Glens Falls (NY) Online Book Discussion Group discussion
ABOUT BOOKS AND READING
>
What are you reading or what books have you read or heard about? (Part TWELVE) Ongoing general thread.
message 401:
by
Nina
(new)
Apr 18, 2016 08:02AM
Joy, I think I misinterpreted Werner's message above when he wrote, I heard of S, Sheldon, being a librarian. I thought he meant S.S. was a librarian rather than because he, Werner was a librarian no doubt that he'd heard of him.
reply
|
flag
Joy, I googled and found the Shirley Temple autobiography, "Child Star." and I just ordered it on my Kindle so will let you know if it is any good. PS I also read that she stopped believing in Santa Clause at age six when her mother took her to see him and he asked for her autograph. One of my friends was just behind her in line.
Nina wrote: "Joy, I think I misinterpreted Werner's message above when he wrote, I heard of S, Sheldon, being a librarian. I thought he meant S.S. was a librarian rather than because he, Werner was a librarian ..."Nina, I see. Thanks for explaining that Werner is the librarian, not Sydney Sheldon.
At Sydney Sheldon's WlKI page, it says:
============================================
"He came to prominence in the 1930s, first working on Broadway plays and then in motion pictures, notably writing the successful comedy The Bachelor and the Bobby Soxer (1947) which earned him an Academy Award.
"He went on to work in television, where his works spanned a 20-year period during which he created The Patty Duke Show (1963–66), I Dream of Jeannie (1965–70) and Hart to Hart (1979–84).
"He became most famous after he turned 50 and began writing best-selling romantic suspense novels... "
FROM: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sidney_...
============================================
I thought that last part (emboldened above) was REALLY interesting! His fame came mostly from his books, not from all those previous plays, movies, and TV shows, but from his books!
Evidently most people don't bother wondering who wrote screenplays or TV sitcoms. :) The authors can walk around without being recognized. :)
Nina wrote: ".... PS I also read that she stopped believing in Santa Clause at age six when her mother took her to see him and he asked for her autograph...."Nina, that is PRICELESS! LOL
Yes, please let me know how you liked the book about Shirley Temple.
Nina wrote: "Joy, I googled and found the Shirley Temple autobiography, "Child Star." and I just ordered it on my Kindle so will let you know if it is any good. ..."Here's the link to that book: Child Star: An Autobiography by Shirley Temple
Joy, some directors seem to become famous like David O. Selznick. Did I spell that right? And of course, Robert Altman and others I can't think of but Sidney was obviously not one of them. Interesting that he decided to become an author at fifty. And very successful at that.
Yes, Nina, there are a lot of famous names but there are many screen writers we never hear about. There's a very interesting book about the screenwriting field. It's a memoir written by William Goldman. It's called Adventures in the Screen Trade.Here's my review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Nina wrote: "Joy, I think I misinterpreted Werner's message above when he wrote, I heard of S, Sheldon, being a librarian. I thought he meant S.S. was a librarian rather than because he, Werner was a librarian ..."Yes, Nina, I did mean I heard about him because, as a librarian, I hear about superstar authors in the course of my work. As far as I know, he's not a librarian. Sorry about the misunderstanding!
I am now started on book 2 of Anne Perry's series about the Reavley family in World War I. The second volume is Shoulder the Sky. Characterization is excellent and it is keeping my interest.
Mary JL wrote: "I am now started on book 2 of Anne Perry's series about the Reavley family in World War I. The second volume is Shoulder the Sky. Characterization is excellent and it is keeping my int..."Mary JL, it's good to hear that you're enjoying the book. One of these days I plan to try reading a book by Anne Perry. If there's one you would recommend over the rest, please let me know. Historical fiction is a good bet since one can learn something while enjoying the story as well.
Why Men Fake It: The Totally Unexpected Truth About Men and Sex by Abraham Morgentaler was very good & instructive, although I learned more than I wanted to about some things. It's a must-read for both sexes. He opens the closet pretty wide for a good airing of too many things that no one talks about. I gave it 5 stars here:https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Jim wrote: "Why Men Fake It: The Totally Unexpected Truth About Men and Sex by Abraham Morgentaler was very good & instructive, although I learned more than I wanted to about so..."Sounds very interesting, Jim. Years ago I read Mars and Venus in the Bedroom: A Guide to Lasting Romance and Passion by John Gray. I thought it was excellent. Here's my review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
FROM JIM'S REVIEW LINKED ABOVE in message 411: "He says that our gender depends on 3 things: our physical gender, sexual orientation, & gender identity."PS - A related book which I just finished reading is: She's Not There: A Life in Two Genders Jennifer Finney Boylan. It's written by a transexual who actually underwent a physical transformation. It really helps you understand the issues. Actually a page-turner for me. Very engaging. Here's my review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
I'll keep this in mind, Joy. Morgentaler specifically mentions Men Are from Mars, Women Are from Venus as something he doesn't like. He says we're more alike than different. I think both stretch their points a bit & looking at the issue from both angles is probably a good one. I'm not in any rush, though. If anything, I'm more comfortable with me & my sexual relationship with my wife after this read.I don't often read books on sex & this one took me to some rather bizarre, uncomfortable places. There's a lot to sort out as the whole sexual mixing takes a lot of thought. It's easy to dismiss as weird, unique, & not bother to think about, but it is becoming more common & will continue to grow as society gets used to it & body modification technologies advance. Sex certainly defines us in many ways & the definitions need some rewriting.
