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What books did you get from the library, bookstore, online? - 2020
Marie wrote:Well Alias - I normally do not buy the physical books - so unfortunately no box (lol) - I am strictly kindle so I buy them and they just download into my kindle. Way quicker than the box! LOL :).":) True.
Marie, The Darkest Knight sounds very good. Enjoy!John, i remember the “drawers” title, as it tickled my fancy.
I put a hold on the March selection for the Jenna Bush book club.A few of us at the gym are hoping to read it together.
Writers & Lovers---Lily KingJenna Bush Hager announces March book club pick
https://www.today.com/shop/jenna-bush...
The GR comments are very favorable. Please keep us posted on your opinion, Alias.
Last winter, Audible had a promotion where one could earn a $20 Amazon credit that arrived on March 17th, with a "catch" that it would only be good for items sold and shipped by Amazon - no third-party or "fulfilled by" orders, nor any audio or ebooks. So, I ordered two paperbacks, with the coupon covering most of that cost.First is one Madrano mentioned that neither of my libraries owns: Inspector Imanishi Investigates, the Kindle sample seemed interesting so I'm looking forward to it.
As travel narrative is a favorite of mine, I looked through this year's award winners in that genre, deciding on a title I can't borrow either: From the Lion's Mouth: A Journey Along the Indus.
I hope you enjoy both, John. Along the Indus sounds very good, thanks for the title.
John, I hope you enjoy those books. I enjoyed Inspector Imanishi. I'm also a fan of travellogues. This one sounds interesting. I ordered a few books from an independent bookstore that is still offering on-line orders. She hand delivers the books to the home, if one lives in town (which I do). It's a great service.
This month I bought:
Sisters - I've read 2 other graphic novels by this author and the stories always make me smile
Solar - a favorite author
Newcomer - looking forward to this one. Thanks, Madrano.
Petra wrote: "John, I hope you enjoy those books. I enjoyed Inspector Imanishi. I'm also a fan of travellogues. This one sounds interesting. I ordered a few books from an independent bookstore that is still of..."
Congrats on your haul!
The library in the town over from mine opened for curbside pick-up last week. I put in a request form for a load of books.....way too many to read (but if the libraries re-close, I'm set for the duration. LOL). This branch is one of my favorites. It doesn't throw books away when they are no longer popular but stores them in the basement, still ready for loaning, if requested. That makes their selection a bit more eclectic.
I got:
Mason & Dixon (a group read over the summer in another group) - this one is a monster in size. Yikes!
Andersonville
Dear Committee Members
Entrelac 2: New Techniques for Interlace Knitting
A Knock on the Door: The Essential History of Residential Schools from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada
LaRose
Tangles: A Story About Alzheimer's, My Mother, and Me
I've heard praise for the Thomas Pynchon tome but, despite an interest in the actual line, i couldn't get beyond the first chapter. Mood? Or just too darned big? I don't know but am no longer tempted.The Julie Schumacher book about academic life sounds wonderful, so i've added it to my TBR. Thanks for the title.
And enjoy the books. You are smart to overload. As the Texas Covid numbers are rising, i fear our library will close again soon, too.
Deb, I'm concerned about the Pynchon book. I'm going to give the group read a try and hope that by spreading it out over the summer will help make this book feel more do-able. It's so big! I don't get daunted by long books but this one is huge. This will be my first read of Thomas Pynchon's works. I have no idea what to expect.
Yes, Julie Schumacher's book sound entertaining. I can't remember where I heard about it. I had it on this library's "For Later" shelf and thought that now was a good time to read it.
Our numbers are hanging in there, on the low side. But we're opening up more and more, so I'm expecting those numbers to continue to creep upwards. I hope they don't but I fear they will.
I hope the numbers level out and lower in Texas (and everywhere). Stay safe.
Petra wrote: "The library in the town over from mine opened for curbside pick-up last week. I put in a request form for a load of books.....way too many to read (but if the libraries re-close, I'm set for the du..."You certainly do sound all set. I, too, miss the library. Though I've been doing well with eBooks from them.
Thanks for the good wishes as we avoid Covid, Petra. I practically ran to my iPad & downloaded the Schumacher. I have laughed aloud at several of the letters. Clever.
On the other hand, i see she has a sequel which is almost twice as long. Frankly, i'm eager for the end of this shorty, so can't imagine reading the next installment, diverting as this one is.
