JulieLill's 2019 Reading Challenge

[Madrano]

Sounds neat, Julie. I've intended to read a bio about her for decades, so am glad to at last have a title. Thanks for sharing.

[Alias Reader]

Julie wrote: VictoriaWoodhull who attempted in 1870 to run for President of the United States..."

I am not familiar with her. I have to check it out and put it on my TBR list. Thanks so much for sharing this.

[Julie]

Lisa's Legacy Trilogy: Slip-Cased Lisa's Legacy Trilogy Containing All Three Cloth Editions
Tom Batiuk
4/5 stars
This trilogy is actual taken from the comic series Funky Winkerbean and revolves around the love story between Les and his wife Lisa and her struggles with breast cancer and what happens beyond that. As a regular reader of the comic strip which I have followed for years, I thoroughly enjoyed this series but if you read it you may want to get some tissues. Trilogy

[Madrano]

Julie, i vaguely recall reading some of the strip, then we moved where it wasn't offered. It's hard to forget that name. The story sounds full of surprises.

[Julie]

Madrano wrote: "Julie, i vaguely recall reading some of the strip, then we moved where it wasn't offered. It's hard to forget that name. The story sounds full of surprises."

You can still read the strip online-it is no longer in any of the newspapers that I get.

[Madrano]

Goodness, i had no idea. Sometimes i wonder what cannot be found online. It just wouldn't have occurred to me to seek it out online.

[Julie]

The Final Confession of Mabel Stark
Robert Hough
3/5 stars
Fictional dark story based on the true life story of Mabel Stark which covers her tragic life including her many husbands and her work with tigers and other animals for over 57 years with circuses around the world. And if you can find it there is a DVD about the true Mabel Stark called Mabel, Mabel Tiger Trainer which is very interesting too. Book With A Strong Female Lead


The Alice Network
Kate Quinn
4/5 star
Wonderful fiction book based loosely on the true tales of the "Alice Network" from WWI about the men and women who fought the German occupation in France amid the story of a young pregnant girl in post WWII looking in France for her cousin who became pregnant out of wedlock and sent to Europe to take care of the situation. The story bobs between looking for the Rose and what happened to Eve (who is helping with the search of Rose) in WWI. I enjoyed it. A Book Published by Harper Collins

[Madrano]

Those both sound good, although the WWII one more so. Good going.

[Julie]

Kid Gloves: Nine Months of Careful Chaos
Lucy Knisley
3.5/5 stars
Knisley, a graphic novelist and author, relates her pregnancy trials in a no holds barred look through pictures and words. Well done! Book Published in 2019

[Madrano]

Julie, thanks for the info on the Knisley book. It sounds informative but also something those experiencing such problems might find easier to face/understand.

[Julie]

Madrano wrote: "Julie, thanks for the info on the Knisley book. It sounds informative but also something those experiencing such problems might find easier to face/understand."

I don't recommend this for a newly pregnant woman-the stuff she went through was very scary. But I like Knisley, she came to our library for a book talk and I have been following her life through her biographical/graphic books. I highly recommend her book - - Relish: My Life in the Kitchen.

[Madrano]

Relish sounds neat. It's fascinating to read and hear food memories because there are several focus points, such as the memories of where dishes were eaten, with whom, the taste and even how it was served. Thanks for the title, Julie.

[Julie]

The Golden Tresses of the Dead
Alan Bradley
4/5 stars
Flavia and Dogger, her estate gardener, start their own private agency business in this newest addition to the series. Along the way they have to deal with a finger in the wedding cake at her sister’s wedding, missing letters from the home of a Mrs. Prill and female missionaries that have their own agenda which is not on the up and up. Always entertaining! A Book That is a Sequel

[madrano]

Finger in the wedding cake. Oh my gosh! A fingerprint would be annoying but easily covered. A finger, not so much. Sounds curious.

