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FA 18 Completed Tasks
10.2 NextIll Met by Moonlight by Mercedes Lackey
2nd book in Doubled Edged series
Review
I am a big fan of Mercedes Lackey. This is the second book in a series called Double Edged series. It is centered around the family of Henry the eighth. In this book, the subject is Lady Elizabeth and Lady Mary. It is an alternative history because some of the characters are elven. Elizabeth can see through illusions and can see the creatures for what they are. The book starts out when Elizabeth is eight until she is fourteen. There are two groups of elves. The Dark Court wants Lady Mary to take the throne because she will bring the Inquisition. The Bright Court wants Elizabeth to rule because she will bring the golden age. Also, Elizabeth can cast spells which is a cool addition to the character.
Task+ 10
Review + 10
Combo +5 (10.7) 9 letters in moonlight
Jumbo +5 (522 pages)
Book Total: 30
Grand Total: 75
10.1This Book Is Full of Spiders by David Wong
Listopia list - #404 on https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/5..., same list I used in post #25 last season.
+10 task
+5 combo (10.2 - John Dies At the End series)
Task total: 15
Grand total: 205
Note for Mods - my readerboard total is still short five points from the adjustment we'd discussed in the task thread for 10.8. At least, I think that's where the discrepancy is from.
20.8 AutumnDavid Copperfield by Charles Dickens
review
Four plus stars and a heart
NB There is a fabulous audiobook recorded by Patrick Tull I highly recommend for those who enjoy those. He was the right age to narrate this novel and also does a fabulous job--very believable.
I am not going to review too much of this well-known book as there is a blurb, but I have to say I greatly enjoyed this reread of a book from my youth, and it was better for the audiobook now, but I loved reading it back then.
How can I not enjoy the dear, very earnest David from his youngest years and on for a number of decades. His trials and sorrows, his blessings and joys, the deeds of those around him which ranged from dastardly and nefarious to loving and noble. Dickens was a social reformer, no doubt about it—every one of his novels has more than one of his causes and/or points. Then there are the memorable characters--Uriah Heap, what an antagonist!, but then Mr. Murdoch wasn't just an antagonist but the very model of a domineering, cruel and suppressive husband, along with his sister. But of course, a Dickens novel of this length and type wouldn't be Dickens if there were only three villains, now would it?
I one heard that he never had character growth in women until Our Mutual Friend, but this is incorrect. There is at least one notable woman in this novel who undergoes enormous character growth, and we see her in the beginning and then later on, and I won't say that she is the only one, and I don't mean because of some fall and moral lesson learned, either. I have to say that Betsy Trottwood is one of my favourite female characters, but she is not the only one I love from this novel.
My goodness, there is so much to say, and while I am not writing like Dickens, look at how my language is somewhat affected by listening to this. There are a few weaknesses, needless to say, so it's not 5 stars, but I really do have a soft spot for this novel.
task +20
repeat +5
award +5
review +10
oldie +15
jumbo +15
Combo + 10 - 10.9 "Copperfield" is 11 letters, 10.5 Penguin edition (is also mpe)
ETA also +5 in combo for David City, Nebraska 10.3 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_C...
Task Total = 85
Season Total = 155
Task 10.3 Real PlaceRead any book that has a real place in the title or subtitle
Real Place = “White House”
Fear: Trump in the White House (2018) by Bob Woodward [973.933] (Hardcover, 448 pages)
Review: The title comes from an interview Bob Woodward had with Donald J. Trump on March 31,2016. Trump said: Real power is – I don’t even want to use the word – fear. I looked at the back of the book, under the section “Source Notes”. Every chapter states The information in this chapter comes primarily from multiple deep background interviews with firsthand sources. Sometimes the reader can make an educated guess as to who Woodward talked to – just determine: who comes out looking really good in the book. The bottom line of how believable this book is: do you the reader trust that Woodward is telling the truth when he reports what “firsthand sources” have told him. Woodward’s track record over the decades of “getting it right” in his writings is excellent.
