JanetinLondon memorial thread

Today we received the tragic news that Janet Katz, known on LibraryThing as JanetinLondon, succumbed to complications from leukemia on January 4th, 2012. Janet was a valuable member of LibraryThing and the 75 Books group, whose thoughtful reviews and comments about books were valued by many of us. She openly shared her diagnosis with us, and gave us regular updates on her condition until the end. Her bravery, upbeat attitude and humor in the face of serious illness was an inspiration to me, and to many of us I suspect.

We shared over 100 books, and I intend to read one book from Janet's library every month or two, in order to keep her alive in my heart and mind. I will post reviews of these books here, and mention them in my other threads, as well. I would encourage other 75 Books members who knew her on LibraryThing to do the same thing.

This is a wonderful way to do a memorial! I will join in

Thanks Darryl. This will be a nice tribute to her.

Darryl, this thread is a wonderful idea. I mentioned that I just bought The Cairo Trilogy because of Janet's reading and writing about it. I wasn't going to start it yet, but now I will.

I made a list of seven of Janet's 5-star books that I plan to read this year. I also jotted down some 4.5* books from her library. I'm going to begin with The Worst Journey in the World, one of the last books that she read and raved about.

I think I'll read Pnin by Vladimir Nabokov next week, and The Singapore Grip by J.G. Farrell next month; both books are among my 2012 planned reads from my TBR pile.

I love this idea, Darryl. Thank you for thinking of it. What a fitting memorial for Janet.

I only share 94 books with Janet, but I will try and read through as many of them as I can fit in around my studies.

What a wonderful idea, Darryl. We shared 117 books, most of which I've already read. But I found two books on my TBR that Janet rated 4-5 stars, so in her memory I will read Middlemarch & Snow Flower and the Secret Fan.

I love this idea. Janet and I were not friends, really, but I "saw" her in passing many times and we exchanged comments once in a while. I was planning to begin Great Expectations this week. It is one of the books we had in common in our libraries and one of her 5-star books. I will read it in memory, and in honor, of another book-lover - one who shared many of the same books with me even though we never met. Rest in peace, Janet.

#7:I only share 94 books
--Only-- heh. I share 9.

This is a great idea Darryl. Thanks for setting it up. I will most likely do a reread of a book I share, maybe Brave New World since it's been a while and one of my fave required readings in high school--a memory read. If I find time to devote to it, I will give Finnegan's Wake a go (I'd like to point out that the actual touchstone for FW was #5 on the list). I meant to get to it this summer, but didn't. It seems a fitting endeavor.

Fantastic idea Darryl. I have 109 books in common with her, with a huge range from Donna Leon's Venetian mysteries to Tolstoy. I'll have a look and choose something.

I'll read some books she recommended (4 or 5 stars) which I already own, that would be The Radetzky March by Joseph Roth (4 stars), Atonement by Ian McEwan (5 stars) and A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man by James Joyce (5 stars).
I am also considering getting The Cairo Trilogy later this year.

Thank you Darryl for setting up this thread.

Darryl, what a great way to keep Janet in our thoughts! I'll check out her library and see what I have on my bookshelf which corresponds.

ETA: OK, we had 101 books in common so it was pretty easy to choose. Within the next few months, I'll read The Sparrow, Gods Behaving Badly, In the Heart of the Sea and Everyman. Two with 4 and above stars and 2 with two stars.

Double posted

What a lovely thought Darryl and I will also follow suit. I shared 309 books with Janet and will check how many of those I still have to read.

I'm sorry to hear the news.

Strangely enough I was thinking about a couple of books from Janet's 2011 thread only a week or so ago.

I'll look forward to getting hold of at least one of them and posting a review in due course.

This thread is a very good idea and an appropriate way to remember our dear friend Janet.

I only have 83 books in common with Janet - at least among those I've already catalogued. Our reading tastes didn't overlap as much as with some others - that was partly why I loved her thread, because I was always finding out about different kinds of books. One that made it onto my wishlist, and thus was selected as a Secret Santa gift for me this Christmas, was God's Philosophers by James Hannam, which Janet was reading last January and sharing her reactions chapter by chapter as she read it. I shall try to read this one either this month or next, and will be going back to read again what she said last year about it.

