Quick survey: What are you reading today? [Archive] - Page 2

Strawberry Curls

10-10-2007, 11:35 PM

John and friends,
"Murder Must Advertise" was so much fun! "The Nine Tailors" has been so engrossing. I enjoyed it immensely although I found the bits about bell-ringing in England terrifically confusing. Do any of our good readers understand the art of bell-ringing acrost the pond? Do any of you know why the bells were called the "Nine Tailors?" I can do the research but if anyone has a clue, brief me!
Thanks,
Jen D.

I'm way out of my depth here, casting my mind back to the book that I haven't read in a decade, but here is what I can dredge up from my memory. The "changes" or musical tones rang on the bells have names and are mathematically based. One of these was called "The Nine Tailors" and wasn't another something like "Plain Bob Minor" but I remember they were mathematical in progression. I think there was quite a bit of explanation in the book which is probably where I am dredging up this information. :confused:

Help anyone who really knows this stuff. Just saw your post John, glad you could make more sense of it.

KarenB

10-11-2007, 12:19 AM

Here is a fairly clear explanation of how change ringing works:

http://www.chaddesley-corbett.co.uk/tower_history.htm

or this one:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/A126596

or here to hear bells ringing:

http://st.mary.users.btopenworld.com/campanol.htm

John gave a good explanation of the Nine Tailors.

Hope this helps!!

Jennifer

10-11-2007, 12:33 AM

John et. al.
I remember the phrase "It takes nine tailors to make a man," and I was wondering if that were a Biblical reference?
Jen D.

KarenB

10-11-2007, 12:55 AM

Jen - just ran a quick Bible search and couldn't find it. The only place I've found that phrase is in Sayer's Nine Tailors. Anyone else?

Karen

Strawberry Curls

10-11-2007, 01:02 AM

KarenB thanks for the link to hear the bells, that was great!!

KarenB

10-11-2007, 01:20 AM

You're very welcome! I remember doing a search for the sound of bell ringing a few years ago on one of my re-readings of the DLS Wimsey series. I do confess to getting rather lost when reading the descriptions of ringing. It wasn't quite as bad as the train schedules in FRH, but close!

jtb1951

10-11-2007, 03:29 AM

I remember the phrase "It takes nine tailors to make a man," and I was wondering if that were a Biblical reference?

My guess is that it refers to the six tailors (tellers) for the funeral of a woman but required nine for the death of a man.

John.

Jennifer

10-13-2007, 02:34 PM

Hi guys,
I had to move on to "The Five Red Herrings" and I remembered someone mentioned that the change ringing of "NT" and the train schedules of "FRH" were more than a bit confusing. I have to say the first time I started FRH I gave up at the train schedule discussion. "Strong Poison" had come in for me and since I knew it to be the debut of Harriet Vane, I willingly gave up FRH, to meet her. Now I am back and while piecing together the murderer's schedule continues to be a trying point, at least some of the characters have come to the fore.

Back to the dvd front, I am now watching "NT" on dvd and it's quite an interesting adaptation. It goes backtracks to the actual theft of the emerald necklace, placing a younger (well, somewhat younger) blonder LPW/IC at the wedding where the crime was committed. And then we get to see LPW with Bunter on the frontlines of WWI and how they came to be a team. I think that was a lovely diverting of the actual story to fill in blanks. Not being familiar with the entire story, is there a book that fills in more of their beginnings? From "Whose Body," I know we get to relive a harrowing moment for LP during the war but is there more elsewhere?
Jen D.

jtb1951

10-17-2007, 02:25 AM

I have just started Axis by Robert Charles Wilson, the sequel to his Hugo-winning novel Spin, which I thoroughly enjoyed. I liked an excerpt from Locus magazine's florid review: "...Spin is many things: psychological novel, technological thriller, apocalyptic picaresque, cosmological meditation." In the next few days I will start DLS's The Nine Tailors, which means next up, vicki, is <drum roll> Gaudy Night! And if I don't love it, I'm going into a corner to sulk (not that there's much chance of that!:)) I also just received in the mail a ginormous monstrositer of a collection by Connie Willis (one of my faves) titled The Winds of Marble Arch And Other Stories. I can't wait (even though, in reality, I have to!) Keep on Readin'!!!

John.

AmyLizzie

10-17-2007, 08:37 AM

Have finished Sense and Sensibility, although as a general rule I find Jane Austen a bit boring, I really liked this one, it held my interest. I've also read Stardust by Neil Gaiman, which was a fantastic read, and now I can't wait to see the film! I have just started Femme Fatale by Carol Nelson Douglas, a bit of easy reading for a change! And some Sherlcok too which is never a bad thing....:)

jtb1951

10-30-2007, 11:00 PM

Having just finished re-reading A Darker Place for this month's discussion I am now moving into A Letter of Mary for next month. I'm about a third of the way through the third Maisie Dobbs' book, Pardonable Lies, and am just getting ready to start a couple of new books by Charles Stross: The Merchants' War, the fourth book in his Merchant Princes series, and Halting State, a near-future fiction that looks quite promising. I am heading into week 8 of my Bible Timeline Scripture study series, and that has taken a big chunk of my prime reading time. As also happens when a space shuttle mission is in progress, I am glued to the NASA channel evenings, so my available reading time gets even more skrunched!! At least the mental gymnastics keep the old mind from getting too dull!:). What are you all reading right now???

John.

kitling130

10-31-2007, 12:50 AM

I just finished Walla Walla Suite by Anne Agrula. Starting on Brother to Dragons, Companion to Owls by Jane Lindskold.

parcourir

10-31-2007, 01:31 AM

In truth, I'm reading Case Files: Obstetrics and Gynecology today. However, since none but the most insane would pick that up as leisure reading, I will offer Virginia Woolf's A Room of One's Own, which I recently finished and enjoyed very much.

vicki

10-31-2007, 02:13 PM

Hi and welcome, parcourir! I've always heard good things about that Woolf book. I haven't read much of her stuff and need to get around to it.

In truth, I'm reading Case Files: Obstetrics and Gynecology today. However, since none but the most insane would pick that up as leisure reading,

So are you insane, in med school or both? ;)

John, how are you enjoying the Dobbs series? I've only read the first couple, and thought they were good Russell-gap books. And your post upthread about the Willis collection reminded me to ask you for advice re: my Willis reading order. I loooooved The Doomsday Book--it's definitely in my top 50. But I really *didn't* like To Say Nothing of the Dog (I thought it needed at least 40% of the text edited out--it felt like filler to me). What of hers might you recommend next, given those reactions?

I am heading into week 8 of my Bible Timeline Scripture study series, and that has taken a big chunk of my prime reading time.

I can't believe you have any time to read with all that on your plate! When do you have time to sleep? :)
kitling, what's that Agrula book about. Her name makes me think of arugula lettuce. Mmmmm.

As also happens when a space shuttle mission is in progress, I am glued to the NASA channel evenings, so my available reading time gets even more skrunched!!

No NASA channel on my system. :(

vicki

10-31-2007, 02:18 PM

Oh, and I'm back to reading the ARC of Touchstone, after having to stop for some RL stuff and to read my RL bookclub book, The Daughter of Time by Josephine Tey (which rocks, btw). As much as I loved TDoT, the whole bookus interruptus thing with Touchstone was irritating. So now--back to T'stone, which is fabulous so far--I'm *really* enjoying the protagonist and the other primary character.

Younger Son

10-31-2007, 05:53 PM

Right now, I'm most of the way through rereading A Letter of Mary. I've filled up 3/4 of a folded letter sheet with not-very-insightful notes. (Testing: αβγδε. Anybody who doesn't see Greek letters, please contact me privately.)

Immediately previous, The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club and Clouds of Witness. On-deck, Maisie Dobbs and, by Dornford Yates, Ne'er Do Well. All of them picked up through BookMooch.com.

Stephen Fry recently remarked that D. Yates was worth reading.

I went to A Letter of Mary in the middle of reading Making Money, the latest from Terry Pratchett. It's less satisfying than most of his work, and I don't know whether it's off-quality, or it suffers by comparison with all the Wodehouse and Sayers I'd been reading. (I'm humiliated that Stephen Fry (him again) equated Pratchett readers with mouth-breathers and soup-dribblers. I can't help it—I'm clumsy and have allergies.)

Eventually, I'll return to The Handmaid's Tale, but I'm not looking forward to it; my reasons can wait till December.

Jennifer

10-31-2007, 06:15 PM

What is this NASA channel that you speak of? My son, future aeronautics engineer, would love this channel. Is it on-line or must I pay the cable people some more silver and gold?

Oh yes, "The Handmaid's Tale" depressed me for a long time afterward. Good luck with that.

Getting ready to start "Have His Carcase" and dig in further to LPW and HV's developing relationship! Loved, loved, loved "The Nine Tailors!"
Jen D.

The Grey Badger

10-31-2007, 07:00 PM

I'm reading Alan Gordon's "Thirteenth Night." At the turn of the 13th Century, a member of the Fool's Guild goes back to the tiny Duchy of Orsino to follow up on a job done 12 years earlier. The duke has died, and his bride, Olivia, is now a widow with a young son. And just WHO is the bad guy from the earlier job, Malvolio, working for?

jtb1951

10-31-2007, 07:58 PM

I'm reading Alan Gordon's "Thirteenth Night."

I have really enjoyed the Fool's Guild books so far, thanks to Vicki turning me on to Alan Gordon, having read Thirteenth Night and A Death In The Venetian Quarter, with the rest to come. Enjoy!

John.

jtb1951

10-31-2007, 08:02 PM

What is this NASA channel that you speak of?

Jen, it is available 24/7 as a cable/satellite channel (it was the sole reason for me to get a satellite hookup), and is also available online during shuttle missions at spaceflight.nasa.gov; click on the link for space shuttle latest news under the header Space Shuttle, then click on the link for launch video player under the header Watch NASA TV Now on the right side of the page. Hope that helps.

John.

jtb1951

10-31-2007, 08:38 PM

John, how are you enjoying the Dobbs series? I've only read the first couple, and thought they were good Russell-gap books. And your post upthread about the Willis collection reminded me to ask you for advice re: my Willis reading order.

Fire Watch and Last of the Winnebagos are two novella length stories that I would suggest; Lincoln's Dreams is one of her first novels and you might like it; I also recommend her collections because she is an excellent short story writer.

I'm having a great time with the Maisie Dobbs series; almost done with Pardonable Lies, then ready to jump into Messenger of Truth. They are relatively quick reads, but Maisie is well characterized, and I have enjoyed watching her grow and struggle with her talents and demons. Lots of fun!

John.

Strawberry Curls

11-01-2007, 12:23 AM

I'm not sure how interested anyone is with "Holmes" related works, but I read quite a few pastiche of Holmes -- canon Holmes that is, and other works regarding Sherlock Holmes and Conan Doyle.

A book by June Thomson called "Holmes and Watson" was very highly recommended to me and I finally acquired a copy at a used book store. I think it may be out of print. This is a paperback edition from 2000 and was published in England. This is a biography of the two friends, using Canon to support the author's work. From the forward: "She has relied largely, not on conjecture, but on the evidence supplied within canon or from other sources of information (she sites her sources in the chapter by chapter Appendix), making it quite clear when, in the absence of precise data, she has been forced to speculate."

It is fascinating and done with more than a little humor. If you enjoy Holmes and/or Watson it really is a good read.

I'm also enjoying a copy of Baedeker's Palestine and Syria, 1912 Edition that I recently grabbed up. It is a treat to find the quotations from OJER. On that same note a friend gifted me with a copy of The Life of the Bee. If you ever find this little book do read it, like Russell I wasn't that interested in bees, but this has peaked my interest. The chapter entitled "The Nuptial Flight" borders on the erotic. It is BTW followed by the chapter "The Massacre of the Males" which for some reason amuses me. :rolleyes:

VictoriaMisselthwaite

11-01-2007, 02:27 AM

AmyLizzie

11-01-2007, 11:18 AM

Now currently reading, The Poe Shadow by Matthew Pearl, it seems like a good read, haven't got very far yet though :) I've also read the Holmes/Watson biography previously mentioned. It is a fascinating read :)

parcourir

11-01-2007, 05:22 PM

Hi and welcome, parcourir!

Thanks!

So are you insane, in med school or both? ;)

Well, I'm certainly in med school, although that fact alone should probably raise questions about my sanity... :)

Jennifer

11-02-2007, 12:24 AM

Hi all!
I am reading the LPW/HV novel "A Presumption of Death," that was finished up long after DLS's death and wondered if anyone else has read it. I find it unnervingly current with language and references. I was sad about that. Avoiding anachronistic language and references would seem easier since DLS left plenty of works to consult as to her language choice and all. I also see a very similar vein of interest in "land girls,' that appears in LRK's works. In truth, this work reads much more like a LRK work than a DLS mystery. I wondered if this work is classified as "pastiche" or it gets fully vetted because it is only partially written by another. Just a question!
Jen D.

kitling130

11-02-2007, 01:28 AM

I can't believe you have any time to read with all that on your plate! When do you have time to sleep?
kitling, what's that Agrula book about. Her name makes me think of arugula lettuce. Mmmmm.

Hi Vicki,
I love reading, so I always try to sneak in a bit of reading wherever I can: riding on the bus, waiting for students to come to the tutoring place, right before I sleep. It's going to get a lot crazier since I'm going to be looking up Med schools and applying to them.

The Argula book (yes when I first saw the name I thought of arugula lettuce too) is the second in the series, the first being Homicide My Own. The first one is about solving a murder of a previous life (involving reincarnation, of course). The second one starts with a missing persons case.

Both are good, but there are just two things that is kind of annoying. The character is a lot older than me, suffering from mind-blowing hot flashes, and comes from the Midwest originally before moving to the Northwest. So there a lot of references that goes over my head, and there are slangs I've never heard before. The character is great on the whole, though, and leaves me laughing more times than not.

As for Brother to Dragons, Companion to Owls, it's sci-fi, and the main character speaks in quotes just like our dear good Brother E.

jtb1951

11-10-2007, 04:34 PM

I found the first 3 Katherine Kurtz Deryni books at the UBS.

I really hope that you enjoy them; the Deryni universe is quite well-crafted, captivating and intriguing (imho) and I have enjoyed the books for many years! I am always anxiously waiting for a new addition to the Deryni canon. I would recommend reading them in the order written, because even though they skip around in Deryni history they tie together very well that way. So, the 3 books of The Chronicles of the Deryni, then The Legends of Camber of Culdi trilogy, The Histories of King Kelson trilogy, The Heirs of Saint Camber trilogy, King Kelson's Bride (stand-alone), and the first two books of The Childe Morgan trilogy (In The King's Service & Childe Morgan). There is also The Deryni Archives, a nice collection of short stories. I highly recommend them all!:)

John.

jtb1951

11-10-2007, 06:03 PM

Consider it done; and, yes, take your time and enjoy each one liesurely!!

John.

