Streamsong #5 - Winter coming early; Curling up with books

This lovely photograph was taken earlier this month by a longtime friend of mine, Jan Phillips. These are two of her horses at Forest Edge Appaloosas west of Missoula. Both her photographs and horses are amazing!

Winter has come early this year to Montana. This is a photo of my place I shared from a freak storm at the end of September - almost unheard of to have snow in the valley in September. Not to mention the trees are covered with green leaves!

I'm Janet. Welcome to my thread!

I've been a member of LT since 2006.

I retired in the fall of 2016 from my career as a technician in an NIH research lab. I'm now enjoying all the things I never had time to do.

I live in the mountains of western Montana along Skalkaho Creek. I'm about half way between Glacier and Yellowstone National Parks - so if you're travelling or vacationing in the area, I'd love to meet you.

What do I read? A bit of everything. I enjoy literary fiction, mysteries and the occasional feel good cozy. I'm slowly working my way through 1001 Books to Read Before You Die (actually 1300 + books since I use the combined version spreadsheet). I'm also working my way around the world in a global reading challenge. About half the books I read are non-fiction.

I have Appaloosa horses and raise a foal or two each year.

This is a fall photo of my only foal this year. As you can see, he does not have Appaloosa color, but due to his dun base color (plus another gene or two), he has quite a few stripes above his knees and hocks and across his withers (shoulders). This can be a characteristic of dun horses of any breed and is called 'primitive markings'.



It tickles me to have an Appaloosa with stripes instead of spots!

CURRENTLY READING

- Bitterroot: A Salish Memoir of Transracial Adoptopion - Susan Devan Harness - 2018 - library
- Blow-Up: And Other Stories - Julio Cortázar - 1967- short stories - lit seminar
- Heal Yourself With Sound & Music - Don Campbell - audiobook - library sale 2019
- The Moravian Night - Peter Handke - 2007 - Literature Seminar; 2019 Nobel Prize - Global Reading: Austria author - Kindle
- Malina - Ingeborg Bachman - Lit Seminar; Global Reading - Austria -
- We Were Eight Years in Power - Ta-Nehisis Coates - RLBC - Kindle
- The Dance: Moving to the Rhythms of Your True Self - Oriah Mountain Dreamer - May RandonCat - Book to do with dancing; ROOT acquired 2008 = 11 ROOT points
- Brotopia- Emily Chang 2018 - PBS/NYT Now Read This Bookclub; acq'd 2019
- The Bedside Book of Bastards - Dorothy Johnson - March 75'ers NF challenge: True Crime - ROOT 2014 = 5 Root points
- Democracy in Chains - Nancy K. MacLean - 2017 - Real Life Book Club - acq'd 2019
- These Truths: A History of the United States - Jill Lepore - 2018 - acquired 2019
- Bird By Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life - Anne Lamott - 1994; ROOT acq'd 2013 = 6 ROOT points

COMPLETED BUT NOT REVIEWED

- The Starless Sea - Erin Morgenstern - 2019 - library
- Beyond Market Value: A Memoir of Book Collecting and the World of Venture Capital by Annette Campbell-White - 2019 - LTER

FIRST QUARTER

January

1. Secondhand Time - Svetlana Alexievich - 2013- Lit seminar; Global Reading: Russia (additional book); book acquired 2018 = ROOT #1/50 = 1 point/225
2. The Holy or the Broken: Leonard Cohen, Jeff Buckley, and the Unlikely Unlikely Ascent of "Hallelujah" - Alan Light - 2012 - library
3. Lonesome Dove - Larry McMurty - Real Life Book Club selection January 2019 (book acq'd 2018= ROOT #2/50 - 1 ROOT point =2/225
4. The Whole Town's Talking - Fannie Flagg - 2016; acq'd 2017 = ROOT #3/50 - 2 points 4/225 audiobook in the car;
5. My Name is Asher Lev - Chaim Potok - 1972 - January American Author Challenge - ROOT #4/50; Acq'd 2016 = 3 ROOT points - 7/225)
6. Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil - John Berendt - 1994 - 75'ers NF Challenge- Award winner; acq'd 2018 - ROOT #5/50 - acq'e 2018 =1 ROOT point (8/225)
7. The Burgess Boys - Elizabeth Strout - 2013 - RandomCat - Your Name in Print - acq'd 2014 = ROOT #6/50 /5 ROOT points=13/225

February

8. The Expedition to the Baobab Tree: A Novel - Wilma Stockenstrom - 1981; Lit Seminar; Global Reading Challenge: South Africa; acq'd 2019
9. Well-Read Black Girl - Glory Edim - 2018 - library
10. Astrophysics for People in a Hurry - Neil deGrasse Tyson - 2017; 75'ers Feb NF challenge: science; audiobook; library
11. Becoming - Michelle Obama - 2018 - library -
12. The Story of a New Name - Elena Ferrante - 2012; SeriesCat - translated series; library
13. The Poet X -Elizabeth Acevedo - 2018; library
14. Last Friends - Jane Gardam - 2013 - group read - library
15. Nerve - Dick Francis - 1964 - group read - acq'd 2019 as part of omnibus

MARCH

16. The Tongue's Blood Does Not Run Dry - Assia Djebar - 1997 - lit seminar - purchased 2019
17. Britten and Brülightly - Hannah Berry - 2009 - graphic novel - library
18. The Wife - Meg Wolitzer - 2003 - PBS/NYT Feb book club; Global Reading: Finland (partial location); library
19. Eight Cousins - Louisa May Alcott - 1875 - Feb American author group read; ROOT - uncatalgoued =1 ROOT point; #7/50 and 14/225 ROOT points; library
20. Song of the Quarkbeast - Jasper Fforde - 2011 - SeriesCat: Favorite Author - library
21. Invisible: The Forgotten Story of the Black Woman Lawyer Who Took Down America's Most Powerful Mobster by Stephen L. Carter - 2018 - LTER; ROOT # 8/50; acq'd 2018 = 1 ROOT point 15/225)
22. Ghost Wall: A Novel - Sarah Moss - 2018 - 2019 Bailey's Prize Long list; library
23. The Sunday Philosophy Club - Alexander McCall Smith - 2004 - SeriesCat - Favorite authors; ROOT #9/50; acq'd 2012 = 7 ROOT points (22/225)
24.My Sister the Serial Killer - Oyinkan Braithwaite - Women's Prize Longlist; Global Reading: Nigeria - 2018 - library
25. Vinegar Girl - Anne Tyler - 2016; Root # 10/50; acq'd 2017 (2 points =24/225) - listened to audio
26. The Power - Naomi Alderman - 2017 - PBS/NYT March Now Read This Bookclub; 2018 Women's Prize - library
27. Educated - Tara Westover - 2018 - Reread for RL Book Club; library
28. The Road - Cormac McCarthy - 2006 - April RandomCat: TOB; ROOT #11/50 acq'd 2016 = 3 ROOT points (27/225) - audiobook
29. On the Come Up - Angie Thomas - 2019 - library

SECOND QUARTER

April *reviewed

30*. Faces in the Crowd- Valeria Luiselli - 2011 - April Literature Seminar; Global Reading: Mexico; Acq'd 2019
31*. Lord of the Butterflies - Andrea Gibson - 2018 - acq'd 2019
32*. Now You See the Sky - Catharine H. Murray - 2018; LibraryThing Early Reviewer; Global Reading - Thailand; Root #12/50; acq'd 2018 = 1 ROOT point (28/225)
33.* The River- Peter Heller - 2019 - library
34. *Lillian Boxfish Takes a Walk- Kathleen Rooney - 2017 - group read - library
35. * The Marvels - Brian Selznick - 2015 GN - library
36. *Mouthful of Birds - Samanta Schweblin - Global Reading: Argentina - short stories - library
37. *Forfeit - Dick Francis - 1969 - Dick Francis group read - Reread - library
38. *A Mother's Reckoning - Sue Klebold - 2016 - RLBC - library
39. *When the English Fall - David Williams - 2017 - library
40. *Stitches: A Memoir - David Small - 2009 - library
41. *The Lone Winter - Ann Bosworth Greene - 1923 - library
42*. Solaris - Lem Stanislaw - 1961 - 1001 Books - Global Reading: Poland - library
43*. Lumberjanes Volume Three: A terrible Plan - Noelle Stevenson - 2016 - library

MAY

44. *The Round House - Louise Erdrich - 2012 - April RandomCat - related to the TOB; ROOT #13/50 - acquired 2016 = 3 ROOT points - (31/225) - listened to audio
45.* An Odyssey: A Father, A Son and an Epic - Daniel Mendelsohn- 2018 - PBS/NYT Book Club; Kindle; acq'd 2019
46.*Hong Kong Noir - Jason Y. Ng 2018 - LibraryThing Early Reviewers - 2018 - Global Reading: Hong Kong/China - Root #14/50- acq'd 2018 = 1 ROOT point (32/225)
47.* Sea Prayer - Khaled Hosseini - 2018 - library -
48.* Chief Joseph's Own Story - reprint of 1927 pamphlet ; NF Challenge - history; ROOT # 15/50; added to LT 2015 = 4 ROOT points 36/225)
49.* Love Songs From a Shallow Grave - Colin Cotterill - 2011 : May SeriesCat - next book in a favorite series; ROOT #16/50 acq'd 2013 - 6 ROOT points (42/225)
50.* The Hate You Give - Angie Thomas - 2018 - reread for RL bookclub
51. * Under the Shadows - Gwen Florio - 2018 - SeriesCat - Next in a favorite series - library

JUNE

52. *Women Talking - Miriam Toews - 2018 - global reading: Bolivia (Canadian author) - library
53. *The Demon Breed - James H. Schmitz - 1968 - Roni's group read - acq'd 2019
54. *Circe - Madeline Miller - 2018 -audiobook - library
55. *City of Jasmine - Olga Grjasnowa - 2019 - LTER - Global Reading -Syria (German author) - acq'd 2019
56. *Reflex - Dick Francis -1981- Reread - Group Read - Acq'd 2008 ROOT # 17/50; 11 ROOT points (53/225)
57. *The Fifth Season - N. K. Jemisin - 2015 - PBS/NYT Now Read This Book Club - library
58. *The Metamorphosis & Other Stories - Franz Kafka - Guy De Maupassant - 1915/1992 - Reading Globally: Translated SF; Global Reading: Czeck; 1001; audiobook - library
59. Photo History From Yellowstone Park - Bill and Doris Whithorn - 1970 - 75'er's Nonfiction Challenge: Picture Based Book; ROOT #18/50; acq'd 2013 = 6 ROOT points (59/225)

THIRD QUARTER READS * = reviewed

July

60. *World of Wonders - Robertson Davies - 1975; SeriesCat - Series definitely complete; library
61. *Fear: Trump in the White House - Bob Woodward - 2018 - June RLBC - library
62. *The Ghost Walker - R. D. Lawrence - 2009 - library
63. *The House of Broken Angels - Luis Alberto Urrea - 2018 - PBS/NYT Now Read This - library
64. *The Lost Words - Robert Macfarlane - 2017 - library
65. *Ruined by Reading - Lynne Sharon Schwartz - 1996 - library
66.* Good Talk: A Memoir in Conversations - Mira Jacob - 2018 - library
67. *Where the Crawdads Sing - Delia Owens - RLBC - acq'd 2019-
68. *Bivouac - Kwame Dawes - LTER - orig published 2010 - Global Reading: Jamaica - author born in Ghana) - audiobook - 2019
69. *Parable of the Talents - Octavia Butler - 1998 -June SeriesCat; Series Definitely Completed; library
70. *Queen of the Mountaineers: The Trailblazing Life of Fanny Bullock Workman - Cathryn J. Prince - 2019 - audiobook - LTER -

August

71. *Bring Jade Home: The True Story of a Dog Lost in Yellowstone - Michelle Caffrey - 2018 - purchased 2019
72. *The Monk: A Romance - Matthew Lewis - 1796 - 1001 - library - lyzard's amazing tutoring thread here: https://www.librarything.com/topic/142666#3622178
73. *The Rosie Result -Graeme Simsion - 2019 - SeriesCat - Set in a location you've never been - (Australian author) - library
74. *The Woman Warrior - Maxine Hong Kingston - 1975 - PBS/NYT Now Read This Book Club; purchased 2019 (but this is a reread and I know I already own it- just packed away) so ROOT #19/50; acquired pre 2006 = 13 ROOT points (72/225)
75. *Labyrinths - Jorge Luis Borges - 1962 - 1001 - Global Reading - Argentina; Reading Globally: translated speculative fiction - library
76. *Red Notice - Bill Browder - 2015 - Real Life Brown Bag Book Club - Global Reading: Russia; acq'd 2019

September
77. *The Obelisk Gate - N. K. Jemisin - 2016 - library -
78. *The Silmarillion - J. R. R. Tolkien - 1977 - SeriesCat: fantasy - audio and print; ROOT #20/50 acq'd pre 2006 = 13 ROOT points (85/225)
79. *The Moon by Whale Light - Dianne Ackerman - 1991 - NF Challenge: Animal, Vegetable Mineral - library
80. *Bernie - Ted Rall - 2016 - graphic novel - library
81. *The Secret Diary of Hendrik Groen - Hendrik Groen - 2018; Global Reading: Netherlands; audiobook, library
82. *The Luminaries - Eleanor Catton - 2013 - Global Reading: New Zealand; - library

* means reviewed.