I see from her profile than Janet joined LT in Feb 2010, which was just about the same time that I first joined the 75 group. Janet was one of the early people to visit my thread and helped make me feel welcome and involved: you wouldn't have guessed that she was brand-new on the site herself. In those early conversations we discovered something in common in that we had both lived for a time in 'the Low Countries' (I in the Netherlands, she in Belgium) and had varying success in picking up Dutch/Flemish; as a result we were discussing possible reads about the Netherlands which we'd like to try. So I will be renewing my search for some good fiction or non-fiction written in or about the Netherlands and will report back here when I manage to find and read some.

There are quite a few books of the 83 in common which I have not yet read, and which are sitting in my TBR shelves, so I hope to manage several of those over the next few months.

What a wonderful way to remember one of our most enthusiastic readers. I loved following Janet's threads because, as Genny said, I may not have had the same overall tastes, but I could always find something that piqued my curiosity and sent me off to find. Through her I was introduced to different perspectives on life. I too certainly enjoyed her chapter by chapter discussion of God's Philosphers although I'm not sure I'm ready to tackle it on my own yet.

Looking over books we have in common, I've chosen to start with The Reluctant Fundamentalist - one that went onto my TBR pile because of her 4 star rating.

Now that she's resting peacefully in a fully stocked library, this is the best way to honor her memory. Thanks Darryl for starting this.

I share 145 books with JanetinLondon - mysteries, thrillers, and classics mostly. I like the idea of picking a book or two in common to honor her memory. I've chosen Perdido Street Station by China Mieville and The Music Room by William Fiennes.

Tututhefirst - I hope you'll love The Reluctant Fundamentalist as much as I did. I read it for a RL bookclub, and we had a fantastic discussion.

Janet and I shared 117 books in common and often agreed on our assessments. For me, this meant that when she loved a new author I knew I would too! I read Stefan Zweig for the first time this year and loved him (Chess Story), so I plan to continue on and read the two that Janet read last year: Wondrak and other Stories and Fear. I also enjoyed Janet's discussion of God's Philosophers and, like Genny, don't want to tackle it on my own, but would love a GR. Anyone else?

I already share over 200 books with Janet -- and about fifty more that are in my tbr shelves - by chance and probably some are at her recommendation. Perdido Street Station is one that has been waiting around, so I'll start with that. I think I'll the 4 1/2 and five star books in her lists that are already in my tbr line-up as a guide as to what to read for the time being. I also have The Sparrow.

#5: I had started The Worst Journey in the World last year but due to my reading funk, had put it aside. I picked it up again at the beginning of this month and am about 100 pages from the end now. I did not realize that it was a book Janet had recommended.

I'd be interested in a group read of God's Philosophers, as I already own it. I could start reading it as early as Monday.

23: I would too, and it's appropriate since that was the book that got me reading Janet's thread initially. I, however, cannot start reading it as early as Monday. How about February?

I HAVE to read God's Philosopher's and if you could wait until February Darryl that would be super. AND I'm going to break my NO NEW BOOKS rule.

>24 qebo:, 25 February works for me. It would also be better for me, so that I can finish The Warmth of Other Suns next week.

I am in for God's Philosophers in February.

I do not own God's Philosophers but it is definitely a book I would like to read. I cannot promise to actively join in the group read due to school, but I will follow along as I can.

Back again.... Janet and I shared 200 books, so I have many that I could read. I have God's Philosophers on my wishlist, but it's a little pricey right now.
I mainly came back to ask whether LT will leave her profile page up. Does anybody know? Could somebody make sure that they do?

#29: Do you own an e-reader, Peggy? I just saw that at least for Kindle it costs much less than the paper version.

I am also breaking my 'don't order real books' rule, I just put The Palace Trilogy into my basket, along with a poetry book Janet had been reading since September. The title is Staying Alive: Real Poems for Unreal Times. She was planning to read it one poem per day, and I think I'll do just that.

It looks like God's Philosophers was published in the US as The Genesis of Science. My public library still doesn't have it, but Amazon.com is selling it for a bargain price of $11.98, only a couple dollars more than the Kindle version.

...and Amazon just lost a sale. I would probably just have ordered it immediately with free shipping, but since I had to wait until I had another book or two as well, I did a bit more research and found that it's available at the university library. If any of you have access to university libraries you might try checking there as well.