Jennifer

11-12-2007, 12:26 AM

What a fun mystery! I am about 3/4ths through and this one is quite an adventure, full of lots of dead ends and red herring type events! And the tension between Lord Peter and Harriet grows. I was reading a wonderful (I have to admit even though I did not like her take on LPW) essay by JPW about the role of the detective and she discussed how LPW's role changed once he met Harriet. I have noticed, he is changing. He is growing and he does have his blue-blooded heart on his sleeve. I also enjoy the introduction DLS give us to various folk at various levels of society in England. I don't much enjoy the racism that gets bandied about but I realize she was giving us a fair portrait of a country that could be extremely insular. Oh but she does send that type of person up. They may spout nonsense but they don't get away w/o a scathing reply or thought from Lord Peter or Harriet. Why is it I would give a lot to get a chance to live in that world! Even if I weren't at the top of the heap, it sounds like it was so much more fun than now!
Jen D.

vicki

11-12-2007, 07:41 PM

I always try to sneak in a bit of reading wherever I can: riding on the bus, waiting for students to come to the tutoring place, right before I sleep. It's going to get a lot crazier since I'm going to be looking up Med schools and applying to them.

Reading sister! I also sneak in reading whenever I can during the day. I read while blow-drying my hair, brushing my teeth and other daily activities. I have this little clip that holds my book open without me having to hold it, so I can read while doing other stuff with my hands. BTW--good luck with the med school applications. If you're interested in getting out of the N.W., we have a great med school here in Birmingham. :)

As for Brother to Dragons, Companion to Owls, it's sci-fi, and the main character speaks in quotes just like our dear good Brother E.

Interesting!! I'll have to check that out. Thanks!

I admit to be a "new book chicken" when it comes to old fav authors.

I'm pretty daring when it comes to reading new books by an author who wrote a book or series I've liked, but I'll have to admit that I've been pretty disappointed in a few cases. I looked at some of Janet Evanovich's recent romance stuff, hoping to find some of the broad laughs featured in the S. Plum series, but it was not to be. And I loved the early Anita Blake series by Laurell K. Hamilton, but couldn't get through the first two chapters of that Merry Gentry series she started a few years back. And The Doomsday Book by Connie Willis was one of the best things I've ever read, but I desperately wanted to cut out and discard at least a third of To Say Nothing of the Dog. But I've also gotten great payoff by being a little adventurous, as when I read the Kate Martinelli series and LRK's standalones after devouring the Russells, and when I went on to read The Secret Garden after reading Frances Hodgson Burnett's A Little Princess.

Jen--so glad you're enjoying HHC! I love that one, although Gaudy Night is still my very favorite LPW. And thank you for sending that link to the Jill Paton Walsh lecture (http://www.greenbay.co.uk/books/Witham.html) (she's the one who has continued the LPW series with the blessing of the Sayers estate). I like that she mentioned the Wimsey Papers (http://www.livejournal.com/tools/memories.bml?user=siriaeve&keyword=%5Bmy+stuff%5D+Wimsey+Papers&filter=all). Those are great fun.

Jennifer

11-12-2007, 10:44 PM

Hi Vicki,
Yes, I saw that Jill Paton Walsh was the author of the article/lecture. I found it so fascinating, the "types" she mentioned, how LPW at first was someone you knew all you needed to know about. But how later he began to grow and develop as he interacted with Harriet Vane. And how nearly impossible now it would be to have a Lord Peter type. The police would never allow an outsider in this day and age. But forgive me, I saw the brilliance of "Monk" (if I may be allowed to mention a detective from another medium) in things she mentioned. Oh by the way, I am coming over to Edward Petherbridge as a very suitable Wimsey. Just finished watching "HHC" and found him to be compelling, believable and lovable! Still a devotee of Ian Carmichael but EP seems to fit this developing stage of LP's life. I finished listening to HHC (the book) at my job today and found it to be very confusing when it came down to the cipher and all the many scenarios for how the murder was committed. Obviously the tv adaptation truncated all the wrong turns and discussions and such. I think HHC must rival FRH for confusing and profuse detail! But it did get me interested in the art of decoding. On to "Gaudy Night!" I have waited quite a long while to start this one, not wanting to go out of order.
Jen D.

vicki

11-15-2007, 07:15 AM

That was a good article. I also liked how she classified types of characters and illustrated how LPW shifted from one category into another because of the relationship issues. Interesting stuff. I disagreed with her about the fountain-diving. That's one of the more memorable (in the positive sense of the word) scenes in the series.

I also agree with you about the decoding. That had my eyes crossing six different ways. A lot of people had the same issue with all the train tables in Five Red Herrings, which I haven't read on the advice of many reading-buddies who know my tastes.

but EP seems to fit this developing stage of LP's life.

I think you're right about that. He suits well as the older, pining-for-Harriet LPW.

On to "Gaudy Night!" I have waited quite a long while to start this one, not wanting to go out of order.

Hehehehe! You are *so* going to love it, especially with all the great build-up of reading the whole series first! It's some great pay-off :D I'm eagerly awaiting your impressions!

Jennifer

11-15-2007, 11:41 AM

As luck would have it, I got the dvd for "GN" the same day as I got the Book on Tape. I decided to push ahead and watch! I gave up after "HHC" worrying that the dvd would not follow the book. Not disappointed there. The dvd is good at editing out and getting a quick story told but I knew this book was to be "the" book, where they plight their troth, and it was all wrapped up with precious little development. Quite a sorry payoff for sticking with this story through 3 dvds. Very little development, discussion, just a moment of realization. Ugh! DLS is already demonstrating in the book, (I'm halfway through) that she's not going to make this a simple love story. So, for a true fan, GN in dvd form will simply have the pleasures of some great period costumes and Oxford scenery, punting on the Thames, of course a very sleek and handsome Edward Petherbridge but not a great deal of DLS!
Jen D.

jtb1951

11-15-2007, 11:55 AM

I am about half-way through Gaudy Night and am not at all disappointed! Getting to experience a mystery and relationship from HV's perspective is quite interesting. It's neat to get more than a glimpse into her mind and learn to know her better! Much fun! (and am simul-reading The Nine Tailors and Kathy Reichs' Bone to Ashes, along with my readings for this week's Bible Timeline Study!)

John.

Jennifer

11-15-2007, 02:08 PM

Hey John,
Just wanted to clarify,
I am loving the novel "Gaudy Night." My viewing of the dvd was not as rosy.

Have you gotten to Lord St. George yet? I was absolutely swept off my feet by that young man! He is a cross between Lord Peter and Peter Pan! I found myself laughing and laughing with delight. Meeting him gave Harriet a chance to relax and enjoy a different side of Lord Peter. It seemed to soften her toward Peter, don't you think? One thing that DLS is not afraid to do, is create a situation, let it develop, not race through to the denouement. Harriet spends such a lot of time at Oxford. Months! Oh yes, the shirt fronts sent me into "gales of laughter!" DLS was so funny in a wonderfully quiet way. I enjoyed her portrait of academics. She was ruthless in way I guess only an insider could be, but somehow, not unkind.
Cheers!
Jen D.

jtb1951

11-15-2007, 11:04 PM

Have you gotten to Lord St. George yet?

Yes, I have, and a very entertaining young man he is! It almost seemed that he could be Peter's son, rather than his nephew, with his gregarious, irreverent, fun-loving personality. Probably not a whole lot different from what Peter might have been like in college. I found it interesting that the lordling was willing to accept Peter's largesse to fund his lifestyle, but respected him enough not to step too far over the line in taking advantage of Peter (not that Lord Wimsey would have allowed the line-crossing, in any case). Their relationship certainly seems to be a special one, and gives all sorts of intimations about what sort of father Peter might make. Great fun!:)

P.S. Sorry if I intimated that you weren't enjoying the book!!:)

John.

Jennifer

11-16-2007, 10:56 AM

Hi John,
I realized my note was a bit confusing, between the book and the television production so I just wanted to make it less so. But yes, the young viscount was quite a rake! I think DLS understood nuance to such a fine degree. When he kisses Harriet and Lord Peter has to call him off, Harriet realizes what a difficult position the young rascal has put them in. That over-active puppyish action assumes Lord Peter and Harriet are more familiar than they are, and Harriet realizes what a farce that is. She understands finally, what it's cost him to wait on her, making no great assumptions for low these many years. She's coming to a realization of what Peter means to her but it's not coming w/o cost. DLS didn't flinch when she wrote about this meeting of minds and hearts. There are no self-delusions that I can see.
Jen D.

AmyLizzie

11-22-2007, 12:49 PM

Hi All,

I've just finished The Pirate's Daughter by Margaret Cezair-Thompson. I have to say I approached it with a bit of caution as it was a fictional story of Errol Flynn's time in Jamaica, but I loved it! It was so expertly done and the characters are so real that it all came together wonderfully, I even found myself feeling a bit sorry for Flynn by the end as it seems he was a bit of a bizarre character, but the book allowed me to want to find out more about himand whether some of the things I read about were true....very good, I recommend it to anyone who loves a good coming of age tale :)

Amy xx

jtb1951

11-22-2007, 05:50 PM

I finally finished Gaudy Night and enjoyed it completely! The mystery was well done and the maturation of both Harriet and Peter, relationally, was well executed. I have to agree that it's the best Wimsey I've read (thank you, vicki:)!) I just received the Sayer on Holmes chapbook and Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale from Amazon so they are next up. Have a great day!

John.

Jennifer

11-23-2007, 11:42 AM

Hi John, et. al,
I too, just finished "GN" and was very much impressed by the book. I don't consider it mainly a mystery. The internal dialogue Harriet conducts through out the book was much more absorbing! Here she is, confronted with a perfectly wonderful man (don't we all wish for a LPW in our lives?) and she can not relinquish whatever control is necessary in order to incorporate him into her life. DLS gives her wise counsel at many turns, Miss Devine being chiefest among the voices, telling her that someone who loves her for her detachment is a keeper. And bit by bit she sees how Peter has allowed her, worked to give her and preserve her autonomy, a rare find, indeed. Ironically, she has this man, this incredible gift of a human against the backdrop of a group of mainly spinster scholars, most of whom are by turns, fascinated and repelled by the idea of having such a man about. It's like watching an incredibly athletic tennis match with multiple balls! I don't know if LPW is considered "literature" but I would vote this book into that category. I found it a sincere and satisfying effort to understand and portray personal relations with the added enjoyment of an engaging mystery that adds to the discussion credibly. I recommend this book very highly.
Jen D. (still woozy from all that turkey!)

Kiyomi

11-24-2007, 05:19 AM

Today I am rereading Terry Pratchett's Hogfather as I just picked up my copy of the US release dvd of the movie :D Apparently I have been muttering phrases with the word "mine" since I picked up the dvd but, I think I'll be okay as long as I don't start saying things like 'precious, my precious'. ;)

Bachi

11-25-2007, 11:06 PM

Using the first book I have put on hold "Who's Body" and "Clouds of Witness". I have no idea if they are first or not... but we'll see when they come in.
S.

Hi S,
Wikipedia has list of the LPW books by year of publication

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dorothy_L._Sayers#Lord_Peter_Wimsey_novels_and_sho rt_stories

I just finished "The Shadow of the Wind" by Carlos Ruiz Zafon. It is an old-fashioned storytellers story, with one exception, it has far two many long spanish multiple names of people and places to easily flow off the tongue.

jtb1951

11-27-2007, 02:13 AM

I just finished "The Shadow of the Wind" by Carlos Ruiz Zafon.

I've heard all sorts of great things about this book and I even went and ordered a special edition being published by Subterranean Press, so I'm looking forward to reading it!

John.

Bachi

11-27-2007, 02:35 AM

I'm looking forward to reading it!
John.

I'm sure you will be delighted with it!:)

AmyLizzie

11-28-2007, 03:36 PM

John,

I absolutley LOVED Shadow of the Wind, it is so haunting and so beautifully written that the story stayed with me a long time after I;d finished it, it is really worth a read and I know you'll love it. There are a lot of Spanish words in it, but they add to the foreign feel which is just brilliant. Love it...enough said :)

Amy xx

jtb1951

11-28-2007, 05:31 PM

Thanks for the recommendation, Amy; I'll be looking forward to reading it!

John.

dustywolf

11-29-2007, 12:30 PM

Don't know whats going on with me right now- job, family, whatever but I havent been able to get into a book in about 3 months. Any suggestions out there? Maybe an easy read, not too long.

jtb1951

11-29-2007, 12:52 PM

Any genre in particular that you enjoy more than others?

John.

vicki

11-29-2007, 12:53 PM

Hi, dustywolf--it's good to see you again! Sometimes life does take a toll on reading, doesn't it? There are some busy times that the only way I can read is via recorded books while I go about some mindless but necessary task around home, or while I brush my teeth and dry my hair--I have this great book-clip (http://www.organize.com/bookmagbookc.html) that holds my book open while I do stuff like that or while I ride the exercise bike.

Let's see--last time you were here, you mentioned liking books set in a different time period, like Diana Gabaldon's Outlander series. Anyone have some suggestions in that regard?

Here's a great one that has strong romantic and supernatural elements--The Time-Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenenger (who is from jtb1951's stomping-grounds--the Windy City). I just *loved* that one! Another good a historical/romantic/supernatural trilogy is by Juliette Marillier--Daughter of the Forest, Son of the Shadows and Child of the Prophecy. They're great (if preposterous) fun. :)

tangential1

11-29-2007, 04:34 PM

The Amelia Peabody series by Elizabeth Peters is awesome, extremely witty, and all of those are quick reads (somewhere around 300 pages and my average time to finish one is about 5 days of reading on the bus to and from work.). Set in 1890s, English archaeologists in Egypt.

Maisie Dobbs by Jacqueline Winspear was also a very good quick read (again about 300 pages); set around WWI England/France. There are 4 books in that series, but I really would only recommend the first two.

Both of those series are mysteries that I found while waiting for new Russells.

Hope that helps!

AmyLizzie

11-29-2007, 05:17 PM

The final solution by Michael Chabon is fantastic and not too long :)

jtb1951

11-29-2007, 05:30 PM

The Maisie Dobbs books are quick reads and fun mysteries; I would also recommend the Jester series by Alan Gordon, starting with Thirteenth Night and Jester Leaps In. And if you enjoy fast, light reading, interlaced with cheap puns, you might enjoy the magical world of Xanth series, by Piers Anthony, beginning with A Spell for Chameleon; the series now runs to 27 books or so.

John.

Strawberry Curls

11-29-2007, 05:50 PM

The Thursday Next books by Jasper Fforde are great fun, and a fast read. The first is called "The Eyre Affair."

tangential1

11-29-2007, 06:35 PM

The Thursday Next books by Jasper Fforde are great fun, and a fast read. The first is called "The Eyre Affair."
Oh! I second this one! Am re-reading right now!

Has anyone read the newest (First Among Sequels)? I was a tad disappointed by the two Nursery Crime books so I'm curious to know if he stepped back into the TN style.

Kiyomi

11-30-2007, 01:27 AM

I'd suggest some books from the children's/teens section. The Alex Rider series is a nice young super spy series, or if you want adventure in a fantasy setting anything by Tamora Pierce is a good read. She edited an anthology called 'Young Warriors'(hopefully I'm remembering the title correctly) that has several good short stories if you are busy and short of time.

jtb1951

11-30-2007, 02:26 AM

The Thursday Next books by Jasper Fforde are great fun, and a fast read. The first is called "The Eyre Affair."