I purchased this today. It was on sale for the Kindle $3Carrying the Fire: An Astronaut's Journey
Michael Collins
Carrying the Fire: 50th Anniversary Edition
Michael Collins
Reissued with a new preface by the author on the fiftieth anniversary of the Apollo 11 journey to the moon
The years that have passed since Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, and Michael Collins piloted the Apollo 11 spacecraft to the moon in July 1969 have done nothing to alter the fundamental wonder of the event: man reaching the moon remains one of the great events—technical and spiritual—of our lifetime.
In Carrying the Fire, Collins conveys, in a very personal way, the drama, beauty, and humor of that adventure. He also traces his development from his first flight experiences in the air force, through his days as a test pilot, to his Apollo 11 space walk, presenting an evocative picture of the joys of flight as well as a new perspective on time, light, and movement from someone who has seen the fragile earth from the other side of the moon.
I recently read a short article about Collins & his life impressed me, particularly his stint at the State Department. Your link was to an M.D., but here is the astronaut's Michael Collins. I hope you enjoy the book, my understanding is that it depicts space travel very accurately. I checked out Nora Okja Keller's Comfort Woman, a fictional story about a Korean woman who survived being used as a sex vessel for Japanese soldiers. Initially it was tough reading because the mother character referenced deities, traditions and other aspects of life which were hard to follow because she was also going mad (as you might imagine). Now, however, i have caught the cadence of her chapters. The alternate chapters are from her daughter's point of view.
When it was first published in the late '90s, i recall book group members praising the book. Of course, you know me, i wanted a nonfiction about the topic first. So, i added this to my TBR and am finally reading it. I'm glad i knew more about those women and their awful experiences first.
madrano wrote: "I recently read a short article about Collins & his life impressed me, particularly his stint at the State Department. Your link was to an M.D., but here is the astronaut's [author:Michael Collins|..."Thanks, deb, I corrected the author link.
I just finished a highly satisfying "western", Glendon Swarthout's The Homesman. I took note of it when Dem shared a review of her opinion of the novel. Later, i saw that Janice, too, had read & enjoyed the book. I'm in good company, it seems.As far as i've been able to determine Swarthout created this "occupation" while researching and writing the book. In essence, a "Homesman" is a person who take women who have fallen into insanity while homesteading on the plains in 1850s USA, driving them to a safe place where the women can be reconnected to their original kinfolk. It's a curious idea and one wishes there was such a thing but Swarthout's son stated in the afterword that his father had no proof of such a thing, yet believed it should have arisen.
I've read much about the settling of the west, particularly the plains. While i've heard of people (yes, both male & female) being defeated by the circumstances (weather, insects, isolation and illness), i've never heard of any sort of organized refuge for them. Swarthout has created the position and peopled it with two interesting folks, Mary Bee Cuddy and George Briggs.
I don't want to share any more but i will state that i liked the book as much for its refraining from the obvious as for the story. I hesitated to call it a western because it is different from what many people consider that genre to be. Still, it is set in the expanding west and contains lawlessness as well.
Good Book.
madrano wrote: "I just finished a highly satisfying "western", Glendon Swarthout's The Homesman. I took note of it when Dem shared a review of her opinion of the novel. Later, i saw..."It's nice to have a genre that you can always come back to that you enjoy. Glad this one was a winner for you.
Yes, i'm happy & have been sharing my thoughts with other reading friends.
I finally finished reading a book i mentioned a couple of weeks ago (in frustration), The Buffalo Soldiers: A Narrative of the Black Cavalry in the West, Revised Edition. In the Epilogue i learned that the book was first published in 1967 by Oklahoma University Press. Updated earlier this century, some words themselves have been changed, particularly referring to the soldiers as Black, rather than Negro.Despite my earlier frustrations, the book ended up informative about the soldiers but also more about the settling of west Texas, Oklahoma and New Mexico, including the border issues with Mexico. Their primary focus was to protect settlers, meaning their main foes were Native American tribes, such as the Apache, Kiowa, Comanche and on.
One interesting point is that the military required chaplains for the black units to serve as educators, as well as for religious purposes. The idea was to train them, most of whom were former slaves in the beginning, to read, write & perform arithmetic. This, then, would free up the officers, who had to perform those acts, as well as their own duties. Lest we forget, though, the soldiers had to study AFTER spending the day on the range, shooting, keeping watch, etc. And still some regiments went years without a chaplain.
