labfs39: a year in the life of Lisa's reading (2012) - pt.4
Esto es una continuación del tema labfs39: a year in the life of Lisa's reading (2012) - pt.3.
CharlasClub Read 2012
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1labfs39
Welcome to the continuing saga of my reading adventures!
Currently reading:
A Train in Winter by Caroline Moorehead
Life of Fred: Farming by Stanley F. Schmidt
Currently reading:
A Train in Winter by Caroline Moorehead
Life of Fred: Farming by Stanley F. Schmidt
2labfs39
The best of 2012 so far:
Fiction
Monsieur Linh and His Child by Philippe Claudel, translated from the French by Euan Cameron (5*)
In the Shadow of the Banyan by Vaddey Ratner (5*)
Life and Fate by Vasily Grossman, translated from the Russian by Robert Chandler (4.5*)
Palace Walk by Naguib Mahfouz, translated from the Arabic by William M. Hutchins (4.5*)
A Country Doctor's Notebook by Mikhail Bulgakov, translated from the Russian by Michael Glenny (4.5*)
Mister Blue by Jacques Poulin, translated from the French by Sheila Fischman (4.5*)
Memoirs
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot (5*)
The Midwife by Jennifer Worth (4.5*)
Iran Awakening: From Prison to Peace Prize: One Woman's Struggle at the Crossroads of History by Shirin Ebadi with Azadeh Moaveni (4.5*)
General Nonfiction
The Patient Survival Guide by Dr. Maryanne McGuckin (4.5*)
Children's/YA
The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick (4.5*)
Life of Fred: Cats by Stanley F. Schmidt (4.5*) - math series
Fiction
Monsieur Linh and His Child by Philippe Claudel, translated from the French by Euan Cameron (5*)
In the Shadow of the Banyan by Vaddey Ratner (5*)
Life and Fate by Vasily Grossman, translated from the Russian by Robert Chandler (4.5*)
Palace Walk by Naguib Mahfouz, translated from the Arabic by William M. Hutchins (4.5*)
A Country Doctor's Notebook by Mikhail Bulgakov, translated from the Russian by Michael Glenny (4.5*)
Mister Blue by Jacques Poulin, translated from the French by Sheila Fischman (4.5*)
Memoirs
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot (5*)
The Midwife by Jennifer Worth (4.5*)
Iran Awakening: From Prison to Peace Prize: One Woman's Struggle at the Crossroads of History by Shirin Ebadi with Azadeh Moaveni (4.5*)
General Nonfiction
The Patient Survival Guide by Dr. Maryanne McGuckin (4.5*)
Children's/YA
The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick (4.5*)
Life of Fred: Cats by Stanley F. Schmidt (4.5*) - math series
3labfs39
December: 1522 p.
84. Cleopatra: A Life by Stacy Schiff (4*) - 326 p.
83. Golden Buddha by Clive Cussler and Craig Dirgo (2.5*) - 509 p.
82. How to Spell Chanukah and Other Holiday Dilemmas edited by Emily Franklin (3*) - 255 p.
81. Shavelings in Death Camps by Fr. Henryk Maria Malak (3*) - 410 p.
80. The Towers of Trebizond by Rose Macaulay (3*) - 277 p.
November: 1595 p.
79. The Shape of Water by Andrea Camilleri, translated from the Italian by Stephen Sartarelli - (3*) - 224 p.
78. Hunger by Knut Hamsun, translated from the German by Robert Bly - (3.5*) - 243 p.
77. Life of Fred: Edgewood by Stanley F. Schmidt (3*) - 128 p.
76. Monsieur Linh and His Child by Philippe Claudel, translated from the French by Euan Cameron (5*) - 130 p.
75. Running the Rift by Naomi Benaron (4*) - 384 p.
74. 84, Charing Cross Road by Helene Hanff (4*) - 97 p.
73. A Woman in Berlin: Eight Weeks in the Conquered City: A Diary by Anonymous, translated from the German by Philip Boehm (4*) -261 p.
72. Life of Fred: Dogs by Stanley F. Schmidt (3*) - 128 p.
October: 2314 p.
71. The Midwife by Jennifer Worth (4.5*) - 340 p.
70. The Garden of Evening Mists by Tan Twan Eng (4*) - 334 p.
69. Killing Floor by Lee Child (2.5) - 524 p.
68. 22 Britannia Road by Amanda Hodgkinson (3*) - 320 p.
67. The Journal of Best Practices: a Memoir of Marriage, Aasperger Syndrome, and One Man's Quest to be a Better Husband by David Finch (2.5*) - 224 p.
66. Robert Capa: The Definitive Collection by Richard Whelan - (3.5) - 572 p.
September: 1781 p.
65. Malka by Mirjam Pressler, translated from the German by Brian Murdoch (4*) - 280 p.
64. The Patient Survival Guide by Dr. Maryanne McGuckin (4.5*) - 222 p.
63. Death Had Two Sons by Yaël Dayan (3.5*) - 191 p.
62. Sheltered from the swastika : memoir of a Jewish boy's survival amid horror in World War II by Peter Kory (2.5*) - 217 p.
61. The Cats in Krasinski Square by Karen Hesse, illustrated by Wendy Watson (3.5*) - 28 p.
60. I am Forbidden by Anouk Markovits (4*) - 302 p.
59. Meet Me at the Ark at Eight by Ulrich Hub (3.5*) - 68 p.
58. Life of Fred: Cats by Stanley F. Schmidt (4.5*) - 125 p.
57. Young Stalin by Simon Sebag Montefiore (4*) - 402 (not counting bibliography or index)
56. Stories from the Vinyl Cafe by Stuart McLean (3.5*) - 226 p.
August: 1772 p.
55. Fatelessness by Imre Kertész, translated from the Hungarian by Tim Wilkinson (4*) - 262 p.
54. Escape from Camp 14 by Blaine Harden (4*) - 205 p.
53. Sugar Street by Naguib Mahfouz, translated from the Arabic by William M. Hutchins (4.25*) - 327 p.
52. Palace of Desire by Naguib Mahfouz, translated from the Arabic by William M. Hutchins (4*) - 445 p.
51. Palace Walk by Naguib Mahfouz, translated from the Arabic by William M. Hutchins (4.5*) - 533 p.
84. Cleopatra: A Life by Stacy Schiff (4*) - 326 p.
83. Golden Buddha by Clive Cussler and Craig Dirgo (2.5*) - 509 p.
82. How to Spell Chanukah and Other Holiday Dilemmas edited by Emily Franklin (3*) - 255 p.
81. Shavelings in Death Camps by Fr. Henryk Maria Malak (3*) - 410 p.
80. The Towers of Trebizond by Rose Macaulay (3*) - 277 p.
November: 1595 p.
79. The Shape of Water by Andrea Camilleri, translated from the Italian by Stephen Sartarelli - (3*) - 224 p.
78. Hunger by Knut Hamsun, translated from the German by Robert Bly - (3.5*) - 243 p.
77. Life of Fred: Edgewood by Stanley F. Schmidt (3*) - 128 p.
76. Monsieur Linh and His Child by Philippe Claudel, translated from the French by Euan Cameron (5*) - 130 p.
75. Running the Rift by Naomi Benaron (4*) - 384 p.
74. 84, Charing Cross Road by Helene Hanff (4*) - 97 p.
73. A Woman in Berlin: Eight Weeks in the Conquered City: A Diary by Anonymous, translated from the German by Philip Boehm (4*) -261 p.
72. Life of Fred: Dogs by Stanley F. Schmidt (3*) - 128 p.
October: 2314 p.
71. The Midwife by Jennifer Worth (4.5*) - 340 p.
70. The Garden of Evening Mists by Tan Twan Eng (4*) - 334 p.
69. Killing Floor by Lee Child (2.5) - 524 p.
68. 22 Britannia Road by Amanda Hodgkinson (3*) - 320 p.
67. The Journal of Best Practices: a Memoir of Marriage, Aasperger Syndrome, and One Man's Quest to be a Better Husband by David Finch (2.5*) - 224 p.
66. Robert Capa: The Definitive Collection by Richard Whelan - (3.5) - 572 p.
September: 1781 p.
65. Malka by Mirjam Pressler, translated from the German by Brian Murdoch (4*) - 280 p.
64. The Patient Survival Guide by Dr. Maryanne McGuckin (4.5*) - 222 p.
63. Death Had Two Sons by Yaël Dayan (3.5*) - 191 p.
62. Sheltered from the swastika : memoir of a Jewish boy's survival amid horror in World War II by Peter Kory (2.5*) - 217 p.
61. The Cats in Krasinski Square by Karen Hesse, illustrated by Wendy Watson (3.5*) - 28 p.
60. I am Forbidden by Anouk Markovits (4*) - 302 p.
59. Meet Me at the Ark at Eight by Ulrich Hub (3.5*) - 68 p.
58. Life of Fred: Cats by Stanley F. Schmidt (4.5*) - 125 p.
57. Young Stalin by Simon Sebag Montefiore (4*) - 402 (not counting bibliography or index)
56. Stories from the Vinyl Cafe by Stuart McLean (3.5*) - 226 p.
August: 1772 p.
55. Fatelessness by Imre Kertész, translated from the Hungarian by Tim Wilkinson (4*) - 262 p.
54. Escape from Camp 14 by Blaine Harden (4*) - 205 p.
53. Sugar Street by Naguib Mahfouz, translated from the Arabic by William M. Hutchins (4.25*) - 327 p.
52. Palace of Desire by Naguib Mahfouz, translated from the Arabic by William M. Hutchins (4*) - 445 p.
51. Palace Walk by Naguib Mahfouz, translated from the Arabic by William M. Hutchins (4.5*) - 533 p.
4labfs39
July: 2783 p.
50. Iran Awakening: From Prison to Peace Prize: One Woman's Struggle at the Crossroads of History by Shirin Ebadi with Azadeh Moaveni (4.5*) - 232 p.
49. Naftali the Storyteller and His Horse, Sus by Isaac Bashevis Singer, translated from the Yiddish (3.5*) - 143 p.
48. When Shlemiel Went to Warsaw & Other Stories by Isaac Bashevis Singer, translated from the Yiddish by the author and Elizabeth Shub (3*) - 116 p.
47. Love and Exile by Isaac Bashevis Singer (3*) - 352 p.
46. The Land of Green Plums by Herta Müller, translated from the German by Michael Hoffman (3.5*) - 242 p.
45. My Family and Other Animals by Gerald Durrell (4*) - 273 p.
44. Crusoe's Daughter by Jane Gardam (4*) - 265 p.
43. The Inimitable Jeeves by P.G. Wodehouse (3.5*) - 225 p.
42. Potsdam Station by David Downing (3*) - 340 p.
41. Stettin Station by David Downing (4*) - 289 p.
40. Silesian Station by David Downing (3.5*) - 306 p.
June: 2386 p.
39. A Guide to the Birds of East Africa by Nicholas Drayson (4*) - 202 p.
38. Parenting Gifted Kids by James R. Delisle (3.5*) - 212 p.
37. Sorry by Gail Jones (4*) - 232 p.
36. The Investigation by Philippe Claudel, translated from the French by John Cullen (4*) - 221 p.
35. The Hunger Angel by Herta Müller, translated from the German by Philip Boehm (3.5*) - 290 p.
34. In the Shadow of the Banyan by Vaddey Ratner (5*) - 334 p.
33. The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov, translated from the Russian by Diana Lewis Burgin (4*) - 369 p.
32. Raising a Gifted Child by Carol Fertig (3*) - 233 p.
31. Zoo Station by David Downing (3.5*) - 293 p.
May: 1461 p. and 12.5 hours of audio
30. Raising Gifted Kids by Barbara Schave Klein (3*) - 293 p.
29. The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot (5*) - (audiobook)
28. A Small Fortune by Rosie Dastgir (3.5*) - 373 p.
27. A Country Doctor's Notebook by Mikhail Bulgakov, translated from the Russian by Michael Glenny (4.5*) - 158 p.
26. Wonderstruck by Brian Selznick (3*) - 637 p.
50. Iran Awakening: From Prison to Peace Prize: One Woman's Struggle at the Crossroads of History by Shirin Ebadi with Azadeh Moaveni (4.5*) - 232 p.
49. Naftali the Storyteller and His Horse, Sus by Isaac Bashevis Singer, translated from the Yiddish (3.5*) - 143 p.
48. When Shlemiel Went to Warsaw & Other Stories by Isaac Bashevis Singer, translated from the Yiddish by the author and Elizabeth Shub (3*) - 116 p.