Oh! I second this one! Am re-reading right now!

I third(!?) them!:). I am halfway through book three, The Well Of Lost Plots, and find them to be cleverly written and chock full of whimsical snippets! The last two books are patiently sitting on a bookshelf (although they sometimes disappear and re-appear elsewhere/elsewhen) awaiting their turn in my frightfully overbooked (did I actually say that!!) reading schedule. Yoicks!

John.

Callsign_Witch

11-30-2007, 03:55 AM

I agree about the teen/young adult section. I just finished (on audio cd) The Blood Red Horse by G M Grant. A tale of the Crusades and the effect an extraordinary horse has on two young men from different worlds. This is the first of a trilogy - the other books are: Green Jasper, and Blaze of Silver. Only the first and last are available on cd(that I am aware of).

KarenB

11-30-2007, 05:30 PM

I just bought Tamora Pierce's newest - Bekka Cooper - for my daughter, and being a good mother "had" to read it first! One of her better efforts!

Kiyomi

11-30-2007, 11:00 PM

Don't feel too bad John, I am also behind on my reading of Fforde, first I need to get the latest Thursday next book so that it'll be on hand to read.

I love 'Bekka Cooper' and am eagerly awaiting the next book in that series. I think it's my favorite book written by her although, I reserve the right to be fickle and change my mind later.

Magpie

12-01-2007, 03:07 PM

Can I chime in here? (I've been away for months - sick)
Terry Pratchett's Tiffany Achings series is great 'juvenile' literature. It is fantasy and fun, but it is amazing to me how much this man can see from the point of view of a young girl.
Oh, yeah, the books are Wee Free Men, A Hatful of Sky and Wintersmith.

Kiyomi

12-01-2007, 08:41 PM

If you haven't read Pratchett's latest book 'Making Money' do so. It's funny and serious at the same time.

Jennifer

12-01-2007, 09:45 PM

Hi All,
Getting frightfully close to having read all the Lord Peter there is. Yikes! This one was not in our library so I got our adult services librarian to order it (bocd). In its on little way, it poses quite a connundrum. All you Wimsey fan (atics) will know how he refers to previous cases quite frequently. It's fun, recognizing the connections. Since I read them in a bit of a higgle-di-piggle order (I did save all the Peter-Harriet books to be read late as possible) some things were a mystery but I noticed in GN that LP talked about a case that he actually made much worse by his intervention/meddlin'. I just found where that occured and I was very troubled by what happened. Just as he said, a very bad person murdered someone but perhaps would have done no more murders had LP not gone sniffin' around. It occured to me that DLS had to have been a thinker, a deep one, whether it was theology or ethics (not that the two are mutually exclusive). She constructed such a difficult problem. I am still thinking about the results of LP's inquiries, whether he did wrong, how could it have been otherwise. Many thoughts. And I can't fail to draw the conclusion that perhaps theology and detecting stories have much in common, given the background of the illustrious personage (she's giving me a free book, for pity's sake!) to whom this site is dedicated.
Lord Peter never fails to involve more than just "whodunit."
Jen D.(in the midst of the Mid-west's first beastly snow storm and tired of winter already!)

Younger Son

12-01-2007, 10:53 PM

If you haven't read Pratchett's latest book 'Making Money' do so. It's funny and serious at the same time.

I love Terry Pratchett (I gather in the UK that's as unfashionable as loving Stephen King is over here), but I thought Making Money wasn't his strongest.

Witches Abroad is a work of genius. The theme is the power of Story, set in a magical kingdom equivalent to New Orleans. I'm fond of it from reading it to my small daughters over a couple of weeks, voicing Granny Weatherwax as an elderly Kate Hepburn, and her sister as Bette Davis. (Pratchett — I'd told him a longer and more interesting story — worried how I'd handle Nanny Ogg. At a fan convention years later, he told my daughter he remembered her. She was on a cloud.)

The Tiffany Aching stories are in his top tier, so I'm not saying he's losing it.

Kiyomi

12-02-2007, 01:11 AM

I must agree about the Tiffany Aching stories, especially since Granny shows up somewhere along the way. I think the death, witches, watch, and Tiffany books are my favorites although I do love them all to varying degrees and for different reasons. I find it interesting how different people like/hate various sub-series but love others in the Discworld setting. Have you bought your Hogfather dvd yet?

tangential1

12-02-2007, 08:22 PM

Have you bought your Hogfather dvd yet?

It's on DVD?!! *rushes off to find it*

Sara McClelland

12-02-2007, 11:31 PM

I've been devouring Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials books. I finished the first two this week and I'm working on the third. And yes, I started reading them because of the movie, but I think, as is usually the case, the book will far outshine the cinematic interpretation.

Oh, and I also have to read for training "The Absorbent Mind" by Dr Maria Montessori. That's the 'work-vs-pleasure' war I'm having right now- what to read?

tangential1

12-03-2007, 03:10 AM

Oo, I just recommended HDM to a friend who recently read Chronicals of Narnia. He was very upset with the ending of Narnia and I told him HDM would be an interesting contrast *grins*

Kiyomi

12-03-2007, 04:11 AM

Yes it is a Borders exclusive for the first few months, but it's on sale at my local one for 16.99 so it won't break the bank :-D Hurrah!

Er...The Hogfather DVD that is.

mamaocllo

12-03-2007, 02:20 PM

I started reading The Thief Lord by Cornelia Funke, as I like good young adult books and Donna Leon's mystery series has made me eager to read almost any book about Venice. However, something about The Thief Lord is giving me a creeped-out feeling and I can't figure out what's doing it. Has anyone else read this one?
I really loved Pullman's His Dark Materials and am always trying to persuade others to read it. I'm wondering whether I'll like the movie version, as the child chosen to be Lyra looks very, um, sanitized/tidy/prettyfied for what I remember from the books. Ah well, can anything with armored polar bears be truly bad? Perhaps it's time to read the books again. Heh!

Magpie

12-03-2007, 03:51 PM

Hogfather on DVD! But I doubt it has reached the colonies yet. "Making Money" is still pending. I read the Hogfather every Christmas. It adds a Celtic depth to the season.

tangential1

12-03-2007, 03:59 PM

I've read The Theif Lord, although it was a while ago. I can't recall anything that was particularly creepy, though; shall have to look back through my copy when I get home tonight.

2bnallegory

12-03-2007, 04:37 PM

I have read the Thief Lord a while back and it seemed alright up until the ending when things took a strange twist and everything ended up like a neat and tidy bow. I found it disappointing really, I suppose in my mind I had things going in a different direction. Won't give anything away though as you are still reading.

Kiyomi

12-04-2007, 02:49 AM

'Thief Lord' is very creapy, I can't explain exactly why, but there were a couple characters that totally creaped me out in that book.

Kiyomi

12-04-2007, 02:53 AM

Hogfather on DVD! But I doubt it has reached the colonies yet. "Making Money" is still pending. I read the Hogfather every Christmas. It adds a Celtic depth to the season.

I was impatient and wanted to read 'Making Money' in the origional wording without being Americanized so I ordered them from Amazon.co.uk. Do you have Borders bookstores in Canada? If so you should have it availible too. The USA and Canada are both Region 1 coded if I remember correctly so you should be okay.

mamaocllo

12-04-2007, 01:50 PM

Thanks to all for the comments on The Thief Lord. I guess I'll coninue a bit more, but there's somehow a feeling of 'Something icky is going to happen and I don't know if I want to be around for it.'

Kiyomi

12-05-2007, 01:30 AM

It is a odd ending and not what I expected but I don't think I would call it icky, just not a traditional children's book ending.

dustywolf

12-06-2007, 01:42 AM

Wow! Thanks for all the recommendations. You all gave alot to choose from. Hopefully next time I post I can say I've read something.

Kiyomi

12-06-2007, 02:20 AM

You're welcome. As you can see we all recommend books at the drop of a hat. You will never be without a booklist again, try not to hold it against us when you get the bill for the books ;)

2bnallegory

12-07-2007, 01:10 AM

I have finished reading Terry Goodkind's final installment "Confessor", I'm not sure how many books were in the series but it seemed to go on forever. Now I am reading the Victorian Mysteries, finished "Death at Bishop's Keep" and currently on "Death at Rottingdean".

jtb1951

12-07-2007, 02:39 AM

Finished Touchstone this evening -- mighty fine!!!

John.

Redneck626

12-07-2007, 11:52 PM

I'm reading Black Like Me for school.

AmyLizzie

12-08-2007, 09:55 AM

My Touchstone finally arrived! A bit later than everyone elses but its here yay!!! :)

Magpie

12-08-2007, 04:52 PM

I was impatient and wanted to read 'Making Money' in the origional wording without being Americanized so I ordered them from Amazon.co.uk. Do you have Borders bookstores in Canada? If so you should have it availible too. The USA and Canada are both Region 1 coded if I remember correctly so you should be okay.

Thanks, Kiyomi.
I don't think we have Borders here but things are changing so fast in Calgary right now that it is possible that I just haven't seen it yet. I'll keep an eye out.
I didn't know books got Americanized. Yikes!

Magpie

12-08-2007, 04:57 PM

I'm reading Black Like Me for school.
It has been a long time since I read that book, but I remember that it was very good.

mamaocllo

12-08-2007, 10:53 PM

I had another try at The Thief Lord, but continued to find it creepy-feeling, so I reminded myself that I'm a grownup now and don't - have - to finish books, as there'll be no exam. So I picked up the fifth in Mike Shepherd's excellent space opera series about Kris Longknife, and it kept me reading right through until the end, at 4:15 AM. Much more satisfying.

kitling130

12-09-2007, 03:19 AM

I'm currently reading The High King's Tomb by Kristen Britain. It's the third book in the series, the first being Green Rider. It's about a girl named Karigan who ran away from school after beating up a snotty noble boy and meets a Green Rider. Green Riders are the king's messengers who possess magical abilities. She meets the dying Green Rider and has to deliver an important message to the king before whoever killed the messenger kiils her.

Also reading a YA book called New Moon by Midori Snyder. It's really hard to summarize, but is a very good book.

Kiyomi

12-09-2007, 05:59 AM

I didn't know books got Americanized. Yikes!

Yes. Although for some reason they usually sell the UK versions in Canada and not the US. In most of the Discworld books it is not too much of a change but it does make some things less funny/witty/sarcastic when they change the wording. That being the case I've bought several used UK versions and hope to eventually replace all of my US versions with the origional UK wording. I don't care what edition the books are since all my book are essentially reading copies, but I do like to read books the way the author origionally wrote them.

Magpie

12-09-2007, 04:47 PM

Thanks, both of you, for the info. I guess I will have to change my book-buying habits. I still like to be able to hold the thing that I am buying. The virtual world is still a bit alien to me. I would like to have the original words the author intended, though, especially with Pratchett who plays with words so much. I think a reader might miss something good with the changes.
Just to add the the list, I have been rereading the Poldark series by Winston Graham. I haven't seen the TV series, but the books are enthralling.

mamaocllo

12-11-2007, 01:37 PM

Smurrey

12-13-2007, 12:06 AM

Just read the Looking Glass Wars by Frank Beddor! So, SO good. I've always found Lewis Carrol to be a bit twisted anyway, although it could be the influence of that tom Petty video Isaw at an early age. This book series was way more than that video imagined. The sequel, Seeing Redd, is already out and there is a companion graphic novel to be released soon; I plan on using some of my Christmas money to get both. There is an awesome website if anyone is interested. The author has put together movie-like trailers for the books and a soundtrack.

www.lookingglasswars.com

jtb1951

12-13-2007, 01:12 AM

Just finished reading DLS's Busman's Honeymoon and Lord Peter: A Collection...and, as a consequence, will be Wimsey-less for awhile! However, after a hiatus of almost 40 years, I am going to re-read The Canon, beginning with the four novels, in the wonderful edition The New Annotated Sherlock Holmes, vol.3, Les Klinger, editor, which just arrived in the mail yesterday!! It will take awhile because the annotations are generous and enticing. The first two volumes of the set, which contain the complete stories, is on order for arrival before the new year. This is going to be fun!!!:). Also, since my TBR pile lies a-clamoring, there will be a steady stream of other books interspersed with The Great Canon Read! Now all I need is some private time (and my trusty Time-Turner!) and reading goodness swiftly ensues!!:). Ciao, babies!

John.

P.S. Still slogging my way through The Handmaid's Tale; I am singularly unimpressed! Details at 11:00! (Not really; that's just an annoying tag-line!) I'll comment in the December forum after I complete it, along with recommendations of dystopian fiction that I have found to be superior (he says with humility).

KarenB

12-13-2007, 03:01 PM

I just finished A Christmas Carol for my RL book club. I've read most of Dickens over the years but never this one - much lighter and fun once you get into the language! Also, An Ice Cold Grave by Charlaine Harris, a good entry in her series - not as lighthearted as the Sookie Stackhouse ones, but still enjoyable.

Jennifer

12-13-2007, 05:27 PM

Hi John,
I just got hold of "Busman's Honeymoon" and I am so thrilled! I had to go far afield for it and went ahead and read Jill Paton Walsh's two meta-Wimseys. Not pastiche but not Wimsey. Good efforts and since they were from Harriet's pov, reasonable. Too many modern references to so many things. A lot of modern cynicism. DLS had her ability to be cynical but it was done with such a light touch! You always feel you are in on the thing, it's not like a baseball bat coming down. Anyhoo, does this mean you are done with your wimseying?
Jen D.

jtb1951

12-13-2007, 05:48 PM

Anyhoo, does this mean you are done with your wimseying?

Sadly yes, at least until I start re-reading everything some time down the road! I tried to stretch them out as long as possible, but that only works up to a point!:). I am very excited, however, to pick up the Canon again for the first time since my youth, and am enjoying Klinger's annotation's immensely!

John.

AmyLizzie

12-13-2007, 09:09 PM

However, after a hiatus of almost 40 years, I am going to re-read The Canon, beginning with the four novels, in the wonderful edition The New Annotated Sherlock Holmes, vol.3, Les Klinger, editor, which just arrived in the mail yesterday!!

John.

John!!!! I love the Annotated Sherlock Holmes!!!! It's wonderful, I had it for my 18th and its fab!!! You will love it, I love to dip into it after a bad day and it always makes me feel so much better :):) Love and hugs, Amy xx

jtb1951

12-13-2007, 09:48 PM

John!!!! I love the Annotated Sherlock Holmes!!!! It's wonderful, I had it for my 18th and its fab!!! You will love it, I love to dip into it after a bad day and it always makes me feel so much better Love and hugs, Amy xx

Thanks, Amy! I guess I can't get a more enthusiastic recommendation than yours!:).

John.

2bnallegory

12-14-2007, 07:06 PM

I've read The New Annotated Sherlock Holmes vol's 1&2 and loved them but still haven't got vol 3. I did enjoy reading of the inconsistencies and tidbits of history and information on the stories. Right now I am reading Agatha Christie's Caribbean Mystery, a Miss Marple mystery. I had never read Agatha Christie before and I am finding it a good read.

