Posted: 2019/02/07 | Author: gr4c5 | Filed under: audio books, Early Review, Fiction, NonFiction, Poetry | Tags: alaska, Alice Walker, animals, Arizona, Barbara Kingsolver, biography, birds, Blake Bailey, Brazil, Dana Stabenow, Dorothy Dunnett, e-books, Early Review, Fiction, Frederick Busch, historical, Isaac Asimov, Jonathan Weiner, Laurie King, leisure, librarything, Luiz Garcia-Roza, medicine, mystery, NonFiction, Philip Caputo, Poetry, Richard Yates, Sana Goldberg, science fiction, series |
We are nearly one full week into February and I have yet to report what is on the reading list. I have to admit, my other (non-book) life got in the way. I was selected for jury duty for a trial that lasted three days, a friend was admitted to the hospital with atrial fibrillation for three days, an uncle was taken off hospice, and oh yeah, I turned fifty with my family and friends in attendance. The last week of January going into the first week of February was all a bit nutty. And. And! And, I am running again. So, there’s that. But enough of that. Here are the books:
Fiction:
- Good Night Willie Lee, I’ll See You in the Morning by Alice Walker (EB)- in honor of Walker’s birth month.
- Take This Man by Frederick Busch (EB & print) – in memory of Busch’s death month.
- Crossers by Philip Caputo (EB & print) – in honor of Arizona becoming a state in February.
- Alone in the Crowd by Luiz Alfredo Garcia-Roza (EB & print) – in honor of Brazil’s festival.
Nonfiction:
- Tragic Honesty by Blake Bailey (print) in honor of Yates’s birthday.
- Beak of the Finch by Jonathan Weiner (AB) in honor of February being Feed the Birds Month.
Series Continuations:
- A Monstrous Regiment of Women by Laurie R. King (EB & print) – to continue the series started in honor of January being Mystery Month.
- Caprice and Rondo by Dorothy Dunnett (print) – to continue the series started in honor of Dunnett’s birth month being in August.
- Foundation and Empire by Isaac Asimov (EB) – in honor of Asimov’s birth month being in January.
- A Fine and Bitter Snow by Dana Stabenow (EB & print) – to continue the series started in January in honor of Alaska becoming a state.
Early Review for LibraryThing:
- How to Be a Patient by Dr. Sana Goldberg (confessional: I started this in January and haven’t finished it yet).
For Fun:
- Flight Behavior by Barbara Kingsolver.
Posted: 2019/02/01 | Author: gr4c5 | Filed under: E-Books, Early Review, Fiction, NonFiction, Poetry | Tags: australia, Barbara Kingsolver, biography, birds, books, Carrie Brown, childrens book, Connie Willis, Dana Stabenow, David Allen Sibley, Dorothy Dunnett, Early Review, Edgardo Rodriguez Julia, fantasy, Fiction, Frederick Busch, Glory Edim, historical, Isaac Asimov, Julia Blackburn, Laurie King, librarything, lists, Lynda Barry, medicine, meditation, Michelle Dean, mystery, Patricia Carrington, Philip Pullman, reading, Sana Goldberg, science fiction, series, Tom Standage |
I definitely didn’t do this on purpose because I never structure my reading this way, but January turned out to be a month of mostly woman authors (notated with a ‘w’). I am including the books I started in January but have not finished. Because they are not Challenge books they do not need to be finished in the same month. And. And! And, I have started running again. After a six month hiatus, I think I am back! Sort of.
Fiction:
- A Cold-Blooded Business by Dana Stabenow (w & EB)
- The Beekeeper’s Apprentice by Laurie R. King (w & AB)
- Firewatch by Connie Willis (w & EB)
- The Good Times are Killing Me by Lynda Barry
- Lamb in Love by Carrie Brown (w & EB)
- Foundation by Isaac Asimov (AB)
- Take This Man by Frederick Busch
- ADDED: The Renunciation by Edgardo Rodriguez Julia
Nonfiction:
- Daisy Bates in the Desert by Julia Blackburn
- The Sibley Guide to Bird Life and Behavior edited by Chris Elphick, John Dunning & David Allen Sibley
- The Turk by Tom Standage
- ADDED: Freedom in Meditation by Patricia Carrington
Series continuations:
- Amber Spyglass by Philip Pullman
- To Lie with Lions by Dorothy Dunnett
Early Review Program for LibraryThing:
- Well-Read Black Girl by Glory Edim
- How to be a Patient by Sana Goldberg – not finished yet
For Fun:
- Sharp by Michelle Dean – not finished yet
- Flight Behavior by Barbara Kingsolver – not finished yet
Posted: 2019/01/22 | Author: gr4c5 | Filed under: Book Reviews, Lust To Go, NonFiction | Tags: 2019, australia, biography, book lust iii, book review, Daisy Bates, january, Julia Blackburn, NonFiction |
Blackburn, Julia. Daisy Bates in the Desert: A Woman’s Life Among the Aborigines. New York: Vintage Departures, 1995.
