ffortsa forges ahead in 2024 number 2

Hello again!

I managed 80 titles last year. Hooray! No promises for this year, of course. I'm still falling behind on many peoples' threads, of course. But I'll try to keep up

My two active book clubs meet face to face now, which is lovely. I still read epic poetry out loud with a Zoom group I landed in many years ago., but I don't know how long we will keep going. We will be finishing the Aeneid next month. And there are so many recommendations I've gleaned from all of you! And all the mystery series I haven't kept up with. And the best 100 books so far of 2024, courtesy of the New York Times last week. And of course, music and theater and exercise and travel and chores... Retirement can be a busy situation.

Here's the ticker



And the list of reads so far:

January

1. @Eugenie Grandet by Honore de Balzac
2. ♬@Beastly Things by Donna Leon
3. @Crying Blood by Donis Casey
4. @The Heaven and Earth Grocery Store by James McBride
5. @Bleeding Heart Yard by Ellie Griffiths

February
6. Poor Things by Alasdar Gray
7. Hellfire by Karin Fossum
8. Not to Disturb by Muriel Spark
9. ♬Wrong Hill to Die On by Donis Casey
10. @Post Office Girl by Stefan Zweig

March
11. ♬Another Man's Moccasins by Craig Johnson
12. @Fates and Furies by Lauren Groff
13. The Catch by Archer Mayor
14. @Bruno and the Carol Singers by Martin Walker
15. ♬Mad Monkton by Wilkie Collins
16. @Hell With The Lid Blown Off by Donis Casey

April
17. ↩Trust by Hernan Diaz
18. ♬Broken Harbour by Tana French
19. @The Devil's Cave by Martin Walker
20. @The Resistance Man by Martin Walker
21. @Myra Breckinridge by Gore Vidal
22. @The Crow Trap by Ann Cleeves
23. ✔ Three Tales by Flaubert

May
24. @Moonglow by Michael Chabon
25. @The Hunter: and Other Stories by Dashiell Hammett
26. @The Appeal by Janice Hallett
27. @A Disappearance in Fiji by Nilima Rao
28. @Fortune Favors the Dead by Stephen Spotswood
29. @The Stranger by Albert Camus
30. @Telling Tales by Ann Cleeves
31. @Slow Horses by Mick Herron

June
32. ♬The Dark Horse by Craig Johnson
33. @The New York Trilogy by Paul Auster
34. ♬Time to Depart by Lindsey Davis

July
35. @Junkyard Dogs by Craig Johnson
36. @The Posthumous Memoirs of Bras Cubas by Joachim Maria Machado de Asses
37: @End Times: Elites, Counter-Elites and the Path of Political Disintegration by Peter Turchin
38. @James by Percival Everett
39. @Raven Black by Ann Cleves
40. ♬Exiles by Jane Harper
41. Giovanni's Room by James Baldwin

August
42. ↩The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon
43. @The Black Mountain: a Nero Wolfe Mystery by Rex Stout
44. @The End of the Wasp Season by Denise Mina
45. @Snowblind by Ragnor Jonasson
46. @The Word Is Murder by Anthony Horowitz
47. @A Room of One's Own by Virginia Woolf

September
48. ↩✔We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson
49. The Burglar in Short Order by Lawrence Block
50. The Burglar Who Counted the Spoons by Lawrence Block
51. ♬Cold Light by John Harvey
52. @All Men Fear Me by Donis Casey
53. @The Return of the Raven Mocker by Donis Casey
54. @The Posthumous Memoirs of Bras Cubas by Joachim Maria Machado de Asses

October
55. @Arctic Chill by Arnolder Indredason
56. @A Dying Light in Corduba by Lindsey Davis
57. ♬A History of Eastern Europe - Great Courses
58. @Ceremony by Leslie Marmon Silko
59. ♬Blackout by Ragnar Jonasson

November
60. ♬Gods and Beasts by Denise Mina
61. @Who Watcheth by Helene Tursten
62. @Conversations with Friends by Sally Rooney
63. @Wild Houses by Colin Barrett

December
64. @Protected by the Shadows by Helene Tursten
65. @Shake Hands Forever by Ruth Rendell

Icons (modified from Bianca's list)
♬ audiobook
✔ off the shelf
@ e-book
✿ TIOLI
reread
✗ Never-ending.

It looks like I'd better spend some time on politics this year. Sigh. I've agreed to write 200 postcards to likely Democratic voters in Georgia, to help get out the vote. They aren't due to be mailed until near the end of October, so if I do a few a day, my hand won't fall off. If I find other actions I can do without traveling, I'll do them too. Not sure if I'll work the election this year. My first poll worker year was 2016. Didn't think I brought much luck that round. And book #37 on my current list, by Peter Turchin, was both clear and a bit dismaying.

Back to books. I've started James by Percival Everett, and hope to like it, as so many here have. That's for one reading group. The other f2f group will be discussing The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time, which will be a reread for me, and should allow me some mystery story relief.

Happy midsummer to all. Stay cool. Read good books.

I'm FIRST, Judy, and I think it's OK. Happy New Thread and Happy Reading!

I hope you love Aeneid. I do. I'd like a lot to read the Icelandic sagas, but I doubt I'll ever do it now. I might have if I had had a group. Good for you!

>3 LizzieD: Hm. Icelandic sagas. We had read Beowulf, I think. I don't know how many of the group would be up for the Eddas (that's what they are called, yes?). It's a thought. Some of our group want to read Homer's Odyssey again, this time the new translation by Emily Wilson. We had spent a year or two just reading poetry, but that's when we had our professor emerita at the helm, to associate and explicate. I wouldn't take that upon myself.

and you being first is OF COURSE OK!

I know the names of only two, and I'm most attracted to Laexdala Saga because people have speculated that a woman wrote it. I had a friend who was reading these years ago, and I bought a copy of this one and Njal's Saga, and there they sit on the shelf.

Good for you for writing cards!!!!! I need to do something like that, but the thought makes my slightly arthritic fingers ache. I hate phone calling. I guess it will have to be money.