The book itself is written in that to-the-point, easy to understand newspaper style taught in Journalism school. The time frame of the book is August 2016 – April 2018. There is an emphasis on Trump’s actions in foreign policy. Domestic policy and the Mueller investigation is also substantially covered. Overall, this is a well-written, timely book, well worth taking the time to read.
+10 Task
+10 Review
Task Total: 10 + 10 = 20
Grand Total: 215 + 20 = 235
20.10 Fall EquinoxThe Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson
This is so not my genre. I have avoided this and other such titles because I was fairly certain I could not abandon the sense of disbelief. (How many negatives can one have in a sentence? That should rightly say: I was fairly certain I would not believe the story.) I chose to read it now because it was a group read here at GR and I thought I should take the plunge. I was right in my apprehension. For me, it is a silly and unbelievable story. Even one of the characters gives rise as to why this genre is not to be believed. Belief is all in the mind and has no basis in fact.
No ghost in all the long histories of ghosts has ever hurt anyone physically. The only damage done is by the victim to himself. One cannot even say that the ghost attacks the mind, because the mind, the conscious, thinking mind, is invulnerable; in all our conscious minds, as we sit here talking, there is not one iota of belief in ghosts. Not one of us, even after last night, can say the word ‘ghost’ without a little involuntary smile. No, the menace of the supernatural is that it attacks where modern minds are weakest, where we have abandoned our protective armor of superstition and have no substitute defense.So. I was unable to accept the story: the plot is entirely implausible. Further, I found the characterizations shallow, though I suspect there may be others who would disagree with me on that score. Jackson's prose is what shines here. If it were not for that, I would not have been able to tolerate what she had to say, short as it is.
Paranormal, as a genre is popular, and I see that 31% of those rating this title give it 5-stars, and another 35% 4-stars. I say good for them as it's clearly better to be reading something you enjoyed than something you didn't. I can't go there. Had I not been reading to discuss with a group (and I roll my eyes thinking what I might venture to say there), I would have abandoned this before 50 pages. As I was able to make myself finish it, I'll find a 2nd star and even let it sit at the top of that flawed group.
+20 Task
+10 Review
+20 Combo (10.4, 10.5 - default, 20.5, 20.7 (182 pgs)
+ 5 Oldies (pub 1959)
Task total = 55
Season total = 445
20.8 Autumn (Karin's Task)The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins
"Where, in the history of the world, has a man of my order ever been found without a woman in the background self-immolated on the altar of his life?"
Who writes like that? Wilkie Collins, that's who.
So this was wild. Though I hadn't read any Collins prior to this, I wasn't unfamiliar with sensation novels; I was still surprised, though, at how readable it was a psychological thriller, or as a precursor to the so-called "domestic thrillers" that have recently been a staple of popular crime fiction.
In addition to the book's elaborate prose and glorious excesses of descriptions, two components really stood out to me: the razor sharp characterization of villains and antagonists, and the complicated point of view work going on. As for the latter, the concept of this book is that it is testimony and evidence recorded to present to the reader like it would be presented to a judge, and Collins gets to delve into not just how masterfully the plot machinations of the villains are enacted, but also how people's minds start, or resist, comprehending truths and falsehoods, and how precarious the choices are of people who are working with so little information but who know they're being plotted against. Which is the whole psychological thriller subgenre in a nutshell, but it was a lot of fun to see Collins developing and playing with the POV techniques that are a staple of contemporary fiction.
This was a fun read--sharply drawn characters (I can't get over Mrs. Catherick and the bowing clergyman!!), stressful plot--with some monstrously good prose at times. I'm looking forward to reading more Collins.
+20 Task
+10 Combo (10.4 The Next Best Book Club; 10.5 MPE Penguin Classics)
+5 Prizeworthy
+10 Review
+15 Oldies
+5 Jumbo
Task Total: 65
Season Total: 400
10.8 Cli Fi The Calculating Stars by Mary Robinette Kowal
+10 Task The earth’s climate is catastrophically changed when a meteor hits.
