PGMCC explores the Biblioverse in 2023: Chapter 2

Esto es una continuación del tema PGMCC explores the Biblioverse in 2023: Chapter 1.

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PGMCC explores the Biblioverse in 2023: Chapter 2

1pgmcc
Editado: Mar 10, 2023, 5:48 am

Books completed in 2023

Title; Author; Status; Start/end date; Number of pages
The Family Jewels by Caimh McDonnell 28/12/2022 - 02/01/2023 276 pages
Novelist as Vocation by Haruki Murakami 02/01/2023-12/01/2023 208 pages
The Tattoo Murder by Akimitsu Takagi 12/01/2023- 20/01/2023 377 pages
Once Upon A Tome by Oliver Darkshire 21/01/2023 - 23/01/2023 247 pages
Stranger Times by C. K. McDonnell 23/01/2023 - 31/01/2023 441 pages
The Three Evangelists by Fred Vargas 01/02/2023 - 05/02/2023 304 pages
Under The Duvet by Marian Keyes 03/02/2023 - 674 pages
The Charming Man by C. K. McDonnell 06/02/2023 - 13/02/2023 498 pages
Love Will Tear Us Apart byC. K. McDonnell 15/02/2023 - 25/02/2023 448 pages
Richard Harris Raising Hell and Reaching for Heaven by Joe Jackson 24/02/2023 - 357 pages
Hopeland by Ian McDonald 26/02/2023 - 10/02/2023 648 pages

My next read list: https://www.librarything.com/topic/345713#8000096

2pgmcc
Feb 15, 2023, 4:10 am



I am starting this thread reading Love Will Tear Us Apart by C.K. McDonnell, Book 3 in his Stranger Times series.

I started reading it on the bus this morning and am enjoying it. I know MrsLee will be reading it soon.

3hfglen
Feb 15, 2023, 5:14 am

Happy new thread!

4clamairy
Feb 15, 2023, 8:29 am

Happy New Thread, and Happy New Life! 🎉

5haydninvienna
Feb 15, 2023, 8:31 am

What >3 hfglen: and >4 clamairy: said.

6MrsLee
Feb 15, 2023, 12:03 pm

>2 pgmcc: Yes I will, it is taking massive amounts of self control to finish the other book I have started so I can read this one. In the meantime, the lovely hardcover is sitting by my chair being admired.

7pgmcc
Feb 15, 2023, 1:53 pm

>6 MrsLee:
You have an immediate advantage over me; my copy is the Kindle edition.

>3 hfglen:; >4 clamairy:; >5 haydninvienna:
Thank you!

Today I had my retirement lunch with my direct team and my wife came along. There were ten of us all told and no one said anything nasty about me. In fact, my wife was impressed at how friendly everyone was and that they all said nice things. :-)

When I joined the organisation in 2008 I was assigned to a particular team and we all got on famously. Over the years I have worked in different teams and on various projects. About four years ago I was given a role that brought me into close contact with most of the people who were in my original team. These are the people who organised today’s lunch. It was like getting the band back together. It was a great get-together and the food was superb. I even had an Irish coffee in a non-regulation Irish coffee glass. It was an Italian restaurant so I forgave them on this occasion. :-)

8pgmcc
Feb 15, 2023, 2:26 pm

There was an interesting coincidence at today’s lunch. It turns out that when my wife left her job with the telephone company 35 years ago, it was one of my current colleagues who got her job.

9Karlstar
Feb 15, 2023, 3:00 pm

>7 pgmcc: Congratulations! How'd the speech go?

10jillmwo
Feb 15, 2023, 3:49 pm

I even had an Irish coffee in a non-regulation Irish coffee glass. It was an Italian restaurant so I forgave them... Your charity -- after a good luncheon has been provided -- is noteworthy!

Very, very soon you get to enjoy the perks of a life well-employed!

11pgmcc
Feb 15, 2023, 4:06 pm

>10 jillmwo: Your charity is noteworthy!"

I am all forgiveness. :-)

12haydninvienna
Feb 15, 2023, 4:08 pm

Hope you had a great day, Peter. Still want details of the speech though.

13pgmcc
Feb 15, 2023, 4:20 pm

There were several speeches. The Head of Pricing & International spoke for a while. The Director of International spoke for a while. I spoke for a while. We all said nice things about each other as we have become good friends as well as good colleagues. Everyone at the lunch from work has worked with everyone else, and worked very co-operatively over the years. Rank and politics were never an issue with these people. We all got on with the job, co-operated with one another, and helped one another without any demarcation or self promotion. It is the best way for an espionage team a team to work.

I was saying nice things about the Head of Pricing & International, who happened to be the first person in the organisation that I had a real getting-to-know-you meeting with and whom I have kept very close to over my fifteen years in the company. He interrupted me saying today was about me and not him, so I agreed to repeat the same things in July when he is retiring. :-)

14Sakerfalcon
Feb 16, 2023, 7:45 am

Happy retirement Peter! I'm glad you had a good send-off and that everyone had nice things to say about you (not that I would expect anything else!) Good colleagues can really make or break a job, and yours sound like the best.

15majkia
Feb 16, 2023, 11:30 am

Happy Retirement! It's great for us readers.

16pgmcc
Feb 16, 2023, 12:01 pm

>14 Sakerfalcon:
Thank you, Claire. It was a very relaxed and comfortable lunch. I would consider the team members to be friends as much as colleagues. You are correct when you say good colleagues make or break a job. I was very fortunate to work with the people I have been working with.

>15 majkia: Thank you. I am hoping my retirement will help me catch up with some of the gang here in relation to the number of books read in a year. :-) I have always felt I was in the poor place when I was reporting thirty books and others were reaching their one hundred books in a year challenges.

Onwards and upwards.

17pgmcc
Feb 16, 2023, 4:03 pm



Delivered today while I was at work. (Hee! Hee! After tomorrow I will not be able to say that again. Hee! Hee!) Today was publication date here.

I also ordered copy of the US edition for my daughter and her husband. It was delivered on the US publication date, Tuesday, 14th.



The US cover is a bit more dramatic and appealing than the cover over here, but they are both good.

I have never been disappointed by Ian McDonald's work. He believes Hopeland is his best yet. Given how good his previous books were that is a high bar he has set. I will soon be reading this.

