I picked up at the library. The book is broken into sections for perennials, grasses, annuals, accent plants, ground cover and woods. Each of those sections is broken down with a large photograph of a garden with the three to six plants in question on one side, and a small photo and plant description on the other page, with a designer tip concerning that particular "look". There is the occasional two page spread of a gorgeous garden photo. His headings are fun: "Hummingbird Central", "The Silver Medal for Deerproofing", etc. I particularly liked that he gave plant heights and hardiness zones. As I said, a useful book, but one I think I will check out of the library as I need it, rather than purchasing.

29. The Essential Diabetes Book: how to prevent, control and live well with diabetes by the Mayo Clinic. Another library book find and another useful book. I like to keep up with recommendations for managing diabetes, particularly around diet and recipes. Unfortunately it is an American book, so the blood sugar numbers cited had no relevance for me without having to do a conversion all the time. The medical section was excellent but the exercise and diet sections didn't teach me anything new.

ETA: touchstone not working for #29

What a wonderful review, Tui. I think I've said this before, but it bears saying again: you have the tremendous ability to look at yourself, where you are in your life vs. where you have been, and relate what you find to the books you read. It confirms how we change the more we experience life.

What a beautiful compliment, Charlie. Thank you.

#47: Great compliment, CharlieBrain, and such a true one!

ETA: I really appreciate the fact that in this group we have an entire spectrum of age ranges from 18 to 60+ giving different viewpoints from all stages of life.

ditto message 47 and 49!

Well thank you again, Stasia and Linda!

Ditto all the above, plus I want to say: you actually make me want to read Woolf (rather than just feeling I ought to). My tutor at uni loathed her with a passion (partly, I think, because she was female, partly because of her antipathy for Joyce) and the books of hers I've attempted I've never managed to get more than about 20 pages in. Time for reconsideration, clearly.

Wow - that is a gorgeous review of Mrs. D, Tiffin. It sums up my experience of the book beautifully. Thanks.

Thanks, Flossie. Woolf's words wash over you and seem to form the story in the wake as you move through them, almost as though you are looking back at an Impressionist's painting being formed as you step away from the dots and blobs of colour, an intensely visual writer. In Mrs. D., she paints each moment with a character so that you feel as though you are physically beside each one. I don't know of any other writer who can make me feel quite like that.

Thanks, Kiwi - your reading of Mrs. D. prompted me to reread the book and I am very glad I did. We should read her in our dotage together and see what we think.

Encore!
I searched my bookshelves...I know there's a Mrs. D hiding there somewhere, waiting to be re-visited.
I'm in for dotage.

Hello fellow Canuck, thanks for dropping by.

I love Mrs. Dalloway and just within the past few months have re-added it to my library, with the intention of having the pleasure to reread it. I thought that The Hours was an admirable adaptation/update of the book. And I thought that the movie did credit to both. You couldn't ask for three finer actresses or performances.

By the way, if you ever get to watch the DVD and the special features, there's one on how the movie was made, footage from the filming which is fascinating, and a comment from Meryl Streep about how none of the three knew the others' parts--she only saw the whole thing at the premier.

Reminds me--might be fun to watch the movie again tonight.

30. Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese



I love nothing better than being told a good story. This was a really good romp of a story. Interesting characters: conjoined twins separated at birth, Shiva Praise Stone and Marion Praise Stone; their father, a brilliant surgeon but tormented man, Thomas Stone; their mother, an Indian nun, Sister Mary Joseph Praise; their adoptive parents, Drs Ghosh and Hema; Genet and her mother Rosina, and a cast of umpteen others who were fascinating to this reader. Set in the Ethiopia of Haile Selassie's reign, Verghese tells the story from the perspective of Marion Stone but gives the reader sufficient background information from the perspective of others to flesh out a tale which spans decades and several countries.

For a first novel, this is a pretty impressive read. I had to suspend disbelief only a couple of times (I can't say where, as that would be a spoiler) and the language was just a touch overwrought at times near the beginning, but on the whole, it was a really decent first effort, one which held my interest and emotions throughout. Some might have found the medical detail a bit overdone but I found that aspect fascinating (Verghese is a doctor) and that it lent a real authenticity to everything in the story. I also found this look at Ethiopian life to be deeply interesting. His characterisation was really, really good. So well done, Verghese.

When you read a story which sustains your interest throughout its length (534 pages), making you eager to pick it up to see what is going to happen next, you know you've found a good book. Recommended.

This is a book already on my tbr pile. Others have highly recommended it as well. Thanks for your great review.

I'm glad you also enjoyed it, tiffin.

Wow, that sounds like a real winner!

Ahem - Tui - I am waiting for you to post your review of Mrs. D so that I can thumb it upwards. *toe tapping impatiently*

The Vergese book goes on To The Tottering Tower of TBRs.

Karen, I thought it was too personal, more for a thread. Do you think it could work as a review as is?

Laura, I think you would like it a lot. Kidz found this one, to give credit where it's due.