Jennifer

12-14-2007, 08:17 PM

Hi all,
It's quite funny, maybe not "ha ha" but I've never read any Sherlock prior to Ms. Russell's entrance into his life. If one were to embark upon that pursuit, where would any of you devotees suggest starting?
Jen D.

Strawberry Curls

12-14-2007, 08:35 PM

I took up the canon to really read it after reading the Russell books. I had read a couple of the stories in my youth but never read the entire canon. I decided to start at the beginning and learn how and why Watson and Holmes roomed together, so I read "A Study In Scarlet." I picked up a very nice used copy of the complete stories and novels in a used book store and just started reading from front to back.

tangential1

12-14-2007, 09:01 PM

It's quite funny, maybe not "ha ha" but I've never read any Sherlock prior to Ms. Russell's entrance into his life.

*sheepishly* You know, I haven't either. I received The Complete Sherlock Holmes volumes I and II for Christmas the year before last, but I still have not read them yet. Perhaps this year....

jtb1951

12-14-2007, 10:11 PM

I totally agree with S.C.; start at the beginning with A Study In Scarlet. My current re-reading of the Canon will proceed through the rest of the novels (The Sign of Four, The Hound of the Baskervilles, The Valley of Fear), then follow with all of the stories (there are only 56 of them). I look forward to them all again. Happy reading!:)

John.

Strawberry Curls

12-15-2007, 01:07 AM

Carlina

12-15-2007, 04:10 PM

And now for something completely different....Sophie and Michael Coe's The True History of Chocolate, starting with the ancient Olmecs of Mexico, who may have been the first to enjoy it, and full of thoroughly researched choco-lore. Did you know that the Marquis de Sade was such a chocoholic that he kept nagging his wife (he had a wife?! Yes.), from prison and the asylum, to bring him a considerable lot of chocolate items (list included). I couldn't put it down yesterday, when I should really have been getting on with the holiday package-prep.

A great book and Mike should know, after spending decades of his life as a Mayanist studying and writing about Maya archaeology. Actually chocolate beans were used as a form of currency among the Maya it was so prized. Chocolate itself from only for the elite....and it wasn't like the chocolate we think of. It was more of a strong, bitter, drink....

Susan Bateman

12-17-2007, 09:03 PM

I am in the middle of Laurie R. King's Locked Rooms. Of the ones I have read,I like all of the Mary Russell stories. I think they would make an excellent BBC mystery series. Just finished Violets are Blue James Patterson. I tend to be reading more than one book at a time. One fiction, one nonfiction. The current nonfiction is The World Without Us Alan Weisman.

tangential1

12-17-2007, 11:25 PM

I started Elizabeth Peters' Borrower of the Night (which I think is the first Vicki Bliss novel) this weekend. It's an ok read, but I'm not liking it nearly as much as I do the Amelia Peabody series. I think perhaps I like Ancient Egypt better than Germany; the German words are bogging me down.

....So I decided to continue on with my Amelia Peabody re-read and started up The Snake, the Crocodile and the Dog yesterday as well:D

Kiyomi

12-18-2007, 03:13 AM

I must agree, start at the begining of the Sherlock Holmes stories and read them in chronological order by date published. There are references that will make more sense if you do so and you can watch the characters evolve over time. I wore out my first set of the complete Sherlock Holmes Vol 1 & 2 and still enjoy rereading them.

Smurrey

12-18-2007, 05:10 AM

tangential1

12-18-2007, 03:28 PM

It is true that the Amelia series is the better of the two, but the Vicky series does improve dramatically after book 1 and they keep getting better.

Hmmm...good to know. I'll have to push through a few more then. Thanks!

KarenB

12-18-2007, 07:21 PM

I'd agree with Smurrey about the Vicky Bliss series. Night Train to Memphis is terrific! So skim thru the early ones and reward yourself.

2bnallegory

12-18-2007, 09:54 PM

I have finished the Agatha Christie book "A Caribbean Mystery" and I have to say that it was an enjoyable book. The characters were introduced and you really didn't have to have read previous books in order to catch up. I don't know how a Miss Marple usually goes but everybody was suspect until the very end. Now I am reading another Agatha Christie that seems to be a collection of shorter stories of her various main characters.

Callsign_Witch

12-19-2007, 02:01 AM

Today, over lunch, I treated myself to "Serenity, Those Left Behind" Joss Whedon's new Firefly comic. Introduction by Nathan Fillion. I particularly loved this-"Never in my wildest. Like some sort of superteam benefactor, Joss made superheros out of all of us, complete with a super-hideout spaceship...The boots, the suspenders, gun holstered low on my hip...with a flick and a spin of that wicked awesome coat over my shoulders, I became someone else."
Excellent story, lovely art, and as a bonus, "A brief history of the universe, circa 2516 A.D." by Joss Whedon at the end of the book. As Goldilocks said, It was just right!

Smurrey

12-20-2007, 07:05 PM

Smurrey

12-20-2007, 07:11 PM

A great book and Mike should know, after spending decades of his life as a Mayanist studying and writing about Maya archaeology. Actually chocolate beans were used as a form of currency among the Maya it was so prized. Chocolate itself from only for the elite....and it wasn't like the chocolate we think of. It was more of a strong, bitter, drink....

It takes a lot to get me to pick up a nonfiction just for fun, but since there is chocolate involved and you gave it such a great blurb, I just might look it up :) Did you ever see that that movie Chocolat? Great sound track, great acting, vastly different from the book (but for once I actually prefer it that way,) well... for months afterward I was trying to mimc the recipes found therein. Finally my mother said that she would not try another of my "hot" chocolate concotions and to stop watching that movie! I do think a couple were keepers though. I have a recipe for "Hot Chocolate cookies" that are very tasty.

tangential1

12-20-2007, 07:43 PM

Finally my mother said that she would not try another of my "hot" chocolate concotions and to stop watching that movie! I do think a couple were keepers though. I have a recipe for "Hot Chocolate cookies" that are very tasty.

Mmmm...I love dark chocolate with chilies. One of my new favorites is Lake Champlain's Dark Spicy Aztec bar (http://www.lakechamplainchocolates.com/Chocolate/Organic-Chocolate/Spicy-Candy.aspx) Soooo good, but at $2 per oz, a very rare treat.;)

*grins* I would love to get your cookie recipe=)

jtb1951

12-22-2007, 05:48 PM

Along with working my way slowly through a re-read of The Canon I am in the midst of re-reading the first three books of the Deryni series by Katherine Kurtz (Deryni Rising, Deryni Checkmate, High Deryni) now that all three are finally available in hardcover. I'm afraid, however, that this re-reading will take me down the slippery slope of re-reading the whole series, and my 24 hour day hasn't gotten any longer yet (oops! Forgot my Time-Turner!). Maybe by the time I have finished them all again she will have the next book written (I can hope, can't I?) Happy holiday reading, everyone!!!:)

John.

Jennifer

12-22-2007, 07:34 PM

My Christmas present to me was to save the "Lord Peter Wimsey Companion" until such time as Christmas hurrying and scurrying would be done. Am almost there! Huzzah! If I were to re-read for Christmas (as is highly probable), I'd listen to Jenny Sterlin read "The Moor." She is Mary Russell Holmes!

Hope you all have a wonderful holiday!

Jen D. (hoping angels can make appearances w/o the aid of e-mail chain letters!)

Magpie

12-25-2007, 01:33 AM

Mmmm...I love dark chocolate with chilies. One of my new favorites is Lake Champlain's Dark Spicy Aztec bar (http://www.lakechamplainchocolates.com/Chocolate/Organic-Chocolate/Spicy-Candy.aspx) Soooo good, but at $2 per oz, a very rare treat.;)

*grins* I would love to get your cookie recipe=)

what kind of chilies do you use?

Carlina

12-27-2007, 05:06 AM

It takes a lot to get me to pick up a nonfiction just for fun, but since there is chocolate involved and you gave it such a great blurb, I just might look it up :) Did you ever see that that movie Chocolat? Great sound track, great acting, vastly different from the book (but for once I actually prefer it that way,) well... for months afterward I was trying to mimc the recipes found therein. Finally my mother said that she would not try another of my "hot" chocolate concotions and to stop watching that movie! I do think a couple were keepers though. I have a recipe for "Hot Chocolate cookies" that are very tasty.

Mike's way of writing is pretty down to earth. I actually use his book The Maya if I'm teaching a course on Mesoamerican iconography and archaeology. He's good at pulling the reader in. Hubby has used many of Mike's books in his classes and the student's like them.

It is an interesting book too! Of course, I'm biased being an anthropologist...;)

I haven't seen Chocolat..I've seen Like Water for Chocolate. I remember laughing hysterically through the whole thing...

Chocolate and the bean it is derived from, cacao, have an interesting history in Mesoamerica. In fact, if you've seen the movie Apocolypto...there's a scene when they get into the big city...you see some of the captives been auctioned off and sold. You'll notice they're paying with what appear to be brown beans...that's cacao....You could buy anything with it in Prehispanic Mesoamerica.

embee

12-27-2007, 06:24 AM

I have some books and authors to add to the discussion:)

For a little archeology fiction may I recommend The Falling Woman by Pat Murphy. From her website- "The Falling Woman, my second novel, won the Nebula Award for Best Science Fiction Novel in 1987. This contemporary psychological fantasy is set on Mexico's Yucatan peninsula. Archaeologist Elizabeth Butler has a special gift – she can see ghosts of the past. Her interactions with an ancient Mayan priestess draw her close to madness and tragedy." http://www.brazenhussies.net/murphy/fallingwoman.html

Any and all books by Mary Doria Russell. It just happens that she has a new book out. I looked it up on Amazon and in their "Customers who bought this item also bought" section under MDR's new book Dreamers of the Day was listed Touchstone by our own LRKing. Mary Doria Russell doesn't write light fiction so you kind of have to be in a strong mood before picking her work up. It is very worth it though! For people who prefer to read connected books in order be aware that The Sparrow precedes Children of God.
http://www.marydoriarussell.info/ Don't you just love that name Russell ;-)

An Incomplete Revenge (Coming February 2008) is the newest Maisie Dobbs in the series. Sometimes I live from good book to good book.

And am I the only person holding my breath until I get my hands on Touchstone? None of the little face icon shows just how blue my face is getting, lol.

Sorry this was so long. I haven't posted in ages.

Kiyomi

12-27-2007, 04:36 PM

No worries Embee! We always like more book recommendations!

As for holding my breath...well...the postman does get a rather defensive look on his face lately as he tells me there is no package for me ;-) Does that count?

Jennifer

12-27-2007, 10:49 PM

Hi all,
I've been digging into the "Lord Peter Wimsey Companion" and am already bereft! One of my most favorite characters, Lord St. George, died in 1940, during the Battle of Britain. Lord Peter books stop at about 1936 and there were a couple of stories later on, but nothing I can find mentions his death. I am supposing it was mentioned in some of the later things DLS wrote as Christmas gifts, other bits and pieces mentioned in the Companion. He was the most sparkling character! It was as if you got to see what LP would have been like at that age. Back to the Companion....
Jen D. (easily berefted...)

Elizabeth Chase

12-28-2007, 02:37 AM

It takes a lot to get me to pick up a nonfiction just for fun, but since there is chocolate involved and you gave it such a great blurb, I just might look it up :) Did you ever see that that movie Chocolat? Great sound track, great acting, vastly different from the book (but for once I actually prefer it that way,) well... for months afterward I was trying to mimc the recipes found therein. Finally my mother said that she would not try another of my "hot" chocolate concotions and to stop watching that movie! I do think a couple were keepers though. I have a recipe for "Hot Chocolate cookies" that are very tasty.

I just read the other day that Johnny Depp really hates chocolate! Poor man!

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ETA:
embee:
And am I the only person holding my breath until I get my hands on Touchstone? None of the little face icon shows just how blue my face is getting, lol.

It's a wonderful book -- one of LRK's best IMO!

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I'm currently reading two books -- The Natural History of Make-Believe by John Goldthwaite and Murder on K Street by Margaret Truman (I've read all of the series -- 20! -- and recommend them highly). I seem to always be reading a non-fiction and a fiction book simultaneously!

mamaocllo

01-02-2008, 08:27 PM

Got a vicious cold on my way back from Mexico (Puebla and Oaxaca), so am snuggled in on a gray day, reading Kage Baker's non-Company short stories. What a hardship, eh?

mamaocllo

01-02-2008, 08:43 PM

Oh, and while travelling, I re-read Pride and Prejudice, and Kim, both of which I continue to love; Peter DeVris' The Blood of the Lamb; and one by Tom Sharpe, set in South Africa, that I couldn't get very far into, as I found his version of humor not to my taste - even though it was the last of the novels in English that I'd brought with me. So I went up to the Oaxaca Lending Library and donated them, got three more books off their Sale shelf - useful to know about if you're in Oaxaca and run out of reading matter.

Bachi

01-02-2008, 09:16 PM

Just finished "Time and Again" by Jack Finney and enjoyed it - really loved the ending (although I'm :o to admit - it took me a minute to understand). Must be the age thing, kicking in.

Kiyomi

01-03-2008, 04:25 AM

And now for a children's book, I read the most recent Alex Rider novel 'Snakehead' and was very pleased with it. It is not 'great literature' but it is well thought out and very interesting. I especially appriciate how Anthony Horowitz rewards readers who stick with the series by answering questions and solving riddles from the begining of the series as time goes by instead of just ignoring the past and pretending that it doesn't exist. I'd recomend it for anyone who likes coming of age books and spy novels, but if you don't like both you probably won't like this series.

Bachi

01-03-2008, 09:10 PM

Concerning The Shadow of the Wind

I've heard all sorts of great things about this book and I even went and ordered a special edition being published by Subterranean Press, so I'm looking forward to reading it!
John.

John,
Did you ever get and read this book? I was wondering about your opinion. Although I liked it my dh wasn't as impressed.
Regards,
Wanda

2bnallegory

01-04-2008, 03:33 PM

Yesterday I finished the A.B.C. Murders, A Hercule Poirot Mystery by Agatha Christie, I find myself enjoying them very much, they are similar to Sherlock stories as being told from Poirot's less intelligent friend and partner and Poirot has all the facts in his head.

Just now I have started Touchstone and although I am only a few chapters in the story has captured my interest, could there be doubt, and look forward to continuing. Happy New Year's to all.

jtb1951

01-04-2008, 04:26 PM

John,
Did you ever get and read this book? I was wondering about your opinion. Although I liked it my dh wasn't as impressed.

Wanda, I haven't received my copy of the book yet, but my younger daughter read it over Christmas and thought it was quite good. I guess I will just wait until my copy shows up; I have plenty of reading material in the meantime. I just completed the first trilogy of Kelson books by Katherine Kurtz; I'm in the midst of the second book in the second Kelson trilogy, then on from there to re-read the rest of the extant Deryni books! Happy New Year, all!!!:)

John.

tangential1

01-04-2008, 07:51 PM

I just returned Anne Perry's "The Cater Street Hangman" to the library... I wasn't impressed...