FOURTH QUARTER READS

October

*83. Pride Prejudice and Other Flavors - Sonali Dev - 2019 - library
*84. The Way Home: Tales From a Life Without Technology - Mark Boyle - 2019 - Global Reading: Ireland - LTER
*85. Out in the Open: A Novel - Jesus Carrasco - 2013 - Global Reading: Spain - library
*86. With the Fire on High - Elizabeth Acevedo - 2019 - library
*87. The Great Believers - Rebecca Makkai - 2019 - library
*88. They Called Us Enemy - George Takei - 2019 - graphic non-fiction - library
*89. Beloved - Toni Morrison - 1987 - audiobook read by Toni Morrison - library - Reread
*90. Rat Race - Dick Francis - 1971 - library
*91. Two Sisters: A Father, His Daughters, and Their Journey into the Syrian Jihad by Asne Seierstad - RLBC - Kindle app

November
*92. Conversations With Friends - Sally Rooney - 2017 - PBS/NYT Sept: Now Read This Book Club; Global Reading- Ireland; - library
*93. One More River to Cross - Jane Kirkpatrick - 2019 - LTER
*94. Bloomland: A Novel - John Englehardt - 2019 - audiobook - LTER
*95. The Testaments - Margaret Atwood - 2019 - library
*96. The Sixth Extinction - Elizabeth Kolbert - 2014 -audiobook - library
*97. Magical Negro - Morgan Parker - 2019 - library
*98. If Beale Street Could Talk - James Baldwin - 1974 - library

DNF: Jaguar of Sweet Laughter - Diane Ackerman - 1991 - library

December

99. The Bookish Life of Nina Hill - Abbi Waxman - 2019 - library
100. The Spy and the Traitor - Ben Macintyre - 2018 - RLBC - library
101. The Notorious RBG - Irina Carmon - 2015 - audiobook - library
102. The Starless Sea - Erin Morgenstern - 2019 - library
103. Beyond Market Value: A Memoir of Book Collecting and the World of Venture Capital by Annette Campbell-White - 2019 - LTER

**** 103 BOOKS COMPLETED IN 2019 ****

Of the books I've read this year:
2 - cataloged into LT 2006
- cataloged into LT 2007
- cataloged into LT 2008
- cataloged into LT 2009
- cataloged into LT 2010
- cataloged into LT 2011
1 - cataloged into LT 2012
2 - cataloged into LT 2013
1 - cataloged into LT 2014
1 - cataloged into LT 2015
3 - acquired 2016
2 - acquired 2017
7 - acquired 2018
22 - acquired 2019
1 - acquired previously but not cataloged until 2019
62 - borrowed from library & elsewhere

FORMAT
16 - Audiobook
85 - Print
2 - Kindle App

GENRE

- 60 - Fiction (may fit into more than one category)

15 - general fiction
3 - chick lit/romance
1 - gothic/horror
3 - graphic novel
1 - historical fiction
18 - literary fiction
8 - mystery/thriller
1 - poetry novel
5 - short stories
12 - sf/dystyopia/fantasy
1 - western
9 - YA
4- 1001

- 34 - Non-Fiction (may fit into more than one category)

1 - arts
5 - biography
4 - graphic nonfiction
4 - history
18 - memoir
5 - outdoors/nature
4 - politics
2 - science
1 - true crime

- cartoons
1 - children's/juvenile
2 - essays
3 - poetry
- plays

AUTHORS

46 - Male Authors
56 - Female Authors
3 - Combination of male and female

61 - Authors who are new to me
35 - Authors read before

Rereads:
---- Beloved - Toni Morrison
---- Educated by Tara Westover
---- The Hate U Give - Angie Thomas
---- Reflex -Dick Francis -
---- The Woman Warrior - Maxine Hong Kingston

Multiple books read in 2019 by same author:
- Dick Francis: Nerve, Forfeit, Rat Race, Reflex
- N. K. Jemisin - The Fifth Season; The Obelisk Gate

Nationality of Author:
1 - Afghanistan
1 - Algeria
2 - Argentina
1 - Australia
4 - Canada
1 - China
1 - Czech Republic
1 - Dutch
15 - England/UK
1 - France
1 - German
2 - Ireland
1 - Italy
1 - Jamaica
1 - Mexico
1 - New Zealand
1 - Norway (majority of book set in Syria)
1 - Poland
1 - Russia
1 - Spain
1 - South Africa
63 - USA
? - multi - career in USA

Birthplace or residence of Author if different from nationality:
1 - Azerbaijan (German citizen)
1 - Born in Ghana
1 - New Zealand

Language Book Originally Published in:
1 - Africaans
1 - Chinese (NOS)
1 - Czech
1 - Dutch
86 - English
2 - French
1 - German
1 - Italian
1 - Norwegian
1 - Polish
1 - Russian
4 - Spanish

Original Publication Date
1 - 1796
1 - short stories last quarter of 1800's
1 - 1875
1 - 1915
1 - 1923
1 - 1927
1 - 1961
2 - 1962
1 - 1968
1 - 1969
1 - 1970 (?)
1 - 1971
1 - 1972
1 - 1974
2 - 1975
1 - 1977
2 - 1981
1 - 1985
1 - 1987
1 - 1991
1 - 1994
1 - 1996
1 - 1997
1 - 1998
1 - 2003
1 - 2004
1 - 2006
3 - 2009
1 - 2010
3 - 2011
4 - 2012
4 - 2013
1 - 2014
5 - 2015
6 - 2016
6 - 2017
24 - 2018
16 - 2019

The Global Challenge: Read five books from each of the 193 UN members plus a few additional areas.

Thread here: http://www.librarything.com/topic/188308

COUNTRIES VISITED IN 2019


visited 23 states (10.2%)
Create your own visited map of The World

CUMULATIVE : 90 countries visited: 20 countries completed with minimum of five books


visited 90 states (40%)
Create your own visited map of The World

More Challenge reads:

1001 Books to Read Before You Die Total books read: 169

- 1001 Thread here: http://www.librarything.com/topic/163173

Library Brown Bag Book Club/ Real Life Book Club
✔January: Lonesome Dove - Larry McMurty
Reading February 28: Democracy in Chains by Nancy Maclean
✔March 28: Educated by Tara Westover
✔April 25: A Mother’s Reckoning by Sue Klebold
✔May 30: The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas
✔June 27: Fear by Bob Woodward
✔July 25: Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens
✔August 29: Red Notice by Bill Browder
( Reread) -September 26: We Were Eight Years in Power: an American Tragedy by Ta-Nehisi Coates
✔October 31: Two Sisters: a Father, His Daughters, and Their Journey into the Syrian Jihad by Asne Seierstad
Reading November 21: The Traitor and the Spy by Ben Macintrye

PBS/NYT NOW READ THIS BOOKCLUB
January: Heart: A History - Sandeep Jauhar
✔ February: The Wife - Meg Wolitzer
✔ March: The Power - Naomi Alderman
**Reading** April: Brotopia - Emily Chang
✔ May: An Odyssey: A Father, A Son and an Epic - Daniel Mendelsohn
✔ June: The Fifth Season - N. K.Jemisin - req from library
✔July: The House of Broken Angels - Luis Alberto Urrea - 2018
✔August: The Woman Warrior - Maxine Hong Kingston

RL Literature Seminar
✔ January 8: The Hour of the Star by Clarice Lispector - 1001 books - Brazil
✔ February 5: The Expedition to the Baobab Tree by Wilma Stockenstrom - South Africa
✔ March 5: The Tongue's Blood Does Not Run Dry by Assia Djebar - Algeria
✔ April 2: Faces in the Crowd by Valeria Luiselli - Mexico
-summer break ****
Oct 1: Malina - Ingeborg Bachman
Nov 5: Moravian Night - Peter Handke

The most difficult challenge of all is to read books already on my shelves:

My biggest challenge is that I keep hauling books home faster than I can read them and the piles keep growing larger. These numbers include the library books that I have at home.

As of 10/1/2019: 508 books on MT TBR
As of 9/1/2019: 515 books on physical MT TBR
As of 8/1/2019: 515 books on physical MT TBR
As of 7/1/2019: 516 books on physical MT TBR
As of 5/01/2019: 509 books on physical MT TBR
As of 4/01/2019: 510 books on physical MT TBR
As of 3/01 2019: 516 books on physical MT TBR
As of 02/01/2019: 513 books on physical Mt TBR
As of 01/01/2019: 510 books on physical Mt TBR

As of 01/01/2018: 510 books on physical Mt TBR
As of 01/01/2017: 481 books on physical Mt TBR
As of 01/01/2016: 459 books on physical Mt TBR

Reading Our My Own Tomes - ROOTS - Challenge

I want to read fifty books acquired before 01/01/2019. That was my same goal as last year, and I achieved only about half of it.




To Encourage myself to read older books on MT TBR, I also give myself points based on how old they are:

Here's how it works:

1. ROOTS cataloged into LT in 2006 -- 13 points
2. ROOTS cataloged into LT in 2007-- 12 points
3. ROOTS cataloged into LT in 2008-- 11 points
4. ROOTS cataloged into LT in 2009-- 10 points
5. ROOTS cataloged into LT in 2010-- 9 points
6 .ROOTS cataloged into LT in 2011 -- 8 points
7. ROOTS cataloged into LT in 2012 -- 7 points
8. ROOTS cataloged into LT in 2013 -- 6 points
9. ROOTS cataloged into LT in 2014 -- 5 points
10. ROOTS cataloged into LT in 2015 -- 4 points
11. ROOTS cataloged into LT in 2016 -- 3 points
12. ROOTS cataloged into LT in 2017 -- 2 points
12. ROOTS not previously entered into LT but which have been around the house pre-2019 - 1 point
13. ROOTS cataloged into LT in 2018 - 1 point

Point Goal: The proposed 50 books off my shelves should add up to 225 ROOT points this year.