ETA: I think it's Laxdaela. It is. I see it in the Touchstone.

Happy new thread!

Happy new thread, Judy. xx

>2 ffortsa: Happy new thread and good luck with the post cards. I wrote 200 letters to potential voters in Texas four years ago ... not enough to win there though. We were asked to print, rather than use cursive, because letters were aimed at younger voters. It was hard at first but now I find I two-thirds print/ one-third cursive most of the time -- funny the things that stick around.

>8 RebaRelishesReading: Me too on the print.cursive divide. Some letters are easy to connect without losing the basic shapes, some are not. And I want the cards to be easy for anyone to read. The messages are short enough that I don't get tired too quickly.

Happy new thread, Judy!

Happy new thread, Judy!

Tipping the Hat to your new thread. Of course it is too hot to be wearing a hat, so I'm tipping the hat that's on the table beside me. Might even wave it a bit like a fan.

You would think this extended heat wave would give me lots of time to read, but I get cabin fever and have to go somewhere, preferably outside, even when it's blistering. Sometimes the parks are sufficiently cool to linger in, mostly not.

I did take my usual morning Everwalk walk today, leaving only a little before the official end to take the bus home, enjoying its awesome air conditioning. Here I am, back inside. I think, because of the season, it's worse than isolating for Covid.

We are discussing James by Percival Everett on Tuesday, and I'm now listening to a palate-washer that might be no less dark, the first in the Shetland police procedural series Raven Black. Of course, without a walk on which to listen to it, I'm just as restless, but then there's the laundry to sort, my PT exercises to do - so it will work out.

I'm also writing postcards as part of the get-out-the-vote effort, even if we don't yet know who we will be voting for. Can't listen to a book while I do them - the words pile up on each other, of course.

Dinner with a friend tonight. Nordic Walking training tomorrow (I'll probably melt). On Monday it all starts again.

Hope your heat wave breaks before long. It isn't hot here but we had some truly attention-getting claps of thunder a little while ago 😳. No rain though (which we could use). Hope you have a productive day without too much cabin fever.

>14 RebaRelishesReading: Thanks, Reba. I did do a Nordic Walking class in Central Park, so it wasn't too lazy a day. And I finished listening to Raven Black, my first Shetland mystery. Pretty good, and interesting to look back from the end to see the clues in the text, but long to listen to. Maybe I'll read the next one in print.

Hope you get some rain soon.

>15 ffortsa: Thanks for the rain wishes Judy. In contrast to what I believed before I moved here (all I ever heard about was the endless rain in the NW) it doesn't actually rain very much in summer here so I think we're fine.

38. James by Percival Everett

We had a very interesting discussion last night about this book. Different people were moved by different parts of the book, and we all took exception to James's assertion that he was Huck's biological father. It distorts Huck's character.
And there are other unlikely aspects to the story, but the feel of slavery is very affecting, and, I am sure, accurate.

39. Raven Black by Ann Cleeves

Cleeves is such a reliable source for this kind of area-specific mystery. Just in this first book, I learned so much about the Shetland Islands! The mystery was almost secondary, but had I been thinking more about the solution and less about the area, I would have pinned it pretty soon.

This is first in the series, and I will definitely follow the crumbs.

So our reading group last night chose Giovanni's Room by James Baldwin, which was providentially already on my (physical) shelf! Unread! This is part of why I participate in book groups, to push me to read something other than even good mysteries.

40. Exiles by Jane Harper

The third in the Aaron Faulk series set in Australia, and it was such a good idea to listen to it! Just as in the Shetland books, it's good to hear the accents and the rhythms of the specific language.

In this installment, Faulk visits a close friend to stand as godfather to the newborn son, only to get embroiled in what seems an impossible case of missing person during an annual festival. A year later, with no resolution to that mystery, he arrives again to complete the postponed christening. All those involved are again present for the festival. Some lovely romance, along with mysteries and the feel of the Australian vineyards.

>18 ffortsa: I hope you will be moved by Giovanni's Room Judy. I read it first aged 14, so it was quite mind-blowing then (1974).

Hi Judy. Happy newish thread.

>19 ffortsa: I read the first Aaron Faulk book and really liked it. You remind me that I should look for the others. I will see if my library has the audiobooks.

>20 Caroline_McElwee: So far, I'm really loathe to put Giovanni's Room down to do other important stuff with my time. The writing is exquisite, in all senses of the word.

>21 BLBera: Oh do follow up with the Faulk books. This is the first one I listened to, rather than read the print, and while it took me longer, it was very well done and I appreciated the accent.

I was so captured by Giovanni's Room that I finished it way ahead of my group meeting at the end of the month. So I won't leave any review here just yet. My friends usually have some interesting things to say that spark new ideas for me.

This Tuesday, my other f2f group is discussing The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time, so I've started that reread. We have seen the play, which was excellent, with very creative staging.

We've had a couple of nights out in the city. First, a 90-minute piece by Bill Erwin, who has become a superb performer and commentator on the works of Samuel Beckett. The evening at the Irish Rep did not disappoint. The dinner beforehand, at a new restaurant (to us), BXL Zoute, was very good but a lot more expensive than we had anticipated. 3.5% discount for cash, which we just met. But still...

Last night we went to see the dance troupe Pilobolus at the Joyce Theater. Always amazing and often emotional pieces. The dinner before was at a Japanese place we knew, but the Bento box dinner was enormous. I have to get back to reasonable eating before I graduate to tent dresses.

Each time, we got caught in a downpour, once between the restaurant and the theater, once on the way to dinner. The instructor in my Nordic Walking class called to ask me if I was willing to risk rain this afternoon in the park, and I gratefully declined. It will be too hot anyway for such physical work. Next class is at the end of August, and I'm just as glad to have that long to hide from the heat.

Books. Still reading Curious Incident, found a good audio at the library if I have time to listen to it before Tuesday night. Jim pointed me to a Nero Wolfe I've never read, and I'll fit that in afterwards. And then - so many books, so little time, as we all say.

