Book Lovers Club
Comments
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Last night, dragged DH and best friend to see Geoff Dyer. The.Best.Time. Ever. Had to do a lot of convincing because it was also the DH's birthday....Now, the DH wants to see Where Eagles Dare and read all of Dyer's books....looks like Lee Childs will have.some competition!
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VR - good for you - dragging the DH. Glad he liked it & wants to read more.
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I loved the once and future king. I just finished tears of the giraffe a number one ladies detective novel, it was cute. For my.non fiction I am reading " conspiracy of hope" about.mammograms extremely interesting. Next I will start Home going by Yaa Gyasi.
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Really enjoyed re-reading "A Sense of the World: How a Blind Man Became History's Greatest Traveler" by Jason Roberts (2006) It's a great biography - and amazing to me that for the most part Holman traveled alone - not even a companion. Most places he went he did not even know the language. He "saw" by sound bouncing back from the metal tip on the end of his cane and leather shoes & etc. As the fourth son, he escaped a career on his family's 'Chymist & Druggist/ Surgeon & Apothecary' shop by joining the Royal Navy at the age of 12 (& said he was 13) when England had already been fighting France for 6 years. He was stationed in Haifax through several winters preventing contraband shipments from getting through to the US. He was totally blind by age 25, and also somewhat crippled by what they called at the time "flying gout". Some of the medical treatments of the time are frightening. Although he did eventually travel the entire globe, he seems to have been mostly forgotten - James Holman (1786-1857) known as the 'blind traveler'. Dave Eggers: "...one of the best & most life-affirming biographies I've ever read." Mary Roach: "I found this book astounding..."
Then I re-read Wallace Stegner "The Spectator Bird" (1976). A literary agent and his wife retire from NYC & the world to a few acres in Northern California. His job was not his first choice, which was writing, and he believes he's passed through life at a spectator. He says he is "killing time until time gets around to killing me." But his wife keeps bugging him to go through his papers and he finds a journal of a past trip to Denmark. He re-visits layers of thought & meaning which change many of his ideas about not engaging in life. Stegner won the National Book Award for this one.
Tried Jack Kerouac "On The Road" again because I still think I should. Didn't get as far this time as 10 years ago so it's going to the library.
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Finished Every Dead Thing by John Connoly - really good book - can't believe I missed out on the Charlie Parker series all these years! Former NYC detective searching for the killer of his wife and child. Book 2 of series is on my list. Just started Before we Were Yours by Lisa Wingate, and so far it is drawing me in.
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I just finished The Night Tiger by Yangzhe Choo, which had been mentioned earlier in the thread. Part historical fiction (it takes place in Malaysia in the 1930s), part love story, part mystery, with a mystical point of view. I loved the character development and the various intertwined sub-plots, and recommend it highly with one big caveat: not all of the sub-plots get resolved at the end, and the ending itself screams 'sequel'. I practically screamed in frustration when I read the last two sentences! (right up until that point, I thought it all would be tied up in a reasonably neat bow).
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Finally! I have read a book that was good enough to recommend to others. I have been in a reading desert recently. Many DNFs and others that were not worth the effort. Little Faith by Nikolas Butler is a well written book about religion, family interaction and how far someone will go to connect with others. The religion questions are thought provoking, as well as the well drawn characters. I highly recommend this title.
Hope all is well with everyone. I have to start getting the yard in shape so may not be able to read as much. I do try to make time for it whenever I can!
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I came upon a whole stack of old local newspapers so have been reading them through quite thoroughly. Fascinating to see the take on national, state, and local news (now that we know how things turned out), plus the advertisements, want ads etc. are a real history lesson.
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Loved Before we Were Yours by Lisa Wingate. Fictional story about adoption in the 30's - and tying it in with a bit of mystery in present day life. Next up for me is The Man in the High Castle by Phillip Dick. I know it was turned into a series on Amazon a while back, but I never saw it, my daughter recommended the book as she knows I'm fond of WWII fiction.
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The Man in the High Castle series is amazing. What a provocative story. I am a huge fan of Rufus Sewell, so watching the series was a double pleasure. That said, the non-fiction book, which I recently read, Victory City:A history of New York during World War II, gives actual examples of some of the events described in Dick’s book. The story’s blurring of actual events is quite astonishing....I give Dick a lot of credit. He surely had to know history in order to create such fiction....