ROOT points completed: 42 - need to make a new counter

Books Acquired 2019

54 - Total
20 and 1/3 - Read
8 - Reading
4 - Reference/Cookbook (not on tbr list)

Read 2020: 3

1. Heart: A History - Sandeep Jauhar - 2018 - Jan PBS/NYT Now Read This
**Reading** 2. These Truths: A History of the United States - 2018 LT group read
✔ 3. The Expedition to the Baobab Tree - Wilma Stockenstrom - Feb lit seminar
4. Red Eagles of the Northwest - Francis Haines - 1939 - collectible 1/26/2019
**Reading** 5. Dick Francis Omnibus Seven - Dick Francis -
--✔ a.Nerve- group read
-- b. Blood Sport
-- c. In the Frame
6. Shallow Diggin's: Tales from Montana's ghost Towns by Jean Davis - FOL rack 2/5/2019
**Reading** 7. Democracy in Chains by Nancy Maclean - Feb RLBC - 2/5/2019
Reference 8. Indian Instant Pot Cookbook - Urvashi Pitre - Darryl made me do it! 2/12/2019
✔9. City of Jasmine - Olga Grjasnowa - LTER - 2/13/2019 (Syria)
✔ 10. Lord of the Butterflies - Andrea Gibson - 3/111/2019
✔ 11. Faces in the Crowd - Valeria Luiselli - Lit seminar - 3/11/2019
Reference 12. Handbook of the Canadian Rockies - Ben Gadd - Reference (Rec by Glacier Institute) 4/01
Reference 13. Roadside Geology of the Northern Rockies - David D Alt - 4/2/FOL
14. Montana Women Writers - Caroline Patterson 4/2 FOL
15. Slow Horses - Mick Herron 4/2/2019 FOL
✔ 16. The Way Home: Tales from a Life Without Technology - Mark Boyle - 2019 - LTER
17. Start Your Farm - Forrest Pritchard - 2018 - Farmer Bootcamp Class
**Reading** 18. Brotopia - Emily Chang - 2019 April - PBS/NYT Now Read This Bookclub
✔ 19. An Odyssey: A Father, a Son, and an Epic by Daniel Mendelsohn - PBS/NYT Now Read This Bookclub - May 2019
20. The Thread That Binds the Bones (The Chapel Hollow Novels Book 1) - Nina Kiriki Hoffman - Kindle - Roni's fault! 5/5/2019
✔21. The Hate U Give - Angie Thomas - Previously read; copy for my library
22. Celestial Bodies - Alharthi, Jokha - Oman - Winner International Booker Prize 5-14
23. White Trash - Nancy Isenberg - Mother's Day present from Dan
✔ 24. Bivouac - Kwame Dawes - Jamaica - audiobook - LTER
25. Monkey Beach - Eden Robinson - GR group read
✔26. Sea Prayer - Khaled Hosseini - purchased copy for my library after reading a library copy
27. Evening is the Whole Day - Preeta Samarasan - GR group read
✔28. The Demon Breed - James H. Schmitz - May - Roni's group read
✔29. Queen of the Mountaineers: The Trailblazing Life of Fanny Bullock Workman - Cathryn J. Prince - 2019 - LTER
✔ 30. Where the Crawdads Sing - Delia Owens - RLBC - acq'd July 2019
✔31. Beyond Market Value: A Memoir of Book Collecting and the World of Venture Capital - Annette Campbell-White - 2019 - LTER 7/2019
✔32. Bring Jade Home: The True Story of a Dog Lost in Yellowstone - Michelle Caffrey - 2018 - (Costco -rec by Lucille & others) 7/31/2019
33. The Art of Racing in the Rain - Garth Stein - 2008 - (Costco) 7/31/2018
✔34. The Woman Warrior - Maxine Hong Kingston - 1977 - August PBS/NYT Now Read This - Amazon used
✔35. Red Notice: A True Story of High Finance, Murder, and One Man's Fight for Justice by Bill Browder - Aug RLBC - Amazon used
✔ 36. One More River to Cross - Jane Kirkpatrick - LTER
37. Trump: A Graphic Biography - Ted Rall - amazon - 9/2019
***Reading*** (Reread) 38. We Were Eight Years in Power - Ta-Nehisi Coates - Reread - RLBC - Kindle app 9/2019
✔39. Two Sisters: A Father, His Daughters, and Their Journey into the Syrian Jihad by Arne Seierstad - RLBC (Kindle app)
✔ 2020 40. Heal Yourself With Sound & Music - Don Campbell - audiobook - library sale 2019
41. Reference MONTANA SEAMLESS USGS TOPOGRAPHIC MAPS ON CD-ROM (10 CD's) - library sale 2019
✔ 42. Bloomland: A Novel - John Englehardt - 2019 - audiobook - LTER
***Reading*** 43. Malina - by Ingeborg Bachmann - Lit Seminar (Kindle app)
✔ 2020 44. Moravian Night - Peter Handke - Lit Seminar - Kindle app
45. Zeitoun - Dave Eggers - library freebie
✔ 45. The Spy and the Traitor - Ben Macintyre - 2018 - RLBC
46. Shanghai Faithful - Jennifer Lin - BB from benitastrnad
47. The Beadworks - Beth Piatote - 2019 - from msf
48. The Night Watchman - Louise Erdrich - 2020 - ARC from Sean at book group
49. Aloha Rodeo - David Wolman and Julian Smith -2019 - ARC from Sean at book group
✔ 202050. Blow-Up - Julio Cortazar - 1963 - January Literature Seminar
51. American Prison - Shane Bauer - Feb PBS/NYT Now Read This - Kindle
52. The Singing Bones: A Novel of the Life and Times of Naturalist Georg Wilhelm S… - Stephen Spotte- LTER
53. The Starch Solution - John A. McDougal - Christmas gift
54. Children of Blood and Bone - Tomi Adeyemi - 2019 - Christmas gift


List of books acquired in 2018:
http://www.librarything.com/topic/288129#6406196

Open for Business!

Happy new thread, Janet!

Such a treat, all those horse pictures. Those stripes on your foal where once considered undesired signs of fall back. Luckely we know better now. He looks lovely with one white foot and the white on his head.

>9 streamsong: I love to browse through your statistics.

HI Janet, Happy new thread. Love having a peek at your reading choices!
Wonderful photos of your beautiful horses. Thanks for sharing and thanks for pointing out the stripes. Your Appaloosa is a beauty. Recently watched "Chasing Wild Horses" a doc about a fashion photographer who goes to Sable Island on Canada's east coast (near Halifax, Nova Scotia) to take photos. If you get a chance to see the full doc I would greatly recommend it. It is stunning! Here is a short to give you an idea.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4aeg35Bcvho
Happy reading and happy early winter!

>15 FAMeulstee: Hi Anita and welcome!

The stripes on the foal are common with dun horses in American breeds that trace back to mustangs: quarter horses, appaloosas, paints, etc. It actually takes both the dun gene and one of two other genes (nd1 or nd2) to create the stripes. I've heard old timers say that they are a sign of 'grit' or heart in a horse - but no negativity about them on this side of the pond. They are just a color. The International Buckskin Horse Association registers horses on a point system - and stripes are extra points.

You are right that they are very ancient coloration - seen on zebras and Prezawalski's horses



This photo of a Prezawalski's horse is from the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute (SCBI).

My statistics, like my reviews, are not quite up to date. I am working on them!

>16 mdoris: Hi Mary! Thanks for stopping by. That looks like a beautiful documentary and I'll keep an eye out for it.

83. Pride Prejudice and Other Flavors - Sonali Dev - 2019
– library
-

From the book” Award-winning author Sonali Dev writes Bollywood-style love stories that let her explore issues faced by women around the world while still indulging her faith in happily-ever-afters.”

This is one of the first shear romance novels I’ve read in years. It's a pastiche of P & P which features an Indian American family with a father descended from royalty, daughter Trisha who is an award winning neurosurgeon, a son running for governor and other successful and rich dignitaries and cousins.

Trisha’s latest patient is an artist who has a brain tumor that will kill her. Trisha knows she can use her newly invented neurosurgery machine to save her, but her patient’s vision will be lost.

And then Trisha meets the patient’s brother, DJ, a gifted chef who is catering several events for her family. The world moves under Trisha’s feet. But can she see DJ other than as ‘the hired help?’

Entertaining, light and frothy. If you’re looking for romance, you might enjoy this one.

Happy new thread, Janet. I'm loving the snow and horse photos!

84. The Way Home: Tales From a Life Without Technology - Mark Boyle - 2019
- Global Reading: Ireland
- LTER


“Many years ago, I decided that instead of spending my life making a living, I wanted to make living my life.” P 250

I’m not unfamiliar with people living off the grid; I live in Montana and it’s not unusual to hear about those living the lifestyle.

This memoir by Irish author Mark Boyle, is quite different, though.

He eschews every bit of technology – no emergency cell phones or computers, no self-generated electricity. Instead he lives on a three acre plot in rural Ireland. He is surrounded by neighbors living the modern lifestyle. He bicycles everywhere, takes only public transportation (not widely available in rural Ireland) and refuses even to hitch hike.

He celebrates that his lifestyle keeps him mindful and engaged with his daily life instead of having life rush by without being lived. He believes that although he has far fewer human contacts, the ones he has are more meaningful.

His days are mostly spent with the chores to keep him alive: raising food, improving soil, gardening, fishing and debating the ethics of hunting. He also enjoys brewing wine and beer through scavenged fruit and local plants and keeps a free hostel so others can observe his lifestyle.

As a writer, he even considers making his own paper and ink. He writes his journal and articles with a regular wooden pencil, but he questions even that:

“I buy my pencils from the small art shop in our nearest town, specifically because the owner and his wife are trying to get the money together to jack in the world of business, and, instead, move to a smallholding in Connemara. If he were to give me a guided tour of the entire process of making one – from the building of the roads to get the workers from suburbia to the factories, to the extraction and felling of the materials, etc. – I wouldn’t want to buy a single pencil. But he doesn’t and I do. “ p 244

It’s a tough lifestyle, though, and even his beloved partner can’t cope with the very bare bones life and, eventually, and sadly, decides to leave.

It’s an interesting story and well-written, but he has not convinced me that this lifestyle is an attractive one. When does simplicity become mere subsistence?

Four stars because it will make you think, even if, like me, you decide the lifestyle is not for you.

*********

Since we talked about Robert Macfarlane's book The Lost Words on a previous thread, I thought I'd add this bit where Mark Boyle is talking about the book:

“The smartphone generation, having never played with them, will not miss words like ‘conkers’. It’s odd – when I was growing up in 1990’s Ireland on a working-class council estate on the edgelands of a struggling town, no one ever asked me if I missed anything about the natural world. But the moment I choose bluebells over bullet-points I’ve found everyone want to know what I miss most about machines.” P27-28.

>20 ronincats: Hi Roni! I'm glad you're enjoying the photos. Right now there is no snow on the ground (yay!) and temps this morning are at 30 so we should have another above feezing day..

Happy Friday, Janet. Happy New Thread! Love the appaloosa toppers! Gorgeous! Boo, to the early snow. I hope you are on the mend. I miss seeing you around. Glad to hear the books are treating you fine.

Hi Janet - Lovely photos at the top. Happy new thread. We've had a COLD November, so it is going to be a long winter here, too.

Found and starred!

You answered my unposted question about the value of stripes on your colt.

Are you planning to keep or sell him?

Oh, wow, how about a white thoroughbred?

https://www.bloodhorse.com/horse-racing/articles/237072/end-of-an-era-for-patche...

>23 msf59: Hi Mark! Welcome to my new thread and thanks for stopping by. .

My knee is about the same. I'm getting stronger, doing PT at home everyday and formal PT twice a week. I see the doctor on Wednesday - hoping for good news. I'm almost six months into this.

I bought a used exercise bike and lugged it into the house yesterday. Wow! It's a lot bigger than I thought. Like a Christmas tree, it seems to have grown on the way home after I bagged it. (Who needs a couch, anyway?)

But my knee is so stiff and sore after the formal PT that I hope this will help keep it loosened up.

>24 BLBera: Hi Beth - Welcome to my new abode! Boo to cold, snowy Novembers. Looks like a lovely day out there today - we may even get up to 50 degrees. .

>25 fuzzi: >26 fuzzi: Hi Lor! I'm glad you found my new thread..

The stripes are a bit unusual. He's a 'good' color - meaning a color people will buy if they want a horse that's a bit different. He's a nice colt, sired by a Canadian national halter champion. But unfortunately, there isn't a great market for solid Appaloosas. I will register him in the buckskin registry (IBHA), too, as there are IBHA shows in this area.