Stay dry and stay cool and have a good reading day :)

That's what we say, all right, Judy. Good luck to you!
I don't own a copy of *G's Room*. How odd.

I love the sound of your nights out, maybe minus the rain. We're hoping Debby sends us only the 6-8 inches predicted for us at the moment. The feats of Pilobolus reach even to the hinterlands where I live. Amazing to see a live performance! I rely on you for vicarious thrills.

Good for you, Judy, for writing those postcards! I am doing Vote Forward letters, and it is hard to make myself write. But I know I'll be happier come November if I have done my best.

Hi Judy. The Aaron Faulk series has been on my radar for a while. It might be a good set for the dark winter days here in central Oregon.

After this year, we'll be moving back to the west side (of the Cascade Mountains) and I'm looking forward to having ready access to Seattle and Portland activities again. Your city activities always sound so delightful.

>28 EBT1002: When you do move back to the west side of the mountains, I'll introduce you (probably not in person, alas) to my cousin Bonnie, who is delightful. I'm sure she will suggest interesting things to do in Portland!

42. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon

To be discussed tonight. Hope the rain doesn't discourage participation.

Way past time to review this.

This book really stands up to rereading. The details (and there are many) bring the reader inside the head of Christopher, and his head doesn't work quite like most people. But he is determined and persistent and extremely observant. In a very particular way he is present in the world. So when he has cause to go to London, where he has never been, he works out exactly how to do that and how to get past his particular anxieties. A fascinating look at a young man who struggles to operate in the world.

>21 BLBera: >22 ffortsa: Such a start I had, reading your exchange about "Aaron Faulk" books. My younger son had a classmate named Aaron Faulk, who I couldn't like. Too full of himself. Ned's 40, so his former classmate could be an author. (What do I know?) Looked him up on Wiki and discovered (to my relief) that Aaron Falk is a character in a couple of novels. Oh good!

>31 weird_O: Maybe I should have mentioned that it was the character's name. Names, like book titles, can't be copywritten. Or is it copywrited?

A little out of order:

43. The Black Mountain: a Nero Wolfe Mystery by Rex Stout

Well, the author is no longer reachable, so I can't ask him what possessed him to send Wolfe and Archie to Montenegro, so I can only assume he (Stout) was bored.
Quite a ridiculous book, with Wolfe hauling his 1/7 of a ton body up and down mountains and working his magic in 4 languages. Only for the die-hard fans.

New York is a soggy paradise, temps in the 60-70 range for a few days before summer returns. We celebrated with an expensive lunch at our favorite Greek taverna, and have the rest of the day to ourselves. Bliss.

Sweet Thursday, Judy. Happy New Thread. James is my top read of the year...so far.

I finally got up to the health club to go swimming this morning. The club is a little too far to be a last-minute walk, and my limited membership constrains my available hours, so I haven't made much of an effort to get up there. The pool itself is quite nice, three lanes fairly long (not sure if they are Olympic-length or not) with skylights, and a restriction of 20 minutes if someone else is waiting for a lane. That's fair.

I don't usually spend that long actually swimming - today was about 15 minutes, which is good for not being a swimmer for several years. I used to swim in the evenings after work, as much for my anxieties as my back, but that was when there was a club just around the corner and affordable. This one is free as an AARP supplemental insurance perk, hence the hours. The only late nights are on Saturday and Sunday - I guess the theory is that the young ones are out partying on Saturday and getting sleep before work on Monday morning.

They have some senior-level classes, but they are fewer and farther between than they used to be, and some are in conflict with the rest of my schedule. If I can get to the pool a few times a week, that would be a great advantage.

Before this, this past week we saw two films at home:

The Coen Brothers film "Burn After Reading" was ok, not as good as others of theirs I've seen.

"Crazy Rich Asians" was terrific, romantic and snarky at the same time. We see how the very richest live in Singapore, and how damaging that can be if you can't escape the pull of that materialistic gravity. Very pretty. AND, Ronnie Chiang of the Daily Show had been roped in to play an 'a**hole', which he himself says was typecasting. Very funny.

44. The End of the Wasp Season by Denise Mina

eta: An excellent addition to Mina's police procedural series featuring Alex Morrow. She is caught between the disaffection of the police in her department and her clueless superior, her complicated and alienated family and to her own pregnancy. But the most pressing problem is a horrific murder in a posh home; why and by whom are a complete puzzle, the ferocity unfathomable, what police learn about the victim shocking.

But the reader knows how the murder happened, and eventually the sheer emotional abuse that sparked it. The parallel lines of investigation and reader knowledge eventually converge, but Alex's problems are ongoing.

reviews will come eventually.

I've felt very busy lately, or very tired, or both, I'm not sure. Some friends needed help, prior commitments caught up with us, and so forth. Now my landlord is making noises like he wants to buy us out, but I doubt he will offer enough for us to find someplace else we can afford. Or want to afford. Still, a little agita.

Off to do another good deed in a little while, then a quiet evening, I hope.

I hope you get some peace and quiet soon and that things go well with your landlord, Judy.

>38 SirThomas: Thanks for stopping by and saying nice things! As for peace and quiet, I tend to complicate things as soon as it appears, but I hope for more days to just enjoy the city.

Speaking of which, I must get to Fotografiska before the museum closes its current location and moves who-knows-where!

We did finally visit the American Museum of Natural History on Central Park West on Friday. Haven't been there in a long time, although we are members. We visited the Vivarium (a butterfly and moth enclosure) and saw a movie about sea turtles. I might go back after one of my Saturday walks if we wander close enough to that side of the Park. This Saturday was so humid I quit about half-way through as we were near a favorable subway station and I was soaked to the bone.

Yesterday we accepted an invitation to escape the city and travel to Rockville Center on Long Island, where one of our circle of readers has a quite lovely old house. The train trip wasn't long, and the sun did eventually come out so we could sit in the garden. Lovely.

Glad you day ended with weather you could enjoy :).

With your mention of turtles, you might enjoy Timothy, or; notes of an Abject Reptile.

Timothy is a lot more of a fun philosopher than "Abject,"
a descriptor which certainly does not draw many readers
and is way more exciting than Klinkenborg's Making Hay!