It was a frustrating time for the soldiers, and even more perplexing now. As easily imagined, persuading tribes to move to contained areas was difficult and mostly accomplished by promising annuities in the form of food and goods. Which, for some awful reason, the US Government regularly failed to supply. Naturally, the tribal warriors would leave the reservations to hunt and forage, up to stealing the animals of settlers. It was a vicious cycle, which could have been dramatically curtailed, had the Feds just lived up to their promises/treaties.
ANYway, i was profoundly moved by the fact that settlers continued to despise the soldiers who were black, despite all they did to help protect life and land. Indeed, something called "The Lincoln County War" was more about white vs. white (not just ranchers but also the people they hired to work the cattle) basically waging war against one another for land/profits. However, the black soldiers caught the enmity of both sides, ending with much killing. It's appalling to read about now but it certainly illustrates greed has been at the core of much of our nation.
There were chapters which dragged, due to the fact the author (William H. Leckie) barely fleshing out official reports and letters. Yet when he related specific aspects of their work, such as the above mentioned Lincoln Co., as well as long searches for tribal warriors, such as Victorio and Geronimo, the chapters flew past. Very Mixed Bag.
The epilogue, written in this century, was a sort of bibliography, illustrating that works about the soldiers have been on the increase, after years of earlier 20th century works giving clear facts. There are also books about specific forts the soldiers served, as well as their education and history.
As usual, i could go on & on. THIS is why i admire those on our board who write reviews--how do you manage to curtail your thoughts? LOL!
madrano wrote: "I finally finished reading a book i mentioned a couple of weeks ago (in frustration), The Buffalo Soldiers: A Narrative of the Black Cavalry in the West, Revised Edition. In the Epi..."Really great write-up! Some books call for longer reviews than others; my words are as much for my own information later as for others.
Thanks, John. I can get lost in details, particularly when it's the first time i've read about a topic.
Plenty of interesting reading ahead for you, Anita. And it's quite a variety of today's fiction. Enjoy!
madrano wrote: As usual, i could go on & on. THIS is why i admire those on our board who write reviews--how do you manage to curtail your thoughts? LOL!..."
Personally I enjoyed your review and your enthusiasm.
I see my library has the eBook and the Audio book of Grand Tour. Do you think this would be a good audio book? For audio-books, I look for an easy to follow story, not many characters and linear plot.
Alias Reader wrote: "I see my library has the eBook and the Audio book of Grand Tour. Do you think this would be a good audio book? For audio-books, I look for an easy to follow story, not many characters and linear ..."
I'm going to recommend thd ebook as there are long sections of extract from the main character's novel that I decided to skip when they appeared.
John wrote: "Alias Reader wrote: "I see my library has the eBook and the Audio book of Grand Tour. Do you think this would be a good audio book? For audio-books, I look for an easy to follow story, not many c..."
Thanks !
I'm just about halfway through singer Barbara Cook's Then & Now: A Memoir. I was familiar with her name, but not at all her music. I find her easy to relate to - if this were fiction, she'd be a likeable protagonist. She does go a fair amount of name dropping, but doesn't come off as bragging. For instance, in my latest delve she mentioned working with a relatively unknown understudy in the 1950s: Bea Arthur. Moreover, she goes into going on with show in the face of true terror (stage fright), which has universal appeal.
Sounds neat. My very old LP of The King and I features her voice, along with Theodore Bikel. What a treasure...until it was involved in one of our home floods. *sigh*
madrano wrote: "Sounds neat. My very old LP of The King and I features her voice, along with Theodore Bikel. What a treasure...until it was involved in one of our home floods. *sigh*"She Loves Me, The King and I, and More to reair on PBS This Summer
PBS will present several Broadway productions as part of its Great Performances series.
PBS has announced the lineup for its new summer Great Performances series, Broadway at Home.
The season will kick off with the 2016 Broadway revival of She Loves Me, starring Laura Benanti, Zachary Levi, Jane Krakowski, and Gavin Creel. Directed by Scott Ellis, the Jerry Bock, Sheldon Harnick, and Joe Masteroff musical will air on July 24.
Moritz von Stuelpnagel's 2017 revival of Noël Coward's Present Laughter, starring Kevin Kline, Kate Burton, Kristine Nielsen, and Cobie Smulders, will air on July 31. August 7 will see the documentary In the Heights: Chasing Broadway Dreams, which follows the creation of Lin-Manuel Miranda's musical up until its Broadway opening night in 2008.
