Joe’s Ninth Book Cafe 2024

Debbi is doing well indeed. She graduated from using a walker to a cane, and today she wants to do our walk while holding my arm, without a cane. Her PT says she’s going to surprise everyone when she gets to cardiac rehab and walks in unassisted and with some pep in her step. That rehab will come some time after our 12/9 meeting with her cardiologist.

Every day is a little better. Her incision healed beautifully (it looked surprisingly good right after her operation - these folks really know their stuff) and her appetite is back, meaning her weight is climbing back from too-low. She’s working a bit on a jigsaw puzzle now, meaning her scattered concentration also is coming back.

If only we could discontinue her compression socks. What a pain in the butt putting those on is! They keep down any potential swelling in her legs, so we’ll probably keep doing them until that 12/9 meeting, and hope to stop then.

BOOKS READ 2024

January 2024

1. Last Devil to Die by Richard Osman
2. Karibaby Daniel Clarke (Thank you, Richard)*
3. Crude by Pablo Fajardo(Thank you, Mark)*
4. Cosmic Detective by Jeff Lemire*
5. The Mysteries by Bill Watterson*
6. Unfortunately Yours by Tessa Bailey
7. Last Call at the Local by Sarah Grunda Ruiz
8. Holiday in Death by J.D.Robb
9. The Emperor's Soul by Brandon Sanderson (really good)
10. Mother Daughter Murder Night by Nina Simon
11. The Door to Door Bookstore by Carsten Henn (charming; thank you, Nancy Quinn)
12. Check & Mate by Ali Hazelwood
13. Pym by Matt Johnson (did not like)
14. The Little Books of the Little Brontesby Sara O'Leary (ARC; okay)
15. Glowrushes by Roberto Piumini (lovely Italian fable - good gift book)
16. Secretly Yours by Tessa Bailey
17. Parker Girls by Terry Moore*
18. Strangers in Paradise Ever After by Terry Moore*. I love his Strangers in Paradise books with Francie and Katchoo

February 2024

19. Almost an Elegyby Linda Pastan. A very good poet that I’m just now catching up on.
20. Clementine Two by Tillie Walden* (thanks, Mark). The author is so good that I enjoyed this despite the worn-out Walking Dead context.
21. The Paris Bookseller by Kerri Maher (good novel about Sylvia Beach, James Joyce, and the Shakespeare and Company Bookstore)

22. Nettle and Bone by T. Kingfisher(Hugo winner; very good fantasy)
23. I Have Some Questions For You by Rebecca Makkai
24. Lone Wolfby Gregg Hurwitz (Orphan X thriller with interesting AI elements)
25. Wildful by Kengo Kurimoto (beautiful, quiet nature-filled graphic book reminiscent of The Secret Garden)*
26. Days at the Morisaki Bookshop by Satoya Yagisawa. (Beguiling story of a girl who learns to appreciate life while working at her uncle’s bookshop)
27. The Girl from the Other Side 11 by Nagabe*. There’s a melancholy mood to the story and drawings that very much appealed to me. But by the end the story seemed too drawn out.
28. Dirty Thirty by Janet evanovich. At least there’s a major relationship development (finally!)

March 2024

29. Murder in Reproach by Anne Cleeland (good entry in the Acton-Doyle series, with a cliffhanger)
30. Foster by Claire Keegan ( another beautiful book (long short story?) from the author of Small Things Like These).

31. Lunar New Year Love Storyby Gene luan Yang.* Disappointing book from this talented GN author. Twice as long as it needed to be.

32. Babel by R.F. Kuang. Well- crafted anti- colonialism fantasy; I ended up respecting it more than liking it. A writer to watch, for sure.

33. Red Dust by Yoss. An okay sci-fi tale featuring a noir positronic android. The noir aspect was fun. I got lured in by the phrase “noir space opera”. I’m inclined toward both, particularly noir.

34. A Wizard’s Guide to Defensive Baking by T. Kingfisher. A fun fantasy featuring Mona the (humble) Wizard of Baking, by the author of Nettle and Bone.

35. Murder in Reproach by Anne Cleeland

36. Aya The Claws Come Out by Marguerite Abouet*. Interesting graphic slice of life in middle class Ivory Coast. The Aya series is exceptionally popular internationally, and I find the illustrations very appealing

37. Country of the Blind by Andrew Leland. An engaging blend of the author writing about gradually losing his eyesight via retinitis pigmentosa; a history of how blind people have been (mis)treated over time; the effects of disability advocacy; and technological advances in helping blind people.

38. Anita De Monte Laughs Last by Xochitl Gonzalez. Even better than her lauded Olga Dies Dreaming. A novel featuring the obstacles brown (Cuban) women face in the modern art world still dominated by white males and the dangers of falling in love with one. Just my cuppa. What a writer!

39. The Rattle Bag by Seamus Heaney and Ted Hughes. Inspiring poetry anthology from two master poets, full of idiosyncratic choices. Not your father’s anthology. From Ogden Nash to Ferlinghetti toYeats to Wordsworth to Anonymous, lots to enjoy and chew on.

April 2024

40. Sharpe’s Command by Bernard Cornwell. Another fully satisfying Napoleonic era adventure with sharpe and Harper and their band of Rifles, with Sharpe’s wife La Aguja (The Needle) saving their butts at one point. This time Wellington has sent them to destroy a French bridge in Spain, and take over nearby French forts. Exhilarating.

41. Three Inch Teeth by C.J. Box. A grizzly bear appears to be targeting locals in Saddlestring, Wyoming.. How is that possible? And the nemesis of game warden Joe Picket’s family, ex- rodeo star Dallas Cates, has been released from prison without their knowing. Joe needs the help of his dangerous, reclusive friend Nate Romanowski. Another solid outing in this series.

42. Lake of Souls by Ann Leckie. I was surprised to be left feeling pretty meh about this one. The stories were fine, but no great shakes. Unfairly, I thought of what Ray Bradbury did with his short stories in comparison.

43. Wake The Hidden History of Woman Led Slave Revolts by Rebecca Hall.*. The author of this GN RESEARCHED 400 years of slave trad with more than 36,000 slave ships, one in ten of which experienced a slave revolt. Finding any useful history of the revolts, much less womens’ role in them, was an imposing task, often resisted by private archives like the ship insurer Lloyds of London. As a result, Hall often has to extrapolate and imagine the stories. Her work brings home the horror of this era of our history. The illustrations are crude but effective.

44. Watership Down The Graphic Novel by Richard Adams, James Sturm and Joe Sutphin. Superb graphic rendering of the famous book. Beautiful illustrations, and as endearing and exciting as the original. It’s a great way to Visually re-experience the original.*

45. Close to Death by Anthony Horowitz. Another extravagantly fun mystery, maybe his best yet. The author has found a fun groove in which he is a character in these. As an amateur detective helping the professional Hawthorne, he struggles like the reader to recognize the salient clues, and combine them to solve the case. A politically adept Inspector Kahn keeps thinking he’s figured it all out, only to have Hawthorn persuade him otherwise. With the main action taking place among bickering neighbors in the isolated, expensive Riverview Close, this one is premier entertainment.

46. The 6 Voyages of Lone Sloan by the celebrated French graphic artist Philippe Druillet. Baroque space opera with the kind of dramatic, ornate illustrations for which he is renowned. Kind of like watching an earnest, hilarious Saturday afternoon B movie set in outer space.

47. Table for Two by Amor Towles is a superb collection of short stories, the best I’ve read in many a book. The longest last one is a tour de force, featuring the unfathomable, unstoppable Evelyn Brooks treating LA as her own playlot. All the stories have that wonderful quality of carrying you beyond the last sentence, as you imagine what comes next. Best in class, five stars.

48. This is the Honey: Black Contemporary Poets edited by Kwame Alexander. An excellent anthology that is compelling from beginning to end. No top black poet is missed, and my copy (from the library) bristles with post-its marking particularly striking poems. The range and quality of Alexander’s selection is impressive. There are thematic divisions like “The Language of Joy” and “Where I’m From” that beneficially juxtapose different poetic approaches.

