Arlene Miller's Blog, page 22

New Words for 2021: ABC

Image by Наталия Когут from Pixabay

Dictionaries. Does anyone even use print dictionaries anymore? You can easily look up a word in an online dictionary. And if you are reading on a Kindle, for example, you can just press on a word and get its meaning.  But I bet most of you still own a print dictionary or two. I have two on my bookshelves. One is very, very old. I received it as an award when I “graduated” from 6th grade, presented to me and three other students for outstanding achievement in Scholarship, Leadership, Character, and Service. It is Webster’s New American Dictionary, copyright 1939, 1940, 1941, 1944, 1947. And I actually hadn’t been born as of these copyright dates. The other dictionary I own is also pretty old, although not as old and yellowed as the first. It is Webster’s New World College Dictionary, copyright  1996, 1994, 1991, 1988. 

How old and quaint some of the words in those dictionaries must be: no social media, cell phone, texting, or mansplaining entries in them. Dictionaries are not as static as one might think. They are regularly updated with new words and phrases. And they are not all updated with the same new words and phrases, although there is obviously some overlap. One of the best books about updating dictionaries is a book I have recommended before –  Word by Word: The Secret Life of Dictionaries by Kory Stamper. It, too, is a bit outdated, as it focuses on updating print dictionaries.

Although all dictionaries update regularly, I am going to talk about the OED, the mother of all dictionaries: The Oxford English Dictionary, which is updated with thousands of new words every year. It is updated quarterly. New entries are added, but subentries under the main entries are also added and revised. Here are some recent updates (September 2021) to the OED.

New entries

anti-vax and anti-vaxxer (adj. n) – Describes someone against vaccinations; someone who is against vaccinations.

bants (n) -Playfully teasing or mocking remarks exchanged with another person or group, esp. among men; banter. 

bassa-bassa (n) -Trouble, commotion; a noisy altercation; a fight.

brata (n) -An extra amount or small gift added to a purchase by a seller, esp. in a market, to encourage the customer to return.

brown-nosing (n) -Excessive or insincere flattery, esp. with the aim of gaining favour or advancement. (I find it hard to believe this entry is new!)

bulgogi (n) -In Korean cookery: a dish of thin slices of beef or pork which are marinated then grilled or stir-fried.

cardioversion (n) -The treatment of atrial fibrillation and other cardiac arrhythmias by means of a direct-current shock to the chest. (Also hard to believe this one is new.)

Conchy Joe (n) -A Bahamian who is white or of mixed black and white descent.

I just noticed that there are no verbs on my list. I would think there would be fewer verbs than nouns and adjectives. I mean, it has all been done before, right?

New subentries

These words and phrases are additional subentries for the word in parentheses.

Asian miracle (Asian) (n, adj) -The rapid economic growth of certain East Asian countries (esp. Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan, and South Korea) in the second half of the 20th century.

Asian pear (Asian) (n, adj) -The nashi pear, Pyrus pyrifolia, native to eastern Asia.

bath bomb (bath)  (n) – A ball or other-shaped item made of a perfumed substance or mixture which dissolves when placed in water (typically with effervescence).

to be a beast (beast) (n, adj) – Colloquial. To be someone who is exceptionally gifted, adept, persistent, or hard-working.

big tech (big) (adj, n) -Major, multinational technology companies considered collectively as a sector of industry; frequently as a modifier.

caravan tea (caravan) (n) -Tea transported overland from China to Russia rather than by sea, commonly thought to acquire a distinctive and superior flavour.

cardiac output (cardiac) (n) – The quantity of blood pumped by the heart in a given period of time (typically measured in litres per minute). (New phrase??)

cardiganed (cardigan) (adj) – Wearing a cardigan. ( are vested, shorted, pantsed, skirted, shoed, and socked similar words?)

to catch one’s arse (catch) (v) – Caribbean: to suffer or undergo misfortune, hardship, or difficulty. 

conjure bag (conjure) (n) -A charm consisting of a small bag or pouch containing an assortment of objects such as herbs, hair, coins, etc., intended to be used to ward off evil.

Need to brush up on your grammar?  All books available in paperback and e-book.

New review for The Best Grammar Workbook Ever!

I normally don’t write reviews about anything but this book genuinely deserved one. I was never great at grammar but I always wanted to improve my grasp of the English language grammatically. I never could do that though because most grammar books that were provided by my school were either boring or overly complicated. However, this book literally is the best grammar book I have ever had the pleasure to open. It’s engaging and I feel like I am learning. Honestly, I look forward to opening it again because the author really make this book in such a way that makes me feel like I can truly graso grammar. I am happy with my purchase and the title of this book really speaks for itself.

 

OK? Okay? Ok? O.K.?

OK  is probably the most widely recognized word in the world regardless of the native language of a country.

And all of its spellings are OK: okay, ok, O.K.. OK

So where did this useful word come from?

Historian Allan Walker Read researched its origins, which were published in OK: The Improbable Story of America’s Greatest Word by Allan Metcalf, published in 2010. In this definitive book, Metcalf traces it back to an 1839 article in the Boston Morning Post.

There was no Associated Press or other wire services in the 19th century, so newspapers relied on other newspapers they traded copies with for their out-of-town news. And in those quaint days, there just wasn’t as much news, so newspapers added bits of humor and poetry into their pages.