I might even just go for Interlibrary loan......

An unnamed generous LT angel is sending me a copy of God's Philosophers. I did not intend to hint, but I'll be thrilled to be able to join the group when it arrives. (I buy a lot of books and get a lot through PBS, but I don't as a rule buy anything over $10, and I mostly keep it well below that.)

>33 LizzieD: That's wonderful! It's a perfect moment for generosity like that.

I purchased God's Philosophers online last night, but the copy is coming from England, so I have no idea when it might be here. I am hoping it will be before the group read comes up, even though I will not be actively taking part. I would like to follow along with the discussion as much as I can though.

I'll be following along with the group read of God's Philosophers as well. The word "science" is a scary one for me so I don't guarantee to complete the book. I'd just like the camaraderie and support of reading along with some of Janet's LT friends. My copy is coming through ILL which usually means about a week's delay in getting it here.

I also put in a library request for The Worst Journey in the World. Janet has one of her wonderful reviews on the book's page. The only copy my library system has is the audio version. Twenty hours of extreme Antarctic cold! I'd better stock up on hot chocolate. ;-)

I've requested God's Philosophers from the library - just have to wait for it to be transferred to my local branch.

I'd like to join in on God's Philosopher's and might even relax my no-new-books austerity to purchase a copy. I would not have even known of this book were it not for Janet's thread.

This memorial thread is a lovely idea, Darryl. I didn't know Janet, not at all, but since joining the 75 group in January I've been a dedicated lurker on her thread--and indeed, it was lurking on her thread that I first saw the sad news. It is actually a bit of a reminder for me of the downside of exclusively lurking--it is nice to actually reach out and make contact once in a while.

I had followed Janet's God's Philosophers read from the beginning and added it to my wishlist then, and also followed with interest her exploration of the Middle East and her many other book insights. As it turns out we share 139 books in common, and in fact hers is among the top ten libraries most similar to mine. Delving into her library a bit deeper in response to this thread, I see that a lot of our 5 star reads overlap.

Janet's library could keep me busy for years (and like Peggy I hope LT will leave it up), but I'll make a point this year to get to the following books Janet awarded 5 stars to: War and Peace, Dead Souls, Giovanni's Room, David Copperfield, Purple Hibiscus, Fugitive Pieces, Netherland, Beware of Pity, All Quiet On the Western Front, The Road, Sons and Lovers. I might also be inspired to undertake re-reads of Beloved, 1984, Palace Walk, The World According to Garp, and The Shipping News, all shared favorites from pre-LT days.

I checked with Jeremy, and they'll leave Janet's library up.

Yeah, I mean I can't imagine a case where we'd remove someone's profile (I suppose if a deceased member's family asked us to we might need to do that, but so far as I know, it hasn't happened).

I'm glad to hear that Janet's library will stay up; I guess it becomes a sort of legacy library - Janet leaves the legacy of her reading and her conversations about what she was reading, and we can continue to explore and enjoy the books she loved.

I'm not very good at keeping up with group reads usually, but I'm glad to hear that so many people are keen to read God's Philosophers together, and I'll do my best to join in at the same time.

I'm very relieved to know that Janet's library stays up. I didn't know how to interpret the "lifetime" thing.

I am glad to hear that Janet's library will stay up too. I agree with you Genny - it does become a sort of Legacy Library, doesn't it?

Darryl (I hope/think)
It's Rich here, Janet's husband. Thank you for the lovely idea. Janet had actually created a reading plan for 2012 which I found among her things. Do you think her friends on Library Thing would be interested in knowing what it was as part of the memorial thread and if so, what's my best way of making the list available - it's currently just in one of her notebooks? If it's easier for you to reply to my direct email, it's richardwoff@gmail.com as I don't really understand how LT works.
Rich

Dear Rich,

Please accept my condolences on Janet's passing. She meant a lot to us here on LibraryThing, and I'm glad to honor her memory in this small manner.

I am certain that we would all be interested to know what Janet had planned to read for 2012. I'll send you an e-mail message shortly, and I would be happy to post it here for everyone else to see. Thank you for thinking of us, and please let Kate and Amy know that Janet will be missed by all of us who she touched with her warmth, intelligence and humor.