May 2024

49. Alison by Lizzy Stewart.* Recommended by Mark. An appealing graphic book that reads like an author memoir. In the beginning Alison is a sedate housewife. An art class leads to an affair with the accomplished artist teacher and the end of her marriage. As she learns to draw and paint, and with the help of her sculptor friend Tessa, she begins to transform into someone with a strong belief in herself and her work. Part of me wishes more of the book was in color, but the black and white illustrations are eye-catching and memorable. The story of her evolution feels quite real.

50. What You Are Looking For is in The Library by Michiko Aoyama.Stories about people who’ve reached an impasse in their lives and somehow find their way ro the Community House Library, with its somewhat mystical librarian, Mrs. Komachi. She talks a bit with each character, prescribes some unexpected reading, and gives each a different felt toy she makes. The characters all learn something critical and resolve their impasses. A clever and heartwarming book. I read somewhere it’s a good pick for those, like me, who liked Before the Coffee Gets Cold, and I agree.

51. I Survived the Battle of D-Day, 1944 by Lauren Tarshis. A surprisingly good graphic retelling of this monumentally historic battle, featuring a French boy helping the French resistance sabotage German weapons. Targeted at 8-12 year olds, this worked well for your cafe owner. I’m going to look for more in this author’s “I Survived” graphic series.

52. Happy Hour by Elissa Bass. Fun romance featuring a menopausal woman and a much younger man.

53. Ministry of Time by Kaliane Bradley. A good time travel yarn. Didn’t quite reach the heights I had hoped for, but a fun read. Not sure I ever did figure out what the recruiting was all about.

54. A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson. A YA mystery in which high schooler Pippa believes kind-hearted Sal must be innocent of his girlfriend’s murder, and she sets out to prove it as a school project. The more she digs, with the help of Sal’s brother Ravi, the more complicated it all becomes. But her persistence pays off. A fun page-turner our daughter recommended.

55. James: A Novel by Percival Everett. Wow, this book is going to win some awards. Beautifully written, it builds on the Huckleberry Finn story, this time from the POV of the slave Jim. Humorous, charming, scathing, exciting, filled with truth. An unsparing depiction of the worst chapter in our racist history, with James as our realistic but far-seeing guide. A new classic.

56. Light It Shoot It by Graham and Chaffee.* Pretty good graphic novel about filming a Hollywood B movie in the ‘70s. Some humorous hardbitten actors and nefarious types involved, along with naive wannabes.

57. What Doesn’t Kill You Makes you Blacker by Damon Young.

58. Marie Howe New and Selected Poems.

59. A Great Improvisation by Stacy Schiff.

60. A First Time for Everythingby Dan Santat.*

61.My Favorite Thing is Monsters Book Two by Emil Ferris.*. What an unusual genius this author and graphic artist is. The book continues the story of 10 year old Karen Reyes trying to solve the murder of her neighbor Anka, a Holocaust survivor. There are lots of related stories, many involving her dangerous and connected older brother Deke. Her graphics are so idiosyncratic and fascinating! Like the first book, there is a visit to Chicago’s Art Institute , where she gets to show us how high level her drawing skills can reach. This is brilliant, eccentric (in the best sense) work. And to me there’s a clear indication a third book will be needed. I can’t wait.

62. Midnight Library by Matt Haig.

63. Hockey Girl Loves Drama Boy by Faith Erin Hicks

64. First Frost by Craig Johnson

65. A Secret History by Donna Tartt.
A Secret History was very good, although I wasn’t as affected by it as many others seem to have been. I had one guy tell me he couldn’t get it out of his head, even many years later! The implication was he wished that he could. It was quite the vivid book, as college age youngsters commit murder and labor to stay united and not get caught.

66. Farewell Amethystine by Walter Moseley.

67. The Hazelbourne Ladies Motorcycle and Flying Club by Helen Simonson

68. Rachel Rising by Terry Moore.*

69. Fates and Furies by Lauren Groff

70. The Bookstore Sisters by Alice Hoffman. A short story/novella about two alienated sisters getting back together and running their late parents’ bookstore after one gets laid up and needs help. Charming; reminded me a bit of a favorite author, Sarah Addison Allen.

71. Bookstore Wedding by Alice Hoffman. A charming follow-up to The Bookstore Sisters. A third one comes out next February. I can imagine these eventually being gathered into a sorta novel.

July 2024

72. 🎩Is Love the Answer by uta Isaki. * A manga about an awkward college girl who learns about the sexual spectrum and asexuality, and begins to have a greater acceptance of herself and others.

73. First Time for Everything by Dan Santat.*

74. Shubeik Lubeik by Deena Mohammed.* The title means “Your Wish Is My Command”. In this Muslim tale, wishes can be bought and sold but, as always, using them is tricky. The Arabic folktale setting is interesting, but I found this graphic work only so-so, and too often a bit of a yawn.

75. The Last Thing He Told Me by Laura Dave. A woman’s new husband disappears, leaving her with his 16 year old rebellious daughter and instructions to “Protect her.” Together they try to find him, while learning that nothing in their lives was what it seemed. I hugely enjoyed this one, racing through the pages. There’s a Jennifer Garner tv movie of it, for after my much better half finishes the book.

76. Fountains of Silence by Tuth Sepetys. Read this one in honor of our late LT friend Anita (FAMestee), from her Favorites list. Sepetys is the author of Salt to the Sea, the outstanding novel about four teenage
refugees in the last year of WWII. This one is set in Franco’s suffering Spain after the war, which has just started encouraging tourism and investment to obtain much needed money. I learned sa lot about this dark period in Spain’s history, and the widely effective relief when Franco finally died and King Jua Carlos began successfully transitioning to a democracy. Today the country is thriving, although the Franco era problem of children being stolen and sold for adoption apparently continues. Here is a stark warning about the tragedies of a dictatorship.it also features a fancy hotel with American tourists, one if whom is a 19 year old talented photographer who falls for a Spanish girl from an impoverished village. As in Salt to the Sea, the reading pace is quick and enjoyable, with short, tight chapters.

77. Friends with Boys by Faith Erin Hicks.* She’s become a go-to GN author for me, but this one is pretty light and slight. A home-schooled girl with older brothers becomes a public school student and has some trouble making friends at first.

78. Winter Lost by Patricia Briggs. Okay but no grest shakes entry in Mercy Thompson coyote shapeshifter series.

79. The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle by Haruki Murakami. Even better the second time around. Covering an amazing breadth of storytelling, featuring a fine line (or jello-like wall) between dreams and reality.

80. The Littlest Library by Poppy Alexander. After her beloved grandma dies, a shy self-restricting librarian moves to a coastal England town and buys a lovely, if rundown, cottage. As she begins to meet the village’s inhabitants, her life and heart begin to open up. A relaxing charmer; a cozy without the mystery.

81. Ride On by Faith Erin Hicks.* A solid YA GN story set at a horse-riding stable. The new girl is standoffish after a bad experience at a different stable, but gradually learns to trust the other teens and enjoy their shared fandom of
a space opera tv show.

August 2024

82. The Last Murder at the End of the World by Stuart Turton. Well-done post-apocalyptic story by the author of Evelyn Hugo.

83. The Au Pair Affair by Tessa Bailey. A steamy story abou Burgess Abraham ( what a name for a pro hockey player) and Tallulah (what a name for anyone) after she’s hired to take care of his 12 year old daughter. Not War and Peace or Lincoln in the Bardo, but a fun way to spend a couple of hours if a lot of hetero sex doesn’t bother you.

84. The Triangle by Ruth Bass. Features a love triangle between mid-thirties Sylvia and two 70-ish men who give her money to help her get by and to maintain her interest. Stanley is a sweet man, but Gino is a thug, with a criminal background. When jealous Gino finds out about Stanley, look out. Frankie the bartender sees it all playing out in front of him, and can’t think of how to help Sylvia and Stanley. Very realistic as we grime along; the author covered crime for her newspaper in an earlier life. Thank goodness for Sylvia’s loyal and sensible friend Patsy, who helps get their canoe through some metaphorical white water. I particularly enjoyed the characters in this one.

85. I Survived the Battle of D-Day 1944 by Lauren Tarshis. * A fast-moving graphic treatment of the WWII Allied invasion of France from the POV of a boy whose mother and teacher both are in the French resistance. I’m heartened that this is a middle grade/YA bestseller, and that lots of young ones are reading this slice of history. It’s part of an”I Survived” series that I like very much.