Jim wrote: "I'll keep this in mind, Joy. Morgentaler specifically mentions Men Are from Mars, Women Are from Venus as something he doesn't like. He says we're more alike than different. I think bot..."Jim, that's an interesting point, that we're more alike than different. Hard to believe, though.
As you said, the sexual issues are becoming more common these days. Boylan's book (see my message 413) gives astounding statistics as to the number of people who have undergone physical (i.e., surgical) changes to their sex. He says, we usually would never recognize them since they blend well into society in their new existence.
What I found interesting in Boylan's book was that after he took the hormones necessary for the change (and became a "she") , his body changed in so many different ways you'd never think of. She even found she could no longer lift the heavy things he once was able to lift as a man. By the way, Boylan remained living with his wife after the surgery making him a woman. The wife had a sense of loss but was able to weather the changes in their lives, as did their children.
(I'm going to add the above to my review.)
I somehow missed your comment on Boylan's book. I guess we were posting at the same time. It is interesting. Yes, there is a big physical difference between the sexes. It's something a lot of people are missing in the equality argument. Women are generally not as strong as men in upper body strength, but there is less of disparity in leg strength. Their bones aren't as dense, they have a higher fat to muscle ratio, & are generally smaller. I have a problem suspending my disbelief in many of the new books & movies because this is ignored. Another physical difference is that men generally have a more even hormone flow. One example he gives is a man who was on testosterone treatments every 3 weeks. The dose was too high & the period was too long. After he started giving the guy a smaller dose more frequently, his moods evened out & he said he understood what his wife must go through.
Morgentaler's point is about our emotions, self-esteem, & self-image. He doesn't like the notion that women are complex & men are simple. He mentions this picture & says it is wrong:
He says everyone laughs about it & thinks it is true, but he provides plenty of examples to show that it isn't.
Jim wrote: "...Morgentaler's point is about our emotions, self-esteem, & self-image. He doesn't like the notion that women are complex & men are simple ..."Jim, I can see the reasoning there. After all, the quality of our self-esteem and our self-image depends on our life experiences which are different for everyone regardless of gender.
Emotions may be a different story. I truly believe that our genes determine our temperaments. Some people have calmer temperaments than others who may be what we used to call "high-strung". Even in young babies (with little life experience) we see some who are more placid than others. That's the genes talking, IMO.
There's certainly some genetics to our temperaments, Joy. I don't think humans are that simple, though. Nature, nurture, experience, & intelligence all blend together to form our reactions.
Jim wrote: "There's certainly some genetics to our temperaments, Joy. I don't think humans are that simple, though. Nature, nurture, experience, & intelligence all blend together to form our reactions."Yes, of course that's true, Jim, but at the base of the nurture, experience and intelligence, lies the nature of the being, just as when a tune is played on an instrument, the instrument remains the same. You can't change the genes (the instrument) but you can change the performance (the behavior). The performance will still retain the characteristics of the instrument.
To apply that analogy, we might see that a high-strung person may look and act brave but he/she still feels nervous underneath. Or another more laid-back person may look and act brave but he/she doesn't feel nervous and can take things in stride and not worry.
Your comments Joy reminds me of an old song, "crying on the inside laughing on the outside..."
I think nature gets too much weight sometimes, not enough others. In something as broad as 'temperament', I'm not really sure. It's too vague.
When my children were young; I had two boys and four girls and people used to say, "Girls are easier, boys are harder." and I would answer, "Not true. It depends on the child."
Nina wrote: "Your comments Joy reminds me of an old song, "crying on the inside laughing on the outside...""Nina, I remember that old song [("Laughing on the Outside (Crying on the Inside")].
Here's a YouTube rendition with Nat King Cole. He's so great:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yXXdS...
It's a beautiful song. Wiki says: "The music was written by Bernie Wayne, the lyrics by Ben Raleigh. The song was published in 1946." I like to give credit to the composers.
