Need a good historical romance. Other genres too. discussion
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Discussion of HR and other books. And recs.
HappyBookWorm2020 wrote: "OLT wrote: "In my house it’s not just the drawers and closets that need a clean out. I have DT books all over the house that I know I will never read again but there are so many that I feel overwhe..."This made me laugh as we had a terrible storm last year, no power for about 3 days. Our local shopping centre had power so I would walk over and plug in my laptop and phone every other day. Others were doing the same, and I checked in with customer service desk and they said it's fine - we are here to help. Wasn't that nice!
HappyBookWorm2020 wrote: "Roberta2 wrote: "Kudos to OLT and HBW and those who are actually cleaning out closets."Yeah, well, a little. A very little. The bag of clothes has been sitting on the floor for nearly a year, so ..."
HBW, have you made quilts in the past or is this a hobby you were hoping to take up?
Cath wrote: "HappyBookWorm2020 wrote: "Roberta2 wrote: "Kudos to OLT and HBW and those who are actually cleaning out closets."Yeah, well, a little. A very little. The bag of clothes has been sitting on the fl..."
It was one I was hoping to take up, 'when I had time'. I also hoped to do more crewel work (I used to do it) - also when I had time. I used to enjoy refinishing old furniture, and really wanted to make furniture. All that sort of fell by the wayside with I had a baby at 40, so let's just say that my middle-aged years were busy. I have also worked full time since I was 23 or 24, after I got my second college degree. Both of mine were undergraduate degrees from different schools. I didn't want to teach so I went back and got a degree in computer science.
I am in my middle sixties now, and have quite a bit of arthritis, and also psoriasis. The dang psoriasis has caused the skin on my right hand to tighten up to where at times I can't bend my fingers. So no needlework.
This is a long post and I'll stop it in a minute, but I don't regret any of it, except for not getting the knee replacement I've needed for the last 20+ years. I had a young child and was chicken so I didn't do it. I'll probably have it done early next year as it is more of a problem now.
I feel privileged to be the age I am now even with all the aches and pains. Sorry for the long post.
Mod
I have psoriasis too, worst in winter, on my elbows and knees.
I had pain in my hands & saw an occupational therapist (few
yrs ago) and she gave me exercises to do w/ my hands.
Worth a try for you?
HappyBookWorm2020 wrote: "Cath wrote: "HappyBookWorm2020 wrote: "Roberta2 wrote: "Kudos to OLT and HBW and those who are actually cleaning out closets."Yeah, well, a little. A very little. The bag of clothes has been sitt..."
I loved hearing about everything you've done. That's quite a journey.
I know that feeling of having something you once wanted to do and then not pursuing it after all b/c of certain constraints or b/c maybe you realize you're a different person from the one who originally wanted to do a particular activity and it no longer appeals. (For me, it's giving up a guitar I've never played, and a tennis racquet/ball hopper that I'll probably not use again due to stiff joints! )
HR-ML wrote: "HBW---I have psoriasis too, worst in winter, on my elbows and knees.
I had pain in my hands & saw an occupational therapist (few
yrs ago) and she gave me exercises to do w/ my hands.
Worth a try..."
I need to use a steroid ointment every day on my hands. Naturally, I hate to use any ointments or hand creams. I do use them but not as regularly as I should. I take an oral medication for psoriasis too, but when I am having a flare, nothing may work well.
Cath wrote: "HappyBookWorm2020 wrote: "Cath wrote: "HappyBookWorm2020 wrote: "Roberta2 wrote: "Kudos to OLT and HBW and those who are actually cleaning out closets."Yeah, well, a little. A very little. The ba..."
Thank you. You expressed it perfectly about the constraints and being a different person. Also brought to mind Shakespeare and 'to everything there is a season' - those seasons had passed for me, and I'm okay with that. I'm in a different season now.
Although I have a few regrets. My older self wishes my younger self had gotten the dang knee replacement and kept on fossil hunting. Oh well. I'm likely going to have it once I retire. I've heard more horror stories about 1) knee surgeries and 2) not having the knee surgery.
I always envied people who could play stringed instruments like guitars. I could butcher a tune on a piano. Haven't touched one for years.
HR-ML wrote: "HBW---I have psoriasis too, worst in winter, on my elbows and knees.
I had pain in my hands & saw an occupational therapist (few
yrs ago) and she gave me exercises to do w/ my hands.
Worth a try..."
Yikes. Mine is on my hands only. Is it hard to bend your elbows and knees?