We are all familiar with LOL, BRB, OMG, and other abbreviations that we use in texts. Well, abbreviations are nothing new. One newspaper fad at the time was the use of abbreviations such as i.s.b.d (it shall be done), r.t.b.s (remains to be seen), and s.p. (small potatoes).  A New York newspaper  in 1839 reported a young woman saying to her male friend “O.K.K.B.W.P.” (one kind kiss before we part).” Bet you haven’t used that one before. 

In addition to using quirky abbreviations, newspapers in the 1820s and 1830s liked to use deliberate misspellings for a bit of humor (oh, those journalists!). They turned no use into know yuse, all right into oll wright. No go became know go, and combined with the love of abbreviations became KG. And all correct became, as you might now guess, oll korrect. Abbreviation? OK

And then, to put the icing on the cake, let’s look at the 1840 presidential election. Candidate Martin Van Buren was from Kinderhook, New York, and was given the nickname “Old Kinderhook.” His fans joined “OK Clubs” nationwide, further popularizing the expression.

Some believed that “Old Kinderhook” was the origin of OK. Others believed in all sorts of  etymological beginnings of OK, including from the Choctaw word okeh. Other unproven ideas are that OK comes from the Haitian port Aux Cayes, the Louisiana French au quai, a Puerto Rican rum labeled “Aux Quais,” the German alles korrekt,  the Scots och aye, the Greek olla kalla,  or the Latin omnes korrecta. 

But Metcalf says that etymologically, OK has “no direct relationship with Latin or Greek or any other ancient tongue.”

Some interesting tidbits about what Metcalf says is the most frequently spoken (or typed) word on the planet:

I got a raise!! OK! – An enthusiastic cheerThis pizza is just okay – MehOK. Let’s move on to the next agenda item – An indication of switching topicsThe doctor okayed me to drive – Even used as a verb!Okaaaaaaay or Oooookay – Passive aggressive formOkay – What I said when I finished writing this post. K – Just plain lazyA thumbs up or an O made with the thumb and index or middle finger – Silent OKOK was one of the first words spoken on the moon.By the 1870s, OK became the standard way for telegraph operators to acknowledge receiving a transmission – it is, after all, shorter than Yes.In 1864, OK  appeared in the Slang Dictionary of Vulgar Words (doesn’t seem very vulgar).One of the most famous self-help books written is Thomas Harris’s book, I’m OK, You’re OK, published in 1967.In 1943 Rodgers and Hammerstein called Oklahoma OK: “You’re doin’ fine, Oklahoma! Oklahoma OK.” (L-A-H-O-M-A)

O.K.????

Thanks to the following websites for the information in this post:

Merriam Webster

News.com

History.com

Wikipedia

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Blaming Amazon

Image by kirstyfields from Pixabay

I have run into a few people — even friends of mine — who say they are boycotting Amazon because Jeff Bezos pays no taxes. 

On the other hand, I order from Amazon nearly every day, probably more so since the pandemic. I often get packages (I know some of you can relate to this), and I don’t even remember what is in them. If I need something small (and these are things I have actually ordered) — some post-it notes, a wrench — and I need it now, I will look for something that has one-day delivery on Amazon Prime.

However, there are stores I would not buy from. I will never go into a Hobby Lobby or a Chick-Fil-A. I don’t care for their anti-gay, evangelical views. But am I boycotting them? Probably not, since I have never been into these stores anyway. I have never even seen a Hobby Lobby anywhere near where I live. I have thought about boycotting Home Depot, but I go in there occasionally. 

My basic feelings about boycotting? Not a good idea. It doesn’t hurt the rich owners. It hurts the little guy or girl. 

So back to Amazon. I personally get upset when someone tells me they are boycotting Amazon. You aren’t hurting Jeff Bezos. You are hurting me (and others like me). 

I completely understand those of you who want to buy your books in brick-and-mortar bookstores — or online from indie bookstores. I love and support independent bookstores. My local indie bookstore in California (when I lived there), Copperfields, gave me so much support. I launched all of my books there. I spoke and gave workshops there. And when I need to give a gift, a Copperfield’s gift certificate is right on the top of my list. Personally, I don’t have money to spend on books, so I buy them only occasionally. Generally, I get my books from the library. 

But I can tell you my personal story of how, as an author, I depend on Amazon. 

It may not be hyperbole to say that I might be living in a cardboard box on the side of the river if it were not for Amazon. Probably because I write academic books, they sell pretty well — well some of them do — without a lot of marketing. I didn’t plan very well for retirement. I spent ten years raising my children and working as a freelance editor very part time.  I have a small teacher’s pension because I didn’t teach for very long. And because I was a teacher in California, social security cut my payments by at least a third (the famous “windfall” provision). That leaves me way below poverty level. So, believe it or not, these days, my Amazon royalties are sometimes nearly twice as much as my other income sources. Although I have other royalty sources, Amazon is by far the largest one.

Let me explain. I am what they call an author/publisher. I write and publish my own books, but I don’t publish anyone else’s books, so I am not really an independent publisher. Some of you probably already know the process. But in case, you don’t, here goes: I write a book. I hire a cover designer, and I hire someone to lay out the interior of the book. Both of these people know the standards for creating the PDF files I need, one for the cover and one for the interior. My books are POD, print on demand, which means that Amazon (or whoever) has the digital files, and when someone orders a book, they print one. They don’t have shelves full of books, and I don’t have a garage full of books. If a book is selling well, I assume Amazon may print and stock some extra copies. And I can order as many copies as I want at wholesale price to store in my garage. 

