Ellen reads in 2017 - Chapter 12

Eric Carle

Mt. Shuksan in North Cascades National Park, Washington
photo by Kevin McNeal

My Rating Scale:

= Breathtaking. This book touched me in a way that only a perfect book can do.
= A wonderful read, among my favorites of the year.
= A great read; truly enjoyable.
= Not quite great but I'm truly glad I read this.
= A solid read, with a few things done particularly well.
= Average, and life is too short to read average works.
= A bit below average. A waste of time.
= Nearly no redeeming qualities. Really rather bad.
= Among the worst books I've ever read.

Honestly, I'm rarely going to complete any book earning fewer than two stars but I reserve the right to rate them based on my experience.

Top Reads in 2016

COMPLETED IN JANUARY 2017

1. The Association of Small Bombs by Karan Mahajan
2. Nutshell by Ian McEwan
3. Lilith's Brood by Octavia Butler
4. A Serpent's tooth by Craig Johnson audio
5. The Color Purple by Alice Walker
6. The Mortifications by Derek Palacio
7. I Will Have Vengeance by Maurizio De Giovanni
8. News of the World by Paulette Jiles
9. Blackballed: The Black & White Politics of Race on America's Campuses by Lawrence Ross

COMPLETED IN FEBRUARY

10. The Gustav Sonata by Rose Tremain
11. Snow Angels by Stewart O'Nan
12. The Round House by Louise Erdrich
13. The Unwinding: An Inner History of the New America by George Packer
14. His Bloody Project by Graeme Macrae Burnet
15. Local by Brian Wood
16. The Assault by Harry Mulisch

COMPLETED IN MARCH

17. Offshore by Penelope Fitzgerald
18. The Warden by Anthony Trollope
19. The Lewis Man by Peter May
20. We Should All Be Feminists by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
21. Maisie Dobbs by Jacqueline Winspear
22. The Confessions of Nat Turner by William Styron
23. A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles

COMPLETED IN APRIL

24. LaRose by Louise Erdrich
25. A Fatal Grace by Louise Penny
26. Witch Hunt (poems) by Juliet Escoria
27. My Name is Asher Lev by Chaim Potok
28. I Shall Not Be Moved by Maya Angelou
29. Exit West by Mohsin Hamid
30. The Fire This Time: A New Generation Speaks About Race edited by Jesmyn Ward
31. AVP: Leading from the Unique Role of Associate/Assistant Vice President for Student Affairs edited by Amy Hecht
32. The Master Butchers Singing Club by Louise Erdrich
33. The Final Solution: A Story of Detection by Michael Chabon
34. Born a Crime by Trevor Noah
35. The Trouble with Poetry and Other Poems by Billy Collins

COMPLETED IN MAY

36. Solitaire by Kelley Eskridge
37. A Wild Sheep Chase by Haruki Murakami
38. The Chessmen by Peter May
39. All the Pretty Horses by Cormac McCarthy
40. Nightmare in Pink by John D. MacDonald
41. Dust Tracks on a Road by Zora Neale Hurston
42. The Janus Stone by Elly Griffiths
43. The Girl, the Gold Watch, & Everything by John D. MacDonald
44. Lola by Melissa Scrivner Love

COMPLETED IN JUNE

45. Hopper by Mark Strand
46. The Lauras by Sara Taylor
47. The Birchbark House by Louise Erdrich
48. Alexander Hamilton by Ron Chernow audiobook
49. The House at Sea's End by Elly Griffiths
50. Indian Killer by Sherman Alexie
51. A Change of World: Poems by Adrienne Rich
52. Hillbilly Elegy by J.D. Vance
53. The Leavers by Lisa Ko
54. The Blood of Emmett Till by Timothy B. Tyson

COMPLETED IN JULY

55. One Hundred Nights of Hero by Isabel Greenberg
56. Moonglow by Michael Chabon
57. The Man in the Queue by Josephine Tey
58. Of Thee I Sing: Letter to My Daughters by Barack Obama
59. Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison
60. Hate Crimes in Cyberspace by Danielle Keats Citron
61. Love That Dog by Sharon Creech
62. American Salvage by Bonnie Jo Campbell
63. The Given Day by Dennis Lehane
64. Kill 'Em and Leave: Searching for James Brown and the American Soul by James McBride
65. Jam on the Vine by LaShonda Katrice Barnett

COMPLETED IN AUGUST

66. From the Mixed Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by E.L. Konigsburg
67. The Talented Mr. Ripley by Patricia Highsmith
68. On Tyranny: Twenty Lessons from the Twentieth Century by Timothy Snyder
69. Olio by Tyehimba Jess
70. Kafka on the Shore by Haruki Murakami
71. The Wellspring: Poems by Sharon Olds
72. Hate That Cat by Sharon Creech
73. The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov
74. Human Acts by Han Kang
75. Milk and Honey by rupi kaur
76. Acqua Alta by Donna Leon

COMPLETED IN SEPTEMBER

77. Stay With Me by Ayobami Adebayo
78. Autumn by Ali Smith
79. Whatever Happened to Interracial Love?: Stories (Art of the Story) by Kathleen Collins
80. March, Book One by John Lewis
81. Elmet by Fiona Mozley
82. March: Book Two by John Lewis
83. Home Fire by Kamila Shamsie
84. Excursion to Tindari by Andrea Camilleri
85. Seeking Refuge by Irene N. Watts
86. Stag's Leap by Sharon Olds
87. History of Wolves by Emily Fridlund

COMPLETED IN OCTOBER

88. Talking to the Dead by Harry Bingham
89. The Burial at Thebes: A Version of Sophocles' Antigone by Seamus Heaney
90. Whistling Vivaldi: How Stereotypes Affect Us and What We Can Do by Claude M. Steele
91. What We Lose by Zinzi Clemmons
92. Cold Earth by Sarah Moss
93. The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas
94. Bel Canto by Ann Patchett
95. Rules of Civility by Amor Towles
96. The Bingo Palace by Louise Erdrich
97. The Tragedy of Brady Sims by Ernest J. Gaines
98. Transfer: Poems by Naomi Shihab Nye

COMPLETED IN NOVEMBER

General Reading Plan for 2017

Rachel's Group Read: The Rise of Populism and Related Current Affairs

February: The Unwinding: An Inner History of the New America by George Packer ~ COMPLETED
April: Strangers in Their Own Land: Anger and Mourning on the American Right by Arlie Russell Hochschild
June: Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis by J.D. Vance ~ COMPLETED
August: Listen, Liberal: Or, What Ever Happened to the Party of the People? by Thomas Frank
October: The Populist Explosion: How the Great Recession Transformed American and European Politics by John B. Judis
December: White Trash: The 400-Year Untold History of Class in America by Nancy Isenberg

I'm also thinking I'll finally read The New Jim Crow which has been on my radar for a while.
And I have Freedom Is a Constant Struggle: Ferguson, Palestine, and the Foundations of a Movement by Angela Y. Davis to read.

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I will host the 2017 Unregulated REREAD Challenge, for which I will reread at least four works.
Some ideas for rereads:
Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison ~ COMPLETED
White Teeth by Zadie Smith
The Color Purple by Alice Walker ~ COMPLETED
My Name is Asher Lev by Chiam Potok ~ COMPLETED
Indian Killer by Sherman Alexie ~ COMPLETED

American Author Challenge IV

January: Octavia Butler -- Lilith's Brood ~~ COMPLETED

February: Stewart O' Nan -- Snow Angels ~~ COMPLETED

March: William Styron -- The Confessions of Nat Turner ~~ COMPLETED

April: Poetry Month - Witch Hunt by Juliet Escoria ~~ COMPLETED
- and I Shall Not Be Moved by Maya Angelou ~~ COMPLETED

May: Zora Neale Hurston -- Dust Tracks on a Road ~~ COMPLETED

June: Sherman Alexie -- Indian Killer ~~ COMPLETED

July: James McBride -- Kill 'Em and Leave: Searching for James Brown and the American Soul ~~ COMPLETED

August: Patricia Highsmith -- The Talented Mr. Ripley ~~ COMPLETED

September: Short Story Month -- Whatever Happened to Interracial Love?: Stories (Art of the Story) by Kathleen Collins ~~ COMPLETED

October: Ann Patchett -- Bel Canto ~~ COMPLETED

November: Russell Banks -- I LOVED Cloudsplitter so maybe that will be a reread for me. Or I have Lost Memory of Skin and The Darling on my shelves.

December: Ernest Hemingway -- Maybe A Moveable Feast

Books by/about marginalized or oppressed peoples, diaspora, global regions that tend not to get represented in "mainstream" publishing circles.

I'm anxious to read A Tale of Love and Darkness by Amos Oz.

Three more books that I believe fit into my 2017 plans to read toward greater understanding of the political landscape (all are on my shelves):

The Possessive Investment in Whiteness: How White People Profit from Identity Politics by George Lipsitz
An Indigenous Peoples' History of the United States by Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz
The Audacity of Hope by Barack Obama

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In April, I hosted the CultureCAT Challenge. My topic was Religious Diversity & Freedom.
I'm slowly making my way through Islam: A Very Short Introduction from the Oxford Very Short Introductions Series.

My Name is Asher Lev by Chaim Potok - COMPLETED
Exit West by Mohsin Hamid - COMPLETED

Recommendations from an excellent NPR article about fiction works that might help us better understand current events:

Jennifer Haigh's Book Recommendations:

Knockemstiff by Donald Ray Pollock
American Salvage by Bonnie Jo Campbell ~ COMPLETED
Burning Bright: Stories by Ron Rash
Preparation for the Next Life by Atticus Lish
World and Town by Gish Jen

Nickolas Butler's Book Recommendations:

Sweetgirl by Travis Mulhauser
The Round House by Louise Erdrich ~ COMPLETED
The Secret Wisdom of the Earth by Christopher Scotton
Winter's Bone by Daniel Woodrell

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Book Riot Around the Globe in 80 Books which I may use to guide some of my reading

Louise Erdrich Reading List:

February: The Round House - COMPLETED

March (optional): LaRose - COMPLETED

April: The Master Butchers' Singing Club - COMPLETED

June: The Birchbark House - COMPLETED

August: The Beet Queen - oops

October: The Bingo Palace - currently reading

December: The Antelope Wife or The Painted Drum (or both)

I'm so enjoying this dedicated focus on one notable author that I may add a few extras in between.

