Hello Paola --

How lucky for you to have just discovered Georgette Heyer -- you are in for a treat! I started reading her when I was a teenager and have read all but one of the romances and some of the mysteries. A couple of my particular favorites are These Old Shades (which has two quasi-sequels, Devil's Cub and An Infamous Army) Frederica and Black Sheep, but they all have their charms. There is a Heyer group on LT called Almack's, but it isn't very active. It's wonderful to see her books coming back into print.

Thank you also for the Australian and Italian recommendations. Some I'm familiar with but others were new to me -- there are truly more good books in the world than one can read in a lifetime!

Liz

inlägg gjort av aviddiva vid 1:44 pm (EST) Aug 28, 2008

Hello Paola--
Cindie arrived in the mail today-- what a delightful surprise! I don't know this book or the author and I'm quite interested in Australian fiction, so you made a terrific choice for me! Thank you, dear virago friend!!

Also, I see in your collection a number of intriguing books of fairy tales in Italian which you rate very highly. (Fiabe Abruzzesi, Fiabe Piemontesi etc. published by Mondadori) Do you have any ideas where I might begin to look for them or something similar? I'm not looking for an English translation, I can read the Italian, at least if there isn't too much dialect.

Liz

inlägg gjort av aviddiva vid 4:20 pm (EST) Aug 27, 2008

Thanks for the suggestion. I've read Muriel Spark but I don't know Margery Sharp. I'll check her out.!

inlägg gjort av MusicMom41 vid 8:02 pm (EST) Aug 26, 2008

I noticed on a dormant Virginia Woolf thread that you expressed interest in a group read of a Virginia Woolf book. There are a couple of us on I Prefer Men to Cauliflowers that are trying to get one started. Would you still be interested? If so, you can either go to the site to post or reply to this comment. We are just starting and haven't even discussed which book yet. Your input would be valuable as I noticed how helpful you were on the old thread.

inlägg gjort av MusicMom41 vid 6:01 pm (EST) Aug 24, 2008

Good morning Paola. I see you are up bright and early. I hope you're having a wonderful day. I'm going out nursery (as in plants) hopping this morning. It's time to start thinking about fall and next spring. I have a wholesale catalog for bulbs. I intend to go wild and plant thousands of bulbs. I may have to have a bulb planting tea. What do you think?

inlägg gjort av urania1 vid 7:16 am (EST) Aug 21, 2008

Paola,

Just earlier today, I was thinking how I need to curb my book purchasing--I have let myself acquire 311 books (through purchasing, through gifts, etc.) so far this year but have read only 68 this year. Ha! After seeing your string of additions on my homepage, I have looked at your statistics and have decided to use you as a role-model. It is "investing" and "planning for the future" when I buy all these unread books, right?

I see you added West with the Night by Beryl Markham. That's one I've read this year--definitely recommended.

inlägg gjort av christiguc vid 9:52 pm (EST) Aug 14, 2008

I see your library has topped 4,000! Congratulations!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :o)

xoxo T

inlägg gjort av teelgee vid 1:42 am (EST) Aug 11, 2008

Eh,già.Ti ringrazio,davvero.Avevo inserito quel libro manualmente.Grazie ancora.Tra l'altro,credo mi fermerò qui con la catalogazione,mi appare ormai una fatica immame!Intedevo catalogarli tutti,anche per mettere un po' d'ordine.Ma non riusciro' mai...e pesare che intendevo anche completare con le indicazioni degli argomenti,delle case editrici,dell'anno di pubblicazione....
Beh,scrivimi pure qualora riscontrassi altri errori.
Buone letture!
Giovanni

inlägg gjort av giogabbiano vid 2:38 am (EST) Aug 10, 2008

Hi Paola -- your Penguins went out in the mail today, so you should receive them shortly. enjoy!

Liz

inlägg gjort av aviddiva vid 7:00 pm (EST) Aug 8, 2008

Hi Paola. I am enjoying the groups and learning about lots of authors and books that sound interesting. However, the contradiction in this is that I'm spending more time on LT which leaves me less time for reading!!!