I actually upload the files for my print books to Amazon and one other place: Ingram, the world’s largest book wholesaler/distributor. If you don’t get your book from Amazon, it comes from Ingram. In fact, if you upload the files only to Ingram, they still put the book on Amazon, but it sometimes says Out of Stock, or is more difficult to order. The best thing is to upload to both Amazon directly and to Ingram. If a bookstore wants my book, or a school, they will order from Ingram. Ingram also automatically puts the book up on all the online retailers such as Barnes and Noble, Books a Million, Target, etc. It will not put the books in “real stores.” They would have to place an order through Ingram. But you can order a book that is with Ingram from any bookstore. 

I am not even quite sure how much Amazon takes per book. I believe it is about forty percent plus printing costs. I get the rest in royalties. However, Ingram needs about fifty-five percent discount. The bookstores or schools get forty percent of that, and Ingram gets the rest. So I get much less money from books sold anyplace except Amazon. In addition, Ingram allows returns, so a school might order fifty books and return every one of them. Unless the author wants the books back (in whatever condition they might be in, and author has to pay for the return shipping, so most of us don’t want the books back), the books are gone and so is our royalty. Since Ingram pays three months behind, they can deduct the returns from future royalties, but sometimes it works out that we owe them money. I once owed them over $900. 

For e-books, things are similar, but I don’t sell as many e-books as print. People seem to want novels as e-books, but grammar books in print form. And because I am not the type of person who knows exactly what my royalties are — I don’t have money awareness! — i just take what they give me. I pay to have my books put in e-book format and then upload the file to Kindle for Amazon sales. Ingram just started doing e-books, and I don’t upload there, but there are some companies that will distribute to multiple e-readers (Kobo, Nook, Apple books, the library digital books) if you upload your files to them, so I do that. 

Have I had some problems with Amazon? Of course. Do I love Amazon? Yes! Lately, for some reason , they have been doing me a huge favor. For the past few months, they have been selling my best-selling book — which is also my most expensive book  — at about half price. I don’t know why, but I am curious. This means that some of the places that used to get a bunch of books from Ingram, mainly schools, are now buying from Amazon because Ingram can’t beat the price. I can see how my sales have increased and what are likely school purchases. And here’s the thing: No matter how much Amazon discounts your book, you make the same royalty amount as if they were selling it at retail price. So, thank you, Amazon.

If you are planning to boycott a business (like those in Texas, for example), think again. You are hurting the employees, not the CEO. And if you want to get after someone for not paying taxes, well, there are some politicians who don’t pay taxes — and I am not naming any names….

 

 

My Life in Books: Finale – Books I Have Not Read (But Should Have)

Image by Markus Winkler from Pixabay

I consider myself fairly well read. Fairly. I have read 26 for sure, and probably several more, of the New York Times Best Novels. I have read at least 35 of Time’s list of great novels written from 1923 to 2005. And I have read at least 33 of The Guardian‘s 100 Books to Read Before You Die. Most of the books on these lists overlap all the lists.  In the top 50 books from the Guardian I have read

The Great GatsbyCatch-22On the RoadThe Lord of the RingsTo Kill a MockingbirdLolitaCatcher in the RyeLord of the FliesThe Grapes of Wrath1984Jane EyreMoby Dick (I was forced)Brave New WorldPride and PrejudiceAnimal FarmInvisible ManThe StrangerWuthering HeightsLittle Women

But that leaves a lot of books on those lists that I haven’t read, mostly the “heavy-duty” classics like Ulysses (which I probably read and have wiped from my mind). Being an English major in college, having a master’s degree in Humanities, teaching English for eleven years, and being an author myself leaves me feeling as if I should have read more of these great books. I am quite sure many of you have read some of the ones I have started and couldn’t finish or was just uninterested in starting at all!

Here are some books I started. In some of them, I got through a page or two. In others,  I got a few pages in. Others I wasted even more time on:

One Hundred Years of Solitude – Some people’s favorite book. I couldn’t read it. Things Fall Apart – I think it just had too much description. I am impatient.War and Peace – I got to page 110. I don’t know why I stopped there. Maybe it was due at the library. I read these 110 pages a very long time ago.The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay – Recommended to me, but nope.Life of Pi – I know people who loved it, and it was just recommended to me again. Maybe someday.The Call of the Wild – I lived right in Jack London’s backyard there in Northern California. Couldn’t read it.A Prayer for Owen Meany – I think I started this one more than once. Lots of people love it. Angle of Repose – A favorite of the literary group. It was the favorite book of my mentor teacher when I student taught high school English.The Omnivore’s Dilemma – Nonfiction. I thought I would like this one. Boring.Kitchen Confidential – My son-in-law’s favorite book. But he cooks. I don’t. I couldn’t get through it, but I might try again.

Here are some pretty famous books I never even tried to read (unless I have forgotten, which is also possible).

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn AND Tom Sawyer – Shame on me. A 7th grade English teacher!A Tale of Two Cities or most anything by Dickens. (I read a third of David Copperfield in 7th grade, and I think I might actually have read The Pickwick Papers.)Silas Marner – I remember some of my junior high classmates reading it. I think I might have lucked out.The Satanic Verses and most everything else by Rushdie. Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance – How did I not read this? I think I might have owned it. It was such a popular book in “my day.”The Color Purple – Nor did I see the movie, as far as I can remember. The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy – Another one I missed somehow. I think.The God of Small ThingsThe Shining or anything else bloody or scary by Stephen King. I read two King books, which I liked, but neither was his usual style: 11/22/63 and a book about a carnival, so it must have been Joyland.Waiting for Godot – It seemed everyone was reading it for a class in college.