You know, I wasn't very impressed with that book either so I kind of wrote off Ann Perry as an author I wouldn't really enjoy and haven't read any of her other work. Please let me know if you find the novels later in the series are any better=)

Jennifer

01-04-2008, 08:00 PM

I have been listening to "Busman's Honeymoon" for the last week. I finished and started again. Just like actual reading, I always pick up new things the 2nd, 3rd+ time around. I feel so attached to the characters of Lord Peter and Harriet. They are two matched equals in all the right senses of the word. Their relationship is like watching two wild horses come to terms with being tamed. Yet, they neither seemed to have lost anything, but gained, tremendous gain in heart and spirit. Still there is the feeling with each step toward union, there is a degree of fear, the fear of losing independence, the fear of losing self. I so appreciate the comment that DLS made about the mystery intruding on the relationship. It's true.

On a much lighter note, throughout this book, there is a tennis match of "Guess the Quotation!" It's such good fun and hilarious, how the conversations procede, peppered with all the best bits of English literature, and the attibutions coming almost as fast. I recommend this book for anyone who likes to be involved and play on several levels of intellect at the same time!

Now I need to find all the stories published here and there after Busman's Honeymoon!
Jen D.

2bnallegory

01-04-2008, 09:54 PM

Then may I recommend the Sara Woods mysteries.

Thanks, I'll keep my eye out for any of those.
I have not read Anne Perry before, but I have one in the to be read pile called "No Graves as Yet".

Kiyomi

01-05-2008, 04:27 AM

While Anne Perry's Cater Street Hangman series is her best known and most popular the characters in it can grate a bit on my nerves. I much prefer her William Monk books. The characters are more interesting and better developed. William Monk wakes up in a hosital with no clue who he is or anyone else. All he can remember is some of his distant past. The series shows how the loss of his memory transforms him from someone who would stab you in the back to get ahead to someone others would follow without question, someone people would die for.

mamaocllo

01-05-2008, 03:00 PM

Having re-read 'Kim' while I was on the road, I decided that now I'm back with my own bookstacks, I needed to re-read Peter Hopkirk's 'Quest for Kim' in which the author, who has
loved 'Kim' since childhood and written several non-fiction books about the historical incidents in the Great Game, returns to India and Pakistan to try to discover which places and people Kipling may have modified into fiction, and which he made up. Fascinating. Then
I found another of his books at our big used-book store (Setting the East Ablaze) and am well into that. Anyone who likes spy thrillers set in the 19th century might like to try Hopkirk's books; many of the real-life characters had lives and adventures too bizarre for fiction. Colonel Frederick Bailey's life makes James Bond look like - um - lessee - somebody who works for Kinko's.

kitling130

01-08-2008, 12:33 AM

I'm rereading one of my favorite books that I've read in high school, Sophie's World. It presents 3000 years of western philosophy in a pretty easy to understand story. It is an overview of philosophy so you don't really go in depth, but I learned more from that book than my philosophy teacher in high school.

Since I'm taking a classics class right now, I'm going to be rereading the Odyssey for the third or fourth time, a few plays, and we're going to look at the gender roles in each piece.

The Grey Badger

01-08-2008, 12:51 AM

I finished "Touchstone" the second time around. Read "Carved in Stone", nonfiction about losing one's mind and memory in middle age, sent to me by me 7-years-younger brother, and am trying to plow through "Las cronicas de Narnia" en espanol, a gift from my best friend who grossly overestimates my patients and my fluency. Overdue for a trip to the library.

tangential1

01-08-2008, 04:27 PM

Having re-read 'Kim' while I was on the road, I decided that now I'm back with my own bookstacks, I needed to re-read Peter Hopkirk's 'Quest for Kim' in which the author, who has
loved 'Kim' since childhood and written several non-fiction books about the historical incidents in the Great Game, returns to India and Pakistan to try to discover which places and people Kipling may have modified into fiction, and which he made up. Fascinating.

I just starting Kim this past weekend. I was supposed to have read it by Sunday for a book club, but I only managed to get about 40 pages in before our meeting:rolleyes: I had tried to read it last year, but I just couldn't get into at the time. This time around it has been a much faster read and I'm really enjoying it so far.

I will definitely have to find Quest for Kim when I'm done; that sounds really interesting. Thanks mamaocllo, for the recommendation:)

Kiyomi

01-08-2008, 08:29 PM

Today I have been reading old invoices, correcting them, and figuring out what goes where. This is not my job generally speaking but I was a little at a loss for something to-do and it needed to be done. Not exactly Shakespear but reading none the less and I am feeling impish ;)

mamaocllo

01-09-2008, 02:45 PM

Tangential -
I'd be interested to know some of your book club's reactions to reading 'Kim'
if you'd be willing to share.

tangential1

01-09-2008, 03:55 PM

Tangential -
I'd be interested to know some of your book club's reactions to reading 'Kim'
if you'd be willing to share.

Ah, my poor book club. Only 2 of the 6 of us actually finished the book, so it was a little difficult to discuss it. However, there was general agreement that the first couple of chapters was like a block wall against the rest of the story. If you could force yourself through the confusion of the cultural differences in the beginning (my roommate frustrated herself to no end trying to look up all the cultural references she didn't understand, thereby ruining the flow of the book for herself) and work your way into the section where Kim goes to school, the book really picks up. As one of my friends pointed out, you really have to read as you would a fantasy novel in which the whole world is made up; just accept that you don't know what he's talking about yet and you'll pick up what you need to know as the story progresses.

I definitely had that problem the first time I tried to read. The lack of understanding of most of his references became really frustrating. Especially because the copy I was reading had little asterisks all over the place that kept diverting my attention from the story (Finally figured out there were end notes to the book *palm to forehead*). This time around has been a much better read, so perhaps I just wasn't in the mood for historical the first go round.

The espionage part was, of course, really cool. A bit of wikipedia research to compliment the reading came up with some interesting tidbits, too (although you generally can't put too much stock into a wikipedia article). Did you know that the term "the Game" was actually picked up as a description after Kipling published Kim? He was apparently the person to coin that phrase.

mamaocllo

01-10-2008, 02:43 PM

Tangential -
I guess I didn't have that problem with the incomprehensible-culture references because I was reading it in (I think) junior high school, having bought it from the Junior Scholastic book club to fill out an order; perhaps because it was a 'Classic' so I didn't expect to understand everything? Or maybe because I was about Kim's age when I was reading it and liked the idea of his life, where he could do pretty much anything he liked. I went on from there to read and enjoy Kipling's 'Stalky and Co.' stories, about some British schoolboys who do considerable teacher-sassing, so maybe it was the teenage-rebellion thing.
According to Peter Hopkirk, someone else coined the phrase 'the Great Game' but Kipling's
use of it in 'Kim' certainly brought it into common usage. If you like his 'Quest for Kim,'
do try his 'The Great Game,' a thick volume of non-fiction that reads like a novel - tells all about the players before and after Kipling's day.
I'm wondering whether your book club decided to read 'Kim' because some of the action takes place in what's currently a world hot-spot, or because a member had read and liked it, or some other reason. Do tell?

tangential1

01-10-2008, 04:12 PM

Hmm...I think your thought that you didn't expect to understand it becuase it was a classic makes sense. That was definitely the issue with our reading. No one wanted to accept that they didn't understand and just move on and enjoy the rest of the book; they all wanted to really know what Kipling was talking about with all the place names and social castes (of which there apparently are quite a few). Sadly, that turned out to be more of a hinderance than a help in the reading (mostly because everyone got tired of looking things up). My roommate also commented that she has read several of Kipling's other works (namely the jungle books) and enjoyed those much more than she did Kim. Kim was much more description heavy, she said.

We decided to read Kim for a few reasons. We had originally decided we wanted to try and read some classic literature and Kim had been sitting on my shelf untouched since LRKs The Game was published (my aunt sent it as a gift after she read The Game because it was one of her favorites and I hadn't read it yet) so I suggested it. One of the other members had read it quite a long time ago and remembered enjoying it so it was added to our reading list. Nothing so worldly as being aware of current events;)

Truthfully, I think it rather suffered from the holidays. Everyone was out of town for half the month and no one really got around to picking it up. I'm wondering if it would have received better reactions had it been the book pick for a different month.

hail_mary_russell

01-11-2008, 04:54 AM

My first Kate Martinelli- The Art of Detection.

Just finished The BeeKeeper's Apprentice.

Also reading Stealing Buddha's Dinner: A Memoir.

And about half dozen cookbooks!:rolleyes:

vicki

01-11-2008, 07:08 AM

Hi and welcome, Hail Mary! If you've got the rest of the Russells and Martinellis ahead of you, you have some fabulous biblio-times to come! Cookbooks are so much fun to read--I enjoy them, although I can hardly boil water. I'm just not cut out for the kitchen, although I like to read about it. :)

What is Stealing Buddha's Dinner about? Sounds interesting!

Hi, mamaocllo! <Waves> I suffered from attention deficit while reading Kim. I enjoyed it, but I kept getting distracted away from it, so my reading of it felt a bit disjointed. Maybe I was like the people in your group, tangential--I do tend to like to look things up that I don't understand, but it's been a while, so I don't remember why it was so stop-and-start. I wonder if I'd have been more attentive to it if I'd read The Game first.

Today I have been reading old invoices, correcting them, and figuring out what goes where.

Eeek--doesn't sound like much fun! May you finish quickly and than enjoy some uninterrupted reading time!

In other news--DS and I are reading Schooled (http://www.gordonkorman.com/) by the always entertaining Gordon Korman, and it is hilarious! We also loved his No More Dead Dogs and The Sixth Grade Nickname Game.

jtb1951

01-11-2008, 12:03 PM

I wonder if I'd have been more attentive to it if I'd read The Game first.

I think it may have made a difference for me. I read Kim after reading The Game and I was enthralled by it; I read it straight through in 2 or 3 days and thoroughly enjoyed it. There wasn't much of it that I had to look up to understand so that probably contributed to my enjoyment. It will deserve another read some time!

John.

vicki

01-11-2008, 01:09 PM

I read Kim after reading The Game and I was enthralled by it; I read it straight through in 2 or 3 days and thoroughly enjoyed it.

Hmmm. I think I'll have to do a reverse-order reread, then. I think I'll get more out of Kim that way. <Adds to miles-long to-do list> :)

has your son every read "The Great Brain" books by John Dennis Fitzgerald

Several friends have recommended those to me, and I've been meaning to read the first one or two. I think those were around when I was a kid, but for some reason, I never read them. I'll try to find one at the library and see how DS and/or DD like them.

Strawberry Curls

01-11-2008, 02:14 PM

I smiled when I read the "old invoices"... I did finish Jan 2007 bank rec only a couple of days ago.... I'm behind. :o This just gave me a heart attack. The bookkeeper of over 40 years that lurks in my soul is quaking right now. :p

Strawberry Curls

01-11-2008, 02:46 PM

I have a few more weeks before it has to go to the accountant :D
It's just a matter of doing the bank recs.

Soon. B/c next is T4's (statement of employment income).

Sheri

I'm posting Dec. and getting ready to do W2s (same as your T4s) then I have five sets of books to post and consolidate info for the 1099s (independent contractors income forms) I'm also married to a CPA so from now till April 15th Taxes are my life :(

Kiyomi

01-11-2008, 03:30 PM

That sounds terrible. Tax, tax, and more tax. Do you take a vacation to celebrate when it's all over?

I just finished rereading Eric Flint's 'An Oblique Approach'. As always it was an excellent read. I'd recommend it to anyone intersted in Roman and alternate histroy. It's a what if story about what would happen if two opposing forces gave people of that time access to modern knowledge and what they could and could not apply given what they knew at the time. It is the first of a six book struggle for the fate of humanity set in the past. As always with Eric Flint it is not only entertaining but based loosely in fact.

Strawberry Curls

01-11-2008, 04:12 PM

That sounds terrible. Tax, tax, and more tax. Do you take a vacation to celebrate when it's all over? After 36 years of tax seasons just surviving is an accomplishment.:eek: Usually we try to take a trip in May or June to regroup and relax a bit. We both run our own businesses so it is a very busy time for us.

2bnallegory

01-11-2008, 04:19 PM

I just finished rereading Eric Flint's 'An Oblique Approach'. As always it was an excellent read. I'd recommend it to anyone intersted in Roman and alternate histroy.

That does sound interesting. I'll keep my eye open for that. For myself just finished Touchstone last night, had my nose in the book for the last couple of days and hubby feeling a bit ignored. For now I am reading a compiled book of short stories of Miss Marple.

kitling130

01-12-2008, 01:24 AM

Kiyomi

01-12-2008, 05:29 AM

I think a lot of us scientist are fascinated by things that are considered to be disgusting. The thing is even when you are being disgusted you just can't help wanting to know why/how something works. I am easily disgusted but I love knowledge more than I care how disgusted I feel. I'm sure Freud would have something to say.

tangential1

01-12-2008, 03:30 PM

I've read the book Stiff: The Curious Lives of Cadavers by Mary Roach. I can't believe I'm going to say this about a book on corpses but the author is quite humorous when she writes about what happens to bodies that are donated to science.

Several of my friends have read that one and really enjoyed it, too:) Apparently her second book, Spook: Science Tackles the Afterlife, is also really good. I haven't read them yet, though; still on my to-read list.

And in case you are interested, I did a quick author search and she is coming out with a third book (Bonk: The Curious Coupling of Science and Sex) in April of this year:)

Carlina

01-13-2008, 04:30 AM

I've read the book Stiff: The Curious Lives of Cadavers by Mary Roach. I can't believe I'm going to say this about a book on corpses but the author is quite humorous when she writes about what happens to bodies that are donated to science.

It's a bit morbid reading, but I'm a scientist at heart and even the most disgusting things are interesting to me. So if you're squeamish, never ever invite a bunch of scientist to your dining table, especally physiologists. We've put quite a number of people off their meal once we get going.

Great book! Then again, "stiffs" are my life, more specifically those of the skeletal nature! I've had my go with quite a few donors, as I prefer to call them. I think Stiff is rather dehumanising, as well as cadaver. These were people at one time and I am always conscious of that as I work with a decedent. I think sometimes scientist who deal in death all to easily disassociate the person from their remains. Sadly though, people's bodies become commodities as soon as they are on the dissection slab. I don't like to think of it that way, personally, but I know its what happens. They become tools for teaching and are little more. We've been trying to reverse this trend with out medical students and remind them constantly that these aren't stiffs, cadavers, etc. These are donors. They were once alive and made the decision to share the gift of their bodies.

I shan't forget my first donor...the first I cut into. We all named him Sal. Big guy 85, built like a bull and muscles the size of Arnie. He was...an impressive case...Heart attack my backside. The doctors wrongfully diagnosed him as having a heart attack, but we learned otherwise throughout the course of the year...It's a long story, but it was a great learning experience as well as a case I'll never forget.

If you liked Stiff. I'd recommend a perusal of the 19th century trade in bodies and ressurrection men. Mike Sappol's A Traffic of Dead Bodies is a great place to start. This is when dissection was very illegal in the US....but done anyway...

*chuckles* You should hear the dinner conversation in my house...eep! It varies from stomach contents to blowflies...