It is a perfect review - the personal take makes it much more interesting, IMHO.

Plus--since when are there rules for reviews?

ditto #64 and #65.

ok you lot! Done...and thanks for the moral support.

ETA: that is so strange...I thought the review hadn't posted and then I found it under a December 07 date near the bottom of the reviews! I'll delete it and try again. This luddite can't think of any other way.
ETA2: ok, now it's saying that I posted the review December 31, 1969. I give up.

How on earth did you post a review before the internet even existed? You are indeed amazing, tiffin!

Seriously ... I'm not sure if LT picks up the review date from your PC. Check your computer's date/time settings -- have they gone wonky?

They're bang on, linds. Isn't that the oddest thing?
hehe re the internet not existing...I was actually in my 1st year of university at the time.

If you scroll to the bottom of your reviews, it is there and has been duly thumbed. It should get a lot more, if people can find it!!

Thanks, kiwi...I love linds' comment above: "before the internet even existed".

Bing! Found it. Great review. Julie(tte07!) gave me a copy as part of my VMC Secret Santa last year, and I've been putting it off, thinking it'll be too hard.

I've already added Cutting for Stone to the library list based on Kidzdoc's review. It really sounds excellent.

There you go, Tiffin. You are a HOT lady yet again! Congrats!

Thanks but YOICKS, Kiwi: it seems to take the review right into my edit box on the Mrs. D. page? There is a definite glitch here. Tim, help!

I climbed into my Way Back Machine (remember Bullwinkle?), set it for 1969 (also my first year in college), and bingo, I found your review of Mrs. D. (the one I liked so much).

When LT ate my whole review of The Worst Hard Time while I was adjusting the photo link, I learned to leave well enough alone. Don't worry, be happy (everybody sing!).

Thanks for the laugh, Charlie. And the reality check. Way Back Machine...hehehe

tiffin...
Hi.

I see that you have a "hot review" for your excellent comments re. Mrs. Dallolway. It is listed on today's home page along with the hot review of TadAd, Kidzdoc and Kiwidoc...Way to go 75 challenge group!!!!!

Congratulations to all!

That date glitch is an LT bug. It happened to one of Laura's (my Laura) reviews yesterday too--it was dated December of 1969 and put at the bottom of the list of 500+ reviews for the book. And I had issues with the order of threads for a while---instead of posts being listed with the latest at the top, they were all scrambled up, dormant ones mixed in with the active.

Thanks, Whisp.

aha Linda, it wasn't just me then. I was starting to feel persecuted. ;) As I hadn't read Mrs. D. until approx. 1972, it was lies, lies, more damned lies. So LT should go down at 2:47 this afternoon, right in the middle of one of Charlie's posts so that they can work on it, if things go according to plan.

I've just been over on the bug collectors thread---lots of date related glitches, especially since the new changes to the catalog. They're working behind the scenes on fixes so far---not the kind of thing that requires down time, I guess. *fingers crossed*

31. Du Fu: A Life in Poetry by Du Fu, Translated by David Young



Du Fu (712-770) lived during the Tang dynasty, a period which the translator David Young states “was perhaps the greatest age for poetry that the history of civilization has known”. In this book, Young puts Du Fu’s poems in chronological order and at the beginning of each block of years, e.g., “Early Years in the East, 737-744", he gives a précis of Du Fu’s activities during this time, as well as what was going on politically in China. The result for this reader was a fascinating glimpse at a long gone time but more importantly, at the evolution of a man’s life and his contemplation about that life.

Du Fu was, in his younger days, exactly what you would expect of a young person: ambitious, a bit cocky, fond of wine and the good life. But already there is a difference in his voice which sets him apart from 'ordinary' young folk. He looks at daily life around him, incorporating both the world of nature and the world of people. Sometimes his voice is deeply personal and yet he has the distance, the separateness, of a philosopher.

As I progressed through his poems, I felt tremendous compassion for this man, for the vagaries of his life, for his forced exiles and escapes as Tibetan forces attacked the Empire making life so dangerous and uncertain. Across centuries he made me feel his love for his son, Pony Boy, and his wife - Young says it is unusual for a poet to write a poem for his wife; usually it is for a courtesan or a lover - and his two daughters. I felt his joy in his cottage with the thatched roof and the bamboo he planted there. I understood his frustration with the wars and politics. I delighted in his friendships and how dearly he loved certain individuals. When his hair turned white and he became an ill old man, I ached that his death was on a boat on the Yangtze river, once again shifting and moving, never able to settle, no quiet and peace available for a sick old poet.

His poems are beautiful. They moved me profoundly. Read in sequence as Young placed them, they represent the record of a man’s life, of a time long gone, and reach over that long span of years to touch me with a common humanity. His economy with words and yet his mastery of an image, of a mood impressed me, particularly as you could see this skill growing with him as he aged.