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Finished reading a biography called Reckless Daughter by Joni Mitchell. It was good but the end kinda dragged on. She'd given up a child for adoption and reunited with her in her later years, but it only skimmed over that part which disappointed me. She truly was an amazing pioneer for women in rock.
Then I read the autobiography of Graham Nash of Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young fame, called Wild Tales. He & Joni were lovers at one time. His book was pretty much sex, drugs & rock and roll. I didn't know a thing about him and thought it'd be boring, but to my surprise, it was fascinating. The man has really lived large.
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Currently, I'm reading “What The Eyes Don't See: A story of Crisis, Resistance and Hope in an American City" by Mona Hanna-Attisha.
It's about the Flint, Michigan water disaster. It is so much better than I imagined! Not cut and dry at all, very readable and understandable. The inside cover says that it's paced like a scientific thriller.
I didn't really follow the Flint story in the news too much. But I recenlty saw the author, Mona Attisha, discussing the book and subject matter on some tv channel and was drawn to reading it. She is a pediatrician, scientist and activist who proved there was massive lead exposure in Flint’s water system and fought the government and brutal backlash to expose the truth to the world. She's been named one of Time magazine's 100 Most Influential People in the World.
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I have finished reading two books I thought were interesting and good enough to recommend to others.
The first is a biography of Laura Ingalls Wilder and her daughter Rose Wilder Lane. The title is Prairie Fires by Caroline Frazier. It is an interesting look at Wilder’s life on the prairie and how she used her life and her parents livesto write her books. It also goes into the treatment of the Indians and how the lack of conservation efforts by the farmers both impacted the settlement of the Prairie. Wilder’s daughter was a strange girl that lived off of others. She wrote unauthorized biographies and was constantly in debt. She had a troubled relationship with her mother, but edited most of the “Little House” books. Fascinating information about people we do not often learn about.
The second is a fiction title, When All is Said by Anne Griffin. Maurice Hannigan is 84 years old and ready to join his wife in Heaven. First he must reflect on his life and the people that have meant the most to him. The novel takes place in Ireland so there is some dialect, but it reads easily. It is sweet to watch how the main character lives his life and knows how he should have treated others. A well written story of what others mean to someone when they really think about it.
On to the next good read!
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I'm doing a fairly decent job with my resolve to read shelf by shelf. I have taken two short breaks with a Michael Connolly and a Lee Child, but for the most part I'm forging ahead. Maybe one in 5 or 8 books goes back on the shelf for future re-reading. Two boxes for the library so far.
I enjoyed reading "O Pioneers!" a classic novel of the American prairie by Willa Cather. The book was written in 1913 and set in Nebraska "thirty years ago". Most of the details I know about the expansion of the US and the west are related to mining or to states further west & south. It is interesting that the protagonist is woman - the oldest daughter - who takes over at her Father's wish when he dies. From the first sod houses & droughts and diseases, she does build an "empire" simply by continuing to buy land when others give up & go back to Chicago or St. Louis, and by daring to try something new - like silos or wheat instead of corn. She did put the youngest brother thru college, her goal that someone would move ahead, but the ending is tragic.
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Hi All,
Thought I'd join the fun so hopped on to the bottom. I need to go back and get some great ideas from previous posts.
I loved reading the original Mary Poppins series as a child and now reading them with my granddaughter.
Going to a book club next month. We're reading “Lady in the Window" by A.J. Finn. It's in the same genre as “Girl on the Train” with twists and turns and references to Hitchcock movies.
Now reading Grisham, “The Reckoning."
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Butterfly - welcome. I have the original Mary Poppins books from my childhood. I refused to see the movies since I didn't want to disturb or supplant the images in my own mind.
You'll like the Finn book. It was not possible to guess the convoluted plot.
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MinusTwo - I didn't guess the ending in the Flynn book.
Though I saw both Poppins movies, the books are magical.
Thank you for the welcome!
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I just wanted to say, I never read the Mary Poppins books, but I think the Mary Poppins movie with Julie Andrews is one of the most perfect movies ever made. When my son was young, he wasn’t one of those kids who watched the same movie over and over again. Until he saw Mary Poppins. He loved it, so we watched it many times and I even bought the soundtrack CD because we loved the songs. I don’t ever plan to watch the new Mary Poppins Returns movie. You just can’t improve upon perfection.
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The new Mary Poppins movie is not a continuation of the original one. It totally stands on its own and is a great movie. We thought it was going to be same music, etc., but it's not. It has its own music, etc. Go see it. You won't be sorry.