+10 combo 10.2, 10.9
Task Total: 20
Season Total: 830
From Post 279Deedee wrote: "Task 10.4 Bookshelves
Read any book off of one of these two groups' bookshelves:
21st Century Literature AND The Next Best Book Club
Book found on bookshelf of The Next Best Book Club
[book:News ..."
+5 Prizeworthy
From Post 346Coralie wrote: "10.10 Group Reads
News of the World by Paulette Jiles
+10 Task
+5 Combo 10.4
Task Total: 15
Season Total: 675"
+5 Prizeworthy
From Post 359Jenifer wrote: "10.2 Next
Lethal White by Robert Galbraith
This is the next book in the Cormorant Strike series
Post Total: 10
Total Points: 220"
+5 Jumbo
From Post 360Jenifer wrote: "10.3 Real Place
The Little Paris Patisserie by Julie Caplin
Post Total: 10
Total Points: 230"
+10 Combo 10.2, 10.9
From Post 375Ed wrote: "20.8 Autumn (Karin's Task)
The Sense of an Ending by Julian Barnes
I noticed that four of my RwS friends have reviewed this book....with a range of ratings from 2 to ..."
I have recorded this as 20.6 with three combos: 10.4, 10.5, and 20.7.
From Post 384Beth wrote: "20.10 Vowels
The Tenacious Miss Tamerlane by Kasey Michaels
I was highly amused by this Regency romance which was a bit tongue in cheek about the whole thing while ..."
+5 Oldies
From Post 389Jenifer wrote: "20.7 A Month in the Country
Attraction by Penny Reid
161 pages
Task total: 20
Season total: 295"
+10 Combo 10.2, 10.9
From Post 391Jenifer wrote: "10.1 Favorite Lists
Along Came a Spider by James Patterson
+10 Task (#60 on Best Crime & Mystery Books; claimed in post 582 of summer season)
+5 Combo w/ 10.2 (start of..."
+5 Oldies
From Post 393Rosemary wrote: "20.5 Singled Out
After You by Jojo Moyes
Louisa Clark is trying (and at first, failing) to move on in any meaningful way after the events in Me Before You. She giv..."
+5 Prizeworthy
From Post 400Karen Michele wrote: "20.4 Birdsong
Praise Song for the Butterflies by Bernice L. McFadden
+20 Task: there is a 10 year gap between part one and part two.
+ 5 Combo: 10.9 9, 10, 11
Ta..."
+5 Combo 20.10
15.2 AbBY Chronological
1865-69
The Scarlet Pimpernel by Emmuska Orczy (born 1865)
Task total: 20
Season total: 55
1865-69
The Scarlet Pimpernel by Emmuska Orczy (born 1865)
Task total: 20
Season total: 55
20.8 AutumnMiddlemarch by George Eliot
Review
George Eliot’s Masterpiece is a book I have been meaning to get at for decades but for some reason was always put back on the shelf in favor of another, probably shorter, book. However, it was well worth the wait. The book follows the residents of Middlemarch, a provincial English town in the midst of an era full of changes. The industrial revolution had changed economic structures, population densities, political strife and a new wave toward more scientific thinking. Naturally this influenced the roles of women, marriage, religion, traditions and philosophies. The time setting is just before and during the passing of the Reform Act of 1832, which was another hard blow to the remnants of a feudal system. The reader is a spectator to the intertwined lives of long time acquaintances and newcomers, secrets of the past, unveilings, and gossip within the upheaval of these changing times. Like a good soap opera, you become engrossed in their lives and stories and come to care deeply about the characters.
Most definitely a 5 star for me.
