Book Lovers Club
Comments
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I am reading a rather dry book about the later years of Theodore Roosevelt. But amongst the 'boring to anyone other than a historian' chapters, there is an absolutely hysterical account of Theodore being asked to review a modern art exhibition for a magazine (he had no background in art). His review made me laugh out loud. I will just quote a few of Roosevelt's comments......enjoy:
"Cubists are entitled to the serious attention of all who find enjoyment in the colored puzzle-pictures of the Sunday newspaper......There is no reason why people should not call themselves Cubists, or Octagonists, or Parallelopipedonists, or Knights of the Isosceles Triangle, or Brothers of the Cosine, if they so desire; as expressing anything serious and permanent, one term is as fatuous as another. Take the picture which for some reason is called, "A Naked Man Going Down Stairs". There is in my bathroom a really good Navajo rug which, on any proper interpretation of Cubist theory, is a far more satisfactory and decorative picture. Now, if for some inscrutable reason, it suited someone to call this rug a picture of, say, "A Well-Dressed Man Going Up a Ladder," the name would fit the facts just about as well.....and from the standpoint of decorative value, of sincerity, and of artistic merit, the Navajo rug is infinitely ahead of the picture."
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Ruth... Based on what you posted, if you haven't read Geoff Dyer... You should give him a shot! He has a similar wit!
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I will put him on my list right now!
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Okay...Apple...So I finally found an excerpt of what Geoff Dyer has to say about his books. The previously published essay, "Unpacking my Library" was included in his latest book of essays, "Otherwise Known as the Human Condition." Here's a piece of what he says after unpacking his books, that have been boxed for the last six years:
"...I don't even need an intellect, now that I've got all my books around me. Finding myself, at last, in the perfect situation for work I don't want to do any work. I can't go for more than a few moments without sliding back my chair and gazing with massive self-love at my library. Needless to say, I have no impulse to read. Books are to be arranged and classified, shuffled around. At the very most I want to take a volume from the shelves, consult it, perhaps smell it, and replace it, carefully. Sometime in the future I may want to add a few incremental volumes but, for the moment, I just want to sit here, gazing at my life, it is my life. More exactly it is, in a sense, my life over with. Assembling my books in one room is the fulfilment of a life's ambition. There's nothing else I want. Except to sit here, purring.
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Any one read Room by Emma Donoghue? My cousin insists that I read it. She is an author and she and her close friend Judy Bloom, as in THE Judy Bloom, love the book. I am not feeling the love enough yet to want to read it... Even if Judy Bloom loves it. Anybody???
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Great recommendation you guys on This is Where I Leave You. I laughed out loud reading it so many times DH is reading it now. I have a friend I just have to buy a copy and send it to. I'm reading The Blood of Lorraine by Barbara Pope right now. A little plodding at times, but, so interesting I'm really enjoying it.
Have any of you read If I Am Missing or Dead by Janine Latus? Heartbreaking. The title comes from the letter found in her sister's desk after her sister was killed by her boyfriend. The author openly discusses her problems with being an abused spouse and her sister's story and spends some time exploring how two women from the same family could end up in abusive relationships. It is her first book and I thought it was very good.
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Hi kmmd,
Yes, I read If I Am Missing or Dead a few years ago. It was heartbreaking, but I could not stop reading it.
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Just finished reading Hidden Wives by Claire Avery (actually a pseudonym for two sisters who write together). Quick read. Story about two sisters in a polygamist community in Utah and what they endure and deal with. Not high literature, but a good quick read. I felt a Lifetime movie coming on... LOL0
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Ellen... If you're on a sister-wife fix, try reading Carolyn Jessop's books if you haven't already. Riveting. Fiction book, The Lonely Polygamist, by Udall is terrific. Had me laughing when I shouldn't have... Especially after reading about Jessop's nightmare.
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After putting it off for a long time because I was sure it was not going to be a good book, I have now not only read the lst of the Twilight series, but finished the 2nd Monday night......and I am waiting for the gal I work with to bring me book lll. As I told her, I think I am sort of starting to see her attraction to this Edward. It actually reminds me of a teenage, tamer version of True Blood.