18pgmcc
Editado: Feb 16, 2023, 4:25 pm

I had a look at the Hopeland page. while it is assigned to Ian McDonald, it is assigned to the wrong Ian McDonald. There appear to be 9 Ian McDonalds, and the book is assigned to the fourth Ian McDonald, when it should be to Ian McDonald 1. How can this be corrected?

E.T.A. I discovered how to rectify the problem. We can all rest easy tonight. I was worried I wouldn't be able to sleep. What a relief.

19MrsLee
Feb 16, 2023, 7:39 pm

>16 pgmcc: It's not a competition. Don't feel bad when you lose. ;)

20Narilka
Feb 16, 2023, 8:02 pm

Happy retirement!

21Sakerfalcon
Feb 17, 2023, 7:29 am

I look forward to your review of Hopeland as I too am a big admirer of McDonald's work.

22Jim53
Feb 17, 2023, 9:44 am

>7 pgmcc: Sounds great! I cannot doubt that the nice things you said about one another were well deserved. A great way to spend your penultimate day. Oh my, I need some more protection now for the increased array of bullets.

PS If your experience is like mine, a year from now you'll wonder how you ever found time to work all those hours along with everything else going on in your life.

23ScoLgo
Feb 17, 2023, 7:07 pm

"On Friday I have arranged drinks and finger food for colleagues in a pub near work. That starts at 5pm to accommodate people who want to get off home early. It will also accommodate people who will stay much longer. I have a designated driver. :-)"

I see that local time in Ireland is now after midnight. Are you still at the pub, Peter? Or have you invoked your designated driver? Either way, it looks as though your last week at work has been a good one! I can't help but notice that you will literally be starting off your 'every day is Saturday' routine with an actual Saturday.

Oh, and paraphrasing 'The Problem of Infinite Regress'... "From here on, it's books all the way down!"

242wonderY
Feb 17, 2023, 7:12 pm

Peter,
Just letting you know that we are continuing the celebration of your retirement in this time zone.

You’re welcome.

Sleep well!

25catzteach
Feb 17, 2023, 8:15 pm

Happy retirement!!

26MrsLee
Feb 17, 2023, 10:28 pm

Hope you can sleep in on your first day of retirement!

27Karlstar
Feb 18, 2023, 9:21 am

Happy retirement!

>26 MrsLee: He's probably reading.

28haydninvienna
Feb 18, 2023, 9:46 am

The cat wouldn’t let him sleep in anyway.

29clamairy
Feb 18, 2023, 10:12 am

>28 haydninvienna: I was thinking the exact same thing.

30hfglen
Feb 18, 2023, 10:41 am

Happy retirement!

>28 haydninvienna: >29 clamairy: If Pete's Feline Overlord is anything like our lot, there's equally likely to be complaint if he attempts to move while The Boss is still sleeping!

31pgmcc
Feb 18, 2023, 12:37 pm

>19 MrsLee:
Now, if that is not a gauntlet slapped across my face I do not know what is. :-)

32pgmcc
Feb 18, 2023, 12:38 pm

>20 Narilka:
Thank you. It is shaping up that way. :-)

33pgmcc
Feb 18, 2023, 12:39 pm

>21 Sakerfalcon:
I suspect it might be my next read, just after Love Will Tear Us Apart.

34pgmcc
Feb 18, 2023, 12:41 pm

>22 Jim53:
After >19 MrsLee:'s challenge I have to up my game and will be spraying bullets in all directions.

I suspect I will be, as you say, wondering how I could find the time to go to work.

35pgmcc
Feb 18, 2023, 12:44 pm

>23 ScoLgo:

We were quite civilised. We headed off about 10:45pm. At the time you posted we would have been in the kitchen at home having a cup of tea. To relax we went into the den, turned on an episode of The Mentalist, and promptly went to sleep. I would up about 12:45 and headed to bed.

You make is sound like a playground slide made of books. I now have an image of a Helter-Skelter ride build with books.

36pgmcc
Feb 18, 2023, 12:46 pm

>24 2wonderY:
Thank you for carrying on the celebration.

If you have read Ringworld by Larry Niven, you might remember the opening sequence. One of the characters was celebrating his birthday. To maximise the celebration they would party until near midnight and then teleport into the next time zone to carry on partying.

37pgmcc
Feb 18, 2023, 12:46 pm

>25 catzteach:
Thank you!

38pgmcc
Feb 18, 2023, 12:49 pm

>26 MrsLee:
As several of our colleagues conjectured below, the cat did intervene and interrupt any hope of a nice, long lie-in. He woke me at 5:30am and had me in the kitchen at 6am putting his breakfast in his bowl.

I did go back to bed for a little while and my sainted wife has told me to have a pyjama-day. :-)

39pgmcc
Feb 18, 2023, 12:49 pm

>27 Karlstar:
There was some reading after my return to bed. I hope there will be some more in the next few minutes.

40pgmcc
Feb 18, 2023, 12:50 pm

>28 haydninvienna: & >29 clamairy:
You both nailed it.

I did put the cat out about 06:30 hrs and headed back to bed.

41pgmcc
Feb 18, 2023, 12:55 pm

>30 hfglen:
There is an interesting dynamic in our house. The dog sleeps on the bed when we are in it. That cat sleeps on it when we are not in it. Given this, the cat did not try to get onto the bed, but reached up and tried to claw my shoulder while a the same time putting up this pitiful woe-with-me wail. If that fails to generate the desired level of participation by the huuuuuuman, then it is hop onto the besidetable and start knocking things off one by one. The escalation step after this is to jump onto the old oaken four level chest of drawers and continut the practice of carefully selecting an item and sliding it off the edge.

42pgmcc
Feb 18, 2023, 1:30 pm

Thank you all for the good wishes regarding my retirement. It will take me a bit of time to adjust to not having to think about work and wonder what I need to do in the office.

Yesterday did give me a few interesting moments and thoughts. I will present some here, but may recount others later.

While driving into the office I noticed there was a beautiful watercolour-painting like sky. It was composed of various layers of gray, and some interesting shading. It looked like a surreal painting, like the type of sky Salvadore Dali might have painted. It prompted me to think of the opening sequence of Haruki Murakami's Wind-up Bird Chronicle in which the main character is taking a year out of work to decide what he wants to do with his life. Murakami presents the character's experience of his first morning not commuting to the office as if the character had entered another dimension, and while he was still in his own home, surrounded by familiar objects, he was observing things outside that he normally does not witness as he is always on his way to work. This is typical Murakami and it is one of the things I love about his work.