86. The Rose Code by Kate Quinn. A very good story of three female friends who meet working at Bletchley Park, the famous site of WWII decoders like Alan Turing. Many women worked at BP among the men, breaking German and Italian encoded messages to benefit the Allies in the war. It all was a closely held secret and the information had to be used judiciously so that Hitler’s Axis forces didn’t suspect that their messages were being read. The author does a rewarding job of taking us behind the scenes and into the lives of those involved, with friendships and romances inevitably affected by a violent, uncertain world. Her characters are based on real people, including a traitor betraying them to England’s Russian ally.

87. The Book of Elsewhere by Keanu Reeves and China Mieville. I wanted to like this one but it put up too strong a resistance. A pulseless plodding panegyric on persistence, pursuing a plot pressed too deep into the pedantic to be pried loose from the padding before the persevering peruser pulled the plug. If it were edited down to half its length, this tale of an immortal warrior being studied by scientists while pursued by zealots might’ve been a thought- provoking novella. Instead, I hope the authors had fun together writing it, because reading it was a snooze.

88. All My Bicycles by Powerpaola. A charming graphic memoir consisting of vignettes centered around bicycles she’s owned. Black and white sketches with occasional yellow highlights. Her friendships, romances, musings. Modest and quiet, set in Colombia, Ecuador and Argentina, it cast a lovely spell on me.

89. North Woods by Daniel Mason. A string of stories playing out over time and tethered to a woods and apple orchard in Western Massachusetts. I enjoyed most of it, although a long section involving a schizo-phrenic boy had me yawning. Lovely ending, as a plantologist and woods enthusiast takes stock of what has been and what is. There are ghosts, two of whom are sisters and one of whom finds amorous satisfaction in the afterlife. The man can write, and except for the schizophrenic boy, the stories are novel, engaging and often spiced with a wry humor. I can see why the book and author are praised.

90. Hack Slash Back to School by Zoe Thoroughgood.* The newest entry in a funny, gorey horror series in which Cassie and her slow-thinking but supremely loyal thug Vlad chase after and kill monsters and kiilers. This one is particularly noteworthy because the author is a rising comics star who created the unusual and poignant memoir It’s Lonely at the Centre of the Earth (five stars) and the nearly as highly regarded Impending Blindness of Billie Scott. The art in this one is very good, but the story is convoluted. I’m sure she must be a fan of this series.

91. Not in Love by Ali Hazelwood. A couple of remarkably high sex drives meet amid corporate takeover shenanigans. While on opposite sides, the protagonists can’t resist each other but one in particular keeps trying. The truth behind the shenanigans comes out, and the two realize they have more than sexual attraction.

92. Jane Austen An Illustrated Biography by Zeyna Alkayat.* A slim, conversational biography with modest, charming illustrations. A nice gift for an Austenite.

September 2024

93. The Personal Librarian by Marie Benedict and Victoria Christoper Murray. An exceptionally well done historical novel. Set in the early 20th century, about Belle da Costa Green, a mixed race woman who passed for white and became the high profile curator for J.P. Morgan’s famous NYC library of ancient books. Part of the job involved meeting the city’s wealthy and elite, often at high society affairs. While concerned every day that her black ancestry would be discovered and her career and life ruined, she decided to hide in plain sight, by wearing colorful high fashion clothing and being vivacious and flirtacious in high society. She figured no one would guess a black woman would be so bold. What a well-researched, pleasurable read, with fascinating comments by the two authors in the end notes.🎶

94. Sirens of Titan by Kurt Vonnegut. A solid re-read. Rich man turned poor Malachi Constant gets to travel through time and space to different planets, accompanied by wry and wise narration. It was fun to travel along again with this author.

95. Death at the Sign of the Rook by Kate Atkinson. An enjoyable Jackson Brodie mystery with a deteriorating mansion reluctantly opened to the public, and a Murder Mystery Night, with Jackson surrounded by would-be sleuths. Lots of subtle humor, sometimes rising (descending?) to the level of farce. Reggie even finds a romantic interest.

96. The Iliad translated by Emily Wilson. This was a long term project, a few pages a day, so I can’t say this talented translator made it a page-turner. But I can say that she kept me vividly engaged and that, as she did with The Odyssey, she made this my favorite of the three translations I’ve read. (Fagles and Lombardo were the others). A tip of the hat to Amber for helping me with my questions.

97. Mystery of Locked Rooms by Lindsay Currie. A solid YA adventure story, in which three teen friends, who are good at escape rooms, need to solve a house full of them in order to find a treasure. The “treasure” was left by the original owner, and finding it would mean one of the three’s parents could pay off their in default house and get out of debt. Without that, the three way friendship would be broken as one would be forced to move away. Nothing major, but a fun one recommended by my daughter.

98. Sky Full of Elephants by Cebo Campbell. What a fantastic premise! Due to a mysterious event, all white people in this country die. People of color are left to sort out what to make of the changed world and themselves. The author has no interest in polemics, and the story is driven by the characters and descriptions of the post-event world. Our main character Charlie is a black man sent to prison under racist circumstances, which caused him to miss the growing up of his mixed-race daughter Sidney, whose white mother died in the event. Having been raised happily by whites, Sidney takes a resentful view of the new society and her long-absent father. Traveling to find an aunt, they find themselves in a transforming Mobile, Alabama. The emerging joy and warmth are a treat for the reader, and there is much to educate Charlie and Sidney. I loved the book’s audaciousness, and it is admirably thought-provoking as well as fun to read. Mark and I wondered whether there will be attempts to ban it down South.

99. The New Girl by Cassandra Calin.*. This is a surprisingly good middle grade graphic book about a Romanian immigrant in a French school, who speaks little French and consequently has few friends at the beginning. She also struggles with really bad periods. Over time both situations improve, and I imagine the book is reassuring on both counts.

100. World War II Fight on the Home Front by Kate Hannigan.* Well done graphic novel on what happened in America during rhe war: rationing, scrapping for metal and rubber to be used in making war machines, women and minorities entering the work force while men fought abroad, the internment of Japanese citizens, food shortages. Very informative about a country-changing time period.

101. Passions in Death by J.D. Robb. A solid entry in the long-running Eve Dallas mystery series. A few days before her wedding, a bride at her hen party is garroted. It looks like one of her trusted friends must have done it. With little evidence to go on, Dallas and Peabody have to rely on witness interviews in working their way to the culprit. As always, the ending is satisfying. As always, it’s a pleasure to spend time with Dallas, Peabody, Roarke and all the other characters and their environs created by this author.

October 2024

102. Playground by Richard Powers. In The Overstory he showed us we’re woefully underappreciating the miracle of trees. In this one he shows that we are woefully underappreciating the wonders and beauties of our oceans. Given the predominance, our planet should be called Ocean, not Earth.

One of the four main characters is a marine biologist, and what have gotten to me most strongly are the enchanting underwater scenes. There also are fascinating discussions of the strategic game Go (Chinese from way back) and one character’s development of a massively popular online game called, yup, Playground. Kinda like what Gabrielle Zevin did in Tomorrow, Tomorrow and Tomorrow. Throw in a remote paradisal Pacific Island and just the right amount of conflicted romance, and you’ve got a swell read. So swell I give it 5 stars.

November 2024

104. Vera Bushwack by Sig Burwash. I really liked this oddball graphic novel about a woman determined to build a cabin in the woods and live on her own. With her chainsaw skills she’s able to help a neighbor clear some trees, and a friendship begins. She seems to be a lesbian and he has a girlfriend, and by the end he admires her “whatever she is.” She has flights of fancy about being a strong cowgirl on a horse wielding a chainsaw, with her dog being another horse running alongside her. I guess it’s a story of her finding her power and enjoying it. Some big names like Kate Beaton helped her put this together.*

105. Royal City, Volume 3 by Jeff Lemire. The conclusion of a good trilogy by the author of Essex County. In blue collar Royal City, the drowning death of Tommy haunts his family. Suicide? Murder? They all continue to see him turn up at different ghostly ages and commune with them. In the end we find out what happened and there’s a denouement with Tommy.*

106. The Sentence by Louise Ehrdrich. What a disappointment this one was . My least favorite of this author’s books that I’ve read. I never did warm up to the main character, who let herself be led in too many different directions. As usual with this author, I learned a lot I didn’t know about Native Americans, but that was the only positive. Two stars.