Reason read: Australia Day is January 26th.
Julia Blackburn became fascinated by Daisy Bates quite by accident. In the beginning of her book Blackburn imagines Ms. Bates’s feelings and memories but by the middle of the book there is an odd shift in perspective and suddenly Blackburn assumes the role of Bates, talking in the first person as if she IS Daisy Bates. It was a little unsettling until I settled into the narrative…and then she switches back.
Through Blackburn’s words Daisy Bates became this larger than life figure; a woman trying to save the natives of Australia. At times it was difficult for me to understand her motives or her successes, but I learned to understand her passions. She truly cared for the people of the desert.
Line I had to quote, “I suppose it would have been awkward to pack and easily broken and anyway the skull of a good friend would not provide much comfort when one was feeling lonely” (p 95). On a personal note, when my first cat was ailing I seriously considered taking her to a taxidermist for eternal preservation. I loved her that much.
Another line I liked, “The sky was breathing; I could feel the cavity of the night expanding and contracting around me as if I was in the belly of the universe” (p 122). I feel that way about Monhegan sometimes.
As an aside, I am not sure what to do with the image of naked women with dingo puppies tied about their waists.
Author fact: Blackburn wrote several books which won awards. The most successful were Thin Paths and The Leper’s Companions. Neither are on my Challenge list.
Book trivia: Disappointingly there are not a lot of pictures of Daisy Bates. The best one is of her on a swing.
Nancy said: Pearl called Daisy Bates in the Desert “fabulous” (Book Lust To Go p 28)
BookLust Twist: from Book Lust To Go in the chapter called “Australia, the Land of Oz” (p 26).
Posted: 2019/01/04 | Author: gr4c5 | Filed under: Early Review, Fiction, NonFiction | Tags: african american, alaska, australia, biography, birds, books, Carrie Brown, childrens book, coming of age, Dana Stabenow, David Allen Sibley, Dorothy Dunnett, Early Review, fantasy, Fiction, Glory Edim, historical, inventions, Isaac Asimov, Julia Blackburn, librarything, lists, Lynda Barry, meditation, murder, mystery, NonFiction, Patricia Carrington, Philip Pullman, reading, romance, science fiction, self help, series, Tom Standage |
I try not to think about white rabbits running around with time pieces muttering about being late. Whenever I do I am reminded this is being written three days behind schedule. Nevertheless, here are the books:
Fiction:
- Foundation by Isaac Asimov – in honor of Asimov’s birth month.
- Lamb in Love by Carrie Brown – this is a stretch…All Creatures Great and Small first aired as a television show in January and there is a creature in the title.
- The Good Times are Killing Me by Lynda Barry – in honor of Barry’s birth month.
- A Cold Blooded Business by Dana Stabenow – in honor of Alaska becoming a state in January.
Nonfiction:
- Daisy Bates in the Desert by Julia Blackburn – in honor of Australia’s National Day on January 26th.
- The Turk by Tom Standage in honor of Wolfgang Von Klempelen’s birth month.
- Freedom in Meditation by Patricia Carrington – in honor of January being National Yoga month.
- Sibley’s Guide to Bird Life and Behavior by David Allen Sibley – in honor of Adopt a Bird Month. I read that somewhere…
Series continuations:
- To Lie with Lions by Dorothy Dunnett – to continue the series started in August in honor of Dunnett’s birth month.
- Amber Spyglass by Philip Pullman – to continue the series started in November in honor of National Writing Month (Fantasy).
Early Review for LibraryThing:
- Well-Read Black Girl by Glory Edim – I know what you are thinking. I am neither black nor a girl. I am a middle-aged white woman who barely remembers being a girl. I requested this book because I work in an extremely diverse environment and let’s face it, I want to be known as well-read, regardless of color.
For fun:
- Sharp by Michelle Dean – my sister gave this to me as a Christmas gift. I wonder if she is trying to tell me something.
Posted: 2018/10/09 | Author: gr4c5 | Filed under: Book Reviews, E-Books, Early Review, Fiction, NonFiction | Tags: africa, Amanda Boyden, Amy Armbruster, audio books, biography, Bryce Courtenay, Dorothy Dunnett, e-books, Early Review, Ed McNain, essays, Fiction, florida, historical, hurricane, india, Judith Heimann, librarything, Miami, mystery, new orleans, NonFiction, Nora Roberts, Peter Bridgford, romance, series, short stories, Tarquin Hall, Tom Grimes, Tom Harrisson |
What can I say about September? It sucked. There. I did have something to say after all. It sucked because I didn’t diverge or divulge. I like epiphanies that flash like light bulbs and bring about great catapults of change. None of that happened. I barely did anything worth mentioning except a great trip to Colorado. Then Jones died. That really sucked. What else? I didn’t run at all. That also sucked. My uncle started hospice care and do I dare mention September is the anniversary month for my grandmother, father, and high school friend’s passings. An ugly and sucky month all the way around. Silver linings: my 14th wedding anniversary and two opportunities to hear Natalie Merchant sing. Then! And then there were the books. I can’t forget the books! Here they are:
Fiction:
- Babylon Rolling by Amanda Boyden (EB & print)
Nonfiction:
- Most Offending Soul Alive by Judith Heimann (EB & print)
- Life and Times of Miami Beach by Amy Armbruster (print)
- The Workshop: Seven Decades of ther Iowa Writers’ Workshop edited by Tom Grimes (print)
Series continuations:
- Fuzz by Ed McBain (print and EB)
- Case of the Man Who Died Laughing by Tarquin Hall (AB & print)
- The Spring of the Ram by Dorothy Dunnett (print)
- Holding the Dream by Nora Roberts (EB)
- Tandia by Bryce Courtenay (print & EB)
Early Review for LibraryThing:
- Where Eagles Dare Not Perch by Peter Bridgford (EB) – finally, finally finished it!