+20 pts - Task
+10 pts - Review
+15 pts - Combo (10.3-New Zealand https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Middlem..., 10.5 - Penguin https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2..., 10.9)
+10 pts - Oldies (1871)
+20 pts - Jumbo (904 pgs)
Task Total - 75 pts
Season Total - 75 pts
15.8 - AbBYDate Range 1961 - 1965
The 7th Canon by Robert Dugoni
+45 (author born 1961)
Task total: 45
Grand total:
10.4 Bookshelves The Windup Girl by Paolo Bacigalupi
21st Century shelf
This book won a ton of awards (before I realized the 15 point cap, I was very excited), but I really don’t see why. Oh, I did not hate this book because I couln’t care enough for that. I found it tiresome in the extreme. It was very detailed - lots of world building - but also dry and clinical. Mostly dry and clinical.
I admit to being immediately put off by how we are introduced to Emiko, the Windup Girl. Oh. It’s going to be that type of book. And I wish I wasn’t right, but yes. That type of book. To spice up the dull writing, there are graphic descriptions of sexual violence against Emiko. And when she finally has enough? Well, that happens off-page. Because of course it does. Mysterious broken-but-badass whore is a thing. Ugh.
Not recommended.
+10 task
+ 5 combo (10.8)
+10 review
+15 awards
Task total = 40
Season total = 1215
10.10 Group ReadsWhat It Means When A Man Falls From The Sky by Lesley Nneka Arimah
Task: 10
Prize: worthy: 15
Total: 25
20.7 A Month in the CountryThe Misunderstanding by Irène Némirovsky
The French title of this novel — Le Malentendu — like many of Némirovsky's titles, presents a challenge to a translator as it embodies many meanings: 'the misunderstanding' as a specific event, or 'the person who is misundersood' or 'incompatibility' when applied to a couple. Némirovsky's novel explores every aspect of these meanings.Thus begins the Translator's Note to this edition. Although I read this before starting the novel, I mostly remembered 'the person who is misundersood' part as I was reading. I'm glad I've come back and reread it. Sometimes I wonder where an author decided on a title. It is easy to understand in this case. This is short enough that to further explain my thinking might have me wandering into spoiler territory.
In her first novel as in many of her works, Némirovsky closely examines an extra-marital affair.
I think this is an excellent translation. I hope it is so because Némirovsky writes clearly, rather than the translator working to polish it. For a longer novel I might want more in terms of characterization, but there is enough about Denise Jessaint and Ives Harteloup for this story. The ending is predictable, yet reading to the end was without effort.
I think this is better than I might expect of a debut novel, especially a debut written at the age of 21. Still, it sits just at the 3-star/4-star line. Today I think it does not quite cross that line, though I might feel differently at some future time.
+20 Task (164 pgs)
+10 Review
+ 5 Combo (20.1)
+10 Oldies (pub 1926)
Task Total = 45
Season total = 490
10.1 Favorite ListsThe Female Man by Joanna Russ
#565 on this list
https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/3...
I originally used this list in Summer post 170
This is a challenging book to review. I liked it, but I don’t feel I can recommend it and that makes me feel guilty. It is on ‘classic’ science fiction lists (justifiably so), and certainly would have been a punch in the solar plexus to the male dominated genre at the time. I grew up in the 60s and 70s (and so on) and can completely identify with Russ’s feminist theme – lived through it, experienced it and have the latent anger to prove it. Sadly, this book is still relevant – all we have to do is google #metoo.
Yet, I struggled with the structure. It is very experimental which I found jarring at first. As well, it at times felt like the academic in Russ was at the fore lecturing the reader. Even though I empathized with the characters due to our common experience, I didn’t feel like I ‘got to know them’ or had any insight into their motivation. It is very interesting to me that Russ chose to write science fiction, perhaps she believed this was a way to gain non-academic readers and introduce a non-traditional audience to feminism. 3*
10 task
10 review
10 prize
5 oldie
5 combo 10.5 (bantam)
_______
40
Running total: 440
10.7 Crazy Rich Asians...Or Not! (Tien's Task)Wildcard (Warcross #2) by Marie Lu
author born in China, as per GR profile
YA with 810L
Review
Warcross was fun. Brilliant. Exciting.