Bachi

01-13-2008, 07:41 PM

I shan't forget my first donor...the first I cut into. We all named him Sal. Big guy 85, built like a bull and muscles the size of Arnie. He was...an impressive case...Heart attack my backside. The doctors wrongfully diagnosed him as having a heart attack, but we learned otherwise throughout the course of the year...It's a long story, but it was a great learning experience as well as a case I'll never forget.

Oh Carlina how could you give us this mystery - without the solution, I will wonder about this for days!
Regards,
Wanda

Jennifer

01-13-2008, 10:40 PM

Redneck626

01-14-2008, 01:47 AM

Well, I'm still reading Black Like Me for English class, but I have yet to finish it.

Kiyomi

01-14-2008, 04:18 AM

I think it's hard to find good bedside manner nowadays. My husband has had so-so luck, but after switching several times several years ago I found a most excellent GP and all the specialists in the group I am under with him are very good as well. Unfortunately one of my friends had a specialist tell her just a couple days ago 'There is a 99.4% chance your mom has lukemia.' That's all. Talk about abrupt!

tangential1

01-14-2008, 03:52 PM

Ug...I really can't stand doctors. I have to be seriously dying to go in to see a doctor. The last time I went in to urgent care for a sinus infection the on-call doctor rolled her eyes at me, her expression and tone dripping with condecension, "it's just a cold". If I had been feeling better I probably would have screamed at her.

I feel like the only doctors with a good bedside manner are those doctors that have been seriously ill themselves.

Kiyomi

01-14-2008, 08:07 PM

That is terrible! Last time I went to my GP for illness the medication started making me sicker after I took the last of a 3 days antibiotic regiment (about a year later they decided Erythromyacin(spelling?) didn't work well for lots of women) and was unable to keep down water, I went it, he checked me out, gave me some free medication to calm my stomach with a weeks supply and then called me at home at about 9:30 pm to make sure that I hadn't had to go to the ER and to top that all off never charged me for the visit. I dread the day that he retires! Hopefully the medical group I am with under him will continue to foster good patient doctor relations.

Jennifer

01-15-2008, 05:43 PM

Rather than rag on a doctor this time, I want to tell you all my friend who had breast cancer surgery is clear! Completely! Still has to have chemo and all but this is very good news!
Cheers!
Jen D.

Strawberry Curls

01-15-2008, 06:04 PM

That is good news, Jen. :) Thanks for sharing it. My best to your friend.

tangential1

01-15-2008, 06:45 PM

Hoorah! That is excellent news=) Happy thoughts to you and your friend, Jen!

Kiyomi

01-16-2008, 05:33 AM

That is great news Jen! It is so amazing how much treatment has improved in the last 25 years! You may not know the answer but do you know if they are using a site specific shunt for the therapy? My aunt was treated that way last year and it was amazing how much it lessened the side effects.

Sheri, I hope your mom is doing better now!

vicki

01-16-2008, 06:13 AM

I found Sky Coyote (second in the Company series by Kage Baker) at the library today! <Happy Dance> The first one, In the Garden of Iden, was truly excellent, so I've been pining for SC. Whee!

I'm so glad for your friend, Jen! My mom just finished her last radiation treatment (didn't need chemo, thank goodness) and we're all very happy and hopeful that it's gone for good. :) Your comments about oncologists' bedside manner made me think of a recent NY Times article (http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/08/health/08seco.html?_r=1&oref=slogin) about that very thing. See also the 2 letters (http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/15/science/15lett-BEDSIDEMANNE_LETTERS.html) to the editor responding to the article.

I'm still reading Black Like Me for English class, but I have yet to finish it.

Hiya red! I read that book for one of my college classes, and it was interesting, if kind of depressing. I read somewhere that the author (a white man who changed his appearance to African-American via chemicals and other techniques) basically shot his liver with the chemicals he used and that his death was related to that. There is another book called Kingsblood Royal (http://racematters.org/kingsbloodroyal.htm) by Sinclair Lewis that explores a similar theme. It was another interesting read.

But...what are you reading for *fun*rather than class? :) If you're between fun books, you might give Sabriel by Garth Nix a whirl. It rocks! Or The Blue Sword by Robin McKinley. Ditto. Those are both high-quality fantasies with strong female protagonists. Or there's always the LRK bookshelf, in case you haven't read all of her stuff. :D

I so respect any of y'all who do tax-work. Filling out the simplest tax stuff makes me want to run for the hills. I think I have some kind of block about it. I'll never work in the financial field, that's for sure.

Sorry for the bad doctor experiences, tangential! Through trial and error and much research, I've found some great docs for our family. I'd hate to move for that reason, if no other. It takes a while to find good medical people that you feel really comfortable with.

I've heard great things about Stiff. I'm with Bachi--I want to know about The Mystery of Sal!

http://laurierking.com/vbulletin/images/misc/progress.gif

Jennifer

01-16-2008, 11:31 AM

Hi Vicki, and all fellow readers,
I just happened upon a set of lectures by a professor named Michael Drout concerning fantasy literature and I have been listening to them. It's called "Rings, Swords and Monsters" and it's through "The Modern Scholar." As you might guess from the title, he spends a lot of time on J.R.R. Tolkien because he says Tolkien is the father of fantasy literature. But then he moves on to consider the other greats such as Ursula LeGuin. He considers the origins of fantasy lit and believe it or not, childrens' lit in the 19th century had a huge influence. There's a lecture about more current writers and yes, our dear Philip Pullman merits some discussion as does J.K. Rowling. He finishes with a discussion of magical realism, something I just knew the tiniest thing about. It has been lots of fun to hear about fantasy lit, in its broadness and just what it means. It seems fantasy lit answers our deepest questions. It's got a lot to do with language and meaning but fantasy lit is not concerned with the "everydayness" of life. That's why "Well, I'm back." is the saddest line in all of "The Lord of the Rings." Sam's back to the everydayness of just living his life!
Thanks for all your good wishes for my friend. I can tell you, she is like a prisoner given a reprieve!
Jen D.

Bachi

01-16-2008, 05:07 PM

My sincere best wishes to all who have dealt with serious illness, weather self, family or friends. I know how truly trying times can be.

Most recent reads:
The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton:
Why do so many books written in and/or about the early 20th century present people who are too innocent (for their age) to be believable? I’ve read works written earlier that presented people more realistically?

Girl with a Pearl Earring and Falling Angels both by Tracy Chevalier:
I recommend both.
Girl with… would have particular appeal for anyone with and artistic eye, one of the main characters is Vermeer.
Falling Angels does have deep sorrow. There is one character that I liked and disliked for different reasons, more so than I can remember for some time.

Dalva by Jim Harrison:
A great story about a woman haunted by her past that also takes a hard look at the annihilation of the Plains Indians.

Kiyomi

01-16-2008, 06:30 PM

It's good that you are getting checked regularly! So far my maternal grandmother had breast cancer at 52 my mothers cousin related to her through my grandmother had it in her mid thirties and my aunt is in remission after having gotten it in her early 50's.

tangential1

01-16-2008, 06:42 PM

Bachi,

Have you seen the film of Girl with a Pearl Earing (with Colin Firth and Scarlet Johansson)? I'd be interested in any thoughts you might have on the media comparison.

Carlina

01-16-2008, 07:23 PM

Carlina,
It isn't just the dead that doctors disassociate themselves from. My neighbor was just diagnosed with breast cancer and her oncologist basically gave her the numbers game, stats and all dealing with her situation and she was so turned off! Does anyone teach "bedside" manner these days? She may be just another statistic to him, but she is one very fearful lady who isn't comforted by the spouting of numbers. If she were able to look at her situation from a comfortable third party stance, maybe his idea of a consult wouldn't have been so cold and bloodless, but this is her body that's going under the knife and her life that is not as safe as it used to be...
Jen D.

In the middle of intense academic week...presentations and the nightmares that plague people when they present controversial research...eep! Will answer your responses this weekend :).

Jen...I'm glad for your friend and boy do I have a spiel about docs.....they've come close to killing my dear DH twice! :eek::mad:

More when this is all over...*powerpoints and books and presentations proceed to attack *

Bachi

01-16-2008, 08:39 PM

Bachi,

Have you seen the film of Girl with a Pearl Earing (with Colin Firth and Scarlet Johansson)? I'd be interested in any thoughts you might have on the media comparison.

No tangential1, not yet, I'll add it to my blockbuster mailing list. The book was wonderful.

vicki

01-16-2008, 09:31 PM

Good luck on the academic stuff, Carlina! <sends good vibes>

boy do I have a spiel about docs.....they've come close to killing my dear DH twice! :eek::mad:

Crikey--talk about bad luck! :( I hope all is well now. When you're not under the gun, you'll have to tell us a little about it.

I finished Sherlock Holmes' "A Study in Scarlet" (??? book is back at the library)

I hated ASiS! Everything was going so nicely, and then it suddenly morphs into a nineteenth-century Utah yawnfest. I was hard pressed not to throw the book at the wall. But I'm such a stickler for reading in order, I can't get past that to The Good Stuff. So I'm still Canon-less.

:..(
:..(
:..(

I just happened upon a set of lectures by a professor named Michael Drout concerning fantasy literature and I have been listening to them. It's called "Rings, Swords and Monsters" and it's through "The Modern Scholar."

Ooooh--from whence did it come? That sounds right up my alley. I love all those authors. Did he give any time to Robin McKinley and Garth Nix? They're another two I really love.

It's got a lot to do with language and meaning but fantasy lit is not concerned with the "everydayness" of life. That's why "Well, I'm back." is the saddest line in all of "The Lord of the Rings." Sam's back to the everydayness of just living his life!

That line really is an emotion-provoker. It kind of says--the adventure, the trilogy is over, never to be read for the first time again. Waaaah!

I loved Girl with a Pearl Earring--it's excellent! I've seen a few clips from the movie, which seemed to have the same atmosphere as the book, and the characters were pretty much like I'd imagined them, too. I need to see that sometime.

I'd also like to read The Age of Innocence, then see the film of it. I'd like to read more about Wharton, too. What I've heard of her is very interesting.

Sky Coyote, the second in the Company series by Kage Baker is looking good so far, a few chapters in. :)

Jennifer

01-16-2008, 10:15 PM

Hi Vicki,
Wonderful mondo catch-all note! No, Prof. Drout didn't consider those people in his survey. He spent a lot of time on Tolkien and then tried to focus on the 3 or so others who've been around a long time and seemed to have gone past his shadow. That "Sword of Shinara" guy got a lot of time as did Ursula LeGuin and an English author I can't remember. He said he didn't try to talk about the current crop because the jury is still out on them. But I think it's more like who could write about all the new fantasy things that come out? It's just a mountain of literature. He says that fantasy is the #1 selling form now. Because, people are hungry for meaning. Modern-style lit doesn't pretend to seek ulitimate meaning. It's fun to read but for the most part, you don't want to read them over and over. I guess LRK doesn't fit into that category. There must be a credible search for meaning in her work because most of them, I do want to read over and over. Go to your public library and search under the series "Modern Scholar" or Michael Drout and you should come up with these lectures. The company will send you a study guide for the price of postage if you want a personal copy.

Oh yes, as besotted fan of Colin Firth, I can tell you, "Girl with a Pear Earring" is a beautifully realized version of the book. I can't think of a more exquisitely beautiful woman to have played the lead either, than Scarlett Johansen. See it in the best venue possible, hd-tv, art theater, biggest screen you can find. It's a keeper. I remember when I read that book, when ever I'd take a break, it would be as if I'd come back from that world, that I'd been gone, or underwater. That's my definition of an enthralling work, when I am so taken by it that the present world ceases to exist for a while
Jen D.

Strawberry Curls

01-16-2008, 11:19 PM

When I reached that section I had to flip through to figure out if I had changed stories. There was more than one in the book. Then I read the rest of the story and went back to the background section and read it. Then all of a sudden it made sense.

SheriSheri, I had the same reaction to ASIS. I wanted to read the canon from beginning to end and I wanted to see how Holmes and Watson met and got on as flatmates, but wow, that story put a grinding halt to my enjoyment, but I persevered and it all sort of fell into place and I ended up enjoying the story. Preserver it is worth it, Vicki. ;)

vicki

01-17-2008, 02:42 AM

I was afraid y'all would say that. I'll just have to make myself grind through it to see how it shakes out. Even if I still hate it at the end, I'll still get to The Good Stuff afterwards. :)

Thanks for the info on how to get those lectures, Jen! I'll have to try and get the set--it really sounds fascinating.

Girl with a Pearl Earring really would be a fabulous large-HDTV experience. Colin Firth=swoonworthy!

Kiyomi

01-17-2008, 03:22 AM

Vikki, I must agree with everyone else. It will make sense later, but take heart it took me three or four tries to make it through that section. Once I did and reread it I understood it, but initially(keeping in mind the first time I read Sherlock Holmes I was about 8 years old) I was totally confused by it. I didn't reattempt reading that section of ASIS for several years but at certain points after that I kept trying and eventually made it through. It is now one of my favorite books even if I do think you can skip the Utah bits and still understand all the important plot points(to me at least) without the majority of the Utah side story.

vicki

01-17-2008, 06:32 AM

Okay, I'm convinced. :) I'll put ASiS in the Stack. I may kind of skate through the Utah chunk if the going gets tough, so maybe that'll work. Then I'll be ready for The Good Stuff! Wheee!

jtb1951

01-17-2008, 12:59 PM

I have to agree with everyone else, Vicki, that it is worthwhile to force your way through the Utah story. I'm in the midst of re-reading the Canon, and in reading ASIS I was thrown for a loop when reaching Utah because I just did not remember that section from my first reading years ago. However, I am stubborn if nothing else so I persisted in reading the section completely, and was pleased to see that it actually fit the story in a weird sort of way. To my recollection, it is unlike anything else in the Canon, which may be why it is so jarring, but for completeness sake I think you will find it worthwhile.:) Have fun!

John.

Smurrey

01-17-2008, 02:17 PM

Strawberry Curls

01-17-2008, 02:26 PM

Has anyone been watching Masterpiece Theater this month? They started with the steamiest version of Jane Eyre I've ever enjoyed:p and now they're off with the complete Jane Austen starting with Persuasion. Good times! I was infuriated at the version of Persuasion they broadcasted. I love that book, am a huge Jane Austen fan and I thought this new production was terrible. Unworthy of the book. The ending scenes with Anne running through the streets of Bath, hatless, without gloves, back and forth were a travesty. Then the sick friend, who can barely walk in the book, joins her to run along side Anne (at least Mrs. Smith is property attired to be in the streets) to give her the vital information about her cousin, had me so upset. The 1995 film version with Cairan Hinds and Amanda Root is far superior. I have a friend in the UK and she said the other "remakes" aren't much better. They are using the 1990s (can't remember the date) version of Pride and Prejudice with Colin Firth. That is superb, very faithful to the book and Colin Firth as Darcy...well, what more do I need to say. :p

tangential1

01-17-2008, 03:30 PM

Has anyone been watching Masterpiece Theater this month? They started with the steamiest version of Jane Eyre I've ever enjoyed:p and now they're off with the complete Jane Austen starting with Persuasion. Good times!

