C. (Comment, never msg).’s Comments (group member since Jan 30, 2014)

C. (Comment, never msg).’s comments from the Gentle SPECTRUMS group.

Hi Ladies! Leeanne likes "Shipwreck" (2011) and "Except The Dying" (1997) enough to stay with Maureen Johnson's series. However, she bids us to go ahead with this novel because she is busy with school into July. What say you?

I expect to finish my present Canadian book, "The Green Library", in a few evenings. Please choose a period when you can pop in with comments everyday and continue awhile after reading the mystery. We can do better than making two comments in progress, then fizzling; right? Your friend, Carolyn.

My Friends & Goodreads Pals,

I hope you enjoy our fresh buddy-reading folders. Rather than hide in old buddy folders, these will just retain their general conversations. Individual books have homes in one buddy folder, the rest will be together with their authors. As my precious Mom would query with her fun childhood expressions: how does that grab you?

My Friends, the reward is in sharing books, dreaming up ideas, and doing a little work that you notice and enjoy! Thank you for your praise and appreciation, dear Kerri. You already know the answer: keeping a text format makes things easy to copy in.

I am having so much fun adding new releases and pleasant reading that will uplift us all. I pray for good news in my life and in yours every day. Positive things to do and see here, with sweet friends, helps the wait and trust in happy outcomes tremendously. Xoxoxoxo to all of you, Carolyn.

I used both names, “May Eve” and “Beltane”. Most spiritual are solstice evenings. I wrote that it was rainy again, so I was glad to reading earlier that day.

I am glad to have a comment on my speech about ten stars. I don't believe that people who talk about wanting decimals are thinking it through. It occurred to me as you read, that 1.5 and 2.5 are still terrible and there is not likely any such thing as 5.5. So people need to consider that all we would gain is 3.5 and 4.5. The way to provide a colourful, helpful spectrum are 10 stars. I like to pick a full number.

I am glad you are beginning to find our fun subjects, Kerri. You know about Rob's podcast but not "911 Lonestar" or "Mental Samurai"? I wouldn't watch the emergency crew show unless nothing else were on while I sat down to eat. A little TV is how I like to eat and take a break from the computer or whatever I work on; or after some refreshing errands outside.

I discovered another great show, a little documentary series that is full of heart, fun, and humour! You will know why when I say the title: "Expedition: Back To The Future"! I missed the first episode or more and set our TV to tell me when it is on next, which are Wednesday nights.

A nostalgia TV host named Josh is tracking down the original 7 De-Lorians, to figure out which one is in a specific picture he has. When they have the one they seek, they are giving it to the Michael J. Fox foundation. I hope Mike appears at the end. Josh's partner on this scavenger hunt driving adventure, digging through records and interviewing people? Christopher Lloyd! It is so much fun, packed with the kind of inner circle trivia I love, I smile all the way through it.

Here is my story volume 4 review. https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

I alphabetized our master list last week, which I am eager for all to enjoy. I think the bold and clear categories are beautiful and can't wait for everyone's reactions.

There is no way I read things like "Schindler's List", "Sophie's Choice", "War And Peace"; dreary human portraits my Mom read in non-fiction. Ron took ages to get through "Pillars Of The Earth", over 1000 pages but enjoyed it.

Yes, your lists are handy here and I will add all books of yours that we share in common, minus a few I want to read on my own, like "No Time Like The Future". It is nice to have you in the members folder! Do share news of New Zealand and anything you wish.

A few steps make copying, pasting, alphabetizing easy. You might be glad to know what the time savers are. Instead of a dash and "by", I put quotation marks and full capitalization on all words of titles. I feel good about the symmetry of equally capitalized words. I was sincere when I said we all have quirks and may no medical label limit us. :)

As soon as you e-mailed your awesome Dorothy Eden bounty, I saved it in publishing order. I recall being equal in what I have and do not have of that fine authoress' stories. I see Margaret Mahy has stories that are more about spirits than "The Changeover". I would love any of those, Janet Frame, Katherine Mansfield, and the new ladies you named today in my "Where Nests The Water Hen" review.