107. The Road A Graphic Novel by Cormac McCarthy. The black and white drawings well-captures the novel’s grim post-apocalyptic landscape. The adapters also do a fine job of depicting the sweet decent boy in an indecent, survival first environment, and his cautious protective father always ready to be ruthless in his protection. This is a standout adaptation that strongly conveys the melancholy and desperation of the original novel.

108. In Too Deep by Lee and Andrew Child. In some ways a welcome return to form in the Jack Reacher series, after two uneven entries from the newly formed brother collaboration. The pacing and fight scenes are improved. But the characters lack depth and the plot is convoluted. It’s still unclear whether getting Child’s younger brother on board will be a success, but Reacher remains a towering character who I’ll follow.

109. Bluff by Danez Smith. My favorite young poet. Very thoughtful ablut being black, gay and human. But it can be not so easy when you’re an underdog rebel poet who becomes successful: “we wanted to stop being killed & they thanked me for beauty/& pitifully i loved them. i thanked them./ i took the awards & cashed the checks.” Some of their poems, especially the ones experimenting with visual presentation and graphics, went over my head. But even those usually had some brilliant lines that I savored. What a talent.

110. Holy Moly Carry Me by Erika Meitner. A well-regarded poet I had not read. This collection delves into surviving and raising children (one black, one white) in a fractured country, and being Jewish anidst Evangelicals. Sometimes it’s tough to hang on. Considering a Monet painting in “The Clock of the Long Now”:

“. . . he captures the exact moment
the sun struggles to break through
a light snowfall. There’s a path, a fence,
a town, figures hurrying with umbrellas.
Snow takes the edge off of most things
but the sun - its yellow light riveting,

sickly, the opposite of triumphant.”

This is a solid collection, filled with melancholy. It also may have been enough of this poet for me.

December 2024

111. The City and Its Uncertain Walls by Haruki Murakami. Five stars. See review below.

112. Pacita Abad edited by Victoria Sung. A 30 year retrospective of this outstanding fabric artist’s work, with scholarly and journalistic commentary. Go see this Filipino-American’s art if you get a chance.

113. Love Everlasting Vol. 1 by Tom King.* A collection of unusual romance stories. Joan Peterson repeatedly falls in love and gets marriage offers, but something odd is going on. And if she says no to the proposal, she gets shot and killed by a mysterious cowboy, only to pop up again in a new romantic situation.. The end of this volume hints at an explanation, but I’ll have to read the next one to find out what the heck is going on.

114. Before We Forget Kindness by Toshikazu Kawaguchi. I loved this warm little charmer. The vignettes from its premise of brief time travel visits feel genuine and deep, particularly the last one about an unfulfilled romance. There are two more books after Before the Coffee Gets Cold and this one. I plan to track them down.

115. I Refused to Be a War Bride by Howard Norman. An ARC. A quirky noir-toned GN that I got a kick out of. Detective Jonathan Levy and art photographer Alexa intend to get married, and banter like Nick and Nora. An elderly woman enlists their help to find her daughter. The scope of the story is modest but well done, as are the drawings. It reminded me a bit of Britten and Brulightly. Howard Norman is the talented author of The Bird Artist.

116. The Bletchley Riddle by Ruth Sepetys (Salt to the Sea) and a partner. Teen siblings Jakob and Liz are invited to help at Bletchley Park during WWII. Both are insightful decoders, although Liz ends up as an among-the-huts messenger due to her age. She is convinced that her mother didn’t die when the Nazis invaded Poland, and is determined to find her. Coded messages that show up indicate that she may be right. Their efforts to help crack the Germans’ Enigma coding machine, to thwart the Nazis plans to invade England, and to find their mother, make for another engrossing story from this top YA author.

117. The Mistletoe Mystery by Nita Prose. A sweet holiday charmer featuring her investigative maid Molly Gray.

118. Chaos Agent by Mark Greaney. This thriller featuring The Gray Man (whom Ryan Gosling played in a recent movie) was okay. A military AI is developed that can run ops without human intervention and, predictably, it sheds all control and becomes a danger to all of us.. This book kept me turning the pages , but had two much detail about nonhuman everything - guns, software, hardware, warehouses, offie buildings. It’s the humans that interest me.

119. Life is Strange Forget-Me-Nots by Zoe Thorogood. In the second Life is Strange GN lesbian couple Alex and Steph have left their hometown and gone on the road with their Manic Pixies band. They soon meet up with a troubled little girl named Lily who has psychic powers and needs their help. She can take away people’s sad memories, but they then store in her and are overwhelming her.. Their adventures in helping her are a large part of their story, with them temporarily returning to their hometown town at the end. No great shakes, but pretty good. Still a GN author worth watching after her more ground-breaking Loneliness at the Center of the Earth and Impending Blindness of Billie Scott.

120. John the Skeleton* by Triinu Laan. An award-winning children’s book translated from the Estonian. John is a classroom skeleton finally retired to Grandma and Grandpa’s farm. There he becomes part of the family, going on car drives and hanging out on the porch, even scaring away criminals at one point. A quirky, matter of fact story about the joys of a family, including chosen family.

121. Here We Are by Oliver Jeffers. A children’s book about living on Earth featuring his friendly, spontaneous-seeming illustrations. Very appealing. The messages are there is plenty to learn and ask about, and you are never alone.

Rest in Peace, Bolita.

Happy new thread!

>4 jnwelch: Aww, she was such a beauty!

The Sentence by Louise Ehrdrich. What a disappointment this one was . My least favorite of this author’s books that I’ve read. I never did warm up to the main character, who let herself be led in too many different directions. As usual with this author, I learned a lot I didn’t know about Native Americans, but that was the only positive. Two stars.

>5 foggidawn:. Wasn’t she, foggi? And what a sweet temperament. Big loss for the family. They’re all characters from Bluey in that photo.

Happy new thread, Joe!

I'm sorry The Sentence didn't work better for you. I really enjoyed it. The end of my comments on it: "It's a very timely read, but explores timeless questions of identity, how we live in the world proud of who we are but sometimes in danger because of it, and what we owe to ourselves and other people, both living and dead."

Happy new one, Joe. I am happy to read that Debbi is doing so much better.

>8 katiekrug:. Thanks, Katie. I’m glad you enjoyed The Sentence. I’m pretty sure Mark liked it, too. I didn’t buy into the corpse caper at the beginning, and it never really recovered from that. I never did warm up to what’s her name either. First clunker for me from Ehrdrich.

>9 Ameise1:. Thanks, Barb. Our latest concern is her blood pressure’s a bit high. We’re watching everything like a hawk!

>1 jnwelch: Debbi's progress is so wonderful to hear about---all the little small things are starting to add up to real improvement, aren't they?

>4 jnwelch: Obviously a total love bug...so sorry for the loss.

>6 jnwelch: We had a very similar reaction to that one, Joe. Ah, well...it's the sort of book I feel the author got more out of writing than we got out of reading...

Happy new thread, Joe. And congrats to Debbi on her progress.

>6 jnwelch: I thought The Sentence was fine, but not nearly as good as her Love Medicine novels. It took me forever to get into it and it was kind of disjointed. Erdrich's latest, The Mighty Red, will be my next read. I've seen mixed reviews here so am a bit wary.

>11 laytonwoman3rd:. They are adding up to real improvement, thanks, Linda. To her it all seems so slllloooowwww, but it’s actually fast improvement in the scheme of things. She’s had to worry about a heart murmur (my words) for years, the malfunctioning valve (and a clogged artery we didn’t know about). It feels so good to have that worry off the table.

Boli was a total love bug. Sweet, sweet, sweet.

I’m so glad you had the same kind of reaction to The Sentence. I thought maybe I was being a Grumpy McGrumpface about it.

it’s the sort of book I feel the author got more out of writing than we got out of reading.. I remember feeling that as I was reading it. Normally I don’t feel her presence in the book; I’m just carried away by the characters and story. But I thought of her often reading this one. Ah well, as you say. I’d never had a clunker before with Murakami either, and I found his last collection of short stories to be a dud that landed with a thud.