OMG, I am completely in love with the MT version of Jane Eyre. I'm not even a fan of the novel, really, but I adored the movie muchly. My best friend got it on DVD and I think we've watched it about four times (and it's 3 hours long so that's saying something). Of course, now she's out in the bay, so I'll have to buy my own copy:rolleyes:

I was not nearly as happy with Persuasion; I found it to be really confusing and the acting wasn't as good. And the film quality was kind of lacking as well; the bouncing of the shot while the camera guy ran to keep up with the actors was definitely distracting.

Does anyone know what the next ep of Masterpiece is going to be?

tangential1

01-17-2008, 03:32 PM

They are using the 1990s (can't remember the date) version of Pride and Prejudice with Colin Firth. That is superb, very faithful to the book and Colin Firth as Darcy...well, what more do I need to say. :p

:D I whole-heartedly agree.

Smurrey

01-17-2008, 07:03 PM

He's a lovely character and an actor I really haven't seen him in anything I haven't liked him in, except The Girl in the Pearl Earring.

I didn't care too much for this version of Persuasion either although I have seen one version of it that I did like, the 1995 version with Ciaran Hinds. The MAsterpiece Theater Website has the full season detailed.

Smurrey

01-17-2008, 07:08 PM

[QUOTE=tangential1;4877]OMG, I am completely in love with the MT version of Jane Eyre. I'm not even a fan of the novel, really, but I adored the movie muchly. My best friend got it on DVD and I think we've watched it about four times (and it's 3 hours long so that's saying something). Of course, now she's out in the bay, so I'll have to buy my own copy:rolleyes:

I have my copy ordered from Barnes and Nobles;) It is much more touchy feely than Jane Eyre usually is and by that I mean that they get AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE out of deep meaningful glances, hand shakes, a touch of the earlobe (!!!) as possible. I was positively, deliciously scandalized :p JE is my favorite Bronte book, so I've seen them all and this is definitely my new fav.

Strawberry Curls

01-17-2008, 07:33 PM

Does anyone know what the next ep of Masterpiece is going to be? They advertised Northanger Abbey for next week, not my favorite of the JA books.

Jennifer

01-17-2008, 07:41 PM

Smurrey

01-18-2008, 02:43 AM

What was it about "Girl with a Pearl Earring" that you didn't like?
Jen D.
Oh yes, just to be on the up and up, and talk about what I am currently reading, I just started listening to a new Father Tim book. It's so not what this bunch of readers would ever read, I won't go into it or anything. This is my ear-candy, the thing that tickles my Southern heart-strings.
J.

I just meant Colin Firth's character in that movie being the one character of his that I haven't liked. Even in The English Patient I at least found him to be a sympathetic character. The GWtPE movie as whole was ok, but not on my rewatch list. It was well written and acted, the movie well done, but for some reason I found it difficult to connect.

Is the Father Tim book one of the Mitford series?

Kiyomi

01-18-2008, 05:24 AM

Tonight I am rereading 'The Dance of Time' by Eric Flint & David Drake. As usual I am enjoying it immensly, it is the sixth book in the Belisaruius alternate history series I mentioned earlier in the thread.

Jennifer

01-18-2008, 11:23 AM

Yes, Smurrey!
This new book is connected to the Mitford series. It's about Father Tim but somehow these books are not going to occur in Mitford. In this book, he's going back to Mississippi where he grew up. There's a mystery involved but it's only coming to light very slowly. Still the characters he meets are interesting and surprise! The real world plays a role. They mention current events! The new reader (I'm a books on tape fan) is much younger than in previous books on tape and he is much more nimble in his characterizations. Believable as old, young, black, white. It's called "Home to Holly Springs" by the way. As per usual, it isn't action-packed but it does hit one's heart.
Jen D.
PS Have you seen a film w/ Colin Firth called "My Life So Far?" It's set in Scotland. He's not the main character but it's an interesting role. I'm a long-time fan of his, having seen his first film "Another Country" in 1984. He was such a little thing then. Who knew he'd make the best Darcy ever? "Girl with a Pearl Earring" is a different kind of role for him but I had loved the book so I was prepared for the atmosphere, his role, the unfufilled nature of the film. I don't think he gets enough good stuff to do. I really can't stand things like "What a Girl Wants" and hate to see him doing such twaddle.
J

tangential1

01-18-2008, 04:24 PM

I really can't stand things like "What a Girl Wants" and hate to see him doing such twaddle.

Ah, but you have to appreciate the leather pants ;)

hollywehmeyer

01-18-2008, 04:56 PM

Making Money by Terry Pratchett

Jennifer

01-18-2008, 04:59 PM

"Ah, but you have to appreciate the leather pants "

Tangential,
Now that's a quandry. On the face of it you'd think Colin Firth in skin tight leather pants? What's not to like? But I say, "Give me a wet white silk shirt, fresh from a dip in the pond at Pemberly!"
Jen D.

Strawberry Curls

01-18-2008, 05:14 PM

But I say, "Give me a wet white silk shirt, fresh from a dip in the pond at Pemberly!"
Jen D. To that I say a hardy...Amen!!

tangential1

01-18-2008, 05:35 PM

But I say, "Give me a wet white silk shirt, fresh from a dip in the pond at Pemberly!"

Agreed! :D

tangential1

01-18-2008, 05:42 PM

I'm right smack in the middle of Touchstone at the moment and bemoaning the fact that I have to be at work for the next five hours when I really want to be at home finishing the book because it's really getting interesting now. At least I have Monday off and to myself:rolleyes:

Decidedly not a book you can read in spurts, this one; it requires good long chunks of time devoted to it.

jtb1951

01-18-2008, 06:10 PM

Making Money by Terry Pratchett

Thanks for posting, Holly, and feel free to keep us current on your readings! Also, welcome to another local!:)

John.

jtb1951

01-18-2008, 06:20 PM

By the way, I finished Ann Fadiman's Ex Libris last night (thanks again for the recommendation, t1!), and it was indeed awesome. A must read for any book lover, courtly or carnal! Next on the docket, deciding which of next month's books to start first, since they just arrived from Amazon, and how to fit them interspersed into the continued re-readings of the Canon and all the Deryni books! There are worse dilemmas in life!!!:)

John.

P.S. I'm glad that you are enjoying the Company books, Vicki!

tangential1

01-18-2008, 06:54 PM

Glad to hear you enjoyed it, John! I just picked up a copy of her second collection of essays; can't wait to start it:)

Kiyomi

01-18-2008, 07:00 PM

Making Money by Terry Pratchett

Thanks for posting! I'm always happy to see another Pratchett reader :) I hope you enjoy the book as much as I did.

Smurrey

01-19-2008, 12:39 AM

Have you seen a film w/ Colin Firth called "My Life So Far?" It's set in Scotland. He's not the main character but it's an interesting role. I'm a long-time fan of his, having seen his first film "Another Country" in 1984. He was such a little thing then. Who knew he'd make the best Darcy ever? "Girl with a Pearl Earring" is a different kind of role for him but I had loved the book so I was prepared for the atmosphere, his role, the unfufilled nature of the film. I don't think he gets enough good stuff to do. I really can't stand things like "What a Girl Wants" and hate to see him doing such twaddle.
J

Oh, heh heh, I forgot that he did that.;)That was awful, although I did enjoy the leather pants bit. I really liked him in Love Actually and Bridget Jones (Darcy again,) but it Pride Prejudice where he stole my heart :p I imagine the combination of he and Scotland must be a good one, they both work for me!

Jennifer

01-19-2008, 01:09 AM

Smurrey,
I think the book I am reading now "Home to Holly Springs" is a mystery masquarading as a slow little bucolic Southern novel! What a great surprise!
By the way, you get to see Colin Firth in a kilt in "My Life So Far!" Wow! Did you like Bridget Jones? I don't think I understand the British mind. Even though that Darcy was the obvious choice, he had all the personality of a sea sponge! What a terrible choice to have to make. But Colin in "Love Actually" was one of my favorite threads. That film had some very calculating story arcs which I didn't care for. But Colin's and the unrequited love of the "best friend" were quite the best!
Jen D.(knowing in her heart this belongs in chit-chat...)

mamaocllo

01-19-2008, 04:43 AM

I agree - what a wretched version of Persuasion on Masterpiece Theater. All that running in the streets by Ann makes me wish Miss Austen had lightning-strike-from-beyond powers and could smite whoever thought those scenes were a good idea. The earlier version with Amanda Root and Ciaran Hinds was about the same length, as I remember, stuck much closer to the book, and kept the characters human and sympathetic, rather than burlesques. This one seemed more like an amateur production featuring exaggerated acting. The latest issue of Newsweek says the only prizes in the MP series are the re-showing of Pride and Prejudice and the one about the latter years of Miss Austen's life; I'll look forward to those.

Jennifer

01-19-2008, 11:19 AM

Smurrey

01-19-2008, 01:32 PM

I read a biography of Jane Austen. It was very sad. I am always struck by the lives of the authors I love. They are not very happy as a rule. I read a biography of Lucy Maud Montgomery (Ann of Green Gables) and she had a very un-Ann-like life. Dorothy L. Sayers had a very difficult life. Why should the saddnesses of real life suprise me? I suppose I want the people that give me such pleasure to have had happy lives...
Jen D.

I think that is part of what makes authors, the good ones anyway, able to do what they do, don't you? Someone who has never experienced the dark side of life or had to have a place in their minds where they can go to separate themselves from reality for a bit, (it reminds me of Anne's "window" friend Katy.) I don't know that they could be empathetic enough to reach an audience. Or maybe it is just those author's to whom I relate, because goodness knows there are some that seem as closed off as stale popcorn-- there's just nothing there of interest.

Speaking of really awful movies based on books I've loved, did anyone see Anne, the Later Years or War Years or whatever it was called that came out a couple of years ago? Maybe this should have its own thread, or maybe it does... whoops.

Smurrey

01-19-2008, 01:41 PM

I think the book I am reading now "Home to Holly Springs" is a mystery masquarading as a slow little bucolic Southern novel! By the way, you get to see Colin Firth in a kilt in "My Life So Far!" Wow! Did you like Bridget Jones? I don't think I understand the British mind. Even though that Darcy was the obvious choice, he had all the personality of a sea sponge! Jen D.(knowing in her heart this belongs in chit-chat...)

You're right this probably does belong in chit-chit, I've been thinking that too. After this-- back on track;) I haven't read the last 3 (?) Father Tim books, but I really do like them. They aren't for everyone, you're right, but they are a nice change of pace; the characters are engaging, the community idealic (apart from the crime rate) and the mysteries are solid enough to hold my interest. This series is like a nice steamy cup of hot chocolate as compared to the bracing dark, strong tea (or coffee depending on the time of day) that is the Russell series.

KarenB

01-19-2008, 04:03 PM

I'm thinking I read "Home to Holly Springs" although not the other Mitford books. I do know that the town is based on Blowing Rock, NC for all you southern-ish folks. My parents have a little (little being the operative word) vacation house near there and I keep thinking I need to read the books because of that.

They sound like the same type of books as the Miss Read books. Probably better known in England than here. Curl up with a cup of tea or hot chocolate on a bleak day kind of books.

Jennifer

01-19-2008, 10:02 PM

KarenB,
"Home to Holly Springs" is different from the Mitford books in some ways that I have noticed. This book is, of course, not set in NC but in Holly Springs, Mississippi so every single character you meet with Father Tim is new to you. Mitford was populated with people that would eventually become as familiar and loved as old friends. There are also more dramatic events afoot. The mystery doesn't seem to be an on-going one such as the problem of finding Dooley's brothers and sisters but something that will be completed in this one story. The Mitford books kept me company over the years. I still read classics and challenging things and memoirs and biographies but when my life was particularly stressful, the Mitford books reminded me that there is beauty in the world, good people, love. So I recommend them, even if they do seem a little too cozy. I lived 8 miles from Blowing Rock for 5 years, and these books will not ruin the town for you!
Jen D.

KarenB

01-20-2008, 12:26 AM

Thanks for the recommendation. I've seen them in the library and will get one when I'm needing some mental comfort food.

tangential1

01-21-2008, 03:57 AM

I finished Touchstone this morning! So good! I was having a hullofa time not blabbing the ending to my roommate, who has been waiting patiently to read it when I was done.

I think I'm going to go back and finish Kim now and then probably follow it up with a reread of The Game:)

AmyLizzie

01-21-2008, 12:56 PM

I'm currently reading Gone With the Wind think it's going to take me a while but its good so far :)

2bnallegory

01-21-2008, 04:05 PM

I have recently gotten Califia's Daughters and have made that my night reading and therefore I am now keeping slightly later hours, for my day reading still on Miss Marple.

Kiyomi

01-21-2008, 04:21 PM

I have 2 books half way read... how many can a person read at once??

As many books as you have bookmarks for :D

Bachi

01-21-2008, 06:10 PM

Just finished Jules Verne’s “Around The World In Eighty Days". I had put it off for a long time because the movie was so corny, don’t know why they do that! It was a grand adventure, even when, like many adventures, it was unbelievable at times. I enjoyed it very much.

Bachi

01-21-2008, 06:51 PM

Thanks Sheri, I was thinking the same thing myself!

jtb1951

01-21-2008, 07:13 PM

And for completeness sake, don't forget Journey To The Center Of The Earth!! Verne and H. G. Wells are my favorite early science fiction writers!

John.

tangential1

01-21-2008, 10:35 PM

650 pgs.... could I just re-read Rilla of Ingleside???? (Lucy Maude Montgomery)....

:eek: I didn't realize it was so long! I probably should run out to the library and get it soon if I want to read it by the end of next month! (I have a hullofa time with non-fiction :rolleyes:)

Strawberry Curls

01-21-2008, 10:41 PM

:eek: I didn't realize it was so long! I probably should run out to the library and get it soon if I want to read it by the end of next month! (I have a hullofa time with non-fiction :rolleyes:) I'm the same way. I'm plowing slowly through "The Long Week-End" only 439 pages, but I haven't read much non-fiction in the last thirty years or so, it is slow going.

tangential1

01-21-2008, 10:46 PM

I think the only non-fiction stuff I've enjoyed have been Bill Bryson's books. He's so sarcastic he can make pretty much anything funny, so that works for me:)

Hmm...we'll see how well I do with these, I guess.

Smurrey

01-22-2008, 02:39 AM

I'm hoping for a snow day tomorrow so I can read my old copy of She by H. Ryder Higgins that I just found in an old college box. I know that I'll regret them in the summer, but I just love it when I get to snuggle back in bed on a snow day :o

jtb1951

01-22-2008, 03:07 AM

It's snowing quite nicely here this evening but I think we would need about another foot more before morning to have any chance of even thinking about a snow day! I have plowed (snow reference!) headlong into Testament Of Youth and am finding it eminently readable, so far. I know the discussion isn't until next month but I am compelled to share one early passage that struck me particularly: "No doubt my father's persistent determination throughout my schooldays that I should be turned into an entirely ornamental young lady deterred my aunt and Miss Heath Jones from the efforts that they would otherwise have made on my behalf; the most benevolent and aspiring headmistresses are, after all, singularly helpless in the hands of misguided but resolute parents." What a heart-tugging sentiment!