I did not like Room. I just could not imagine a 5 yr old or whatever the age of the child was, talking like that even if he had never been exposed to the outside world.
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Marybe- Your comment about Room made me smile- I loved the book but what you said is so true. I mean, the mother talked with him and let him watch that little bit of tv, but he couldn't speak as well as my three year old. I hadn't thought about it to be honest- but you hit the nail on the head. Voracious- You may like it, give it a go
I finished One Summer by Baldacci. It was ok- not my sort of book, it was so sappy you had to wade your way through it. I would catch myself shaking my head at some points, others I could be reduced to tears.
Tonight I am starting Toni Morrison Blue Eyes. There are so many good authors that I have not read enough of, I think Toni Morrison is one of those. A few summers ago I went on a Joyce Carol Oats kick- she was one crazy woman writer for her time, she always seemed to shock me.
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Laurie,
I'm anxious to hear what you think of The Blueest Eye.The book broke my heart. I don't thinkany other book has brought me to tears the way it did. Toni Morrison is an extraordinary writer. I've read all her work and have truly loved them.
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I just started "The Particular Sadness of the Lemon Cake". It's one of those books where the author has decided not to use quotation marks when a character is speaking. This drives me crazy.
Laurie I requested the "Secret Daughter" from the library. They messed up and only called to inform me that the book was waiting and they would hold it for only one more day. I was on my way out of town...
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Marybe and Laurie...Thanks for the comments on Room. It's still sitting on my coffee table....Just wondering if both of you or anyone else saw the Academy Award nominated foreign film, Dogtooth? When my cousin told me about Room, I was reminded of the film Dogtooth. Here's the summary from Rotten Tomatoes:
Movie Info
Three young people exist in a strange world of their parents' devising in this bizarre drama from writer and director Yorgos Lanthimos. A father and mother (Christos Stergioglou and Michele Valley) live in a large house on the outskirts of town with their three children, whose ages range from mid-teens to early twenties. The children have never been allowed to leave the house (which is surrounded by a tall fence), and their knowledge of the outside world has been strictly controlled by their parents, who have chosen to teach them only what they believe is important and have deliberately confused or misled them in many other areas. The parents quite literally treat their children like animals, and the only contact the youngsters have with people outside their family is Christina (Anna Kalaitzidou), a woman who works with the father's business and comes by periodically to have sex with the eldest son (Christos Passalis). Christina makes the mistake of bringing a present for the two younger daughters (Aggeliki Papoulia and Mary Tsoni), and explains the custom is that they should give her something in return. This simple act sets off a chain reaction of events that has terrible consequences for everyone involved. Kynodontas (aka Dogtooth) was an official selection at the 2009 Cannes Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
The film was billed as a comedy. It wasn't. Both the book and film seem to have similar story themes... That's why I'm a little skittish about reading Room. I'm afraid I will find it too disturbing.....
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I don't think Room would be as disturbing as Dogtooth.....sounds pretty twisted to me. I just didn't like Room myself, but a lot of people must disagree since it made it to the Best Seller list.
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Wendy- what a bummer about Secret Daughter! Hopefully they will get it for you again.
Voracious-I just picked up An Exclusive Love from the library and am going to start it this afternoon. I'm excited to read it and it looks like it is a quick read as it's only 185 pages.
The Bluest Eyes was a good book. You feel so bad for the characters and Toni Morrison writes beautifully and hauntingly. I'll have to see what else I haven't read that she has written.
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Marybe....I've thought a lot about Dogtooth since I saw the film. I might be wrong, but I think what the movie was trying to project was an EXTREME example of the influence that parents have on their children. Many books have that theme...the dangers of the outside world. I think taking it to an extreme, makes people think, "Oh, so I'm not THAT terrible with my kids." But you know what...sometimes we are....and we don't realize it......
Laurie...I hope you enjoy An Exclusive Love. Amazing how such a short book could be THAT facinating....
Bluest Eyes....One of the DD's FAVORITE books....
Time to read more of Toni Morrison and Terry McMillan.... Trust me, if you folks enjoyed This is Where I Leave You, you will also fall in love with A Day Late and A Dollar Short by McMillan. Time for some Meg Wolitzer too!