Sincerely,
Darryl

I too am glad that Janet's library will stay up on LT. Janet's added quite a few books to my obese wish list through her reviews, and I like Darryl's idea of reading from her library to continue keeping her in heart and mind. I'll post my reviews of books I've read from her library in this thread

Darryl, thank you for coming up with such a good idea and starting this thread. I share quite a few books with Janet that I want to read and God's Philosophers was a book that I particularly enjoyed reading last year after following Janet's detailed comments on her thread.

I'd also like to try reading The Cairo Trilogy which was another set of books that I'd wishlisted based on Janet's recommendation.

Thanks for this, I'm sure Janet would approve. I shall try to get hold of a copy of The Dervish House, which is a book Janet recommended to me back when I first made her aquaintance. I'll also endeavour to track down Remnant Population soon, for the same reason. I'll go and check some online booksellers right now, in fact.

I finished The Worst Journey in the World this week and highly recommend the book. I did not realize when I started the book at the beginning of the year that it was one of the last books Janet reviewed.

Yes, and that's quite a review she gave it.

#50: Yes, it is, isn't it, Joe? I read Janet's review after I finished the book.

I've been looking through Janet's library and there are lots of books there I'd like to read including The Dervish House, Remnant Population and The Worst Journey in the World. She wrote such detailed and interesting reviews and I'm happy they'll always be there to refer to.

This is a great idea, Darryl - I share 122 books in common with Janet. Think I will read The Dervish House in her memory - one of her 5-star reads.

I'm sill planning to read God's Philosophers this month, although I probably won't start until sometime next week.

Visitation by Jenny Erpenbeck arrived in the mail a few days ago.

I was much intrigued after reading Janet's review of this book.

I'll look to read it over the next month.

I'm still waiting for my copy to arrive Darryl.

I'd like to try to read God's Philosophers soon also - I have my copy already. Should we wait for Lucy's to arrive and then aim to start roughly at the same time? Or just read at our own pace?

I just got The Dervish House out of the library so I'm going to try that one first. It was good to see activity on this thread this morning.

I would suggest starting whenever most, if not all, of us have the book in hand and are ready to begin. I'd much rather read with as many people as possible, particularly given Tina's and Kim's comments.

From reading this thread, I have the following head count of people who are interested in reading God's Philosophers:

Genny/gennyt)
Tina/tututhefirst
Kim/Berly
Darryl/kidzdoc
Katherine/qebo
Lucy/sibyx
?Stasia/alcottacre
Peggy/LizzieD
Zoë/_Zoe_
Donna/Donna828
calm
Anne/AnneDC

If it's okay with everyone else, I'll create a group read thread for God's Philosophers now.

I got my copy from the library, but somehow it was recalled already by the time I checked it out. So I'll have it for a week or two, and then return it and play the recalling game myself....

Good timing - I picked up a copy from of God's Philosophers from the library today. I must admit to not being very good about commenting on Group Read threads but for this one I'll do my best.

I've just created a thread for the group read of God's Philosophers here:

'God's Philosophers' group read (in memory of JanetinLondon)

59: Ahem. Post 24.

Another thought, for the folks who participate in the TIOLI challenge. I had intended to create the challenge Read a book from JanetinLondon's library for February, but I didn't think of it until just now (as I'm visiting friends this week). There are already over 20 TIOLI challenges for February; should I (or someone else) wait until next month, or squeeze another challenge in this month?

>63 qebo: Oops! Sorry about that, Katherine. I'll include your name as well; I saw it, but I forgot to write it down (I blame my friends' cat, who was sitting on my lap when I made my head count).

Darryl, I took a good look at my reading schedule, and have decided that God's Philosophers group read isn't going to work for me right now. I am planning to read the Reluctant Fundamentalist which is another that was on Janet's List. I don't play the TIOLI game but will definitely post here when I finish.

Have just had another look at Janets library and am thinking to read either Visitation or Crime and Punishment in her memory.
Nice to see we are all still thinking of Janet and her family.

I just noticed that our current group read, God's Philosophers, is a book that Janet read in January last year. Which led me to think.... what if we did a whole series of 12 group reads, one from each month?

I like that idea, Zoë. Suz is leading a group read of Troubles next month. Do you have a suggestion for an April book?