>42 m.belljackson: Timothy sounds intriguing. Thanks.

I spent the morning wrestling with Google about my Fitbit account. Somehow I had gotten caught in a loop between the old account and password and an account I didn't even know I had on Google, but one of the techs was VERY patient with me and we unscrambled it. Data was lost, but I'm looking forward anyway.

Then I decided to go through some of my boxed books to see if I could bear to part with any. Between the topics (very academic lit crit) and the type size, I found 12 to donate to the library, and a few that might actually sell for a few bucks on Amazon or Ebay. A couple I might even read. What a thought!

I'm clearly in a frenzy of sorting. I found a hardcover copy of Aloft on my shelves, unread, with a Bookcrossing sticker in it. Oops. I've set it up as available on Bookcrossing. Maybe someone will want it.

If someone here wants it, I can send it out.

45. Snowblind by Ragnor Jonasson

An interesting first book in what I hope will be an engaging series of police procedurals in Iceland, featuring a new, young policeman posted to an isolated town in the winter. The cast of characters is very much that of a small town where everyone knows everyone and secrets abound, sometimes erupting. Ari Thor, our new cop, breaks a lot of rules to support his instincts, of course, and struggles with claustrophobia as the mountains loom around him. Lots of strings, romantic and otherwise, left hanging to continue the series.

Sounds like you've been very busy with books :). Good luck with sorting, gifting, selling, etc. I hope to never need to do that but I suspect the time will come...perhaps not too long in the future.

>22 ffortsa: >23 ffortsa: Now that's a reaction I get Judy. Hope your group had some good discussion too.

>24 ffortsa: Beckett fan here, so anything like this would appeal.

46. The Word Is Murder by Anthony Horowitz

Anthony Horowitz has written a lot of mystery (and horror, it seems), some of which have been delicious. In this one, he starts a new series with a decidedly arch premise, that he himself is the narrator of a story he participates in. Some of it is rather fey - as when he inserts one of the victims in a flurry of known TV and movie stories he himself has written. (I almost checked to see if the name appeared in the cast lists.) Some of it made me impatient, such as the aforementioned list of credits, or digressions that seemed to unnecessarily delay the next reveal. I'm not sure I have the patience to read the next in this series.

41. Giovanni's Room by James Baldwin

My book group members surprised me. Lots of critical comments about Baldwin, and this book in particular. Some people found David selfish and off-putting, some found the prose occasionally 'purple'. I agree that David's life is still undefined at the end, and that he still cannot fully accept the kind of man he is, but isn't that true for many of us? All agreed the writing was wonderful, the sense of place, Paris in the corners of the city palpable. But it wasn't the rave I expected. Am I naive? Not sure.

>50 ffortsa: Oh bummer, Judy!! It is disappointing to have friends (esp. book club friends) not appreciating a book you're really fond of, isn't it?

Bummer that your bookclub didn't agree with you on Giovanni's Room -- I like Baldwin and it sounds good to me. Good luck with the sorting!!

Giovanni's Room is one I haven't read yet, but I am a Baldwin fan. It sounds like you had an interesting discussion?

Snowblind sounds good.

>53 BLBera:>52>51 The discussion was very interesting, as I hadn't considered a lot of what people were criticizing. I found the book wonderfully written and quite sad. But that's the joy of having a really interesting group of literate friends (as are here) - disagreements can expand thinking.

holding

Hi Judy!

>17 ffortsa: My book club will be discussing Huckleberry Finn in October and James in January. It gives me the chance to re-start and finally finish HF in addition to reading James. I didn’t read your spoiler…

>19 ffortsa: I asked my sister for this book last year, and it’s still waiting to be read. I do love Jane Harper’s vivid writing and descriptions of Australia.

>30 ffortsa: Good to know that it stands up. Another excellent book about a person on the ASD is Born On A Blue Day: Inside the Extraordinary Mind of an Autistic Savant, this one nonfiction. I just read more about Tammet, and his life is fascinating.

>32 ffortsa: I am a die-hard fan, and re-read this one as part of my 2020 read/reread of the entire Nero Wolfe series. It wasn’t the worst, but you’re right that Wolfe traipsing up and down mountains was a tad ridiculous.

>44 ffortsa: and >45 ffortsa: Congrats on going through books. I’ve culled quite a few this year but really need to get rid of most of the small font and/or tanned/yellowed mass market paperbacks.

I should come visit more often - I love your ramblings around the city, visits to museums and performances, and etc.

>56 karenmarie: Ah, speaking of rambling, did I mention the Open House New York boat tour we took? OHNY runs three harbor tours in the summer - this was the last one, and the speakers were touting all the 'green' projects NYC was involved in. Unfortunately most of them read from prepared texts (boring) but some of the projects sounded interesting. While not really listening, we circled Governor's Island, a wonderful place in the middle of the harbor which the city acquired from the Coast Guard for a dollar some years back, and which they are slowly developing in interesting ways. Then we went down the west coast of Brooklyn, which I know pretty well on land, and then turned around and sailed under the Brooklyn Bridge to explore the Brooklyn Navy Yard. It's HUGE. And no longer controlled by the Navy (can't get the big boats out from under the Brooklyn Bridge!). There are many development plans in the works. As I recall, some housing, more small manufacturing and development. I'm dying for a land tour now.

It was a beautiful evening on the water.

47. A Room of One's Own by Virginia Woolf

I think I read this before, but the memory is gone. A very good catalog of why we do not have a continuous history of women, before the 19th century. Prejudice, discounting, work and 'place' all feature. Her pattern in the book is to pose questions, one at a time, to figure out formally what we all can gather from our own lives. A modest income and a room of one's own, she concludes, is the necessary condition.

It makes me think of Tillie Olsen, however, and her short story "I Stand Here Ironing" (right title?). She struggled with all the time eating problems of her life and responsibilities, and still got it down in text. And so often about those very struggles. Sigh. Now I have to go read her stories again.