[Julie]

The Wild Bunch: Sam Peckinpah, a Revolution in Hollywood, and the Making of a Legendary Film
W.K. Stratton
3.5/5 stars
Stratton writes about the making of the film The Wild Bunch, the time period surrounding and influencing the making of the film and of course the director Sam Peckinpah and his new darker version of the western genre. This is definitely for film buffs and people who have seen the film. I enjoyed it. An Author Who Uses Initials

[madrano]

Love the category for selecting this book, Julie. Did you come to appreciate The Wild Bunch more or less than previously? (Or did the book make no difference in your opinion?) Graphic violence seemed to be what i heard most about that movie at the time but in today's society, would it create a ripple, i wonder?

[Julie]

madrano wrote: "Love the category for selecting this book, Julie. Did you come to appreciate The Wild Bunch more or less than previously? (Or did the book make no difference in your opinion?) Graphic violence seem..."

I probably saw the movie years ago but remember very little of it but I do have a copy from the library and am waiting till I can watch it with my husband. I do appreciate the movie without seeing it yet-it was a ground breaking film in regards to a change in the violence and the dark subject matters that the newer directors were starting to use. It also used a lot of Mexican and Mexican-American actors and craftsman unlike any other film of the time period. It was also filmed in Mexico. Peckinpah really wanted it to be more authentic and wanted the actors and crafts people to reflect it. It also took the culture of the time (it was filmed in 1968) with the Bobby Kennedy assassination, race riots, the Vietnam War and figuratively used that violence within the film.

[madrano]

Interesting point in that last sentence, Julie. Please let us know your thoughts on the film once you've seen it again.

[Julie]

We watched The Wild Bunch last night though my husband slept thru most of it. I realized after watching it I had never seen it before. It is a very dark picture, with not much of a story line- just a lot of gun fighting but I could see people being shocked at the violence (supposedly 145 people were shot dead in the film) and the sexuality/nudity considering the time period it was filmed in (1969). Definitely a very multi-cultural cast which for that time period was unusual. Cinematography was amazing and a lot of the main cast of actors were older than you see today in film. I believe also that the train was an original period train that had to be put together/repaired for use in the film.

[madrano]

Julie wrote: "...It is a very dark picture, with not much of a story line- just a lot of gun fighting but I could see people being shocked at the violence..."

This is what i recall from the film, Julie. Your notes about the multi-cultural cast is interesting because even today it seems something we note, rather than take for granted. Thanks for sharing...sorry your "date" zonked out on you.

[Julie]

A Man Called Ove
Fredrik Backman
5/5 stars
Lovely book about a anti-social man who struggles with living by himself when a new neighbor intrudes into his life forcing him to become more social. Great book and a favorite author for me! I had seen the movie earlier and enjoyed that too. First Book on My Reading List

[Alias Reader]

Julie wrote: "
A Man Called Ove
Fredrik Backman
5/5 stars
Lovely book about a anti-social man who struggles with living by himself when a new..."

I'm glad you enjoyed it as much as I did.

[Julie]

Alias Reader wrote: "Julie wrote: "
A Man Called Ove
Fredrik Backman
5/5 stars
Lovely book about a anti-social man who struggles with living by hims..."
I like his writing. I see he has a new non-fiction book out about being a new father. Eventually I will get around to reading the rest of his books. So many books - not enough time.

[madrano]

I keep hearing praise about this book and i keep not reading it. The surprising aspect of this is that i am somewhat anti-social, so you'd think it would be a natural fit.

[Julie]

The Innocent
Ian McEwan
4/5 stars
In 1955, during the Cold War, American Leonard Marnham, in his first job, is sent to East Berlin to set up recording devices that tap into the Russian sectors to keep an eye on them. Along the way he falls in love with the divorced Maria. Complications ensue when Maria’s ex-husband shows up. Between his job and the ex-husband, Leonard is overwhelmed with life and eventually things only go from bad to worse. McEwan is one of my favorite authors and he doesn’t disappoint in this novel.

[Julie]

I realized I had used Graphic Novel for 2 categories so I changed one to poetry. Anybody recommended a good poetry book?