Since I seem to be a compulsive list-maker, I immediately drew up a list for myself when I thought of the idea:

January: God's Philosophers
February: The Magicians Finishing the Hat
March: Stop the Train
April: Bad Dirt
May: The Sparrow
June: One Secret Thing
July: The Dervish House
August: The House of the Mosque
September: Egypt on the Brink
October: Go Tell It on the Mountain
November: Perdido Street Station (or The Worst Journey in the World?)
December: The Endurance

This was based on the month that Janet read the books, not the month that I'd try to read them myself. I was basically going through each month of her reading and looking for well-known or highly-rated stand-alones that reflected her reading patterns for the year where possible (e.g., Middle East, James Baldwin).

I was largely just going on instinct, though, and it's harder to actually make a decision. For April (drawing from Janet's February books) I'd choose either The Magicians or Finishing the Hat or The True Deceiver. The first is very well-known and so might draw a lot of interest; the second is very highly rated but I'm not sure how broad its appeal would be, and the third is somewhere in between.

Just wanted to say I think this is a great idea Zoe.

>71 phebj: I'm glad you like it!

I'm leaning toward Finishing the Hat by Stephen Sondheim for an April read; Janet really liked it and described herself as a Sondheim fanatic, and it would also lend itself to fun watching of movie musicals, or even a Broadway performance at the April LT meetup.... (Sorry, I get a bit carried away sometimes. But it could happen.)

Sounds awesome! I love the idea of a book each month and since I have read just one of the books you listed, I think it would be a great way to broaden my horizons and honor Janet. I think your list-making is great!

Darryl...leave it to you to be so other directed, kind and compassionate! You are a terrific person!

Lovely! I will definitely join you for some of these reads Zoe!

Janet's husband just sent me her provisional reading plan for 2012 that she had written in a notebook. He was kind enough to transcribe them into a Microsoft Word file; I'll format and copy it here, in several messages.

JanetinLondon’s provisional reading plan 2012

LIST 1 – FICTION

a) Serious literature
Stephen Sondheim: Look, I Made a Hat: Collected Lyrics (1981-2011)
William Faulkner: Absalom, Absalom!
David Foster Wallace: Infinite Jest
Antonio Tabucchi: Pereira Declares
John Steinbeck: The Grapes of Wrath
John Steinbeck: East of Eden
Carlos Ruiz Zafon: Shadow of the Wind
Charles Dickens: Bleak House
Margaret Atwood: The Handmaid’s Tale

b) Mysteries
Robert Crais: Free Fall
Andrea Camilleri: Track of Sand
Jacqueline Winspear: The Mapping of Love and Death
Daniel Silva: The Kill Artist
Donna Leon: A Venetian Reckoning
Andrea Camilleri: The Potter’s Field
Jacqueline Winspear: A Lesson in Secrets
Donna Leon: Aqua Alta
(Something by Louise Penny)

c) New to me – living
Hisham Matar: In the Country of Men
Leila Aboulela: Lyrics Alley
Ngũgĩ wa Thiong'o: The River Between
Dominique Fabre: The waitress Was New
Juan Fillay: Op Oloop
Amitav Ghosh: Sea of Poppies

d) Re-reads (including non-fiction)
William Faulkner: As I Lay Dying
Laurence Sterne: Tristram Shandy
James Joyce: Ulysses
Mervyn Peake: Titus Groan
Rachel Carson: Silent Spring

e) Science/speculative fiction
George R. R. Martin: A Storm of Swords Part 2: Blood and Gold
Elizabeth Moon: Hunting Party
Neal Stephenson: Cryptonomicon
Petina Gappah: Elegy for Easterly
George R. R. Martin: Feast for Crows
Sheri S. Tepper: The Gate to Women’s Country
Ian McDonald: River of Gods
C. J. Cherryh: Cyteen I : The Betrayal
Alfred Bester: The Stars My Destination
Orson Scott Card: Speaker for the Dead
George R. R. Martin: Dance of Dragons
Gene Wolfe: Book of the New Sun 1: Shadow and Claw

f) Top 10 challenge
China Miéville: The City & the City
Mario Vargas Llosa: Conversation in the Cathedral
Caryl Phillips: Colour Me English
Michael Chabon: The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay
Mary Doria Russell: Doc
(Something by David Malouf)

g) Miscellaneous
Helen Waddell: Peter Abelard
Jo Graham: Black Ships
Philippe Claudel: Monsieur Linh and His Child
Stewart O’Nan: Wish You Were Here
Brian Selznick: The Invention of Hugo Cabret