Having been nudged into that way of thinking I started to realise I was in a similar situation as the character in The Wind-up Bird Chronicle and I have passed into that surreal world that is next to the universe I have been living in for the past forty-four years of my working life.

Another stop and think moment was when I surrendered my work laptop to the IT department at 3pm. I was actually quite busy in the morning, and having carried out a few regular chores I started preparing my laptop for return. One of the things I did was to set my out-of-office message to "Not known at this address." I thought it was appropriate for a postal organisation. (Do not worry. I only set that for internal e-mail addresses. For external one is set, ":-PP"

Handing my laptop felt strange. It was coming to the end of my day, and I had arranged that there was no work jobs I needed to do, but it was almost like an amputation. I handed back my laptop, and given how virtually everything, in fact everything virtual, requires access to a computer I was left feeling there was no work I could do even if I wanted to.

The next magic, or stop for thought moment, happened when I was talking to friends at the retirement do. One of them said, so how will it feel on Monday when the alarm does not go of. That reminded me that my phone alarm was still set for 7am every weekday. I felt a great sense of relief when I took out my phone and deleted that alarm. Phew.

It only took me a few moments to realise how futile the act of switching off the alarm actually was as George will still be meowing from 5:30am to get me up. It did however feel symbolically good to switch off the alarm.

I shall halt this account here for the moment. More on the retirement celebration anon.

43haydninvienna
Feb 18, 2023, 2:15 pm

>36 pgmcc: Real-life example: there are 2 towns in the Gold Coast on the eastern coast of Australia, Tweed Heads and Coolangatta. Tweed Heads is in New South Wales, Coolangatta in Queensland. New South Wales does daylight saving in summer, Queensland does not. Bear in mind that in Australia, New Year’s Eve is in summer. Therefore, the moment of New Year happens in Coolangatta an hour before it does in Tweed Heads. I’m sure you can work out the implications of this.

44pgmcc
Feb 18, 2023, 2:33 pm

>43 haydninvienna:
Time travelling Aussies. Two parties for the price of one.

45hfglen
Feb 18, 2023, 3:17 pm

>43 haydninvienna: Google Earth tells me they're virtually the same town, and suggests it takes all of 4 minutes to get from one to the other. One can only agree with >44 pgmcc:.

46haydninvienna
Editado: Feb 18, 2023, 3:31 pm

>44 pgmcc: >45 hfglen: Indeed they are effectively the same town—the state border runs through the urban area. I hope and believe that the revellers walk rather than drive.

ETA that the runway of the local airport crosses the border too, but I assume that airport time is determined by the terminal being on the Queensland side.

47Karlstar
Feb 18, 2023, 11:07 pm

>42 pgmcc: Hopefully the cat will get used to the new work schedule.

48pgmcc
Feb 19, 2023, 6:57 am

I am currently running around cleaning the house in advance of a SURPRISE retirement party my wife has arranged for me. She first didn’t tell me about it three weeks ago.

49clamairy
Feb 19, 2023, 8:04 am

>48 pgmcc: Haha. Sounds about right. She probably realized you would figure it out, so enlisted your aid with the preparations.

50pgmcc
Editado: Feb 19, 2023, 8:54 am

It is nearly 2pm. Time for the party. I must go downstairs and be surprised. :-)

I am joking about this, but my wife, family and friends have been making my retirement a great event. I love then all.

51MrsLee
Feb 20, 2023, 12:13 am

>50 pgmcc: I have great respect for a woman who gets a man to clean the house for his own surprise party. :)

52Sakerfalcon
Feb 20, 2023, 12:11 pm

>38 pgmcc: Cat-wrangler is a job for life. No retirement allowed.

>48 pgmcc: That's my kind of a surprise party! Plenty of time to prepare.

53jillmwo
Feb 20, 2023, 3:09 pm

>50 pgmcc: Just checking in to see whether you are still recuperating from the party. Did you wake up under the dining room table amidst left-over retirement celebration wreckage or did you wake up in bed with the cat staring down at you and yowling?

54pgmcc
Feb 20, 2023, 4:28 pm

>51 MrsLee:
You have no idea of the power of that lady.

>52 Sakerfalcon:
CAT:
I have been frustrating the cat by closing the bedroom door and denying him access. This results in meowing and scratching at the door from the early hours.

One night I closed the door to keep him out. Twenty minutes later he climbed up on me and meowed. He has been behind the curtains when I had closed the door thus closing him in the room rather than out of it.

SURPRISE PARTY:
My wife openly admits she cannot keep a secret. She has this compunction to tell me what surprise present or event she has planned. She feels pressure when having to keep a secret.

Of course, perhaps that is what she wants me to believe.

>53 jillmwo:
Thank you for investigating my survival of the party.

I woke up to the sound of the cat scratching at the door in the early hours but managed to ignore it until 08:45 hrs.

Today involved a walk to and from the public library, several runs of the dishwasher. I did one last night when our guests left, but there were another two required to clear the backlog after the party.

The guests at the party were all my wife's siblings. Our eldest daughter, her husband and their three children were due to arrive, but the children have been suffering from the winter vomiting bug and it was thought better for them to stay away. We are child-minding them next Sunday, so we will have a little party for them then.

On Tuesday my older son and is fiancée will join us for dinner in a local hostelry for dinner to celebrate my retirement and my birthday. They were due to join us for the party yesterday, but my son was in Spain for work, so we made the other arrangement.

I will produce some reports and photos relating to the retirement celebrations. There were gifts and I will report on these also.

55pgmcc
Feb 20, 2023, 4:35 pm



On Friday morning, one of our Graduate Programme members who I had recruited, a Texan by the way for what that's worth, came into my office and presented me with a gift bag. It contained an embossing tool for me to emboss my books with a seal stating "Library of Peter Mc...". She was slightly upset as the item had only arrived the previous day and the company had misspelled my surname. They were replacing it, and today I was informed the corrected seal has arrived.

The bag also contained a book token.

She was very thoughtful and I love this present. It shows some real thought was put into the gift.

56pgmcc
Feb 20, 2023, 4:53 pm

Friday yielded a wave of gifts and cards, mostly presented to me at the evening drinks session. I was very pleased.