Between 759-762 he wrote “Rain on a Spring Night”:
Congratulations, rain
you know when to fall

and you know quite well
you belong to spring

coming at night, quiet
walking in the wind

making sure things
get good and wet

the clouds hang dark
over country roads

there’s one light from a boat
coming downriver

in the red morning
everything’s wet

flowers all through Chengdu
heavy and full of rain.

I will be dipping into this beautiful book over and over.

ETtake out a completely unnecessary verb

Tim just let me know that they are tracking down the December 31, 1969 glitch. Apparently, this is the start of the internet age, "number 0 in Unix time". Who knew!

Wow...excellent review, Tui, one of the best I've read this year. I'll pick this up this weekend.

Ditto what kidzdoc said - it is thumbed and in my basket. I am intrigued.

Yet another beautiful, heart-felt review, Tui. And such a nice poem, uncomplicated by simile and metaphor.

I read every single word in this book, prologue right through to the bibliography. Something about Du Fu just went right through to my heart.

ETA: where are my manners? Thank you Kidz, Kiwi and Brain.

Right now, Tui, you're on the Hot List twice. LT may be having problems, but you're doing great. Congrats.

congratulations on your two Hot Reviews!!
I was without Internet for the weekend so I've been missing out on threads - but want to say belatedly I loved your last two reviews, particularly the Du Fu one. It sounds a like a great book. I've often wished that someone would do that with a poet I love - i.e. stick his poems in a chronological order and explain the historical background so we can understand what compelled him/her to write what they did and the way he/she evolved as a poet. I wish there were more books like that, and I will definitely be looking for this one.

oh and I just posted a review and got the same date as you: December 31, 1969. Weird.

Tim said they are working on this, GunderG. Apparently that date is the 0 number for Unix, whatever that means. What was bugging me about it is that it threw my most recent reviews to the end of my reviews, so harder to keep track of what I've reviewed in sequence.

Thanks for your kind comments. The chronology and chapter intros really helped me to understand an era centuries ago. The poet's voice speaks very clearly but setting the book up this way made it so much better for me as a reader. Young didn't put a lot of footnotes and chatter on each page either, letting the poems float out cleanly. A very well laid out book, in addition to beautiful poetry.

Tui, your two Hot Reviews are currently ranked #1 and #2!

Maybe I should have teeshirts made up?

Thanks, Kidz. ;)

Yes, the teeshirt might say:

The 75 challenge group testifies to thriving from Tui's tremendously thought provoking, talented tomes. We ask that you continue the tradition of transmitting your tapestries.

Ok, now I need another cup of coffee.

Gosh, Whisp, I was thinking of something more Monty Pythonish. Thanks!

#93/94: I was thinking along the same lines as you were, Tui. Good job, Linda!

I have this woman's book on my wishlist. Thought some folks here might be interested in this:
scientist analyses her own stroke
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=91861432
and here she is talking about it
http://www.ted.com/talks/jill_bolte_taylor_s_powerful_stroke_of_insight.html

Tui - I read My Stroke of Insight earlier this year and really liked it. Thanks for the links to the NPR story and her Ted Talk.

I read it last year as well. Thanks for the links.

I'm looking forward to reading it - glad for the feedback on her book, thanks.

32. Black Sheep by Georgette Heyer



Well, I've only read one other Heyer in my life and that was when I was about eleven. Several readers whose literary opinion I respect here at LT enjoy a good Heyer binge every now and then, so I thought I'd see if I could find one in the used bookshops in town. Ta Da - found one yesterday afternoon. This got ingested last night at one sitting, so here are my conclusions: Heyer would be good for what ails you if your brain hurts and you want to give it the night off (and I don't mean that to be the least bit disparaging), or if you are feeling emotionally wrung out and just want to go somewhere else for a rest (like Regency Bath), or if you like period stories replete with costume, dress, manners and speech.

Light, quick, fun. And surprisingly detailed with regard to dress and manners. Heyer appears to have done her Regency homework.

33. Don't Tell Alfred by Nancy Mitford



Frankly kind of boring and disappointing. I had loved The Pursuit of Love and Love in a Cold Climate so hoped that this would be more of the same. This was a meh read with the odd twitch at the corner of the mouth that might pass for a smile. The character of Northey was particularly unappealing.

Don't Tell Alfred There. One I don't have to think about again.

Neither of these are my cup of grog, Tui, but I haven't said hello in a while. Hello, and it's nice to know you're giving your brain a little rest.

No, I think the Mitford would be too fluffy for both you and Linda, Charlie. Actually, I wasn't looking for a brain rest. The Heyer was out of curiosity (and for its genre, it wasn't too bad - it's just that I don't read that genre very often) and the Mitford was in anticipation, because I had liked her earlier two a lot. "Alfred" fell very flat but I also found one of the main characters, Northey, very annoying, so that detracted from the book a lot. There was something kind of smart alecky about the whole book which I found off-putting. It's allergy season; I'm cranky.

ETA: double post there

Heyer definitely did her Regency homework. She had notebooks and notebooks of research on dress, building, language, social customs, etc. It's one of the things that makes her books stand out. The other is the characterization and dialogue.