And here are some kids books I don’t remember reading:

The Lion, The Witch, and the WardrobeWhere the Wild Things AreThe Phantom Toll BoothWinnie the PoohAnne of Green Gables (maybe???)The Little Prince (??)

And finally, a book that I should have owned and read, but didn’t: The Elements of Style by Strunk and White. This is the most famous grammar/style guide ever. Everyone owned a copy — I think — but I never did. The first style guides I remember having were The Chicago Manual of Style and Words Into Type, when I was a freshman in college studying journalism. But The Elements of Style, commonly referred to as just Strunk and White? I managed to get through college without this book. I managed to get a teaching credential without this book. I managed to teach English without this book. I even managed to write my own grammar book without this book. Then, shortly after I wrote my grammar book, I was at the library book sale and spotted a copy of The Elements of Style, so I bought it. It was very inexpensive. I figured it was time to read it. 

I read it, and I didn’t like it. My first grammar book, which shares most of the content with The Elements of Style, is much friendlier and easier to read. There you go.

And yes, this is the last post about My Life in Books…

 

Books by Authors I Know – And You Should Too!

I was going to name this post “Local Authors,” but then I realized they aren’t even local to me any longer. Most of them are authors I know from California, when I lived there and was active in the California Writers Club. Some of the books I talk about here I have copyedited, so hopefully you won’t find any mistakes in them. (However, I will take the credit/blame for any mistakes.) Others I have simply enjoyed as a reader.  (And yes, this is part of the My Life in Books series!)

I recommend all these books:

Our Southern Home by Waights Taylor – This is a great book about the Scottsboro Boys of Alabama. Historical nonfiction. I lent it to someone here in Florida who also loved it. I copyedited it, but I highly recommend it, and I am not even a history fan.

The God Patent by Ransom Stephens – Novel set in northern California by a PhD in physics. Very interesting!

Harlot’s Sauce by Patricia V. Davis – A memoir that takes place in Greece. 

She Flew Bombers by Jeane Slone – Novel about women pilots in World War II.

Reversible Skirt by Laura McHale Holland –  The childhood memoir of the author and her sisters.

Touch of Magenta by Linda Loveland Reid – Novel set in two time periods about strong women.

Journey to Anderswelt by JL Jusaitis – A middle-grade fantasy that takes place in Austria. Written by a former middle grade teacher.

Deep Doo-Doo by Sheri Graves – Novel that takes place in Santa Rosa, California, about a journalist and the foie gras controversy. Written by a former journalist.

Trains to Concordia by Marilyn Campbell – A teen and young adult coming-of-age book. Copyedited this one. 

Cloning Noah by Cheri Barton Ross – Yes, I copyedited this award-winning book. It is a fascinating medical novel!

Big House Dreams by Judith DeChesere-Boyle – Actually, all of her books are great reads.  Judith is a retired English teacher from the school district in which I taught in California.

Felony Murder Rule by Sheldon Siegel – One book in a series of legal thrillers by a San Francisco attorney. I have seen him speak a couple of times and have read some of the books in the series. 

The Mourning Parade by Dawn Reno Langley – What a great novel this is! My daughter loved it too. It is about the elephants in Thailand. I lent my copy to someone and I want it back, but I don’t remember who has it. I met this author on Facebook when I lived in California and she lived on the East Coast. We became Facebook friends after we answered someone’s political post and figured out we were of like mind. Turns out she went on a book tour for this book, and one of the stores was near me, so we did actually meet. 

The Great Typo Hunt by Jeff Deck and Benjamin D. Herson – Of course I have to include this entertaining book by two friends who went across the United States with a collection of markers and corrected typos on signs, often avoiding getting into trouble. I saw them speak about the book in San Francisco. The book made a real splash when it came out.

Happy Reading!

California, Here I Am!

Image by Free-Photos from Pixabay

….but it wasn’t so easy to get here!

No post about books today (next week), or about grammar, or about words. Just about me. 

Covid has really changed things: travel for one. Who knew we would be in a raging pandemic now, six months after everyone (well, not quite everyone) was  trying to get a vaccine?

Most of the time I have lived in Florida, there has been a pandemic. For the first six months or so, while I was getting my bearings here, Covid was not yet known.  Then, lockdown. So I didn’t really get a chance to get a foothold on the writing/publishing industry here. I joined Florida Writers Association and Florida Authors and Publishers and Tampa Writers Alliance — but everything obviously has been online. So I really don’t know anyone, and no one really knows what I do because I am not one to talk a lot online. 

Finally,  I was scheduled to go to the yearly conference of the Florida Authors and Publishers. I was excited to go meet some other writers and publishers. But then the Delta variant hit. One of the workshop speakers asked that all attendees wear masks. I wrote to the club president suggesting we wear masks to all the presentations. The president said we couldn’t do that because the hotel didn’t have a mask mandate (?????) I knew there would be meals served, indoor as far as I knew. So, the night before I was to leave for the conference, I backed out. I was traveling cross country the next weekend to visit my son in California. I couldn’t risk being with a bunch of people from all over Florida, whom I didn’t know, talking, eating, and socializing. Did they have vaccines? Would they wear masks? I didn’t know. I do know now that in the photos there were virtually no masks. They very generously refunded all the money for the conference, but I did get stuck paying for one of the two hotel nights. They were not following CDC recommendations that even vaccinated people wear masks indoors, so I deserved a refund. 

I am now in California. Ah!!!!!! There is a mask mandate, and everyone takes it seriously. Over 70% of the county has been vaccinated, in contrast with about half the people in my Florida county.