I'm currently rereading We Have Always Lived in the Castle for next week's reading group. Although I gave it 5 stars the last time, no review, so I'll have to fill that in after the meeting.

>50 ffortsa: Interesting your group’s take Judy. That has happened to me with books I expected them to like more. I shall reread Giovanni’s Room again later this year, I think it was about seven years since I read it last.

>58 ffortsa: Another favourite of mine. I plan to start a reread her diaries this autumn.

It's been a movie weekend. We saw 'My Man Godfrey' (the original) on TV yesterday, and today we saw a new print of 'Paris, Texas', a Wim Wenders film from 1984 (why does that sound so long ago?) which was wonderful. Harry Dean Stanton is the central character, a lost soul rescued by his brother (Dean Stockwell) from the Texas desert. Of course he doesn't stay a lost soul, because his brother has been fostering his son for four years. And things happen. It doesn't hurt that the missing mother is played by Nastasia Kinski. It's a great film, and a great performance by Stanton, and by the the boy, played by Hunter Carson.

Happy September!! The boat tour sounds lovely. And a movie weekend never hurts. : )

>61 ffortsa: Big Wim Wenders fan here Judy. Have you seen his latest, 'Perfect Day' yet? It's excellent.

>63 Caroline_McElwee: Oooh, no I haven't even heard of it. I'll keep an eye out.

48. We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson

It was a pleasure to reread this near-horror story of local hatred and female power. Merricat, an 18 year old who sounds more like a 12 year old, living with her older sister Constance and an ailing Uncle on the family estate, vividly describes the animosity between them and the people of the town. Hostility that seems to have started with her father has marinated into nasty, irrational behavior on both sides. When a (male) cousin comes to call and installs himself in the tightly orchestrated household, the invasion leads to destruction.

This is a story on many levels - the damage of isolation, family trauma, male and female power, sympathetic magic, the rituals that hold people together and what happens when they fail. Wonderful, almost cinematic writing.

Somehow, I'm gotten very nervous today. Politics? Too many things on the list to do? Not sure. But one thing has gone with admirable smoothness. My monthly back records download to Quicken exactly matched the bank records. No searches to see what I might have skipped, no transactions left behind or payment to the wrong account. Whew.

>66 ffortsa: You're one in a million then. Congratulations!

>66 ffortsa: That's great news! I hope it soothed your nerves a bit.

>66 ffortsa: Isn't it wonderful when things go that way? Congrats and happy weekend Judy

Actually, I'm still anxious, although not worrying about accounts always helps. I think it's the upcoming tutoring obligation that's getting to me. And too many friends ill with something or other unpleasant and/or dangerous.

It's a nice day here. I skipped this morning's walk, but I think I'll go out now, mail a package, enjoy some sunshine.

eta: a walk is also in order because my eyes have told me to put down the book before I can't see it at all. The one most aggravating thing about getting older, I think.

After you stopped by my thread, I found I Stand Here Ironing as well as several other ss by Tillie Olsen as freebies online. It was absolutely wonderful. I was not familiar with her and so appreciate that you brought her to my attention.

>71 streamsong: That's great!

>70 ffortsa: Even I have trouble reading because of my eyes. But they're worse than my 83yo dad's.

51. Cold Light by John Harvey

The sixth Charlie Resnick book, and the first (and last) I listened to on audio. The narration was unfortunate, in that the 'omniscient' narrator's voice was very plummy, and Resnick's voice was far too thuggy to be enjoyable. As a police procedural, I found it very conventional. Not sure I'll continue with the series - there are better ones waiting.

Added to that, it was rather long to listen to, so a lot of time spent for the indifferent reward.

Grump. The Slow Horses series is very popular in my library system, and I was so in the mood for it! I'm only up to Dead Lions.

>75 ffortsa: I'll grump with you, Judy. I've just started Joe Country and have been looking to be sure I can get the next ones when I want them. I don't often read more than one at a time, but I just breezed through The Drop, and I think The Catch is a novella too, so I might have to get it.

52. All Men Fear Me by Donis Casey

The 8th Alafair Tucker mystery, this does include murders, but most of all it includes the conflicts surrounding the U.S. entrance into World War I. Lots of prejudices exposed, lots of conflict between socialist and nationalist fervor. Very interesting look at a more rural reaction to the draft and the prospect of fighting 'the Bosch'.

53. The Return of the Raven Mocker by Donis Casey

The more I read this series, the more I see it as a vivid picture of U.S. history. World War I has started, and Alafair's boys are in the thick of it. But a nearer danger is the 'Spanish' flu, which is killing more people than the war. Alafair struggles to keep her family safe in quarantine, but she can only do so much.

There is a murder in the midst of this, but it is almost incidental to the struggles of the townspeople to survive this viral attack.

>78 ffortsa: Have to have a look at these. For the historian the time between the end of the Civil War and America's entry into World War I was a HUGE and significant part of the United States growing up as a nation.

Boys who never had been farther away from home that the county seat found themselves in boats bound for Paris, for gosh sakes. New horizons.

and the families who were left behind huddled around the radio and learned about the world. New Horizons.

>79 magicians_nephew: you would be interested in this one and the previous in the series.

So we were foolish. Or maybe just distracted by all the other things on our plate. We thought we would get our covid vaccine with our flu vaccine in mid October. Bad move. I'm down with the authentic bug, and we are hoping hard that Jim doesn't test positive in the next three weeks, so his treatment plan isn't delayed. Stupid. He will probably go to his apartment in Queens tomorrow and stay there to keep away from me.

I've just reread 54. The Posthumous Memoirs of Bras Cubas for our Monday night reading circle, but now that the nasty bug has seen fit to visit,that will have to wait. Some of the food will keep for next week if we can reschedule so soon. The rest of it we will eat in the interrum, if I have an appetite.

Feel better soon, Judy.

I'm so sorry, Judy. I devoutly hope that Jim evades the bug and that you are having nothing more than an annoyance. I know you're concerned about him. Be kind to yourself!