47. Love and Exile by Isaac Bashevis Singer (3*) - 352 p.
46. The Land of Green Plums by Herta Müller, translated from the German by Michael Hoffman (3.5*) - 242 p.
45. My Family and Other Animals by Gerald Durrell (4*) - 273 p.
44. Crusoe's Daughter by Jane Gardam (4*) - 265 p.
43. The Inimitable Jeeves by P.G. Wodehouse (3.5*) - 225 p.
42. Potsdam Station by David Downing (3*) - 340 p.
41. Stettin Station by David Downing (4*) - 289 p.
40. Silesian Station by David Downing (3.5*) - 306 p.
June: 2386 p.
39. A Guide to the Birds of East Africa by Nicholas Drayson (4*) - 202 p.
38. Parenting Gifted Kids by James R. Delisle (3.5*) - 212 p.
37. Sorry by Gail Jones (4*) - 232 p.
36. The Investigation by Philippe Claudel, translated from the French by John Cullen (4*) - 221 p.
35. The Hunger Angel by Herta Müller, translated from the German by Philip Boehm (3.5*) - 290 p.
34. In the Shadow of the Banyan by Vaddey Ratner (5*) - 334 p.
33. The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov, translated from the Russian by Diana Lewis Burgin (4*) - 369 p.
32. Raising a Gifted Child by Carol Fertig (3*) - 233 p.
31. Zoo Station by David Downing (3.5*) - 293 p.
May: 1461 p. and 12.5 hours of audio
30. Raising Gifted Kids by Barbara Schave Klein (3*) - 293 p.
29. The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot (5*) - (audiobook)
28. A Small Fortune by Rosie Dastgir (3.5*) - 373 p.
27. A Country Doctor's Notebook by Mikhail Bulgakov, translated from the Russian by Michael Glenny (4.5*) - 158 p.
26. Wonderstruck by Brian Selznick (3*) - 637 p.
5labfs39
April: 1532 p. and 10 hours 39 minutes of audio
25. Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World that Can't Stop Talking by Susan Cain - (3.5*) - 10 hours and 39 minutes
24. Talking to the Enemy by Avner Mandelman - (4*) - 139 p.
23. The Girl Giant by Kristen Den Hartog - (4*) - 219 p.
22. The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick (4.5*) - 533. p.
21. Children in Reindeer Woods by Kristín Ómarsdóttir, translated from the Icelandic by Lytton Smith (3.5*) - 198 p.
20. The Orphan Master's Son by Adam Johnson (4*) - 443 p.
March: 1164 p.
19. River of Smoke by Amitav Ghosh (3*) - 522 p.
18. In the Shadow of the Banyan by Vaddey Ratner (4.5*) - 334 p.
17. Coventry: A Novel by Helen Humphreys (3*) - 179 p.
16. The Wedding of Zein by Tayeb Salih, translated from the Arabic by Denys Johnson-Davies (4*) - 120 p.
February: 2420 p.
15. Nemesis by Philip Roth (2.5*) - 280 p.
14. Maus II by Art Spiegelman (5*) - 136 p.
13. Maus by Art Spiegelman (5*) - 159 p.
12. 1Q84 by Haruki Murakami, translated from the Japanese by Jay Rubin and Philip Gabriel (3.5*) - 925 p.
11. No One is Here Except All of Us by Ramona Ausubel (3.5*) - 325 p.
10. Secret Letters from 0 to 10 by Susie Morgenstein, translated from the French by Gill Rosner (4*) - 137 p.
9. Skylark by Dezső Kosztolányi, translated from the Hungarian by Richard Aczel (3.5*) - 222 p.
8. Two Rings: A Story of Love and War by Millie Werber and Eve Keller (4*) - 236 p.
January: 2602 p.
7. The Unredeemed Captive: A Family Story from Early America by John Demos (3*) - 252 p.
6. Tibet: Through the Red Box by Peter Sís, Caldecott Honor Book (4*) - 57 p.
The Wall: Growing Up Behind the Iron Curtain by Peter Sís (3.5*) - 46 p.
The Conference of the Birds by Peter Sís (4*) - 160 p.
Madlenka by Peter Sís (3.5*) - 46 p.
The Tree of Life: Charles Darwin by Peter Sís (3*) - 37 p.
5. Mister Blue by Jacques Poulin, translated from the French by Sheila Fischman (4.5*) - 174 p.
4. The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare, winner of the Newbery Medal (4*) - 249 p.
3. Life and Fate by Vasily Grossman, translated from the Russian by Robert Chandler (4.5*) - 880 p.
2. We All Wore Stars by Theo Coster (3.5*) - 198 p.
1. Sea of Poppies by Amitav Ghosh (4*) - 503 p.
25. Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World that Can't Stop Talking by Susan Cain - (3.5*) - 10 hours and 39 minutes
24. Talking to the Enemy by Avner Mandelman - (4*) - 139 p.
23. The Girl Giant by Kristen Den Hartog - (4*) - 219 p.
22. The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick (4.5*) - 533. p.
21. Children in Reindeer Woods by Kristín Ómarsdóttir, translated from the Icelandic by Lytton Smith (3.5*) - 198 p.
20. The Orphan Master's Son by Adam Johnson (4*) - 443 p.
March: 1164 p.
19. River of Smoke by Amitav Ghosh (3*) - 522 p.
18. In the Shadow of the Banyan by Vaddey Ratner (4.5*) - 334 p.
17. Coventry: A Novel by Helen Humphreys (3*) - 179 p.
16. The Wedding of Zein by Tayeb Salih, translated from the Arabic by Denys Johnson-Davies (4*) - 120 p.
February: 2420 p.
15. Nemesis by Philip Roth (2.5*) - 280 p.
14. Maus II by Art Spiegelman (5*) - 136 p.
13. Maus by Art Spiegelman (5*) - 159 p.
12. 1Q84 by Haruki Murakami, translated from the Japanese by Jay Rubin and Philip Gabriel (3.5*) - 925 p.
11. No One is Here Except All of Us by Ramona Ausubel (3.5*) - 325 p.
10. Secret Letters from 0 to 10 by Susie Morgenstein, translated from the French by Gill Rosner (4*) - 137 p.
9. Skylark by Dezső Kosztolányi, translated from the Hungarian by Richard Aczel (3.5*) - 222 p.
8. Two Rings: A Story of Love and War by Millie Werber and Eve Keller (4*) - 236 p.
January: 2602 p.
7. The Unredeemed Captive: A Family Story from Early America by John Demos (3*) - 252 p.
6. Tibet: Through the Red Box by Peter Sís, Caldecott Honor Book (4*) - 57 p.
The Wall: Growing Up Behind the Iron Curtain by Peter Sís (3.5*) - 46 p.
The Conference of the Birds by Peter Sís (4*) - 160 p.
Madlenka by Peter Sís (3.5*) - 46 p.
The Tree of Life: Charles Darwin by Peter Sís (3*) - 37 p.
5. Mister Blue by Jacques Poulin, translated from the French by Sheila Fischman (4.5*) - 174 p.
4. The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare, winner of the Newbery Medal (4*) - 249 p.
3. Life and Fate by Vasily Grossman, translated from the Russian by Robert Chandler (4.5*) - 880 p.
2. We All Wore Stars by Theo Coster (3.5*) - 198 p.
1. Sea of Poppies by Amitav Ghosh (4*) - 503 p.
6labfs39
A list of books by the author's ethnicity (as decided by me)
Australian:
Sorry by Gail Jones
Cambodian:
In the Shadow of the Banyan by Vaddey Ratner
Canadian:
Mister Blue by Jacques Poulin
Coventry by Helen Humphreys
The Girl Giant by Kristen Den Hartog
Stories from the Vinyl Cafe by Stuart McLean
Czech:
The Conference of the Birds and others by Peter Sís
Dutch:
We All Wore Stars by Theo Coster
Egyptian:
Palace Walk by Naguib Mahfouz
Palace of Desire by Naguib Mahfouz
Sugar Street by Naguib Mahfouz
French:
Secret Letters from 0 to 10 by Susie Morgenstein
The Investigation by Philippe Claudel
I Am Forbidden by Anouk Markovits
Monsieur Linh and His Child by Philippe Claudel
German:
The Hunger Angel by Herta Müller (born in Romania)
The Land of Green Plums by Herta Müller (born in Romania)
Malka by Mirjam Pressler
A Woman in Berlin: Eight Weeks in the Conquered City: A Diary by Anonymous
Hungarian:
Skylark by Dezső Kosztolányi
Fatelessness by Imre Kertész
Icelandic:
Children in Reindeer Woods by Kristín Ómarsdóttir
Indian:
Sea of Poppies by Amitav Ghosh
River of Smoke by Amitav Ghosh
Iranian:
Iran Awakening by Shirin Ebadi
Israeli:
Talking to the Enemy by Avner Mandelman
Death Had Two Sons by Yaël Dayan
Italian
The Shape of Water by Andrea Camilleri
Japanese:
1Q84 by Haruki Murakami
Malayan
The Garden of Evening Mists by Tan Twan Eng
Norwegian
Hunger by Knut Hamsun
Polish:
Two Rings: A Story of Love and War by Millie Werber and Eve Keller
Love and Exile by Isaac Bashevis Singer
When Shlemiel Went to Warsaw & Other Stories by Isaac Bashevis Singer
Naftali the Storyteller and His Horse, Sus by Isaac Bashevis Singer
Shavelings in Death Camps by Fr. Henryk Maria Malak
Russian:
Life and Fate by Vasily Grossman
A Country Doctor's Notebook by Mikhail Bulgakov
Sudanese:
The Wedding of Zein by Tayeb Salih
Australian:
Sorry by Gail Jones
Cambodian:
In the Shadow of the Banyan by Vaddey Ratner
Canadian:
Mister Blue by Jacques Poulin
Coventry by Helen Humphreys
The Girl Giant by Kristen Den Hartog
Stories from the Vinyl Cafe by Stuart McLean
Czech:
The Conference of the Birds and others by Peter Sís
Dutch:
We All Wore Stars by Theo Coster
Egyptian:
Palace Walk by Naguib Mahfouz
Palace of Desire by Naguib Mahfouz
Sugar Street by Naguib Mahfouz
French:
Secret Letters from 0 to 10 by Susie Morgenstein
The Investigation by Philippe Claudel
I Am Forbidden by Anouk Markovits
Monsieur Linh and His Child by Philippe Claudel
German:
The Hunger Angel by Herta Müller (born in Romania)
The Land of Green Plums by Herta Müller (born in Romania)
Malka by Mirjam Pressler
A Woman in Berlin: Eight Weeks in the Conquered City: A Diary by Anonymous
Hungarian:
Skylark by Dezső Kosztolányi
Fatelessness by Imre Kertész
Icelandic:
Children in Reindeer Woods by Kristín Ómarsdóttir
Indian:
Sea of Poppies by Amitav Ghosh
River of Smoke by Amitav Ghosh
Iranian:
Iran Awakening by Shirin Ebadi
Israeli:
Talking to the Enemy by Avner Mandelman
Death Had Two Sons by Yaël Dayan
Italian
The Shape of Water by Andrea Camilleri
Japanese:
1Q84 by Haruki Murakami
Malayan
The Garden of Evening Mists by Tan Twan Eng
Norwegian
Hunger by Knut Hamsun
Polish:
Two Rings: A Story of Love and War by Millie Werber and Eve Keller
Love and Exile by Isaac Bashevis Singer
When Shlemiel Went to Warsaw & Other Stories by Isaac Bashevis Singer
Naftali the Storyteller and His Horse, Sus by Isaac Bashevis Singer
Shavelings in Death Camps by Fr. Henryk Maria Malak
Russian:
Life and Fate by Vasily Grossman
A Country Doctor's Notebook by Mikhail Bulgakov
Sudanese:
The Wedding of Zein by Tayeb Salih
7labfs39
TIOLI Challenges July-
TIOLI challenges:
December: 3 completed
Challenge #7: Read a book where there are more than half the letters in the alphabet in the title
How to Spell Chanukah and Other Holiday Dilemmas (17)
Challenge #10: Read a book with a photograph on the cover
The Towers of Trebizond (people on camels)
Challenge #19: Read a book set in a country beginning with a vowel
Cleopatra: A Life (Egypt)
November: 8 completed
Challenge #8: Read a second-hand book from a bricks-and-mortar bookstore
84, Charing Cross Road (Third Place Books)
Running the Rift (Third Place Books)
Challenge #10: Read a book with a LT Average Rating of 4.00 to 4.50
A Woman in Berlin: Eight Weeks in the Conquered City: A Diary (4.17)
Monsieur Linh and His Child (4.07)
Hunger (4.08)
Challenge #19: Read a book that you have checked out from a library
Life of Fred: Dogs
Life of Fred: Edgewood
The Shape of Water
October: 6 completed (3 shared)
Challenge #3: Read a book first released for publication over 100 yrs ago or in 2012
The Garden of Evening Mists* (2012)
Challenge #5: Read a book about Childbirth
The Midwife*
Challenge #7: Celebrate J*A*S*P*E*R - a rolling challenge
Robert Capa: The Definitive Collection
The Journal of Best Practices
Challenge #14: Read a book whose title includes both letters and actual numbers
22 Britannia Road*
Challenge #16: Read a book that has two or more 4's in its ISBN
Killing Floor
September: 7 completed
Challenge #5: Read a book that includes a diagram of a family tree
Young Stalin
Challenge #7: Read a book about a school(s), or in which a significant part of the action takes place in a school
Life of Fred: Cats
Challenge #9: Magic 9 - Read a book with 9 words in the title or a word in the title or author name that is 9 letters or longer
The Cats in Krasinski Square (Krasinski)
Challenge #16: Read a book first published in 2012
The Patient Survival Guide
Sheltered from the Swastika
I Am Forbidden
Meet at the Ark at Eight
August: 5 completed (3 shared)
Challenge #4: Read a book where the Title either begins with the same letter as the one above or ends with the same letter, alternating
Sugar Street (matched kidzdoc)*
Challenge #7: Read a book someone recommended to you in the last month