LIST II – NON-FICTION

a) Miscellaneous
Gary Younge: Who Are We-and Should It Matter in the 21st Century?
Vladimir Nabokov: Speak, Memory
Tony Judt: Ill Fares the Land
Toby Craig Jones: Desert Kingdom: How Oil and Water Forged Modern Saudi Arabia
Madawi Al-Rasheed: History of Saudi Arabia
Ryszard Kapuscinski and Klara Glowczewska: The Shadow of the Sun
Jim DeFede: The day the World Came to Town
Larry D. Rosen: Rewired: Understanding the iGeneration and the Way They Learn
Don Watson: American Journeys
W.G. Sebald: Austerlitz

b) Math, Aging, Philosophy
i) Math
Benedict Gross and Joe Harris: The Magic of Numbers
Martin Rees: Just Six Numbers
James D. Stein: Cosmic Numbers
ii) Aging
Jane Miller: Crazy Age
Susan Ichi Su Moon: This Is Getting Old
Kjersti A. Skomsvold: The Faster I Walk, the Smaller I Am
iii) Philosophy
(Finish Montaigne)
(Books by Andre Comte-Sponville)
Saul Frampton: When I Am Playing with My Cat, How Do I Know She Is Not Playing with Me?

LIST III – LITERARY ANALYSES/SHORT STORIES

a) Literary analyses/Lists
Vladimir Nabokov: Lectures on Don Quixote
Simone Weil and Rachel Bespaloff: War and the Iliad
Jack Murnighan: Beowulf on the Beach
E.M. Forster: Aspects of the Novel
Wesley Morris and Barbara Alverson Morris: Reading Faulkner
Alain de Botton: How Proust Can Change Your Life

b) Short stories
Mavis Gallant
Chekhov
Amos Oz: Scenes from Village Life
Sefi Atta: News from Home

LIST V – JAPAN

Through the year: Shusaku Endo
The Sea and Poison
Silence
Deep River
The Samurai
Volcano

Quarter 1: Natsume Soseki
Kokoro
Three-Cornered World
I Am a Cat
Botchan
Sanshiro

Quarter 2: Kobo Abe
The Woman in the Dunes
Secret Rendezvous
The Face of Another
The Box Man

Quarter 3: Ryu Murakami
In the Miso Soup
Piercing
Sixty-Nine
Audition
Almost Transparent Blue

Quarter 4: Yukio Mishima
Sun and Steel
Sea of Fertility series: Spring Snow, Runaway Horses, The Temple of Dawn, The Decay of the Angel
Thirst for Love
The Temple of the Golden Pavilion
After the Banquet
The Sailor Who Fell from Grace with the Sea
The Sound of Waves

Also:
Akira Yoshimura: Shipwrecks

Wow, something for everyone to love in your lists, Darryl. My faves are the Andrea Camilleri mystery, the Elizabeth Moon, Alfred Bester, and China Mieville sci-fi, The Invention of Hugo Cabret, and Beowulf on the Beach. I'm curious about Kokoro, and looking forward to hearing your reaction to it.

>70 _Zoe_: Nice list, Zoë. However, I think I'll continue with my previous plan (which was really Suz's plan) to read books that Janet and I both share. By my count we share 42 books that I haven't read yet (which I posted on my thread), and I've selected 12 that I'd like to (or had already planned to) read this year:

Chasing Goldman Sachs by Suzanne McGee
God's Philosophers : how the Medieval World Laid the Foundations of Modern Science by James Hannam (currently reading)
Kalooki Nights by Howard Jacobson
The Singapore Grip by J. G. Farrell
Cosmopolitanism: Ethics in a World of Strangers by Kwame Anthony Appiah
Speak, Memory by Vladimir Nabokov
The Yacoubian Building by Alaa Al Aswany
Family Matters by Rohinton Mistry
Pnin by Vladimir Nabokov
The Leopard by Giuseppe di Lampedusa
Atonement by Ian McEwan
Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov

Janet was also planning to participate in lilisin's Author Theme Reads group, which will focus entirely on 20th and 21st century Japanese literature this year. I'll read the majority of the books that she listed, in particular:

Shusaku Endo: Silence, The Samurai, Volcano (read in January)

Natsume Soseki: Kokoro, The Three-Cornered World, Botchan (read in January), I Am a Cat

Kobo Abe: The Woman in the Dunes, The Box Man, Secret Rendezvous

Ryu Murakami: In the Miso Soup

Yukio Mishima: The Temple of the Golden Pavilion, Sea of Fertility series (Spring Snow, Runaway Horses, The Temple of Dawn, The Decay of the Angel)

>79 jnwelch: Joe, I'll probably read Kokoro next week, along with The Three-Cornered World.