Roni, I found the language fascinating. I wondered if they really did actually talk like that.

Yes, she researched current documents and records, and actually was the first to pin down some of the cant used. There was a case of plagiarism where the fact that a phrase was used that only Heyer had researched and used it at that time was key evidence.

Well THAT plagiarist was a buffleheaded cucumber!

tiffin, I couldn't finish Nancy Mitford's The Blessing so you might file that with Don't Tell Alfred. As you did, I enjoyed Love in a Cold Climate and The Pursuit of Love a lot more. Love Georgette Heyer, but have to take care not to read too many in a row. They're best as a light dessert after a substantial main course.

hmmm I really enjoyed The Pursuit of Love AND The Blessing but wasn't very fond of Love in a Cold Climate. Possibly because I read it right after TPOL and they had too many things in common. I'd still like to give Don't Tell Alfred a try, despite your not so enthusiastic review... unless you know any other books of Mitford's that are good?? I believe these four are the only ones of hers I've heard mentioned - I do hope she's written some more though!

Well, I enjoyed The Blessing and Love in a Cold Climate, but Don't Tell Alfred fell short for me, too.

Can't comment on Heyer, as I have not read her, but the language aspect sounds interesting.

Tui - It's been much too long since I stopped by. Just a "hello" as I catch up on your reading!

Hi Tracy aka Brix's mom. Good to "see" you and hope all's well with you and the beauteous pup.

Note: reading has almost ground to a halt because it's gardening season. I have 1/4 acre perennial garden which is very demanding all through May. I am weeding, moving plants, weeding, moving rocks, weeding, mulching, weeding and soon will be planting the annual supplements (heliotrope, marguerites, planters, herb pots, etc., etc., etc.). So when I crawl into bed to read at night, I usually get about two sentences in before the eyes slam shut. I should pick up a bit in June.

1/4 acre perennial garden...how I envy you. At one time I had my large yard with hundreds and hundreds of perennials (coreposis took over.) Then I moved to a smaller house and brought some of the plants with me..again they took over. Now, in this house, I have a small garden in the front and back.

I agree it is exhausting. But, also rewarding.

#115: Speaking as someone who has 2 black thumbs (I can even manage to kill cacti), I am very jealous!

Whisp, here's what some of it will look like by the end of May:

It's beautiful, tiffin. Wanna drop by and do the same to my horror of a yard? I'll give you free rein....

Oh, yes! (As I just finished planting two more tomatoes, bush beans and cucumbers!) I have a great idea. Along with our threads of pictures of animals and bookshelves, we need one for garden pictures. I'm going to go start one right now!

Garden and flower pictures

Beautiful garden, Tiffin. I love it.
Is that seeding geranium on the right side.

#121: kiwi, that's a pasque anemone or windflower gone to seed. It's in bloom right now, as I write. By June it will be done and will look like that photo. I'll try to get a photo of it for you.

Hi GunderG. How did you know I like elephants!

34. Souvenir of Canada by Douglas Coupland



Douglas Coupland, author, artist, Canadian, takes a very personal look at Canada through a series of vignettes and essays, in alphabetical order, beginning with Baffin Island and ending with Zed (not zee, ZED). It is funny, wry, dry, poignant, gently acerbic and profoundly Canadian. There are some wonderful lines:
Under "222s":
"But for the large part, Canadians define themselves by the equality and quality of universal medical care, and if the country ever goes to war, it'll quite possibly be about that."
Under "Miss Canada":
...but I think equality is more entrenched and more natural in Canada than in most other places. Even two of our astronauts are female. I remember seeing Planet of the Apes in the 1970s. One of the original astronauts who crashed in that movie was a woman. American women I've pointed this out to found the female a shocking and radicalizing image; Canadian women saw it only as business as usual. Don't feel too warm and fuzzy about this, though --feel thankful and work harder." That is SO Canadian, those last four words.

144 pages of really good stuff.

And do you recommend this to your U.S. followers as a help to "getting" the Canadian mindset?

feel thankful and work harder

Well, that most certainly isn't a US motto! And yes, from the Canadians I know, that would fit.

I agree with Joyce, which may be a first and quite scary to think about.

Many Americans do work harder, but I think we're quite short in the thankful department.

An interesting book, to say the least.

>124 tiffin:: Tui, that sounds very interesting. I'll have to give it a try.

lw3, many of his images and photo collages are so Canadian that I don't know if anyone else WOULD get them on the kind of visceral level that some of them hit me on but his mini essays are quite good. Tad, I think you would "get" it, as you live here for part of each summer. It would be a great cottage book.

By the way, one of those astronauts mentioned, Roberta Bondar, did a few of the photographs featured in this book. She is an incredible photographer and, I'm proud to say, was the Chancellor of the university where I worked for many years.

This book was a gift from a fellow LTer and I really do appreciate it.

35. Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire by Amanda Foreman



To say that I really enjoyed this biography is a mild understatement - I actually REALLY enjoyed it. What an excellent look at a really interesting time in English and European history but most of all, at a fascinating woman, Georgiana, the Duchess of Devonshire (née Spencer). I know that is a lot of "reallys" for two sentences but, really! Foreman breaks the book into four parts: Débutante, Politics, Exile and Georgiana Redux. These are broken into further excellent and very digestible chunks, beginning with "Debutante 1757-1774" and ending with "The Ministry of All the Talents: 1804-1806". Her research is formidable. Her understanding of her subject has depth to it. Her liking for Georgiana is palpable and conveyed itself to this reader.

Georgiana lived through a period of English history which allowed an unusual tolerance for a woman who had an interest in and talent for politics to become involved in the politics of her country - a tolerance which had waned quite sharply near her latter years. She lived her life against the backdrop of the French Revolution, as well as England's war with France and Napoleon. Georgiana was in the thick of it all, as a friend of Marie Antoinette's and a confidante of the major movers and shakers of the English political scene, particularly the Whig party. The intrigues, the alliances, the betrayals and crossing of the floor of Parliament were very much part of English political life but Foreman portrays the Duchess as an ethical and decent person who did not operate in a nefarious fashion but worked hard and diligently for what she hoped would be the betterment of English people. It was her methods which were novel and very daring. Foreman claims that Georgiana understood advertising and mass marketing.

Her personal life is equally fascinating. Born into wealth and privilege, further married into fabulous wealth and privilege, Georgiana - as with many women of the time - did not enjoy love in her marriage. The consequent liaisons, infidelities, illegitimate births, affairs on both the Duchess's and the Duke of Devonshire's parts were the outcome of this strange contortion of Georgian era marriages. These marriages were designed to protect their class, to seal it off from intrusions from below and to keep a stranglehold on the wealth and power of the country. But Georgiana had an addiction to gambling, her fatal hamartia, and the fallout from her astronomical debts hounded her all her life and left her vulnerable to blackmail and manipulation. This addiction was perceived as a betrayal of her class and its effects on the wealth of the Devonshire/Cavendish family as an infidelity almost worse than bearing an illegitimate child.

It's sad, really, because Foreman portrays her as a genuinely brilliant woman, one with tremendous warmth and charisma. While in exile in France (an exile forced on her by the Duke as a result of her pregnancy by Charles, Earl Grey), she studied chemistry and geology, showing real skill and talent at it. When she was allowed to return to England two years later, she set up a chemistry lab at Chatsworth, continuing her experiments. At the end of her life, she had amassed one of best collections of rocks in Europe and had working friendships with the leading scientists of the day.

A fascinating sidebar to Georgiana's life is the story of her friend Bess, Lady Foster, who lived with the Devonshires and formed the third side of a very interesting triangle. Foreman explores this very satisfactorily.

The story of Georgiana's life firmly kept my interest right to the end. At times I felt tremendous sadness for her, wondering what she might have made of herself and her talents had she lived, say, in our era. Foreman brought her forward to us from two hundred and fifty years in the past, fleshed her out and breathed life into her. Highly recommended.

ETA: the bibliography is stellar. A caveat: if you aren't interested in reading history, this might not be to your taste.

Tiffin
With such a hearty and joyous review, how can I help but to add this book to my tbr mountain.

36. Will You Take Me As I Am; Joni Mitchell's Blue Period by Michelle Mercer



Two biographies in a row.

This book looks at a very fertile period in Joni Mitchell's life but also a period of transition for her from the folksy high-voiced soprano of the Yorkville coffee houses into the jazz musician whose autobiographical musical musings formed part of the persona of my younger days. As such, I found this book fascinating. It is the artistry, the creative process itself which is being featured largely here, although Mitchell's life is very much a part of the book.

The only complaint I have with it is that Mercer herself intrudes too much into the book. There were a few moments when I felt she was trying just a bit too hard to show how clever she is and that she can hold her own with a genius like Joni. The book came out of a series of interviews and conversations she did with Mitchell as a result of the work Mercer was doing for her Wayne Shorter biography (Shorter plays sax on many of Mitchell's records).

That said, I like how Mercer dips into the songs, giving them context and a reference point. From a purely prurient perspective, it was fun to read about an artist who certainly forms a solid block in my music collection. I remember playing "The Hissing of Summer Lawns" until I wore out the grooves. Not a heavy read but an interesting record of how Mitchell evolved to become the contemporary musician she is.

Joni Mitchel is at the top of my all-time favorite artists. She is incredibly talented...Each and every one of her songs is a poem.

I know the words to almost all of them.. My brain works in weird ways. I forget the names of students that I should remember, I lose my keys and my glasses, but can recite words to songs verbatim.

I like this passage from 'The Hissing of Summer Lawns"

He gave her his darkness to regret
And good reason to quit him
He gave her a roomful of Chippendale
That nobody sits in
Still she stays with a love of some kind
It's the lady's choice
The hissing of summer lawns

Like you, I wore out the grooves on this album...

I'll look to buy, rather than check this book out from the library. It is one I'll want to own.