BTW, HAPPY BIRTHDAY! HOPE YOU'RE SMILING ON THE BOTH THE INSIDE AND THE OUTSIDE TODAY! I sent you a birthday e-mail. :)
Jim wrote: "I think nature gets too much weight sometimes, not enough others. In something as broad as 'temperament', I'm not really sure. It's too vague."Yes, Jim, temperament is a bit vague but I couldn't think of a better word. Maybe "disposition"?
I doubt if the issue of which has the stronger influence, nature or nurture", will ever be solved. But it's a great way to describe the concept. It makes for an interesting discussion.
I've read about twins who were separated at birth and brought together later in life. They were found to have astonishing similarities in personality. That, to me, proves that nature is stronger than nurture, although nurture can moderate personal qualities.
PS - About the twins I mentioned in my previous post (message 424), see my review of the following book: Twins: And What They Tell Us about Who We Are by Lawrence Wright.My review is at: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Joy H. wrote: "Nina wrote: "Your comments Joy reminds me of an old song, "crying on the inside laughing on the outside...""Nina, I remember that old song [("Laughing on the Outside (Crying on the Inside")]. I loved both of your birthday cards. Thank you. Very nice birthday as we had lunch at our museum sitting for a while by the fountain with huge columns near by and a skylight overhead. Ambiance is beautiful as is the case of all great museums. Once had lunch in the Impressionist museum in Paris and the ceiling had over one hundred lighted chandeliers. Breathtaking.
He..."
I have twin grandsons who are now grown but when they were under two years of age one of the twins kept crying and their mother couldn't figure what was wrong. The she looked at the other twin and he kept pulling on his ear. She found later after taking the crying twin to the dr that he had an ear infection.
Joy H. wrote: "Nina wrote: "Your comments Joy reminds me of an old song, "crying on the inside laughing on the outside...""Nina, I remember that old song [("Laughing on the Outside (Crying on the Inside")]. Thanks, I love listening to it.
He..."
Nina wrote: "...Very nice birthday as we had lunch at our museum sitting for a while by the fountain with huge columns near by and a skylight overhead. Ambiance is beautiful as is the case of all great museums. Once had lunch in the Impressionist museum in Paris and the ceiling had over one hundred lighted chandeliers. Breathtaking....."Sounds beautiful, Nina. I love a luxurious ambiance.
Nina wrote: ",,, She found later after taking the crying twin to the dr that he had an ear infection."Poor kid.
I just finished The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame. It was great to have the whole thing read to me as an adult. I gave it 5 stars here:https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Jim wrote: "I just finished The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame. It was great to have the whole thing read to me as an adult. I gave it 5 stars here:https://www.goodreads.com/..."
Jim, see my review of The Wind in the Willows here:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
A while ago, I found a very good dramatized YouTube video (of "Toad of Toad Hall") which helped me understand what it was all about. My review gives the link to the YouTube video.
PS-The link to the video of "Toad of Toad Hall" is: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HeiR-...
Joy H. wrote: "Nina wrote: ",,, She found later after taking the crying twin to the dr that he had an ear infection."Poor kid."But she wouldn't have known there was anything wrong with his ear if the other twin hadn't pulled on her own ear. We thought that remarkable as the twins were then eighteen months old.
I have "Wind in the Willows," on tape as it used to be on our TV as a series and I loved it as did my grandchildren.
Nina wrote: "... But she wouldn't have known there was anything wrong with his ear if the other twin hadn't pulled on her own ear. We thought that remarkable as the twins were then eighteen months old. "Oh! Now I see the connection with the other twin! That IS remarkable!
Nina wrote: "I have "Wind in the Willows," on tape as it used to be on our TV as a series and I loved it as did my grandchildren."Nina, I was never acquainted with "Wind in the Willows" when I was a kid. Of course, I had always heard the term, but never wondered what it was about until now. Guess I have huge gaps in my reading background... like Swiss cheese, it's full of holes. I regret not having read more in my youth. I was too busy studying and getting good grades in school and college. Made Phi Beta Kappa. But didn't have time for extra-curricula reading.
I started reading as a hobby when I finished college. Took lots of notes copying well-said words from books. That slowed me down but I still have the notes, lots of them! LOL Scribble, scribble, scribble! I organized them in loose-leaf notebooks on loose-leaf paper, but my categorization was mixed. These days I'm trying to re-organize my notes by author alphabetically, but I don't find much time to do it. Another unfinished project!
PS-I first discovered the magic of reading when I was about 13 and read Mark Twain's _Prince and the Pauper_ (or was it _Little Lord Fauntleroy_ by Frances Hodgson Burnett). I never can remember which, but they were both wonderful stories. Too bad I didn't give more time to extra-curricula reading back then.I remember, as a little kid, going to the bookmobile up the block and always choosing the skinny books for children. The books were available in piles outside the bookmobile on a shelf that opened out, low down near the ground so a kid could kneel and sort through them. I remember wondering how people read those thick books on the many shelves INSIDE the bookmobile! :) They looked awfully intimidating to me as a kid!