Sounds good, Darryl. I'll look forward to it.

Fascinating lists. I love it how there are so many options for everyone to honour Janet in their own way.

I think for the rest of Feb and for as long as it takes me, once I finish God's Philosophers, I'm going to devote my' Janet' reading to the book we were going together, and which I have started, Infinite Jest. I can't tell you how much I already miss her company! She was such a grounded reader.

I ordered, and just received, Visitation as my book to remember Janet by, she gave it 5 stars. And I just realised, that another that we share is Great Expectations which I am currently reading and that Janet also rated 5 stars.
I like that I can read the last half of it with that in mind.

I'm planning to post an in memoriam TIOLI challenge for Janet for March; I'm also hoping to organize a group read of Troubles to start next month, should anyone want to join in.

I'll try to acquire a copy pronto!

Lucy, I've got two, if you want one. Dunno quite how that happened, but it did!

Just a note to advise that I've finally put up my review of Visitation.

That would be so wonderful. I'll pm my address?

Cool; I'll dig it out from wherever it's hiding...

It's humbling to come and read all the messages and realize how Janet touched and continues to touch so many lives through the simple act of reading.

I'm reading Middlemarch as a memorial read. I'm doing this as part of a year-long group read (dovegreyreader's Team Middlemarch). Janet read it as part of an LT group read last year. It's a challenging book due to length and language, but I know Janet loved it. And I'm enjoying it, too.

Just started The Dervish House, and it's brilliant so far! I was also touched to see Janet's reading plan for 2012. There was a couple of books on there I know I recommened to her - it's so lovely to thing that, although we only knew each other for a short time, we had an influence on each other's lives, in that small but wonderful way.

>92 goddesspt2: i think the same thing.

I have just started Visitation from Janet's library, she gave it a 5 star rating, I give the cover 5/5, but have yet to get far enough in to comment on the writing.

We were going to read Infinite Jest together this winter/spring, and I am reporting in that I have finished, after almost three months. I missed Janet; her lively commentary would have been so welcome, throughout.

So far I've read four books from Janet's list of planned reads for 2012: Volcano by Shusaku Endo, and Botchan, The Three-Cornered World and Kokoro, all by Natsume Soseki. This month I'll read The Leopard by Giuseppe di Lampedusa.

96: I too thought about Janet while reading the 1079 pages of Infinite Jest.I think it was her spirit that kept me going when the going got tough. Janet was not a quitter!

Other Janet books this year:

The Invention of Hugo Cabret
The Faster I Walk, The Smaller I Am
(Both from Janet's Provisional List for 2012)

I recently bought some of Janet's favorites: The Cairo Trilogy with Janet in mind.

Donna, I'm planning to read The Cairo Trilogy during the third quarter for Reading Globally, when we'll focus on authors from the Middle East; Lois (avaland) and I will co-host the theme. I read Palace Walk and Palace of Desire years ago, and I enjoyed both books.

That's fabulous to have posted Janet's planned list. I think it will be a lovely way to honour her by reading some of the books she planned to...I think I will make Doc the next on my list! Janet was one of my first LT friends. I miss that London connection!

Darryl, I have tried to get into Palace Walk without much success. Maybe I'll wait until the third quarter when you are Reading Globally! (I need to read Doc too. And God's Philosophers just makes me feel guilty at this point.)

Haven't start the Palace Walk books yet, I thought maybe in July, but I will certainly take breaks between books. So if there's a GR planned, I'll certainly join.

I've just begun The Rings of Saturn by W.G. Sebald a book which Janet and I discussed and that she specifically recommended I read.