Personal Reading Challenge: Every winner of the Booker Prize since its inception in 1969

1969: P. H. Newby, Something to Answer For
1970: Bernice Rubens, The Elected Member
1970: J. G. Farrell, Troubles (awarded in 2010 as the Lost Man Booker Prize)
1971: V. S. Naipaul, In a Free State
1972: John Berger, G.
1973: J. G. Farrell, The Siege of Krishnapur
1974: Nadine Gordimer, The Conservationist and Stanley Middleton, Holiday
1975: Ruth Prawer Jhabvala, Heat and Dust
1976: David Storey, Saville
1977: Paul Scott, Staying On
1978: Iris Murdoch, The Sea, The Sea
1979: Penelope Fitzgerald, Offshore
1980: William Golding, Rites of Passage
1981: Salman Rushdie, Midnight's Children
1982: Thomas Keneally, Schindler's Ark
1983: J. M. Coetzee, Life & Times of Michael K
1984: Anita Brookner, Hotel du Lac
1985: Keri Hulme, The Bone People
1986: Kingsley Amis, The Old Devils
1987: Penelope Lively, Moon Tiger
1988: Peter Carey, Oscar and Lucinda
1989: Kazuo Ishiguro, The Remains of the Day
1990: A. S. Byatt, Possession: A Romance
1991: Ben Okri, The Famished Road
1992: Michael Ondaatje, The English Patient ... and Barry Unsworth, Sacred Hunger
1993: Roddy Doyle, Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha
1994: James Kelman, How late it was, how late
1995: Pat Barker, The Ghost Road
1996: Graham Swift, Last Orders
1997: Arundhati Roy, The God of Small Things
1998: Ian McEwan, Amsterdam
1999: J. M. Coetzee, Disgrace
2000: Margaret Atwood, The Blind Assassin
2001: Peter Carey, True History of the Kelly Gang
2002: Yann Martel, Life of Pi
2003: DBC Pierre, Vernon God Little
2004: Alan Hollinghurst, The Line of Beauty
2005: John Banville, The Sea
2006: Kiran Desai, The Inheritance of Loss
2007: Anne Enright, The Gathering
2008: Aravind Adiga, The White Tiger
2009: Hilary Mantel, Wolf Hall
2010: Howard Jacobson, The Finkler Question
2011: Julian Barnes, The Sense of an Ending
2012: Hilary Mantel, Bring Up the Bodies
2013: Eleanor Catton, The Luminaries
2014: Richard Flanagan, The Narrow Road to the Deep North
2015: Marlon James, A Brief History of Seven Killings
2016: Paul Beatty, The Sellout
2017: George Saunders, Lincoln in the Bardo

Currently reading:

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An oldie but still one of my favorites.

Welcome, friends!

90. Whistling Vivaldi: How Stereotypes Affect Us and What We Can Do by Claude M. Steele




This should be required reading for every educator in the U.S. and perhaps beyond. Steele, an eminent social psychologist at Stanford University (now at UC-Berkeley), described his research into stereotype thread and its impact on students' performance in a variety of situations. While much of the research focuses on the impact of stereotype threat on women in math-related fields and African-Americans in academic settings more broadly, I appreciated that some of his team's research has focused on the affect of stereotype threat on white students faced with interacting with black students regarding a racially-charged topic. The white students are also subject to stereotype threat in their desire not to be judged as racially insensitive; this confirms the broad applicability of the research without undermining the observation that, on average, it is not white students who face adverse identity contingencies in academic settings on a day-to-day basis.

He offers ways to address stereotype threat such as encouraging students engaging in intercultural dialogue to adopt a learning attitude, and teachers can create this by using learning objectives and clearly stating that learning IS the objective (reassuring students that they won't be judged based on stereotypes about their group has no positive impact at all), and that mistakes are to be expected. He also outlines some implications for mentors as well as for educational institutions for minimizing the cues that activate stereotype threat for students in negatively stereotyped groups.
And remember, this varies on context -- as a white woman I am vulnerable to stereotype threat based on my gender in some but not all situations and this depends, in part, on which of my identities is made salient in a particular situation.

I listened to this as an audiobook and found it engaging, thought-provoking, and enjoyable. I also recommend it for anyone interested in the process of social psychological research as the descriptions of the experiments and the thinking that surrounded them was fascinating and took me back to my early graduate school days.

91. What We Lose by Zinzi Clemmons




"This was the paradox: How would I ever heal from losing the person who healed me? The question was so enormous that I could see only my entire life, everything I know, filling it."

"I thought about how every place on Earth contains its tragedies, love stories, people surviving and others falling, and for this reason, from far enough of a distance and under enough darkness, they were all essentially the same."

I rather loved this short novel of grief and mourning. Part meditation, part coming of age story, and wholly a tale of a young biracial woman, born in South Africa and raised in the U.S., searching for her place in the world. Clemmons' writing is deceptively straightforward, creating moments of deep feeling without relying on flowery turns of phrase or even poetic rhythms or imagery. Thandi is a compellingly honest narrator of her experience. Neither bitter nor bathetic, she captures the universal experience of mourning while exploring the particularity of Thandi's complicated intersecting identities. And did I mention that it's a short novel? Definitely recommended.

Woot! I'm first in wishing you a Happy New Thread! Am I first? We shall see ...

I'm currently reading The Hate U Give and loving it. I saw you on my 'friends with this book' list when I entered it. I can't remember if you read it or if it's still on your stack. I may have gotten the original suggestion from Joe.

Happy new thread, Ellen.

I don't know about falling into a new book, I have twelve books ongoing at the moment and it is more a case of being surrounded by them!

Happy new thread, Ellen. Is >1 EBT1002: Eric Carle? (as a primary teacher I will be embarrassed if I am wrong)

Edited to add that yes, it has to be. I recognize his caterpillar! :-) Not to mention the collage style!

>18 EBT1002: Hi Janet! You are indeed the first visitor to my new thread.
I have but have not yet read The Hate U Give. I purchased it after Joe's warbling and it's high in my bedside stack. I will try to get to it this month.

>19 streamsong: Hi Paul! Yes, I understand that feeling --- rather than falling into one of them, you are faced with juggling a dozen of them!
I'm trying to experiment with reading 3 books at once -- one work of fiction, one poetry collection, and one nonfiction work. I'm thinking my next nonfiction work will be Why Buddhism is True. Joe strikes again. :-)

>21 jessibud2: You are correct, Shelley! Nicely done.
I had not heard of Eric Carle but I really liked the whimsy in that image.

The Very Hungry Caterpiller, is a classic. As is Brown Bear, Brown Bear. Seriously. Carle is famous for his collage art and it is his signature style. He has written a ton of kids' books. Sweet

Happy new thread, Ellen. I always love new threads because I pay attention again, to the year's reading. You've read some good ones this year. You are also doing much better with the Erdrich challenge than I am. I do hope to get to The Bingo Palace this month, but it will be the end of the month.

>23 EBT1002: Two kids' books I need to check out from the library, methinks. :-)

>24 jessibud2: Hi Beth. I feel like 2017 has been an excellent reading year so far.

Actually, I feel like I'm neglecting all the well-intentioned reading plans I had at the beginning of the year, including Louise Erdrich. But I've put The Bingo Palace on hold at the library so I can try to get to it this month. I thought about not including all those lofty reading plans on this thread but figured I'd keep them there; maybe I'll get to one or two more of them in the last quarter of the year.

Some of my October reading plans:

Bel Canto for the AAC.

The Bingo Palace for my year of Louise Erdrich.

The Hate U Give because I really want to read it.

March: Book Three because I want to finish this outstanding trilogy.

Sons of the Profits for my Real Life Book Group.

Happy New thread Ellen. Love the topper. I love his stule and have to try and resist all the merchandise that goes along with the hungry caterpillar. Clearly the soft toys are not meant for me!

I am enjoying a South African theme to my holiday reading so will look out for Zinzi Clemons. >18 EBT1002: (with that weird reading serendipity, Cape Town has even turned up in a Netgalley read Manhattan Beach).

>28 charl08: Hi Charlotte. I have not been familiar with Eric Carle before but I liked the image when I found it on the internet. Now I'm learning about a new (to me) children's author!

I do hope you find What We Lose; I think she is an original new voice (ugh, that sounds like the back jacket of a book cover but you know what I mean).

I am in the queue for Manhattan Beach and didn't realize it has a Cape Town connection. I do love the reading serendipity thing and I'm surprised at how often it occurs.
:-)

I cannot believe the Seahawks won that game against the Rams. Thank you, defense.

Happy Sunday, Ellen. Happy New Thread. Love the Mt. Shuksan photo. Swoons...

Hope you had a good weekend. I was busy with the birds the first part of the day but I managed to get some reading in this afternoon. I loved Things to Do When You're Goth in the Country: and Other Stories. I adore finding New Voices and hers really resonates.

Someone mentioned Manhattan Beach? I am starting it next. I was fortunate enough to snag it at ALA and I have been hearing very good things.

Go Seahawks. I have watched zero football today.

MY favorite Eric Carle book, unsurprisingly:

Happy New Thread, Ellen!

>16 EBT1002: One of my favorites, too. :-)

Great review of Whistling Vivaldi. It sounds both well done and important. Off to thumb post-post. I already added it to the WL after your earlier comments.

Sounds like you have a great reading October lined up. The only one I don't recognize is Sons of the Profits.

Cannot wait to hear what you think of The Hate U Give and Why Buddhism is True!

92. Cold Earth by Sarah Moss




I loved this novel! Nina, Ruth, Ben, Jim, and Catriona have all joined Yianni on an important archaeological dig in Greenland. Knowing they have just a few short weeks to collect whatever artifacts they can find, their work is determined and focused, especially once they discover human skeletal remains. As they carefully preserve evidence to help scientists learn how the Greenlanders died out in this region, Nina begins to see and hear odd things. The group left civilization early in what appeared to be a deadly pandemic and, when they also find themselves cut off from the outside world, their nervous imaginations wrestle with the possible implications. It's an odd premise and may lead readers to somewhat resist the suspension of disbelief, but, really, it is possible, isn't it? If there were a pandemic developing in the US and the UK, with but a handful of deaths so far, would not a small party of scientists go ahead on a planned excavation into a remote part of the world? And might that expedition in that remote part of the world wreak havoc on the party members' sanity, especially when the laptop stopped working? Okay, some elements of the plot were a bit of a stretch (Yianni's lack of planning is monumental and implausible, or at least I hope so), but this is still a first-rate work of psychological and physical suspense.

The story is told from each party member's point of view, most especially Nina's, in the form of letters they wrote to someone, anyone, back home. Nina is the only non-archaeologist in the group and her presence adds to the suspense. The last 100 pages were un-put-downable for me. I hate to agree with Jane Smiley's marketing bit on the front cover, but indeed I was "...tempted to turn to the end of the book to relieve anxieties." Thank goodness I also took her advice and controlled myself.

Highly recommended.

>31 msf59: Hey there, Mark. Your part-day spent bird-watching looked pretty awesome. And I'm glad you also got to squeeze in some reading. I'm really looking forward to Manhattan Beach once I get my paws on it. I'm in the library queue. In the meantime, I have a few other things to occupy me.... Heh.

The Seahawks won thanks to their defense. Honestly, I was on LT most of the time and only watching it out of the corner of my eye. It's actually more enjoyable for me if I'm multi-tasking. I was sorry about the Cubs' loss, though. They just need to come back and take care of business in game 3.

I'm with you -- finding new voices is a joy in reading. I will check out Things to Do When You're Goth in the Country and Other Stories; I had not heard of it (or Chavisa Woods before.

>32 ronincats: Roni!!!! I HAVE to get that book!!!

>33 jnwelch: Hi Joe! I think you will find Whistling Vivaldi an interesting read. His research is pretty compelling.

I think I will start The Hate U Give this evening as I unwind for sleep. It's back to work tomorrow although I only have to work four days this week. I think I mentioned that I'm taking Friday off and we're heading to Victoria BC for a weekend getaway. We'll take the Clipper early Friday morning. I love riding the Clipper. It's always special to be out on the water and it's also great reading time. *grin*

Hmm. Maybe I'll start Why Buddhism is True tonight instead. I'm planning to keep it on the bedside table and read it rather slowly, a chapter at a time.

Sons of the Profits is a history of Seattle, 1851-1901.

Happy new thread, Ellen!

Ellen--Happy new thread!! LOVE the photo in >2 EBT1002:. Big fan of Eric Carle and read lots of him to my kids when they were little. >34 EBT1002: Cold Earth sounds awesome and chill.