[Alias Reader]

Julie wrote: "I realized I had used Graphic Novel for 2 categories so I changed one to poetry. Anybody recommended a good poetry book?"

I own but have not yet read the recent NY Times bestseller

Milk and Honey----Rupi Kaur
#1 New York Times bestseller Milk and Honey is a collection of poetry and prose about survival. About the experience of violence, abuse, love, loss, and femininity.

The book is divided into four chapters, and each chapter serves a different purpose. Deals with a different pain. Heals a different heartache. Milk and Honey takes readers through a journey of the most bitter moments in life and finds sweetness in them because there is sweetness everywhere if you are just willing to look.

It has over 6000 reviews on Amazon.

[madrano]

Julie, i'm a fan of McEwan's, too. So often i marvel that he can create such a great work in so few pages. This one sounds very good.

As for your poetry quest, i just finished Wade in the Water: Poems by US Poet Laureate Tracy K. Smith and found it to be remarkable. On the poetry thread here at Book Nook, i shared some poems and things i learned while reading her work. Briefly, the work is in four sections, mostly exploring aspects of African American history. Probably my favorite part was learning about "erasure poems", in which a poet takes parts of previously written materials (sometimes documents or letters) and "erases" parts to create the poem. Or elaborate. New to me.

There are so many poetry books out there, though. If you like Margaret Atwood, you might want to try one of her volumes of poetry. I've read a number of her earlier ones but my favorite is The Journals of Susanna Moodie. Based on the life of a real woman who pioneered in Canada in the late 1800s. I liked those poems very much.

And on...

[Julie]

madrano wrote: "Julie, i'm a fan of McEwan's, too. So often i marvel that he can create such a great work in so few pages. This one sounds very good.

As for your poetry quest, i just finished [book:Wade in the Wa..."

Thanks for the suggestions!

[madrano]

Always glad to be suggestive. ;-)

[Julie]

Al Capone and the 1933 Worlds Fair
William Hazelgrove
4/5 stars
This book is about the end of Capone’s career as a gangster and the building of the 1933 World’s Fair that took place in Chicago during the depression. Not a long book but a fascinating look at the time period, though in this book Capone and the World’s Fair weren’t really linked together but were events occurring at the same time. This reminded me of Erik Larson’s fascinating book The Devil in the White City which was about a serial killer who lured and killed visitors from the 1893 Exposition in Chicago. A Book About Organized Crime/The Mob

[madrano]

Sounds good for someone who likes reading about those Fairs. I looked up Hazelgrove & see his Madam President: The Secret Presidency of Edith Wilson will be a PBS offering this year. Looking forward to that.

[Alias Reader]

madrano wrote: The Devil in the White City which was about a serial killer who lured and killed visitors from the 1893 Exposition in Chicago. A Book About Organized Crime/The Mob ."

I enjoyed the serial killer part of Devil in the White City. It led me on a multi book non fiction spree on psychopaths.

[madrano]

Funny, Julie. Devil led me to read a series of books about different World's Fairs. Like you, i found the serial killer very interesting--not to mention disturbing--but my follow up was different. I suspect i can only take one or two psychopaths a year in my reading. :-)

[Julie]

The Beautiful Poetry of Donald Trump
Rob Sears
3/5 stars
This came across the desk at the library and was so intriguing I just had to read it. Rob Sears took President Trump's tweets and transcripts arranging each sentence and made them into poetry. Every sentence was spoken by Trump which the author backs up with notes on where each sentence came from. Poetry

[Julie]

The Annotated Little Women
Louisa May Alcott
3/5 stars
I found this classic story of Little Women which was made into an annotated version. I wish I could I say I loved this version but I had a hard time with it. There were copious annotations in the book and most were very tedious which took me away from the story line. I was looking forward to a re-read but I must have never read this version because this was so different from what I remembered. Perhaps I had read a children’s version when I was younger. A Character That Is A Immigrant

[Alias Reader]

Julie wrote: "
The Beautiful Poetry of Donald Trump
Rob Sears
3/5 stars
This came across the desk at the library and was..."