Fatelessness (Linda92007)
Challenge #13: Read a book where the first letter of the title words can be rearranged to make a single word
Palace of Desire (pod)*
Challenge #16: Read a book with a cover that is boring, uninteresting, uninspiring, or mostly brown
Palace Walk (sepia toned photo)*
Challenge #17: Read a book with an embedded first name in either the title or author's name
Escape from Camp 14: One Man's Remarkable Odyssey from North Korea to Freedom in the West by Blaine Harden
July: 11 completed
Challenge #1: Read a rainbow colored book
Potsdam Station (green cover)
Silesian Station (blue cover)
When Shlemiel Went to Warsaw and Other Stories (green)
Naftali the Storyteller and His Horse, Sus (blue)
Challenge #3: Read a book set in one of the countries or regions that comprise the traditional Middle East
Iran Awakening by Shirin Ebadi with Azadeh Moaveni
Challenge #8: Read a book where the author's initials form a commonly used abbreviation
The Land of the Green Plums by Herta Müller (HM/Her Majesty)
Love and Exile by Isaac Bashevis Singer (IBS/Irritable Bowel Syndrome)
Challenge #15: Read a book with a picture of something that can be carried by the wind on its cover
The Inimitable Jeeves (hat)
My Family and Other Animals (bird, bat, bug, dust, net)
Challenge #17: Read a book with "girl" or "woman" (or a synonym) in the title or the author's name
Crusoe's Daughter
Challenge #18: Read a book where the author's Surname is also a Place name
Stettin Station by David Downing (Downing Street, London)
TIOLI challenges:
December: 3 completed
Challenge #7: Read a book where there are more than half the letters in the alphabet in the title
How to Spell Chanukah and Other Holiday Dilemmas (17)
Challenge #10: Read a book with a photograph on the cover
The Towers of Trebizond (people on camels)
Challenge #19: Read a book set in a country beginning with a vowel
Cleopatra: A Life (Egypt)
November: 8 completed
Challenge #8: Read a second-hand book from a bricks-and-mortar bookstore
84, Charing Cross Road (Third Place Books)
Running the Rift (Third Place Books)
Challenge #10: Read a book with a LT Average Rating of 4.00 to 4.50
A Woman in Berlin: Eight Weeks in the Conquered City: A Diary (4.17)
Monsieur Linh and His Child (4.07)
Hunger (4.08)
Challenge #19: Read a book that you have checked out from a library
Life of Fred: Dogs
Life of Fred: Edgewood
The Shape of Water
October: 6 completed (3 shared)
Challenge #3: Read a book first released for publication over 100 yrs ago or in 2012
The Garden of Evening Mists* (2012)
Challenge #5: Read a book about Childbirth
The Midwife*
Challenge #7: Celebrate J*A*S*P*E*R - a rolling challenge
Robert Capa: The Definitive Collection
The Journal of Best Practices
Challenge #14: Read a book whose title includes both letters and actual numbers
22 Britannia Road*
Challenge #16: Read a book that has two or more 4's in its ISBN
Killing Floor
September: 7 completed
Challenge #5: Read a book that includes a diagram of a family tree
Young Stalin
Challenge #7: Read a book about a school(s), or in which a significant part of the action takes place in a school
Life of Fred: Cats
Challenge #9: Magic 9 - Read a book with 9 words in the title or a word in the title or author name that is 9 letters or longer
The Cats in Krasinski Square (Krasinski)
Challenge #16: Read a book first published in 2012
The Patient Survival Guide
Sheltered from the Swastika
I Am Forbidden
Meet at the Ark at Eight
August: 5 completed (3 shared)
Challenge #4: Read a book where the Title either begins with the same letter as the one above or ends with the same letter, alternating
Sugar Street (matched kidzdoc)*
Challenge #7: Read a book someone recommended to you in the last month
Fatelessness (Linda92007)
Challenge #13: Read a book where the first letter of the title words can be rearranged to make a single word
Palace of Desire (pod)*
Challenge #16: Read a book with a cover that is boring, uninteresting, uninspiring, or mostly brown
Palace Walk (sepia toned photo)*
Challenge #17: Read a book with an embedded first name in either the title or author's name
Escape from Camp 14: One Man's Remarkable Odyssey from North Korea to Freedom in the West by Blaine Harden
July: 11 completed
Challenge #1: Read a rainbow colored book
Potsdam Station (green cover)
Silesian Station (blue cover)
When Shlemiel Went to Warsaw and Other Stories (green)
Naftali the Storyteller and His Horse, Sus (blue)
Challenge #3: Read a book set in one of the countries or regions that comprise the traditional Middle East
Iran Awakening by Shirin Ebadi with Azadeh Moaveni
Challenge #8: Read a book where the author's initials form a commonly used abbreviation
The Land of the Green Plums by Herta Müller (HM/Her Majesty)
Love and Exile by Isaac Bashevis Singer (IBS/Irritable Bowel Syndrome)
Challenge #15: Read a book with a picture of something that can be carried by the wind on its cover
The Inimitable Jeeves (hat)
My Family and Other Animals (bird, bat, bug, dust, net)
Challenge #17: Read a book with "girl" or "woman" (or a synonym) in the title or the author's name
Crusoe's Daughter
Challenge #18: Read a book where the author's Surname is also a Place name
Stettin Station by David Downing (Downing Street, London)
8labfs39
TIOLI Challenges Jan-June (23 completed)
June: 5 completed
Challenge #1: Read a book whose third title word has exactly three letters
The Master and Margarita
Challenge #6: Read a book dedicated to the author's father
In the Shadow of the Banyan - In the memory of my father, Neak Ang Mechas Sisowath Ayuravann
Challenge #8: Read a book with a title that has equal or more letters from the second half of the alphabet than from the first half
Zoo Station
Challenge #14: Read a One Word Titled Book by a Female Author
Sorry by Gail Jones
Challenge #23: Read a book whose title contains the word "of"
A Guide to the Birds of East Africa
May: 1 completed
Challenge #1: Read a book originally written in a Slavic language
A Country Doctor's Notebook (Russian)
April: 4 completed
Challenge #5: Read a work in which one of the main characters described with a word ending in –ologist
The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick (horologist)
Challenge #7: Finish a book that you started between January 1, 2012 and March 28, 2012
Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World that Can't Stop Talking by Susan Cain
Challenge #9: Read a book with a title that includes only the vowels in the word "April"
The Girl Giant by Kristen den Hartog
Challenge #15: Read a book with a wild mammal (no pets) in the title
Children in Reindeer Woods by Kristín Ómarsdóttir
March: 1 completed
Challenge #22: Read a book with an introduction or afterword by another writer
The Wedding of Zein by Tayeb Salih (intro by Hisham Matar)
February: 7 completed
Challenge #1: Read a book with an animal on the left hand page, a beverage on the right hand page, and the number 3 in both page numbers
No One is Here Except All of Us by Ramona Ausubel (234/crows - 235/water)
Challenge #3: Read a book with a word of at least 5 letters in the title that is an anagram
Secret Letters from 0 to 10 by Susie Morgenstern (letters/settler)
Challenge #10: Read a Book with a Title written in the first person:
Maus I: A Survivor's Tale: My Father Bleeds History by Art Spiegelman
Maus II : a survivor's tale : and here my troubles began by Art Spiegelman
Challenge #12: Read a book with a cover that depicts love
Two Rings: A Story of Love and War by Millie Werber
Challenge #18: Read a book originally written in a language that you do NOT speak and read
Skylark by Dezső Kosztolányi
1Q84 by Haruki Murakami
January: 5 completed
Challenge #7: Read a book that was published posthumously
Life and Fate by Vasily Grossman
Challenge #8: Read a book where a word in the title can be used as a verb as well as another part of speech
Mister Blue by Jacques Poulin (blue: verb and adjective or noun)
Challenge #9: Read a book with the name of a body of water in the title
Sea of Poppies by Amitav Ghosh
Challenge #11: Read a work of narrative non-fiction
We All Wore Stars by Theo Coster
The Unredeemed Captive by John Demos
June: 5 completed
Challenge #1: Read a book whose third title word has exactly three letters
The Master and Margarita
Challenge #6: Read a book dedicated to the author's father
In the Shadow of the Banyan - In the memory of my father, Neak Ang Mechas Sisowath Ayuravann
Challenge #8: Read a book with a title that has equal or more letters from the second half of the alphabet than from the first half
Zoo Station
Challenge #14: Read a One Word Titled Book by a Female Author
Sorry by Gail Jones
Challenge #23: Read a book whose title contains the word "of"
A Guide to the Birds of East Africa
May: 1 completed
Challenge #1: Read a book originally written in a Slavic language
A Country Doctor's Notebook (Russian)
April: 4 completed
Challenge #5: Read a work in which one of the main characters described with a word ending in –ologist
The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick (horologist)
Challenge #7: Finish a book that you started between January 1, 2012 and March 28, 2012
Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World that Can't Stop Talking by Susan Cain
Challenge #9: Read a book with a title that includes only the vowels in the word "April"
The Girl Giant by Kristen den Hartog
Challenge #15: Read a book with a wild mammal (no pets) in the title
Children in Reindeer Woods by Kristín Ómarsdóttir
March: 1 completed
Challenge #22: Read a book with an introduction or afterword by another writer
The Wedding of Zein by Tayeb Salih (intro by Hisham Matar)
February: 7 completed
Challenge #1: Read a book with an animal on the left hand page, a beverage on the right hand page, and the number 3 in both page numbers
No One is Here Except All of Us by Ramona Ausubel (234/crows - 235/water)
Challenge #3: Read a book with a word of at least 5 letters in the title that is an anagram
Secret Letters from 0 to 10 by Susie Morgenstern (letters/settler)
Challenge #10: Read a Book with a Title written in the first person:
Maus I: A Survivor's Tale: My Father Bleeds History by Art Spiegelman
Maus II : a survivor's tale : and here my troubles began by Art Spiegelman
Challenge #12: Read a book with a cover that depicts love
Two Rings: A Story of Love and War by Millie Werber
Challenge #18: Read a book originally written in a language that you do NOT speak and read
Skylark by Dezső Kosztolányi
1Q84 by Haruki Murakami
January: 5 completed
Challenge #7: Read a book that was published posthumously
Life and Fate by Vasily Grossman
Challenge #8: Read a book where a word in the title can be used as a verb as well as another part of speech
Mister Blue by Jacques Poulin (blue: verb and adjective or noun)
Challenge #9: Read a book with the name of a body of water in the title
Sea of Poppies by Amitav Ghosh
Challenge #11: Read a work of narrative non-fiction
We All Wore Stars by Theo Coster
The Unredeemed Captive by John Demos
9labfs39
56. Stories from the Vinyl Cafe by Stuart McLean (3.5*)
I was first introduced to Dave (the main character in the Vinyl Cafe stories) at my daughter's birthday party this summer. As we sat around the campfire roasting marshmallows and making s'mores, we took turns telling stories. One precocious storyteller reenacted the story of Dave and the bicycle. It was hilarious! Later her father told me that they listened to Stuart McLean's radio show every week, in which there is a new installment about Dave, the fictional person at the heart of the stories. The show is not broadcast at a good time for us, so when I was visiting Vancouver, BC this summer, I decided to purchase the first Vinyl Cafe book. (Thank you to a fellow LTer for getting me to a good bookstore!) I listened to some of the shows via podcast, but I preferred reading just the Dave stories.