More serious than I normally read. ETA but unique and unforgettable. https://www.amazon.com/Book-Uriel-Nov...
Mod
Elbows & knees usually prickly in winter. Usually painful & itchy too. No sign thus far of psoriasis.
HR-ML wrote: "HBW---I have psoriasis too, worst in winter, on my elbows and knees.
I had pain in my hands & saw an occupational therapist (few
yrs ago) and she gave me exercises to do w/ my hands.
Worth a try..."
What kind of pain do you have in your hands?
Mod
The hand pain comes/goes. It can be sharp or feel like needles.
Sometimes the fingers curve into an unnatural position.
The OT reminded me not to carry too much in either hand
upon returning from errands. Hubs works parttime, but if he's
home, he helps unload the car.
Add me to your hand pain club. I have basal thumb arthritis which causes pain in the thumb and wrist and has the resting position of the thumb curled in behind the rest of the hand. Looks a little bit strange but the worst thing is the loss of hand strength. I remember opening jars for my mom when I was still living at home and now need somebody to do the same for me when my handy-dandy jar grippers don't do the trick.
OLT wrote: "Add me to your hand pain club. I have basal thumb arthritis which causes pain in the thumb and wrist and has the resting position of the thumb curled in behind the rest of the hand. Looks a little ..."Usually, a good bang on the cap and my V-shaped opener and a rubber jar gripper do the trick for me. I have a special one for soda bottles and cartons with caps. I used to not bother, but if I don't use them my hands hurts for days.
Mod
Some shampoo bottles are hard to hold much less open .
Aussie Miracle Shampoo has a trendy cap, but I'd prefer
more user-friendly.
I have a small spiky massage ball and some therapy putty to exercise the hands and get more strength into them but lately, because of the issue with my foot, I've been forgetting to use them. I'm glad this discussion about hand problems came up to remind me about them.
HR-ML wrote: "HBW----The hand pain comes/goes. It can be sharp or feel like needles.
Sometimes the fingers curve into an unnatural position.
The OT reminded me not to carry too much in either hand
upon retu..."
Is it nerve damage or arthritis?
OLT wrote: "Add me to your hand pain club. I have basal thumb arthritis which causes pain in the thumb and wrist and has the resting position of the thumb curled in behind the rest of the hand. Looks a little ..."I am so sorry. :(
Looks like quite a few of us have hand issues mostly due to aging! I guess it is just part of the package. I'm so old that I have forgotten what book I am currently reading.
I am another one to be added to the list. Thumb and 2 fingers on left hand swell, ache and lock some time. Rheumatoid Arthritis . Having pain with it at the moment. Right had is not to bad. I have a gadgets to open jar’s, it’s called a husband 😉
Mod
Yrs ago my derm. MD said I had external psoriasis, not internal. I also have eczema. I have arthritis everywhere. But thankfully not RA.
Last week I had a 2nd job interview. But they said this parttime job required a lot
of walking. And with my atypical, unsteady gait they worried I could not do the
walking required. Hopefully this Thurs. I will get the specialized orthotics via my
chiro. ( I was previously measured for this).
HR-ML wrote: "HBW---Yrs ago my derm. MD said I had external psoriasis, not internal. I also have eczema. I have arthritis everywhere. But thankfully not RA.
Last week I had a 2nd job interview. But they said ..."
How do the orthotics work? I think I remember reading something about inserts for your shoes.
There are many aids for being unsteady on your feet, such using a cane. That way you have two points of contact.
HR-ML wrote: "HBW---Yrs ago my derm. MD said I had external psoriasis, not internal. I also have eczema. I have arthritis everywhere. But thankfully not RA.
Last week I had a 2nd job interview. But they said ..."
You should see a rheumatologist to get a second opinion. It sure sounds like you have internal psoriasis. Diagnoses can be wrong. Or IP might not have been obvious when you were originally diagnosed. Anyway, a rheumy is the type of doctor you want to see.
I had never heard of internal psoriasis. I have a lot of arthritis but it runs in the family, plus my back is messed up. I have a great chiropractor. I'll probably (possibly) (maybe) woman up and have the knee replacement I've needed for 20 years. I've heard from several people that the recovery is excruciating. And I am chicken. :cluck cluck:
HappyBookWorm2020 wrote: "I had never heard of internal psoriasis. I have a lot of arthritis but it runs in the family, plus my back is messed up. I have a great chiropractor. I'll probably (possibly) (maybe) woman up and h..."I think the doctor was referring to psoriatic arthritis where it causes internal arthritis. PA, like RA is an autoimmune disease best diagnosed and treated by a rheumatologist.