When I started this thread, "Discovery" must have been into its 3rd season and "Picard" had only started. I immediately relished "Picard" for continuing the stories of beloved "Voyager" and "The Next Generation" characters. At first, I warmed up to "Discovery" with curiousity and appreciation for being new, almost entirely unconnected to anything familiar. I fell in love with the cast as I acquainted them and each season got better and more emotional.

The history of the starship Enterprise NCC 1701 is that it was captained by Jonathan Archer (the show "Enterprise"), Christopher Pike (early appearances on "The Original Series"), and James Tiberius Kirk. The new show is the story of another ship, Discovery, flying at the time of Captain Christopher Pike. The twist: this ship is a beta test of extra advanced technology, the "spore drive", that goes into "black alert" and can space jump instantly, without the need to travel there at warp speed. You need to connect it to a living organism and two people so do it.

Those new to Star Trek need to know Spock originally flew with Christopher Pike and apparently, so did Uhura and James Kirk when they were younger cadets. The secret twist is that Spock grew-up with an adopted human Sister, "Michael Burnam", who was orphaned and Spock's parents raised. So she is human but has Vulcan training and customs. She is the heroine of "Discovery". We don't know about Spock's Sister because Discovery flew 900 years into the future a couple of seasons ago, to save organic life from a corrupt Star Fleet network. They kept it top secret.

Just as "Picard" closed its AWESOME latest season last night, in our time period on Earth, a new Star Trek series premiered! I didn't know about "Strange New Lands" and wondered how I would like it. Wow, it continues with Christopher Pike and Spock in Enterprise's time period, who are reeling from having to let Discovery go far into the future! It is fantastic and I think most people would love it! But there are so many connections to other series, new fans have catching-up to do.

Never fear, there are short-cuts. You must watch "The Next Generation" and "Voyager". Then, watch the 10 films. The first 6 are from the original cast and the most recent 4 of "The Next Generation" cast".

Here, choose what interests you best. You could fill in the television gaps and peruse "The Original Series" and "Deep Space 9", which have small connections to the new series and "Enterprise", which has none. Or you could watch the two key series, ten films, and dive right into "Discovery", "Picard", or both.

You would get little out of "Strange New Worlds", without seeing the first 6 films of "The Original Series" and the first 2 seasons of "Discovery". The connections are rewarding; the heart, creativity, storytelling, and action are fantastic.

I am proud a magical place like Churchill comprises our province but it is a different world. I just happened to read of that episode and am eager to see it most! Any one is excellent and educational. Happily, Manitoba features in additional places.

It is great that he is open to anything and only wish Jonny (no "H" in his name) would skip industries that contribute to animals being products. If I were the documentarian, I would skip ranches or fishing huts and focus on anything else the town worked on.

I think you know that to catch up, you need to read "Under The Dragon's Tale" as well. After reading the first, let us know if you want to continue and we will wait.

Here is another fun discovery in the "Murdoch Mysteries" orbit! In the television series the supporting cast of Dr. Julia Ogden, George Crabtree, Thomas Brakenreid, and Llewellyn Watts become significant partners, with spotlights on their personal lives. I don't know where George is said to hail from in the books or on the show but Johnny Harris is a clear, audible "Newfie". It is our affectionate name for Newfoundlanders!

The new "Murdoch Mysteries" season conconcluded a couple of weeks ago and daily, CBC airs "Frankie Drake Mysteries" instead, so I looked around for another way to enjoy the cast of whom I have become a fan. Yannick Bisson was a part of Candice Cameron's films for a time, of Charlaine Harris' "Aurora Teagarden Mysteries" but got busy I suppose. I had noticed the title "Still Standing" popping up on channels for years and imagined it is a comedy show, which is correct but which is only a drop in the delightful ocean I discovered!

I noticed a clip of Jonny Harris and thought "Wow, he does stand-up. I will have to catch the episode he is one". It turns out that "Still Standing" is his successful, long-running show and it is like no other show out there! I wish there were DVDs of it and catch it on the satellite dish whenever I can. They always make me smile, country proud, and I learn a lot. Anyone would. Get a load of this.