Wildcard was… dark. Suspenseful. Gritty. Contemplative. A very good book and yet, as it is outside of the standard set by the first book, I think it didn’t quite live up to expectation. Wildcard deals with the consequences after the end twist in Warcross and it delved further into the mystery & conspiracy surrounding Hideo & Neurolink. The mystery & all the plot twists were brilliant. A further introduction of a kick-ass female secondary character was enthralling (I wish there was more of her!). The philosophical & ethical commentaries were compelling and worthy of further discussion. The ending was perfectly square ((view spoiler)) and I just love that Emika Chen stuck to her guns!
Overall, Wildcard is a fantastic book by itself. But, it has not the shining brilliance of Warcross.
+10 Task
+15 Combo (10.2; 10.5 - above edition by Penguin; 20.5 - I claimed the first book in post#231 & she's still a single & independent young woman in the sequel)
+10 Review
Post Total: 35
Season Total: 640
The readerboard is showing me at 670, but I only make it 650 after the 5 points in post 422 are added. Have I gone wrong somewhere?
20.7 A Month in the Country Beneath the Sugar Sky by Seanan McGuire
+20 Task
+5 Combo 10.2
Task Total: 25
Season Total: 870
10.1 Favorite Lists The Boy on the Bridge by M.R. Carey
+10 Task using https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/1...
from post #454 (#67 on list)
Task Total: 10
Season Total: 880
20.10 VowelsSherlock Holmes and the Chinese Junk Affair and Other Stories by Roy Templeman
This was a nice collection of three stories that fit well into the tradition of Holmes as Doyle wrote him. The puzzles of the mysteries were satisfying and the title story was particularly clever, as for a bit it had me wondering if I had misunderstood the summary and there would be the paranormal in the book after all. The characterizations of Holmes and Watson were solid. Overall it doesn't really go beyond nice. I doubt I will remember these in a year, but I appreciated the read.
+20 task
+10 review
Task total: 30
Grand total: 1190
Task 20.1 War's End Read a book set (at least 51%) in the years 1918-1938.
Rabbit-Proof Fence: The True Story of One of the Greatest Escapes of All Time (1996) by Doris Pilkington [994.042]
Set 60% in 1931
+20 Task
Task Total: 20
Well, the Readerboard shows me having 20 more points as of Post #400 than I thought I had. I suspect the moderators have found some combo points that I missed 😊 So, including those 20 points, my grand total after THIS post is:
Grand Total: 255 + 20 = 275
20.1 War's End
Miss Buncle's Book by D.E. Stevenson
When Barbara Buncle finds herself in need of money, she decides to try writing. Finding she can only write about people and places she knows, she writes a novel about her village, Silverstream, with the characters thinly disguised versions of its inhabitants. Much to her surprise, the book becomes an instant bestseller, and it isn't long before the inhabitants of Silverstream are reading itand recognising themselves in it - and most of them are not too happy about it. Soon there is a village crusade to discover the identity of the book's author, and meanwhile the contents of the book are beginning to lead to some unforeseen consequences...
This was an enjoyable book, full of well-drawn characters - some loveable, others less so - but all interesting. There isn't really a great deal in the way of plot, and the fairly large cast of characters mean that we don't get to spend as much time with some of them as I would have liked; but it was an enjoyable, if undemanding, read.
+20 Task (published 1934, contemporary setting)
+10 Combo (10.2 - Miss Buncle #1; 20.8 - Scottish author resident in Scotland)
+10 Oldie
+10 Review
Task total: 50
Season total: 105
Miss Buncle's Book by D.E. Stevenson
When Barbara Buncle finds herself in need of money, she decides to try writing. Finding she can only write about people and places she knows, she writes a novel about her village, Silverstream, with the characters thinly disguised versions of its inhabitants. Much to her surprise, the book becomes an instant bestseller, and it isn't long before the inhabitants of Silverstream are reading itand recognising themselves in it - and most of them are not too happy about it. Soon there is a village crusade to discover the identity of the book's author, and meanwhile the contents of the book are beginning to lead to some unforeseen consequences...