Happy Monday!!

>34 EBT1002: I'm glad you enjoyed Cold Earth as it was one that I loved as well. I know that some people find the character of Nina irritating, but she struck me as very believable. I'm surprised that you've managed to avoid Eric Carle though! Certainly in the UK his The Very Hungry Caterpillar is pretty ubiquitous - I think it would be difficult to have avoided it completely even if you had no children.

>34 EBT1002: - Great review, Ellen. Sounds so good

So glad you enjoyed Cold Earth, Ellen! Your review reminded me of how suspenseful it was. What a page-turner.

Hi, Ellen. You and Laura sure make Cold Earth sound good. That’s a new one to me.

You got me with Cold Earth!

>2 EBT1002: Beautiful!

>34 EBT1002: Looks like something I would love! Added to the Wishlist!

Well, at 44 messages, "new" is a relative term, but I'll say it anyway. Happy new thread!

I'm with The Doctor: Happy New Thread.

Cold Earth moves up the pile. Great comments, Ellen. Happy Monday. I hope you have a great week.

>37 banjo123: Thanks, Rhonda!

>38 Berly: Hi Kim. I'm a new fan of Eric Carle. Would you like my copy of Cold Earth? It's a great read!

>39 SandDune: Hi Rhian. Yes, well, Nina was in fact a bit irritating but that made her a more compelling character in my opinion. As you say, it made her more believable. There was a streak of entitlement in her that I didn't like but it made her feel real.

Honestly, I have probably seen images of The Very Hungry Caterpillar even though I don't have kids, but I hadn't paid any attention to Carle as an artist and writer until now. I'm glad to be learning about him!

>40 jessibud2: I do recommend Cold Earth, Shelley. It's one of the best suspense novels I've read in a while.

>41 lauralkeet: I'm a new fan of Sarah Moss, Laura! I remember Darryl praising her and now I know why.

>42 jnwelch: Joe, I think you would enjoy Cold Earth. It's an intelligent and original novel of suspense.

>43 sibylline: Yay! I'm spreading the Sarah Moss love!

>44 ChelleBearss: :-) What I said to Lucy^.

>45 drneutron: and >46 weird_O: Thanks Jim and Bill. A review of an appealing work like Cold Earth makes a thread zip along pretty quickly. :-)

>47 BLBera: I take from your comment that you have a copy of Cold Earth, Beth? I have one other book by Sarah Moss on my TBR shelves but I could almost imagine going on a binge read of her works.

Today wasn't a bad day. After an almost-sleepless night (why???), I went to work early, attended a couple of meetings, one of which was helping a couple of faculty leaders understand why we're exploring the implementation of a medical leave policy for students and being sure they understand that we will continue to seek their input, and another in which I got to be more passive. Then to the dentist. Sigh. Two old fillings needed replacing so it was quite a procedure. But I got home early and P made me a French 75 (yum) and we're having mac-n-cheese-n-cauliflower for dinner. Soft comfort food.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

In books:

The Hate U Give is blowing me away! What an excellent and timely work it is. I'm about 1/4 into it and it is just so good.

>50 EBT1002: Yes!!

Well, Ellen, I'm not sure that I'll read *Hate U Give,* but I'm able to get a copy of Cold Earth from PBS, so my request is in the system. Thanks for the good review! I thought I had something by Sarah Moss but apparently not. I'm glad to remedy that situation.
I'll recommend to you America's Original Sin by Jim Wallis if you want some adult, non-fiction confirmation......

The plot to Cold Earth made me think I'd read it , but not according to my LT records. Maybe I just read another review! Terrible memory.

Hope your break with the boat trip goes well. I'm not so keen on the ocean going ones so avoiding here, despite various ads for scuba and diving with sharks (no thanks!).

Morning, Ellen! I *need* to get round to The Hate U Give.

>51 jnwelch: I'm glad you nudged me on this one, Joe.

>52 LizzieD: Well, since I haven't yet finished reading The Hate U Give, Peggy, it's okay to delay your decision. (heh)
I'm adding America's Original Sin to my wish list.

And, while I'm at it, I'll call folks' attention to a book I purchased the other day: Stamped From the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America by Ibram X. Kendi. I haven't read it yet but I picked it up and purchased it after perusing it briefly. My impression is that he takes a slightly different take on the "either/or" way we have of thinking about progress in race relations in our country -- either things are getting better or they are getting worse. I believe his premise is that both can be (and are) true, and that the progress toward an inclusive society and the retreat from same are simultaneous, parallel processes. It sounds compelling to me.

>52 LizzieD: Oh, and I'm glad you're able to get a copy of Cold Earth, Peggy. I feel like I want to warn folks that it does start a bit slowly.....

>53 charl08: Hey Charlotte. I can totally relate to the "terrible memory" comment. Perhaps it is to be expected of those of us who read oodles of books. The other thing I do, which is even more embarrassing (although still only mildly so), is to think I have not read something, go to put it on my wish list based on someone's comments, only to realize that I read it a couple of years ago.... Anyway, I hope you enjoy Cold Earth if you do end up reading it.

>55 scaifea: Yes, Amber, you do indeed! :-) It's a bit long but it's also a quick read.

>56 EBT1002: Darryl's been reading Stamped from the Beginning, and I've got it queued up on the library's reserve list. Still at number 3, but hoping to get it soon!

>58 drneutron: I think it is a book to be consumed at a measured pace. I'll go check out Darryl's thread. I have the book on my desk at work; I need to take it home and put it on the bedside table where I'll read a chapter a night or something like that.

>48 EBT1002: I'd love to read Cold Earth! Thanks. Do you still have my address? Sorry about the dentist visit. Never fun. Happy Tuesday. : )

I do own a copy of Cold Earth, Ellen. It will probably be the end of the year before I get to it. Too many books, you know.

I put The Hate u Give on reserve at the library.

Stamped from the Beginning sounds good, too.

I have not been sleeping well lately, either. We should start a 3 a.m. club; it would be nice to commiserate while awake in the wee hours...Although it might not help us get back to sleep. I hope you get good rest tonight.

My husband is reading Stamped from the Beginning. He keeps sharing nuggets with me. It sounds pretty eye-opening.

Hi Ellen, luckily, I have Cold Earth on my shelves as it sounds like one I will enjoy.

>50 EBT1002: oh, do I need that (a book that makes me go The Hate U Give is blowing me away! What an excellent and timely work it is. I'm about 1/4 into it and it is just so good. )
I am really wading through The Master and Margarita. I just cant seem to get into it. Even if the cover is gorgeous, and the book itself a pleasure to have and to hold.

>60 Berly: I do still have your address; Cold Earth will head your way in the next week or two. :-)

>61 BLBera: Beth, I am love love loving The Hate U Give. It is at moments a difficult read but it's quickly making it's way to that list of books that I think "everyone" "should" read..... And I can absolutely relate to the "too many books" comment. I was thinking the other day that if I live 20 more years (and I really hope it's more like 30) and read 100 books a year, that is only 2000 books I get to read in the rest of my life! That isn't enough!!!! Morbid, too, I know, but one's brain goes where one's brain goes.

I've slept better the last two nights. We have been making our way through Ken Burns' "The Vietnam War" and I think it's wreaking havoc with my sleep.

>62 lauralkeet: I had not heard of Stamped from the Beginning until I saw it in the bookstore. I think I'll take it home with me tonight (I drove today so it's easier to schlep things back and forth) and start reading it a chapter at a time.

>63 DeltaQueen50: Cold Earth starts a bit slowly but once it grabbed me, it really grabbed me, Judy. I hope you are able to get to it soon.

>64 LovingLit: Hi Megan. As I said above to Beth, The Hate U Give is quickly placing itself onto my "everyone should read this" list.
Regarding Master and Margarita, I did enjoy it but I think it's one that requires a certain mental space to get into it. I did not have any other books going while I was reading that and I think that helped with immersion. But I'm glad the book itself is lovely. :-)

it's quickly making it's way to that list of books that I think "everyone" "should" read..... Nicely put! As you'd expect, it's on it for me, Ellen. And I'm really happy that The Hate U Give has stayed on the YA bestseller lists for so long. Like Wonder, I love the thought of so many kids reading it (and adults, too). Tough, but timely.

>66 jnwelch: Well, now I've had to put Wonder on my wishlist!

And I just took a break from the office, walked to the bookstore and purchased that copy of Rules of Civility that escaped the other day.

Honestly, I need to retire.

I thought I would mention that I have been reading two books very much simultaneously this week. Okay, I'm not actually reading them at the same moment but I have been moving back and forth between them, even within the same hour. They could hardly be more different:

and

Sons of the Profits and The Hate U Give

So far, the experiment seems to be working.

I liked Rules of Civility Ellen. My sister bought it for me a couple of years ago, and was smug she’d finally found a book I hadn’t heard of or got, and that I liked. Which of course led to reading A Gentleman in Moscow. Now we have a wait for the next offering.

>67 EBT1002: - I read Rules last month, Ellen, and posted some random quotes as I was making my way through it, on my thread. No spoilers, just gorgeous language, as one might expect from Mr. Towles. Enjoy! I won't be posting but will be lurking on the group read thread.... :-)

>69 Caroline_McElwee: Caroline, I chuckled at your sister's glee at finding a book you not only didn't own but hadn't heard of! My sister grumbles occasionally about the same dilemma and P has just given up on buying books for me.

It seems that Rules of Civility has met with more tempered love than the magnificent Gentleman in Moscow but I am looking forward to reading it nonetheless.

>70 jessibud2: I need to find said group read thread, Shelley. I knew there were rumors about such a thing occurring this month but I haven't yet found my way there.
"...just gorgeous language, as on might expect..." Oh boy. :-)

>71 EBT1002: - Here ya go: https://www.librarything.com/topic/270551

>72 jessibud2: Thanks Shelley!!

Updating my October plans (uh oh, the month is one third over!):

Bel Canto for the AAC.

The Bingo Palace for my year of Louise Erdrich.

The Hate U Give ~ currently reading

March: Book Three because I want to finish this outstanding trilogy.

Sons of the Profits for my Real Life Book Group ~ currently reading

Rules of Civility with the group. A Gentleman in Moscow was a five-star read for me; I don't expect that from this novel but I am hopeful given Towles' amazing talent as a writer.

Talking to the Dead by Harry Bingham ~ completed

The Burial at Thebes: A Version of Sophocles' Antigone by Seamus Heaney ~ completed

Whistling Vivaldi: How Stereotypes Affect Us and What We Can Do by Claude M. Steele ~ completed

What We Lose by Zinzi Clemmons ~ completed

Cold Earth by Sarah Moss ~ completed

Honestly, I need to retire. LOL! It helps with the reading, I ain't lying. :-)

>71 EBT1002: Very few people attempt to buy books for me Ellen, except some of my LT friends, as I do them once in a while.

The Rules of Civility offered a whiff of F Scott Fitzgerald, for me. There was something, without it being derivative.

>75 jnwelch: I have these delightful fantasies of spending hours of every day reading --- and still having time for a run, some gardening, watching the occasional PBS show, going to the theater now and then.....

My time will come. I hope.

>76 Caroline_McElwee: Yeah, I have the same situation going, Caroline. My sister and I share a love of books and reading. She is 17 years older than me and was certainly instrumental in encouraging my reading, although I was raised in a reading family all around, but I have become the one most likely to find books for her instead of the other way around. I kind of enjoy that. :-)

Oh, I'm glad you shared the note about F Scott Fitzgerald emerging in your reading of Rules of Civility. I admit that I'm not much of a fan (I still don't get why The Great Gatsby makes people swoon) but I think it will be fun to see if he emerges for me, as well.