I loved the stories in this book. The main characters are Dave and his wife, Morley, and their two children, Stephanie a teenager, and Sam the younger son. Each chapter is complete unto itself, given that they were originally written for radio, so it made a perfect bedtime book, easy to pick up and put down. My husband thought it odd that I was laughing so much while reading (my reading tends to run to the depressing). I read him a few passages, but the effect is not the same. The stories are by turns hysterical and heartwarming. There are moments between husband and wife, or parent and child that McLean gets just right. I have asked for the next books in the series for the holidays. I'll keep you posted.
10SassyLassy
He's in Bellingham December 13 and Seattle December 14th.
12TadAD
Mostly stopped by to say hello but the McLean book looks like fun. I'll add it to my Christmas list.
13labfs39
#10 That would be fun! We can't make it Friday, but I will make sure to download the podcast of the episode. Thanks for letting me know, Sassy.
#11 Thanks, Ellen.
#12 Hi, Tad! Still behind on threads, but a new year is coming and yours will be starred right away, so I can't get behind again. Hope you're getting some time off from work. Did you get the message from Lois?
#11 Thanks, Ellen.
#12 Hi, Tad! Still behind on threads, but a new year is coming and yours will be starred right away, so I can't get behind again. Hope you're getting some time off from work. Did you get the message from Lois?
16labfs39
#14 Thanks, Dan.
#15 Hi Lois! Nice to see you out and about. I hope things are settling down for you a bit at home. Not much reading going on here lately, RL has been interfering, but perhaps in the new year...
#15 Hi Lois! Nice to see you out and about. I hope things are settling down for you a bit at home. Not much reading going on here lately, RL has been interfering, but perhaps in the new year...
17labfs39
BIG NEWS: I just registered for Booktopia 2013! Books on the Nightstand is a great podcast that Mark turned me onto, and he went to their first reader/author weekend two years ago in Vermont. After hearing how much fun it was, I've been green with envy. Now in June 2013 they are going to be doing one in Seattle's backyard, and I am going! It will be my first weekend outing without the family since, wow, 2009? I can't wait to hear who the authors are going to be; they've had some great ones at every Booktopia. Yea for me!
18labfs39
57. Young Stalin by Simon Sebag Montefiore (4*) - Winner of the 2007 Costa Biography Award
After hearing rave reviews of Stalin: Court of the Red Tsar, I added it to the list, but decided to read his subsequent book Young Stalin first for a chronological view. When I saw a copy on a bookstore table, I was immediately drawn to the pictures. I have never seen so many photos of the young Stalin, and they are fascinating. Using material from newly opened archives in Moscow, Tbilisi, and Batumi, as well as those in 20 other cities in nine countries, Montefiore gives a look at the early years of Stalin that no one has been allowed to see. It took the author ten years to do the research, and it shows.
Yet despite being meticulously documented and footnoted, the book reads like a novel. The characters are so unusual and captivating and the setting so well evoked that I was drawn into a world I scarcely could imagine. Raffish young men racing through Tbilisi with swords drawn and handmade bombs exploding, robbing banks and sending the money to Lenin to fund the upcoming revolution. A Muslim highwayman smuggling printing presses through the rugged mountains on donkeys, so that the communists could continue to spread their message. Kamo, Stalin's childhood friend and devoted murderer, flamboyant and cocky, surviving intense and prolonged torture to return to Stalin's side, insane but useful. And Stalin, the most intelligent, secretive, and manipulative of them all: throwing himself in graves, escaping pursuit dressed in drag, organizing the most daring and wild plots, causing riots in the prisons whenever he was caught and escaping exile whenever Lenin called. But Stalin was also a published poet, passionate lover, voracious reader, and one-time seminarian. The author pieces together not only the true story of Stalin's actions up to the time he outmaneuvered Trotsky for power in 1917, but the type of boy and young man that Stalin was and the influences that made him that way.
One such influence was the deprivation and family life in which Stalin grew up. Prey to near-death illnesses and accidents, Soso (as his mother called him), was maimed and sickly as a child, and his mother babied him to the extreme. Yet Soso has also a handful, running children's street gangs, and so she also beat him. Stalin remained faithful to her, although she may not have always been faithful to her husband. Beso was so insecure about the rumors surrounding Soso's parentage, that alcoholism and violence turned him mad. Keke relied on the protection of powerful men such as the wealthy Koba Egnatashvili (whose first name Soso used for a while) and the Gori police chief, Damian Davrichewy, who did the young Stalin many favors. There were even rumors about Keke and the local priest who took an unusual interest in the boy's welfare. Montefiore takes all of this uncertainty, violence, and poverty surrounding Stalin's youth and creates a psychological profile of the boy and young man that brings the disparate accounts together and explains many of Stalin's later actions.
I could go on about Stalin's exploits, love affairs, betrayals, and political development, but I don't want to retell the book. I hope I have given you enough to whet your appetite and encourage you to pick up the book for yourself. It's the best book on Stalin that I have read, and I look forward to Court of the Red Tsar.
19rebeccanyc
I"m looking forward to reading both this and The Court of the Red Tsar; I've had them on the TBR since I read a review of the second one here on LT. Since reading the wonderful Hitler and Stalin, I've been ieager to find a biography that makes use of Soviet archival material, and this two-volume bio seems like the one.
20baswood
Young Stalin sounds like a fun read full of excitement and adventure. It was a pity the way things turned out.
21qebo
17: Aw, it's in Bellingham. Once upon a time, I lived there. 2009? Yes, it's time to get away for a bit.
18: Young Stalin sounds fascinating, though not for me at this time.
18: Young Stalin sounds fascinating, though not for me at this time.
22avaland
>16 labfs39: That's what I'm hoping - the New Year....
23Linda92007
I hope I have given you enough to whet your appetite and encourage you to pick up the book for yourself.
No question, Lisa. Yours is a fabulous review. I recently bought Stalin: The Court of the Red Tsar, but at the time could not find Young Stalin. I do want to read them in order and will be near a bookstore later today. Maybe I'll get lucky!
No question, Lisa. Yours is a fabulous review. I recently bought Stalin: The Court of the Red Tsar, but at the time could not find Young Stalin. I do want to read them in order and will be near a bookstore later today. Maybe I'll get lucky!
24richardderus
>18 labfs39: Had to make a foray into foreign parts to tell you how much I enjoyed and appreciated your review of Young Stalin, Lisa! Quite impressed. Thanks for making your interest so infectious.
26avidmom
Young Stalin goes on the ever-increasing wishlist. A biography that reads like a novel? OH, yeah. I'm sold.
27DieFledermaus
Great review of Young Stalin - hope you enjoy The Court of the Red Tsar. I found that one compulsively readable also.
28brenzi
Hi Lisa, I am green with envy of your going to Booktopia. You'll have to give us a full report. Young Stalin is duly added to my teetering tower so there's another "whetted appetite."
30cushlareads
Fantastic review of Young Stalin Lisa. I have the Court of the Red Tsar here.
I really like BOTNS when I am up to date with my podcasts, which is never at the moment! Booktopia sounds like it'll be great - I've been listening to them talking about it and thinking how nice it would be...
I really like BOTNS when I am up to date with my podcasts, which is never at the moment! Booktopia sounds like it'll be great - I've been listening to them talking about it and thinking how nice it would be...
31Nickelini
so when I was visiting Vancouver, BC this summer, I decided to purchase the first Vinyl Cafe book. (Thank you to a fellow LTer for getting me to a good bookstore!)
Really? You found a good bookstore in Vancouver? Please share. I usually only buy books from stores when I leave town--Victoria, Kelowna, Seattle, or farther . . . .
Really? You found a good bookstore in Vancouver? Please share. I usually only buy books from stores when I leave town--Victoria, Kelowna, Seattle, or farther . . . .
32dchaikin
late compliments on your Young Stalin review. You caught my attention, onto the wishlist it goes.
33labfs39
#19 Hi Rebecca. I chose to read the two biographies of Stalin in chronological order, i.e. Young Stalin first, but the author insists this is not necessary, nor is it the order in which he wrote them. To me it just seems logical though. I look forward to your impressions of them as well.
#20 Yes, that's true, Barry things didn't turn out so well with Stalin. But then they didn't begin too well either. Young Stalin is a bit of a swashbuckler, but in a sad and perverse way. I don't know that he ever had a happy time in his life.
#21 I didn't know you used to be a Pacific Northwesterner, qebo. Did you grow up in Bellingham, or go to school there? Are you considering coming to Booktopia?
#22 I hope things are leveling out for you, Lois. Yes, the new year, a new start. But before then, I hope to review 11 books. Eek!
#23 I'm glad you are going to read them too, Linda. Did you see my note to Rebecca above, about what the author says about order? He seemed almost put out that people wanted to read Young Stalin first. To me it just makes sense, even if they are independent of each other, as he says.
#24 Thank you, Richard. Quite a compliment from the queen of infectious reviews! Your latest lingered on the hot reviewers list. Your reviews are always fun to read.
#25 Thanks, Ellen. No chance of you coming? I asked a friend, not an avid LTer, but a serious reader, and she is going to come with me. Now I'm anxiously awaiting the list of authors attending!
#26 I hope you won't be disappointed, avidmom. The book is worth the pictures alone. I was going to welcome you to LT when I read I discovered Library Thing quite by accident a few weeks ago on your profile page, but then I realized you became a member in 2009!
#27 I think it was your review of Stalin: Court of the Red Tsar that led me to Young Stalin, DieF. I still don't have a copy yet though.
#28 I'm so excited to be going to Booktopia. I will definitely report back, Bonnie! And Mark that lucky dog is going to his second! I love whetting appetites. ;-)
#29 Oh, c'mon Ellen, what's a little graduation compared to a book love fest?
#30 Thanks, Cushla, I hope you will like Montefiore. I don't always keep up with BOTNS, although I am at the moment. I do listen to them all though. Ann and Michael are so relaxed and fun. I tried the Three Percent podcast, but Chad can get a little over the top for me. Do you listen to any other book podcasts you would recommend?
#31 Um, sorry to disappoint, Joyce, but it was only a Chapters. I asked a fellow LTer, and she said that was the best she could offer for suggestions. Not a Munro's, that's for sure.
#32 Thanks, Dan. Better late than never!
#20 Yes, that's true, Barry things didn't turn out so well with Stalin. But then they didn't begin too well either. Young Stalin is a bit of a swashbuckler, but in a sad and perverse way. I don't know that he ever had a happy time in his life.
#21 I didn't know you used to be a Pacific Northwesterner, qebo. Did you grow up in Bellingham, or go to school there? Are you considering coming to Booktopia?
#22 I hope things are leveling out for you, Lois. Yes, the new year, a new start. But before then, I hope to review 11 books. Eek!
#23 I'm glad you are going to read them too, Linda. Did you see my note to Rebecca above, about what the author says about order? He seemed almost put out that people wanted to read Young Stalin first. To me it just makes sense, even if they are independent of each other, as he says.
#24 Thank you, Richard. Quite a compliment from the queen of infectious reviews! Your latest lingered on the hot reviewers list. Your reviews are always fun to read.
#25 Thanks, Ellen. No chance of you coming? I asked a friend, not an avid LTer, but a serious reader, and she is going to come with me. Now I'm anxiously awaiting the list of authors attending!
#26 I hope you won't be disappointed, avidmom. The book is worth the pictures alone. I was going to welcome you to LT when I read I discovered Library Thing quite by accident a few weeks ago on your profile page, but then I realized you became a member in 2009!
#27 I think it was your review of Stalin: Court of the Red Tsar that led me to Young Stalin, DieF. I still don't have a copy yet though.
#28 I'm so excited to be going to Booktopia. I will definitely report back, Bonnie! And Mark that lucky dog is going to his second! I love whetting appetites. ;-)
#29 Oh, c'mon Ellen, what's a little graduation compared to a book love fest?
#30 Thanks, Cushla, I hope you will like Montefiore. I don't always keep up with BOTNS, although I am at the moment. I do listen to them all though. Ann and Michael are so relaxed and fun. I tried the Three Percent podcast, but Chad can get a little over the top for me. Do you listen to any other book podcasts you would recommend?
#31 Um, sorry to disappoint, Joyce, but it was only a Chapters. I asked a fellow LTer, and she said that was the best she could offer for suggestions. Not a Munro's, that's for sure.
#32 Thanks, Dan. Better late than never!
34labfs39
Now for my first Booktopia update:
I booked my room at The Fairhaven Village Inn, one of the two inns that BOTNS is using for the event. It is located right across the square from Village Books, and my room has a view of the harbor, a fireplace, and a balcony. I feel relaxed already.