This was an enjoyable book, full of well-drawn characters - some loveable, others less so - but all interesting. There isn't really a great deal in the way of plot, and the fairly large cast of characters mean that we don't get to spend as much time with some of them as I would have liked; but it was an enjoyable, if undemanding, read.
+20 Task (published 1934, contemporary setting)
+10 Combo (10.2 - Miss Buncle #1; 20.8 - Scottish author resident in Scotland)
+10 Oldie
+10 Review
Task total: 50
Season total: 105
10.10 Group Reads
Silently and Very Fast by Catherynne M. Valente
+10 Task
+5 Combo (20.7)
+5 Award
Task total: 20
Season total: 125
Silently and Very Fast by Catherynne M. Valente
+10 Task
+5 Combo (20.7)
+5 Award
Task total: 20
Season total: 125
20.9 ArkansasThe Awakening by Kate Chopin
[I thought I'd be able to finish this up yesterday--HA! Yesterday was my first time ever having anesthesia...I couldn't keep my eyes open to save my life for the rest of the day!]
I read this book in college and loved it--though the only thing I remember about that reading was the last page. It was so interesting to revisit it now that I'm at a completely different point in my life. It's also interesting to read this book set in Louisiana (much of it in New Orleans) while I'm concurrently reading another book set in a much different New Orleans (In the Shadow of Statues: A White Southerner Confronts History)--I was more aware of the way race was treated by Chopin because it has been covered in the history described by Landrieu. (I hope that made some semblance of sense--if not, I'm blaming the pain meds!)
I think I loved it so much when I first read it 20+ years ago because the feeling of being trapped on a path and making a conscious choice not to keep going down that path resonated with me. While I still love that theme, Edna makes me a little crazy. I realize a lot of that stems from being a modern reader and imperfectly attempting to see her through the eyes of history, but all I could see this time was her destructive selfishness.
+20 Task
+10 Review
+10 Oldies (1899)
+15 Combo (10.5--https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2... 10.9--"awakening"=9 letters; 20.7--MPE is 195 pages)
Task total: 55
Season total: 1635
20.2 To Conquer HellThe Secret Life of Bletchley Park: The WWII Codebreaking Centre and the Men and Women Who Worked There by Sinclair McKay
I visited Bletchley Park six years ago and ordered this Kindle book soon after, but it's taken me all this time to get around to reading it. It's well known now that Bletchley Park was the scene of most of the codebreaking that went on in Britain in the Second World War, and that this was crucial to the course of the war in Europe because the British basically learned to intercept all of the codes used for German and Italian communications, although some took longer to break than others.
This book is about life at Bletchley Park rather than the actual codebreaking. I really enjoyed the early parts, having been there and also coincidentally having met one of the people interviewed and worked with the nephew of another at different times in the past. But it became repetitive, and I could happily have stopped reading at about the halfway point. I did finish it, though.
+20 Task (approved)
+10 Combo (10.3 Bletchley, 10.9 Bletchley)
+10 Review
Task Total: 40
Season Total: 690 (by my calculation - readerboard is +20)
10.4 BookshelvesOn the 21st century group shelves
Open City by Teju Cole
While reading this book I was thinking this would be a review of small moments, of special places in cities and stories of modern immigrants and marginalized people, including that of the narrator, told as he wanders around New York City and Brussels. And it was that still, poignant embedded vignettes from someone who is a bit lost himself, a Nigerian immigrant to the US, who always did not quite fit as the child also of a German mother. And then came the 2nd to last chapter and the what the bleep moment as someone else's negative view on the narrator comes up. And there is no reason to disbelieve what is said. I suppose it is that chapter and the segueway back to normality in the final chapter that gives the book its strength and qualified it to be deep enough for prize winning. Because the rest of the narrative becomes more questionable as a result. But I would have been happier if it had only been rambles and vignettes.