"Still Standing" is about doing a special on towns across Canada that are small and struggling to stay functional. Jonny is from such a town and liked the idea of teaching his viewers about places they probably haven't heard of and would feel keen to visit. He interviews townspeople about the history, industries, and leisure there.... except in a very personal way and he makes it funny! This "Murdoch Mysteries" star is inside people's homes and going to their town festivites as a guest that you feel like you could easily have over to your place, no matter how it looked.

After gathering interview footage, where he tries the customs and activities for himself, he gives a comedy show to the people, who are joked about personally throughout the whole thing. It is unbelievably good and what a way to ensure their is hilarious material entirely about your town! Jonny splices the comedy show with the interviews he is joking about and the whole thing is so good, I would call him a genius. I believe this has been airing since 2015 and has no reason to stop. Find "Still Standing" if you want to see a creative Canadian at work and a taste of towns you wouldn't find in tourbooks.

I sure look forward to everyone catching up so we can read "Poor Tom Is Cold". The book after should be a personal, emotional doozy! It normally doesn't matter if I watch "Murdoch Mysteries". Only a few in early seasons pertain to our book series.

I want you guys to know how good I have to be tonight. After midnight, the satellite dish is airing "Let Loose The Dogs" several times! Come on, Leeanne, borrow the two you need and let's groove. You might not know I can't download anything and the blu-rays are expensive. I only watch what airs. If I videotaped this, I would be tempted to peek, wouldn't I. Ah well, we will reprise stories with our dear Will soon.

Members: disagreeing is natural. Throwing a fit over benign suggestions is unacceptable. The way to show someone they cannot lash out an uncontrolled temper, is not to tolerate it.

We need our happy places. I have been in a long stretch of multiple grief. I had turned notifications off in unease about what this temperamental person might say next. It is a relief to remove her. I do not do it lightly and trust the ugly atmosphere was evident.

Tree sap is like molasses. Branches are all deer have to eat until green growth emerges. This woman said she was seeing deer for the first time and questioned that I was feeding them safely. No one likes assumptions and she did it at every turn.

Like Hagar Shipley in "The Stone Angel", I want to be respected, loved, and understood. Since Kerri & Shirin are co-moderators, I want to double check that you understand not tolerating rudeness or insensitivity. Hugs, Carolyn.

Kerri & I read Rob Lowe's first autobiography together for personal reasons, "Stories I Only Tell My Friends" and it was wonderful. I knew a few of this gorgeous actor's films as a teenager and he appeared in every magazine I bought, looking for Corey Hart and Morten Harket. I began seeing him on "The Ellen DeGeneres Show" and learned what a sweetheart he is.

After a compelling reading experience from him with Kerri, we were immediately interested in his work, besides the political television show. Too much American politics rain on Canadians and the fight movie "The Outsiders" was not for me either. My spouse & I bought the "Youngblood" blu-ray and chuckled at the 1980s sexuality with young Rob looking like a teenager. The dears Patrick Swayze and Canadian Keeanu Reeves also had roles. We gave the film to my Brother when we learned that he loved it.

I bought his second autobiography in hardcover and have been eager to share with Kerri and others that I now see Rob Lowe everywhere. He has advertized his own podcast, something I do not peruse with dial-up internet but I know he is a fantastic storyteller. He is starting a humour show about his Sons making fun of him.

I saw him collaborate with his family for his wife's 60th birthday on "Celebrity Family Feud" - they won. I watched a few rounds of his general trivia game show, "Mental Samurei", including last night.

Finally, I couldn't believe he returned to Canada in 2011 to film another hocky movie, this time featuring the Toronto Sikh culture! "Breakaway" was excellent and no one has seen Bollywood on skates before this. A sweet moment for me is that he clearly learned our national anthem, portraying a Canadian coach. He mouthed the words along to "O Canada" at the beginning of a hockey tournament. On "Mental Samurei" last night, he joked that one of the audio clues must be Canadian, from the way the word "out" was pronounced. I am proud that such a wonderful artist has spent time getting to know us.