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Speaking of the outside world...I have to tip my hat to Tova Mirvis's book, The Outside World. I had the pleasure of meeting her when she read from her book. Definitely struck a chord with me....
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Voraciousreader: I read this one a while back. Good stuff. How great that you got to meet the author at a reading.
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Ellen.. Going to miss Borders. Was a terrific venue for authors to showcase their work...met so many authors... I am so upset! Also met one of my all time favorite musicians at the Borders at Columbus Circle...
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I hate to see any bookstore close. They have readings quite often at the Book Revue, but it's kind of a long haul from where I live. My son worked at 192 Books in Chelsea for a while and they can some awesome readings there too. Geography is my enemy. LOL
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I am reading the secret daughter.Already half done in one day.Very interesting hard to put down.
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I haven't read Room yet, but its on our short list for our next book club in Sept. The hostess gets to pick so we will see. Next we are reading The Other Wes Moore, one name, two fates by We Moore. I haven't started it as I'm still reading Cutting for Stone.
I am so looking forward to seeing The Help, I loved the book. I'll be out of town next weekend, so have to wait until the 19th, but I don't like going opening weekend anyway. I heard Sarah's Key was made into a movie, but I have not seen it in any of our local theatres, maybe it was a limited release first?
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mumayan: That was a wonderful book! I'm glad you are enjoying it too.
Reading Mama: I heard one the Wes Moore's on NPR a few weeks ago. The book sounds fascinating. Adding it to my list. How do you like Cutting For Stone? I tried but couldn't get into it right now. Shelved it for a later try.
Room is on my To Do List. I have to decide between hard copy and digital. I find I read more when it's a hard copy. The digital books are great when I travel, but there's something about a real paper and board book that gets to me.
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Latest Gatsby Article from The New York Times.... I wonder if Gatsby came to life what he would think of the homes of today vs. the homes of years gone by...I also wonder which homes he'd prefer...The newer "smart" homes located mini developments, on the land of the former estates that clutter the Island with three car garages....or the simplicity of an unair-conditioned home with an ocean breeze and NO traffic.....hmmm....
Developers Building for ‘Today's Gatsby'
By MARCELLE S. FISCHLER
LAND'S END, the decaying 1902 Colonial Revival mansion overlooking Long Island Sound at Sands Point, was razed in April, its 13 acres subdivided for a new gated cul-de-sac. But the aura of "The Great Gatsby" may linger around the estate, which was once owned by Herbert Bayard Swope, the publisher of The New York World, and is thought to have inspired the setting for F. Scott Fitzgerald's novel about the Roaring '20s.
Though its name has been changed to Seagate, Bert Brodsky, the owner, declared that it would "represent today's Gatsby," its five new mansions on four lots of two acres and one of three, with beach access and 180-degree views across the water to the Bronx, Westchester and Connecticut.
Mr. Brodsky, the chief executive of Sandata Technologies, says prices will range from about $10 million to $17 million. "He didn't have a smoking room or a wine cellar or a theater," Mr. Brodsky said of Gatsby, "but if he was living today, he would."
Despite a lagging economy, Seagate is part of a building boomlet - also including the former Bostwick and Ogden Phipps estates in Old Westbury - of super-high-end luxury houses on lots of two or more acres on the North Shore of Nassau County. They are replacing the grand Gold Coast mansions of yesteryear - which, though often larger and commanding more property, lacked the amenities and smart-house technology of new construction.
The first Seagate mansion is being built on speculation and will be offered for $9.95 million, said Nava Mitnick, an associate broker with Daniel Gale. A Hamptons shingle-style home with at least six bedrooms, six baths and a gym, it sits on a hill "at the highest point of the property," bordered by 25 acres of preserve near Harriman Beach. "It's not going to be looming and obnoxious," Ms. Mitnick said, explaining that it would try to "capture the lifestyle and the degree of luxury that Land's End in its former years offered."
The house will have 10,000 square feet of space, in addition to a pool and a cabana. "It meets everyone's wishes," Ms. Mitnick said. For the other four lots, buyers may choose among four architects and will have access to a landscape designer.