I'm one horse over my self-imposed limit, so 1 or 2 will need to go. They've been pretty much lawn ornaments this year due to my knee - I need to get the colt and the yearling handled more so they will be appealing in the spring.

>26 fuzzi: Yup, the white thoroughbreds have been around for a while. There is a ranch or two that specialize in them. Again, some people want something different. Thanks for sharing the link. That mare is the 7th generation of white TB's. Who knew?

Need to start this one for book club on Thursday:



And I'm enjoying:



as well as my audiobook:

>17 streamsong: Latest I read about Przewalski horses was that based on DNA research, they might not be "real wild" horses, but rather a very old lineage of "feral" horses.

Happy new one!

Love the topper :)

>30 streamsong: I love these current reads! I want to get to this Macintyre and I enjoyed, both the Atwood and The Sixth Extinction.

>31 FAMeulstee: That's really interesting, Anita. I hadn't read that, so thanks for sharing.

I did the quickie run and read on wikipedia if anyone is interested.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Przewalski's_horse

>32 figsfromthistle: . Thank you, figs. I hope all is going well..

>33 msf59: . They are great reads, Mark! What other Macintyres have you read?

Last night I went to see a readers' theater (parts read but not acted out) of Equus.

I had not seen it before, but am old enough to remember the furor when it first came out in the 70's.

The local group did a wonderful job, but it was very sparsely attended. I went alone, because the few people I asked to go with me had seen it and didn't want to see it again.

Forty years after this written, I question whether a person who abuses animals like this could ever 'return to normal' and have a 'normal' life.

Any thoughts?

Hi Janet and happy new thread!

Fascinating bits about horses and stripes and primitive markings. Thanks for sharing.

Happy new thread, Janet. Your foal is very handsome. Is that the first one that you have had with those markings?

>83 fuzzi: I had to laugh when you called Sonali Dev's book entertaining, light and frothy. That is the kind of book I would imagine she would write after attending a session on writing with her at the Surrey International Writers' Conference. She is very bubbly and talkative.

Very atmospheric photo, Janet for your topper.

Happy new thread.

>37 karenmarie: Hi Karen and thank you!

>38 Familyhistorian: Hi Meg! Thank you for the complement and yes, it is the first I've had both with the dun base color and the primitive markings.

Lucky you to have been able to attend that conference! Have you read any of Sonali Dev's books? I bet it was a fun session.

>39 PaulCranswick: Hi Paul and thanks for stopping by.

My friend is a wonderful photographer, isn't she?

Hi, Janet. Lovely photos up top, and your striped Appaloosa foal looks healthy and good. A friend of mine had an Appaloosa named Sunny in northern Michigan that we all vied to ride - he was such a pleasure to be on.

I'm glad you had a good time with, Prejudice and Other Flavors. Me, too. I look forward to your comments on With the Fire on High. It's one of my favorite YA books of the year. Nice follow-up to the quite different Poet X.

Happy new thread!

>41 jnwelch: Hi Joe! Thanks for stopping in and your comments on the horses..

I'm trying to get caught up with some LTER reviews, which are way overdue. I really need to get those done first before I go onwards with my other reviews. Sigh. Elizabeth Acevedo is one to watch.

>42 drneutron: Thank you, Jim.

I'm open for book club suggestions. We are nominating books now which will be voted on in our December potluck for the whole of 2020.

I think our book club which is library sponsored had a great year - we have 18 active members and have averaging 12-15 at meetings.

Unfortunately, someone left an anonymous message with our librarian sponsor saying our book choices were anti-American and she has really taken this criticism to heart.

She's also had some complaints that the books chosen for 2019 had only a few copies in the library system (true), and thinks we should only nominate books with ten copies or more in our system comprised of 30+ small libraries. That's a toughie.

>44 streamsong: does your library have electronic copies available?

I can sort of understand someone saying the choices were anti-American. There are so many books I see recommended that seem to tear down traditional American values, but so few that show the other side. I would suggest that a balance would be a good thing to consider.

Now I'll go duck under my desk to avoid the incoming...three...two...one... ;)

>45 fuzzi: Hi Lor!

Nah, nobody gets bombed - freedom of speech is one of those great American values. The last time I lost my temper here was when someone who shall be unnamed criticized my dog care.

The books are nominated by those who attend the club and then voted on at our December potluck. Absentee votes are allowed; absentee nominations are allowed. But if they are not nominated, they can't be voted on. :) We are a rather left leaning group - some more than others, and we are all interested in current events.

It makes me very sad that a different political view is seen as 'Anti-American'.

I'm also saddened by the phrase 'traditional American values'. These depend on where you grew up, who your parents were and what they believed, what religion, denomination or lack of that you embrace, the diversity where you live and one's own life experiences. Of course these are all framed by the constitution, but even parts of that are up for debate.

Anyhow, here's the list of books from last year from >11 streamsong::

Library Brown Bag Book Club/ Real Life Book Club
✔January: Lonesome Dove - Larry McMurty
Reading February 28: Democracy in Chains by Nancy Maclean
✔March 28: Educated by Tara Westover
✔April 25: A Mother’s Reckoning by Sue Klebold
✔May 30: The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas
✔June 27: Fear by Bob Woodward
✔July 25: Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens
✔August 29: Red Notice by Bill Browder
( Reread) -September 26: We Were Eight Years in Power: an American Tragedy by Ta-Nehisi Coates
✔October 31: Two Sisters: a Father, His Daughters, and Their Journey into the Syrian Jihad by Asne Seierstad
November 21: The Traitor and the Spy by Ben Macintrye

Skipping ahead to one of my late but much LTER reviews:



93. One More River To Cross – Jane Kirkpatrick – 2019- LTER

This is an historical novel of the 1844 Murphy - Stephens – Townsend wagon train, the first wagons brought from the States over the Sierra Nevada mountains into California.

In the late fall of the year, the party was trapped by snows too deep to continue. Part of the group, including an ill woman, set off to the south on horseback along a path that passed Lake Tahoe. A passing Indian had told them this was the best route, but that wagons could not get through.

Time and time again the remaining party split.

At Lake Stephens three men were left behind with the heavy wagons full of trade goods. Eventually, these three also split up, with two following the main group and one sick young man left behind.

Eight women, 17 children and one elderly man were left with the remainder of the wagons a few miles beyond. The other men continued on, hoping to reach Sutter’s Fort and mount a rescue party.

And then, in a stranger than fiction twist, once the men arrived at Sutter’s Fort, they let themselves be conscripted by Sutter into a war with the Spanish instead of rescuing the rest of their party. By this time, those left behind had been reduced to eating boiled leather and pine needle tea due to the utter lack of game in the deep snow.

At first, I was dizzied by the number of characters. I also wished for a bit more flair in the writing. Eventually, though, I was captured by the story.

I found the last chapter fascinating, where author Jane Kirkpatrick tells how she found a reference to this forgotten story and tracked down published journals and primary references to bring this out of the shadows.

A good read for those who like stories of pioneers and endurance. 3.8 stars

I received a copy of this through LIbraryThing Early Reviewers in exchange for an unbiased review.

>46 streamsong: Interesting list of books covered this year for your Brown Bag Book Club. Would be interested in the list decided upon for next year when that happens as I am no longer in a bookclub. The one I belonged to before my move celebrated 40 years together last Januaary. It was an incredible/wonderful group of women!

Lovely horse pictures, Janet. My 6-year-old granddaughter Molly is horse-crazy so I may share them with her next time she is over here. I already bought her a beautiful book of horses for Christmas. She will love it. Just as I loved Hedrik Groen's Diary. I'm looking forward to reading the sequel early next year. Thanks again for bringing it to my attention.

Happy Saturday, Janet. Have a great weekend. Anymore snow? FYI- I am sending out the book today. Enjoy!

>46 streamsong: I enjoyed that post immensely and will keep the list too, Janet.

American values?

Surely:

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.
The Declaration of Independence (1776)

Shouldn't these basic tenets endure whichever ginger whinger inhabits the Executive for a painful spell.

>48 mdoris: Hi Mary! I believe our potluck to choose books is on December 11th, so I will post the list soon after that.

I haven't decided which book or two to nominate.

The Ghost Wall: A Novel would be the least controversial.
The Great Believers made me cry.

Books I haven't read but may suggest:

There, There
The Nickel Boys
oh darn I'm blanking out on the third one - I'll have to add it in a bit :)

I also haven't read The Underground Railroad and there is a book club set of it available (ten copies and questions)

I may be overthinking the whole thing.

>49 Donna828: Hi Donna - I'm glad you are enjoying the horse photos, and I would be tickled pink if your granddaughter also enjoys them.

I'll be expecting two foals in the spring, so there will inevitably be more photos to follow.

The vet just confirmed that the old gal with the blanket in >1 streamsong: will have a full sibling to my yearling.

Here's a not-so-good photo of that yearling big brother - it was taken early spring (before I was hurt) and he wasn't done shedding his winter coat.

>53 streamsong: Stunning picture Janet! I am watching The Crown season three and interested in the episode that show how smitten she was with horses, how they were her true passion. Nice that you will have two foals in the spring. Thanks for the book musings. >52 streamsong:. I haven't read The Underground Railway either. I must!

>51 PaulCranswick: Hi Paul - Great post! I agree wholeheartedly.

Many of the books in last year's list weren't political - but they were all great books.

Unfortunately in some conservative parts of America, 'traditional American values' are often mixed with Christian values. And anything Trump is for or against is not even up for discussion.

The church I loosely belong to is being split on the national level into two different denominations, over questions of LGBTQ. There is a meeting Sunday afternoon to try to determine which side this small church will join. Sigh.

>54 mdoris: Hi Mary - glad you enjoyed the photo even if it is somewhat of a mess. (horse dirty and not shed off, bad, cluttered background and all).

More than one foal is nice because it gives them someone their age to play with and hang together.

I've watched the first two seasons of The Crown and really enjoyed it. I haven't yet started watching season three.

>50 msf59: Whoops, Mark skipped you somehow.

Nope, the snow is gone - but another storm is expected to come in starting tomorrow.

Thank you so much for the book. With my interest in the Nez Perce, I'm really looking forward to reading The Beadworkers: Stories by Nez Perce author Beth Piatote.

Hmmm Native American themes are following me around once more.

The next-small-town-library-to-the-north showed an outstanding film called Neither Wolf nor Dog featuring a 91 year old Lakota elder.

Unfortunately, it was in the evening after my exhausting PT and, even though I was hugely enjoying the Native humor I know I missed a bit (jerked awake was there a snore?) , so I have just received the book from the library.

And I've also received another from the library with excellent reviews: Bitterroot: A Salish Memoir of Transracial Adoption.

.. and the knee report. Healing/strengthening continuing, but I have some inflammation going on from overuse :( I am now on an anti-inflammatory, more limited physical exercise and a break from PT. Cortisone is being threatened.

Hint to others: If you must tear up your knee, don't tear both the MCL and ACL at the same time ....

Hi, Janet. I loved The Hate U Give as a book; last night I watched the movie. It's pretty good, but I wish it had been better. The acting is excellent, but the director didn't quite pull it off at the level of the book, IMO. Too bad.

We're near the end of the first season of The Crown and loving it. What high quality acting! Claire Foy and Vanessa Kirby (Princess Margaret), in particular, are knockouts, and, as much as I like John Lithgow, I wasn't expecting him to be so convincing as Churchill.

Hi Janet - It seems like your book club reads a lot of nonfiction. A couple of the books that generated a lot of discussion in my group were Little Women, Bad Feminist, and Mothering Sunday. I did comment that I thought Frankissstein would generate a lot of discussion, but we haven't chosen that.

>46 streamsong: just looking for a balance 😉

>53 streamsong: love the spots on that baby!