And here I am, excited about his new one, due to come out any day now. Set in the same world as Hard-Boiled Wonderland, it sounds challenging and just my cuppa.

>13 lauralkeet: Hi, Laura. Thanks for commenting on The Sentence. I don’t think I ever did get into it, and it certainly did feel disjointed. I look forward to your comments on her new one, The Mighty Red. I’ve probably been reading the same mixed reviews you have. I want to go back and read some of her older ones, including Love Medicine. On my BIL’s recommendation, I went back and read The Last Report on the Miracles at Little No Horse, and liked that one a lot.

Greetings and salutations, Joe, from my little but increasingly organized library. Your catalog of books read is epic, in terms of the number read and their range, and especially your short descriptions and your reactions to them. My hat is off to you.

I'm glad to read that Debbi is recovering so well from that surgery. That's so wonderful. So much to like about her and her family. Love the photo at the top.

Joe - So Good that Debbi will be up and around to enjoy a Family Thanksgiving!

You may well enjoy my last 2 posts on Mark's thread.

Great news about Debbi! Please give her my best.

I absolutely loved The Sentence, which earned 4½ stars from me, and a half star higher than I gave The Plague of Doves. I need to read more of her work, as she is one additional 4 star book for meriting inclusion on my list of favorite authors.

>1 jnwelch: I am so glad to hear that Debbi is doing well! Here's hoping that the 12/9 meeting goes well and the compression socks can be ditched.

>2 jnwelch: What a wonderful family shot!

>5 foggidawn: RIP indeed.

>6 jnwelch: I am sorry to hear that you found The Sentence disappointing. I loved it myself, but different strokes and all that, right?

Have a marvelous Monday, Joe!

>1 jnwelch: Glad Debbi is doing well! One day at a time.

>2 jnwelch: cute!

Happy new thread.

Happy new thread Joe!

Although I'm usually fierce about women's agency in books, I enjoyed spending time with Tookie from The Sentence. Also, because of Uncle Hugo's Science Fiction Bookstore, which was burned down in 2020, has been much mentioned by authors dear to me, I was particularly interested in an insider view of those events.

Happy New Thread, Joe, and glad to hear about Debbi's amazing progress.

>2 jnwelch: What a great photo, Joe, thanks for sharing.

>1 jnwelch: Even better still that Debbi continues to make progress back to very good health.

Happy new thread dear chap.

Happy New Thread, Joe. Sorry to hear you were so disappointed in The Sentence. I liked it more than you but I agree that it was a bit of a misfire from the usual reliable Ms. Erdrich.

Happy new thread!

Love the Blueys!

>6 jnwelch: I thought I’d never read anything by Louise Erdrich but I have a suspicion I may have read The Beet Queens and don’t remember a thing about it. I grabbed The Round House from the library on a whim … I’m glad I didn’t choose “The Sentence “.

Happy new thread! I'm glad there continues to be good Debbi news.

>27 drneutron:. Thanks, Jim! Yes, the good Debbi news continues. We took another longer walk today as her strength builds.

>26 NarratorLady:. Hi, Anne. I loved The Round House, my first of hers, and haven’t read The Beet Queen yet. Like Richard Powers, I want to read more of her backlist.

I’m glad you didn’t start with The Sentence. As you can see today , it has its fans, but I suspect they’re all experienced Ehrlich readers. If I had started with The Sentence, i might’ve mistakenly thought she’s not for me.

My new Murakami, The City and Its Uncertain Walls, is supposed to arrive today! It’s a complement to one of my faves, Hard-Boiled Wonderland. Can’t wait!

P.S. Aren’t those Blueys fun? R &F’s parents are quite unrestrained compared to their stodgy grandparents.

>25 banjo123:. Thanks, Rhonda!

>24 msf59:. Hey, Mighty Mark. I remember you liked The Sentence. She’s a superb writer even if it’s one about the sewer system, but I did experience this one as a misfire.

The new Murakami comes out today!

>23 PaulCranswick:. Hey, mate. Thanks re the new thread.

I’m glad you like the Halloween photo. The costumes are based on a popular tv show here, Bluey.

Yes, Debbi’s doing mighty well. She’s disgruntled about what she perceives as slow progress, and who wouldn’t be? I keep reassuring her that she’s doing great, which is what the doctors, nurses and therapists also tell her, but he body needs time to heal. She!s going to be better than ever, once she recovers.

Our next big trip may be Costa Rica, and that won’t be any time soon, but I’m dying to get back to London.

>22 kac522:. Hi, Kathy, thanks. I’ve been using your skillful junk drawer suggestion in posting photos from FB. They should stick around now.

Debbi’s progress is amazing, but it’s that old Einstein relativity theory. From inside space capsule Debbi, progress feels awfully slow. She pulled a rib muscle coughing, and that’s an annoyingly slow mend, too.

>21 quondame:. Thanks, Susan!

I’m glad you had a better time withThe Sentence than I did. Usually a book shop story sits well with me, but Flora the ghost was just meh from my POV.

Uncle Hugo’s and Uncle Edward’s reopened at a not-too-far-away location after the burndown, right? So sad that fire happened. Do you like the second version? I have never been to the old or new - should I make sure to visit 2.0?

>20 figsfromthistle:. Thanks, Anita. Isn’t the Bluey clan cute?

Yes, one day at a time for poor Debbi. Her mind is rarin’ to go, but her body says slow down, Speedy Gonzalez.

>19 alcottacre:. Thanks, Stasia. Yeah, any body who’s dealt with compression socks knows what a pain they can to put on and to wear. Very effective at preventing swelling, but oof. The best part is she doesn’t have to sleep with them on (her legs are raised) so there’s that wonderful moment of comfort and relief when I pull them off her at night.

Isn’t that a great family shot?

Poor little Bolita. I hope now she’s running around somewhere without aches and pains, and she can jump up on the couch without needing help.

Yes, different strokes for The Sentence. Her spell didn’t work on me this time. I definitely wouldn’t recommend it as a first Ehrlich.

>31 jnwelch: The one time I was in Minneapolis/St. Paul was before I'd ever heard of Hugo's, about 1986 for the birthday of my husband's aunt, probably 85 at the time. She was the oldest of 11 children, my husband the son of the youngest almost 30 years her junior.

Uncle Hugo's was known to my from posts by Lois McMaster Bujold and other area SF writers and Sharon Lee because she always announced when signed books by her and Steve were available there.
And since I donated a bit to the re-build fund I now am rewarded with endless updates.

>18 kidzdoc:. Thanks, Darryl. Debbi appreciates the holler.

I’m glad The Sentence was a primo experience for you. I wasn’t able to successfully buy into either the corpse caper or the ghost story.

Despite this one, she’s awfully close to a favorite author for me, too. I’ll definitely be reading more from her.

>17 m.belljackson:. Hiya, Marianne. Jesse, who joined us for the operation and immediate aftermath, is going to be so pleased at the progress of his mom since. We get the whole gang on Saturday. Debbi’s glad she’s going to be in good enough shape to enjoy the visit and goof around a bit with the little ones.

Adriana will make Thanksgiving dinner for all of us. She loves to cook, and wanted to take the effort off of Debbi.

I have to make it over to Mark’s thread! You’ve given me an additional reason.

>16 weird_O:. Greetings and salutations, Bill.

Thanks for the doffed hat. I feel like I’ve finally settled into a style I like, with the listed books having mini-reviews. I enjoy going back and revisiting what stood out for me with each one.

Thanks also for the kind comments about Debbi and her family. It’ll be a treat to have all of us together for a week. The Pittsburgh contingent will be in Colombia for Christmas/Hanukkah, so we’re grateful to get this time with them.

Hope all is going well in your part of the world, buddy.

>32 jnwelch:. Thanks, Susan. Lois McMaster Bujold and Sharon Lee are two of my favorite sci-fi authors. If they like Uncle Hugo’s, then I like Uncle Hugo’s. I’ve put it on my mental To Be Visited list. I wish I’d known about it when we took our high school senior son up there to look at McAllister and one other (starts with a C, I’m pretty sure).

Happy New Thread, Joe, and I very happy that Debbi is doing so well!

I am so glad to hear about Debbi's continued progress.

>37 vancouverdeb:. Thanks, Deb, on both counts!