The more you read the Gatsby Ellen, the more you get it. I don’t think anyone loves it first or second reading even. For me there were tickles that drew me back, and back. Until I’ve read it every year for 35+ years now. It’s my go to for quality writing and tone. Despite that Daisy drives me to distraction. But without Daisy there is no Jay. And I love the tone of the narrator, Nick. I do now hear Sam Waterson’s voice when I read it.

I shall read it again soon.

In the Baz Lurman film he inserted an older Nick who is Fitzgerald in a couple of places. Most folk missed it, but it’s there.

I went to an 8 hour complete theatrical reading of it a few years back, ‘Gatz’, by an American company, wonderful. And one of the performers did the last 40 minutes extempore, blew me away. There were breaks, including for dinner, I should add.

>74 EBT1002: You are on fire with your October reading, Ellen. I do hope to get to The Bingo Palace. I have all these good library books right now, and my book group meets next week...

>78 Caroline_McElwee: Interesting, Caroline. You have actually intrigued me to consider a reread of Gatsby, perhaps in December before my 2017 reread challenge expires.

>79 BLBera: I have been having a good month, Beth, but I am also skeptical that I will finish all the books I hoped to read this month. Last night I made good headway in The Hate U Give (it's hard to put down!) and this morning I read another chapter in Sons of the Profits. I am deciding what to take to Victoria with me tomorrow -- I'm thinking Bel Canto and Rules of Civility.

>80 EBT1002: - Have a wonderful trip, Ellen. P must be feeling much better to be comfortable going on a trip! Yay for that.

Oh this thread is full of interesting comments on books, or maybe comments on interesting books. Lots of bullets for me (I have read Bel Canto).

I think reading The Great Gatsby again and again is a good plan. I've read it two or three times, in a lovely illustrated edition. As soon as I catch up on my pile on the nightstand, I may look at it again. Maybe we can make a date for December.

Sweet Thursday, Ellen. I am glad you are going to join us for The Rules of Civility G.R. I plan on starting it on Saturday.

It looks like I better track down a copy of The Hate U Give. Joe recently warbled his tail off about it too. With 2 of you singing, that usually seals the deal.

I am loving Manhattan Beach. Just sayin'...

>14 EBT1002: Interested to note you are also trying to knock down the Bookers, Ellen with 21 to date. I am currently on 25 and hope to do a couple more at least this year.

>14 EBT1002: >84 PaulCranswick: I’ve read 22 of the Booker winners so far. A way to go yet (26 in fact).

>85 Caroline_McElwee: I think Darryl is probably beating all three of us.

That wouldn’t surprised me Paul.

I'm not doing too well with my own reading plans this month. I seem to have little time to read. I was in the middle of one book, and then a book for which I'd placed a hold arrived. I've got to find some time to read!

Have a lovely, relaxing weekend, Ellen. Happy reading.

I hardly ever re-read, but Caro has me thinking about Gatsby. Hmm. Now, where is my copy?!

Happy Friday, Ellen!

Go Cubbies!! Whew!!

Happy Friday, Ellen!

Enjoy your getaway, Ellen!

Hi, Ellen!! Gatsby in December? Maybe! Hope you are having fun this Saturday on your getaway. : )

>82 ffortsa: The Great Gatsby is my most reread book (4 times), and I reckon I could go another round with an illustrated or ultra-gorgeous copy :)

Ellen, I'm LOVING Whistling Vivaldi. Absolutely fascinating. Thanks for the rec!

I won't be joining you on another trudge through Gatsby, Ellen / Caroline. Jay didn't pop my cork first time around and don't expect the champagne to fizzle next time either.

>97 PaulCranswick: :-(

Mark me down as another *Gatsby* lover. I taught it for several years though, so I don't feel the call to reread just yet.
I do believe I read somewhere that one mark of a true reader is that she can't necessarily remember what she's read, but she keeps doing it. I'm sort of off my pace again this year; I too had envisioned retirement as unlimited time on the sofa with book after book. It becomes less and less that ideal as time goes by.
"Why would I buy you a book? You have too many already." *sigh*

I read Gatsby a few years ago; and really liked it. I definitely want to read Rules of Civility, but not this year.

Apparently I need to get The Hate U GIve

Hi Ellen - I am starting The Bingo Palace.

Hi everyone. I have been gone a long time! Our trip to Victoria was lovely ~~ very low key with a quick visit to Munro's Books where I bought a copy of The Magpie Murders, Murchie's tea shop, etc. We didn't walk as much as we sometimes have in the past but P's hip enabled us to do some walking. Lots of reading and I slept deeply so that was good.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

I'll do a bit of catching up on posts here and then write about some books I've read.

>81 jessibud2: Thanks Shelley. It is good to have her at about 80% in terms of mobility and comfort on her hip.

>82 ffortsa: Hi Judy. I'm glad you enjoy the discussion on my thread. :-)

I might be up for a reread of The Great Gatsby in December. I might get more out of it if there are a few of us reading it together.

>83 msf59: Hi Mark. I haven't been around for the discussion but I am almost done with Rules of Civility so I've joined in the group read in spirit, at least. It may not be as stellar as A Gentleman in Moscow but it's still an excellent read and I will read anything Amor Towles should write moving forward.

Yes, I do encourage you to find a copy of The Hate U Give. Joe's warbling is what motivated me to read it and, as you'll see once I catch up on my reviews, it was a five-star read.

I can't wait to read Manhattan Beach!

>84 PaulCranswick: and >85 Caroline_McElwee: Hi Paul and Caroline. I haven't made any significant progress on my Booker challenge this year but I'm thinking I will sign on for fewer challenges at the start of 2018 to give myself more leeway for focusing on (a) great reads as they get published, and (b) time to attend to some of my personal reading goals.

>86 PaulCranswick: LOL. That is a good bet.

>87 Caroline_McElwee: Nor me.

>88 thornton37814: Hi Lori! I'm sorry October has been a slow reading month for you. They do happen when life is just busy -- or if we encounter a reading slump. I haven't been on LT much but I have been having a decent reading month. And I have a little vacation in November so that should keep my momentum going!

>89 BLBera: Thanks Beth.

>90 lauralkeet: Maybe there will be a little group re-read of Gatsby in December, Laura.

>91 msf59: Sorry about the Cubbies, Mark. I was definitely rooting for them. I'm glad Houston beat the Yankees, anyway (not that I care very much, but I was taught to root for anyone-but-the-Yankees at an early age).

>92 jnwelch: Thanks for the Happy Friday greetings from last Friday, Joe! (I really have been awol for a while!)

>93 katiekrug: Thanks, Katie. You can see above that our weekend in Victoria was relaxing and good. I took my computer so I could spend some time on LT but I was doing the seven-black-and-white-photos-in-seven-days thing on FB and it was a recipe for getting lost on FB. I hate when I get sucked into FB! Anyway, I'm here now.

>94 Berly: Hi Kim! I'm up for a group re-read of Gatsby in December. That might serve as a nice capstone (and redemption) for my undernourished reread challenge of this year.

>95 LovingLit: Megan, I don't think I kept my plain old paperback copy of Gatsby but I'm liking the idea of a lovely edition, illustrations to be a bonus, perhaps? Anyway, I'm also liking the idea of a group reread for December!

>96 jnwelch: Oh good, Joe! I'm glad Whistling Vivaldi is as interesting for you as it was for me! Yay!

>97 PaulCranswick: But Paul, I didn't care for Gatsby the first time around, either, and I'm taking all my reading buddies' word for it that it might work better with a reread. Well, no pressure (there is already too much pressure in the world and there are certainly enough things to read!) but I do think there will be a group reread in December. xo

>98 Caroline_McElwee: Yep, that's what I say, too.

>99 LizzieD: Hi Peggy!
"...I read somewhere that one mark of a true reader is that she can't necessarily remember what she's read, but she keeps doing it." Hmm, that might mark me as a true reader. Although I'm working on enhancing my memory of that which I read!

You know, your comments about retirement hit a mark with me. Part of me can hardly wait, as the fantasy of so much free time with so many books to read becomes a reality. However, what we all also know is that retirement means, well, getting older. And while I'm not one of those who fights aging (because, really, that is a losing battle), I also don't want to wish my life away. So I try to find that healthy balance: look forward to retirement with happy anticipation and enjoy the life I'm living now to the degree that my health and financial resources enable me to do so.

>100 banjo123: Hi Rhonda! Maybe you can join in the group reread of Gatsby in December.
And I'm currently about 4/5 through Rules of Civility and I'm loving it. He is a great storyteller.

>101 SuziQoregon: Juli, YES! You do need to get a copy of The Hate U Give!

>102 BLBera: Hiya Beth. I will be starting The Bingo Palace as soon as I finish Rules of Civility, which should be today or this evening. Yay!

Did I mention that one thing that has kept me away from LT is that I got a tattoo?
It was scheduled for Tuesday but the artist was sick so we postponed until Friday. So all day yesterday, Saturday, was spent reading and taking good care of my tattoo (you know, keeping it clean, avoiding contact with anything like the cat's hair, etc.). It means I made quick work of Rules of Civility, which I will finish today.

And I LOVE my tattoo!!!!

>108 EBT1002: What's it of, Ellen? And where did you site it?

You so totally got me on Whistling Vivaldi...I bought it the day I read your review & am engrossed. The Hate U Give is glowering reproachfully from the TBR where it landed, 1/3 read, when Vivaldi did.

Re: retirement, I am pretty happy with the way things worked out. I'd like more mobility, but at least I'm still walking and that was no sure thing only a few years ago. The books multiply, the hours don't, but there's a lot more day than there used to be.

>103 EBT1002: - Welcome back, Ellen. Good to hear that your trip to BC was a good one. I won't make any assumptions, but did you know that Munro's bookstore was started by Alice Munro and her first husband? I recently read her daughter's memoir, called Lives of Mothers and Daughters and really enjoyed it. She talks about the store in there and how she even worked there, in her teens.

Also good to hear that you are enjoying Rules of Civility. There is some exciting news about more writing from him. Go to either the group read thread or Karen's thread. She wrote to Amor Towles and received a lovely reply and has now purchased and is the first among us to read his follow-up, Eve in Hollywood.

So, when do we get to *see* your tattoo? Did it hurt?

93. The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas




As this novel opens, 16-year-old Starr witnesses the murder of her friend, Khalil, by a police officer. Starr is a bright and brave young woman but the tensions of her neighborhood and family make it less than clear how much she should say about what she witnessed. Her parents have mustered the resources to send her to a private school in the suburbs but they continue to live in the dangerous gang-riddled urban neighborhood where her father owns a grocery store. Her uncle is a cop, too, making it difficult for her to reconcile the tensions of loyalty she feels. Starr's first-person narrative voice is delightful; she is profoundly believable and imperfectly lovable. Thomas didn't have to make her novel accessible to a middle-aged white reading audience, but she managed to do that while (I think) holding true to the culture in which she has placed her memorable heroine. And I use that word intentionally; in the end, Starr is a heroine. The story never descends into fairy tale territory but her courage and the integrity of her family and friends are heartening and poignant. Tears came to my eyes at the end of the novel as the fictional victim, Khalil, finds his place among too long a list of real life victims of police officers' fear and the excessive force it too readily evokes.

Absolutely recommended.