>83 BLBera: >84 LizzieD: Thanks for the good thoughts. So far, mainly an annoyance, but a lot of stuff to cancel. It's hard to get test kits now (ordered some from covidtests.gov - supplies limited but free). I guess more people are getting hit around here.

55. Arctic Chill by Arnolder Indredason

Immigration from Asia is surprisingly common in Iceland, as is varieties of resentment. When a boy is found stabbed in an icy lot near his apartment block, what is puzzling is the motive. Erlander and his team dig into the school culture, while the murdered boy's brother hides from their inquiries.

Very good in its complications, as well as its portraits of immigrant and other families.

You would think, being ill, I'd get a lot of reading done, and I have read some New Yorkers from the spring, and some more current magazines, and even the newspaper. But books have just not hit me. One so far in October. I'm listening to a Didas Falco mystery, but that's it.

Oh, I did download the first Murderbot book from the library. Next up.

hi

I came across an article from the New Yorker in the April 1 edition (and it's not an April fool's joke), about a place in Montgomery, Alabama called the 'Freedom Monument Sculpture Park', that opened this year. The picture selected for the article is of a sculpture of a hand rising from the earth, very evocative. Has anyone visited there?

Hi Judy!

>58 ffortsa: I’ve never heard of Tillie Olsen before now. I’ve added her book Tell Me a Riddle to my wish list.

>59 ffortsa: My Man Godfrey is one of my all-time favorite movies. I’m a fan of William Powell.

>81 ffortsa: Getting Covid is always bad news. I hope you’re recovering and that Jim avoided it by escaping to Queens.

>90 karenmarie: Hi, Karen. Yes, I'm better, except for some sinus leftovers. Jim has avoided it so far.

I hope you enjoy Tillie Olsen when you find a copy. The stories are meticulous and real.

>86 ffortsa: sounds very noir...I have read a few books set in Iceland but haven't gotten fully on board the crime genre of that region.

>92 LovingLit: In my experience, Icelandic mysteries are often difficult are not noir in the sense of corruption. They are more personal, and usually good stories. Be careful of scandicrime novels; many involve victims who are women or children, and they can be quite upsetting.

Sorry to see you got hit with the bug, Judy. Thanks for the reminder about the Slow Horses series. I now have London Rules, the next for me, on hold.

>94 Familyhistorian: yes, I have to get back to both the series and the books.

Hi Judy - glad you are feeling better. Your story is a reminder that I haven't got my vacs yet ....

I'm just starting the Ann Cleeves Icelandic mysteries. Arnaldur Indridason sounds very good. I'm intrigued by the combination of immigration and mystery that you mention in your review.

I have a copy of Slow Horses. Once I pick up something and bring it home, it immediately gets overwhelmed by the library requests that come in.

>96 streamsong: I've been keeping my library request list very lean lately. I generally use it for mysteries that I want to read NOW, and return before the due date. But this week I've been reading Silko's novel Ceremony, which I've owned on Kindle a long time and even marked read. Don't know how that happened because none of it is familiar, and I would have remembered this one.

Oy. My cellphone has ceased to be a useful phone, because somehow no one can hear me. Looking for new phones, I'm torn between buying the best or near best, and buying a lesser phone. The Samsung S24 is at the top of my list, and I can get a reasonable deal from Samsung, but there are so many phones out there, and it's not like I use it for any really high tech purposes. I need a phone with text, email, browser, games (not the really complicated ones), music recording sometimes, camera. I should probably remind myself of the money I have to take out of my IRAs and just take the plunge.

What a first world problem, right?

Judy, you posted about needing a new phone on someone else's thread and Laura suggested taking a look at Backmarket. Not sure if you saw that post or not, and I don't recall those thread it was on...

Oh no. Where did I post that?? Oh, I should really look at the whole message, shouldn't I?

I found it (helps that I don't follow a lot of threads - ha!) - it's on Reba's.

>101 katiekrug: That was a good recommendation! I assume they deliver (not listed in Manhattan).

Laura's daughter is in Brooklyn, so I would think so.

Well, I decided to buy a Samsung S24 anyway, direct from Samsung. What a hassle! The deed is not yet done, because every time I put in an order, or the chat helper at Samsung put in an order for me, my payment credit card was rejected. Changed a credit card, no difference. Not much help from the first two people I dealt with. After about two hours, I somehow got into a backdoor group where someone was more helpful, and while he couldn't fix the problem, he did kick it up to more powerful technicians.

It's a pity, because the evident problem got me a further discount, I have a phone to trade in, and the pickup store is only about a mile away across town. I hope to hear from Martine,the better helper, probably on Monday (why do these things always happen on Fridays?).

In the meantime, I had a brainwave and tried using my bluetooth headphone with my current phone. It seems people can hear me just fine, so I assume it is the phone's microphone that is defunct. I might see if it can be repaired. I'll use the workaround until the phone situation is fixed. What a pain in the tush.

These smartphones have certainly gotten into my life - all purpose phones, texters, address finders, contact keepers, game sources, even violin tuners. Most of these features still work, but after all, it is supposed to be a PHONE.

Some backed-up reviews to come. Somehow Jim and I have been very tired this week, and everything is behind schedule.

56. @A Dying Light in Corduba by Lindsey Davis

A pretty good entry in this series, taking Marcus and Helena to Spain to solve a murder and possibly a cartel activity. Helena is near term but insists on going with him, of course. Complications, as usual, ensue.

57. ♬A History of Eastern Europe - Great Courses

I knew very little about the history of Eastern Europe besides the repeated partitioning of Poland. This course offered great insights and the professor was pretty good at holding the listeners attention.

58. @Ceremony by Leslie Marmon Silko

Although my book catalog tells me I've read this before, I have no memory of it. A pretty wonderful book about the traumas of a Native American in WWII and afterwards, with a good dose of religion? magical realism? enriching the journey and a wonderful evocation of the southwest U.S. from the Native American point of view.

59. ♬Blackout by Ragnar Jonasson

This follow-up to Snowblind is too complicated to listen to, i think, and with too many plot lines and convoluted stories. The dialog is especially stilted, but I don't know if that is the author's fault or the translator's. Not the reader's, I think. Just badly written.