>38 ffortsa:. Thanks, Judy. There are (hopefully) lesser problems to deal with (elevated BP; ongoing nausea; pulled chest muscle) which she’s working to get doctor input on, but progress continues and the big picture is rosy.

>32 jnwelch: I would not recommend The Sentence as an entry point for Louise Erdrich either, Joe. I have read a bunch of her stuff, but that is not what I would choose for someone who is new to her.

>39 jnwelch: I am glad to hear that other than a few minor issues, Debbi continues to heal well.

>40 alcottacre:. Hi, Stasia. Right, The Sentence would not be a good starter Ehrlich. Maybe Round House would be?

Thanks re Debbi. Me, too.

Today’s Bargain: The Lost Bookshop by Evie Woods for 99 cents on e-readers. What a price! What a charmer for bibliophiles.

>28 jnwelch: Very happy for you that Debbi is doing so well post surgery. Modern medicine.

I am one hold away from a library copy of the new Murakami and I am really looking forward to it like you are.

>43 RBeffa: Hiya, Ron. Thanks re Debbi. Modern medicine is amazing. That they can fix her ticker like this is really something.

I’m very happy with the new Murakami in the early going. This is going to be fun! Good for you for getting that advanced position in the hold line. Looking forward to hearing what you think of this one.

James by Percival Everett just won the National Book Award! Yay! What a great book!

Shunryu Suzuki (deceased): “In zazen, leave your front door and your back door open. Let thoughts come and go. Just don't serve them tea.”

This is a great one for Buddhists. The goal is to stay focused on your breath in meditation, and immersed in the present moment in your life. The difficulty: the mind loves to come up with distracting thoughts. (Sometimes called “monkey mind”). There’s nothing wrong with thoughts: let them come and go, just don’t serve them tea. When they go, return your attention to your breath, to your mindful experience of the present.

I was talking to a Buddhist teacher about this today. Such a wonderful quote from a master, the author of Zen Mind, Beginner’s Mind, one of my favorites.

. Today’s Bargain: generosity by Richard Powers for $1.99 on e-readers. Is there a genetic basis for happiness and, if so, who gets to own it? Sounds like NF, but it’s a novel from this always-exploring author. For those, like me, who want to read more of his work.

>41 jnwelch: Yeah, that is a good pick. I was thinking maybe The Beet Queen?

>42 jnwelch: If I did not have a hard copy of that one I would snatch that up!

>45 jnwelch: I read that one earlier this year and agree that it is a great book!

>47 jnwelch: I have not read that one by Powers. Thinking I might get that one. Thanks for the post, Joe!

Have a fantastic Friday!

>48 alcottacre:. Well, Stasia, I now am motivated to read her The Beet Queen next! 😀. I’ll let you know.

I suspect I may look for a bargain hard copy of The Lost Bookshop at some point. I liked that one a lot.

Probably like you, I’m not surprised, but I’m awfully pleased, to see James getting the award recognition it is. I think I even said in my review that it was headed for a lot of nominations. Sometimes you can just tell. So clever and well done, with wisdom on that major issue - racism - still facing us after all these years.

Doesn’t generosity look enticing? I knew he had to have addressed gene editing at some point. He loves taking on those big issues. I was enamored of what he did with the wonders and mysteries of the ocean in Playground, and also got a kick out of his AI exploration.

Bluff by Danez Smith. My favorite young poet. Very thoughtful about being black, gay and human. But it can be not so easy when you’re an underdog rebel poet who becomes successful: “we wanted to stop being killed & they thanked me for beauty/& pitifully i loved them. i thanked them./ i took the awards & cashed the checks.” Some of their poems, especially the ones experimenting with visual presentation and graphics, went over my head. But even those usually had some brilliant lines that I savored. What a talent.

>51 jnwelch: Pretty, everything here has been covered in a deep blanket of snow since yesterday. ☃️❄️

>52 Ameise1:. Are you a fancier of snowy landscapes and cityscapes, Barb? That sounds like it might be beautiful where you’re located.

Here the snow came and went and we’re back to those lovely late fall colors.

>53 jnwelch: I posted photos on FB from yesterday evening and this morning. You can see what it looks like for me there. ❄️☃️😍

>54 Ameise1:. 👍. I’ll look for that, thanks.

>51 jnwelch: - Wow! An autumn arch! Is this for real or is it an AI thing? It's gorgeous, no matter what. But wouldn't it be something to come across that on a walk in the woods?

>49 jnwelch: The Beet Queen is the second book in Erdrich's Love Medicine series (currently standing at 9 books), but I think is an easier read while still doing a good job of introducing the author than the first book in the series does. YMMV.

>51 jnwelch: I love that!

From lithub, the 2024 National Book Award winners:


Here are the winners of the 2024 National Book Awards…
November 20, 2024, 9:57pm

After a long ceremony and lots of wonderful speeches about books, presenting the winners of the 2024 National Book Awards:

YOUNG PEOPLE’S LITERATURE:

Shifa Saltagi Safadi, Kareem Between
G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers / Penguin Random House

*

TRANSLATED LITERATURE:

Yáng Shuāng-zǐ, Taiwan Travelogue
Translated from the Mandarin Chinese by Lin King
Graywolf Press (just reviewed on his thread by Richard)

POETRY:

Lena Khalaf Tuffaha, Something About Living
University of Akron Press

*

NONFICTION:

Jason De León, Soldiers and Kings: Survival and Hope in the World of Human Smuggling
Viking Books / Penguin Random House

FICTION:

Percival Everett, James
Doubleday / Penguin Random House

>56 jessibud2:. Hi, Shelley. What I can tell you is I posted it first on FB, which is filled with people eager to show their coolness by commenting “that’s (some specific type of) AI”. No one did that. On the other hand, the photo creator has the somewhat unpromising name of “Autumn Photoshop”. I will say that I looked at all of its beautiful Fall photos, and they all looked legit to non-expert me.

As you’ve probably been able to tell, i love photos like this that draw the viewer right inside. I find it easy to daydream a walk in this woods and coming upon this arch. Even better, as you say, would be walking in such a wood and coming upon such an arch. It does bring back memories of similar walks on days like the one depicted. One of the many things that makes me grateful to live in this country.

Also one of the many things that made me move away from a year in idyllic Southern California (Santa Barbara) when a lad. Missed the seasons, missed the Midwest and East. Missed having more going on than I did in paradise. (Moved to NYC - quite a change!)

>57 alcottacre: Thanks for the explanation, Stasia. I’m going to go with your instincts on this. I suspect my mileage won’t very much. Nine volumes?! There’s an important something of which I had no knowledge. I’m going to learn a lot on this adventure!😀

>60 jnwelch: Hi Joe, I'm sure you'll enjoy your adventure with Louise Erdrich's novels. I noticed upthread that you read The Last Report on the Miracles at Little No Horse. I received that as a gift from an LTer, and it was my introduction to Erdrich. It was such a wild ride, I needed more. I didn't realize there was an order to the novels until I'd read a few, but I'm not sure the order matters too much. You also mentioned The Round House which is one of my favorites although it's not part of the Love Medicine series. Happy reading.

>60 jnwelch: I really need to start at the beginning of the series and read it again. I am actually not sure I made it all the way through, lol.

I hope you and Debbi have a wonderful, healing weekend!

>61 lauralkeet:. Hi, Laura. Wasn’t The Last Report on the Miracles at Little No Horse a good ‘un? It lives on in my mind. If that had been my first Ehrdrich, I would’ve wanted to read more, too.

I’m glad the order in the Love Medicine series isn’t definitive from your POV. It’s a little less daunting to take on when I don’t feel I have to march in proper order. This isn’t a series of detective stories- which, for me, would be easier to take on as an in order reading project.

>62 alcottacre:. I know that feeling, Stasia. Good morning! It doesn’t sound like a series with a story arc you follow. I’m thinking of the Ruth Galloway mysteries. You follow the characters on their journeys even as events change.

Our weekend is starting off well, thanks. We’re about to take our first of two healing walks, and our daughter’s best friend, who we’ve known since she was a wee lass, is coming over to make us a vegetarian English breakfast.