When you really admire someone and feel like you have gotten to know them, you love to keep seeing them in present day and Rob has been active as an author and on all screens, all of his career. I have also seen him as a fireman chief in the drama "911 Lonestar" and it is a quality show too. https://www.theglobeandmail.com/arts/...

Tomorrow is "May Eve"! I heard about it a few years ago in the novel "The Tale Of Cuckoo Brow Wood" and thought I was ensure you all have the opportunity in your corners of the world, to have fun trying it out for yourselves. It is the eve of the Irish holiday phenomenon "Beltane", the Gaelic "May day festival", halfway between the spring and summer solstices (equinoxes).

What is the phenomenon about it? Do you know that Hallowe'en, abbreviated for "All Hallows Eve" is when the veil between life and the afterlife is thin enough to meet more easily than usual? Instead of spirits, "May Eve", April 30th, is when it is easiest and the likeliest possible to find fairies in a forest!

I grew-up thinking fairies are imaginary, "supernatural" inventions instead of paranormal realities. I have read of people believe in them because they have seen them. I am an open-minded person so as soon as I finished Susan Wittig Albert's mystery right at May Eve, I went to look in our forest backyard at dusk. Some years I forgot, other years it was rainy. We are supposed to receive a downpour tonight that is slated to last until Monday. However, if the rain slows down tomorrow before sunset, I will look around. A beautiful copse of trees is right there.

People who fiddle with details can learn about a fairy's preference for Hawthorne trees, of which we have none and of bringing certain herbs. However, if fairies existed and wanted to meet you, they would not be fickle. This is the easiest day to see them. Go outside as you are, poke around, and see what you find.

This is our 2023 master buddy-reading list. They are books I have in unabridged copies. If some author’s books aren’t shown, I do not have them or am uninterested. I reflect the volumes we are at per author.

Please defer to our “Canadian” category ahead of biographies, series, non-fiction, and classics. Sincerely, your hostess, Carolyn.


~ CANADIAN ~

Jann Arden “Feeding My Mother”
John Buchan “The 39 Steps”
Margaret Buffie “My Mother’s Ghost” (Winnipegger!), “The Watcher”
John Candy “Laughing On The Outside”
Michael G. Coney “Celestial Steam Locomotive”
Biruté M.F. Galdikas “Reflections Of Eden” (wildlife activism)
Maureen Jennings “Let Loose The Dogs”
Lyn King “Walking Into The Night Sky” (poetry)
Lake Winnipeg Writers’ Group “Voices: Volume Ten, Number One”
Margaret Laurence “Heart Of A Stranger”, “Dance On The Earth”
Janet Lunn “The Unseen: Scary Stories”
Susie Moloney “A Dry Spell”, “The Thirteen” (Winnipegger!)
Lucy Maud Montgomery “Anne’s House Of Dreams”, “The Blue Castle”, “Along The Shore”, “Among The Shadows”
A.S. Mott “Gothic Ghost Stories: Tales Of Intrigue & Fantasy”
Anne Murray “All Of Me”


~ SERIES ~

Nevada Barr “Track Of The Cat”
S.J. Bennett “The Windsor Knot”
Anne Brashares “The Sisterhood Of The Travelling Pants”
Agatha Christie “The Mystery Of The Blue Train”, “Partners In Crime”, “The Seven Dials Mystery”, “The Murder At The Vicarage”
Cassandra Clare “The Mortal Instruments”, “The Bane Chronicles”
Eoin Colfer “Artemis Fowl”
Chris D’Lacey “The Fire Within”
Melissa De La Cruz “The Isle Of The Lost”
Frances Fyfied “Shadows On The Mirror” and “Half Light” in her real name, Frances Hegarty.
Sue Grafton “A Is For Alibi”
David Handler “The Burnt Orange Sunset”
P.D. James “Cover Her Face”
Sophie Kinsella "Confessions Of A Shopoholic"
Christopher Paolini “Eragon”
Ian Rankin “Tooth And Nail”
Rick Riordan “The Maze Of Bones”, “The Lightning Thief”, “The Sea Of Monsters”
Michael Scott “The Alchemyst”
Trenton Lee Stewart “The Mysterious Benedict Society”
Maggie Stiefvater “The Dream Thieves”
Garcia Stohl “Beautiful Creatures”
Rex Stout “The Rubber Band”
Carlos Luiz Zafón “The Angel’s Game”.