When I was a child our local library was in the grade school where I attended and by the time I was nine years old I had read all of their children's' books and it wasn't a small library. I used to go check to see when the newest ones arrived. I always got six or more books for Christmas; some of them used but that never bothered me. I suppose this reading habit had a lot to do with me being an only child. The people in the books young or old were my friends.
Nina wrote: "...by the time I was nine years old I had read all of their children's' books..."Nina, I can tell that you are an inveterate reader! That word was "word of the day" at our last Toastmasters meeting. We all had to use that word when we had a chance to speak. I said that I was an inveterate worrier. LOL
Anyway, I was never an inveterate reader! :)
However, I AM an inveterate FunTrivia player these days! LOL
Here's a web site devoted to awful books. It's interesting to scroll through, although it does make one wonder what publishers are thinking...http://awfullibrarybooks.net/
Joy, I've never read The Wind in the Willows either! :-)This month, one of my groups is doing a common read of Peter O'Donnell's classic --using the term loosely! :-) --series opener, Modesty Blaise (1965), so I'm taking part in that. This is one that's been on my to-read list forever, and pretty much a must-read for action-heroine fans, especially those interested in how the motif has developed historically in popular culture; so I'm delighted to finally get around to reading it!
Also, on my Kindle app, I've started Walking The Edge by Zee Monodee, the series opener for her Corpus Brides series; it got a glowing review from my Goodreads friend Danielle a few years ago, so I took the opportunity to download the e-book edition for free when it was offered as a sample a while back. I'd been reading a free e-book version of The Worlds Of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror; but it's not easy to remember individual stories in an anthology when you read it as intermittently as I read in the electronic format, which makes it hard to think about doing a review without a LOT of notes. When I mentioned that fact to my friend Andrew (who has a story in the collection), he was nice enough to send me a paperback copy, which I greatly appreciate! So I'll be able to finish that one in paper format once I get a couple of other paper reads done.
Maybe not the right place for a movie mention but wanted to post this before I forget to do it. We so enjoyed the last two movies from Netflix, "Bridge of Spies," and "The Intern." Both very good acting and stories. First one stars Tom Hanks.
Jim wrote: "Here's a web site devoted to awful books. It's interesting to scroll through, although it does make one wonder what publishers are thinking... http://awfullibrarybooks.net/"Very unusual web page, Jim. Those are books we definitely want to stay away from!
Speaking of awful books, here's one I didn't think too highly of:In the Frame: My Life in Words and Pictures by Helen Mirren.
I wasn't interested in seeing all her old photographs! It was so bad that I didn't even bother to write a review. There didn't seem to be anything about her as a real person. I learned more about her at Wiki than I did from that book. Then again, maybe I closed the book too soon. If I'm not drawn in, I bail out!
Werner wrote: ",,, it's not easy to remember individual stories in an anthology when you read it as intermittently ... which makes it hard to think about doing a review without a LOT of notes..."Werner, I know what you mean! Sometimes having to write a review is a chore. That's when I keep them short. But I make up for them when I write one that's too long! :)
Thanks for the links!
Nina wrote: "Maybe not the right place for a movie mention but wanted to post this before I forget to do it. We so enjoyed the last two movies from Netflix, "Bridge of Spies," and "The Intern." Both very good a..."Thanks, Nina, I'll be sure to put them on my queue.
Bridges is based on true fact and those type are usually good.
Nina wrote: "Bridges is based on true fact and those type are usually good."Of course, with Tom Hanks, you can't miss!
PS-Intern is with Robert DeNiro, correct?
You are probably right. I can't remember. As I said it's entertaining and fresh premise. I think you'd like it. Takes place in NYC so should be familiar setting to you. And a bit in San Francisco.
Glens Falls (NY) Online Book Discussion Group
Books mentioned in this topic
Everything All at Once: How to Unleash Your Inner Nerd, Tap Into Radical Curiosity, and Solve Any Problem (other topics)The Lincoln Highway (other topics)
Everything All at Once: How to Unleash Your Inner Nerd, Tap Into Radical Curiosity, and Solve Any Problem (other topics)
We Are All Stardust: Scientists Who Shaped Our World Talk about Their Work, Their Lives, and What They Still Want to Know (other topics)
Fuzz: When Nature Breaks the Law (other topics)
More...
Authors mentioned in this topic
Bill Nye (other topics)Bill Nye (other topics)
Stefan Klein (other topics)
Mary Roach (other topics)
Bill Nye (other topics)
More...