94. Bel Canto by Ann Patchett




Okay, I had put off reading this novel for years, partly based on the unlikely and odd premise: a Japanese businessman visiting an unnamed South(?) American country is invited to celebrate his 53rd birthday at the home of the vice president; as a gift, a famous American soprano is booked to sing half a dozen arias for the guest of honor. In the midst of the evening, a group of terrorists break their way into the VP's home, taking the entire party hostage. The novel takes place in the confines of this luxurious home as the hostages and police negotiators reach and languish at a stalemate. And so the terrorists and hostages settle in for what turns out to be a months-long opportunity to get to know one another, for relationships to develop, dreams to consolidate, and identities to shift ever so slightly. I loved this novel. At once a celebration of art and an affirmation of the human striving for both beauty and connection, it is a moving and funny and deeply satisfying read.

This is my new tattoo; it's on my inner arm, just below the fold of my elbow.

Sweet! I get the references to the cat and the books, but what's the connection to the bunny?

The March Hare, the Cheshire Cat, and the Lewis Carroll books? Sweet!

>109 richardderus: Richard! So nice to see you! See answers to your questions here^.

I'm so glad I got you with Whistling Vivaldi. I found it fascinating ~ and with some practical application, so that is a good thing. The Hate U Give will still be there waiting when you are ready. :-)

I'm glad you are making the most of retirement. The mobility thing resonates deeply for me as I know that is one of the things at risk as we age. I worry about losing that and about my eyesight being impacted enough to reduce my ability to read. And, as you suggest, for those of us who LOVE books and reading, there will simply never be enough time, either in the day or in the life. But we make the most of it. And yes, having just those few extra hours each day for reading is awfully appealing. :-)

>110 jessibud2: Shelley, I did not know that Munro's Books was started by Alice Munro and her husband! It's a charming bookstore, one of my favorites. Honestly, I didn't need to buy any books (well, duh) but I can't leave that store without purchasing at least one, just to support them. Oh, and then we selected two calendars for 2018 to bring home, one with art work by E. J. Hughes and one with images of Inuit art from Cape Dorset.

I will definitely check out Karen's thread to hear about Towles' next novel. He could quickly earn a spot among my favorite authors.

The tattoo did not really hurt. The artist had described it as feeling "like an electric cat scratch" and that is pretty accurate. After a while, I would have said it was "irritating," but it only hurt once or twice for a second or two when she presumably made contact with a section of skin with more sensitive nerves. I never once got woozy (sucked on Jolly Ranchers through the whole time). I did get very woozy later that evening when I took the bandage off and had to clean it for the first time, for no other reason than that I get woozy about such things.

In the 48 hours since she did it, it hasn't hurt at all. It is definitely tender and I'm babying it big time, but so far so good. I am looking forward to 2-4 weeks from now when it's all healed and I can just go on living my life with my shiny new tattoo.

>114 jessibud2: Yes, the cat and the books are pretty straightforward in their meaning, Shelley. The bunny is a bit more personal. She's an "unapologetic bunny," signifying my determination to be unapologetic about many aspects of myself, especially aspects that others have tended to appreciate and that I have scorned and tried to disown (there is more to it than that but you get the idea).

>115 richardderus: I love that summary, Richard! I may borrow it....

>116 EBT1002: - The Towles isn't a novel but rather 6 (I think, maybe 8?) short stories from different perspectives about Eve. Sounds terrific but I'll need to ait for it to be available in a format I can access.

I also recently bought a small calendar of Inuit art by Cape Dorset. They always have such beautiful calendars and cards and prints

>118 jessibud2: I went over to Karen's thread and read about Eve in Hollywood. It sounds like a fun follow-up to RoC.

I also love the Inuit art by Cape Dorset. I came this close to purchasing a framed print a couple of years ago but I resisted. The calendar will have to do. :-)

This is the 2018 Cape Dorset Inuit art calendar we purchased.

PS - https://munrobooks.com/?q=p.about_munro_s&STG=1960066000

Painting by E. J. Hughes

>121 jessibud2: Thanks! Munro's is a great bookstore and I agree that the staff are particularly knowledgeable, helpful, and friendly (without being intrusive).

>113 EBT1002: I am far too averse to pain and to changing my mind to ever have a tattoo, Ellen, but it looks good!

Like the photographic art of E.J. Hughes.

>120 EBT1002: I've always loved Pomegranate's calendars, books, and miscellaneous merch. They have uniformly good taste.

Welcome back, Ellen! Glad you had such a good time on your vacay.

>111 EBT1002: Yay! And a thumb for your review of The Hate U Give. You manage to pack so much good stuff into a concise review.

I loved Bel Canto, too. It probably deserves a re-read at some point.

I'm about 2/3 of the way through Whistling Vivaldi, after setting it aside while we went away on biz (for me) for a few days. So fascinating. I'm glad RD is reading it, too.

I’m with Paul - there’s a needle phobia involved, so it would take some serious alcohol to get me inked... still, that one’s great!

Love the tattoo and all it represents! Very glad you had an excellent trip, complete with book purchases. Wishing you a great week ahead.

Love the calendar; I've been trying to decide which one to get for next year. Book haul?

95. Rules of Civility by Amor Towles




"What my father was trying to tell me,... was that this risk should not be treated lightly: One must be prepared to fight for one's simple pleasures and to defend them against elegance and erudition and all manner of glamorous enticements."

Set in New York City in 1938, this is a romp of a romance novel. Katey (aka Kate, Katherine) is working as a secretary for a law firm and sharing a room in a boarding house with Eve; the two of them are looking for fun on the last night of 1937 and they find it in the unlikely person of Tinker Grey, a handsome young man of society and wealth. The three of them strike up a friendship and spend the first days of 1938 joyfully exploring the Big Apple. As happens in life, simple either-or choices alter the future in unpredictable ways (yes, that is a major theme of the novel), and the lives of each of our lovable threesome are sent spinning in different directions even as the thread that connects them remains intact. Kate is a smart and self-sufficient woman, bent on success and destined to achieve it. But her continued dance with a class of people who remain enigmatic to her also brings heartbreak and disillusionment. How else could it go in a great romance novel?

The plot of this novel is just shy of compelling -- a few too many chance encounters end up disrupting the magic while necessarily advancing the story -- but the storytelling is wonderful. Towles' prose is pitch-perfect; it mirrors the mood of the story absolutely. This was a great book in which to get lost. Best accompanied by a gin martini in anticipation of those consumed by the characters.

>124 PaulCranswick: I will never, ever try to entice you into a tattoo, Paul. :-)

I love E. J. Hughes' work; it is very much of this region.

>125 richardderus: I'm not sure I paid any attention to the company that produced the calendar, Richard, but I knew the images were my cuppa.

>126 jnwelch: I am so glad you warbled about The Hate U Give, Joe, and I'm so glad I didn't do what I sometimes do, which is buy a book after someone has written so enticingly about it, and then put it on the shelves while I attend to others. This one will be on my best-of-2017 list, no question about that.

I'm super pleased to have introduced both you and Richard to Whistling Vivaldi.

>127 drneutron: No pressure at all, Jim (I am definitely not on any crusade about tattoos), but thanks for liking the one I got. Honestly, it ended up a bit different than I had visualized but it nicely reflects a combination of my vision and the artist's style.

>128 Berly: Hi Kim and thank you! Mostly, thanks for the wishes for a great week ahead. I work all this week and then I have a short week as I leave November 2nd for a visit with my sister in NC. I am feeling the fact that I didn't really take a vacation this summer. I'll never do that again.

>129 BLBera: My book haul in Victoria was very small, Beth. The Magpie Murders is the only book I purchased despite visiting two bookshops. I was feeling pretty restrained. I did go overboard at Crabtree & Evelyn, though! :-)

Next up for me is The Bingo Palace by Louise Erdrich.

I missed The Beet Queen in August but I did read it many years ago so I'm going to proceed with this third novel in the Love Medicine trilogy. I think it's only loosely a trilogy, anyway, with common characters and setting. I can always come back and reread The Beet Queen next.

I wish I didn't have to go to work tomorrow....

Hi, Ellen! I *love* the tattoo!!

>134 scaifea: I was just going to say that! I love the design, Ellen, and the symbolism behind each element. And yet lots of people will probably just say "oh that's nice" and take it at face value, so you can choose with whom you share the deeper meaning behind it. Love, love, love.

I can't believe I missed your tattoo up there, Ellen. Nice!

Our whole family has them - mine is two shooting stars.

>134 scaifea: Oh good. Thanks, Amber.

>135 lauralkeet: Oh, and thanks for those kind words, too, Laura. It's an interesting experience I'm having with regard to the meaning of elements of the tattoo and how much to share and with whom.... The bunny is so deeply meaningful for me which makes it the hardest element to talk about.... And I'm reminding myself that I don't have to tell anyone what any of it means! I can just say, well, you know, I like books and cats and bunnies.... which is certainly true!

>136 jnwelch: Thanks Joe. I know you had said your whole family had tattoos. Friends warned me that they can be addictive and I can kind of see how that is the case but I'm certainly not currently in a hurry to do a second one. Not because this wasn't/isn't being an awesome and introspective experience, but because I'm still so steeped in the experience of this tattoo!

I started reading The Bingo Palace last night and this one feels like it's taking a bit of mental energy to get into....

I loved Bingo Palace way back when!! In fact, it's been so long, I could probably reread it with very few I-remember-that moments. Have fun with it!

Love the tattoo and the your explanation of the meaning of the tattoo.

Also this: "Honestly, I didn't need to buy any books (well, duh) but I can't leave that store without purchasing at least one, just to support them." is part of the reason my suitcase was full of books coming home! There is a wonderful old fashioned bookshop in the centre of Cape Town which I used to go to when I was on my studentship and really couldn't afford many books. So nice to be able to buy many non-work books without guilt :-)

Finished Whistling Vivaldi - excellent. I'll try to do a micro-review.

Someone gave us this book years ago and I love it! Ian M. Thom

Glad you had a lovely time Ellen. Very restrained on the book front! >113 EBT1002: love the tattoo.

>111 EBT1002: you hit me with a bullet, so it is in the pile.

Ellen, THANK YOU for reviewing Whistling Vivaldi! It needs another going-over before I write a review. I was gripped. Riveted. It spoke to me as an active member of a loathed minority, and as a wealthy (by world standards, if not US ones) white male possessor of *unfathomable* privilege.

>145 jnwelch: Adding my thanks to RD’s, Ellen. Great book!

>139 Berly: I'm now almost halfway into The Bingo Palace and I'm loving it. i think i shouldn't have started it late at night when i was so sleepy. (trying to type with only one hand, letting those lower-case i's go)

>140 charl08: Thanks, Charlotte. it has been an interesting few days figuring out what part of the meaning of elements of the tattoo to share with whom....
I can totally relate to a suitcase full of books purchased partly to support a "wonderful old fashioned bookshop." When i was in grad school i spent way too much money on books (student loan debt did accrue), most of them studies-related and mostly never read. It's more fun purchasing books I honestly want to read, even though I still know there will never be enough time to read them all.

>141 jnwelch: I'll be interested in your micro-review of Whistling Vivaldi, Joe. And I love (and plan to borrow) that concept.

>142 mdoris: I think I'm going to put that edition on my wish list, Mary. I love E. J. Hughes' work and I'd like to know more about him and his life.

>143 Caroline_McElwee: I'm glad to have hit you with the The Hate U Give bullet, Caroline. I'm trying to spread the word about that one....