Candace

inlägg gjort av CD1am vid 4:05 am (EST) Aug 7, 2008

Hi Paola -- I found a few Penguins on the free shelf this morning. They're not perfect copies ( a bit grimy or some wear to the covers, a little page darkening, etc.) but they are yours if you want them. Anything you don't want I'll just take back the next time I go, so don't feel at all obligated to take any of them.

Orange Penguins from the 60's:

The Heart of a Goof by P.G Wodehouse
No Room in the Ark by Alan Moorhead
The White Peacock by D.H. Lawrence
Lord Jim by Joseph Conrad
and a lovely clean international penguin copy of Jane Eyre, introduction by Q.D. Leavis (pastel sketch of Charlotte Bronte on the cover.)This one was published in the 80's, I think, but is the same edition I first read in the 60's.

There were a few others, including an old green copy of Look to the Lady by Margery Allingham, but they were not in good shape (the Allingham was ex-lib with a taped spine. I did pick it up and will send it if you want it, but it's pretty battered.) There are often older penguins, though -- last week I found The Cardinal's Snuff Box by Henry Harland, which I am quite looking forward to reading, and I frequently see mysteries, so I will watch out for those.

Let me know if you'd like me to send you any of the above.

inlägg gjort av aviddiva vid 5:23 pm (EST) Aug 2, 2008

Hi Paola, thank you for your kind words and I am happy to hear that you enjoyed Portland. I am very proud of my little city and of course of Powells. Just got back my morning run, I am training for the Portland marathon so today I did about 16 miles. I feel good not bad for an old man. This afternoon I going to Powells to buy In Cold Blood, a couple of nights ago watched a movie about Captoe and realized I need to read him. He was such an interesting person. Currently I am reading Proust's vol. 5 of In Search of Lost Time. There are places in Proust that are so beautiful, in this part when he describes Albertine sleeping I found it to be breath taking. That makes up for a lot of his writing that is tiresome. My life goal is to read all of Proust.
Michael

inlägg gjort av michaelbartley vid 3:27 pm (EST) Aug 2, 2008

How gracious of you to add my meager library also. I had stumbled into your amazing library and was busily writing down books to remember, when I thought of the feature and gave it a try. I must admit that I failed to realize the public nature of adding and "interesting library!"

We live in Bergen County, New Jersey, just the other side of the GWB. Your commute is long, but must provide some great reading time. I used to work in Manhattan and remember how wonderful it was to settle into a book for a set time every day. Of course, when the weather was decent, I would walk from Port Authority to my building near the U.N. because I was much faster than the crosstown bus!

Funny that you should mention Robert van Gulik. A friend of mine has them all and just loaned me "Celebrated Cases of Judge Dee," translated by van Gulik and "The Chinese Gold Murders." I look forward to reading them. Haven't tried Crispin, thought, but will. Thanks for the recommendation. And thanks, also, for the kind words about Pepper, my now seven month-old Lab. She's a treat!

Look forward to "watching" your library.

Teresa

inlägg gjort av theaelizabet vid 9:07 am (EST) Aug 1, 2008

Hello Paola, I notice the absence of "The Willow Pattern" and "Poets and Murder" but those are the only two I can think of at the moment. There are at least four others...I'll poke around and see what I find.

Cheers
RMD

inlägg gjort av richardderus vid 10:36 pm (EST) Jul 31, 2008

Paola, you have the Judge Dee mysteries! I lost those years ago to my second divorce...she kept them in spite of the fact that I introduced her to the author and the character...and we still argue about their custody once in a while. Biblioholics, the both of us.

I'm shopping your library shelves for ideas...don't mind me...I'll just nose around on my own....

With gratitude for a good memory recalled,
Richard

inlägg gjort av richardderus vid 11:43 am (EST) Jul 31, 2008

Dear Paola, [All Passion Spent]arrived today and it was such a joy to my heart to see it that after a rather trying week. It is nice to know there are kind, decent, kindred people out there sharing books. Thank you so much! Fond best, Maren

inlägg gjort av Marensr vid 11:58 pm (EST) Jul 25, 2008

Paola,

Harriet Hume has arrived! Thank you--she looks marvelous! I love Rebecca West's writing, and I think this one will be a winner as well.