Hi Janet. I had not realized how long it has been since I visited. I love that photo of the horses in the mist in your topper. Cold early, I know, but it makes for nice photographs. :-)

I'm struck by the phrase "anti-American." For something to be anti-American, it would need to be, well, anti-American. Literature that explores the diversity of the American experience is, in my mind, essentially American. Anyway, I hope the book club selections got sorted out in a way that mostly works for all the members.

Hi Janet.

Sorry that you're on a PT break and anti-inflammatories. This has gone on far too long. Sending healing thoughts.

I'll be interested in your RLBC's list for 2020. My RLBC, started in 1997 and still having 4 original members and now stabilized at 12, is totally left-leaning, which makes it fun in most ways because the atmosphere in the country is so polarized. No political discussion boycott, no watching what's said, no having to apologize to someone whose feelings get hurt. (unlike Thanksgiving, where 4 of our cousins are seriously right-leaning and political discussions will be banned.)

Our reading list for last year was, typically, almost all fiction whereas yours was almost all nonfiction. Is your reading group in Hamilton or Missoula or ?

>59 jnwelch: Hi Joe ! I also loved The Hate You Give. It was my 2019 suggestion for the bookclub, and while a few purists wouldn't read a YA book, those that did really liked it. I thought the movie was good, but they changed one detail - instead of reaching for his comb, the boy that was shot was reaching for a gun. It made it less morally atrocious, I suppose. When I was prepping for leading the book for the club, I found negative reviews and book protests by people who identified themselves as police men and women.

Yay for Crown!

I will have to wait until season 3 is on dvd since, due to all my trees, I can't live stream. :(

I'm currently enjoying the series, A Place To Come Home To which some brillliant LT'er suggested.

>60 BLBera: Hi Beth and thank you for the suggestions for the RLBC.

I am mulling all the choices over. We do read several nonfiction each year, but this year we did have an overly NF skew.

>61 fuzzi: Hi Lor - I appreciate your point of view, but unless some new members show up to nominate other books, we will likely follow in the same path. And actually I really enjoyed all the books we read this year.

Next year's full sibling to the colt in >53 streamsong: should be marked similarly. My stallion's genetics determine that when crossed with a solid colored mare, he will always sire a leopard.

The base color is more of a guess, since there are several possibilities.

And I'd dearly love to have a foal with 'indoor plumbing' - i.e. a filly (girl) rather than one with the 'outdoor plumbing'.

>62 EBT1002: "I'm struck by the phrase "anti-American." For something to be anti-American, it would need to be, well, anti-American. Literature that explores the diversity of the American experience is, in my mind, essentially American."

Ellen, this is beautiful and so well phrased. If you don't mind, I think I'll share it with the librarian who is the one in charge of our book club.

>63 karenmarie: Hi Karen! I haven't been on LT very much and I've missed everyone!

My knee is slowly getting less sore. Unfortunately, if this process is projected to take a year to heal, I still have a bit over six months left. :(

I think I received the best advice from my veterinarian. (Everyone I know that has been long-time into horses has knee stories.) He suggested I go back to wearing my brace full time until the soreness is gone.

Our book club is also a left leaning group in a very solidly right area. As we are sponsored by the local library, the lists of readings are on flyers throughout the library, and at times, when our meeting room is busy - such as during the book sale - we are in areas where are discussions can be overheard.

As such, the library is open to criticism. I hate to see it happen in this time of limited funding and people voting against tax levies.

I don't know if we can do much besides being very respectful to everyone's opinions during discussions

And the other late LTER review. Then I'll head back to my list of reviews and proceed forward.



94. Bloomland: A Novel - John Englehardt - 2019
- audiobook
– LTER

It’s finals week in a small agricultural college when a student armed with an automatic rifle steps into the library and starts firing. Twelve dead, lives shattered.

This book tells the story of the shooter, one of his teachers, and one of his victims who was the wife of the teacher.

It progressed from their stories before, the incident itself and then the aftermath.

All points of view are told in the second person – ‘You are walking down a hallway’. As I listened to the audiobook version, this made it somewhat hard to keep characters straight. Several times I back tracked and re-listened.

It’s a story from newspaper headlines, and the author’s attempt to give faces to the unimaginable. Unfortunately, I felt there were few new insights and little new ground in this book.

Three stars.

I received a copy through LibraryThing’s Early Reviewers Program in exchange for an honest review.

>65 streamsong: I appreciate your view, too, all views. I might not agree with others, but I do listen/read and don't automatically discount someone's opinion based upon their political leanings.

"I don't know if we can do much besides being very respectful to everyone's opinions during discussions"

Sounds good to me. :)

>69 fuzzi: Precisely, Lor. Somehow we've lost the tolerance to discuss issues in this country.

I know that you and I are on different sides of the political (and even Christian) spectra, but we've been friends here on LT for many years. Yay, us!

I don't want to speak too much about the books I've completed before I've reviewed them, but I did finish The Testaments.

I need to finish these three by Friday:



The Baldwin is on my list since I'd like to watch the film that came out this year.

The other two are poetry books to dip in and out of while I do a bit of cooking (mostly my all-fruit cranberry relish) to take to my friends' Thanksgiving dinner tomorrow.

I've finished The Magical Negro but want to revisit parts before I truly count it as finished.

>70 streamsong: we're an example of how it can be, SHOULD be done.

We both love books...

"we both love books" ...

Yup, finding commonalities is a great way to build bridges.

85. Out in the Open – Jesus Carrasco – 2013
- Global Reading: Spain
– library

In a dystopian world that is almost, but not quite, our world, a nameless boy is fleeing a horrifically abusive situation. He must cross a waterless expanse with little cover. His abuser, an evil man known as the bailiff and the bailiff’s gang which include the boy’s teacher and even the boy’s own father, cannot let him escape. The boy is well aware that most probably his journey will lead to his death, and yet he cannot stay.

Unexpectedly the boy comes across an old man, a goat herder. He is one of the few people known to live and travel this empty plain. But is he friend or foe?

The boy slowly learns to trust and rely on his new acquaintance. Even more slowly the boy learns confidence in himself.

The old herder adheres to a moral code of right and wrong, even in this evil world. Some reviewers point out the allegorical images of the goatherder/(shepherd) and his moral teachings. If so, to me it’s an Old Testament sort of morality at times meeting violence with violence, but at the same time stopping short of revenge.

It can be a tough read, but it is a page turner and is one of my favorite books of the year.

Janet, hope you had a very happy Thanksgiving!

>74 streamsong: What an interesting sound of book!

>75 mdoris: Thank you, Mary. I had dinner with friends and spoke with my son, and also my brother and sister-in-law on phone.

It was cold, but not too snowy, so travel was easy, although it was a little slick.

I hope your TG was wonderful, too!

I believe I may have gotten the rec for Out in the Open from Darryl's thread.

My friend's husband is famous for his special pie - and his special pie pan!





There is no way the photos do justice to the pie's HUMONGOUS size. The recipe includes 4 regular size cans of pumpkin, 8 eggs, and finishing overnight in the oven after the initial baking.

His daughter had one of these special pies instead of wedding cake at her wedding this summer!

YUMMY!

Hi Janet--I am hoping to talk my book club into reading The Testaments next year , but some of them haven't even read Margaret Atwood's first one. Sigh. Love all your horse photos and that pie looks amazing!! Having had three knee surgeries myself, I am wishing you quick healing. Love all your stats up top. Carry on!

>78 Berly: Hi Kim - thanks for stopping by!

I think my book club may be reading The Testaments this next year, too. The lady next to me said it was the only book that she was going to nominate.

I actually just finished reading it. I think it would not be as impactful if one hadn't read The Handmaid's Tale. So it will probably depend on how many people have read the first one

One amazing, pie right? I've never seen another like it.

And thanks for the good wishes on the knee. I'm not sure how this will work out this winter.

As of 12/01/2019 515 books on physical MT TBR
As of 10/1/2019 514 books on physical MT TBR
As of 01/01/2019: 510 books on physical MT TBR

November * = Reviewed

92. Conversations With Friends - Sally Rooney - 2017 - PBS/NYT Sept: Now Read This Book Club; Global Reading- Ireland; - library
*93. One More River to Cross - Jane Kirkpatrick - 2019 - LTER
*94. Bloomland: A Novel - John Englehardt - 2019 - audiobook - LTER
95. The Testaments - Margaret Atwood - 2019 - library
96. The Sixth Extinction - Elizabeth Kolbert - 2014 -audiobook - library
97. Magical Negro - Morgan Parker - 2019 - library
98. If Beale Street Could Talk - James Baldwin - 1974 - library

DNF: Jaguar of Sweet Laughter - Diane Ackerman - 1991 - library

Total Books Read: 7
Fiction: 5
Nonfiction: 1
Poetry: 1

Countries other than US: Ireland

Male authors - 2 / Female authors - 5

Library - 5
Acquired 2019 - 2
ROOTS - 0

>74 streamsong: Sounds really good Janet!

>80 streamsong: I admire you reading The sixth extinction , I think I don't have the stomach for it. Just finished the chapter on the recent extinction of the Great Auk in the book I'm reading now The seabird's cry. (By man of course, the European continent plundering the world, says Nicolson)

>77 streamsong: That pie does look yummy. Even though I am a little pumpkined out by now.

I also loved Out in the Open. It is one that I could probably reread. Great comments.

Good luck with the knee. Mine has been up and down...

>77 streamsong: lovely pie!

>81 EllaTim: I think you'd like it, Ella!

I listened to The Sixth Extinction. Audiobooks sometimes take me over rough parts. But it's very eye opening. We tend to only pay attention to extinctions of larger species, such as birds, but according to the author, thousands of extinctions are ocurring annually. And Homo sapiens may have been causing many of them since he/she first stepped into the plains as a hunter - including perhaps causing the extinction of Neanderthals.

>82 BLBera: Hi Beth! The pie was both yummy and huge! It used a good four pies' worth of pumpkin.

It may have started life as a camping utensil - big enough for moose or woolly mammoth steaks!

Yay! for Out in the Open. A great book by an author I'd like to read more.

Knees. Sigh.

Will I get caught up with reviews before the end of the year? I definitely need to speed them up.

I really enjoyed The Poet X also by Elizabeth Acevedo, and so was excited to read this one published this year.



86. With the Fire on High -Elizabeth Acevedo - 2019
- library (YA)
- 3.7 stars

At age fourteen Emoni Santiago became pregnant.

Now at seventeen, her two year old daughter is the center of her life. She lives with her grandmother, whom she calls ‘Buela. Buela has put her own retired life on hold to help raise her great granddaughter, whom she also loves dearly. Buela is physical and emotional support for them all.

Emoni has always loved cooking. She can see ingredients and envision possibilities and mouthwatering recipes. She has longed to be a chef.

Now, though, she feels those dreams must be on hold, along with relationships. Even with her grandmother’s support, finishing high school while raising her daughter are daunting challenges. She struggles with being labeled as sexually loose since she was pregnant so young.

But at the beginning of her senior year, the high school announces a new cooking class, with the emphasis on Spanish food and a trip to Spain at the end of the year. There’s also a new guy in school, whose interest in Emoni is obvious.

This is a young adult story about never giving up on dreams, no matter how complicated the circumstances may be.

May young people reading this see a way forward to their dreams - and I wish them all, a wonderful supportive ‘Buela in their lives!

Came across my FB Feed:

87. The Great Believers - Rebecca Makkai - 2019
– library


In 1985 in Chicago, Yale at last found a home. It was a time and place when he could be openly gay; enjoying the company and support of other gay men and the comfort of his partner, Charlie. His job, working as a director in an art museum was yielding fruit.

But it was also the time that AIDS began to rear its evil head. At first, a man would have a mild cough. It was then followed by devastating wasting into a living skeleton and inevitable death. The disease acquired a name and then a test to determine if one was HIV positive or negative. But the test itself was a political thing – could one end up on a government list from taking it? And since there was no cure, was there a point to taking the test? Especially if you believed your partner had never strayed.