The gifts included:
- Embossing utensil mentioned in the previous post
- A box of Lily O'Brien's hand made chocolates
- Picture of the GPO in a beautiful slate frame
- A tub of porridge oats*
- Framed first-day-cover of a set of exploration commemorative stamps
- Multiple book tokens and gift vouchers

Everyone was very thoughtful and generous.

You may be wondering about the porridge oats. It is a bit of an in-joke. One of my colleagues sent me an invitation late one evening for a 9am online meeting the following morning. It was a bit of short notice but I logged in for the meeting at the assigned time. She did not appear for the meeting that she had called. About 11am I received a call from her and she was all apologies. She confessed she had forgotten all about the meeting she had called and was eating her porridge at the time when she should have been talking to me. As you can imagine, I have not let her forget this event. Every meeting or call I have had with her, especially the meetings with other people attending, I have asked, "Caroline, have you had your porridge yet?", or something to that effect. I am that sort of person. Tell me a secret and I will never mention it in public unless there is a good level of embarrassment to be shelved out.

On Friday night she came up to me and handed me a bag saying, "I know you will appreciate this." I thought it was genius. I keep laughing every time I think of it.

57pgmcc
Feb 20, 2023, 5:22 pm

The Friday night retirement drinks session was very civilised and great conversations where had. I only have one picture from the event.



I had booked the basement lounge and it worked perfectly.

Sunday's event was more of a family event with all my wife's siblings attending.



We had a lovely turkey and ham dinner and two cakes for dessert.



My wife went to a lot of trouble to make a cake showing my path to retirement. She included a camera to represent my hobby, and there is, as I have mentioned before, always an elephant.

One of my sister-in-laws made some little marzipan books which were added to the cake at a later stage. I do not have any pictures of those. They were great.

58pgmcc
Feb 20, 2023, 5:25 pm



I mentioned book tokens and vouchers. These will keep me supplied with books for at least a year.

592wonderY
Feb 20, 2023, 5:33 pm

>58 pgmcc: Perfect. Just in time to throw an anniversary of retirement party. Surprise, of course.

60pgmcc
Feb 20, 2023, 5:38 pm

>59 2wonderY: I like the way you think.

One other benefit I have with all the book tokens: I will be supporting physical bookshops. The tokens are not for use online.

A further benefit: I will have to go into bookshops to browse for books.

61jillmwo
Feb 20, 2023, 6:02 pm

Are you sure you're well-supplied for a year's worth of book acquisition? I mean, quite sure? No room for doubt? One's thingaversary alone can represent quite a hit to the pocketbook; retirement may drive even greater expenditures. Because it's up to you to support those bookshops.

More seriously, you had a lovely party and you have a lovely family.

62Karlstar
Feb 20, 2023, 7:35 pm

>57 pgmcc: >58 pgmcc: Great pictures and thanks for the story. Good to know that people know you so well and indulge your book habit.

>55 pgmcc: I have one of those for my books too.

63ScoLgo
Feb 20, 2023, 8:40 pm

Looks like a great time - and some nice gifts!

The oatmeal thing resonates; it is exactly the kind of thing that my sister and I would do to for each other. ;)

64MrsLee
Feb 20, 2023, 9:20 pm

I am getting the distinct impression that you are well loved. :) Deservedly so.

65clamairy
Feb 20, 2023, 9:31 pm

What great photos, and gifts. And I love the porridge tale! Enjoy those tokens, and your free time. I'm so happy for you and for your family.

66haydninvienna
Feb 20, 2023, 11:36 pm

I see a couple of Chapters vouchers in there. Good to know it’s still going.

But what a happy occasion (except possibly for the cat). Bless you all. I second what >64 MrsLee: said.

67Sakerfalcon
Feb 21, 2023, 8:13 am

What lovely gifts and an amazing cake! I'm glad you've had such wonderful celebrations and that they have given you the opportunity to spend time with some of the people you love the most. And you still have the pleasure of spending the book tokens to look forward to! Retirement really does seem to be the gift that keeps on giving!

68Narilka
Feb 21, 2023, 7:49 pm

Such lovely and thoughtful gifts! Looks like you had a great celebration. Congrats again!

69pgmcc
Feb 22, 2023, 4:05 pm

I caught my first glimpse of the UK cover for Titanium Noir, Nick Harkaway's new book that is due out on 4th May on this side of the Atlantic.



I think it looks good. In fact, I think it looks great.

70jillmwo
Feb 22, 2023, 5:07 pm

>69 pgmcc: The darkish red of the UK cover is much more attractive to my way of thinking than the green used in the US cover design.

71pgmcc
Feb 22, 2023, 5:52 pm

>70 jillmwo: I agree.

72pgmcc
Feb 22, 2023, 5:59 pm

I have been busy today. A major part of my busy-ness was using up some of the book tokens I received as gifts for my retirement. The result of my efforts are shown in the picture below.



It was a nice day. :-)

73MrsLee
Feb 22, 2023, 6:49 pm

Oh, books! Lovely.

74jillmwo
Feb 22, 2023, 7:26 pm

Goodness gracious! I think one of my sons has started in on James Corey, but I don't know if he is aware that there's a series that stretches out through 8 or 9 volumes. Have you already gone through some number of those (prior to retirement)?

BTW, as I had anticipated, you used up those book tokens mighty quickly!

75clamairy
Feb 22, 2023, 7:53 pm

>72 pgmcc: What a wonderful haul!

76Karlstar
Feb 22, 2023, 11:22 pm

>72 pgmcc: Nice! I'll be interested to see what you think of The Expanse.

77pgmcc
Editado: Feb 24, 2023, 7:28 pm

I watched and enjoyed the screen adaptation of The Expanse. I am always reluctant to start a book series as it can be quite a commitment, and with having to go to work... Oh yea! I no longer have to go to work. :-)

A former work colleague has been reading the Expanse books and has just finished the last one. He has been waxing lyrical about the series, and hence I have been thinking I might try it. With the arrival of book vouchers, and finding all nine books in Chapters, the decision was made.

By the way, >74 jillmwo:, The Expanse books only used up three of the vouchers; Fire in the Thatch and Carthage took up a quarter of the Easons voucher. I still have a Hodges Figgis voucher with a lot of value on it. :-)

Fire in the Thatch is part of the British Library Crime Classics series and I have found myself liking these books.