Buyers looking for "immediate gratification" will embrace the "full-service menu of top designers, architects and landscapers," which eliminates the need to do their own research. "There is no appetite for renovating or doing your own," Ms. Mitnick declared. "They are willing to pay for service."
In Old Westbury, the former Bostwick estate, built in the late 1800s, was the setting for polo matches and equestrian events, and was once owned by original partners in Standard Oil. The main 12,000-square-foot mansion, with its ballroom and library, still occupies 7 of the property's 21 flat, tree-ringed acres. It is on the market for $4.375 million, and includes a pool, a pool house and a tennis court. Three additional four- and five-acre parcels have been carved out for new 8,500-to-9000-square-foot houses on a cul-de-sac subdivision called Linden Estates. Buyers can choose among English Tudor, Mediterranean villa and stone Regency manor styles.
Ludmilla Stanco, an associate broker with Prudential Douglas Elliman who is representing the property, described the six-bedroom seven-and-a-half-bath homes as having "extremely innovative" layouts, with guest suites on the first floor, 10-foot basement ceilings, radiant-heated floors, and heated three-car garages. They are to range in price from $8.95 million to $9.95 million, fully landscaped.
As for the original mansion, it "needs restoration and renovation," she said, adding, "Whoever buys it has to spend about $2 million to make it very much desirable to live in for today's lifestyle."
Spring Hill, on the Ogden Phipps estate, is the developer John Kean's enclave of up to 22 houses on lots a minimum of five acres - each unbuilt lot tallying about $4 million. The estate's original grand Italian-style palace, razed in the 1970s, had views that stretched from the Sound to the Atlantic. The new mansions - either English Cotswald, French country, stone manor, shingle-style or Georgian - won't have water views beyond the community's new man-made six-acre lake, but will include everything else that $10 million to $20 million can buy. That means elevators, geothermal heating and cooling, indoor basketball and racquetball courts, indoor and outdoor pools, spas, movie theaters, bowling alleys, wine cellars, staff quarters and four-car garages.
For those with slightly less deep pockets and slightly more modest dreams, there is Hidden Pond, also in Old Westbury. Stewart Senter, the developer, has started putting in roads and infrastructure for a gated community of 16 homes "with all the bells and whistles" on two-acre lots on two new cul-de-sacs on the 40-acre Von Stade family estate. Three or four of the homes will overlook a 2.5-acre pond, and others will back onto the horse pastures at the neighboring State University of New York at Old Westbury. "The land is beyond gorgeous," Mr. Senter said. "You think you are in Kentucky when you are back there."
The original 25,000-square-foot brick and clapboard mansion, long abandoned and in disrepair, will be torn down, he added.
Lots are priced from $1.5 million to $1.75 million, said Michael J. Berman, the president of Automatic Real Estate Associates, who represents the new enclave and is a partner with the builder. Plans call for 6,000-to-6,500-square-foot houses that cost $300 per square foot or more to build, not including the landscaping, pool or tennis court. The total price per house will be $3.5 million to $5 million.
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I finally finished Invisible Bridge! It seemed to take me forever not sure why other than it is very descriptive and perhaps cause I wanted to read every word. It took a while to get into but then Oh My! It is beautiful, horrible - full of hope and despair - love, utter terror and joy. I was in tears during the last 1/3 of the book she really takes you to the horrors of what those people went through during the war but really is it an amazing book.
Thank you all for all the teenager book choices and selections. Now I'm off to look for something funny... got the list from previous pages of This is where I leave you and the other three authors mentioned. I need something light and fun now. Thanks so much!!! Love this thread!
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Stanzie, I thought Invisible Bridge was terrific too. Very moving. When I want to laugh I like David Sedaris. Any of his books.0
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anyone remember the tiny book.. Tim the dog? .. the dog is actually 'writing' the book..
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For those of you who like fantasy fiction The Eyes of Crow triology by Jerry Smith-Ready is one of my all time favorites. Having a hard time getting into the Zoo Keeprs Wife. I'm going to try again today0
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the Zookeeper's Wife is getting old on me. I read Tim the Dog last nite.. an old old book.. very funny in a way. very touching too.
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