I booked my room at The Fairhaven Village Inn, one of the two inns that BOTNS is using for the event. It is located right across the square from Village Books, and my room has a view of the harbor, a fireplace, and a balcony. I feel relaxed already.
35Nickelini
I booked my room at The Fairhaven Village Inn,
Fairhaven, as in Bellingham? If so, lovely! One of my favourite corners of Washington state. Enjoy.
Fairhaven, as in Bellingham? If so, lovely! One of my favourite corners of Washington state. Enjoy.
36labfs39
81. Shavelings in Death Camps by Fr. Henryk Maria Malak (3*)
I received this as an Early Reviewer book.
For me, it was a completely new experience to read about the Nazi concentration camps from the perspective of a Polish priest. Father Henryk Malak was only a year out of the seminary in 1939 when the Germans invaded Poland. As part of their roundup and incarceration of the Polish intelligentsia, Fr. Malak and fellow priests in his parish and across the country were arrested almost immediately. Fr. Malak then spent the next five, almost six, years in Nazi camps. His narrative of what he witnessed encompasses imprisonment at Stutthof, the first concentration camp in Poland, which was still being built during his time there; the horrible quarry at Grenzdorf; the brutal treatment of priests at Sachsenhausen; and more than four years at Dachau, where he was final liberated.
Fr. Malak wrote Shavelings in the months following his release, and the final chapters are taken from the diary he managed to keep during the last part of his internment at Dachau. This, the first English translation, is taken from the second edition, in which the author responds to some criticism of his first publishing. In the introduction to the second edition, the author explains the tone and style of his narrative.
As it turned out, this work was acknowledged by the German justice system as a document bearing upon compensation issues, and it should retain this character. That is why I eliminate any kind of fictional plot from it. Since the work is to remain a document of those days, it presents only facts, contains only real names, and avoids drawing conclusions, which are left to the reader and researcher.
It would not be difficult today, following the publication of extensive writing and studies on the subject of concentration camps, to give this book the character of a scholarly work based on sources, but it would then lose precisely its character as a "living" document... This small volume, a handful of personal memories from one out of thousands of Polish priests and former prisoners, claims only to be one source, one little brick, in the monument to Polish martyrdom which will be erected someday by a historian called to the task.
I believe this explanation to be extremely important, because otherwise I would have been confused by the lack of a personal narrative. Fr. Malak's book contains only the bare bones of his story. Instead it is a testimony to what he saw and to his fellow priests. At times, passages resemble the list of ships in the Iliad, as he names all the priests and laymen he saw leave for a transport, arrive at the camp, or die either individually or in groups. It is a document of the capos and SS whom he personal saw commit atrocities and a descriptive account of the living conditions. Only briefly do we catch glimpses of what Fr. Malak thought and suffered personally, but it is enough for the reader to get a sense of the man he was.
The book is at times nationalistic, protective of the reputation of Polish clergy, and even racist, but at the same time it is honest, self-deprecating, and a bit naive. His youth when we wrote the first edition is apparent, as are the sections where an older, wiser man inserts reflections from the perspective of fifteen years after the liberation of Dachau. As someone ignorant of the lives of Polish priests in the camps, I learned much. I also had to Google a lot of Saint's names and feast days, which turned out to be interesting as well. But I did not find it a page-turner due to its documentary nature. I would recommend this memoir to readers interested in all aspects of the Nazi camps and to those who would appreciate a Catholic community's reaction to extreme stress and dislocation.
37labfs39
#35 Yes, exactly, Joyce. We use it as a stopping point going to and from Canada and Mt. Baker. In addition to Village Books, I also love the crowded, quirky used bookstore called Eclipse. I'm sure you know it. There is a shaky panorama video taken from one spot in the shop on youtube, and it gives you a sense of what it's like.
38Linda92007
Very interesting review of Shavelings in Death Camps, Lisa. I had not realized that Catholic priests were also imprisoned. Am I correct that their being amongst the intelligentsia was more of a factor than their religion?
39labfs39
My understanding is that your question is a controversial one (at least at the time of Fr. Malak's second edition in 1961). The courts were interested in determining the answer to this question because it affected compensation issues. Some believed that the Polish priests were treated by the Nazis as Poles and intelligentsia, and that there was no added punishment for being a priest. Fr. Malak, however, clearly stands with the other side, which argues that Polish priests were treated especially harshly, more so than other classes of prisoners, except Jews. He also claims that the special concessions that were made to priests after the Vatican intervened on their behalf, had the opposite effect of the intended: it actually made things worse for the priests because it isolated them from the other prisoners who believed the priests were being coddled. He even argues that the Nazis treated the clergy worse after the intervention, because the camp Nazis were mad at having to accept any sort of outside interference. I'm not sure what the current academic stance is on the issue.
40labfs39
A few last quotes and thoughts on Shavelings before I shelve it:
On prayer:
A human being crammed like an animal on a foul-smelling, rotten bed of straw can't pray! Unless he considers prayer to be teh thoughtless chattering of numb lips. It often happens that such prayer-mills satisfy bodies rather than souls. It may be that the only real prayers a human being can summon under such conditions are short fervent prayers, sent like flaming arrows up to heaven.
We live by them.
For those who remember my thoughts about Fatelessness:
A human being is a curious creature. He can come to love even a death camp, or at least get used to it. In the context of the mysterious unknown to which we're heading, even Stutthof leaves behind the feeling of a "home" that's been lost.
As regards his philosophy about the tone and style of his book: (the ellipses are the author's)
Unexpected news about the death of my father shakes me to the core... When his funeral is already over, I receive a letter he wrote two days before his death... It's true that this is a personal experience, which has no right to be on the pages of Shavelings, but there's probably no one in our group of priests who hasn't mourned the death of someone close to him, such moments are also part of "our mutual memories from the death camps."
Finally, a note from the translators:
...since most of the historical framework is already well known, we have chosen to omit two chapters and several shorter sections from our translation. Everything essential to the priests' story remains intact.
It makes me curious about the first edition, before Fr. Malak's additions to address his critics and before the translators made deletions.
On prayer:
A human being crammed like an animal on a foul-smelling, rotten bed of straw can't pray! Unless he considers prayer to be teh thoughtless chattering of numb lips. It often happens that such prayer-mills satisfy bodies rather than souls. It may be that the only real prayers a human being can summon under such conditions are short fervent prayers, sent like flaming arrows up to heaven.
We live by them.
For those who remember my thoughts about Fatelessness:
A human being is a curious creature. He can come to love even a death camp, or at least get used to it. In the context of the mysterious unknown to which we're heading, even Stutthof leaves behind the feeling of a "home" that's been lost.
As regards his philosophy about the tone and style of his book: (the ellipses are the author's)
Unexpected news about the death of my father shakes me to the core... When his funeral is already over, I receive a letter he wrote two days before his death... It's true that this is a personal experience, which has no right to be on the pages of Shavelings, but there's probably no one in our group of priests who hasn't mourned the death of someone close to him, such moments are also part of "our mutual memories from the death camps."
Finally, a note from the translators:
...since most of the historical framework is already well known, we have chosen to omit two chapters and several shorter sections from our translation. Everything essential to the priests' story remains intact.
It makes me curious about the first edition, before Fr. Malak's additions to address his critics and before the translators made deletions.
41rebeccanyc
For the most part, I feel I've read more Holocaust literature than I want to, but this is a new and interesting perspective for me.
42EBT1002
Lisa, you are becoming dangerous. I have added both Young Stalin and Shavelings in Death Camps to my wishlist. I am thinking of doing two challenges for myself for 2013: read 13 Booker shortlisted books (a Booker's Dozen, heh) and read 13 nonfiction books (I have not historically read much nonfiction but through LT I am developing quite a wish list of them and have found myself enjoying them more than I had expected).
I have stayed at the Fairhaven Village Inn; it was a very nice room with a delicious view.
I have stayed at the Fairhaven Village Inn; it was a very nice room with a delicious view.
43labfs39
#41 I hear you, Rebecca. I shouldn't read so many Holocaust/Gulag/genocide books, because they are so depressing, but I am drawn to them for a reason I can't quite define.
#42 If you are interested in narrative nonfiction, Ellen, I would heartily recommend River of Doubt, Nothing to Envy, The Heart of the Sea, and Gulag: A History. If you are counting memoirs in your nonfiction category, I would recommend: The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, The Midwife, Tisha, and Unbroken. Just from the top of my head, I could scan my shelves and come up with tons more. ;-)
#42 If you are interested in narrative nonfiction, Ellen, I would heartily recommend River of Doubt, Nothing to Envy, The Heart of the Sea, and Gulag: A History. If you are counting memoirs in your nonfiction category, I would recommend: The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, The Midwife, Tisha, and Unbroken. Just from the top of my head, I could scan my shelves and come up with tons more. ;-)
44labfs39
82. How to Spell Chanukah and Other Holiday Dilemmas edited by Emily Franklin (3*)
I picked up this collection of short stories, because I wanted something light and funny to reading during Hanukkah. Because of this expectation, I was disappointed. With the exception of the first story, "The Blue Team" by Joshua Braff, the collection is rather depressing with several stories of dysfunctional families and adult children trying to cope with them or their difficult memories of Hanukkah. Some of the stories are cute ("Rock of Ages" by Johnathan Tropper) or bittersweet ("The Guinea Pig" by Jennifer Gilmore and "Dolls of the World" by Joanna Smith Rakoff). Overall, however, the collection was not the celebratory and funny anthology I was expecting.
45labfs39
Three mediocre reads in a row. I need something gripping and good to read next. Any suggestions?
46rebeccanyc
Serious or compulsively readable?
48msf59
Hi Lisa- Wow! I got way behind over here. How does that happen? Congrats on the new thread and congrats on booking a spot for Booktopia. You'll have a great time. You'll have to watch for the authors they will have lined up. I plan on doing the Michigan one.
Sorry, you are not feeling well. I hope it is short-lived.
Sorry, you are not feeling well. I hope it is short-lived.
49rebeccanyc
Well, looking at the books we share and at the ones you've marked "To Read," I'd suggest Cleopatra. Most of the other ones we share are too gloomy! Hope you feel better soon.
50avatiakh
Lisa, I thought you might be interested in a film I just watched - Battleship Potemkin. It's a Russian silent movie from 1925. Really powerful images. Do read up on it.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battleship_Potemkin
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battleship_Potemkin
51EBT1002
43> Thanks for the recommendations, Lisa! I've read and loved The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks and I own Nothing to Envy and River of Doubt but have not yet read them. I will put the others on my list for next time I'm at the bookshop. :-)
52markon
I want to hear all about Booktopie Lisa!
A compelling read while you're sick? Hmmm . . . . I might try Behind the beautiful forevers (narrative non fiction), River of smoke, (fiction about the opium trade India/Britain/China) or The Last Talk with Lola Faye (psychological fiction). They will be on my best reads longlist this year.
Hope you feel better soon.
A compelling read while you're sick? Hmmm . . . . I might try Behind the beautiful forevers (narrative non fiction), River of smoke, (fiction about the opium trade India/Britain/China) or The Last Talk with Lola Faye (psychological fiction). They will be on my best reads longlist this year.
Hope you feel better soon.
53labfs39
#48 Hi Mark! Since you are a veteran Booktopia goer, do you have any advice for a rookie?
#49 Thanks, Rebecca. Before I got your message, my husband gave me one of his books to read, an adventure story about restoring the Dalai Lama to power, and it worked to break the slump. Now I'm reading your suggestion, Cleopatra: A Life and so far it's fabulous. It also ties in to our visit to the King Tut and the Pharaohs exhibit. It was a Hanukkah gift, and we went on Sunday. Bill says that the artifacts were different from those he remembers in the 70s when the Tut exhibit was at the MET. Even reading every display placard and having the audio guide, I wish there had been more info. It was good though.
#50 Interesting, Kerry, I'll have to look for it. Your suggestion got me digging through an old pile of VHS tapes, and, lo and behold, I found another film by Sergei Eisenstein, the 1938 Alexander Nevsky. I'm not sure I ever watched that one either. After the first of the year, I'll have to pop it in the VCR.
#51 I just started another that you might like, Ellen, Cleopatra: A Life. The writing is wonderful and engaging. Have you read it yet?
#52 Hi Ardene! I'm so sorry I haven't caught up on your thread yet. I'm 50+ posts behind and feel intimidated about jumping in. Thanks for the suggestions. I have Behind the Beautiful Forevers on my list, and I've read River of Smoke, which I like, although not as much as his first, Sea of Poppies. I haven't even heard of the Last Talk with Lola Faye. Off to investigate!