But travel isn’t easy in the time of Covid. 

The plane. Actually, this probably had nothing to do with Covid. Everyone followed the mask rules, and the flight was nearly fine. There is only one nonstop flight each day from where I live to San Francisco, and I took it. But this time, it wasn’t exactly nonstop. Something was wrong with a fuel pump, and we were not able to carry enough fuel to get all the way to San Francisco, so we had to stop to refuel in Houston. We left late and then had to stop, so we were almost two hours late. No big deal unless you had a connecting flight.The rental car. Rental cars are VERY EXPENSIVE  now because there is a shortage of cars. I booked a very expensive rental (not an expensive car), and was offered something less expensive online a few days before my trip,  so I changed my reservation. Well, now I know why it was so much cheaper. The line was an hour long because everyone else wanted to save money too. After waiting in line for a rental car for an hour, I was told I would then have to wait until a car was ready, and they would call me. What???? Well, I went back to him to tell him I didn’t see other people waiting to be called. He said my car was ready and which stall to go to. I took the elevator down and went to the assigned stall. No car there. I saw someone driving a car toward that stall, so I waited and said it was probably my car. He told me to go to the man in the window. I did, and he rented me the car.  I was on my way…During Friday rush hour traffic by now. My plane was supposed to land at 9:50 a.m. It was late and then the rental car, so it was now about 2:30 p.m. The traffic was horrible!Hotels are not what they used to be. I had booked a motel of a well-known chain. I was familiar with it because I used to live fairly close to it. I had never noticed the awful neighborhood and the questionable people who were hanging around in the parking lot. They gave me a first-floor room, and I was afraid for my safety. I went into the room. It smelled like mildew, and there was a big handicapped chair in the shower. I went to the front desk. She told me they had given me a handicapped room. She gave me some spray stuff; I sprayed most of the can in the room and tossed the chair into the hallway. The furniture reminded me of very, very old school desks. I was very tired and at my wit’s end by now, so I told them I couldn’t stay there. I felt unsafe and it was dirty. I had booked through a third-party company by mistake, and the price was not what I thought. The weekend prices were outrageous for that place. They offered me a full refund. I booked an expensive place online; I didn’t care by now. I drove over the the nicer hotel. The hallways are dirty, but the room is fine. They don’t come in to clean the rooms until the third day you are here because they cannot find employees these days. I went down for breakfast one day and waited and waited to be seated. Only one waitress doing everything….To her and the chef’s credit, the wait was short and the food very good – and expensive.

I am seeing my son and my friends here. I love it here. I wish I could live here and in Florida, since I have “kids” in both states. I am missing my daughter, my son-in-law and my dog. But I am not missing Florida. It is a horror show with that “governor.” But I will go back on Saturday, and it will seem as if I never left. 

 

What to do? What to do?

 

My Life in Books – Part 6: Politics and Other Nonfiction

As I was preparing this series of posts, I was shocked when I saw the number of political books I have read in the past few years. I think a certain sub-genre of political books became very popular during those years!  (Hmmm. Maybe they are more current event books than political.)

But first, let me tell you about some other nonfiction books I would recommend:

Working by Studs Terkel – This is an old book, and I read it a long time ago.  It was very well-known in its day.

The Four Agreements by Miguel Ruiz – I think almost everyone has probably read this book, which was very trendy for a long time.

The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo – When I first heard that a book about tidying up was the bestseller of the year, I couldn’t believe it. Then I read it, and I learned that I shouldn’t be balling up my socks like potatoes because they needed to breathe. I haven’t kept up with Kondo, and I know she has some competition now —  but it was an innovative book!

The Long Tail: Why the Future of Business Is Selling Less of More by Chris Anderson – This is a great business book. Fascinating.

Born a Crime by Trevor Noah – This is a wonderful memoir of growing up in South Africa. Gotta love Noah!

On Writing Well: The Classic guide to Writing Nonfiction by William Zinsser – The quintessential guide to writing

Becoming by Michelle Obama – Another great memoir

English: An Utterly Correct Guide to Clarity and Style by Benjamin Dreyer – Dreyer isn’t dry by any means. Great book.

In Defense of Elitism by Joel Stein – I saw Stein being interviewed about the book, and it intrigued me. Actually, the interview was better than the book itself, although I did identify with much of what he said.

The Beautiful No: And Other Tales of Trial, Transcendence, and Transformation by Sheri Salata – I saw her speak at a virtual conference. I was impressed by what she had to say, and she referred to her book, which was inspirational. 

Divergent Mind by Jenera Nerenberg – I heard about the book and then saw the author at a virtual book launch. It is about those of us with divergent minds — autism, hypersensitivity, synesthesia (me) — and how we get along in the world.

Politics/Current Events

I read so many political books in the recent past. Many of us did. Here are some of the ones I read:

A Very Stable Genius by Philip Rucker and  Carol Leonnig – This was a good one.

The Making of Donald Trump by David Cay Johnston – This is my favorite Trump book. It shows him from childhood on. Johnston is on television quite a bit (MSNBC) and is, I believe, a tax expert first and foremost.

Too Much and Never Enough by Mary Trump – Bless this woman.

The Book of Gutsy Women  by Hillary and Chelsea Clinton – Interesting

Tough Love by Susan Rice – Okay

The Truths We Hold by Kamala Harris – Political or memoir? I don’t know, but it made me like her more when I read it.

If We Can Keep It: How the Republic Collapsed and How It Might Be Saved by Michael Tomasky. I think this book needs a sequel right about now.