John.

Smurrey

01-22-2008, 10:07 AM

It's snowing quite nicely here this evening but I think we would need about another foot more before morning to have any chance of even thinking about a snow day!

I am really sorry about that John, because there is just nothing like a SNOW DAY!!! :D !!! BAck to bed I go, with a big cuppa and the verbose adventures of She. YEAH!!!

Jennifer

01-22-2008, 11:05 AM

John,
Up in Madison, we got a reported 9"! No snow day, alas. Too much riding on all that government sponsored daycare! State government, the University, businesses. My "Testament" came in at the library and now I am anxious to get hold of it. Just finished "Home to Holly Springs" and am firmly convinced that Jan Karon has moved into the genre of magical realism. All that was missing were the white butterflies. But seriously, why does magical realism seem to be the strongest in Spanish-language literature? Or by Hispanic writers? Anyhoo, if we can get out this am, I will be starting "Testament." I couldn't get into "Califia's Daughter." I had thought enough about how society would re-formulate itself in the wake of world-wide upheaval.
Jen D.

tangential1

01-22-2008, 04:14 PM

I know the discussion isn't until next month but I am compelled to share one early passage that struck me particularly: "No doubt my father's persistent determination throughout my schooldays that I should be turned into an entirely ornamental young lady deterred my aunt and Miss Heath Jones from the efforts that they would otherwise have made on my behalf; the most benevolent and aspiring headmistresses are, after all, singularly helpless in the hands of misguided but resolute parents." What a heart-tugging sentiment!

So is Testament of Youth more of a memoir then? I think I might start with that one. I find that history is much more interesting coming from the person who lived it. History from a researcher can be so dry.

Which is why I am enjoying Kim, even though it was mentioned that people had trouble with all the places and information at the beginning of the book. I realize that without a map and constantly referring to it, I'll never follow it, so I read it as a story instead and just skim over a lot off the places. They're travelling.. that's good enough for me.

That's pretty much how I'm approaching it too and it is a much better read that way, I think. I don't really have know exactly where they are or know all the cultural nuances to understand the themes of the story:)

I don't think I would have taken the time to finish it if I hadn't read "The Game" first which is helping with understanding the story and given me some background on India.

I agree. I don't think I would have really be interested in Kim at all had I not read The Game first. Now Game is helping me understand Kim and conversly, I think finishing Kim will allow me to pick up on some of subtleties of Game that I missed!

jtb1951

01-22-2008, 05:36 PM

So is Testament of Youth more of a memoir then? I think I might start with that one. I find that history is much more interesting coming from the person who lived it. History from a researcher can be so dry.

It is indeed a memoir, and I am finding it to be quite engaging. In the introduction, her biographer gives some interesting insight into the genesis of the book and its continuing relevance. I like it so far!

John.

AmyLizzie

01-22-2008, 07:57 PM

I envy you all with the snow!! It's just rain, rain, rain here, I live in a country that needs ringing out! We're slowly drowning.....:(

jtb1951

01-22-2008, 09:51 PM

Forget about the rain for a moment, Amy; how are you and Oxford getting along?

John.

Jennifer

01-23-2008, 01:46 PM

Jen here,
Yes, Amy, do tell us how you are finding Oxford. Let those of us who always dreamt of Oxford live vicariously through you for a mo! And do not wish for snow, unless it's one of those Hallmark card types where no cars get stuck, not dogs' paws freeze. Where everyone sits around with cups of cocoa and no driveways have to be cleared. But I digress...

About "Kim," I read it while traveling in India. I guess the way time passes there (or did 20 something years ago) when you are out of time, because of traveling, it fits Kim very well. I didn't understand the game then either. I was glad of the Game to explicate that aspect of it. It's hard not to think of Kim as a real person. I wonder how many other writers have riffed on Kim?

Because of family obligations (freshman girl with exams this week, fifth grader taking the ACT on Sat.(crimony!)) couldn't get away to the library, so hoping to pick up Testament today. You all who eschew non-fiction, discover the wonders of other people's lives! Memoirs (not the stuffy former Army general type) are so fascinating! I could give you the names of maybe 10 good memoirs that kept me reading voraciously. And the same for just general non-fiction. Tracy Kidder, for one, writes about people in various situations in a very compelling way. His book "Among Schoolchildren" will break your heart! Off the soap-box.

Did you all know that fantasy is the best-selling genre now?
Jen D. (enjoying a little respite between snowstorms!)

mamaocllo

01-24-2008, 07:45 PM

JenD -
I remember when I read M.M.Kaye's The Far Pavilions, I thought that quite a lot of it was so close to Kim that Kipling should have had a credit. Perhaps he did and I didn't notice, since M.M.Kaye grew up in India and can't have been unaware of the similarities.

Jennifer

01-24-2008, 10:59 PM

Gosh,
I hadn't even thought of Far Pavillions, but I think the Julie aspect prevented me from drawing on the similarities. I remember wanting to love that book and not being able to, fully. It had a weird quality of neither fish nor fowl, if I remember correctly. There was a small genre of literature, set in India, by either Anglo-Indians or British writers that floated between the world of the Raj and the world of Indians themselves. It doesn't seem to have a clear existence any longer, that I know. It was viewed by British and Indians as hollow and counterfit, as I said, neither fish nor fowl. The best example of it that I can point to in a visual sense is a film called "36 Chowringee Lane." It's about an retired Anglo-Indian school teacher, taken advantage of by a former student (a high society Indian girl, about to be married). The teacher is well-meaning but hopelessly out of touch with the life in modern India. She is on the fringe of society and it seems, always has been. I find this idea, this kind of life to be so very sad, and that it exists at all, full of pathos. And I try to think, do we have such a class of people in America? Unrecognized and on the outside, looking in, on a permanent basis? Or does one need a situation like pre-Independence India for that to be possible? Eeek! I didn't mean to go on and on!
Jen D.

Carlina

01-25-2008, 01:29 AM

Damn...I missed the Darcy drool fest...oh well. You know there's a member of my committee that loves Mr. Darcy...teeheee...guess what is sent along with my dissertation chapters....

Stick through ASiS...it's worth it. Now TVoF...well...I'm a canon loyalist and I have issues with the anti-masonic side of that story...yikes...

Yes...the doctors almost killed DH twice...I've already mentioned the gallbladder espisode...that was him...then there were problems with the anestheia and his oxygen level went below 20...and it took a couple of hours to stabilise him...yeah

then the doctor tells me...white spots on liver...can't get biopsed because its friday night...looks like cancer..won't know till monday...boy talk about praying...turned out it was nothing serious..but still...

then they misdiagnosed him with allegies when he had the flu...his temp reached a dangerous level and i sped him to the er where he was properly diagnosed.

then there was the botched surgery...that left a hole in him that had to be repaired by another surgeon

then there was...you get the point...doctors and dh don't get along so dh's wife must handle all medical issues...

Carlina

01-25-2008, 01:31 AM

Currently reading The Gullah People and their African Heritage for the surprise course that just got thrown at me...:(. The book is good...but the course *grumbles*.

I've also been reading AmyLizzies' stories at ff.net. Both are great and I love the connection she draws between Watson and Holmes and someone else. I won't say..don't want to give it away. It's a very moving story though. Thanks much AL for these nice moments of peace...kinda...now I'm worried about Holmes!

Strawberry Curls

01-26-2008, 02:15 AM

I have also been reading The Long Weekend for next month... and it's DRY... interesting but slow going.

Sheri Thank, God! I thought it was just me and my lack of reading non-fictions for decades. I'm plodding through, but I don't know if I will finish by the beginning of Feb. It does give a detailed look at those years between the wars, but dry is exactly right. I have to take it in small doses. :o

jtb1951

01-26-2008, 03:23 AM

I'm about half-way through Testament of Youth and finding it to be most readable. Her memoir is so honest and bittersweet and reflective of her times and the class structure, all reflected darkly in the mirror of wartime and its prelude; I am very much caught up in her story. I may have to seek out her biography later!

John.

KarenB

01-26-2008, 03:12 PM

I can definitely recommend Testament of Youth. I started it when I had run dry of new library books and got totally caught up in it. Haven't started The Long Weekend yet . .

tangential1

01-28-2008, 06:44 PM

I'm about halfway through The Perilous Gard by Elizabeth Pope at the moment. It's surprisingly quite good. I say surprisingly because I wasn't really expecting to like it given the setting (something like Renaissance in Northern Britain/Ireland) and the supernatural theme (Fairies...my least favorite of all things in a book). Someone else's selection for our book club meeting for February. I'm not a huge fan of fantasy and my love of historical fiction kind of ends around 1850. Happily, though, the "Fairy People" are played down quite a bit and the story has a very nice flow to it. I'm pretty well sucked into the story now:rolleyes:

It's apparently a Newberry Honor book, I had no idea:)

Has anyone read it, by chance?

2bnallegory

01-28-2008, 06:51 PM

Well I finished the Miss Marple collection and Califia's Daughters both of which I liked very much. I tried to start And Only To Deceive by Tasha Alexander but it was, imho, awful. I got maybe 15 pages into it before setting it aside. From the general good opinions I picked up a book with a collection of Peter Whimsey short stories and are finding them entirely enjoyable.

AmyLizzie

01-29-2008, 10:49 AM

I'm sorry for not replying to your questions about Oxford! The place keeps me very busy :) and i recently got a new job at Staffordshire archives so its all go! Oxford is beautiful but daunting, I'm a working-class girl so to even go to Oxford is somewhat of a challenge! But its amazing, I wandered through the Bodlein for hours, getting a few stern looks from the stewards because I wasn't actually doing anything! I also took my dad who was just awed by the whole thing :) But at the moment its all going well, and next year I will be graduating with my Advanced Diploma in Local History at the Sheldonian Theatre, and I'm sooooo excited! As soon as I work out how to use my new laptop I'll post some pics :)

Thanks Carlina for reading my fanfics, I'm glad you enjoy them!!
*Big hugs* xxxxx

jtb1951

01-29-2008, 11:56 AM

Keep up the good work, Amy! As I tell my daughters at the start of each new term: "Study hard and make it count!":)

John.

AmyLizzie

01-29-2008, 12:20 PM

Thank you John *Big hugs to you too* :) xxx

KarenB

01-30-2008, 08:14 PM

Thanks, Jen. D. for the recommendation of the Mitford series. I'm working my way thru along with The Long Weekend. They occupy an entirely different part of my brain. I'm enjoying the Mitford series, but too much induces a sugar overload. Conversely I'm also find The Long Weekend quite interesting, learning things I hadn't known, but dry, so to go back and forth seems to be working out quite well!

Jennifer

01-30-2008, 10:55 PM

Hey KarenB!
I am glad the Mitford books are offering you some balance! I think the thing that makes them desirable is also the thing that makes you overload on them. The main characters are mostly rational and understandable. The secondary characters offer the challenges or problems and the working out of all that is the plot. But the real world is so completely complex and irrational. And so Mitford, as full of good sound principles as it is, comes across as a bit of a fairy tale. It took me a long time to realize that doesn't demean it. Fairy tales, like mysteries, satisfy our need for something. I guess ft's can show us a world where the things we've been taught actually apply in the end. And as Peter Wimsey said, mysteries satisfy our need for justice in the world. So some of each must help us keep faith. Did you ever read a book by Brett Easton Ellis called "Bright Lights, Big City?" I read that during Spring Break of my first year in grad school. I can not tell you why exactly but it had a tremendous effect on me. The book is truly hopeless as far as I can remember and I was struggling in the wrong program, with the wrong major professor and since I was the first person in my family to finish college even, I was navigating these stormy waters w/o much guidance or at least, previous experience to go by. I didn't realize you could be in the wrong place and it not be anyone's fault really. But that hopeless depressing book struck me as so relevant to my seemingly hopeless situation and I gave up! I stuck around, going through the motions but I knew it was hopeless from that time on. Now, you say, a rational person wouldn't let a silly book send them into such a bleak spot and you'd be right! But understand, I was not thinking clearly in that bad spot. In the Mitford books, I'd be in trouble, but some nice Episcopal priest would talk to me, offer words of encouragement and help and I'd find my way out of the darkness. I want to believe that's the way the world should work. I do take heart that Karon's new series will have more direct applicability to our world. It seems to acknowledge that there are challenging world events.
Jen D.

Carlina

01-31-2008, 03:09 AM

Thanks Carlina for reading my fanfics, I'm glad you enjoy them!!
*Big hugs* xxxxx

Gladly AmyLizzie! I'm bakerstreetirregular over there and a little behind on my reviews obviously...sorrys...I loved Fear and Remembrance and look forward to an epilogue. I was amazed in the last chapter how you wove ACD's words in there. It fit nicely and was a smooth flow. That part in the Last Bow always chokes me up. I feel like I'll never see him again :( . Then Laurie came along yay! Great job though with F&R. I love the way you drew the bonds between Holmes and his relative (no spoilers here)...that was well written!

I'm still dying to know what happens in the other fic....accepting dinner in the den of the lion...what the heck is he thinking!

Glad to hear Oxford is well. I would love to teach anthropology there one day...perhaps on a Fulbright. Stick to your guns and your books and you'll be fine :).

jtb1951

02-02-2008, 02:28 AM

I have finally finished reading Testament of Youth (and posted some comments in the discussion thread), and have started in on The Long Week-End. I'm glad that I read Testament first because I found it to be an enthralling tale and a relatively easy (though long!) read, and I think I will more easily follow the drier style of Week-End as a consequence of what I learned in Testament! I also just picked up and started reading the new Stephen King novel, Duma Key.

I also want to say hi <waves> to all our non-posting members (I dislike the lurker appellation) and encourage any and all to jump in and let us know what you are currently reading and enjoying (or not -- enjoying, that is:)). We would love to hear from you and maybe even get to know you! Thanks!!!

John.

AmyLizzie

02-02-2008, 10:24 AM

Still ploughing through Gone with the Wind....I don't have time to read much else at the mo! :)

KarenB

02-06-2008, 01:58 PM

Found Stiff in the library and read it yesterday while nursing a cold. I enjoyed it quite a bit, fascinating reading, and it made me go back over this thread to see what others had said. Okay,Carlina, what is it you do in the "Bone Lab?"

Not being squeamish, I think this stuff is really interesting. And, yes, when the doctor asked would I like to see the pictures of my endoscopy, I reply, of course!

Must get back to The Long Weekend . . .

The Grey Badger

02-06-2008, 03:19 PM

Now reading: Carrie Vaughn's "Kitty and the Silver Bullet". Brings a modern, civilized, rational viewpoint to being a werewolf. ("No, I won't use teeth and claws. I'll use my wits - and my talk show.") Kitty is delightful.

With reference to a pop culture reference by her boyfriend, echoes by her older sister "Oh, yes, the GenX battle cry."

Her mother's illness, "I could always bite you. No, hear me out."

On vampires, "About this Master of the City thing - let me guess. You grew up in a time when they had a King. An absolute monarch, not just something for the paparazzi to follow around." Plus many, many comments on vampire self-importance.

:D