I hope all is well with you. Thank you again!!!

Christina

inlägg gjort av christiguc vid 5:42 pm (EST) Jul 24, 2008

Hi Paola,

Your package just arrived with the Antonia White and the Silone. Thank you, thank you. I'm so excited.

inlägg gjort av urania1 vid 7:55 pm (EST) Jul 22, 2008

Paola,

You've been shopping again. What fun. You've purchased some perfectly wonderful books. I hope all is well with you.

Mary

inlägg gjort av urania1 vid 10:37 pm (EST) Jul 21, 2008

Hi, I just wanted to comment on Pilgrim's Inn by Elizabeth Goudge which I noted you recently added to your library. If you haven't read it as yet, I just wanted to let you know that it is a perfectly wonderful "comfort read". The pain felt by so many of the characters as the book opens is ultimately assuaged. The author achives a happy ending without permitting the sweetness to overpower the reality of her characters. I really like the book. It is the final volume of a trilogy (the DameRoseHay Trilogy), but I've not read the other two titles in that trilogy.

Jill

inlägg gjort av jillmwo vid 2:56 pm (EST) Jul 9, 2008

Hi Paola,

I see you've been on a Judge Dee spree lately. What fun.

Mary

inlägg gjort av urania1 vid 2:30 pm (EST) Jul 5, 2008

Paola,

Please let me know what you think of Sacramental Magic as a cookbook.

ciao.

joyce

inlägg gjort av Joycepa vid 7:47 am (EST) Jun 29, 2008

thanks for adding me as well. we have almost 300 books in common so i figured i would keep up with your collection!

inlägg gjort av amanaceerdh vid 2:12 pm (EST) Jun 26, 2008

Paola,

I'm glad you liked [Martha, Eric, and George]. I'm envious of all your first editions of Sharp. I have a few, but not as many as you do of those, two no longer have their dust jackets.

inlägg gjort av urania1 vid 9:19 pm (EST) Jun 24, 2008

Paola,

You've been at it again. It looks like you've gone on a Rumer Godden binge. Are you sure you'll be able to keep me straight when I come to New York? You know, I'll have a difficult time being a bag lady with all my books, So many grocery carts to push around. I'll have to tie them together in one long caravan :-))

inlägg gjort av urania1 vid 11:10 pm (EST) Jun 21, 2008

Dear Paola - so sorry. My name is Julie Mintern. The name my parents gave me was Juliette Melinda but everyone calls me Julie! Thank you so much dear friend!

inlägg gjort av juliette07 vid 2:01 pm (EST) Jun 21, 2008

ciao! grazie per avermi contattato.Ho visto che abbiamo tre libri in comune nelle nostre biblioteche.e per me sono libri bellissimi!sono il cacciatore diaquiloni,possessione e suite francese.dai messaggi che hai lasciato in giro mi sembri molto simpatica e disponibile. ho scopertoquesto sito da poco e ne sono entusiasta in quanto amo molto leggere e mi piacerebbe condividere con altri questa passione.per pigrizia ho imparato da poco a usare il computer e sono ancora molto imbranata!ciao e a presto. paola 2601.

inlägg gjort av paola2601 vid 11:53 am (EST) Jun 20, 2008

Thank you very much for your kind comments.

inlägg gjort av englishrose60 vid 7:44 am (EST) Jun 17, 2008

Thank you for entering me on your interesting libraries list.

Cheers
Valerie

inlägg gjort av englishrose60 vid 7:21 am (EST) Jun 17, 2008

Just to let you know that your Virago anniversary booklet left Yorkshire this morning on it's way to New York. Via Airmail so hopefully it won't take too long!

Dee

inlägg gjort av Soupdragon vid 4:57 am (EST) Jun 9, 2008

Good afternoon Paola.

Would you care to join me tonight for dinner and a book?