Thanks for your well written comments...as always!

Wow, Tui, that Georgiana biography sounds fascinating. Onto the TBR!

Thanks, Whisp.

Rebecca, I do think you would like this one. I've heard that the movie isn't so great (haven't seen it myself) but the book was a solid bit of writing.

>124 tiffin: I thought for a minute that was a maple syrup bottle on the cover ;D

Book #35 sounds fantastic... I'm not usually hooked by biographies, unless they're written in an extremely compelling way that ties them right into the surrounding history. Sounds like this book does just that... on the pile it goes! Thanks for such a detailed (and interesting) review!

I've had Georgiana sitting on my shelf for some time and can't believe I've been neglecting such a good book! Must correct that soon. Great review!

eta: the Joni bio sounds good, too.

#130: Definitely adding that one to the Continent, Tui! Thanks for such a great review and recommendation.

I was quite under the weather yesterday so forced to my fainting couch, I could do nothing except sleep and read. Hauled out a comfort read which was just perfect for a gardener forced to ground and unable to garden:

37. Merry Hall by Beverley Nichols



Nichols is the comfort read of gardeners because his books, although full of village characters and quirky neighbours, are ultimately about his garden. In this favourite reread, he has returned from service in India after the war and is trying to find a house outside of London.
My Review

>140 tiffin:: This sounds like fun for exactly those situations you describe.

I hope you feel better today!

That Nichols book looks just up my street, Tui. You have a gorgeous way with words.

Hope you are recovered and back to the digging and weeding!!!

Karen, Nichols was accused of being a dreadful self-promoter in his day. He was a journalist and had some hazy dealings on behalf of the British government during the war. He travelled internationally quite a bit, doing interviews and what not. What came to light about him after his death was that for years he had been the sole support for his mother, father and disabled brother AND the brother's wife and children. His father's income had dwindled to virtually nothing because of the war and his brother had a severe epileptic disorder so he couldn't work (epilepsy was equated with mental illness then). He supported all of them with his writing. After losing heavily in the stock market in the 30s, he was forced to sell his first trilogy's home, the thatched roof cottage, in "Allways". He was exhausted with the frantic schedule he kept up. What might have appeared as self-promotion was in all likelihood a very focused attempt to keep his books and journalism selling so he could continue to support his family. He never made this public, so behind the very camp chatty persona, there was a deeply private man. Very English.

Interesting man.

I had no idea that Beverely was a 'either'-sex name, either.

#145: Yes, it is. There was a really incompetent U.S. Civil War general--Confederate--who had that first name. Just a piece of utterly useless trivia! :-)

I was surprised that Andrea Camilleri, a Sicilian writer of police procedurals, is a man. I'm pretty sure, though, that his name is pronounced the same as the female Andrea.

Oh, you're clearly not a fan of Italian tenors...as Andrea Bocelli, for example.

You tell him Linda--and this was someone who was bragging, mind you, about his ability to pronounce Sicilian because of the school he went to!

Gotta watch him every minute.

#148 & #149. You two never let up, do you.

Fortunately or unfortunately, I am not a fan of Italian tenors or opera, except for a few familiar arias.

And, Mz. Misanthrope, I am very good at pronouncing Sicilian surnames. I'd stick my tongue out at you, but you'd lop it off. And then I couldn't pronounce anything.

Sorry, Tui, for these interlopers.

It was like world cup tennis there for a moment. hehe

>147 BrainFlakes:, Charlie: In Italy, Andrea is almost always a man's name. I don't know how it became a female name here in the states, but it did. And of course the Italian pronunciation is the Italian pronunciation.

#152: Well, I'm impressed, Lisa--I didn't know that one.

Ahn DRAY ah - worked with one at the uni. - deffo a male.
AN dree ah - the girl's name
two totally different sounds
and a universe apart ;)

Susan Boyle just got through to the finals in Britain's Got Talent. I am pulling for her SO MUCH, that feisty wee woman from Scotland. She wasn't as powerful on the song from Cats tonight as she was in the first round so I hope she pulls out all the stops for the final. You go, Susan Boyle!!!

Susan Boyle makes me want to march to Britain and join in the fun! After all, I am only 47, too!

Hope you are feeling immensely better these days, Tui!!

ETA: I always thought that the girl name Andrea was a feminized version of the masculine Andrew, although I certainly could be wrong.

HEY! Have we just discovered a major poetical talent in our Very Own Tui?? (#154) Isn't that haiku or something?

Close, but no cigar on the haiku, although it certainly could be poetical :)

38. Good Omens: The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett



Well, I've finally read "Good Omens". After many gushings of high praise from folks here on LT, I ordered a copy to find out what all the hoo haw was about.
My Review

ETfix disappearing book cover

I think your reaction is not as unusal as you might think. I know a lot of people here really adore Good Omens but, personally, I don't think it's either Gaiman's or Pratchett's best. Not even their second best.

Still, I enjoyed it and it sounds like you're not sorry you read it, so all's well.