#49 Thanks, Rebecca. Before I got your message, my husband gave me one of his books to read, an adventure story about restoring the Dalai Lama to power, and it worked to break the slump. Now I'm reading your suggestion, Cleopatra: A Life and so far it's fabulous. It also ties in to our visit to the King Tut and the Pharaohs exhibit. It was a Hanukkah gift, and we went on Sunday. Bill says that the artifacts were different from those he remembers in the 70s when the Tut exhibit was at the MET. Even reading every display placard and having the audio guide, I wish there had been more info. It was good though.
#50 Interesting, Kerry, I'll have to look for it. Your suggestion got me digging through an old pile of VHS tapes, and, lo and behold, I found another film by Sergei Eisenstein, the 1938 Alexander Nevsky. I'm not sure I ever watched that one either. After the first of the year, I'll have to pop it in the VCR.
#51 I just started another that you might like, Ellen, Cleopatra: A Life. The writing is wonderful and engaging. Have you read it yet?
#52 Hi Ardene! I'm so sorry I haven't caught up on your thread yet. I'm 50+ posts behind and feel intimidated about jumping in. Thanks for the suggestions. I have Behind the Beautiful Forevers on my list, and I've read River of Smoke, which I like, although not as much as his first, Sea of Poppies. I haven't even heard of the Last Talk with Lola Faye. Off to investigate!
54labfs39
As if they were reading my mind, Michael and Ann focused part of last week's Books on the Nightstand podcast on how to break a reading slump. I took two of their suggestions: changed genres (my husband's book) and asked friends for suggestions. Both worked. :-)
Here's a link to the podcast.
and their suggestions:
Reread a favorite book
Switch genres
Find a book that is hugely popular
Shop your own shelves
Don’t read — listen
Let someone else tell you what to read
Read with a friend
Go for the quick fix — read some short stories or essays
Try YA/Young adult
Peruse the Reviews
Seek out fan fiction
Step away from the books
Here's a link to the podcast.
and their suggestions:
Reread a favorite book
Switch genres
Find a book that is hugely popular
Shop your own shelves
Don’t read — listen
Let someone else tell you what to read
Read with a friend
Go for the quick fix — read some short stories or essays
Try YA/Young adult
Peruse the Reviews
Seek out fan fiction
Step away from the books
55SassyLassy
That reading slump seems to be quite widespread. BOTNS must have picked up on it too to have an item on it. I'm not sure what that says about the state of things. I certainly experienced it for a good part of this year, my longest ever.
Good suggestions though and now you've given me another website to follow!
Maybe we should both read Jack Sheppard that rebecca just reviewed.
Good suggestions though and now you've given me another website to follow!
Maybe we should both read Jack Sheppard that rebecca just reviewed.
56rebeccanyc
I've been not quite in a book slump, but in a need-to-be-entertained mood. Jack Sheppard is nothing if not entertaining!
57msf59
Lisa- I liked that BOTNS episode too! Fortunately I very rarely fall into a book slump. The latest episode is very good too, where they discuss their favorite books of the year.
One of my suggestions for Booktopia, is to try and read a few of the authors that will be attending. Of course you can't start this until they announce the line-up.
One of my suggestions for Booktopia, is to try and read a few of the authors that will be attending. Of course you can't start this until they announce the line-up.
58labfs39
#55 Hi Sassy, I think stress may be a factor (at least for me), and it seems like everyone is stressed these days. Reading is such a part of my life that when I don't read, or don't want to, I feel as though something must be wrong with me. But I also get back into books, so perhaps it's just a natural ebb and flow. The Jack Sheppard does sound fun, but Rebecca has me hooked on Cleopatra at the moment!
#56 That may have been what I needed too, Rebecca, to be entertained, because the thriller my husband recommended hit the spot.
#57 Hi Mark!The year end episodes are always fun. I was sorry that more narrative fiction didn't make the list (or I guess I should say any, since Ann's two nonfiction books were memoirs). I thought there was some good NNF published this year. I like the "Book I Wish I Had Read" part too. Maybe I can remember to add that to my year end summary.
I will try to read some of the author's books. Did you see that they came out with the list of authors for Vermont? Very impressive: Chris Pavone, author of The Expats, which I've wanted to read all year; Will Schwalbe who wrote The End of Your Life Book Club, which people have been talking about on LT; and Paula McLain of The Paris Wife, to name a few. I can't wait to hear who is coming to the Bellingham Booktopia!
#56 That may have been what I needed too, Rebecca, to be entertained, because the thriller my husband recommended hit the spot.
#57 Hi Mark!The year end episodes are always fun. I was sorry that more narrative fiction didn't make the list (or I guess I should say any, since Ann's two nonfiction books were memoirs). I thought there was some good NNF published this year. I like the "Book I Wish I Had Read" part too. Maybe I can remember to add that to my year end summary.
I will try to read some of the author's books. Did you see that they came out with the list of authors for Vermont? Very impressive: Chris Pavone, author of The Expats, which I've wanted to read all year; Will Schwalbe who wrote The End of Your Life Book Club, which people have been talking about on LT; and Paula McLain of The Paris Wife, to name a few. I can't wait to hear who is coming to the Bellingham Booktopia!
59labfs39
I am going to try and catch up no some reviews. Here is one from September. It is part of a special 4 book release that I received from Hogarth Press via Books on the Nightstand.
60. I am Forbidden by Anouk Markovits (4*)
The story begins with the twisted fates of the Heller and Stern families in Hungary during WWII, and how Zalman Stern rescues two children, Mila and Josef. The second part of the book is about the two sisters, Atara and Mila, and their life growing up in a strict Hasidic community in Paris. Mila is obedient and content, but Atara burns for an education and freedom. After Mila's marriage, Atara leaves the community and disappears. Book three is about Mila's life as a newlywed in a new Hasidic community in America. Already isolated from her family and home, Mila feels more and more desperate that she has not yet conceived. In the next book, Mila and her husband struggle in their marriage, and Mila become increasingly obsessed with learning the truth behind her childhood wartime memories. The final book closes the circle with Atara meeting Mila's daughter in the present day.
Despite some hard to believe coincidences, I found much to like in this, the author's second book, and first in English. The story is page turning, and the descriptions of life in a Hasidic community were interesting. The author herself was brought up in a Satmar home in France and left her family and community in order to get an education, so there is authenticity behind her words. I wish, however, that the story of Atara had been told more completely. Atara disappears from the story in 1957, and makes a brief appearance at the end of the book in 2005, but with little of the back story filled in. I liked Atara's determination and strength and would like to have known how she fared after leaving everything she knew. But perhaps that story will be revealed if the author writes a memoir.
60. I am Forbidden by Anouk Markovits (4*)
The story begins with the twisted fates of the Heller and Stern families in Hungary during WWII, and how Zalman Stern rescues two children, Mila and Josef. The second part of the book is about the two sisters, Atara and Mila, and their life growing up in a strict Hasidic community in Paris. Mila is obedient and content, but Atara burns for an education and freedom. After Mila's marriage, Atara leaves the community and disappears. Book three is about Mila's life as a newlywed in a new Hasidic community in America. Already isolated from her family and home, Mila feels more and more desperate that she has not yet conceived. In the next book, Mila and her husband struggle in their marriage, and Mila become increasingly obsessed with learning the truth behind her childhood wartime memories. The final book closes the circle with Atara meeting Mila's daughter in the present day.
Despite some hard to believe coincidences, I found much to like in this, the author's second book, and first in English. The story is page turning, and the descriptions of life in a Hasidic community were interesting. The author herself was brought up in a Satmar home in France and left her family and community in order to get an education, so there is authenticity behind her words. I wish, however, that the story of Atara had been told more completely. Atara disappears from the story in 1957, and makes a brief appearance at the end of the book in 2005, but with little of the back story filled in. I liked Atara's determination and strength and would like to have known how she fared after leaving everything she knew. But perhaps that story will be revealed if the author writes a memoir.
60labfs39
63. Death Had Two Sons by Yaël Dayan (3.5*)
Haim Kalinsky is a father put in a terrible situation: the Nazi soldiers have told him he must choose one of his sons to live. Instinctively Haim reaches out to his son Shmuel. Why? Why Shmuel and not Daniel? Haim could never answer that question. Ironically, it is Shmuel who ends up dying, and Daniel, who is immediately taken away by the soldiers, who lives.
After the war, Haim remarries and moves on with his quiet life. Then one day he is approached by an Israeli aid worker who offers to help investigate the fate of the two boys. Hope arises in Haim, and eventually he and Daniel are put in touch. But Daniel has never been able to move on with his life. He is consumed by the memories of his father choosing Shmuel over him. After contemplating whether he even wants to write to his father and his new family, Daniel begins a very uneasy relationship with him.
All of these memories are told in flashbacks as Daniel sits in a hotel room across the street from where his father lies dying in a hospital. Indecision about whether to visit him and what he would say if he did, plague Daniel. He reviews his whole life, which he sees as a litany of loss. His final decision is bittersweet.
I found the book a sad study of love, guilt, and loss. I had a hard time relating to Haim's complacent nature and Daniel's unrelenting anger and grief. Post-war Israel must have held many such stories, but I can only hope that some were more hopeful.
61SassyLassy
A sad study of love, guilt, and loss I wonder how much of this came from the author's thoughts on her own father.
62Linda92007
Two interesting reviews, Lisa especially Death Had Two Sons, which made me cringe.
>61 SassyLassy: Have you read My Father, His Daughter, Sassy? Dayan's expression on her author's page picture is haunting and makes me very curious about her.
>61 SassyLassy: Have you read My Father, His Daughter, Sassy? Dayan's expression on her author's page picture is haunting and makes me very curious about her.
63labfs39
#61 I'm not sure, Sassy. Death had Two Sons was published in 1967, but I'm not sure if it came out before or after the Six Day War. Immediately following the war, Moshe was enormously popular. It was also before his divorce. I'm not sure how all of this would factor in.
#62 Have you read her memoir, Linda?
#62 Have you read her memoir, Linda?
64labfs39
65. Malka by Mirjam Pressler, translated from the German by Brian Murdoch
Hannah Mai is a doctor and confident that her profession, her standing with the local Germans, and her education will protect her and her two daughters from any bothersome Nazis. Despite hearing tales of roundups and deportations, Hannah doesn't want to leave her practice and complacent life. She waits too long, and one day finds herself on the run with her daughters and little else. Their escape takes them on foot toward the Hungarian border. On the difficult journey Malka becomes ill, and Hannah has to decide whether to leave Malka with a friendly family who promises the doctor to bring Malka across the border when she is well, or risk them all by staying. Hannah and her eldest daughter leave Malka with the family. After a harrowing escape, Hannah waits for Malka until it is clear that she is not coming, then once again has to decide which of her daughters to risk in order to save the other. In the meantime, Malka is passed along from hand to hand until she lands with a family who protect and love her. Glad to be safe and yearning for affection, Malka grows to love the woman, Teresa. But it is not to last, and Malka is once again on her own. In her diminishing capacity, Malka longs for Teresa, not the mother who left her.
This young adult novel centers around themes of how to live with our choices and how to forgive, and I was willing to overlook some unlikely action because of the questions posed. I liked the fast pace of the novel, and the mother-daughter tension between Hannah and her sixteen year old daughter, Minna. Good YA, but not as fully formed as an adult novel.
65labfs39
67. The Journal of Best Practices: a Memoir of Marriage, Asperger Syndrome, and One Man's Quest to be a Better Husband by David Finch (2.5*)
I heard an interview with the author on NPR and was fascinating by his story. As an adult, Finch discovered he had Asperger's Syndrome and devised techniques to help him cope. One goal was to be a better husband and father. In his book, Finch describes the rise and decline of his marriage, how he learned that he had Asperger's, and how he used notes, scribbled on whatever was handy, to help him remember both the practical (Don't change the radio station when Kristen's singing along) and the philosophical (When necessary, redefine perfection).
Although the five minute elevator pitch is a humorous and earnest conversation, the book is a drawn out rehashing of the jacket cover. It would have made a great short story (or NPR interview), but as a book, I found it repetitive. Perhaps the way the story is told is indicative of his experience of Asperger's. He tends to over think everything and finds repetition soothing. I also found it unbelievable that neither Finch nor his wife of five years, who is a speech therapist and autism expert, knew that he autistic. As he later realizes, Finch's behaviors are very typical of the disorder. How could they not know? Anyway, accepting the story as it is, the book could also be a guide for anyone who has ever left the dirty dishes or laundry for their partner, put work or intense hobbies ahead of their family, or become so wrapped up in their own minds, that they forget the needs of those closest to them. I'm glad that Finch and his family have successfully navigated his diagnosis and worked out compromises. I just wish that I had stuck to the interview version.