I know very little about Carthage but am keen to read some books by Joyce Carol Oates.

78Sakerfalcon
Feb 24, 2023, 5:38 am

>72 pgmcc:, Ah, that's a beautiful sight! I wish you many hours of pleasure with your new books!

79pgmcc
Feb 24, 2023, 2:33 pm

>78 Sakerfalcon: Thank you, Claire.

80pgmcc
Feb 24, 2023, 6:59 pm



I had lunch today with an old friend. He gave me the biography of Richard Harris saying, "I knew it's not your genre, but what's not to love about Richard Harris?"

The full title of the book is "Richard Harris Raising Hell and Reaching for Heaven". The touchstone only works for the "Richard Harris" part of the title.

I read the Prologue and like the style of the writing. I think I am hooked.

81clamairy
Feb 24, 2023, 7:14 pm

>80 pgmcc: Great cover! I hope the inside is just as good.

82haydninvienna
Feb 24, 2023, 7:23 pm

>80 pgmcc: You may recall that in the late 60s Richard Harris had a brief career as a singer—in Camelot and in a certain song about a soggy cake. (There was an album, which I owned and still have on CD, called A Tramp Shining.) The soggy cake song was written by Jimmy Webb, who AFAIK is still with us. A few years ago in London I had the privilege of seeing Jimmy Webb live. His stories of riotous nights with Richard Harris were, um, riotous.

83pgmcc
Feb 24, 2023, 7:27 pm

>81 clamairy:, so far so good.

>82 haydninvienna: I certainly remember his singing Camelot. I do not recall the soggy cake song, but shall investigate.

Looking at the index I see almost twenty references to Jimmy Webb and several of them are multi-page references. I shall report back when I have read them.

84Jim53
Feb 24, 2023, 7:40 pm

>82 haydninvienna: At the end of the first Harry Potter movie, when they're showing the fancy cakes and other desserts at the feast, I REALLY wanted Maggie Smith to say to Richard Harris, "Look at all the sweet green icing flowing down."

85Jim53
Feb 24, 2023, 7:42 pm

>72 pgmcc: >76 Karlstar: I've read the first three volumes of Corey's series, having been alerted to their existence and worthwhileness by Jim.

86haydninvienna
Editado: Feb 25, 2023, 1:41 am

>83 pgmcc: :
“MacArthur Park is melting in the dark
All the sweet green icing flowing down …
Someone left the cake out in the rain …”

87haydninvienna
Feb 25, 2023, 3:54 am

And Peter: I'm awaiting your thoughts on James S A Corey. The Bicester library has them and I keep looking at them and wondering ...

88pgmcc
Feb 25, 2023, 4:28 am

>86 haydninvienna:
I remembered as soon as I heard the opening bars on Youtube. I had never listened to the words before and I will never have that recipe again.

>87 haydninvienna:
I enjoyed the screen adaptation. As far as I can recall there were four seasons. The four seasons, however, did not cover all nine books. Scope for season five and beyond.

89haydninvienna
Feb 25, 2023, 4:45 am

I have Jimmy's book Tunesmith somewhere. He isn't a super-wonderful live performer, but has a great stage personality. You can hear him singing "Macarthur Park" here. I'll see if I can find the Richard Harris version next and be 18 again.

90MrsLee
Feb 25, 2023, 9:25 am

>86 haydninvienna: I have always hated that song. Not only for its earworm qualities, but I used to bake and decorate cakes to sell, it's very disturbing.

I am only familiar with the version from the 70s by a woman. Donna something? Don't know. I'm terrible at naming singers of songs, titles of songs or song lyrics.

91Karlstar
Feb 25, 2023, 9:48 am

>85 Jim53: That's where I stopped with the series though, for some reason I just didn't want to continue. I think the constant 'this is the best series ever!' opinion I kept seeing on the internet may have been a factor.

92Karlstar
Feb 25, 2023, 9:49 am

>90 MrsLee: Donna Summer.

93pgmcc
Feb 25, 2023, 10:30 am

>91 Karlstar:
Hype like that puts me off too. I kept on with the screen version because I wanted to know what happens next. I would not say it is the best series, but it is good and I liked some of the characters. There were also characters I did not like much, some because of the nature of the character, some because I felt they were miscast.

94Jim53
Feb 25, 2023, 7:09 pm

>91 Karlstar: I wasn't seeing the hype, but given the size of the books, I wasn't confident the time would be all that well spent. I did like Naomi, though.

95suitable1
Feb 25, 2023, 8:55 pm

>87 haydninvienna: My opinion of the Expanse series is that it goes downhill as it continues. I never finished it.

96UncleMort
Feb 26, 2023, 5:38 am

>95 suitable1: I have to agree; a great start but the series lost it's way very quickly. 'tis a shame.

97AHS-Wolfy
Feb 26, 2023, 7:06 am

I've pretty much loved all of The Expanse books and looking forward to the final novel in the series which I picked up on Friday. Will just have the short story collection to read then.

98pgmcc
Editado: Feb 28, 2023, 3:11 pm

I have just had a book recommended to my by Amazon. I am almost persuaded to buy it just for the title.



:-)

Having used Amazon's "Look inside" feature to read the first few pages of the first book in the series, I think I will refrain from jumping into this series for the moment.

99Jim53
Feb 28, 2023, 1:53 pm

>98 pgmcc: I understand the impulse.

100pgmcc
Feb 28, 2023, 3:10 pm

>94 Jim53:
I have steered clear of series for a long time, especially ones with big books, as I felt they would be too much of a time commitment. Why did I go ahead and buy The Expanse series? Well, I enjoyed the screen adaptation with only a few reservations. I was also conscious that the screen version did not cover the entire series despite planting hooks for subsequent seasons. I am not sure if this was meant to force the producers to agree to continue the story, but that it probably the most likely reason.

My work colleague who has reached the end of the book series has said he has enjoyed the series and has spoken enthusiastically about it.

Given the range of views expressed in the recent posts on this thread it is obvious this series pleases some people and not others. That means I have do read it to find out what I think about it.

Also, now that I am retired I will, theoretically, have more time to read. (If the past week is anything to go by this retirement lark is exhausting and time consuming.) Theoretically, therefore, I should be able to tackle a series, even one with big books.