I recently reread Ceremony as well, Judy. I had only remembered the broad plot outlines, but what a great book.

I must try some books by Jonasson. I've heard good things about them.

Good luck with the phone woes. It is shocking how they rule our lives!

>106 BLBera: Ah, the phone woes. My situation was kicked to the financial department, and they fixed something, because I was able to buy the thing. It's supposed to arrive at my door tomorrow (I had said I would pick it up at the 'experience', but however I get it is ok.) So then I will trot over to my T-Mobile store and have them move the sim and all that. They claim it's easy. Hope so.

A friend of mine who has been in declining health is very frustrated by all the political emails, and hasn't looked at her account in over a week. I promised to go over there and delete all the irrelevant mail after the election, and get her back to where she can find her true email if she wants. She's become very stubborn and very passive at the same time - won't go to PT for the arthritis in her hands, for instance. I expect her to become more or less rigid within the year. Won't accept any in-home care. She probably wants her son to come help her, but that won't happen. Sigh.

Good luck with the phone, Judy. I also wish that your kindness may relieve some of your friend's rigidity. It's frightening to see how easy it is to stop growing and become more and more our worst selves as we age. Heaven forfend!

Thanks, Peggy. I did finally get the phone, and figured out laboriously how to transfer my data and apps (although some of them didn't migrate). It was very aggravating to set up the new phone, and I still have questions that will have to be answered tomorrow. Cost me some sleep too.

As for my very rigid friend, I'm afraid there is no help. Ultimately she will end up in the hospital for one reason or another and social work personnel will decide that she can't go home. That's not the best way to find yourself in care.

Hi Judy. Good luck helping your friend delete all the political emails! I guess one blessing is that it is finally behind us, terrible though the outcome is, and we will all get fewer emails and texts.

Take good care.

>110 EBT1002: Terrible indeed. It's just hitting me now, I think.

60. Gods and Beasts by Denise Mina

This is the third police procedural featuring Alex Morrow. At first I thought I'd made a mistake by listening to it on audio instead of reading it, but as the story went on, the players became clearer. The story got a good deal grimmer, too. Alex tries to reconcile with her half-brother Danny, gangster though he is. She is baffled by roadblocks in her investigation of a killing at a post-office, constantly frustrated by how little she learns about the victim. And ultimately she is infuriated by the depth of corruption she uncovers, and where it lies.

One of what seems to be a subordinate thread involves a left-leaning politician with serious moral failings. But it is not really subordinate, and leads to the bleakness of the ending. I really couldn't believe where the novel stopped. Maybe Mina will address this at least tangentially in the next in the series.

I'm getting really pissed off at Samsung. Although they sell their phones as Android, they layer their own apps into the mix in such a way that I can't find half the things I need to find with any reflexes I have. Every once in a while I simply can't get where I need to go. Ultimately, I'll figure it out, but I'm sorry now I didn't buy a Pixel, where Android is the basic language spoken. I had good reason not to, but maybe will rethink this the next time.

61. Who Watcheth by Helene Tursten

#9 in the Irene Huss series. A serial killer is strangling women of a certain age, but the prime suspect is only linked by circumstantial evidence. In the meantime, Irene's department is under new and uncomfortable management, and Kristen is burning out yet again in his job as head chef. When someone hurls an urn through Irene's window, is it the killer or someone else with a grudge?

62. Conversations with Friends by Sally Rooney

Frances is a student at Trinity College Dublin in this coming of age novel of friendship and betrayal. She and her ex-girlfriend Bobbi, a duo of spoken-word performances, become entangled with an older (30-ish) couple Melissa, a journalist, and Nick, an actor. Frances and Nick, in particular, reveal family traumas and in Frances's case, a pattern of self-harm. The friendships, love relationships and betrayals circle around the shifting pairs of friends as Frances struggles to find her way.

The style is matter-of-fact, the dialog and text messages revealing emotional avoidance and distancing, the characters frequently unlikable. But the writing is powerful, and the story is as compelling as a train wreck.

Nice review of Conversations with Friends, Judy. I bought a copy of Normal People several years ago, but I haven't read it yet. Is there a particular novel of Sally Rooney's that you would recommend to start out with?

>116 kidzdoc: Thanks for the compliment. This is the first Rooney I've read, so I don't have any other recommendations for you. But I am eager to read other work by her.

One of our reading groups selected Celine's Journey to the End of the Night for our December meeting, and I'm plowing through it dutifully, if not enthusiastically. Have you ever read it? So far it oscillates between sarcasm and some acute perceptions; here's one that suits our time:

When men can hate without risk, their stupidity is easily convinced, the motives supply themselves.

>115 ffortsa: - I couldn't get on with this one when I tried a few years ago, but I might give it another whirl, as I enjoyed her Normal People on audio.

>118 ffortsa: - That quote is spot-on for the current day.

>119 katiekrug: I had a hard time in the opening chapters, when our protagonist is evading World War I, but now that he is bound for Africa, I find it more readable. Progress to be reported.

Of the four (!) women I know who went through heart surgeries this fall, three seem to be recovering at full pace now. Modern medicine is a wonder.

A common occurrence. I had put down the Celine novel Journey to the End of the Night thinking I could not face 350 more pages of picaresque ramblings, but when I came back to it a couple of days ago, it had morphed into something considerably more interesting. My Monday night book circle talks about it (when we are not gossiping) on Monday, and I probably won't reach the end by then, but that's ok, there's plenty of book to discuss.

So last night's discussion was quite good, and it encourages me to finish the book (I did peek at the ending, which was also encouraging).
Celine, of course, was excoriated for his prejudices and political views after World War II, but that says nothing about the skill of his writing.
My mother wouldn't listen to Chopin because of his views on Jews, but that only hurt her.

It has been startlingly cold here for the past few days, as if someone turned on the freezer. so much for a mild fall. My winter stuff is still in boxes. I would have unboxed them, but yesterday our rugs were returned from the cleaner, and it took us most of the day to reposition our platform bed - lots of screws to replace and an awkward floating top to the drawerspace. Today is reserved for aches.