66Linda92007
>63 labfs39: I have not read her memoir, Lisa. I would like to, but unfortunately, our library system does not have any of her books. I tend to be very curious about the backgrounds of authors and both your review and her expression on her author's page photo have me wanting to know more.
67rebeccanyc
Lots of interesting reading and interesting reviews, Lisa. I thin I heard Finch on NPR too!
68EBT1002
Great series of reviews, Lisa.
I actually also own Cleopatra: A Life so maybe that will be one of my thirteen nonfiction reads for 2013. Oh, and I echo the recommendation for Behind the Beautiful Forevers. It's an excellent work.
Love the ideas from BOTN (of which I have the typical tall stack). I know some of our friends here in LT will occasionally ask others to pick a book for them, and I haven't done that. Perhaps that will be another thing I implement in 2013.
2013. Wow.
I actually also own Cleopatra: A Life so maybe that will be one of my thirteen nonfiction reads for 2013. Oh, and I echo the recommendation for Behind the Beautiful Forevers. It's an excellent work.
Love the ideas from BOTN (of which I have the typical tall stack). I know some of our friends here in LT will occasionally ask others to pick a book for them, and I haven't done that. Perhaps that will be another thing I implement in 2013.
2013. Wow.
69labfs39
#66 Linda, does your library do interlibrary loans? I've done that before, and I just submitted Barefoot Gen. We'll see if they come through, they usually do, but not always.
#67 I thought the NPR interview was very good, Rebecca. What would we do without NPR?
#68 Thanks, Ellen. Maybe I'll get Behind the Beautiful Forevers with an Amazon gift card my SIL is getting me.
2013- For me, it's too far off to even contemplate. I know the 75ers are already starting threads, but I still have 7 books to review, so I'm not going anywhere for a while...
#67 I thought the NPR interview was very good, Rebecca. What would we do without NPR?
#68 Thanks, Ellen. Maybe I'll get Behind the Beautiful Forevers with an Amazon gift card my SIL is getting me.
2013- For me, it's too far off to even contemplate. I know the 75ers are already starting threads, but I still have 7 books to review, so I'm not going anywhere for a while...
70labfs39
Just discovered Reading Globally: January - March 2013 Theme Read: 20th/21st century Central and Eastern European literature and spent an hour there. Here is the post I made about my favorites from the region and some books I would like to try and read:
wow! Thanks, DieF, for all your hard work setting the thread up and giving us background and suggestions.
Some of my favorites (especial favorites are starred) from this region:
Poland
Quo Vadis by Henryk Sienkiewicz*
The Issa Valley by by Czesław Miłosz*
The Collected Poems, 1931-1987 by by Czesław Miłosz*
The Complete Fiction of Bruno Schultz
Solaris by Stanislaw Lem was okay (not so fond of Hospital of the Transfiguration)
Also helpful: The History of Polish Literature by Czesław Miłosz
Own and want to read:
Stone Upon Stone by Wiesław Myśliwski
This Way for the Gas, Ladies and Gentlemen by Tadeusz Borowski
Although I was disillusioned by Love and Exile, I may try The Collected Stories of Isaac Bashevis Singer
Slovenia
Self Sown by Prezihov Voranc (not really a favorite, but thought I would put it out there as an option)
Hungary
Fatelessness* and The Pathseeker by Imre Kertesz
Skylark by Dezső Kosztolányi
Own and want to read:
Kaddish for an Unborn Child by Imre Kertesz (and one other whose title escapes me)
Ukrainian
A short history of tractors in Ukrainian and Strawberry Fields by Marina Lewycka (although I would consider her more British than Ukrainian)
I guess we are counting Gogol as Russian, not Ukrainian?
Romanian
No One is Here Except All of Us by Ramona Ausubel (although perhaps she doesn't count because she is in US?)
The Hunger Angel (which I liked slightly better than Land of the Green Plums) by Herta Müller (although I think of her more as German than Romanian, because that is how she seems to self-identify)
Czech
Too Loud a Solitude* by Bohumil Hrabal (although I have read other novels by him, this remains one of my all time favorite books)
Children of the Holocaust*, Lovely Green Eyes*, Night and Hope by Arnošt Lustig (didn't care for The Unloved: From the Diary of Perla S. as much)
Mendelssohn is on the Roof by Jiří Weil
The Questionnaire, Or, Prayer For A Town & A Friend by Jiří Gruša
The Guinea Pigs by Ludvik Vaculik (a difficult read for animal lovers)
Sorry to say, I didn't care for The Good Soldier Svejk much and think Unbearable Lightness of Being made a better movie than book.
Own and want to read:
Dita Saxova, The house of returned echoes and The bitter smell of almonds : selected fiction by Arnošt Lustig
Dancing lessons for the advanced in age by Hrabal
One of the books I own by Josef Skvorecky
More Kafka
Plus: some of the many books that I don't own, but are mentioned in the posts above! (including the nonfiction Bloodlands and Iron Curtain: The Crushing of Eastern Europe by Anne Applebaum)
wow! Thanks, DieF, for all your hard work setting the thread up and giving us background and suggestions.
Some of my favorites (especial favorites are starred) from this region:
Poland
Quo Vadis by Henryk Sienkiewicz*
The Issa Valley by by Czesław Miłosz*
The Collected Poems, 1931-1987 by by Czesław Miłosz*
The Complete Fiction of Bruno Schultz
Solaris by Stanislaw Lem was okay (not so fond of Hospital of the Transfiguration)
Also helpful: The History of Polish Literature by Czesław Miłosz
Own and want to read:
Stone Upon Stone by Wiesław Myśliwski
This Way for the Gas, Ladies and Gentlemen by Tadeusz Borowski
Although I was disillusioned by Love and Exile, I may try The Collected Stories of Isaac Bashevis Singer
Slovenia
Self Sown by Prezihov Voranc (not really a favorite, but thought I would put it out there as an option)
Hungary
Fatelessness* and The Pathseeker by Imre Kertesz
Skylark by Dezső Kosztolányi
Own and want to read:
Kaddish for an Unborn Child by Imre Kertesz (and one other whose title escapes me)
Ukrainian
A short history of tractors in Ukrainian and Strawberry Fields by Marina Lewycka (although I would consider her more British than Ukrainian)
I guess we are counting Gogol as Russian, not Ukrainian?
Romanian
No One is Here Except All of Us by Ramona Ausubel (although perhaps she doesn't count because she is in US?)
The Hunger Angel (which I liked slightly better than Land of the Green Plums) by Herta Müller (although I think of her more as German than Romanian, because that is how she seems to self-identify)
Czech
Too Loud a Solitude* by Bohumil Hrabal (although I have read other novels by him, this remains one of my all time favorite books)
Children of the Holocaust*, Lovely Green Eyes*, Night and Hope by Arnošt Lustig (didn't care for The Unloved: From the Diary of Perla S. as much)
Mendelssohn is on the Roof by Jiří Weil
The Questionnaire, Or, Prayer For A Town & A Friend by Jiří Gruša
The Guinea Pigs by Ludvik Vaculik (a difficult read for animal lovers)
Sorry to say, I didn't care for The Good Soldier Svejk much and think Unbearable Lightness of Being made a better movie than book.
Own and want to read:
Dita Saxova, The house of returned echoes and The bitter smell of almonds : selected fiction by Arnošt Lustig
Dancing lessons for the advanced in age by Hrabal
One of the books I own by Josef Skvorecky
More Kafka
Plus: some of the many books that I don't own, but are mentioned in the posts above! (including the nonfiction Bloodlands and Iron Curtain: The Crushing of Eastern Europe by Anne Applebaum)
71rebeccanyc
Great list, Lisa, and some I forgot to put on my own list, probably because, as in the case of This Way to the Gas, Ladies and Gentlemen, I entered it into LT before I started tagging by country.
ETA I used to have more time to listen to NPR, but now I'm pretty much reduced to listening while I exercise. Sometimes I go back and listen to parts of two WNYC talk shows, the Brian Lehrer Show and the Leonard Lopate show, on my iPhone, but more often than not I'm just listening to parts of Morning Edition.
ETA I used to have more time to listen to NPR, but now I'm pretty much reduced to listening while I exercise. Sometimes I go back and listen to parts of two WNYC talk shows, the Brian Lehrer Show and the Leonard Lopate show, on my iPhone, but more often than not I'm just listening to parts of Morning Edition.
72labfs39
I found that I had neglected to mark ethnicity in some of my Central/East European books as well. I didn't list all my books, but I hope I got all my favorites.
I used to spend three hours a day in the car and NPR was my lifeline (no bus lines from here to there). Now I catch only snippets here and there. I miss Garrison Keillor's Writer's Almanac.
I used to spend three hours a day in the car and NPR was my lifeline (no bus lines from here to there). Now I catch only snippets here and there. I miss Garrison Keillor's Writer's Almanac.
74detailmuse
Lisa I had conflicts similar to yours about The Journal of Best Practices and thought parts were self-indulgent (e.g. the chapter about his neighbors). But I think it resonates with autistics and has some interesting points about marriage in general. It came from what was (and maybe still is) the most-emailed ever column from the NY Times Modern Love.
75rebeccanyc
#72. One of these days I have to go back through all the books in my LT library, especially the ones I entered when I first joined, and treat them to the tag system I've developed over the past few years. But it's a big task, and I haven't had the time or the oomph to do it. But it nags at me.
I once had a job where I had an office to myself and had frequently had tasks that didn't require all my attention. That's when I listened to NPR a lot,
I once had a job where I had an office to myself and had frequently had tasks that didn't require all my attention. That's when I listened to NPR a lot,
76EBT1002
Lisa, I'm definitely planning to spend more time in the Reading Globally group in 2013. Thanks for posting your lists.
And Merry Christmas!
And Merry Christmas!
77avatiakh
Lisa, very informative post on the East European reading for RG, I'll post in there when I get a chance. My first book will be Street of Crocodiles by Bruno Schulz. I'm seeing Anne Applebaum's name mentioned everywhere so must pick up one of her books. I have a nonfiction book set in the region that I'm hoping to read in the near future, Andrzej Stasiuk's On the Road to Babadag. There's an interesting Guardian review of it.
Really looking forward to this theme and will be perusing my shelves for more books to read.
And wishing you a Happy New Year, looking forward to following you in Club Read again next year.
Really looking forward to this theme and will be perusing my shelves for more books to read.
And wishing you a Happy New Year, looking forward to following you in Club Read again next year.
79labfs39
Thank you for the good wishes, Mark, Ellen, and qebo!
#74 I agree, MJ, that he has some interesting observations about marriage. I'm curious, is his column excerpted from his book, or the other way around? The sample you linked to seems very similar.
#75 I need to go through my tags too, Rebecca. I have inconsistent overlap and gaps created when I experimented with collections. I would also like to systematically look at my ratings. They are very inconsistent over time and genre. You don't use rating stars at all, do you?
#76 It's funny, I started my career with my own offices, but as time passed and team-think took over the business world, I ended up in a cubicle. It was difficult for me because I am sensitive to loud noises. My last job I had a cubicle in an aisle with media relations of all things. A story would break, and it would be pandemonium, while I tried to code a new library portal or read a vendor contract. Very difficult work environment for me.
I did have a job once where I was transliterating Cyrillic for the university library, and it got so that I could fly along while listening to an NPR channel that had a read aloud hour around noon every day. I remember listening to Madame Bovary that way.
#77 I'm glad you are going to join the RG thread, Kerry. I remember becoming very enamored of Bruno Schulz when I first read him at university. I read his collected stories and even his letters. Did you know he was an artist as well? I have a book of his drawings. It's been a long time since then; I really should reread some of his works.
Thanks for linking to the Guardian review. I may have to add On the Road to Babadag to my burgeoning list!
#74 I agree, MJ, that he has some interesting observations about marriage. I'm curious, is his column excerpted from his book, or the other way around? The sample you linked to seems very similar.
#75 I need to go through my tags too, Rebecca. I have inconsistent overlap and gaps created when I experimented with collections. I would also like to systematically look at my ratings. They are very inconsistent over time and genre. You don't use rating stars at all, do you?
#76 It's funny, I started my career with my own offices, but as time passed and team-think took over the business world, I ended up in a cubicle. It was difficult for me because I am sensitive to loud noises. My last job I had a cubicle in an aisle with media relations of all things. A story would break, and it would be pandemonium, while I tried to code a new library portal or read a vendor contract. Very difficult work environment for me.
I did have a job once where I was transliterating Cyrillic for the university library, and it got so that I could fly along while listening to an NPR channel that had a read aloud hour around noon every day. I remember listening to Madame Bovary that way.