Mod
The chiro's colleague measured my feet, so the inserts are custom-made.
My husband has insoles, but it’s for drop foot.
Carol wrote: "HappyBookWorm2020 wrote: "I had never heard of internal psoriasis. I have a lot of arthritis but it runs in the family, plus my back is messed up. I have a great chiropractor. I'll probably (possib..."My dermatologist says that i don't have the psoriatic arthritis. I suppose he can tell by blood work.
HappyBookWorm2020 wrote: "Carol wrote: "HappyBookWorm2020 wrote: "I had never heard of internal psoriasis. I have a lot of arthritis but it runs in the family, plus my back is messed up. I have a great chiropractor. I'll pr..."Oh, I didn't know he tested for inflammation. Good.
What is everyone reading? I just finished a contemporary romance with ordinary people that was very good. The hero made boat docks and the heroine used to be a personal assistant for a famous person, but she came back to her hometown after the famous person decided to not be famous anymore. She is working a couple of part time jobs, including waitress, and staying with her hippy parents. In their house, the tea was suspect and you didn't want to accept a gummy.
Her best friend from high school is pregnant with her first child, and she is also there to 'help' her, although she discovers that her friend doesn't really need help.
There is a dog, a young man who was an outcast to his family, and towards the end, a baby. Excellent feel-good book. I got it from NetGalley.
https://www.amazon.com/Georgie-All-Al...
This book is on sale for 4.99 in the US. I don't normally read brilliant books but this is one. I'd call it literary fiction with a touch of fantasy. From the description:
"Absolutely phenomenal. One of the most brilliant, razor-sharp books I've had the pleasure of reading that isn't just an alternative fantastical history, but an interrogative one; one that grabs colonial history and the Industrial Revolution, turns it over, and shakes it out.” -- Shannon Chakraborty, bestselling author of The City of Brass
From award-winning author R. F. Kuang comes Babel, a thematic response to The Secret History and a tonal retort to Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell that grapples with student revolutions, colonial resistance, and the use of language and translation as the dominating tool of the British empire.
Traduttore, traditore: An act of translation is always an act of betrayal.
https://www.amazon.com/Babel-Necessit...
That contemporary romance looks cute. I could swear I've read something by Kate Clayborn before but checked my list and apparently not. CR isn't my favorite but I do like some of them.I've seen Babel mentioned on several book lists and have looked at the copy on our library new shelf. It's definitely one I want to read but a bit long so it's something I'm going to try later on.
I just finished Morning Glory by LaVyrle Spencer for a book challenge. I loved it. I would say it's a romance but also a love story. Not my usual preference for a romance setting (rural U.S., during WW2) so I had reservations going into it b/c I read romance more as fantasy and thought this might have a bit more realism than I'd want. And it did have realism but I loved how the H/h made each other stronger, and I enjoyed the setting Spencer created. Spencer really can write. That's 2 out of 3 Spencer romances I've really enjoyed.
Currently reading a mystery/thriller by Karin Slaughter Girl, Forgotten. I'm enjoying the characters.
I always juggle several non-fiction but the one I'm reading from most often is By Hands Now Known: Jim Crow's Legal Executioners by Margaret Burnham. Very well written. Documents cases of injustice (murders basically) committed in Jim Crow-era South that were never pursued, and clearly should have been. These cases were not necessarily ones that got a lot of attention, or that are remembered nowadays and it's too late for justice. But part of the point of the book is to document them for the historical record with the added benefit of naming the perpetrators, so they too are now in the historical record, and also documenting how various institutions in U.S. during that era failed to do their duty.
I've been doing historical mysteries taking place in 1500s and 1600s England for the most part. Books similar to C.J.Sansom's Matthew Shardlake series that takes place during the reign of Henry VIII except that these recent ones take place either during the reign of Elizabeth I or Charles II. S.W. Perry The Angel's Mark and The Serpent's Mark. Also Andrew Swanston The King's Exile and The King's Return and The Incendium Plot. Got these at special prices and don't know if they are still available for cheap but I enjoyed all the spying and intrigue in them.
Cath wrote: "That contemporary romance looks cute. I could swear I've read something by Kate Clayborn before but checked my list and apparently not. CR isn't my favorite but I do like some of them.I've seen B..."