I am also slightly curious about how the story develops. I saw the seeds sown into the last few episodes of the screen adaptation and I want to see if these develop the way I think they might.

Also, seeing the full set of nine books in one place and having a number of gift tokens that cover the cost proved too much for my feeble willpower to withstand. You must admit that they did make a lovely picture to send to the people who gave me the book tokens as a way of thanking them for the tokens and letting them know what I spent them on.

>87 haydninvienna:, >95 suitable1: & >96 UncleMort:
In terms of the screen adaptation I was a bit disappointed when the seasons appeared to abandon the proto-molecule as the main focus of the story and wander into the politics and revolution. I did feel, however that it pulled back my interest as the story developed.

>97 AHS-Wolfy: Your post supports my colleague's view and gives me hope that I may enjoy it.

In terms of the characters, the ones I liked best in the screen adaptation were, Amos, Bobbie, Drummer and Chrisjen Avasarala. The detective was good fun too.

As I have said many times before, I try to get myself into the space where I can consider the book/book series as a separate entity to the screen adaptation. I will try to approach the books with an open mind, hopefully not that open that it falls out.

101pgmcc
Feb 28, 2023, 3:17 pm



I am 155 pages into Hopeland and am enjoying it a great deal. Ian McDonald captured me quickly with how he captures place and character. Very early on I became intrigued with the main characters and what was going to happen to them, how they were going to relate to one another, and what were the secrets of their backgrounds. Also, from the very start, in fact the first three sentences, I had spotted what, where and when the circumstances being described. I have always found McDonald's descriptions of places very accurate and his prose always builds pictures in my mind.

102jillmwo
Mar 1, 2023, 3:36 pm

>98 pgmcc: I'm sticking with Mayhem Parva. As you note, one flips through the Look-Inside-The-Book sample and the impulse is to step away quickly, hoping that the click will not have been logged by the recommendation machine algorithm.

103pgmcc
Mar 1, 2023, 3:41 pm

>102 jillmwo:
The opening of the first book told me it was a book I would have enjoyed more as a youth. It was quite violent and was using Glasgow dialect to give a sense of place. It had the flippancy appreciated by youth. I felt that it would only continue in this vain and might not be sufficiently funny to the older me to make it a worthy or worthwhile read. The word puerile sprang to mind, but I do love the title of that second book.

104jillmwo
Mar 1, 2023, 3:45 pm

>103 pgmcc: No question, the title is certainly fun and likely to make the customer pick it up to flip through.

105pgmcc
Mar 2, 2023, 4:07 pm



It would appear I am the first person to put The Adventures of Amina Al-Sirafi by Shannon Chakraborty into my catalogue on LibraryThing.

106clamairy
Mar 2, 2023, 4:56 pm

>105 pgmcc: I see 72 copies

107pgmcc
Editado: Mar 2, 2023, 5:22 pm

That is interesting. I entered it by ISBN and it showed me as the only member. Perhaps all the relevant ISBNs are not linked.

The touhstone takes me to the page with 73 members, but the icon takes me to the 1 person page.

108pgmcc
Mar 2, 2023, 5:21 pm



I suppose the text under "Work Information" could indicate there might be a problem.

"Integrated E-Health Management: Canadian Health Care Renewal the Right Way by Canadian Healthcare Association"

109ScoLgo
Mar 2, 2023, 5:25 pm

>108 pgmcc: Do you mean to tell me that there is no swashbuckling in the Canadian Healthcare Association?

The disappointment I feel simply cannot be expressed in words...

110pgmcc
Mar 2, 2023, 5:29 pm

>109 ScoLgo: I know how you feel. A bit of swashbuckling is exactly what is needed in the Canadian Healthcare Association.

111jillmwo
Mar 2, 2023, 5:59 pm

>107 pgmcc: Can you compare your Irish edition's ISBN with the American edition ISBN of 9780062963505. Is it the same? I'm wondering if there's something funky due to Brexit and distribution agreements.

112pgmcc
Mar 2, 2023, 6:30 pm

>111 jillmwo:
The hardback ISBN is 9780008381349

113Narilka
Mar 2, 2023, 7:47 pm

>108 pgmcc: You can probably combine it with the other editions. Also, the cover on yours is gorgeous.

114pgmcc
Mar 2, 2023, 10:38 pm

>113 Narilka:
I deleted it and added using the title. It gave me the same result as using the ISBN, so I deleted it again and went into the one with 73 members and used tge new, improved “add to your library” feature and it loaded the one with 73 members. I will leave to more knowledgeable minds than mine to delve into the mysteries of The Canadian Healthcare Association and its connections to Amina Al-Sirafi.

115Karlstar
Mar 2, 2023, 10:40 pm

>114 pgmcc: Don't you hate it when you think you're the first person to add the book, then find out that's not the case?

116pgmcc
Mar 2, 2023, 10:45 pm

>115 Karlstar:
:-)
I had my fifteen minutes of fame, albeit false. Also, I have learned there is a Canadian Healthcare Association. Win:Win!

117Sakerfalcon
Editado: Mar 3, 2023, 9:49 am

I saw this news and thought it would be of interest to you, Peter, as a fellow fan of Murakami. New novel coming soon (in Japanese ... we will have to wait longer)

118pgmcc
Mar 3, 2023, 11:31 am

>117 Sakerfalcon:
Yes, Claire, very much of interest. The only grey cloud is that I have not seen a date when the English translation will be available. My Japanese is not up to reading a full novel. In fact, it would struggle with a single word.

119suitable1
Mar 4, 2023, 10:55 am

>100 pgmcc: Don't you just hate it when your mind falls out!

120pgmcc
Mar 4, 2023, 1:15 pm

>119 suitable1:
I have a long-handled dust-pan and brush which makes scooping it up much more manageable than just getting down on the floor and fumbling about trying to pick it up with one’s hands.

121pgmcc
Mar 4, 2023, 2:32 pm

We spent a little time in Cork. Books were bought. Detailed report when get home. Currently on a coach between Portloaise and Dublin as there are works being carried out on the train tracks.

122haydninvienna
Mar 4, 2023, 2:37 pm

>121 pgmcc: At least you had a decent time on Cork (or so I assume, if books were bought).