I've just realized my reading has slowed to a crawl and I'm more than 10 reads away from 75. Oops. I am in the middle of two titles just now: Journey to the End of the Night and Protected by the Shadows, the latter a mystery by Helene Tursten. I should finish the Tursten today, but the Celine with take me longer.

My tutoring gig starts, finally, with an intro session tomorrow, followed by regular sessions with a student every Wednesday, except, I assume, when the school is closed. No idea what level of elementary school reading I will be working with just yet.

But there's hope. We are traveling over next weekend, which should afford some reading time. And after this Sunday, we are relatively unscheduled until the new year starts.

Arts update: Jim and I saw two plays this past weekend: "The Light and the Dark", by Kate Hamill, bout Artemesia Gentileschi, a 16th century Italian painter, was pretty good, although I disagreed with some of the choices toward the end. "The Blood Quilt" by Katori Hall, brought four disparate sisters together off the coast of Georgia after their mother's death to make the annual family quilt. Also good, but too long, and the accents were often hard to understand. The amazing quilts hanging from every level of the stage were alone worth the time.

Come to think of it, this is the second play about four sisters and their late mother that we've seen this year. "The Hills of California" by Jez Butterworth, focuses on a close-harmony girl group struggling to get recognized in Blackpool, England, and the same sisters 20 years later, after their mother's death. Here I was wresting with the Blackpool dialect. But it was a delight to see two sets of actors, one of them teenaged, one of them 30ish, so well cast.

None of these were as wonderful as "Vladimir", by Erica Sheffer, about a journalist under Putin's regime during the war in Chechnia. Riveting.

63. Wild Houses by Colin Barrett

A sad and character-rich slice of life in a downmarket Irish town. Most people won't make it out of this poor village, and they know it, which makes them desperate. Dev is a giant of a man who nevertheless has been tormented by bullies until he cannot function in the usual world of work and pub life. When dubious cousins use his out of the way house as a hide-out, he has little to say. Nicky is aiming at escape by way of university, and may get there. Doll is trying to avoid the criminal life of his older brother. This is not a fast book, although it is easy to read, and when you are finished you know these people well.

64. Protected by the Shadows by Helene Tursten

Another in the Irene Huss police procedural series, pretty good although more violent than usual. Gangs, cocaine, protection rackets.

I'm stopping by to say hello! It is wonderful that you and Jim see so many plays!

>127 Whisper1: We've had a not-bad start to the season. In the past we saw more, but are trying to branch out a bit to concerts and other events.

It must be exciting to live in the city! When Grand daughter Kayla was 6-10, I frequently took her to the Natural History Museum. Her first trip was incredible for her. The restaurant in Times Square was on the second floor. I remember that she said "WOW! look at all those cash cabs!"

I thought the dinosaurs would hold her interest, but she loved the bottom floor of sea creatures. She took so many photos that her camera no longer had energy.

In February she will be 22! The time went by quickly, but I am very proud of the adult she is now.

yikes! It's WINTER!

I finally asked Jim to take down the winter storage box, in which is our lambswool blanket and my winter socks. Good thing I did, as the wind chill this morning brought the 'feel' down below 20f. I had to go up to a school on the far east edge of upper NYC, but it worked out ok and I'm revelling in my wonderful wool sweater and my winter socks. Just got more in the mail, too.

I went to university in Rochester, N.Y., which is quite cold in the winter, as well as darker than here. My acclimation was pretty good, and on sunny days I could open my jacket and revel in the crisp air. But we haven't had such a cold start to winter recently, I don't think (unless I'm remembering badly). Anyway, a day of silk under the sweatpants and t-shirt under the sweater, etc. did remind me of those four years.

The wind was very biting today, Judy. I'm glad you were able to bundle up!

OK! My sweaters have been excavated from their plastic protective bags. Most of them are better suited to office work, but as they have lasted these past 8 years of retirement, I continue to wear them. Who could pass up v-neck cashmere?

And I actually culled some summer stuff before I packed them away. There's more to come to terms with, but ok for now.

65. Shake Hands Forever by Ruth Rendell

The 9th entry in the Wexford series. It looks like our inspector is going to be outmaneuvered by the man he is sure is the murderer.
He's been ordered not to harass the man, but can't resist following him. And Wexford is deeply smitten by a woman incidental to the investigation, to boot. Interesting, with a twist at the end that I did see coming, and was most satisfied with.

Just speaking, Judy, and saying that I wouldn't pass up cashmere with any kind of neck!

I haven't read a Wexford in a decade or so. Honestly. I really need to live forever with mind and eyes intact.

>134 LizzieD: I too need to live and read forever. More new books every day, and more old books I have tbr.

We spent the weekend in Saratoga Springs with friends. Here's a picture of the B&B.

The b&b looks fun Judy. The Celine has been in the black hole for years, your comments are helpful, thanks. Maybe next year.

Glad you have all your warm garb to hand. I suspect my massive, Christmas themed fluffy hoody might bring a belly laugh. Nope, no photo forthcoming.

>137 Caroline_McElwee: No photo? Shucks.

The B&B has been very nicely restored and each bedroom has its own renovated bath (I do think a small family could live in the one we had).
It's only a few blocks from the main shopping street and its restaurants, and as there wasn't any snow (except some patches), it was an easy walk as long as we bundled up. Good friends, good food (too much of it!), good weather.

And yet we came home exhausted! I suspect too much social interaction for this semi-introvert.

Oh, that place looks great!

I love that house!

My fondest wishes to everyone for a Merry and Happy Christmas and a Happy and Healthy New Year!

Thinking of you at this time, Judy.

HI Judy, I hope you and Jim had a lovely day, and I send wishes for a happy and healthy New Year!

>142 PaulCranswick: >143 Whisper1: Thanks!

I do sometimes wish the world would fold so we could all stop by for a cup of tea.

Uh oh. I can't remember where I might have stowed the Hanukkah candles, or if there were any left last year. Maybe I can find some tomorrow. Bad planning.

Hi Judy!