>144 richardderus: Yay! I think Steele's research is fascinating, Richard, and so compelling, so I'm glad to be introducing others to it. I had a similar experience as yours.
One bit that struck me deeply, too, was the series of studies he did focusing on white (male) college students being put in a situation to interact with a black (male) college student, and his conclusions that stereotype threat had an (adverse) impact on those white students' comfort and authenticity going into those interactions -- that concern about confirming stereotypes about white men as racially insensitive affected their ability to engage comfortably. When the stereotype threat was reduced, they were more able to engage. SO interesting and intuitively accurate, for me.

By the way, I need to go find your thread....

>145 jnwelch: You and Richard are both so welcome, Joe. It's what we do around here, yes? We help one another find wonderful books. Some might say we go overboard but I would, of douse, beg to differ. :-)

Here's a random notion: the use of "one another" vs "each other" ~~~

Thoughts?

Hmmm. I think for me it depends on the sound of the whole sentence Ellen. But also the context. ‘to love one another’ or ‘to love each other’, for example, are slightly different somehow.

>146 EBT1002: It turned out to be a not-so-micro review of Whistling Vivaldi, Ellen, but it's over on my thread and on the book page.

I've got to learn to be more micro!

>149 Caroline_McElwee: "To love one another" is an exhortation in my ears, to open the field of love's action in the world to a wider pool of potential beneficiaries. "To love each other" sounds like a description to me, a comment on a couple or a family that is exceptionally close.

>149 Caroline_McElwee: Yes, those were my thoughts, as well, Caroline. I found myself wondering if there is a rubric for their respective use. Or a sort of British English vs American English thing?

>150 jnwelch: I see no reason for you to learn to be more micro, Joe. I enjoyed your review and I gave it an up-thumb.

>151 richardderus: Hmmm, interesting. So you wouldn't say about P and me, for example, that we love one another. You would say we love each other (which is true most days). But you would say that what the world needs now is for humans to love one another more. (Well, okay, you might not say that, exactly, but.... *smile*)

Hi, Ellen. I am so glad you enjoyed both Bel Canto & Rules of Civility. I am with you on both. I am not sure why we disagree so strongly, on Commonwealth. It nearly earned the full boat for me. Despite that glaring disparity, you will remain one of my closest LT buddies. Grins...

I hope I can convince you to request Her Body and Other Parties. It is a terrific collection.

>113 EBT1002: WOW! Love that there are books in it too :) :) :P

A+ on your book reports, Ellen ;) You are all caught up with reviews, and so many good star ratings too!!

>152 EBT1002: Thanks for the thumb that upped! I'm glad you liked the review.

My problem, that leads to the micro idea, is that currently I'm reviewing about 1 in 10 of the books I read! I'd like to comment on more, but I keep getting carried away by the good ones like Whistling Vivaldi.

>153 msf59: Hi Mark. I seem to be in the minority all around on Commonwealth so you can rest easy in knowing that the aberration is mine. I don't know why it didn't work for me. I think there is a category of fiction works that work for lots of people other than me. Given that I tend to love richly wrought characters, I am somewhat surprised by this trend in my responses (the other one that comes to mind is Olive Kitteridge). I'm still trying to figure out what falls short for me in this little group of works. It may have to do with a visceral response to mass fervor for a work but then I would have the same response to A Gentleman in Moscow and Wolf Hall, both of which I loved. So, I have no idea what this is about.

I think I mentioned on your thread that I have been eyeing Her Body and Other Parties in my recent bookshop expeditions but haven't quite shifted into purchase mode. Your warbling nudges me....

>154 LovingLit: Well, yeah, Megan, there would be books in it! :-)
And thanks for the A+. I fell way behind but now I'm caught up and I'm about halfway through my next great read, The Bingo Palace. I worry that I'm still overrating books I read but I remind myself that (a) there are SO many wonderful books out there, and (b) I tend to read things that come recommended or have been reviewed by a respected (by me) critic, so it would make sense that most of my reads would be in the 3+ stars range.

>155 jnwelch: I hear you about the micro review being conducive to completing more reviews, Joe. I sometimes think I want to write and write and write about a great book but once I sit down at my computer, the words tend to flow only to a certain point.

When I was in college and flirting with an English major (I've told you all the story about why I didn't major in English, right?), a frequent bit of feedback I got from the English professors I did take classes from was that I was a concise writer. This was articulated to me as a virtue. I think it's shortness of patience rather than raw talent but, whatever.

^ Cracking myself up as I read my own post. I wasn't flirting with a person who was an English major (although that would not have been outside the realm of possibility). I was flirting with majoring in English my own self!

>152 EBT1002: But you would say that what the world needs now is for humans to love one another more.

Grammatically correct but if you attribute such a soppy sappy sentimental utterance to me I shall file suit against you for defamation of character!

(But yes.)

>157 EBT1002: OIC

I was rather wondering who the said English major was.

>158 richardderus: Yes, that is what I thought, Richard. So I would never, ever, never attribute such a sentiment to you.

(except I know better)

"OIC" :-)

>159 EBT1002: I am pleased to hear it.

>157 EBT1002: Glad you cleared that up, although from the rest of the original post, I did gather what you meant! (As one guilty not only of flirting with an English major -in both senses- but of going the distance by being one and marrying one, I think it's a shame you didn't carry on...)

That is, with one exception (one that has a personal and emotional resonance for me), the absolute neatest tattoo I've ever seen.

Hi Ellen, congrats on your tattoo, I am both far too big a chicken and too undecided to actually choose one, but my hat's off to anyone who choses and goes through with it!

Do you know the location of the painting in >122 EBT1002:? It immediately made me think of Ganges Harbour on Saltspring Island, but it could just be the west coast vibe that it has.

>156 EBT1002: WE may be in the minority on Commonwealth! Sorry, Mark.

I have been putting off Bel Canto for the same reason - guess I'll have to consider it again.

LOVE the tattoo

Great review of Rules of Civility. I listened to it a few years ago. It works well on audio.

First charges filed by Mueller: Possibly Paul Manafort!

Hi Ellen!

Your tattoo is beautiful - both in execution and in meanings. Thanks for sharing with us.

>112 EBT1002: I was supposed to read this for book club in 2004 but wasn't in the right frame mind for it. Your review may spur me on. I bought it for the book club read, got rid of it, and bought it again in 2012.

>130 EBT1002: I like your review. I think this first novel by Towles is more nuanced and meaty than AGiM although I rated AGiM higher.

Great comments on Bel Canto, Ellen. I loved it although it's been a while since I read it.

I finished my reread of The Bingo Palace, and loved it as well. I know you said "Poor Lipsha" at the beginning of the novel; I thought it throughout although maybe there's some redemption in the end?

Happy Saturday, Ellen. Just checking in. I'm going to get my Halloween read started, The Legend of Sleepy Hollow and Other Stories. I read some Washington Irving when I was a wee lad, but it's been long enough that this should be fun.

>160 richardderus: :-)

>161 laytonwoman3rd: Cracking me up, Linda. Both being an English major and marrying one -- that is the makings of a literary family (of course).

Linda, your kind words about my tattoo are so wonderful to read. Thank you! It's been such an interesting experience. I think tattoos are so personal and yet others see them and ask about them and try to understand why you chose to put that particular image on your body for all eternity. I have a friend who works at Brown University who has several tattoos and he enthusiastically complimented "the line work." That was a nice compliment to hear, too (perhaps even more for the artist than for me!).

>162 DeltaQueen50: Thanks, Judy. I think your sentiments about a possible tattoo are pretty common. I read a short article about a year ago that shifted my thinking about deciding; it talked about the tattoo not as something that has to permanently represent your deepest essence but as a marker of a particular time and place and circumstance in your life. Still, deciding what I wanted was very difficult and there are still some images out there, or in my mind, that I think I would like.

The painting in >122 EBT1002: is called "Salt Spring Harbour" and was painted in 1969. :-)

>163 Berly: Well, Kim, if I have to be in the minority with anyone, I'm glad to be there with you!

>164 SuziQoregon: Hi Juli! Thanks for loving my tattoo (that really is nice to hear from folks).

I do recommend Bel Canto. Push through the first two chapters; in the third chapter it opened up for me and there was no looking back.

>165 richardderus: I'll believe it will amount to something when I see it, Richard. I am so cynical.....

>166 karenmarie: Thanks, Karen. I'm really loving my tattoo; it's like this personal emblem of something really important. And it's healing beautifully so far! I have friends with tattoos who saw it on Thursday and were amazed at how good it looked on Day 6.

I totally understand the ambivalence about Bel Canto. I had done the same thing: purchased it, let it languish, gave it away, bought it again..... As I said to Juli above, my recommendation is to push through to the third chapter. That's where it sunk its teeth into me.

Interesting that you think Rules of Civility is more nuanced and meaty than A Gentleman in Moscow but rated the latter one higher. My ratings followed that pattern as well but I think I know what you mean. Rules of Civility surprised me with how layered it was.

>167 BLBera: Hi Beth. My reading of The Bingo Palace is going a bit slowly. I'm about 3/5 through it. It was a slow reading week because we had theater tickets both Thursday and Friday nights. But I am enjoying it!

>168 jnwelch: Hi Joe and thanks for checking in! You know, the idea of a "Halloween read" has not been in my repertoire. I might have to think about that for next year.

Congrats on the tattoo! It looks great.

For Your Seattleness:

>172 banjo123: Thanks Rhonda!

>173 richardderus: I love it, Richard.

96. The Bingo Palace by Louise Erdrich




"When you're driving the sweet empty roads between home and Fargo, endless and empty possibilities surround you. That's the view I like, all nothing particular. Sky, fields, and the signs of human attempts to alter same so small and unimportant and forgettable as you whiz by. I like blending into the distance. Passing shelter belts and fields that divide the world into squares, I always think of the chaos underneath. The signs and boundaries and markers on the surface are laid out strict, so recent that they make me remember how little time has passed since everything was high grass, taller than we stand, with no end. Beasts covered it. Birds by the million. Buffalo. If you sat still in one place they would parade past you for three days, head to head. Goose flocks blotted the sun, their cries like great storms. Bears. No ditches. Sloughs, rivers, and over all the winds, the vast winds blowing and careening with nothing in the way to stop them --- no buildings, fence lines to strum, no drive-in movie screens to bang against, not even trees."

I'm not sure this is the best paragraph to capture the essence of this novel but the image it generated for me was so irresistible. One of Louise Erdrich's Love Medicine novels, The Bingo Palace tells the story of young Lipsha Morrissey, lost in his agonizing love for Shawnee Ray Toose, and struggling to figure out the trajectory of his life. His deep friendship with his uncle Lyman (really, his cousin, but the relationships in this novel are complicated and best left to imprecise analysis), who is also in love with Shawnee Ray and has fathered a child with her, lends even greater angst to Lipsha's longing. This storyline of young love threads its way through a greater story, the story of the family and the community and the tragedies that have marked its history. Erdrich's lyrical prose blends dreams and myths and straightforward prose, all with an unflinchingly honest and compassionate lens focused on her characters. You can tell that Erdrich loves these characters, in all their humanity, the sublime and the base. But her love doesn't distract her from the story, nor from the inevitable strands from which life is woven, the tragic, tough, absurd, and glorious threads of the universal human experience.

In December I'm scheduled to read The Painted Drum but I'm thinking I need to go back and shoehorn in The Beet Queen, which I was supposed to read in August.