Eric

inlägg gjort av Chapinlibrary vid 4:58 pm (EST) Jun 7, 2008

Paola, 313 Viragos now! Wow! Only 276 behind you.
Tiffin

inlägg gjort av tiffin vid 7:32 pm (EST) May 27, 2008

Yes, my book buying compulsion has gotten worse since I came here to LT--I have access to so many more recommendations from readers I admire! Thanks for stopping by my profile.

inlägg gjort av sussabmax vid 2:26 pm (EST) May 19, 2008

Oh - It's Karen by the way - thanks for the help. : )

inlägg gjort av imanivrn vid 6:09 am (EST) May 12, 2008

Thanks for getting back to me. I am mostly interested in history or literature. Something that would give me an "insiders view" of Italy. I like to read travel memoirs but I don't think that they will necessarily give me an accurate picture of what the culture is really like or how people who live there think. I will be traveling to Florence, Venice and Positano.

inlägg gjort av imanivrn vid 6:07 am (EST) May 12, 2008

aluvalibri,
Someone on the "What are you reading" thread suggested I leave you a message. I will be visiting Italy, hopefully this fall, and would like to so some reading first in order to learn more about it, learn some culture etc. Can you give me some good suggestions? Thanks --- I appreciate it.

inlägg gjort av imanivrn vid 8:29 am (EST) May 10, 2008

Paola,

I may in New York in November. I have relatives from Sweden who are coming to run in the NYC Marathon. Those Swedes, they're too physically fit for their own good.

inlägg gjort av urania1 vid 2:04 pm (EST) May 8, 2008

Hi Paola,

Yes, I am in the US, albeit reluctantly. I'd rather be in Sweden or Finland, or Iceland. But alas, every time I make a break for it, I find myself herded back to Tennessee or North Carolina by family obligations or remunerative work. One of these days, though, I am going to go on walk-about, leaving family, friends, colleagues, and everyone else to wonder just where in the world I am. In the meantime, like Plato, I've appointed myself gadfly of the small southern town in which I live. I looked through about half of your entire library. I’m envious. But I put several books on my wish list. Since, you are an Italian transplant, I thought you might be able to provide me a list of the best Italian authors. I have a few. And I’ve read more than actually show up in my library. My favorite 20th-century Italian author is Dacia Maraini. Her book [The Silent Duchess] is a masterpiece – a nicely layered psychological analysis, an exploration of women and silence, and women’s construction of self.

Mary

inlägg gjort av urania1 vid 1:54 pm (EST) May 3, 2008

Most of my books are in Norwegian, but I've got some in English, too (Shakespeare, George Orwell, Jane Austen etc.)
Thanks for adding my library to your "interesting libraries".

kik.

inlägg gjort av kjellika vid 6:01 pm (EST) Apr 17, 2008

Hello Paola,

I was on a Barbara Pym rampage last year and read her books. The wonderful thing is she is the sort of author to read and re-read. Her autobiography is fabulous "A Very Private Eye ...", see my library.

Jayne

inlägg gjort av mrspurdy vid 9:25 am (EST) Apr 10, 2008

Hello again, Paola! I see that you recently acquired Murder of Medici Princess. Have you read it yet? I'd love to know what you think of it, as we have similar tastes in biographies, to help me decide whether to buy it. You might also enjoy Karen Essex's historical novel about the d'Este sisters, Leonardo's Swans, which I recently finished.

inlägg gjort av Imprinted vid 7:46 pm (EST) Apr 3, 2008

Hi Paola,

Thanks for the note - maybe we'll see you there. :)

cheers,
Dawn

inlägg gjort av BookBuzz vid 12:42 pm (EST) Mar 24, 2008

Hi Paola,

My name is Dawn Connolly and I am a LibraryThing member and a librarian at Toronto Public Library. I see that you have included “The Outlander” in your library. I run an online book club called Book Buzz and this month we are just getting into a discussion of the book. It’s a friendly group, very relaxed, and we’d love to hear from you, too.

Our website is: http://bookbuzz.torontopubliclibrary.ca

We are also very lucky to be hosting a live online chat with the author, Gil Adamson, on Thursday, March 27, 12 noon- 1 pm (local time). Please feel free to join in.

Thanks,
Dawn

inlägg gjort av BookBuzz vid 6:19 pm (EST) Mar 19, 2008