Unhinged by Omarosa Manigault Newman – I don’t remember much about this one. 

Full Disclosure by Stormy Daniels – Meh

Fear: Trump in the White House by Bob Woodward – I don’t love his writing, and I didn’t love this book.

Make Trouble by Cecile Richards – Great woman, great book. Her mother was former Texas governor Ann Richards. Cecile is the former president of Planned Parenthood.

The Plot to Hack America by Malcolm Nance – Nance is an impressive guy, and some of us call him Shouty McShoutface. He has predicted a lot of what has gone on, and he is worried about the democracy.

A Colony in a Nation by Chris Hayes of MCNBC – I saw him talk about this book in California. It is a good read.

Al Franken: Giant of the Senate – We need him back. Enough said.

What Happened by Hillary Clinton – Many of us are still asking, “What happened?”

Fire and Fury: Inside the White House by Michael Wolff – This book got a lot of press. I don’t remember much about it. 

The Unmaking of the President 2016: How FBI Director James Comey Cost Hillary Clinton the Presidency by Lanny Davis – Oh, yeah, that’s what happened.

On Tyranny by Timothy Snyder – This is a wonderful book – and very short.

Dear Madam President by Jennifer Palmieri – Another short but good one.

Trumpocalypse by David Frum – Don’t remember it, but I kind of like Frum. haven’t seen him in a long time.

Rage by Bob Woodward – Still don’t like his writing. Meh.

Disloyal by Michael Cohen – I liked this one. 

Persist by Elizabeth Warren – Guess I reached my limit on political reading.  I read some of it, and I have left it for a while. It is the type of book that can be read one chapter at a time.

The Violence Inside Us  by Connecticut Senator Chris Murphy – All about American’s addiction to guns. Good book.

This Country by Chris Matthews – A historical look back from someone who worked in politics. It was due at the library, so I never finished.

Next week I will be visiting family and friends in California. There will be a blog post. It won’t be about my life in books. That is all I can tell you.

 

 

 

My Life in Books – Part 5: Loves and Hates

Image by Michal Jarmoluk from Pixabay

Last week I told you about some of the books I thought were five stars. But books don’t need five stars to be good and memorable. In this post I include

Books I recommend even though I didn’t give them five stars (could have just been my mood that day!)Some authors I likeBooks that other people liked that I DID NOT.

This series is turning out to have more episodes that I thought! There will be two more posts in this series, possibly in the next two weeks, but maybe not. I am going to a publishing conference this weekend and to California the next, so I might write about something else. But there will be posts. The final two posts in this series will be

Nonfiction, political, and books by “local” authors (meaning authors I know)Books I never read that you probably did — and that you would think I had, since I was an English major and an English teacher!Recommended Reads

Here are some books that I would recommend even though I didn’t give them A’s:

The Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell. In fact, any book by Mr. Gladwell. I think I read them all, but The  Tipping Point is an important book.

Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood  by Rebecca Wells. Every female read that one, didn’t she? The movie was good too.

Okay. Don’t start with me on this one. I know many of you HATED it and thought the writing was terrible. I disagree:

Fifty Shades of Grey by E.L. James. I read all three in the original series. I think I saw the first two movies. I liked the books, especially the second one. I thought they were well written. And I thought they showed that the woman ultimately had all the power in that relationship. And above all, it was a love story.

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Hadden. I don’t remember a single thing  about this book except it was good, and it has a memorable cover.

Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen

Ready Player One by Ernest Cline. Not really my kind of book, but I liked it and would recommend it.  Also a movie.

The Martian by Andy Weir. If I haven’t already mentioned this one I should have. Great movie too.

The Plot Against America by Philip Roth. Written in 2004, the story of 2016. How prophetic can a book be?

The Lost Apothecary by Sarah Penner. Recommended to me by a writer friend. Interesting book about women and their husbands….

Authors I Love

You know how you find a book you love and then you read all the author’s other books? Here are some of those authors for me.

Maupin Armistead. Heard of him through a friend and then found out he was coming to my local bookstore. He was entertaining, so I read his Tales of the City. Most people had already seen this on TV, but not me. 

Kristen Hannah. I have read a few of her books and have loved them: The Nightingale, The Great Alone, The Four Winds

Mary Higgins Clark. Love her mysteries. Unfortunately she passed away a while ago. Her daughter also writes mysteries and wrote some with her. 

Sophie Kinsella. Confessions of a Shopaholic and some other fun chick books. Loved them.

Jennifer Weiner. One of her first books, Good in Bed, was made into a movie. I have read most of, if not all, her books. I have seen her in person twice and she is very funny. I more recently saw her at a virtual book launch, where she said she wrote women’s literature and she resented the phrase “chick lit” for any writer. Her books have gotten more serious, and  they are definitely not lightweight books.

Janet Evanovich. One for the Money right up to her Tempting Twenty Eight. I have read most of the 28 books in the Stephanie Plum series. She has other series, some of which she writes with other authors. The Plum books have gotten very formulaic, but I still love her and her characters.

Christopher Moore. Another funny guy. He wrote Lamb and many other books. He is a satirical guy.  I have seen him speak a couple of times. He reminds me of Carl Hiaasen.

Elizabeth Berg. She is the quintessential women’s literature author, and I love her books. 

David Baldacci. Read his first few books and loved them. Then I lost interest.

Lisa Genova. I wrote about her last week in the five-star books. She is a novelist and a neuroscientist. Her books are wonderful. Still Alice was made into a movie. She is amazing.