+10 task
+10 review
+5 combo (10.5 Quetzal)
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...
+15 prizes (PEN, NYC, Rosenthal)
Task total: 40
Grand total: 1230
Post 406 Karin wrote: "20.8 AutumnDavid Copperfield by Charles Dickens
review
Four plus stars and a heart
NB There is a fabulous audiobook recorded by Patrick Tull I highly recommend for ..."
Karin, we aren't using the Multiple style this season and the only award I see is a Nominee, so doesn't qualify for the prize worthy style.
Post 428 June wrote: "10.10 Group ReadsWhat It Means When A Man Falls From The Sky by Lesley Nneka Arimah
Task: 10
Prize: worthy: 15
Total: 25"
The book has won only 1 award - the other 2 listings are Nominees.
20.10 VowelsCaptains Courageous by Rudyard Kipling
Lexile 850
An enveloping illustration of the principle (whether the reader would call it myth or truth) that hard work makes good men out of boys, without shying away from the cost some of that hard work can take. Also a detailed description of cod fishing enlivened by action and dialogue. Although most of that dialogue was in dialect, which is never my favorite thing, and I would have needed a specialized dictionary to completely understand all that was said. But for the main character it was a life changing adventure, although one unasked for. I had fun reading it.
+20 task
+10 review
+10 oldies (pub 1896)
+20 combo (20.7 mpe of 161 pages, 10.9, 10.7 b.India, 10.5 Penguin)
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/9...
Task total: 60
Grand total: 1290
10.9 9, 10, 11In the Shadow of Statues: A White Southerner Confronts History by Mitch Landrieu
While the title would lead one to think that the main focus of the book would be about the taking down of four statues commemorating Confederate soldiers, very few pages are dedicated to that topic. Most of the book explains the history of the city, which lays the groundwork as to why the statues coming down was crucial and why it was so hotly contested.
I love the passion this man has for his city and all of the work he has done to raise it up. I love that he's not afraid to call out certain politicians for their failures to live up to their oaths of office. I love that he did not back down despite mounting opposition by ignorant, hate-filled terrorists who would shout him down, threaten his family and the families of those hired to remove the statues (even burning the car of one of the contractors!?), and bring frivolous lawsuits to delay the removal of statues that stand only for hate and intimidation. In this current political climate where it is far more common to see those in power lying, obfuscating, and making excuses for not getting anything done, it was refreshing to see one man's integrity and how he used his political power to build up the people of his city rather than build up his own personal interests.
+10 Task ("Southerner"=10 letters)
+10 Review
+10 Combo (10.5--https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4... ; 20.10--In thE shAdow Of statUes)
Task total: 30
Season total: 1665
20.1 War's EndGossip from the Forest by Thomas Keneally
+20 Task
+5 Combo (20.6)
+5 Oldies (pub 1975)
Points this post: 30
RwS total: 145
AbBY total: -
Season Total: 145
20.4 BirdsongHeat and Dust by Ruth Prawer Jhabvala
+20 Task
+20 Combo (10.5 Heat And Dust, 20.1, 20.6, 20.7)
+5 Prize (Booker 1975)
+5 Oldies (pub 1975)
Points this post: 50
RwS total: 195
AbBY total: -
Season Total: 195
10.9Frostbite by Joshua Bader
I really enjoyed this urban fantasy. It's not groundbreaking, the character reminded me of some of Butcher's work and Hines' work, among others. But it is told well with a bit of humor and good plot development. Colin is likeable and interesting in his strengths and flaws and fumblings and back story. The side characters felt flatter than I would have liked, though. The magic system was a bit fuzzy, but it is not like he had been formally trained, and it was interesting seeing a religious aspect to it without that part being a big deal. The jump to the final act felt a bit off, but it was worth it. I actually want to see where the author is going with this series.