:)

[madrano]

Is the poetry as amusing as that photo? It appears he was dressed and posed to appear to be a Man of Letters. We all know better than that now.

Your point about Little Women is my own experience. I read it after my daughter did, so i was in my 40s. When i reread it in my 50s (book group), i felt i'd missed much of what was written, particularly the second half. Mine was an adult book both times, so i'm guessing i remembered what i already knew from seeing filmed & a stage version, forgetting the rest.

[Julie]

madrano wrote: "Is the poetry as amusing as that photo? It appears he was dressed and posed to appear to be a Man of Letters. We all know better than that now.

Your point about Little Women is my own experience. ..."

The Trump poetry was just okay but I liked the fact that it was an original idea. He used all of Trump's actual quotations (and identifies the source of every line) in the poetry but it also highlights the fact that he denigrates everyone he doesn't like.

[madrano]

Thanks, Julie. It kinda sounds like the "erasure poems" i learned about recently as i read Wade in the Water: Poems by Tracy K. Smith. They remove some words, usually still retaining the meaning but the words really stay with you. (I wrote a bit more about this earlier this month in our Poetry Thread.)

[Julie]

madrano wrote: "Thanks, Julie. It kinda sounds like the "erasure poems" i learned about recently as i read Wade in the Water: Poems by Tracy K. Smith. They remove some words, usuall..."

I never heard that term before but it probably applies to that book. Adding Wade In The Water to my reading list.

[madrano]

Julie, i hope you like it as much as i did.

[Julie]

Bowlaway
Elizabeth McCracken
3/5 stars
Bowlaway is the story of the unusual Bertha Truit, her family and friends in Salford, Massachusetts. When we first meet Bertha, she is in a cemetery and presumed dead but her life isn’t over and she eventually sets up her life in Salford surrounded by her husband Dr. Leviticus Sprague. She opens up a bowling alley where candle pin bowling is the game and life revolves around the alley with characters coming and going, growing old and dying. I had some difficulty with keeping track of all the characters coming in and out of the story line but overall I enjoyed this book. Author You Never Heard Of

[Alias Reader]

Well, you have to give the author points for an original story, Julie !

[Julie]

Alias Reader wrote: "Well, you have to give the author points for an original story, Julie !"

Yes, this was a very original story-had never heard of candle pin bowling before either!

[madrano]

I haven't heard of that game, either, Julie, but am aware there are a number of variations for bowling. As we've traveled around the US it's been neat to see that this sport is maintaining its popularity in cities as well as small towns. Neat sounding book.

[Julie]

Giraffes on Horseback Salad: Salvador Dali, the Marx Brothers, and the Strangest Movie Never Made
Josh Frank
3.5/5 stars
This is the interesting and absurdly true story about the famous painter Salavdor Dali who had written a screenplay and wanted the Marx Brothers to be in it. Josh Frank had been researching unmade film scripts when he found mention of Dali’s script originally titled The Surrealist Woman and from there he had his subject for this book. Through painstaking research he pieced together the story of Giraffes on Horseback Salad screenplay. Illustrated by Manuela Perte and adapted with Tim Heidecker, this book contains the graphic novel based on the screenplay and the written story of the strangest movie never made. One of my favorite trivia bits from the book was how did Harpo and Dali (who became friends) communicate. Neither spoke each other’s language but both wives spoke German so they could translate for their husbands. Graphic Novel/ Non-fiction

[madrano]

Fascinating story...and title.

[Julie]

Wade in the Water: Poems
Tracy K. Smith
3.5/5 stars
The poems from this book are from the Poet Laureate of the United States. I especially enjoyed the section of poems I Will Tell You the Truth about This, I Will Tell You All About It which were taken from letters written by African Americans civil war soldiers and their family members. Poetry Thanks to Madrano for the recommendation!

[madrano]

So pleased you found it as rewarding as i did. The material about using the African American soldiers names incredible, awful.