Tui,

From my perspective, spot on with Good Omens. I do agree that I think the authors had quite a good time writing it.

I have not read much of Neil Gaiman, but I did very much like Neverwhere. It is not as funny, but I thought a better story. The only thing of Pratchett's that I have read (actually tried to read) was Mort and I finally gave up.

Sometimes, Tad, you just need a fun read and it did fine for that. I haven't read any Pratchett - have a second hand one sitting on the TBR pile (can't remember the title), so I'll see how he stands on his own. Lisa, I agree about Neverwhere and even more about American Gods. I think Gaiman is a brilliant writer.

My reaction to Good Omens was similar to yours, Tui. It was funny and clever, but I could only take so much of it at a time before silliness took over, at which time I'd put it down for something else.

Separately, however, I love both of these guys.

39. Cheerful Weather for the Wedding by Julia Strachey



This book takes place in one day, the day of Dolly Thatcham's wedding to the Hon. Owen Bigham. Normal enough concept, normal enough start to the book. But swiftly it all goes a bit mad as it can do when a family gathers.
My Review

This sounds like a book I have to put on my tbr pile...
I enjoyed your description!

As I contemplate spending the next two days reconning wedding venues with Laura and her fiance, and stress over how to pull together such a function myself, I believe I will avoid that book for the foreseeable future!

lw3, you would NEVER quadruple stack guests in a bedroom, nor would you ever hiss through your teeth.

LOL...possibly if some of the guests are the four-legged variety...

#164: Another one already occupying space on the Continent. One of these days I will track down a copy!

Oh dear, I've hit a slump: partially read books all over the place, picked up, put down. It's gardening season and my focus has gone elsewhere. However, I did complete this little sweetheart of a book:

40. The Frozen Thames by Helen Humphreys



I happened to be in Kingston, Ontario, where Helen Humphreys makes her home and found this book in an indie bookshop.
My Review

Thanks for the very nice review of The Frozen Thames. It's on my TBR pile and I need to bump it up!

Sounds like it's time to post some garden pictures in that thread! I know my tomatoes are up to 3 feet now, and setting on, and some of the bean vines are up to 6 feet.

Lovely review of The Frozen Thames - I've put it onto my BM wishlist.

I'm off to look in the gardening thread. We are eking out salad greens in June, which is funny, but have started buying nearly all our veges at the supermarket now.

I read The Frozen Thames a few months ago and really enjoyed it. Your review is great!

Good luck with the gardening.

Hey, visitors! Thanks loriephillips, roni, Cushla and Whisp. Your review was good too, Whisp (just read it) - tell me, how on earth did you find a relatively obscure book by a not very well known Canadian author? You are something else!

I gardened all day yesterday and have the aches & pains to prove it. Am feeling good about it though as it is supposed to rain for the next three days. Glad I got so much done. All my irises are out so it's a blaze of glory out there. No pics to post, sorry. If the rain lets up, I'll nip out for one.

Hi tiffin
I found The Frozen Thames listed on Kiwidoc's thread and was intriged by her review. In addition, prior to that, I read Wild Dogs by Helen Humphreys. By the way, if you haven't read Wild Dogs, I highly recommend it!

I certainly understand the pains of gardening. A few years ago I had cortesone injections in my back after a few weeks of gardening.

I'll be anxious to see your photos of the irises.

With only the two of us, I have the vegetable gardening confined to two beds. The side garden we converted to a raised bed with 2x12s last year, and filled with compost from the local landfill, which makes it much easier to work with (5x9 bed) and then the tomato/bean bed is 3x10 and once it is dug over and the frames erected, and trenched down the middle, pretty much all I need to do is pinch the tomatoes and train them through the netting there. And that is at waist level now, so very little bending over. Wish we were getting some rain!!

We are so surrounded by trees here that the only place which gets enough sun is out near the road, so I've got a flower garden there. If we ever move, it will be to somewhere which gets better light. I'll put in raised for veggies, no hesitation. But for now, it's the farmers' market for me. And pretty flowers.

41. The Ladies of Grace Adieu and Other Stories by Susanna Clarke



“Above all remember this: that magic belongs as much to the heart as to the head and everything which is done, should be done from love or joy or righteous anger. And if we honour this principle we shall discover that our magic is much greater than all the sum of all the spells that were ever taught.”

So begins The Ladies of Grace Adieu and Other Stories by Susanna Clarke.

My Review

Great review, Tui, and I think you've persuaded me to read it. *Charlie decides he's persuaded*

ETA: I can't believe that I know all these hot reviewers! Congratulations on your deuce.

Love that quote! I'm off to read your review now!

Well shucks again. It mustn't take more than a thumb to bump a review on to the hot review page. I'm going to have to watch what I say!

thumbed it as well :D

Great Review (s)!!!!!

Thank you, Ms. Whisper.

42. Acqua Alta by Donna Leon



Another Commissario Guido Brunetti mystery set in Venice. Rare art, fraud, murder all combine in the high water season in Venice, with the rains lashing down and the cold waters drowning the lower floors of the houses. I swear I wanted a cafè corretto myself at times in the book! A good read.