123pgmcc
Mar 4, 2023, 2:55 pm

>122 haydninvienna:
My wife was attending an International Women’s Day event and I was free to ramble, hence BOOKS!

124jillmwo
Mar 4, 2023, 3:20 pm

Question: How does one pronounce Portloaise? And I'm assuming that coach in this instance refers to what we Americans would call a bus?

A full accounting of acquisitions would naturally be in order.

125pgmcc
Mar 5, 2023, 5:34 pm

Before answering questions I will produce my book-buying report.

Context: Friday and Saturday in Cork City. My wife attending a meeting on Saturday and my having the opportunity to wander.

Vibes and Scribes bookshop was my first port of call. It is a shop I became aware of at the start of the pandemic but have not had the chance to visit until yesterday. It is, in fact, three shops: a bookshop with new books; a secondhand bookshop about one door along the quay from the new books shop; a crafts supply shop. I was aware of the new books bookshop and a crafts shop. The secondhand bookshop caught me by surprise as I was heading back to the city centre after visiting the new books bookshop.

Having spent quite some time in the new books bookshop I came out with only one book and I had picked it up almost as soon as I entered the shop. The book is Unexplained Deaths by Bruce Goldfarb. It is about how Frances Glessner became the mother of modern forensics.



Vibes and Scribes is a nice bookshop but I found its selection of fiction a bit limited. There was a good selection of discounted Science Fiction books but I realised I had most of the ones that caught my eye.

I did go into the secondhand bookshop but I did not buy any books there.

Before her meeting my wife bought a knitting pattern in the Vibes and Scribes crafts shop. She also bought a lovely summer dress in Marks & Spencers for our forthcoming seven week debriefing in France.

Following my Vibes & Scribes visits I had lunch and then visited Waterstones. Three books accompanied my out of Waterstones.

Waterstones

The Bloody Chamber by Angela Carter. I have to give shared book bullet credit to Sakerfalcon and Meredy. When I reported acquiring Angela Carter's Book of Fairy Tales they immediately set about me with recommendations for The Bloody Chamber.



The Irrational Ape by David Robert Grimes. This ambushed me in the store and captured my interest. The on cover extended title continues with, "Why we fall for disinformation, conspiracy theory and propaganda."



If This Book Exists, You're In The Wrong Universe by Jason Pargin. This was just a wild gamble based on the title. I shall report eventually on the wisdom of my gamble.



126pgmcc
Editado: Mar 5, 2023, 5:42 pm

>124 jillmwo:
Portloaise is pronounced, Port-leesh. Some people would put an "eh" at the end.

A coach has a team of six horses and if you pay good money you get to ride inside.

Not really. We would use "coach" to refer to tour buses that tend to be more luxurious than the run-of-the-mill buses one finds in urban commuter areas. Coaches are often used for bringing tourists to tourist spots. They are single decker, have their seats raised over a luggage compartment, have more comfortable seats, and are intended to convey their passengers on longer journeys than a commuter bus would tend to do. Our inter-city buses would tend to be coaches.

The full accounting of acquisitions has been provided in >125 pgmcc:.

When my wife finished her event we took the opportunity to catch a bus to University College Cork to view the campus. It is very nice.

127clamairy
Mar 5, 2023, 6:20 pm

>125 pgmcc: Another impressing haul! Well done. It sounds like a great day.

128catzteach
Mar 5, 2023, 10:43 pm

>125 pgmcc: those books look good!

129Sakerfalcon
Mar 6, 2023, 9:03 am

>126 pgmcc: I'm glad your mission to Cork was successful. You wouldn't want to run out of things to read during retirement, after all!

130clamairy
Mar 6, 2023, 9:13 am

>129 Sakerfalcon: As if that's even possible.

131Meredy
Mar 10, 2023, 2:13 am

It's all your doing, friend book bulleteer: I'm on the third of the Dublin Trilogy books, the first prequel. I've read some fairly serious stuff lately, and these are a marvelous change of pace. I see that there are at least seven more to look forward to.

Didn't you post somewhere what is the right order to read them in? I want to have the next one on deck before I get to the end of this one. Could you please steer me to your list?

132Meredy
Mar 10, 2023, 2:20 am

Oh, and by the way, the touchstone for your second book listed as completed at the top goes to the wrong Family Jewels.

133pgmcc
Mar 10, 2023, 6:19 am

>131 Meredy:
I am delighted you are finding The Dublin Trilogy books fun. I find them a great break from heavy, serious fiction or non-fiction.

In terms of reading order, I read them in publication date sequence and enjoyed them immensely as you well know. There is an option to read them in chronological sequence according to the story timeline. Not having read them in that sequence I am not sure how that would feel.

Now, in terms of speaking with authority on the reading sequence I would suggest that we refer to the author to speak with authority, so here is a link to his page on reading order. https://whitehairedirishman.shop/en-ie/pages/reading-order#:~:text=just%20a%20su...

Thank you for letting me know about the touchstone error. It has taught me something about the mechanics of LT. The link was correct in my completed books post in my previous thread. When I start a new thread I go into edit for the "books completed" post in my old thread, copy the text and paste it to the opening post in my new thread. I then give the computer spirits time to work their way through the touchstones before I hit the "Post" button. The error must have slipped in at that stage. I will now have to check all my touchstones when I go through that process in future.

I hope the link to McDonnell's page on reading order is of use to you. It even has a flowchart. Now there's posh for you.

It's all your doing

I am glad to have been of service.

134pgmcc
Mar 10, 2023, 6:27 am



I have finished Ian McDonald's Hopeland. This is a 650 page book and it covers a wide range of issues pertinent to today. These include climate change consequences, gender recognition, family, doing the right thing, and love. McDonald dedicated this book to his late partner who passed away just over a year ago. In his acknowledgements he laments that Enid did not get to read the final product. The final section of the book is entitled, "All is full of love", and it is.

135clamairy
Mar 10, 2023, 7:19 am

>134 pgmcc: That sounds wonderful. It shall be placed on my OverDrive wishlist.

136Sakerfalcon
Mar 13, 2023, 9:47 am

>134 pgmcc: I'm definitely going to have to get hold of a copy of this!

137pgmcc
Mar 14, 2023, 6:49 am



I was given this book by a good friend as a retirement present. It is not the type of book I would normally be attracted to, and Richard Harris is not someone I would be particularly interested in even if I were a biography reading person.