The storyline also bounces into Paris in the current time frame with Nina doggedly trying to search out her daughter. Nina had been the sister of one of the men who died early on; she was friends with her brother’s friends and became caretaker to several as they lost their fights with the disease.

But the deaths extracted a toll not only on her, but her family.

This is a stunning portrait of a horrific time; the after effects of hidden war, the collateral victims and relatives of victims.

I thought the writing was brilliant. I deeply cared about characters, and like the characters themselves, I was stunned at the twists and turns fate doled out to them.

It is one of the very few books that the last pages reduced me to tears.

5 stars

>86 streamsong: love it!!!!

Hi Janet!

>67 streamsong: I like your veterinarian’s advice. And being respectful of everyone’s opinions is hard but necessary. We had an incident on the FoL sort team recently from the one ultra-conservative member that included hurriedly exiting a sorting meeting before we were done after overhearing a private left-leaning conversation then sending out a ridiculous e-mail talking about “your president” and “my president” and using the unfortunate phrase “for supposedly intelligent people…” It’s smoothed over but left a bad feeling for a while.

It’s too bad that there are times when you can’t use the meeting room. Since the library sponsors the book club, then I can see why you have to have it AT the library.

>86 streamsong: I just sent that to my husband Bill – he’s been a serious Star Trek fan for decades.

>87 streamsong: Excellent review, and I agree 100%. I gave it one of my extremely rare 5 stars.

>85 streamsong: I loved With the Fire on High, although The Poet X is in a class by itself. Can't wait to see what Acevedo does next!

Excellent review of The Great Believers, too, a book I liked and my wife loved. Debbi tells me there's been some controversy about a hetero woman writing about this, but Makkai does an excellent job of it. Personally, I don't think we can restrict writing that way; there are plenty of great works of imagination that are written by someone whose world differs from what she/he created in the book.

Good review of Out in the Open, Janet. I had not heard of it. Thanks for putting it on my radar. Hooray, for The Great Believers! I also really loved that one. I still have to get to With the Fire on High.

Re: >87 streamsong: >88 fuzzi: >89 karenmarie: Hi Lor and Karen - It's a good one, isn't it? It would be a fun poster!

>89 karenmarie: Hi Karen - Whoda thunk when they said my knee would take a year to heal, they meant it a year to heal.

Unfortunately, I had a couple falls in the snow last week. I was wearing the brace, so no damage, but walking in this brace is like walking with a peg leg. I'm sure I will get lots of practice, though as the winter goes on.

I'm sorry that politics is infecting your wonderful FOL group, too.

>90 jnwelch: Hi Joe - I did not know that there was criticism of The Great Believers because Makkai is a hetero woman. Thank you for mentioning that. I'll definitely look up comments and reviews mentioning that.

Hmm, since the current time flashes are the story of a hetero woman, guess half the book is OK?

A gay man may have written the story differently, but then EVERY gay man's story would be different - as in no single gay man could have the same perspective.

Still one of my favorite books of the year.

I worked in a small town hospital lab in the period right before this story -it was before the virus was isolated and although the problem was recognized, the mode of transmission was also not clear. I remember a meeting with the lab director (pathologist) telling the lab workers about new precautions to take and even sharing his worry about whether his daughter's life guard job could put her at risk. Totally different time.

>91 msf59: Hi Mark! Yay! Not often I get you with a book bullet. I think you'd enjoy Out in the Open.

I'm not as dedicated as some other 75'ers with my world-reading challenge, but I don't know if I would have picked this up without it. It will be on my top 5 books for the year.

Here's another book that we talked about quite a bit on my last thread after I finished reading it:



88. They Called Us Enemy – George Takei - 2019 - graphic non-fiction – library

You probably know George Takei from his role as Hikaru Sulu in the original Star Trek series. You may know him as a LGBTQ and civil rights activist. But I didn’t know that, as a child, he had been interned, along with his family, at the easternmost Japanese internment camp, Rohwer Camp in Arkansas.

He was only four when his family was removed from their home in California and incarcerated. Like many kids of that age, as long as he was with his family, it seemed like an adventure – even in their first home in the horse stalls at the Santa Anita racetrack.

This graphic novel includes his experiences as a child and his deeper knowledge of events as an adult, including the despair and humiliations his parents endured. It ends talking about the kids incarcerated at the US border.

I learned so much from it. It’s deeply relevant today. I would love to see copies in American junior high and highschool classrooms as kids today so need to know this chapter of American history.

Goals for the end of the year:
- Catch up on reviews!
- Start New Year with all LTER books read and reviewed!
- Pick away at finishing the dozen or so 'currently reading' (ha!) books

Currently reading this week:




Beyond Market Value: A Memoir of Book Collecting and the World of Venture Capital- Annette Campbell-White - LTER


audiobook in the car

My book to finish from the semi-abandoned/set aside list

- The Moravian Night - Peter Handke - 2007 - Literature Seminar; 2019 Nobel Prize - Global Reading: Austria author - Kindle

89. Beloved – Toni Morrison - 1987
- audiobook read by Toni Morrison
- 1001 (reread)
– library

Something is wrong at the house numbered 24. While Baby Suggs was still alive, it was a place of meeting and even dancing. But while her daughter, Sethe and Sethe’s daughter Denver still live there, it is no longer visited by the black community. It’s known to be haunted and people avoid it and those who live there.

Then there are two new arrivals to the house. Paul D and Sethe had been slaves together and he brings pieces of Sethe’s story that she did not know.

The second arrival is a mysterious woman who knows intimate details of Sethe’s life. She’s called Beloved, which happens to be the sole word on the grave marker of Sethe’s murdered child.

This is Morrison’s classic novel of the horrors of slavery and how death can appear the lesser of two evils. It’s easy to have head-knowledge of the evils of slavery. This book will bring you to the heart knowledge.

This was a reread for me. The story begins toward the end and follows a complicated timeline with much skipping back and forth. I listened to this on audio, read by Toni Morrison. And while I loved Ms Morrison’s reading, and recommend the audio version wholeheartedly, for me the audio added a bit to the time line confusion in this astounding story.

Tonight I'm going to try something different: a local books and beer book club. Apparently everyone brings a book they are reading and talks about it briefly. I'll take The Starless Sea and have the audio of The Notorious RBG in my pocket just in case. Will a fantasy book fit into the group? Or will I have to pull out RBG to defend myself?

The books and beer club was fun. I haven't had the joy of sitting and talking about random books for quite a while.

No one else was reading fantasy, so I was glad to have The Notorious RBG to fall back on. I also mentioned my early reviewer book Beyond Market Value: A Memoir of Book Collecting and the World of Venture Capital which triggered a bit of a discussion on the intrinsic value of a book versus the collector's valuation.

The owner of the local indie bookstore is the facilitator. He brought a stack of ARC's for people to choose from: I snatched up Louise Erdrich's The Night Watchman coming out in March as well as a non-fiction about cowboys in Hawaii, Aloha Rodeo.

I'm so far behind with reviews. On Mark's thread he suggested I do a Lightning Round of reviews. I told him:

"So my version of 'get er done' is to polish the next review that I will post today; work on a rough draft of the review that I will polish and post tomorrow; and also work on the review for the latest book completed which is always the most fun to do."

Today's review - read for the Dick Francis group read:



90. Rat Race – Dick Francis - 1971
- Dick Francis group read
– library


Matt Shore is a private pilot whose career has slid slowly downwards due to circumstances beyond his control. He’s now working for a very small, struggling commuter airline that often ferries jockeys, owners and other horse racing aficionados between racetracks.

Some near-fatal incidents, including a bomb on the plane while it is on the ground, alert Matt that something is badly amiss. But who is the target? The popular jockey who can coax wins out of unlikely horses? The trainer and owner who are known to fix races to win money betting? Someone out of Matt’s own slightly checkered past?

The horses themselves take a more minor role in this novel than in many of Francis’s other books. I did enjoy the details of flying an aircraft, which, since it is also one of Francis’s loves is full of authentic details. For me, that’s the allure of the Francis books: the details, especially the horse details ring true. That along with a protagonist who truly is trying to do the right thing make these comfort reads for me.

This was the end of October read for my Real Life Book Club.

I read it on the Kindle app on my computer and it was a perfect read for that. There were so many city and political names that were completely unknown to me - a click on the app took me to maps and wikipedia entries.


91.Two Sisters: A Father, His Daughters, and Their Journey into the Syrian Jihad - Asne Seierstad
- RLBC
- Kindle app


Sadiq and Sara are Somali refugees, raising their family in Norway in what seems to be a typically middle class environment comprised of other Muslim refugees. They aren’t concerned – in fact they are happy - when their two oldest daughters begin showing more interest in their Muslim faith – attending events at the mosque more often and even expressing interest in wearing hijab, an unusual sight in Norway.

Unbeknownst to the parents, the girls came under the sway of radicalized Islamic teachers, including the very teacher whom the parents employed to give them lessons in Islam.

Suddenly the girls are gone. They’ve left a note that they have gone to Syria to join Isis – as wives for the fighters in the Jihad.

The family immediately swings into action, hoping to recover them before the cross the Turkey/Syria border. But they find little help from the international authorities, so father Sadiq makes the perilous journey being smuggled across the Syrian border.

This story is a not only a look into radicalization, but is a mini history lesson about Syrian history and geography and the factions that divide it. It was incredibly timely as my book club read just as the US was pulling its troops out of Syria in order for Turkey to invade.

At times the writing seemed a bit repetitive and uninspired – perhaps due to translation? All in all though a great look at events in a very troubled part of the world.

I’ll be looking for the author’s other books, including The Bookseller of Kabul.

Nice review of Rat Race, Janet. For me, that’s the allure of the Francis books: the details, especially the horse details ring true. That along with a protagonist who truly is trying to do the right thing make these comfort reads for me. Yeah, me, too.

Two Sisters: A Father, His Daughters does sound timely.

Thanks for stopping by, Joe!

Dick Francis novels are a nice break, aren't they?

I think you'd enjoy Two Sisters: A Father, His Daughters and Their Escape into the Syrian Jihad.

Yesterday was my book club potluck and book choosing for 2020. I don't have the entire list, but I know Killers of the Flower Moon was the book chosen for January. I've read it last year and really liked it. Not quite the right word, as it is a sobering story of Native American abuse and murder by white men. It's a bit of American history that shouldn't be forgotten.

A friend made these easy peasy cranberry brie bites from delish.com If you need a quickie for a holiday potluck, I'd totally recommend these - https://www.delish.com/cooking/recipe-ideas/recipes/a56610/cranberry-brie-bites-...



The little sprigs of rosemary on top look like Christmas trees. Added to the red cranberries and white brie, they are very festive.

92. Conversations With Friends – Sally Rooney – 2017
– Sept PBS/NYT Now Read This
– Global Reading: Ireland (author, location)
- library
-

Review on the back cover by Rufi Thorpe:

”Sally Rooney has managed to take something old, the romance novel, and make it new. Frances is a bixesexual communist student, allergic to expressing emotion, and her love affair is with a married man, and yet the book makes no attempt to take a moral stand on fidelity or punish its characters for their passions. The effect is, frankly, riveting, and creates a peculiar sensation of danger. An addictive read.”

This book was clever, amusing, and page-turning. It’s a different kind of love affair, or perhaps I should say affairs because the protagonist is a bisexual woman, living with her female ex-lover and having an affair with a married man, making it thoroughly outside of the ‘one man, one woman’ happily ever after meme. Would I want to live protagonist Francis’s life? No. But as the review on the back cover of the book by Rufi Thorpe said, there is no ‘attempt to take a moral stand on fidelity or punish its characters for their passions.”