She used to be one of my favorite authors. I may need to re-read one of her books soon. I read them so many times.
Cath wrote: "That contemporary romance looks cute. I could swear I've read something by Kate Clayborn before but checked my list and apparently not. CR isn't my favorite but I do like some of them.I've seen B..."
It is sad that we aren't better than this.
https://www.cbs42.com/alabama-news/gr....
^Does any good news ever come out of Alabama?@OLT those historical mysteries sound intriguing. Going to have to look into those down the road.
Mod
2. Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young: The Wild, Definitive Saga of Rock's Greatest Supergroup
This was Crosby's 1st memoir.
The next book I read about CSNY band.
The 4 band members had in common: a distant or emotionally unavailable father. The 4 showed signs of depression in various points of their lives.
Dave Crosby died. I learned more about free-basing cocaine in the above book than I ever wanted to learn. He fought against authority and conformity for much of his life. He used women. But he found the solid love of Jan, his wife of 30+ yrs. He and she conquered street drugs.
Hi everyone. Haven't been on in a while. Read with interest what all of you are dealing with in terms of arthritis etc. I have osteoarthritis which is in my right hand and elbow joints and left knee and left ankle. I was wondering the other day what it must be like not to be in pain on a daily basis. But, I shouldn't whine. Other people have it much worse. We had a book club meeting this week and read Remarkably Bright Creatures. My favorite character was the octopus. He really made the book.
Now I am looking for an HR or H detective or murder mystery.
We had our first real snow of the season so far overnight into today. It is beautiful--one of those where the snow clings to the trees and shrubs and everything looks magical.
My husband has a birthday this month and when I asked him what he wanted, he said he wanted to go to an island in March. Part of me doesn't want to be seen in a bathing suit anywhere, but nobody will be looking at me, I have to remind myself. Also, there's always the cover up.
Roberta2 wrote: "Hi everyone. Haven't been on in a while. Read with interest what all of you are dealing with in terms of arthritis etc. I have osteoarthritis which is in my right hand and elbow joints and left kne..."I loved The Paris Secret. Gave it 5 stars. Two time periods. Two love stories. And a mystery.
I got the audio from my library, but it's also a KU.
Cath wrote: "That contemporary romance looks cute. I could swear I've read something by Kate Clayborn before but checked my list and apparently not. CR isn't my favorite but I do like some of them.I've seen B..."
One day I may be brave enough to read that - the Jim Crow book.
HR-ML wrote: "1. Long Time Gone2. Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young: The Wild, Definitive Saga of Rock's Greatest Supergroup
This was Crosby's 1st memoir.
The next book I read about ..."
Oh, wow. If I regret anything, it was not going to more live music events, particularly back in the days when you could stand up in front of the stage with your arms in the air and move to the music - in a crowd of people doing the same thing. There's just something confining about sitting in a chair when listening to a good rock band.
Mod
all @ separate concerts. Emily Lou Harris. Joan was @ the zoo & rode in on an elephant. The Eagles played @ a concert w/ 2 other bands; I'm blanking on other 2. Etc. I felt lucky to be there. I danced in my seat. I heard Peter, Paul and Mary and @ another concert, Mary sang solo @ a temple (for religious freedom).
My boyfriend had tickets to the Who concert in Cinti. where the people died. They had "festival seating" and a stampede ensued. Glad bfriend had to work instead.
On the topic of books, is there anyone here who is a fan of Lucinda Brant's books? I know Danker is very much so, but we haven't heard from her in a while. Brant hasn't come out with anything new in the past couple of years so I was surprised to see three new novellas now available. All three are sequels to Noble Satyr and take place in the early years of the marriage of the duke and his very young bride Antonia. His Duchess: Sequel to Noble Satyr, Her Duke: Sequel to His Duchess and Their Graces: Sequel to Her Duke.
OLT wrote: "On the topic of books, is there anyone here who is a fan of Lucinda Brant's books? I know Danker is very much so, but we haven't heard from her in a while. Brant hasn't come out with anything new i..."That is neat. I'm not going to be in a rush to buy them since I already have so many unread books, including some in this series. It's good to see an author continue writing.
Need a good historical romance. Other genres too.
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Carol, you are smart. I have a huge number of kindle books, am glad that I don't know how much I have invested in them.
I confess to being a book hoarder. Here are a couple of articles about having a lot of books. I may have already posted the first article here this week, but it's a great article.
https://bigthink.com/neuropsych/do-i-...
https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/b...