Lianne Moriarty. Didn’t everyone who read Big Little Lies go on to read her other books? I think my favorite was The Husband’s Secret. I didn’t like her latest (well, it was the latest when I read it), Nine Perfect Strangers.

Elinor Lipman. I went to college with her, although she was a year ahead of me. Years later I found out she was a notable author, so I read several of her books and enjoyed them.

VC Andrews. Although Andrews passed away a very long time ago, she is still  (or was last time I checked) writing books! Her family has apparently taken over the writing of her books. Her first book, Flowers in the Attic, was pretty popular and was made into a movie. The book was written in 1979 and actually labeled a young adult book and read by preteens and teens. It was banned from school libraries because of child abuse and incest. It was the first book in a series. Andrews wrote many series; her books featured creepy family members and eerie houses. I loved them and read a ton of her series. I actually picked up one or two at the library a few years ago, and I am now in the mood to see if there are any new ones I can read!

I Just Couldn’t’ Get Through These

Some people loved these books. Not for me.

One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez. No thank you. 

The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold. First page was too sad. Done.

Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides. b-o-r-i-n-g

Life of Pi by Yann Martel. Could not get into it. 

H is for Hawk by Helen MacDonald. And I is for ICK.

Red, White, and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston. You might not know this one because it is a true romance novel. It was rated best romance novel of the  year, so I thought I would read it. It has over 14,000 Amazon reviews and an average 4.6 out of 5. I got to page two or three, finding that many obvious typos (or maybe they were actual grammatical mistakes) and either tense issues or just confusing writing. It was awful.

The Liar’s Club by Mary Carr. I read somewhere this was a good book. I didn’t like it. 

Squeeze Me by Carl Hiaasen. EVERYONE raves about this book. I love Hiaasen. I hate trump. But I still didn’t think it was so great.  Or funny.

OK. That’s a wrap.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My Life in Books – Part 4: Five-Star Books

Image by Tomislav Kaučić from Pixabay

Don’t you hate it when you get halfway through a book and realize you have already read it? On occasion it has taken me most of a book to realize I have read it — and even though I obviously didn’t remember much about it at all, I still resent having read it again!

So lest you think I can remember all the books I have read, I admit I now track the books I read on the Goodreads website. That is how I can write this post (and the next one). I thought this was going to be one post, but now I see I have too much information for one post, so I am splitting it between this week and next. I did the best I could when I started using Goodreads to recall all the books I had ever read, but of course, that was a futile task! So I think I have about 650 books  listed as READ on the site, and I have been pretty good about keeping it updated for several years.

I rarely write reviews, but I try to rate the books I have read. Here are many of my five-star reads. Most are fiction, but not all of them. And they are not all the five-star books on my list, but many of them. Some of them I can’t remember at all because I am one of those people who cannot remember what one book is about by the time I start reading the next.

I envy those people who can read multiple books at a time, and I have tried, but I prefer to read one book at a time.

Here are some of my five-star books. The best of the best are at the end of the list. I would recommend any of these books. Please keep in mind that I do favor women’s literature (or, as some like to call it, “Chick Lit”). Oh, one more thing. I tried not to include books that I talked about in the prior three posts in this series.

The Kite Runner -Khaled Hosseini. Most everyone loved this book.

Freakonomics – Steven Levitt. Nonfiction, and I found parts of it fascinating.

Like Water for Chocolate – Laura Esquivel 

The Girls’ Guide to Hunting and Fishing – Melissa Banks

The Help – Kathryn Stockett

Unbroken – Laura Hillenbrand. This one is a memoir. Excellent.

Quiet – Susan Cain. This is a nonfiction book about introversion. I believe she wrote more than one, and I read them all.

On the Road – Jack Kerouac. Of course.

The Girl with the Pearl Earring – Tracy Chevalier

Far from the Madding Crowd – Thomas Hardy – Possibly the only classic in the list.

The Art of Racing in the Rain – Garth Stein. A beautiful book for dog lovers. You will cry.

11-22-63 –  Stephen King. One of the two books I read and liked by Mr. King.

The House of the Scorpion –  Nancy Farmer. I read this young adult book when I was teaching, and I loved it.

Divergent #1 – Veronica Roth. Another young adult book. All the girls were reading it when I was teaching 7th grade.

The Good Daughters – Joyce Maynard. Joyce is a Facebook friend and lives around where I lived in California. She has had a book made into a movie; I believe it was called Labor Day. She done good.

The Girl on the Train – Paula Hawkins. I don’t remember loving it that much, but I gave it five stars.

Goodnight June – Sarah Jio (and The Look of Love by Sarah Jio also). This book was recommended to me, and it was wonderful.

Re Jane –  Patricia Park. Another winner.

Falling – Jane Green

The Sunshine Sisters – Also by Jane Green

Still Alice – Lisa Genova (Everything by Genova, who is a neuroscientist, is a masterpiece.) This book was made into a movie. 

The Mourning Parade – Dawn Reno Langley. I met Dawn on Facebook when we made a political comment on the same post. We became Facebook friends. She lived across the country from me, but she had set up a book tour to promote this book and was coming to my favorite local bookstore. So we met, and I got an autographed copy of the book. I loved it and gave it to my daughter, who also loved it. It is a novel about the elephants in Thailand.  Great book.