43. Summer Lightning by P.G. Wodehouse



There is nothing like a visit to Blandings Castle to pick me up.
My Review

#186 & 187. It's nice to see that you're doing some relaxing reading after all the gardening. I've read through #3 of Leon's series and I love the backdrop of Venice.

As far as the Wodehouse, I need a clarification: does the Empress of Blandings have a sister? Just curious.

>187 tiffin: A very apt review, tiffin! :D

Thanks, Charlie and digi. Charlie, they were perfect summer reads. I love the backdrop of Venice too. In my imagination, it smells like sea salt, garlic and mould.

With that Wodehouse review, how can anyone resist it?

(Dare I say that I thumbed you yet again)

Thanks, Karen! This is one of his better ones. Good for what ails you and the perfect summer evening read - with a Pimms at hand, if you can manage it.

>187 tiffin:: Tui, since you like British humor, have you ever tried Somerville's Some Experiences of an Irish R.M.? I really enjoyed it. I think it was made into a PBS series, though I've never seen it.

No but I'll look for it now, Tad. Thanks!

Moved this from Tad's thread as I felt like I was threadjacking him. We were having a discussion about whether to review or link to a review on-thread. I said:
For a while I was posting my reviews right on my thread. Several times I was asked to post the review more formally, so someone could give it a thumb (I hadn't been concerned about that at all). I concluded that the purpose of LT, apart from cataloguing, is to share our thoughts about our reading as widely as possible with other readers. Whereas a handful of you might know I'm posting my reading here, the vast majority of LTers will likely find a review through the book's title. I frequently go through the title to read the reviews when I'm contemplating buying a book, so that I'm not wasting my book budget on dreck. If a book is controversial enough, I'll use the library rather than buying it, based on the reviews. So reviews have a wider purpose than just appearing on a thread, in me 'umble opinion.

If it is understood that I try to be a thoughtful reader who gives time and consideration to my reviews, I think that someone genuinely interested in a book from the one or two lines I give about it would have no problem with following the link to the review, which is still on-site. If the links bother people and they don't want to make a 2 second jump, hey, that's personal choice. My choice is not to take up LT space posting the same thing twice, which seems wasteful to me.

So I'm going to keep on with my intro and link format.

ETA: I do review library books on-thread, however, as the book isn't in my library here.

GunderG prefers reviews right on the thread so to keep her interest, I'm going to try hard to come up with a one or two sentence tantalizing hook, so she will check out the book.

I'm not sure my hooks are tantalizing, but I do try to give a capsule review on my thread and then link to the full review. Although my links go to my blog, the same full review is always posted on LT, for all the reasons you described. I s'pose I could just link to the LT review instead ... just haven't.

I'm lazy and I don't review most books that I read. I appreciate the people who do write reviews because I enjoy reading them.

I prefer to read a capsule review (good term, lindsacl) about the book and your feelings toward it and a link to the LT review in case I want to read more about it. Most full reviews that are posted here I skip. LT should be how you want it, that's what makes it great!

Another humour recommendation tiffin - Augustus Carp. It's the only book that Bashford, the physician of George VI, ever wrote. The main character is unaware of his own ghastliness.

Agree with you that it's useful to post reviews where people can find them.

Thanks, Pam! Duly noted re the Carp. This might end up being the Summer of the Dry English Comedy.

#199: If it is the summer of dry English comedy, I will be taking tons of notes on what you are reading, Tui!

For English (or actually Irish) comedy, you can't do better than The Straight and Narrow Path by Honor Tracy; however, it is very sadly out of print.

>201 rebeccanyc:: I'll steal that recommendation since I like this type of book, also.

#201: I'm with Tad! On to the Planet it goes.

44. The Perfect Summer: Dancing into Shadow in 1911 by Juliet Nicolson



I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Well researched, Nicolson captures the essence of England in the blisteringly hot summer just prior to the nightmare of World War I.

My Review

>204 tiffin:: I can't wait. Every since reading The Guns of August, I've wanted to read more stuff around World War I...fiction or non-fiction.

Tad, if you loved The Guns of August, be sure to read Tuchman's book about the years preceding World War I, The Proud Tower: A Portrait of the World Before the War, 1890-1914. It's just as fascinating.

#204: Well, that one is already on Planet TBR. Time to give it a bump!

>204 tiffin:. Sounds very interesting, tiffin. Added to my wishlist!

>187 tiffin: I am back at Blandings Castle with Uncle Fred in the Springtime :)

The Juliet Nicholson book sounds really good - Tui - I am waiting with interest for your review. I think she is the daughter of Harold Nicholson and Vita Sackville West, or something like that??

#209: Karen, I think she is the granddaughter of Nicolson and Sackville West.

Time to pull up the tent pegs and pitch camp on a new thread:
Tiffin Thread Three

You're such a good citizen. I suppose it's the Canadian in you. ;>)