Debbi is feeling better today, as Zofran (sp.?) overtakes her nausea, Lisinipril (sp.?) overtakes her high BP, and that pulled rib muscle lets up on the pain. We’re enjoying reading together (me on audio) Mary Oliver’s Dream Work. This is an example of how reading a Selected Poems volume of a poet can cause you to miss some really good ones from an earlier work.

Hey Joe, I’m very much looking forward to your thoughts on The City and its Uncertain Walls.
I read it earlier this year and look forward to some LT thoughts.

>64 Carmenere:. Hi, Lynda. Thanks for not disclosing that the crime was committed by the giraffe in the (very high-ceilinged) drawing room. So far I’m having a wonderful time with Uncertain Walls. It’s taking me back to the sensation of reading earlier Murakamis. How did you get to read it earlier this year? ARC? I would’ve sold my favorite shoes for one of those.

>65 jnwelch: I was fortunate to have been given the ARC by NetGalley. It was my first Murakami and took awhile to feel comfortable with it.

>66 Carmenere:. Ah, better than a lottery ticket, Lynda. I envy you. Yeah, with that whole giraffe in the drawing room thing, and those golden-furred unicorns, I can imagine it took a while to get comfortable with it. Depending on which one it is, one’s first Murakami can be a real earth-shifter. This one rates high on the bizarre-o-meter, I would say. I love this kind of writing from him.

P.S. I know you know this, Lynda. But people sometimes wonder when I say crazy stuff. As far as I know, there’s no giraffe in a high-ceilinged drawing room in Uncertain Walls, and I made that up. If it turns out there is one in the story, we can all be amazed at my prescience.

>1 jnwelch: So good to hear Debbi's progress Joe.

>51 jnwelch: Beautiful.

>68 Caroline_McElwee:. Isn’t >51 jnwelch: beautiful, Caroline? I love this time of year.

Debbi’s progress continues to be good, thanks. The grand littles come today, so the big challenge will be keeping happy Bubbe from overextending herself.

>69 jnwelch: Good luck with that Joe.

>70 Caroline_McElwee:. 😂😂. Thanks, Caroline. You know her well. I’ve got a big challenge ahead of me. But I know our kids will help.

Today’s Bargain: Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt for $2.99 on e-readers. What a lovely book. If you haven’t read it, please do.

Another Bargain: Doomsday Bookby Connie Willis for $1.99 on e-readers. Good sci-fi, if a bit prolix.

>67 jnwelch: haha I get you, Joe! There is quite a menagerie behind the wall but giraffes, I believe, are not included.;0)

>73 jnwelch: Wow! Prolix??????

New word for me. I had to look it up. And even though I don’t agree that The Doomsday Book is prolix, I appreciate adding a new word to my vocabulary!

Let me add my congratulations to Debbi on the speed of her recovery, even though she doesn’t think it’s fast enough. I hope you all have a marvelous Thanksgiving!

>74 Carmenere:. Ha! I was trying to say something that wasn’t a spoiler, Lynda, then I realized it might not be clear to someone else that I was making it up.😀

>75 NarratorLady:. Isn’t prolix a great word, Anne? It’s perfect for an excessively wordy book. I shared your kind of experience with the Doomsday book, and didn’t find it prolix, but my son almost stopped halfway because the prolixity was bothering him so much.

Thanks re Debbi. Her PT was just here and admired how well she’s doing. He wants her to walk in a store like CVS, what he calls “normal” walking, now that she can walk around our block without a cane. Neither of us can drive now, but we’ll make it happen.

We’ll be having a mighty good Thanksgiving, thanks. Our son, DIL and the grandtornadoes arrived last night. Our DIL had already informed us that she’ll be making Thanksgiving dinner, bless her, so Debbi can take it easy.

Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours!

>76 jnwelch: 🤣Grandtornadoes!🤣 Enjoy!

>77 quondame:. Right, Susan? After a 7 hour car ride, the grandtornadoes were supercharged!

Joe, I am very glad that Mary is doing so well. It's amazing she is recovering so fast, considering the scope of the surgery. I wish you and your family a blessed holiday!

Hello Joe, I had to go back a few threads to really catch up, but I am so glad to hear that Debbi is doing so well. Glad you're off the hook for Thanksgiving cooking also - now you can rest and enjoy family!

I am also looking forward to the new Murakami book. I don't have a copy of it and probably won't get to it for some time. I purchased a copy of Killing Commendatore and haven't read it yet. I think my next one by him is going to Wild Sheep Chase. I still haven't read that one.

>79 Whisper1:. Hi, Linda. Thank you. Debbi is doing well indeed. It’s been more than a month since the op, and she’s still weak and sore, but definitely stronger and feeling better. She’s still a bit fragile, so we’re reminding the grandlittles to be careful around her.

Thank you re the the holiday. I hope you also have a blessed Thanksgiving!

>80 AMQS:. Hi, Anne. Thanks for catching up and visiting. Debbi’s doing well indeed, and we’ll have a lot to be thankful for on Thursday!

Adriana is putting together a supplementary shopping list for Gratitude Day. She’s a brave lass. I’ m sharpening my dishwashing skills.

Have a great Thanksgiving!

Checking in on you and Debbi today, Joe. I am glad to hear that everything is well there and the grandkids are in house!

>81 benitastrnad:. The new one is so good, Benita. Particularly if you’re as steeped in Murakami’s books as you seem to be. It’ll feel like a return to odd but familiar territory.

I loved A Wild Sheep Chase. Weird to the max. Have you read Dance, Dance, Dance? It ‘s the one that loosely comes after A Wild Sheep Chase in the so-called Sheep trilogy, starting, I believe, with Pinball.

I liked Killing Commendatore. Mark I think liked it less. To me it had a lot to say about the creative process, even though it’s a novel.

>82 jnwelch:. Thanks for checking in, Stasia. Debbi is out walking at Target with our son and DIL, as her PT suggested. I bet she’ll be a tired buckaroo when she returns. Rafa and Fina have been working out with me. Our trainer has one pound and 5 pound weights, and gets a big kick out of the grandkiddoes. Now I’m supposed to be doing stretches, and they’re acting out a Queen pageant with very loud Spanish songs.

They want me to be king and wear a yoga mat cape. Help!

>85 jnwelch: The long stream of good news about Debbi has been great. I am curious over the specificity of selecting Target as a walking destination. It's probably not a kickback scheme, but from this distance....

>86 quondame:. Ha! Good morning, Susan. Our DIL wanted to buy stuff at Target, including food items, so that was the ride Debbi needed for an inside walking venue. It exhausted her! I’m not aware of any kickback; it might’ve been more like a celebrity hiring for the enjoyment of the other shoppers. If so, she earned her fee.

>81 benitastrnad:, >84 jnwelch:. Oops, Benita. The Sheep trilogy is actually the Rat trilogy, named after the narrator.

>87 jnwelch: I was thinking the PT specified Target, not that it was your DIL's choice!

Sending best wishes to you and yours this holiday time, Joe. In difficult days perhaps but we still have much to be thankful for. This group and our books and our health and our kids and grandkids.

Love to you and Debbi.

Happy Friday, Joe. I hope you had a fine holiday with Debbi & Becca. Is Jesse in town too? I am glad to hear that you are enjoying the Murakami so much. That is getting me pumped. We have been really enjoying "Say Nothing..." on Hulu. Of course it is based on the excellent book, which we both loved.

>89 quondame:. Ha! I get it now, Susan. The PT specified a “CVS-like” store. If we’d gone to CVS he might have gotten something kicked back to him, but I’m guessing a deal with an unmentioned Target would’ve been too iffy.

>90 PaulCranswick:. Hiya, Paul. Thank you for remembering our holiday. A mighty feast was had, thanks to Adriana. Turkey for thems that partakes, vegetable Wellington, a remarkable creamed brussel sprouts dish, garlic-cheese mashed potatoes, best stuffing I’ve ever had, biscuits courtesy of Fina and her papa, and probably something I’m forgetting. Sweet potato pie and key lime pie (she knows it’s my favorite) for after.

You’re right; there’s plenty to be thankful for: this group and books and our health and our kids and grandkids. I like that list! How’s your grandCranswick doing?

Our love to you and Hani. Already looking forward to the next time our paths cross.

>91 msf59:. Happy Friday and Leftover Day, Mark. Jesse is indeed in town with his gaggle, and sweet Adriana made our feast yesterday. A gracious plenty. I imagine Jackson presided over a fine meal in Freeburgland?