~ VARIETY ~

Kate Atkinson “Behind The Scenes At The Museum”
John Berendt “Midnight In The Garden Of Good & Evil”
Chris Colfer “The Land Of Stories”
Blake Crouch “Recursion”
Anthony Doerr “All The Light We Cannot See”
Barbara Erskine “Lady Of Hay”
Cornelia Funke “The Thief Lord”
Hazel Gaynor “The Cottingley Secret” 2017
John Green “The Fault In Our Stars”
Michael Gruber “The Book Of Air And Shadows”, “The Forgery Of Venus”
Joanne Harris “Chocolat”
James Herbert “Haunted” (David Ash #1)
Khaled Hosseini “The Kite Runner”
Barbara Kingsolver “The Bean Tree”, “Homeland And Other Stories”, “Animal Dreams”, “Pigs In Heaven”
E.L. Konigsburg “The Second Mrs. Gioconda”, “The Mysterious Edge Of The Heroic World”
Katherine Kurtz “Chamber Of Culdi”
Ursual Le Gun “Wizard Of Earthsea”
Kate Mascarenhas “The Psychology Of Time Travel”
Jennifer McMahon “The Winter People” I’ll save the same Phyllis A. Whitney title for later.
Erin Morgenstern “The Starless Sea”
Sōsuke Natsukawa “The Cat Who Saved Books”!
Audrey Niffenegger“The Time Traveler’s Wife”, “Her Perfect Symmetry”
A.J. Pearce “Dear Mrs. Bird”
Kate Quinn “The Alice Network”
Nicole Richie “Priceless”
Anne River Siddons “The House Next Door”
Amy Tan “The Kitchen God’s Wife”, “The Bonesetter’s Daughter”
Donna Tartt “The Goldfinch”
Gemma Townley “When In Rome....” (Sophie Kinsella's Sister ~ what fun)!
Sarah Waters “The Little Stranger”
Barbara Wood “The Dreaming”.


~ BIOGRAPHIES ~

Jeanne Cooper “Not Young, Still Restless”
Kirk Douglas “My Stroke Of Luck”
Goldie Hawn “Goldie: A Lotus Grows In The Mud”
Elton John “Me”
Anna Kendrick “Scrappy Little Nobody”
Amy Poehler “Yes, Please!”
Amy Schumer “The Girl With The Lower Back Tattoo”.


~ NON-FICTION ~

James Bowen “A Street Cat Named Bob”
Bill Dedman & Paul Clark Newell Junior “Empty Mansions: The Mysterious Life Of Huguette Clark And The Spending Of A Great American Fortune”
Anne Frank “Diary Of A Young Girl”
James Herriot “All Creatures Great And Small”
Kathleen Jamie “Sightlines”


~ CLASSICS ~

Isaac Asimov “Prelude To Foundation”
Jane Austen “Pride And Prejudice”, “Emma”
Frank L. Baum “The Wizard Of Oz”
Emily Brontë “Wuthering Heights”
Geoffrey Chaucer “The Canterbury Tales”
Wilkie Collins “The Woman In White”, “The Moonstone”
Charles Dickens “A Tale Of Two Cities”, “The Pickwick Papers”
Kenneth Graeme “The Wind In The Willows”
Thomas Hardy “Far From The Madding Crowd”, “Tess Of The D'Urbervilles”
Shirley Jackson “The Woman In Black”, “We Have Always Lived In The Castle”
Norton Juster “The Phantom Tollbooth”
Anna Sewell “Black Beauty: The Autobiography Of A Horse”
Robert Louis Stevenson “Treasure Island”
Mark Twain “The Adventures Of Huckleberry Finn”
Jules Verne “10,000 Leagues Under The Sea”!
H.G. Wells “The Time Machine”
Virginia Woolf “Orlando”.