I have a stack of library books, all of which have a queue attached to them, which means I can't renew them. Since I'm leaving for NC on Thursday, I will have to return all of them before I go in order to avoid fines accruing. I want to read all of them but I chose to start The Tragedy of Brady Sims by Ernest J. Gaines this afternoon. I think I can finish it before I leave Thursday.

>175 EBT1002: Lovely review!

>176 EBT1002: Sounds like an excellent choice to me. Do you expect to be able to review it before or after your trip?

Great comments on The Bingo Palace, Ellen. I plan to read her new one when it comes out.

A break! So, have you decided what books to take on your visit to your sister? How long will you be gone? Safe travels. Relax!

I November Kim and I are hosting another Murakami shared read/group read.

The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle thread is up!

>177 richardderus: Well, Richard, it may depend on how close to the wire I am. I may write a review while on the airplane high above the middle west of the US. :-)

>178 BLBera: Hmm, I don't think I realized that Erdrich has a new one coming out. Maybe I knew that....

Thursday is travel day -- getting from Seattle to Asheville is no short trek. Then I am there for five unfettered days of relaxation, sister-time, and reading. :-) I return on Wednesday, November 8, work on the 9th, and have the 10th off for Veterans' Day.

On the docket to accompany me in paperback form are:
Manhattan Beach (thank you, Mark) and
The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle

I'm not sure what else. I need to check the status of my Kindle, with which I tend to lose touch....

I'm sure there are lots of folks paying no attention whatsoever to the World Series, but I gotta say: this is one of the most entertaining series in (my) memory. I don't care who wins and I'm really enjoying the up-down competitive nature of this competition.

>181 EBT1002: I agree, Ellen! Being on the east coast, we usually watch the game off and on until bedtime, but we don't care enough to stay up until the end. It's fun and sometimes, like today, kind of amazing to see the final score in the morning.

Hi Ellen!

>176 EBT1002: Have fun in Asheville. I live about 3 1/2 hours from there in central NC.

>179 EBT1002: Thanks for setting the thread up, Ellen! I'm in, and my copy of The Wind-up Bird Chronicle should arrive by tomorrow evening.

Hey there! Thanks for setting up our thread. : )

Its been years since I read The Bingo Palace, but I remember really liking it. Great review. Happy Monday in your short work week. : )

Happy Monday, Ellen, may the week fly until your Thursday shlep through the skies and airports of the Land of the "Free".

Safe travels, Ellen.

I was in Asheville too long ago to remember it much, but our eastern TN think it's great, and want to get us there. Relaxation, sister-time and reading - sounds perfect.

Hi, Ellen. Hooray for your upcoming vacation and your visit with your sister. Mine is back in Oregon. I will miss her. Looks like you have some nice reads lined up too. Enjoy.

Not up for a reread of The Wind-up Bird Chronicle yet, but I would like to, at some point.

Have a great getaway, Ellen

How lovely to have a break and some Sister time. I have a ritual of spending my birthday week with my sister in Lyme Regis in May each year, which is a real treat.

97. The Tragedy of Brady Sims by Ernest J. Gaines




Brady Sims shoots a young man who has just been convicted of murder. Right there in the courtroom, Brady up and shoots him. Why? And why does the sheriff give Brady a two-hour head-start in his flight from the law? Told largely through the eyes of a cub reporter listening to the story of Brady Sims told by a gathering of men in the local barber shop, this is a poignant and funny novella, providing a brief but stirring glimpse into the life of a small southern community steeped in Jim Crow segregation.

>191 EBT1002: It's too cold outside. My aging, arthritic impression of Neo from The Matrix did not work. You got me, darn your eyes, I'm book-bulleted and hard.

>191 EBT1002: Sounds good, and not one I've come across - adding it to the wishlist. Also, I appear to have tripped over Neo on my way through. Apologies...

Trick or Treat!

98. Transfer: Poems by Naomi Shihab Nye




This is a wonderful collection centered around Nye's loss of her father to kidney disease. He was a writer and an optimist. Many of the poems use his desire for peace in the Middle East as a springboard for Nye's emotionally resonant work, but she uses her memories of him to explore love, loss, family, homeland, anger, and war. Highly recommended.

Amir & Anna

Amir can't sleep.
He dives under his bed.
Anna is afraid of everything.
Parked cars, moving buses.
Anna is afraid of toast.
Their names begin with "A,"
contain the same number of letters.
They live one mile apart.
No one has given them
what they deserve.
Around both their houses,
all the Arab and Jewish houses,
red poppies sleep beneath
dirt and stones.
What do they know?
In March green spokes
with fluttering heads
rise and rise on every side.

+++++++++++++++++++++++

Won't You Still Love Me When I'm Dead?

That stopped the room.
Then, Yes! Yes!
Impossible to arrange your pillows
any comfortable way.
Tangles sheets, lives going on outside.
Where else could we have taken you?
On your last day we left for a walk,
needing orange flowers, green leaves.
You refused final dinner tray.
Ate a small can of hummus from my purse.
Everything hurt by then.
Electric lines buzzed with birds.
You called your old friend, said goodbye.
I turned my back to check e-mail.
Who was I hoping to hear from?
You were right there. Cracking
thunder the moment you left.
We'll still love you when we're dead too.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++

Lying While Birdwatching

Yes Yes

I see it

so they won't keep telling you

where it is

Undone

The workmen closed our street and sidewalk with striped yellow
sawhorses. They noisily drilled up all four corner curbs. Their
faces focused, intent on the task. They poured wet cement ---
raking, smoothing to damp slopes. Cement mixer rumbled and
churned --- six men, two days of work. Everyone detoured around
them.

I could easily have gone out with a nail at sunset to engrave a
moon an start in one corner of the blank gray slab, and even if
no one else notices the fresh cement had been inscribed, I would
have known, every time I rode my bike down the smooth slope
to the old gray street you once crossed on two feet.

It makes me glad I never had to push a wheelchair with you in it
down that slope.

Could have written your name, made a heart nearly too tiny to
see --- metal nail file, ice pick, needle-nose pliers, stick. Those
were the days I paused, so stunned, in the middle of everything,
as the shock swept over me.

How could you leave your desk?
Telephone numbers in your black notebook, battered briefcase,
cup of unsharpened pencils, your pens that never wrote very
well, your little Post-it pads? Marc, the nice librarian, his number
inked on top of the pad. The last number you ever wrote. Mom
cancelled your cell phone two days after you died. I could not
believe this. What if you had called us?

~ Naomi Shihab Nye

>182 lauralkeet: And we get our seventh game!

>183 karenmarie: Hi Karen! I'll wave at you as the plane comes in for the landing. :-)

I'm glad you'll be joining us for the November group read of Wind-Up Bird Chronicle.

>184 Berly: You're welcome, Kim. I'm excited to be doing another Murakami group read with you!

>185 richardderus: Thanks, Richard! Two down, one to go. Thursday is travelreading day!

>186 BLBera: Thanks Beth!

>187 jnwelch: Joe, I am confident that you would enjoy a couple of days in Asheville. Malaprop's is a respectable indie bookstore, there are several worthwhile art galleries, a couple of excellent chocolate shops, and a handful of very good restaurants. All in a lovely mountain setting. With too many people (much like Seattle).

>188 msf59: Hiya Mark. I'm sorry our November Wind-Up Bird Chronicle group read is not coming at a good time for you, but I haven't read it yet so I suppose you get more flexibility when it would be a reread for you!

I'm excited to see my sister, spend some time in Asheville (which is very much like Portland, Oregon, in culture and vibe). And, of course, I'm super excited to have lots of reading time for 7 consecutive days. :-)

>189 jessibud2: Thanks Shelley!

>190 Caroline_McElwee: Sisters are (or at least can be) special, Caroline. Mine is 17 years older than I, so our relationship is somewhat nontraditional. She is integrally connected to my love of reading; I grew up in a reading family but my sister is the only one who overtly influenced (in a good way) my reading choices and my absolute love of reading. It's fun that I have been able to introduce her to new authors through my connections on LT.

>192 richardderus: Well, at least I can say that it's a quick read, Richard! ;-) xo

>193 charl08: I think you and Richard will both enjoy The Tragedy of Brady Sims, Charlotte.

I confess that I'm not familiar with the Neo references.... Never saw The Matrix.
I know, I just lost serious cred.

>194 Berly: Ha! I have a bowl full of Kit Kats and Butterfingers, Kim, if that will do ya. We get very few trick-or-treaters at our house, more's the pity.

When I spent those three months in Poland in 1981, I learned about the local tradition of All Soul's Day, November 1st, when a visit to the graveyard to pay homage to one's dead family members was required. It is a beautiful holiday. I have vivid memories of walking through the cemeteries, all of them brightly lit with candles, filled not with a morbid sense of loss but a glow of hope and eternity.
Even as a non-believer, I was deeply moved.

Wow! Cool photos and tradition.

>200 EBT1002: Beautiful. I like the Mexican Day of the Dead on 2 November:

>199 EBT1002: Kit Kat please. : ) And I have lots of leftovers, too. What would you like? Skittles, Milky Way, Whoppers, Mild Duds...

>199 EBT1002: we hardly get any either, it really isn't /wasn't a big thing here. But it is catching on now, more's the pity (!!). I was quite into it, considering I was dragged into it rather unwillingly by my children. New year if we still have a dirt patch in the front (which is on the cards given my lack of inclination to garden) I might put a grave stone up, and a pretend person emerging from the dirt!

Ellen--Also, talked by bookclub in to reading all about love: new visions by bell hooks and I think you and I both got that one at Powell's. Any chance you want to read it end of this month? You know...after Murakami?

Happy November 1st, Ellen! Love your new tattoo!

I never get many trick-or-treaters, either, so yesterday I went to spend it with Scout. She was the cutest little dinosaur ever. She went out with mom and dad for about an hour and when she came back told me that she had been to a hundred houses and had a hundred candy. She got to open three and she shared. I love hald-eaten gummies!

Ellen!!! I just responded to your message on my thread about coming to Philly in March and I'm so excited I decided to stop by your thread as well. Yay yay yay!! I've made a note of the dates on my calendar and look forward to planning a meetup as the date approaches and/or when your travel and work schedule is sorted.

>208 lauralkeet: Oh, my. Now that cat is out of the bag. You must tell us all when, so we can descend on Phillie like locusts.

>191 EBT1002: Hmmm....I've read and enjoyed a couple of Gaines's novels, but I never heard of that one. BB!

>209 ffortsa: there's been a bit of discussion on my thread about a March Philly meetup. I suggest Ellen and I connect, say in January, to set a date and we'll take it from there.

>201 Berly: It is one of my favorite memories from Poland.

>202 richardderus: Ooh, those are cool pics, Richard. I'm intrigued by the juxtaposition of the morbid skeletons and the beautifully candlelit cemetery. I'm not a Catholic and never have been but majority-Catholic countries seem to have some pretty cool traditions and rituals around remembering the dead.

>203 Berly: I think Kit Kats are one of the most popular candy bars, Kim. I would trade for one of those Milky Way bars, thank you. :-)

Although Milk Duds are a sentimental favorite for me for a very different reason: my dad always bought a box of Milk Duds and a bag of popcorn at the cinema. They are an excellent pairing.

>204 LovingLit: A dirt patch in the front yard is perfect for your plans, Megan!

>205 Berly: YES. I will just need to find it (but your memory is correct). :-)

>206 ChelleBearss: Thanks Chelle! I love that meme -- and it is so true...

>207 BLBera: A hundred candy! That is so darn cute. I'm glad you got to have some Halloween time with Scout.