Posted: 2018/09/28 | Author: gr4c5 | Filed under: Book Reviews, Lust To Go, NonFiction | Tags: 2018, biography, book lust iii, book review, Judith Heimann, NonFiction, september, Tom Harrisson, travel |
Heimann, Judith M. The Most Offending Soul Alive: Tom Harrisson and His Remarkable Life. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 19997.
Reason read: Tom Harrisson’s birth month is September. Read in his honor.
Tom Harrisson lived from 1911 to 1976 and was, as Heimann puts it, “an adventurer who lived among cannibals.” That in and of itself is enough to write a book about but Tom was also a man who even as a child loved to push buttons. He had an ongoing battle with hierarchy and thrived on seeing what he could get away with on a daily basis. In his adult life, often drunk and disorderly, it was his brilliant mind that made him forgivable to most people; everyone except his own father. His brilliance is the only reason I can think of for his friend to turn a blind eye when Tom begins a blatantly obvious affair with the friend’s wife. Aside from “stealing women from their men” as the Grateful Dead said, Tom’s passion was researching flora and fauna and traveled to such places as Sarawak and New Hebrides to study new species. Later, when he met the cannibals, he became interested in sociology and became an expert at observing culture. Even though the rest of The Most Offending Soul Alive isn’t as interesting Heimann goes on to colorfully detail the rest of Harrisson’s life, ending with his fatal accident in January 1976. While not much else has been written about Harrisson otherwise, I feel that Heimann’s is a bias laden, no-stone-left-unturned kind of biography.
Author fact: Tom Harrisson was a neighbor of Heimann’s on Borneo.
Book trivia: The Most Offending Soul Alive is chock full of interesting photographs.
Nancy said: Judith Heimann’s biography “brings him [Harrisson] to vivid life” (Book Lust To Go p 39).
BookLust Twist: from Book Lust To Go in the chapter called “Borneo and Sarawak” (p 38).
Posted: 2018/09/06 | Author: gr4c5 | Filed under: E-Books, Early Review, Fiction, NonFiction | Tags: africa, Amanda Boyden, Ann Armbruster, biography, books, Bryce Courtenay, coming of age, Dorothy Dunnett, Early Review, Ed McBain, Fiction, florida, hurricane, india, Judith Heinmann, librarything, lists, Miami, mystery, new orleans, NonFiction, Nora Roberts, Peter Bridgford, romance, series, Tarquin Hall, Tom Grimes, Tom Harrisson, writing |
I don’t post a lot of personal stuff on this side of the writing. Not usually. Typically, I leave all that other blathering on JustCauseICan. I may write about the run or the island, a brief sentence here or there, but of little else…except for today. When you lose someone you adore it is hard to focus. That is precisely my problem today. I am shattered by grief and only put back together again by words. So, I must read. Here are the books planned for September. I hope they heal:
Fiction:
- Babylon Rolling by Amanda Boyden – to remember Hurricane Ivan as it wreaked havoc on my 2004 September wedding.
Nonfiction:
- The Most Offending Soul Alive: Tom Harrisson and His Remarkable Life by Judith M. Heinmann – in honor of Harrisson’s birth month being in September.
- Life and Times of Miami Beach by Ann Armbruster – in honor of Hurricane Irma.
- Workshop: Seven Decades of the Iowa Writers’ Workshop: 43 Stories, Recollections, and Essays on Iowa’s Place in Twentieth Century American Literature edited by Tom Grimes – in honor of Grimes’ birth month being in September.
Series Continuations:
- Fuzz by Ed McBain – to end the series started in July in memory of McBain’s passing.
- Case of the Man Who Died Laughing by Tarquin Hall – to end the series started in August in honor of Rajiv Ratna Ganghi, India’s youngest Prime Minister’s birth month.
- Spring of the Ram by Dorothy Dunnett – to continue the series started in honor of Dunnett’s birth month (August).
- Holding the Dream by Nora Roberts – to continue the series started in honor of August being Dream Month.
- Tandia by Bryce Courtenay – to end the series started in August in honor of Courtenay’s birth month.
Early Review for LibraryThing:
Confessional: I am still reading Where Eagles Dare Not Perch by Peter Bridgford.