Shirin, one list here keeps it easy and clear. We look for matches to my well-varied books because we don't get them free. Yes, I often add new titles. Our group is looking forward to fantasy.

We are waiting for Leeanne to catch-up on Maureen Jennings. She reactivated the "Shipwreck" thread. She is reading "Except The Dying" next month, then has one more book before "Poor Tom Is Cold".

I will happily continue "The Big Four", "Tooth And Nail", "The Mysterious Benedict Society", "Cover Her Face", "The Raven Boys" with you in July. The Canadian challenge restarts Canada Day, July 1st. I am seeing how much Canadiana I fit in. Xoxo, Carolyn.

Kerri, saying "North American" include us, who usually share media releases. Folks outside Canada need to remember to incorporate the whole continent name, lest we not be excluded. The old idea of "over there in America" has to go. Nothing pisses a Canadian off like subsuming us by a separate country. ;>

Discussion groups is the place for book details, so there is no such thing as a spoiler. I feel that reviews are the only place to be discreet and that openly discussing books in the comments of reviews is fair. Some people worry that future readers will glance down at the comments but I think that puts caution too far. Finished reviews need to invite conversation somewhere.

It is nice to see you popping around today. I am off all the way to town to pay a bill - darn banking website won't load. I will peek in on book charities and enjoy the semi-snowless drive. I hope you & Shirin rejoin us at the "Shipwreck" conversation, which Leeanne has taken up! Yay! https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

I will add a few books I have in message #2 of this current folder, from Kerri's & Sarah's suggestions. Kerri, you might recall that I erased "The Invisible Man" for lacking an unabridged copy. I have "Dragonrider" by Cornelia Funke. The Anne McCaffrey I have is "If Wishes Were Horses", a short one we are likely to breeze through on our own. I bought a scraggly softcover of the first "Heartland" novel last year, also little, which would please Leeanne.

I add things off & on so do check. If you prefer that I leave a note like this when I edit, I can. I explained to Sarah that it is easier to make matches with my well built home library. Commonalities won't dry up. I frequently score used books but can't download or use libraries seeking specific things, therefore we go by what I have. If folks are game to read something I'm not into, by all means make yourself a discussion folder.

If you make suggestions, just type titles & authors out. We are going to look up the book versions we have anyway. Lists are easier to glance at without links and not stretched out into long paragraphs. I will alphabetize message #2 since we are going to grow it but it is packed neatly. Much like our house needs to be this week!

This is an old buddy-reading thread. It would be chaotic to follow, if everyone churned out lists. Often, people add "to read" books they do not have. Better to select what interests you one list. It is neatly organized in categories, which I trim every time we finish.

I don't borrow from librairies, download on dial-up internet, or read e-books. I turn to books I have, which proves to offer flexibility and selection. It makes sense for me to keep the list and for folks to see what we have in common.

I have encouraged Kerri, Shirin, Leeanne, and the others to create their own folders so messages meant for someone specific can go directly to them but usually our writings are communal. :) Your hostess, Carolyn, also moderated by Kerri and Shirin.

I will happily go along and answer more contributions, as I hope everyone else does as well. Each of you has left great ones. I left at least a few conversation starters I hope are taken up too. I often wait hoping someome besides me will answer questions, so I can be treated to fresh ideas and topics as well.

Shoveling is hard and must take conditioning to get used to doing. I chopped the end off where the plough walled each driveway in. On the rest of our long country driveway, I did a few rows. If the snow freezes, there is nothing to shovel. If a melt softens it, each shovelful is sticky and heavy to move. Ideal is new snow or soft but not slushy. I will do a little more today. I should get the mail and more deer feed soon. Upcoming rains might melt it but it is snowing now and will again.