Intriguing. 4 stars

Here are our RL book club choices for 2020

January: (Reread for me) Killers of the Flower Moon: the Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI - David Grann
February: The Rent Collector - Cameron Wright-
March: The Dutch House - Anne Patchett
April: Talking to Strangers - Malcolm Gladwell -
May: (Reread for me) The Overstory - Richard Powers
June: (Reread for me) This House of Sky - Ivan Doig
July: The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek - Kim MIchele Richardson
August: The Bitterroots - C J Box - Woot! Our library director did the photograph that makes up the mountain landscape on the cover! I may try to some of the earlier volumes in this popular mystery series before reading this one.
September: Blowout: Corrupted Democracy, Rogue State Russia ... - Rachel Maddow
October: Olive Again - Elizabeth Strout (I'll read Olive Kitteridge before reading this. And Yay! I have a copy on MT TBR :)
November: Winners Take All: The Elite Charade of Changing the World - Anand Giridharadas

Here is the cover for The Bitterroots - Scenery is from a photograph by our library director:

Janet thanks for posting the list. Sounds like you wil have a great reading year with your RL bookclub! i have read 4 of them but gives me some ideas for more. It will be interesting to follow your opinions on these books!

That sounds like an interesting RL book club reading list. I’m currently reading Talking to Strangers which is full of interesting info. To answer your question about Devi, I haven’t read any of her books. I should check one out when I am in the mood for something light and fluffy.

>107 mdoris: Hi Mary! Thanks for stopping by. I think the RLBC chose an an interesting list. I really enjoy the group of people. and I know we'll have some good discussions.

>108 Familyhistorian: Hi Meg! I hadn't heard of Talking to Strangers although I have read two others of Malcolm Gladwell's books. I'm glad to know you're enjoying it.

I finished listening to book #101 The Notorious RBG which was an excellent, although short, biography. It's also a bit dated since the author was hopeful, even expectant that Hillary would win the election and so much has happened since then.

I hope to finish The Starless Sea today or tomorrow. It's finally coming together a bit, but isn't going to be one of the year's favorites for me. Beautiful descriptions and beautiful vignettes, but, as others have reported, it is like being inside a role playing game with a complicated multi-leveled, multi timed plot and characters popping in and out. Still, there are some beautiful thoughts about story telling and the role of stories in our lives.

Onward with the reviews!

Drat- I am working on the review for The Sixth Extinction and reported that as my audio just completed. More coffee!!!

95. The Testaments - Margaret Atwood - 2019
– library

In this sequel to The Handmaid Tale about 15 years have passed since the original book ended.

At the end of the first book, Offred’s infant daughter, Nicole, was successfully smuggled into Canada. She remains hidden in a city there in plain sight but with a false name. Her non-related foster parents are part of a secret network working to bring the destruction of Gilead.

In Gilead “Baby Nicole”’s iconic baby photos are plastered on important public walls everywhere. Her so called kidnapping is a rallying point as to why those opposing Gilead must be eliminated. Gilead will stop at nothing to get her back.

There are two other points of views in the story line.

Second is Agnes, whom you may remember from the first novel. She has no memories other than growing up in Gilead.

Third , the most interesting to me, is the story of Aunt Lydia, one of the powers controlling the system for women within Gilead. We learn more about her backstory and the backstory of Gilead – along with much of Gilead’s current politcal structure. We also learn that Aunt Lydia is a clear-eyed realist and who knows that those with power – and knowledge – must protect themselves.

Only Aunt Lydia knows how the women are related – and how their destinies intertwine.

Somehow, the system in Gilead didn’t seem as shocking in this novel. Is it that since the The Handmaid’s Tale was written in 1985, the story of evil Gilead has become very familiar to us? How have the tropes of women being so incredibly exploited or that of religion gone wrong become less powerful?

Still I found this a page-turner and was happy to see how the three women came together.

Will there be a third in the series?

I would recommend this to those who have read The Handmaid’s Tale or are fans of the Netflix series.

4 stars

96. The Sixth Extinction – Elizabeth Kolbert - 2014
-audiobook
– library


“..those of us alive today not only are witnessing one of the rarest events in life's history, we are also causing it. “ p (7-8)

The earth has endured five major extinction events. Some are massive extinctions that occurred globally – believed to be events following the large catastrophes such as an asteroid strike. Other extinctions have occurred much more slowly, beginning in more limited areas and spreading outward. These extinctions are probably the result of a new form of organism moving into an environment and outcompeting the previously dominant species and in doing so, changing the environment itself at a slow, but sure pace.

The author makes a compelling case that we are in the midst of extinction event with hundreds of species becoming extinct each year (although we only tend to notice the extinctions of the larger species such as mammals and birds) .

But she also makes a case that this extinction event may have actually begun as soon as Homo sapiens began spreading throughout the earth. Like the invader species wiping out the native animals of numerous islands, man has outcompeted both the native plants, animals and even the tiniest life forms, the microbiomes.

In doing so, we are changing our environment forever; it may continue at a relatively slow pace or reach and tipping point and accelerate quickly.

Recommended

I love all the Christmas concerts this time of year, and this year I have been indulging even more than usual.

But last night I went to a Tibetan sound bath, sponsored by the University's extension service. The practitoner plays a variety of singing bowls by tapping, ringing, swirling feathers, brushes etc around the top. The vibrations are said to be healing and help align your spirit.



Here's a you tube video if you want to listen a bit or see the techniques:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iT6w3cEkpm0

I go semi-regularly to another practioner's soundbaths, so the experience wasn't new.

Healing? I don't know, but very very soothing and relaxing.

Coincidentally, I'm listening to an audiobook called Heal Yourself With Sound & Music by Don Campbell. On the drive home last night I made lots of soothing vowel sounds along with the audio.

I thought Oliver Sacks's book Musicophilia was fascinating when I read it a few years ago.

I don't think of myself as musical, but I do believe I need to incorporate more music into my life.

Tonight I am going to a one night showing of an indy made-in-Montana movie called "Mickey and the Bear".

It actually has a high rating at Rotten Tomatoes: https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/mickey_and_the_bear

Janet, interesting to follow your soundbath experiences and the need to incorporate more music in your life. I have often thought of that too. Must get out my Chrismtas music.

>115 mdoris: Hi Mary! The sound baths are very interesting. If you ever have a chance to go to one, I'd encourage you to do so. They are such a unique experience - and although it's a Buddhist practice, it's one like meditiation or mindfulness that I feel comfortable incorporating into my Christian experience.

I skipped the indie movie last night to watch the impeachment vote, although I didn't have any doubts what would happen or how it will play out in the Senate.

And then I watched the finale of Survivor, which is somewhat similar. The winner acknowledged that he would lie, steal, cheat to win the game. And he did.

97. Magical Negro – Morgan Parker
- 2019
– library

I so wanted to love this poetry collection, since I’ve seen nothing but good reviews about it.

But I didn’t.

There were phrases and poems that sang to me, but as a whole, no.

Perhaps I need to pick it up again at a later time and reread it.

So basically, I'm just marking it read and will not rate it.

>117 streamsong: Ah, too bad, Janet. I was one of those who loved Magical Negro; more, actually, than her celebrated There Are More Beautiful Things Than Beyonce. Good for you for trying it. Mark put it well: with poetry, either it clicks for you or it doesn't.

Thanks, Joe. (I'll ignore the Shelley) I do plan to give The Magical Negro a reread next year. Perhaps I'm just not in the mood for poetry.

The only book that I returned unfinished to the library this year was also in November and also a book of poetry. It was a collection called Jaguar of Sweet Laughter - by naturalist Diane Ackerman.

I did like this one from Ackerman's book:

"The Dark Night of the Hummingbird

A lot of hummingbirds die in their sleep,
dreaming of nectar-sweet funnels they sipped.
Moth-light, they swiveled at succulent
blooms, all flash and ripple – like sunset,
but delicate, probing, excitable,
their wings a soft fury of iridescence,
their hearts beating like a tiny drumroll
fourteen hundred times a minute,
their W-shaped tongues, drawing nectar
down each groove, whispering wheels within wheels.
By day, hovering hard, they fly nowhere
at speed, swilling energy. But to refuel,
they must eat, and to eat they must hover,
burning more air than a sprinting impala.

So, in the dark night of the hummingbird,
while lilies lather sweetly in the rain,
the hummingbird rests near collapse,
its quick pulse halved, its rugged breath shallow,
its W-shaped tongue, & bright as Cassiopeia,
now mumbling words like wistful and wan.
The world at once drug, anthem, bright lagoon,
where its heart knew all the Morse codes
for rapture, pales into senseless twilight.
It can’t store enough fuel to last the night
and hoist it from its well of dreams
to first light trembling on wet fuchsia,
nor break the hard promise life always keeps.
A lot of hummingbirds die in their sleep.

I am not going to try to get caught up. My excuse for being away is the new hip I had installed last week. Life had gotten too hard and I am already feeling so much better. Ready to get into the garden this spring. Meanwhile, time to read and say hello to LT friends.

I have been thinking of you as I have been (re)watching Ken Burns’ series The West. Ready to set out soon.

Hope all is well.

>109 streamsong: I finished Talking to Strangers and its a good one, Janet. It really made me think.

>120 witchyrichy: Hi Karen! Good luck with your new hip. I have had friends that needed to have that done and they have fared wonderfully! Today is the soltice, so spring is coming! Happy gardening.

I've never watched The West although I have it on my Netflix queue. It sounds like you are enjoying it!

>121 Familyhistorian: That's good to know, Meg. I haven't heard any buzz about this book here on LT, but it sounds like it will be a good discussion for the RLBC.

I recently read Talking to Strangers too and I always like Gladwell's books as he can find an interesting slant to perch on for his ideas and does a good shake up for my thinking.

Jeesh. How did I come up with Shelley? I fixed it. You can call me Jim.

Have a great holiday, Janet!

Ha, no problem Joe! We all do it. I think I am always more upset that I have done it than the person who gets misnamed.

I used to do it to my kids all the time. See, it just means we are family here.

Time for a classic. I wanted to read this before watching the movie that came out last year.



98. If Beale Street Could Talk - James Baldwin - 1974
- library


Fonny and Tish have grown up together as best friends, closer than siblings. Somewhat surprisingly their relationship matures into adult love. Their future looks bright as Fonny dreams of becoming a sculptor. The two have finally been able to find a landlord who will rent a space suitable as both art studio and apartment to a black couple. Now there’s going to be a child – and while Fonny’s parents don’t approve of his relationship with Tish, Tish’s parents are fully supportive.

Then Fonny stands up for himself against a white cop.

When the cop sees a way to pin a brutal rape on Fonny, he is arrested. At the cop’s urging the victim picks Fonny out of a photo lineup and then leaves the country.

No one believes the word of a black man.

Fonny’s arrest spins outward effecting his entire family. There is no way to raise the needed money for a competent lawyer without an illegal fiddle – and the family is further smashed.

The relationships are strong and true. There’s a lot of love in this novel, but there’s also a pit of the stomach feeling of doom.

These lovely ornaments were created by my cousin, artist Helen Brown

Hi Janet!

>90 jnwelch: I don’t think there should be criticism of a writer unless their writing is bad or she/he doesn't
' get it’, whatever ‘it’ is. Makkai is a good writer and gets it.

>92 streamsong: Sorry about the falls and am glad there was no damage from them.

>127 streamsong: Beautiful ornaments. You have a talented cousin.

Merry Christmas from my family to yours!

Here's a fitting book to wish you a Very Merry Christmas!



Merry Christmas, Janet.

>66 streamsong: and >67 streamsong: You know, keeping the dialogue open is half the battle, isn't it?

>126 streamsong: I want to read that one before the film is out, too. I'd better get on it!

>117 streamsong: I purchased that one after some warbling around here (Joe? Mark?) but haven't gotten to reading it yet. I'll be interested to see how it lands for me.

Meanwhile, Janet, I wish you ...



from stormy Kauai!

Have a great holiday, Janet. Are you also enjoying some mild weather? We have been reveling in it.

You have been reading some fine books. I also really enjoyed The Sixth Extinction. I want to get to the Baldwin. I loved the film. It looks like we had similar feelings about The Magical Negro. I couldn't connect with it either and I tried twice. That is the thing about poetry- it speaks to you or it doesn't.

>128 karenmarie: Thank you, Karen for all the good wishes. Merry Christmas to you and your family!