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I loved both Mary Poppins movies as well as the books. Guess I’m a fan!
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Welcome Butterfly - I loved The Woman in the Window, and as others have said it keeps you guessing! Librarian, When All is Said looks like something I would enjoy, my mother was from Ireland - putting it on my list..
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Thanks Pat for the welcome.
Just started Finding Katrina M. by Elizabeth Elo. It's an espionage thriller set in Siberia and Washington D.C. I really like it so far. A very interesting premise and protagonist. Hope it continues to be a good read
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Happy 89th birthday to Nancy Drew! The first volume in the long-running girl detective series, "The Secret of the Old Clock," was published 89 years ago today under the pseudonym Carolyn Keene. In a tribute on The Mary Sue, author Theodore Jefferson writes, "Agency. It is that which forms the foundation for any hero's ability to save the day. In America, agency for teenage girls in literature made its debut in 1930 in the person of Nancy Drew." This original Mighty Girl character paved the way for many more heroic female characters and inspired generations of real-life girls and women.
Ghostwritten by Mildred Wirt Benson and later revised by Harriet Stratemeyer Adams, the first volume of Nancy Drew had a huge influence on young readers. Jefferson writes, Nancy Drew provided them with "stories of someone like themselves who had a positive effect on the world instead of passively sitting at home… She is a character with that magical 'what if' question woven into her identity, and one that effortlessly captures the imaginations of readers by allowing them to participate in a world where the answers to that question are just as entertaining as the stories themselves."
At the time, some viewed Nancy Drew as a poor role model, "contradicting adults while she squared off with the villains… she is mechanically inclined and at the same time doesn't act like most people in the 1930s would have expected a teenage girl to act." In fact, many libraries and bookstores refused to carry the Nancy Drew stories. Despite -- or because of -- that disapproval, kids collected the books voraciously, and in the midst of the Depression, used copies were shared and traded like trading cards are today. As a result, "any kid, even those who couldn't afford new books, would very likely get to read every adventure starring their favorite character."
The tremendous influence of Nancy Drew continues to this day asserts Jefferson: "It is difficult to overstate how powerful Nancy Drew's presence remains in literature and in other media. She has influenced film, comics, video games and animation for 89 years, and will continue to do so as long as teenage girls take the lead as our heroes in the imaginative worlds of adventure.0 -
Love it Ruth. Anyone remember the Trixie Beldon books?
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Thanks Ruth.
I have on my book shelves from my own youth: The Case of the Broken Locket (1934), The Mystery at the Moss Covered Mansion (1941), and The Clue of the Leaning Chimney (1949). I haven't read any of them in well over 50 years. Perhaps it's time to re-visit those.
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I remember Trixie Beldon! How about the Bobbsey Twins? I think I will dig through some boxes & look for some of my old girlhood books (which include Trixie, the Bobbseys, Nancy, and Little Women).
* my favorite Nancy Drew book was The Hidden Staircase!
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Ruth - did you read "The Borrowers" series? Wonderful stories about the little people who live in quiet, out of the way country places - behind the wall, under the clock, over the mantle, etc. They are the reason of course that things continue to disappear around all of our houses - they borrowed them. A hat pin was their sword; a spool of thread their table; a matchbox their bed. Then the daughter talked to a human boy..... Copyright 1952 by Mary Norton.
Another of my favorite childhood series was "Little Britches" - about an eight year old boy who moves with his family to a Colorado ranch in 1906 - partly so his Dad with lung problems can get out of working in the woolen mills. There are 5 children - and none of them know the slightest thing about even growing vegetables, let alone managing a ranch. "...A young boy's coming to manhood in the half-tamed wilds of Colorado..." Copyright 1950 by Ralph Moody.
I recommend both of these series to those of you who have young children or grandchildren. ( probably grade-school age)
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Happy Anniversary to Nancy Drew! The book covers were as fun to view as the books wer to read. Wonderful mysteries! Nancy in her blue sedan along with best friends George and Bess. At the time, it never occurred to me that she was some kind of trailblazer but it makes sense now.
I also loved Trixie Belden and her best friend Honey. There was also a Cherry Ames series, she was a nurse. I read a few of those books, too. Also loved The Borrowers. Quite imaginative.
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Fabulous photo, Ruth! Just fabulous, how creative!
I just finished this book, it was awesome. The author, a therapist, tells of her experience going to see a counselor after a break up and also gives some insight into the world of a therapist/counselor and their clients. Couldn’t put it down.
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