At present I have read over 100 pages and I think I have only read this far because it was a gift from a good friend. The author interviewed Harris several times over several years. Harris apparently wanted Joe Jackson to write a biography that would put the record straight and show the spiritual and redemption-seeking side of Richard Harris. Well, 100 pages in and I am only seeing indications that Harris was not the nicest person on the planet, was totally self-centred, and did not care who he hurt or what he did to get ahead.

The structure of the book is quite higgledy piggledy. It jumps from one topic to another with no particular links. The author will mention something and immediately write, "...but I am not going to deal with that right now. It comes later in the book." I am tired with this approach. It is not conducive to a pleasant reading experience.

Jackson has looked at various aspects of Harris's life and has interviewed people and family members in his research. The admissions of Harris, and the testimony of other people in the film star's life, paint a picture of someone who was so manipulative and dishonest that it is difficult to take anything Harris said at face value. He paints himself as the "ignored child" of his family, while information from family and friends, even Harris's wife, indicate this to be untrue. He was obviously painting himself as the victim to justify all his bad behaviour.

I am putting this book on hold for the moment. I will probably dip into later parts to see if there is anything redeeming about the book or Harris. In the meantime I am moving forward and will be jumping into The Warden by Anthony Trollope.

138Bookmarque
Editado: Mar 14, 2023, 8:55 am

Ugh, he sounds dreadful and only his talent saved him from obscurity. Someone that ugly and horrible wouldn't succeed if he was only a little talented, while many with winning personalities do. Interesting. The only thing I can remember him in is something Shakespeare - Richard III or A Lion in Winter? Something like that.

Just looked over his IMDB page and boy I didn't remember much, did I? Not even Dumbledore.

139jillmwo
Mar 14, 2023, 10:36 am

>137 pgmcc: Well, if even a fraction of the quotes attributed to him over on IMDB are accurately reported, he wasn't a very impressive (or even a very happy) human being...

140clamairy
Mar 14, 2023, 3:28 pm

>137 pgmcc: Ugh. :o(
At least this isn't a book group read!

141pgmcc
Editado: Mar 14, 2023, 8:46 pm

I had a delightful evening with my friend from Swan River Press. I collected my latest purchase from him, a book of ghost stories by Lynda E. Rucker entitled Now It's Dark.



As it happens I did travel into town early for my meeting, and yes, I did happen to purchase books.

In Hodges Figgis I picked up:

Eight Detectives by Alex Pavesi. As far as I can tell it was published in 2020.

French in 3 Months by Ronald Overy and Jacqueline lecanuet.

Our meeting point was the restaurant in the Irish Film Institute (IFI). In advance of our meeting I popped into the IFI shop and discovered an interesting title: Stars & Spies by Christopher Andrew and Julius Green, the astonishing history of espionage and show business.

142pgmcc
Mar 14, 2023, 8:01 pm

On my journey home I started to read my Folio edition of The Warden by Anthony Trollope.

143clamairy
Editado: Mar 14, 2023, 8:41 pm

>141 pgmcc: There is a touchstone! You have a typo in your title. Now it's Dark Looks delightful!

Nice haul, Peter.

144pgmcc
Mar 14, 2023, 8:47 pm

>143 clamairy:
Thank for that. I have fixed it now.

Yes, I was pleased with my acquisitions.

145clamairy
Mar 14, 2023, 8:59 pm

>144 pgmcc: Your next step will be to upload your cover!

146pgmcc
Mar 14, 2023, 9:04 pm

147clamairy
Mar 14, 2023, 10:00 pm

>146 pgmcc: I meant to the book's page. It still shows as plain gray, when you click on the touchstone.

148pgmcc
Mar 15, 2023, 12:11 am

>147 clamairy:
That is strange. I uploaded the image and it appears on the book page when I view it by clicking the touchstone link.

149Sakerfalcon
Mar 15, 2023, 7:22 am

>141 pgmcc: That sounds like the perfect evening! Time with a good friend, and new book acquisitions!

150clamairy
Editado: Mar 15, 2023, 8:50 am

>148 pgmcc: I still don't see it. That's very odd.

When I go to the library and click on the title it shows me the book with the cover. But it's still grey from the touchstone. It must be an ISBN issue.

151Sakerfalcon
Mar 15, 2023, 9:45 am

>150 clamairy: I can see the cover, both on my homepage and when I click through to the work page. Maybe it's the time zone and you will see it in 5 hours time!!

152jillmwo
Mar 15, 2023, 10:01 am

>148 pgmcc:, >150 clamairy: and >151 Sakerfalcon: I'm experiencing the same thing as clamairy. I only get the grey cover from the touchstone. My next step was to use the Amazon link in the right hand sidebar, but when you try to go to the "direct" link, Amazon shows you the dog picture that says "Sorry we can't find that page. So I imagine that the US edition (with a separate ISBN from the UK edition) isn't yet out. Thus we can't see the cover here in the U.S.

153clamairy
Editado: Mar 15, 2023, 10:41 am

>152 jillmwo: Exactly. And when it does show up we might have a different cover.

154pgmcc
Mar 15, 2023, 10:41 am

>150 clamairy:; >151 Sakerfalcon:; >152 jillmwo:
I do not know what the problem is. The book will only have a single ISBN as it is published by a Small Press with only about 400 copies printed and only in one edition for world wide distribution.

155clamairy
Editado: Mar 15, 2023, 11:15 am

>154 pgmcc: Hmmm. That is very odd then.

I did find a "recalculate cover" tab and clicked on it. Fingers crossed that it sticks.

Edited to add: it shows now!

156pgmcc
Editado: Mar 15, 2023, 7:32 pm

>155 clamairy:
There are more things in LibraryThing and The Green Dragon, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophy.

157pgmcc
Mar 15, 2023, 7:40 pm

I have started a new thread. Follow the link at the bottom of this one...if you dare!

158majkia
Mar 20, 2023, 7:53 am

>72 pgmcc: Oh lovely! I'm about to reread The Expanse. I've held off on reading the last one so I can start it all over and follow through better. I thought it was one of the best series I've ever read.

159pgmcc
Mar 20, 2023, 8:04 am

>158 majkia:
Wow! That is a good recommendation. Re-reading a nine book series, and those books are not small. Your post has reassured me that I will enjoy this series. I enjoyed the screen adaptation.