#77 I'm glad you are going to join the RG thread, Kerry. I remember becoming very enamored of Bruno Schulz when I first read him at university. I read his collected stories and even his letters. Did you know he was an artist as well? I have a book of his drawings. It's been a long time since then; I really should reread some of his works.
Thanks for linking to the Guardian review. I may have to add On the Road to Babadag to my burgeoning list!
80labfs39
Here's a bit from A Child's Christmas in Wales by Dylan Thomas. I listened to the author reading it tonight, my first exposure. Beautiful language, but this little excerpt tickled me:
And when the firemen turned off the hose and were standing in the wet, smoky
room, Jim's Aunt, Miss Prothero, came downstairs and peered in at them. Jim and I waited, very quietly, to hear what she would say to them. She said the
right thing, always. She looked at the three tall firemen in their shining helmets, standing among the smoke and cinders and dissolving snowballs, and she
said: "Would you like anything to read?"
You can hear his reading and read the text here.
And when the firemen turned off the hose and were standing in the wet, smoky
room, Jim's Aunt, Miss Prothero, came downstairs and peered in at them. Jim and I waited, very quietly, to hear what she would say to them. She said the
right thing, always. She looked at the three tall firemen in their shining helmets, standing among the smoke and cinders and dissolving snowballs, and she
said: "Would you like anything to read?"
You can hear his reading and read the text here.
81rebeccanyc
#79, You're right, Lisa, I don't rate books at all. I just don't know how to do it so it's meaningful to me; it seems so much like comparing apples and oranges. If I really like a book, the most I do is put an asterisk by the title in my reading list on my profile page and at the top of my thread, and add them to my "Favorites of Recent Years" collection. I do need to think about moving those lists off my profile page, but I'd like to keep them somewhere and haven't figured out where.
#80 Great quote!
#80 Great quote!
82labfs39
68. 22 Britannia Road by Amanda Hodgkinson (3*)
"Profession?" the customs agent asks.
"Survivor," she whispered, the first word that came to her.
For Silvana, survival has been a full-time job for years, and one that has changed her irrevocably. Now the war is over, and her husband Janusz, who has settled in England, has sent for her. Her and the boy. It's been so many years, will Janusz even recognize her? Understand her? What will she tell him?
Janusz waits anxiously in England, trying to forget a wartime love in France, and hoping that his wife and son will fill the aching void in his heart. He longs to be accepted, no longer the outsider, the Pole. Perhaps having the ideal family will help him achieve the peace he needs.
Aurek is seven years old and has spent his entire remembered life living in the forest hiding. At one with the natural world and knowing only his mother, leaving the forest is a dislocation that he neither wants nor adapts to easily.
What follows survival? Trust is hard, even when there is love, especially after a long, traumatic separation. How can you share experiences that are outside the other person's experience? Should you? These questions create a haunting theme that I found engaging, I only wish there had been more philosophical depth in exploring these fascinating questions. I think it is a promising debut novel.
84avatiakh
I didn't know Schulz was an artist. I came across him when I was reading See under: Love by David Grossman where he appears as a character and at about the same time CarlosMcRey reviewed The Street of Crocodiles in the 999 category challenge. So have had him on Mt tbr for a few years. Must get over and post in the RG group.
85labfs39
Kerry, you might check out http://www.brunoschulzart.org/ for a glimpse. Be forewarned, he was an odd duck.
86rebeccanyc
My edition of Sanatorium under the Sign of the Hourglass includes some of Schulz's sketches.
87detailmuse
>79 labfs39: Lisa, his Modern Love column came first -- a wildly popular article + autism being such a hot topic = big literary agent came looking for him. I'm in a group of writers, and his and my subgroups intermixed for a reading or two. The writers in my group draft fairly quiet content, and I was struck (and dazzled) by the high-energy pieces* he wrote.
eta: *short stories; his memoir is quieter.
eta: *short stories; his memoir is quieter.
88avatiakh
Thanks for the link. I have a Penguin Classics edition of The Street of Crocodiles which includes the Sanatorium under the Sign of the Hourglass stories and the sketches, a short forward by Jonathan Safran Foer and an introduction by David Goldfarb plus suggestions for further reading.
And I also have a copy of The Family Mashber though I'd like to read The Family Moskat first.
And I also have a copy of The Family Mashber though I'd like to read The Family Moskat first.
89TadAD
I'm a few weeks behind in reading your thread. Picking up at the "unread" point was serendipitous as you were talking about breaking a reading slump, and that's exactly what I've been in. Nothing has really appealed to me for months except for trying to complete all of Poulin's works that have English translations and The Polish Boxer. How odd is that...a highly selective slump?
Anyway, I've given myself until the New Year to just "be that way" and then I shall have to do something about it. Your post way back in #54 can be a starting point. This current time will be "Step Away From The Books". I'm determined to tackle the Infinite Jest group read on 1/1, which will cover "Read With A Friend". My wife gave me a couple sf/f books for Christmas which would be "Switch Genres". If none of those work, I'll keep working down those suggestions. :-)
Enough that...now about books. Your comments on 22 Britannia Road have only increased my ambivalence about picking up this novel. When I first saw it earlier this year, it seemed a no-brainer to pick up, but I didn't. Then I read a "meh!" review. Since then, there seems to have been a deluge of reviews where the words are good but the rating is moderate. Dang!
On the other hand, you've made I Am Forbidden sounds quite appealing and I'm adding it to my wishlist for my birthday...when, traditionally, all the books I asked for at Christmas but didn't get make their appearance. *smile*
Anyway, I've given myself until the New Year to just "be that way" and then I shall have to do something about it. Your post way back in #54 can be a starting point. This current time will be "Step Away From The Books". I'm determined to tackle the Infinite Jest group read on 1/1, which will cover "Read With A Friend". My wife gave me a couple sf/f books for Christmas which would be "Switch Genres". If none of those work, I'll keep working down those suggestions. :-)
Enough that...now about books. Your comments on 22 Britannia Road have only increased my ambivalence about picking up this novel. When I first saw it earlier this year, it seemed a no-brainer to pick up, but I didn't. Then I read a "meh!" review. Since then, there seems to have been a deluge of reviews where the words are good but the rating is moderate. Dang!
On the other hand, you've made I Am Forbidden sounds quite appealing and I'm adding it to my wishlist for my birthday...when, traditionally, all the books I asked for at Christmas but didn't get make their appearance. *smile*
90arubabookwoman
Catching up on your thread Lisa, so some of these comments go back a long ways:
I'm glad your review of Young Stalin was so favorable. I have it and the later volume on my shelf and want to read them soon.
I also went to the King Tut exhibit, and was somewhat disappointed. I did see the previous exhibit one was here in the late 70's (in New Orleans), and since I have the catelogue for that show, there were definitely a lot fewer items in the current show. I found this exhibit to include a lot more non-Tut items (not that that is necessarily bad), and also found as you did that the information cards were woefully inadequate. This is all by way of saying I want to read Cleopatra too.
Death Had Two Sons sounds interesting, and I've added it to my wishlist. The plot sounds at least a little bit like Sophie's Choice--have you read that?
And thanks for saving me from The Journal of Best Practices which I've had my eye on.
You seem to have expressed some reservations about reading Isaac Bashevis Singer. Have you read The Family Moskat and/or The Manor and The Estate (often included in one volume)? I loved those books.
Hope to see you soon.
I'm glad your review of Young Stalin was so favorable. I have it and the later volume on my shelf and want to read them soon.
I also went to the King Tut exhibit, and was somewhat disappointed. I did see the previous exhibit one was here in the late 70's (in New Orleans), and since I have the catelogue for that show, there were definitely a lot fewer items in the current show. I found this exhibit to include a lot more non-Tut items (not that that is necessarily bad), and also found as you did that the information cards were woefully inadequate. This is all by way of saying I want to read Cleopatra too.
Death Had Two Sons sounds interesting, and I've added it to my wishlist. The plot sounds at least a little bit like Sophie's Choice--have you read that?
And thanks for saving me from The Journal of Best Practices which I've had my eye on.
You seem to have expressed some reservations about reading Isaac Bashevis Singer. Have you read The Family Moskat and/or The Manor and The Estate (often included in one volume)? I loved those books.
Hope to see you soon.
91Trifolia
Hi Lisa, I finally caught up on your thread. Your fabulous review coerced me to put Young Stalin on my wishlist. I normally would not go out of my way to read this sort of book (the thought of spending time in the company of Stalin is not very appealing) but from what I read in your review, this book is rather relevant. And it is based on original research in archives, which is always a good thing. I actually look forward to reading it!
Btw, I love the list in # 54 but then you already knew that :-)
Btw, I love the list in # 54 but then you already knew that :-)
92DieFledermaus
Catching up here. I've been in a book slump, so took some ideas from #54. I'm hoping it worked and I'll be ready for some long, odd and depressing Eastern European literature. Some of your reviewed books sound pretty depressing but it also looks like you didn't read them all at the same time. I have a lot of backlist to review also - not sure if it'll all get done by the end of the year.
Hoping a lot of people will read Bruno Schulz for the RG theme as I loved his stories - fantastic prose. I read the Penguin version with the illustrations also. When I was looking up Schulz - there was some controversy over a mural of his that was discovered. It sounds like employees of Israel's Holocaust museum came and took the whole wall without informing the Ukrainian government (Drohobych now being part of Ukraine) which created some bad feelings. They reached an agreement where the paintings belong to Ukraine but are on long-term loan at the museum. I hadn't heard of See under: Love - will check it out. I picked up Cynthia Ozick's The Messiah of Stockholm because it's about Schulz.
Hoping a lot of people will read Bruno Schulz for the RG theme as I loved his stories - fantastic prose. I read the Penguin version with the illustrations also. When I was looking up Schulz - there was some controversy over a mural of his that was discovered. It sounds like employees of Israel's Holocaust museum came and took the whole wall without informing the Ukrainian government (Drohobych now being part of Ukraine) which created some bad feelings. They reached an agreement where the paintings belong to Ukraine but are on long-term loan at the museum. I hadn't heard of See under: Love - will check it out. I picked up Cynthia Ozick's The Messiah of Stockholm because it's about Schulz.
93rebeccanyc
#92 I'm hoping it worked and I'll be ready for some long, odd and depressing Eastern European literature. I've been hoping that too, as I've been reading a lot more in the realm of entertaining books lately, and none of the books I "really" want to read to have seemed appealing. I hope this is just a phase and I haven't lost my taste for grim and strange books!
94StevenTX
The Bruno Shultz art link is great. I read The Street of Crocodiles several years ago but had no idea he was an artist (or that he was into sexual domination). I'll be reading Sanatorium Under the Sign of the Hourglass with an entirely different perspective.
95dchaikin
Catching over about two weeks of an extraordinary variety of posts, don't even know what to comment on. I will look up Bruno Schultz. Enjoyed your reviews.
#92 DieFledermaus - ok, I read The Messiah of Stockholm a long time ago, didn't fully get it, although it left me thinking. But I don't recall any reference to Bruno Schultz, wondering about the connection.
#92 DieFledermaus - ok, I read The Messiah of Stockholm a long time ago, didn't fully get it, although it left me thinking. But I don't recall any reference to Bruno Schultz, wondering about the connection.
96DieFledermaus
>95 dchaikin: - I thought it was about a man who thinks he's the son of Schulz when a copy of Schulz's lost manuscript, The Messiah, turns up in Stockholm. Here's a summary from one of the reviews
Another book about Schulz is Henryk Grynberg's Drohobycz, Drohobycz and other stories - one of the stories is a recreation of Schulz's last day.
Lars Andeming, perhaps overly intellectual and certainly eccentric, is the Monday book reviewer for a Stockholm daily. He is also the self-proclaimed son of Bruno Schulz, a Polish writer who was executed by the Nazis before his last novel, The Messiah, could be published. When a manuscript of The Messiah mysteriously appears in Stockholm, in the possession of Schulz's "daughter," Lars's circumscribed world of paper, apartment, and favorite bookstore turns upside down, catapulting him into a whirlwind of dream, magic, and illusion.
Another book about Schulz is Henryk Grynberg's Drohobycz, Drohobycz and other stories - one of the stories is a recreation of Schulz's last day.
97dchaikin
#96 Thanks Maus. Not having heard of Schultz before, I missed the significance and may have assumed the name was fictional.
98rebeccanyc
Lisa, are you coming back to Club Read this year? Hope so. It is here.
99labfs39
Indeed, Rebecca, I wouldn't want to miss out on all the fun! Just slow this year. I'm on Club Read at labfs39 in 2013: Let the reading begin!.
I hope to see you there, everyone!
I hope to see you there, everyone!