The Light We Lost – Jill Santopolo

Before We Were Yours – Lisa Wingate

The Alice Network – Kate Quinn

Tuesday Nights in 1980 – Molly Prentiss. I saw this book on display at the library and was attracted to the cover. This book and I were meant to be. It is a novel about an art critic with synesthesia (an overlapping of the senses, sometimes called a gift and other times called a handicap!). Not too long before I found this book, I finally figured out that I had synesthesia and had started researching it. I really appreciated reading this book, although it was about a different type of synesthesia. 

The Little Paris Bookshop – Nina George. Bookshop? Paris? What could be bad?

The Glass Castle – Jeanette Walls. One of the most outstanding memoirs ever!

Where the Crawdads Sing – Delia Owens. Your typical bestseller.

The Flatshare – Beth O’Leary. I read about this book in some list of recommended books I was sent by e-mail. I loved it and read another book by the same author. Not too heavy, but a fun read.

The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle – Haruki Murakami. I gave this book five stars because of its beautiful writing.

Lessons from Lucy – Dave Barry. Florida humorist writes about his dog. Great book. I saw him at a book fair, and he is very funny!

The Oysterville Sewing Circle – Susan Wiggs. I think I have read another book or two by this author and have liked them. 

American Dirt – Jeanine Cummins. Lots of controversy about this one. I don’t remember loving it five stars worth, but that is what I gave it. 

The Book Woman of  Troublesome Creek – Kim Michele Richardson. You just know this is not a romantic comedy.

The Alchemist – Paulo Coelho. I finally read this famous book.

French Illusions: My Story as an American Au Pair in the Loire Valley – Linda Kovic Skow. True story that reads like a novel. I am fascinated with all things French.

A Mango-Shaped Space – Wendy Mars. A young adult book recommended by a friend — another book about synesthesia.

The Bookstore on the Beach – Brenda Novak. Bookstore? Beach. What could be bad?

Accidentally Engaged – Farah Heron. I just read this one. Pleasantly surprised it was a fun read with a good plot.

The Best of the Best

Here are some of the best books I have read out of my five-star list. Highly recommended!

The Red Tent – Anita Diamant

The Interestings – Meg Wolitzer. Made into a TV movie. Loved it. 

Room – Emma Donahue – I left this off my list entirely, but I know it is up there. Made into a movie for which Brie Larson won Best Actress. Riveting story!

The Nightingale – Kristen Hannah. I believe this was voted the best book of the year on Goodreads a couple of years ago. World War II story.

Word by Word: The Secret Life of Dictionaries – Kory Stamper. I LOVED this book about the making and updating or dictionaries. For word lovers everywhere. 

A Man Called Ove – Fredrik Backman. My favorite book I have read as an adult. Made into a wonderful movie as well. BRAVO!

Little Fires Everywhere – Celeste Ng. Another one streaming on Netflix or somewhere. I haven’t seen it, but plan to. Great book!

Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine – Gail Honeyman.  Reminded me of A Man Called Ove, female style. Loved it. 

The Ensemble – Aja Gabel. This was a beautiful story about a musical quartet. Highly recommended.

Educated – Tara Westover. An outstanding memoir.

The Library Book – Susan Orlean. A book about the fire at the Los Angeles Central Library. Recommended to me by a Facebook friend. Well worth the read!

Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents – Isabel Wilkerson. Amazing book about endemic racism.

The Night Circus – Erin Morgenstern. A very original story. A magical book.

 

Next Week, these books are featured (not necessarily 5-star, but notable nonetheless):

Some memorable nonfictionBooks I loved and that stick in my mind, but not quite five-star booksAuthors I likeBooks people liked and I hatedBooks by people I know that you should read (some of which I copyedited)Wow, I have read a lot of political books!

 

 

 

 

 

A Dozen Mistakes Even We Smart People Make

You might have some of these language goofs on your list of pet peeves. They are common, and anyone can make one of these mistakes! Even you and me!

1. These homophones are each used in a different idiom: 

Image by Tumisu from PixabayI am going to give her a piece of my mind!Meditating gives me peace of mind.

Make sure you spell piece/peace right.

2.  If you are going to research something before you sign the contract, you are doing due diligence, not do diligence.

3. The correct saying is first-come, first-served. If you say first-come, first-serve, you might be implying that the first to come will be the one serving everyone.

4. I love those sleight of hand card tricks magicians do. It is not slight of hand, which could mean the magician has small hands. A slight is also an insult.

5. Unthaw is an odd word. Why would anyone even use it? It is used as a synonym for thaw because unthaw actually means to freeze. Just use freeze unless you mean thaw. Some dictionaries say unthaw is a real word.

6. The correct phrase is shoo-in, not shoe-in: for example, he is a shoo-in for the job.  Unless it is some weird kind of job.

7.  Prostrate means lying on the ground or the floor. Prostate, without the second r, is the gland. Don’t mix them up!

8. Apostrophes are used in contractions and possessives. PERIOD. This is Jane’s ball. I can’t go with you. Apostrophes are not used in plurals, even in something like  the 1980s. Or ABCs. Only use one in a plural that would be confusing: I got all A’s. Not all As.

9. I need a new hot water heater.  Is it heating hot water? Or cold water? The hot is redundant. You can just call it a a water heater.

10. The drone is homing in now. It isn’t honing in. To hone is to sharpen a skill. 

11. It is the first-year anniversary of our meeting. It is probably enough to say it is the first anniversary of our meeting. Or the fiftieth anniversary of our wedding.  Unless, of course, you are also celebrating day and month anniversaries in additional to years.

12. I have always said all of the sudden. Then I heard it was actually all of a sudden. I think either one is acceptable. But all the sudden is not. All of them probably mean suddenly, so just use suddenly if that is what you mean.