+10 task
+10 review
+10 combo (10.2, 10.5 city owl)
Task total: 30
Grand total: 1320
10.3 Real PlaceFlorida by Lauren Groff
This was a superb collection of short stories, about wildness and mostly about difficult women (difficult and awkward women, and not cutesy quirky awkward but furious awkward, a shoving-themselves-slantwise-at-the-world kind of awkward). There were a quite a few portentous birds in this book, which I always think is a literary plus. Also: snakes and a panther and alligators and sons and so many storms. In the stories where so much is out of control (the weather, the planet, human destruction of the planet, history, death and infidelity, other people), Groff is relentlessly controlled and contrived in her prose, and I found that a glorious dynamic.
I was actually surprised by how much I loved this collection. I've tried and DNFed two of Groff's novels. But these stories worked for me, because Groff's intricate prose and mythically indelible imagery were gemlike precise in these shorter doses, purposeful in holding up and showcasing even the most ambiguous of emotional turns. And I liked the women she wrote about: difficult and awkward, cold and vulnerable and resistant, grieving what's lost and what will be lost. I'm eager to read her previous short story collection now.
+10 Task
+5 Combo (10.5 Penguin Audiobooks)
+10 Review
Task Total: 25
Season Total: 425
15.10 AbBYDate Range 1955-1959, read chronologically
White Light by Mark O'Flynn
+60 Task (author born 1958)
Post Total: 60
Finisher Bonus: 100
Season Total: 1040
20.8 AutumnDeath in the Dentist's Chair by Molly Thynne
This mystery is the group read for October in another GR group. I see my compatriots, including Elizabeth, felt less than enthused about this novel. I however, liked it. Perhaps it is a novel best enjoyed after a spate of difficult and depressing books.
This was published in 1932, in the time of the ‘golden age’ of mysteries, written by Molly Thynne. It is set in London amongst the wealthy (but not upper crust). A patient is killed while she is at the dentist (not a spoiler). An amateur detective happens to be on the scene waiting for his appointment. The police are called in, and the story goes from there.
I particularly liked the Scotland Yard detective, Arkwright; and I thought the amateur detective, Dr. Constantine, was a nice complement to him. I liked that Arkwright wasn’t written as a bumbling fool as was often done in this era of mysteries. I also liked how Thynne characterized Constantine’s butler, Manners (an amusing name too).
The initial premise was interesting (being killed at the dentist) and the execution (by the criminal) was dastardly. However, by the end I felt there were a few too many red herrings. One complaint others in the mystery group had was her treatment/attitude of non-British nationalities. I thought it was consistent with the era, and so not jarring. I would definitely read another of Thynne’s mysteries. 3.5*
20 task
10 review
5 oldie
5 combo 10.2
_______
40
Running total: 480
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Reading with Style
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Passing Strange by Ellen Klages
#29 in the list from post 454 in summer challenge:
https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/1...
Well, this was just what I needed after some unpleasant books. Passing Strange is a sweet little story about love and friendship in 1940 San Francisco. It’s a quick read and has a light, dreamy quality to it. You can tell the author spent a lot of time with her characters, even though we don’t. For such brief sketches, there is a warmth and vibrancy in the women.
The spine of my library book labels this as science fiction, but it really is not. It’s a romantic fantasy. There are a few magical elements essential to the plot, but they are just there as devices, not explored. Barely commented on in fact. If I was reading this for a nice hit of sci-fi I would have been disappointed.
It would have been nicer if things had been more fleshed out, but on the other hand perhaps one of the reasons it is so charming is that it’s more a sketch.
+10 task
+15 Combo (20.4 - Part 1 takes place modern day; 20.5 Helen is single, Haskel starts single and falls in love; 20.7)
+10 review
Task total = 35
Season total = 1175