>129 witchyrichy: Peace and magic - beautiful wishes. Thank you, Karen. Merry Christmas!

>130 EllaTim: Thank you, Ella. Books and Christmas! Wonderful combination! Merry Christmas!

>131 EBT1002: Merry Christmas, Ellen! I am enjoying your stories from Hawaii, storm filled or not. Here's to many more thoughtful conversations and wonderful books in the years to come. I'll be interested to see what you think of The Magical Negro. Merry Christmas!

>132 msf59: Merry Christmas, Mark to you and yours!

*Wiping my brow in relief* I thought I'd be thrown out of the group for admitting that TMN didn't connect for me. It's a relief to hear a similar thought. "

That is the thing about poetry- it speaks to you or it doesn't." True that. There is more poetry in my future for sure.

All the best to you Janet and look forward to lots of book talk in 2020!

>127 streamsong: Janet the ornaments made by your cousin are beautiful. Very special to have some of those on your tree. Treasures!

Whether you celebrate Christmas, Hanukkah, Solstice, some other tradition or none at all, this is what I wish for you!

Thank you for keeping me company in 2019.......onward to 2020.

>135 mdoris: >136 mdoris: Thank you, Mary!

Here's a description of her work from her FB page Helen Brown Art: "Helen Brown has developed a signature art style using watercolor, wax and rice paper. Her process is truly remarkable for the layers of paint and wax applications she requires for the unique fractured effect she coaxes out of rice paper."

>137 ronincats: Thank you, Roni. My future daughter-in-law gae me a copy of Tomi Adeyemi's Children of Blood and Bone for Christmas. Looking forward to reading it!

>138 PaulCranswick: Thank you Paul! Looking forward to more great reads in 2020!

99. The Bookish Life of Nina Hill – Abbi Waxman
- 2019
– library


Nina has her life in order. She has a beloved job at an independent bookstore and is a member of a bad-ass trivia team that also enjoy weekly movies.

But then her unknown father dies, mentions her in his will, and she inherits a large and complicated family.

And there’s this cute guy on a rival trivia team that is interested in her if she can find the time away from her quiet life that she prefers.

A fun quick novel about the joys of reading and loving books, but also having room for new people.

I was a bit surprised that introverted Nina could change her life so dramatically, but after book discussions with friends, I have learned a new concept – ambivert – one who can enjoy both ends of the introvert/extravert scale.

Fun read – 4 stars

Real Life Book Club choice



100. The Spy and the Traitor - Ben Macintyre - 2018
- RLBC (November)


Oleg Gordievsky, working as a double agent for Russia’s KGB and Britain’s MI6 gave the west a clear window into not just Cold War Russian secrets, but how the Russian government thought and worked. His efforts helped defuse a nuclear escalation, during an exercise that the West under President Ronald Reagan considered a war game, but was taken as a serious threat to the Russians. It’s frightening to think that a misunderstanding could have caused Cold War politics to escalate to the brink of a nuclear war – and US citizens were – and still are - so unaware of it.

Eventually, Gordievsky’s identity was ferreted out by US CIA agent Aldrich Ames who betrayed him o the Russians. This necessitated Gordievsky’s escape from Moscow, leaving his wife, children and aging mother behind. The escape plan was a paper-thin shot-in-the- dark that could have been foiled at many steps. Even MI6 thought it was probably doomed to failure.

Engrossing and enlightening book that reads like a fast-paced thriller. A real page turner.

101. The Notorious RBG - Irin Carmon - 2015
- audiobook
– library


This is a short biography of Ruth Bader Ginsburg. It’s quick and inspirational.

It covers her choice and insistence on law school at a time when the Ivy League schools did not welcome women students.

But she famously persisted.

Her increasing feminism was first famously showcased in a lawsuit brought by a man who was discriminated against in his non-traditional role as a caregiver to his mother. This broke open the doors for women’s discrimination lawsuits, especially in their professions.

And of course, it covers RBG’s stand on abortion, believing it to be an integral part of a woman’s right to privacy for health care choices.

Since the book was written in 2015 before the current administration came to power, it’s a bit dated in its forward-looking optimism that Hillary would be elected and issues such as equal rights for everyone would continue to forge ahead

calm and I could use some friends over here in this new joint...

The 2020 Group is up!

Those are beautiful horse pictures Janet! I hope you had a Merry Christmas. Looking forward to seeing you in 2020!

Best wishes this holiday season!! See you in 2020!

>127 streamsong: The ornaments are gorgeous! And you've added a few good books to the end of the year.

Happy Friday, Janet. Good review of the Macintyre. He is remarkably consistent and I will have to get to this one. I also want to read RBG.

>143 drneutron: Thank you, Jim! I will be there with bells on to celebrate the new year! Thank you for setting up the 2020 thread!

>144 The_Hibernator: Thank you, Rachel. Yes, I had a nice Christmas.

For Christmas dinner, a friend and I went to an Iraqi buffet in Missoula, sponsored in part by a refugee resettlement group called Soft Landing Missoula. Such amazing food and a very unique experience!

Yesterday - Boxing Day - I went with another friend to a matinee of Little Women. I had reread the book a few years ago and found it rather preachy and boring. But the movie was outstanding with a star studded cast! Go, go, go! (Chick lit warning - her husband opted not to go and she told him he made the right choice)

Then we went back to her house where her husband had whipped the Christmas feast leftovers into an amazing meal - so I got my traditional Christmas feast, too!

>145 Berly: Thank you, Kim. Beautiful and beautiful wishes!

>146 witchyrichy: I love the ornaments, too, Karen. She has so much talent!

I have almost caught up with my reviews. I need to review The Starless Sea and I hope to finish another book or two before the new year.

>147 msf59: Thank you, Mark. I would definitely recommend The Spy and the Traitor. I would also be interested in adding others of his books to the totally teetering MT TBR!

Congratulations for reading 100 plus, Janet. Your Christmas gatherings sounded like fun!

>86 streamsong: Love it!

>87 streamsong: That is the last book that made me cry, Janet. It is so wonderful. I think I will read it again.

>105 streamsong: I want to read that one. I loved Normal People. Have you read that one? Rooney is good at portraying normal relationships, I think.

It sounds like many of us agree about The Starless Sea - entertaining, but not the year's best.

I hope you're having a great holiday season

>150 Familyhistorian: Thank you, Meg. I had a very nice Christmas.

I received two books:



from my future daughter in law as an example of non-white fantasy (she was happy to learn I have read a few in that genre this year)



a vegan diet my son and his fiance follow and love.

>151 BLBera: Hi Beth! The Great Believers was one of the reading high points of my year. I can't remember the last book that made me cry. (before this one, I mean).

I haven't read Normal People but will try to get to it. It's on sooooo many of the 'best of lists' for 2019.

Review of The Starless Sea to come a bit later today.

Good review of the Ben Macintyre book, Janet. That's one of his I haven't read. I'm looking forward to reading the second Tomi Adeyemi book that just came out.

Thanks, Joe! I'm looking forward to reading the first one. I might have guessed that if any of my LT peeps were familiar with her, you would be one of them.

Snowing here today. Perhaps I'll get some pics for the 2020 winter thread.

102. The Starless Sea – Erin Morgenstern - 2019 - library

“I got to thinking all of this might be a halfway decent game if it were a game. Part spy movie, part fairy tale, part choose your own adventure. Epic branching story that doesn’t stick to a single genre or one set path and turns into different stories but it’s all the same story. I’m trying to play with things you can do in a game that can’t do in a book. Trying to capture more story. A book is made of paper but a story is a tree.” P448

A story about stories: where stories come from, how they become stories, how people fall into them.

In this story ,people fall into tales through secret doors where they find ports and cities and wilderness along a sea deep underground where starlight is never reflected.

I found the writing beautiful. The descriptions of objects, settings and scenes were lush and vivid. The characters were a bit more confusing as people were known by other names in other lifetimes and a time maze often mixed them together.

It was interesting to me that the author was trying to describe role playing games as a new form of storytelling – and I learned that those incidents that make a story compelling also make games compelling.

But it fell a little flat for me. The story wasn’t enough to pull me along. Perhaps if I was a devotee of role playing games, I would have appreciated it more.

3.8 stars

Hi Janet: I agree with you about The Starless Sea - I thought if I were a gamer, I might like it more. I recommended it to the son of a colleague who is into games. I'll see what he thinks.

>87 streamsong: Someone else named this as their favorite book of the year and gave it five stars. Maybe I should move it up the list.

>157 BLBera: Hi Beth! Yes, I noticed your comments on Ellen's thread and thoroughly agree that it would be nice to see a gamer's comments on the book!

>158 witchyrichy: Hi Karen! I wonder if it was Karenmarie? I think I noticed that she said that on her thread. The Great Believers is a wonderful book.

Hi Janet!

>158 witchyrichy: and >159 streamsong: Yes, it was me. Fantastic book.

>160 karenmarie: Ha Karen! You heard your name spoken! Mystery solved.

I agree. I should have nominated The Great Believers for my RLBC. It would have been a good one.

Today's forecast is rain followed by snow coming this afternoon. A nasty mix so I won't be going anywhere for New Year's Eve. I'll be comfy with my books and cats (and a little wine and munchies). I'll set up my new thread - and have one more review to post here.

I have several outdoor projects to get done before the weather starts - plugging in vehicles, topping off water tanks, rolling enough hay off the stacks for several days, switching some livestock panels around to make the most of shed room, blanketing the old mare, etc. etc.

You sound like one busy girl Janet with your outdoor projects. Wishing you all the best in 2020. We head to Kona, Big Island tomorrow and I can hardly wait!

Enjoy your New Year at home, Janet. I know that feeling, it is raining so hard here I don't want to go out in it either!

Thanks for stopping by, Mary and Meg!

>162 mdoris: Mary, your trip sounds fantastic! Here's hoping you have great weather!

>163 Familyhistorian: Thank you. It's been a combination of rain and snow and ice. I'm glad the big storm missed us, but its nasty out there!

Last review of 2019. This was an LTER selection. I'll post this on my 2020 thread, too.



103. Beyond Market Value: A Memoir of Book Collecting and the World of Venture Capital – Annette Campbell-White - 2019
- LTER
- 2019
3.8 stars

Annette Campbell-White’s father was an engineer specializing in the extraction of precious metals from ore. As a result, Annete’s childhood was spent in various mining towns in the far-flung remnants of the British empire in Australia, New Zealand, remote African countries and Canada (her favorite).

Inspired by her father, she also chose chemical engineering as her degree choices.

But moving to London she found her options in the male dominated field limited. Her time there was not lost as she purchased her first collector’s book: a copy of A Song for Simeon” which cost her half a month’s salary at a time when she had no money to spare. It became a solace and a beacon for her.

The contacts she made in London eventually landed her a job in Silicon Valley where she grew more and more interested in financial dealings. When she found that venture capital firms had few leadership opportunities for women, she eventually founded her own venture capital fund specializing in seed money for biotechnology startups. Her timing was magnificent and her scientific training stood her in good stead. She became wildly successful, twice being listed in Forbes magazine’s most successful funds.

As her disposable income grew, so did her interest in book collecting. She determined to collect the finest editions possible from Cyril Connolly’s One Hundred Modern Books from England, France and America, 1880-1950. Once this collection was complete, she moved on to other ephemera from modernistic authors. It was good to see her growth in choosing what was of interest to herself.

This is a hard one for me to review. It was fascinating to see what she accomplished at a time when ‘women don’t do that’. It was definitely interesting enough to keep me reading, but in some ways, it read more like a biography than a memoir. It’s fairly short, so it hits only the high points. I would have liked more detail and definitely more emotion; one is mostly left with her regret in selling part of her beloved collection.

I identified with her most deeply before her success. After that, it was a peephole into a moneyed world, where one can purchase books with five or six figure prices. Sigh.

My 2020 thread is here! Hope to see you soon!

https://www.librarything.com/topic/314881