Danielle Brooks and Grantham Coleman lead Kenny Leon's Shakespeare in the Park production of Much Ado About Nothing, airing on August 14. The Public Theater production was filmed at the Delacorte Theater in 2019.
Concluding the series is Bartlett Sher's West End revival of Rodgers and Hammerstein's The King and I, starring Kelli O'Hara, Ken Watanabe, and Ruthie Ann Miles, reprising performances they originated in New York City. It airs August 21.
Currently available for free viewing online are Anna Deavere Smith's Twilight: Los Angeles and Shakespeare's Macbeth, starring Patrick Stewart and Kate Fleetwood.
Check your local listings for exact air times.
What a line up. Just last night my brother was singing the praises of "Great Performances". It give us all access to productions we might never otherwise see.
I saw Anna Deveare Smith's show on the Crown Heights conflict live during my NYC days - she's a truly amazing performer!
I'm still working on my haul of books, listed in Post 60: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...Of those, I've only read Tangles: A Story About Alzheimer's, My Mother, and Me so far and enjoyed it.
I'm currently reading Mason & Dixon. It was off to a rocky start, with some sections drawing me in and others boring me silly, but it's now settled into a good rhythm and I'm drawn in.
I agree, John, she's a gem. I cannot recall where we first saw her on television but we've liked watching her work. It would be a joy to see her perform in person.
Petra, you dove right into those purchases. I'm not as faithful myself. Looking at your list again, i see MacKinlay Kantor's Andersonville was one of your books. It's a whopper, so i've not read it. Just last week we just figured out that one of my husband's ancestors died there. He had been mislabeled as having died in Richmond (unsure which prison there) during the war. Indeed, the only reason the correction was found was because there was a custody suit over his children. ANYway, congratulations on your success thus far.
I am reading A Most Beautiful Thing: The True Story of America's First All-Black High School Rowing Team, set mostly in West Side Chicago's tough neighborhood. Author Arshay Cooper writes tellingly about a non-violent kid in a neighborhood full of families whose parents have been or are addicts and the streets full of broken glass, danger and violence.A white man comes to his school (Manley) and offers students an opportunity to learn team rowing. What?! The story is a pleasure to read as Cooper shares his own biography and the ways in which he personally grew and what he witnessed among other schoolmates who tried rowing. I'm halfway through and find the book readable & informative. It gives readers a look at teens trying to live a decent life & welcoming fresh opportunities.
Frankly, and forgive me if this seems obvious, i was surprised to read how much tv sitcoms which featured African American families meant to Cooper. He feels those programs illustrated that there was another life "out there" and the way to behave within his own community, including taking responsibility. I now see some of those shows in a different light.
Because i wasn't sure one graphic novel was enough to see if i like the genre, i selected one with a bit more color, The Wicked & the Divine Vol. 4. It was created by Kieron Gillen and Jamie McKelvie but it appears others are involved. ANYway, the subtitle was what led me to it, Commercial Suicide. I wanted to see what this means. I'll keep you posted. I also learned that Keiichirō Hirano's A Man is on order from my library. John mentioned it & i was bummed because i couldn't find an e-version. Now i won't have to!
Bad news is that the sole Benjamin Harrison biographies available to me are in the juvenile section of the library, both under 44 pages. Worse, the only copies of adult bios about him are $30+. Even then, they are often unavailable but i'm just not interested in buying one. My library doesn't even have one of those "American Presidents" series copies. I'll keep looking but may end up going with the kids book.
In The Cold Vanish: Seeking the Missing in North America's Wildlands, Jon Billman writes about people who have "gone missing", mostly in cold climates. He makes some interesting points about the seeming lack of ability for the National Forest Service and the National Park Service to work together when searching for a missing person.The book begins, and is periodically informed, by the 2017 disappearance of Jacob Gray, on a solo bike tour of Washington’s Olympic Peninsula. Because this National Park is across a river from a National Forest, the lines became blurred once it appeared Jacob entered the water. However, it also seems that they have worked together on other cases, so it may be they just don't have a good plan. I'm in the beginning of this part.
There are also other disappearances mentioned, of course. Billman circles around other topics by returning to Jacob's father's obsessive search for his missing son. The dad has given up his home & business to live on the road in the area of the disappearance. One topic introduced this way is about "alternative theories" that are often offered when a person disappears in wild areas--alien abduction, Bigfoot-like beings, portals to other dimensions, etc. There is a crew of people working the Sasquatch theory in Washington, btw. They have a building where the father sometimes stays.