>208 lauralkeet: Excellent. :-)

>209 ffortsa: LOL, Judy. It would be great to have a massive meet-up in Philly!

>210 laytonwoman3rd: Glad I got you with that one, Linda. It was just published this year. I can't remember where I heard/read about it but I'm glad I put it on hold at the library.

>211 lauralkeet: I need to return to your thread to see what chaos I have started, Laura. :-)
I like the idea of connecting early in 2018 to do a bit of planning. I will peruse the conference schedule and identify a chunk of time when I can get away. I would of course love to go to a beloved local bookstore and perhaps dine together.

I am happily settled in Asheville for a few days with my sister. The weather is lovely (sunny and 73F)! Having had insomnia Wednesday night, I was exhausted for my Thursday travel day so I read less on my transcontinental flight than I might have, but I'm enjoying Jennifer Egan's Manhattan Beach. Also, there will of course be reading time while I'm here but the point is to spend time with my sister, so I may not whip through as many books as I sometimes fantasize about reading while on vacation.

I brought The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle with me so that will be next.

For this month, I am just making note of commitments:
I want to read either The Darling or Lost Memory of Skin for the AAC.
Kim and I are going to read all about love: new visions by bell hooks later in November.
I want to finally read George by Alex Gino this month.

I'll read other things this month, too, but this is the memory-aid list.

Happy Friday, Ellen! I have caught up with you just in time to wish you a vacation full of fabulous! I love Asheville, but I have not been there in several years. I was glad to read that P's surgery is behind her, and that she is doing well. YIKES to the rash because how awful to have to deal with that and recovering from surgery. Craig had his hip replaced several years ago, and his relief was immediate - said he didn't realize how much constant pain he was in until it was suddenly gone.

I had fun caching up with you, but I feel badly that I fell so far behind. Your reviews are always a delight - I like how you write about what you read. Even when it doesn't make me want to read the book, I get something out of your thoughts and enjoy the journey. And your tattoo! So great and I love how it evolved from the simple line drawing of the cat into something more. Very full of fabulous!

I am also reading Manhattan Beach - just started it the morning, as a matter of fact. Really liking it so far.

Mamie!!!!!!!! How lovely to see you here, my dear.

Luckily the rash was short-lived and (we believe) more related to hot temperatures and a bit of post-surgery anxiety than anything else. Prudence's experience has largely been similar to Craig's -- fast relief and astonishment at how persistent and impactful the pain had been.

Thank you for the kind words. I appreciate that my reviews land well, even if they don't make you want to read the book. And I'm glad you like the tattoo! It has been two weeks today and it's healing so beautifully. I'm feeling very fond of it and lucky that I have had so little itching and discomfort. I was nervous to share with my sister and her spouse that I had gotten a tattoo but they took it totally in stride and appreciated that it's a rather cute image (you know, no skulls with snakes wending through the eyeholes - ha!).

I will come visit your thread to catch up on your life now. :-)

I love that we are reading Manhattan Beach together!

73° is precisely what today's high was here! For us, though, it was unseasonable by 5°-7° and so constitutes a small treat. How's the fall color?

>218 richardderus: It's definitely warmer here (Asheville) than normal for this time of year. The color is okay; my sister says that it has not been a stellar leaf year, that they went from summer right to brown. However, I have seen some lovely gold and burgundy trees.

The landing yesterday was amazing. I landed just before sunset and the mountains were beautiful in that evening light. I could see row after row of Blue Ridge mountains from my window seat. Nice.

Hi Ellen!

Glad you're settled in with your sister. Have a wonderful time.

>219 EBT1002: It was a drought year for much of the east coast, the color's not what it usually is. I miss the intensity.

That landing sounds breathtaking. Wonderful way to start the visit.

Happy Friday, Ellen. I hope you are having a lovely visit with your sister. One year, I would love to meet you in Asheville. I LOVE that town.

Hooray for Manhattan Beach. I am so glad that two of my best LT pals are enjoying it.

>220 karenmarie: Thanks Karen.

>221 richardderus: Yeah, but climate change is a hoax, just so you know, Richard.

>222 msf59: Mark, I would be totally up for a meet-up in Asheville. LT could take over the town!

It's a good read so far, Mark, so thanks for all your warbling about Manhattan Beach! I'm glad to be co-reading with Mamie whom I love but on whose thread I frequently fall behind.

Dinner was Pasta with Lemon Cream Sauce. And white wine.

YUM.

So, I'm thinking about a reading challenge for 2018. My sister and her spouse are very involved in the Asheville OLLI:

"The Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI) at UNC Asheville is an award-winning, internationally-acclaimed learning community dedicated to promoting lifelong learning, leadership, community service, and research. Our goal is to enable our members to thrive in life’s second half."

They take classes every quarter and each of them has taught a few classes, as well. The institute is very active and quite successful; they pull heavily from UNC-Asheville faculty (usually retired) to teach some of the classes, but others in the community also teach.

Anyway, she is going to share with me the reading list for a class that is scheduled for spring 2018 on African American Autobiography. I'm thinking to take that reading list and adapt it for a one-a-month reading challenge for 2018. Malcolm X. Frederick Douglass. bell hooks. Eldridge Cleaver. Anne Moody. Margo Jefferson.

I might do it even if I'm doing it solo but I wonder if there might be interest in joining me.

I’ve already read a few of those, but would be interested in joining in on some others.

>225 EBT1002: - Sounds very good. I would be interested. Does it include biographies or strictly auto-bios?

>226 drneutron: I imagine that will be a somewhat common experience. I don't know how many autobiographies are on the reading list. My sister says she will share it with me and then I might throw it open for some voting. Or I might choose more than one for some months.

>227 jessibud2: The reading list I would be building from is strictly autobiographies, Shelley. Part of the idea, as I understand it, is to read about some of the writers' lives from their own perspectives and through their own words.

>228 EBT1002: - Sounds good. I've already read Obama's so I'm on my way! :-)

I'm very interested to see what titles are on the list.

I know I should scan the thread for updates, but what news of P's new hip? Also, can I recommend an academic article by Caroline Ellis from a Florida university...she wrote an authoethnographical account of her hip's decline into osteoarthritis. I read it as it mirrored my experience in most ways apart from out ages, if it applies to P, it might be of interest. (I think the title is something like "no longer hip")

>228 EBT1002: Oh yeah, Obama would have to be one of my twelve!

>229 jessibud2: I will post once my sis provides them to me, Richard. Of course, I don't have to use the reading list for the OLLI course but that was my original idea. I'll have to give it some thought.

>231 LovingLit: Megan, don't worry about scanning for updates. I sometimes have the same thought when I am far behind -- I want to just ask but then I feel guilty for not reading every post. Does anyone read every post, word for word, of everyone else's threads? Impossible.

Prudence's hip replacement has gone beautifully. She returned to work this past Wednesday. She could have returned weeks ago but took the month of October off just because she could; we called it "practice retirement." She is not in pain, is quite mobile, and is just focused on regaining her strength and conditioning after about a 3-year period of steadily decreasing activity levels due to discomfort. Ever since our 8-day 100-mile trek across the Scottish Highlands, she has been on a steady downhill trajectory. Our plan is to return to hiking our beloved Cascade Mountains (and the Olympics, and wherever else we find ourselves) next spring and summer!

I will see if I can find that article. Osteoarthritis was definitely the culprit in this instance.

>232 EBT1002: I shall await developments with equanimity.


The hip replacement is one of the miracles of modern medicine that amazes me the most. It changes lives. So do knee replacements. I'm headed for one of those before I take my dirt nap, and frankly can't wait.

>224 EBT1002: I want that. Sounds delicious.

>225 EBT1002: This is an intriguing idea, Ellen - I'll be interested to see the list.

Hoping your Saturday is full of delight.

>225 EBT1002: count me in Ellen.

>232 EBT1002: I think both Obama’s next book, and Michelle’s are due out next year Ellen. I read his first two before he became President.

Glad P has recovered well.

>232 EBT1002:, >233 richardderus: So great! I'm had a lot of confidence that it would go well for P, Ellen; they are aces these days with hip replacements. The only ones I know who have had post-op problems took the couch potato route, and didn't properly do the rehab.

I imagine the Cascades will go swimmingly (or hikingly) when the time comes. Years ago, I was tromping all over London in April after getting my first replacement in January. The surgeon said I'd be able to, and he was right.

Ellen, it sounds like you got out of Snowy Seattle just in time. My husband’s late afternoon flight was delayed almost 3 hours. He felt lucky to get a connecting flight out of Denver to make it home late last night. Enjoy your sister-time in Asheville!

Enjoy the time with your sister, Ellen! I am thinking of scaling down on the challenges next year, but the Autobiography challenge does sound good.... I would probably join on some.

>233 richardderus: I agree, Richard. I don't know a single person who has had a hip or knee replacement and not said that it changed their lives for the better by a long shot! I think knees are a bit trickier than hips but it's all in doing the exercises during recovery.

>234 Crazymamie: The pasta with lemon cream sauce as yummy indeed, Mamie. It is a recipe from the New York Times.

I think I might be able to get the reading list from my sister after we get through this evening's dinner. Having people over, she's making a big dinner and is nervous about it all coming off well.

>235 Caroline_McElwee: Oh good, Caroline.

>236 Caroline_McElwee: I have had Obama's two books on my shelves and haven't read either of them. I will be sure to include some form of option for reading either of his or Michele's in the challenge.

>237 jnwelch: Yep, the couch potato route is the sure pathway to hip (or knee) dissatisfaction, Joe.

I don't know whether I have a hip (probably not) or knee (perhaps) replacement in my future. As a runner, of course, there is the assumption that I'm ruining my knees and will inevitably have to have surgery but I fully believe the use-'em-or-lose-'em philosophy. My knees hurt far worse when I am sedentary than when I am running regularly.

Speaking of which, I went for a run this morning and it was such a lovely fall morning for it!

I'm glad to hear that within four months of your surgery you were tromping around London. I'll pass that along to Prudence to give her yet another story of optimism.

>238 Donna828: Who knew that I needed to worry about snow in Seattle in the first few days of November, Donna! Crazy! Here in Asheville, I ran in shorts and a short-sleeved shirt this morning and I'm sitting here now in jeans and a t-shirt with the door to the patio open. Nice.

>239 banjo123: Hi Rhonda and thank you! So far we're having a nice visit. Honestly, I'm planning to scale back on challenges in 2018 as well. My list of "planned reads" for 2017 was far too ambitious and I ended up eschewing much of it for a more spontaneous approach. I like being able to read what I want to read when I want to read it. But this one felt like something I could host.

>241 EBT1002: For what it's worth, Ellen, my knee problems were due to my hip problems. The arthritic "lace" at the hip joints created all sorts of instability and stress and strain on the knee joints. When I got the new hips, the knees blessedly became so much better. I ain't young, so it's not all rainbows and lollipops, but it's close enough.

Definitely interested in the challenge you mention Ellen, although as you say, have read some of them. I'd particularly like to read more about Harriet Tubman and later women writers.

>242 jnwelch: I hear that kind of story a lot, Joe. The hip bone is connected to the thigh bone. The thigh bone is connected to the knee bone. You know....

Still, you should have rainbows and lollipops, imo.....

>243 charl08: Good to know, Charlotte. Once I have the reading list from the actual class, I will do some picking and choosing and perhaps open the floor for suggestions. I would be very interested in reading Harriet Tubman and other African-American women write about their lives.