Yesterday I finished Palace Walk by Naguib Mahfouz, which is in Janet's "Read but unowned" library. I'll read Palace of Desire, the second book in The Cairo Trilogy, which is also in her "Read but unowned library", next month, along with Speak, Memory by Vladimir Nabokov.

Just missing Janet today.

I think of her every time I start a new book - I often check to see if she read it and to see what she said if she did.

>105 Berly: I agree, particularly because I'm in London, a very short walk from the hospital where she spent so much time over the past two years. I still regret that we weren't able to meet in 2010 or 2011, due to her poor health at those times.

So far I've read nine books from Janet's library or her list of planned reads for 2012, which I have chronicled near the beginning of each of my threads:

Volcano by Shusaku Endo
Botchan by Natsume Soseki
The Three-Cornered World by Natsume Soseki
Kokoro by Natsume Soseki
The Leopard by Giuseppe di Lampedusa
Palace Walk by Naguib Mahfouz
Palace of Desire by Naguib Mahfouz
Sugar Street by Naguib Mahfouz
Silence by Shusaku Endo

I'll continue to read several books that she had planned to read this year, in particular Yukio Mishima's Sea of Fertility tetralogy and two novels by Shusaku Endo, Deep River and The Samurai, which I'll read for the Author Theme Reads group.

I agree with you Berly! I miss Janet as well. A few days ago I was sorting through notes/cards I kept and found a delightful one from her. It made me smile.

Hello everyone - this is Rich, Janet's husband. Time has gone so quickly and I find that I have not thanked you all for your kind wishes and your touching recollections of Janet. Her sister and I have both been deeply moved by what you have said about her and it has been a source of great solace for us to learn about the friendships she had among you - we knew that LibraryThing was a source of pleasure and strength to her and now we know why. There could be no better tribute to Janet than one stemming from her love of books. So thank you all again - I think of her every day and it helps me smile to know that she is still in your thoughts too.

Hello Rich,
Im so glad you have access to Janets LibraryThing friends. It can be such a personal thing that can remain hidden from the real life people. But she added so much to my, and others, reading lives. Thanks for commenting here again. I hope you are keeping well.

It is so wonderful to hear from you Rich. Janet used to solicit our aid in helping you find your perfect Christmas book, and I find myself thinking about that sometimes when I am trying to select a book as a gift.

I think we are all loving that we can go to Janet's thread and read her lists and use her good taste as a guide for what to read next.

Be well, and visit again.

So nice to have you visit, Rich. Yes, we still miss her, and enjoy reviewing her threads. I still have Dervish House from her list in my tbr plans. I hope you and your family are well.

Great to hear from you, Richard. I had meant to contact you before I arrived in London, but forgot to do so. I'm here until Thursday, but unfortunately I've picked up a bad cold that has led to an asthma flare up. I'll almost certainly come back in the spring, though, and I'll be sure to touch base with you well in advance.

Hi everyone! I realise this is a hugely old thread to be reviving (and in fact I'm not even sure if this is the way to do it) but I'm Janet's daughter and I've just started a blog/project where I'll be reading through some of the books she reviewed here on LT. I'm not sure how many of you are still around, or if people would be interested, but I'll be blogging at www.krw02500.wordpress.com in case anyone would like to follow along! Thank you all for your kind words in this thread and elsewhere, they have been much appreciated.

All best wishes,
Kate

There are still a lot of us around, and we appreciate your letting us know! I'll post your message here on the message thread for 2015 in case there are people who have unstarred this thread. You could also start your own thread on LT for the 75er group and post the reviews from your blog here
http://www.librarything.com/groups/75booksin2015
if you'd like to get into some discussions.

>114 KateinHirson: A lovely idea. I've added your blog to my RSS reader.

Fabulous idea, Kate! Welcome to LibraryThing. I never got a chance to meet your mother on my trips to London (one time she was hospitalized at UCH, and I had a bad cold another time and didn't want to pass it on to her), so I'll definitely follow your literary tribute to her. I would certainly be interested in joining you for at least some of the books that she and I shared, and I'll bet her other LT friends would be as well.

I kept your mother's thread starred, so it appeared in my current Talk feed.

I've kept this thread starred and am very happy to see it reactivated. I'll be signing up for your blog on Wordpress. I think of your mother often, her 'voice' was very strong, insightful, and full of humour.