Thus far the book has been easy to read, despite the despair presented in the form of loved ones. How heartbreaking it must be to never know. Most of those mentioned thus far in my reading (chapter 7), were on a hike, bike ride or planned camping. Then POOF!, they are gone.
I finished The Cold Vanish: Seeking the Missing in North America's Wildlands and felt Jon Billman gave me some interesting facts. It seemed to me that this was really almost a case study of what one disappearance did to one father, Randy Gray. It was a fascinating story, don't get me wrong, as the father abandoned his home & sold his business in hopes of tracking down his lost son.However, it seemed to me the approach was scattershot with good facts and stories about searchers mixed in with way too much info about Randy, his life and random weeklong searches. I would have appreciated more stories about the thousands of other families who are in the same circumstances.
I stayed with the story, despite wanting to abandon it even though i was more than half finished. The redundancy of the Bigfoot followers and psychics got to me. I actually would have appreciated more about those who are lost in the wild but end up having been found murdered. As it stands, it almost appears (although Billman doesn't state this) that many of the missing are in that state due to their own confidence that they can't get lost. Or, and this sad point cannot often be proven without a note, they were "lost" to suicide.
Yesterday i finished the quite short memoir Memorial Drive: A Daughter's Memoir, about poet Natasha Trethewey and her late mother. Former US Poet Lauriate Trethewey has a wonderful way with words, which illuminates the story, despite the story line. Her first chapter, about the family's early life in Gulfport, Mississippi, was a pleasure to read and by its end, i was in love with the family.I see that Goodreads shares the mother's fate but i won't do so here. I knew nothing about the story prior to opening the book & i like it that way. Regardless, tragedy informs the book. As it is a memoir, there are a few points which puzzle me but it's the poet's story & i will explain away my notions by reminding myself of that.
Very well written.
For a woman who used to only read one book at a time, i find myself with several books going at the moment. By far the most interesting is Kirk Wallace Johnson's The Feather Thief. I collect feathers we find as we travel (but without noting where they came from! dolt!), so i kinda felt this book call to me. That, plus i liked the cover.
It begins with the theft of a cache of historic feathers, many from extinct birds, from a branch of the British Museum of Natural History. From there the book backtracks to give us a history of those feathers, many of which were collected 150 years earlier by a contemporary of Darwin's, Alfred Russel Wallace, who also figured out the theory of evolution.
From there, the author explores the almost immediate passion of hat making using flowers and, indeed, entire birds in women's hats. This helped decimate populations of birds worldwide. From there, making & tying flies is discussed, as this was the draw for the thief.
The book is informative, shares the story of the thief and his prosecution. I'm not a fisher but i have long been intrigued by flies and the people who tie them. What i didn't realize is that there are "recipes" for making ties, dependent upon which feathers (& animal skins, btw) one has on hand. It was these recipes which really inspired the thief.
ANYway, i'm liking it best.
However i'm also reading two novels. First, one mentioned here Zombie, Ohio. At first i wasn't as interested as i thought i would be, so i turned to a "classic" Daphne du Maurier's The House on the Strand. As i wasn't immediately hooked by it, i returned to the zombie book by Scott Kenemore because it is set at Kenton College in Ohio, near a cousin i love.
Now i'm reading them alternating between them. For once in my life i'm not confused by either storyline, nor confusing them. If it ain't broke...
As someone who has always juggled multiple books, the idea is to keep the contents as diverse as possible. The feather book seems interesting; if I collected those, no doubt they'd end up crushed. Sigh.
I suppose the fact two of the books are science fiction is why i'm surprised i can keep them straight. One is about zombies, the other a sort of time travel. I admit a few of the feathers i've collected on vacation have, indeed, ended up crushed & separated. Overall, not, though. I cannot imagine tying flies for fishing or art but reading about the work has been an education.
If I am reading more than one book, I try to make one non fiction and the other fiction.
As I type this, I'm listening to the audio edition of a murder mystery More Work for the Undertaker, taking place in London just after WW II. Also working on the audiobook A Brief History of Britain 1660-1851. Ongoing ebook: Murder at the Abbey: A Redmond and Haze Mystery Book 2, set in England c. 1870; second in a series I really like that is a available to Prime folks as a free monthly selection. Not easy to confuse these.
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Authors mentioned in this topic
Dr. Seuss (other topics)Marcial Gala (other topics)
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:( I didn't know that.