The Murakami is a pleasure indeed. Where is it headed? Nowhere I can predict. If only there weren’t so many people things going on, I’d be reading it all the time.

You’re right, like you, I loved Say Nothing. Adriana had a long talk (talks?) with Patrick Keefe about writing that kind of book. She deserves every bit of her luck, but she sure has it. I had no idea it’d been adapted on Hulu. Good to hear you’re liking it. We are so far behind on TV! I know we need to finish Only Murders.

Hope you had a grand Thanksgiving and you’re set up for a good weekend, buddy.

Today’s Bargain: Tom Lake by Ann Padgett for $2.99 on e-readers. Didn’t expect this one to be a bargain offer this soon. A very good novel from the Bel Canto author.

>92 jnwelch: Hani has been having some trouble with her blood pressure, Joe, to be honest. She shot up above 200 recently and was rushed to the clinic. The doctor has changed her medicine and she is showing about 120:80 again now but I had a very scary couple of days. Little Pip (Nami) is a livewire and alread a miniature force of nature.

Your feast sounds simply splendid.

Joe, your Thanksgiving sounds terrific and I'm so happy to read about Debbi's continued recovery. The visit to Target made me laugh but I'm sure it was a good place to walk around and probably lifted her spirits to be able to get out and do "normal things". Enjoy the rest of the holiday weekend!

Glad toy hear that you were all together for Thanksgiving. That is awesome. We did not see Jack & Co that day. That was reserved for Sean's side of the family. We did get to see them last night for a few joyful hours. Am currently immersed in The Covenant of Water. Not sure why I waited so long to get to it. Were you a fan of Cutting for Stone?

>94 PaulCranswick:. Thanks re the splendid feast, Paul. It was splendid indeed, and it was just as good if not better yesterday, when we celebrated the leftovers.

Hani’s BP shot up over 200! That would’ve scared the bejesus out of me. I didn’t even know it could go that high. Thank goodness they could bring it down to the smooth-running 120/80 and keep her stable. Wow. It wiuld take me a while to get my mental stability back after that one.

I love Nami’s Little Pip nickname. I can imagine you have a live wire and force of nature on your hands. Our grandcrazies haven’t slowed down beyond a night’s sleep since they first showed up.😀. What fun for you and the family.

>95 lauralkeet:. It was a terrific Thanksgiving, Laura, thanks. They all drive back home today, darn it. And Rafa and Fina’s parents have caught onto our tricks in trying to hide and keep those cute kids.

Debbi’s Target adventure was definitely a spirits boost. A different venue, lots of people, it all helped. They’re going to transition her to outpatient cardiac rehab after her 12/9 cardiologist visit, so we’re getting closer to normalcy.

I hope you had a great Thanksgiving and have a lovely weekend.

Today’s Bargains: Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller and Diamond Age by Neal Stephenson, each for $2.99 on e-readers. The first is the debut novel of Miller, an exciting, page-turning reimagination of the Iliad. The second is a normal length sci-fi novel from a contemporary master whose novels have since grown exceedingly long. It centers around a stolen interactive device meant to educate a girl to think for herself. Along with Snow Crash, it signalled the arrival of a major sci-fi talent.

Today’s Bargain: Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant by Anne Tyler for $1.99 on e-readers. I was very glad that I finally read this. It’s on every bibliophile’s list for a reason.

>99 jnwelch: I saw this and immediately went to my library to request it!

Happy Sunday!

Karen O

>100 klobrien2: Ha! Good! Free is an even better bargain, Karen. Glad I could give you a useful nudge.

Happy Sunday!

Another Bargain: Close to Death by Anthony Horowitz for $1.99 on Kindle. The 5th Hawthorne & Horowitz (yes, the author is a partner in detecting) that came out last April. Surprised to see it this soon as a bargain offer. Murder in a gated community, with a closed loop of suspects hiding something.

The grandlittles Rafa and Fina, Thanksgiving in Chicago. They ran in the neighborhood Turkey Trot.

Rafa and Fina's parents, what's-his-name and what's-her-name, aka Jesse and Adriana, beginning to lay out the Thanksgiving feast

Hey Joe - your Feast looks like one The Original Buddhists and George Bernard Shaw would have loved!

Looks like you had a wonderful Thanksgiving and lots to be thankful for.

Today’s Bargain: Born a Crime by Trevor Noah for $1.99 on e-readers. I have mixed feelings about recommending this in print. Debbi and i loved the audio book narrated by Noah himself; it’s the best audio book I’ve ever listened to. But if you’d rather read it in print, or you’d like to also read it in print, here’s your bargain. I sure hope he brings out another memoir that brings his amazing story up to the present day.

>105 m.belljackson:. GBS would have felt right at home with our mostly vegetarian feast, Marianne, and the original Buddhists, too. That’s the vegetable Wellington you see closest to us in the photo.

>106 Familyhistorian:. Thanks, Meg. It was a wonderful Thanksgiving, and we sure did have a lot to be thankful for, including the delicious feast put together by Adriana, with her hard- working sous chef Jesse. We were all most grateful for Debbi’s successful heart operation and her great progress since.

>108 jnwelch: Recipes welcome, notably for Vegetarian Wellington = Maybe Ariana's next will be a cookbook!

So welcome that Debbi enjoyed both Thanksgiving and the high powered Grands!

Another Bargain: Always Outnumbered, Always Outgunned by Walter Mosley for $1.99 on Kindle. One of my favorite books by one of my favorite authors, who wrote Devil in a Blue Dress and The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey. This one features the philosophical ex-con Socrates Fortlow, negotiating life’s vicissitudes. “Battle-scarred wisdom” is one reviewer’s apt phrase for this memorable character.

>109 m.belljackson:. You can try Adriana at her Pittsburgh newspaper; all I can tell you, Marianne, is that the Wellington was delish.

Yes, Debbi was so happy to have the high-powered grands with us for Thanksgiving, and that she was recovered enough to enjoy them. They are a treat. The occasional need to rein them in is no surprise.

Hi Joe! Your Thanksgiving looks a treat. Very nice picture of both of your grandchildren.

I’m glad to hear Debbi is recovering well. Maybe slowly, but steady wins the race.

Your thread is full of TBR’s, as usual!

>112 EllaTim:. Hi Ella! Thanks for stopping by.

Thanksgiving was a treat, with those photogenic grandchildren making it that much more special.

I’m glad the thread has given you some good book possibilities, it’s been another year full of wonders. James is my #1, and I’m near the end of a heartening new Murakami called The City and Its Uncertain Walls. His powers remain undiminished.

Yes, slow but steady is the way to go for Debbi. It’s a long haul, but so worth it. Amazing what they can do these days, and I’ve been impressed with the thoroughness of the aftercare. Open heart surgery is a big freaking deal, and they treat it with the comprehensiveness it deserves.

Today’s Bargains: House of Mirth by Edith Wharton and Under Orders by Dick Francis, each for $1.99 on e-readers. It’s hard to go wrong with EW, but this is a particularly good one which deserves its status as a classic. Our heartstring-puller Lily Bart tries to navigate New York high society, which the author painstakingly skewers. Under Orders is a Sid Halley mystery from Francis, his best character and a reliable good time.

I finished The City and Its Uncertain Walls, including Murakami’s Afterword, and just said, Wow. A word that never grows old for me. What a fable. I’ll comment some more later.

>115 jnwelch: I look forward to your comments, Joe. How does it compare to The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle, Kafka on the Shore and other earlier works of his?

>116 kidzdoc:. You wouldn’t believe how hard I find it to answer that, Darryl. We have a couple of appointments (dental for me, cardiologist for Debbi) and then I’ll explain.

The City and Its Uncertain Walls by Haruki Murakami. OK, what do I think about this latest from one of my top favorite authors? Is it a Persuasion as compared to Pride and Prejudice, or a Northanger Abbey. . How does it compare to The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle, Kafka on the Shore and other earlier works of his?, as Darryl asks. I’ll answer that, but I’ll tell you what first came to mind: the important, essential question for me in reading this author is: did he successfully cast his spell on me? In reading this, did I fall into, fall under his spell? Was I spellbound?

Yes, yes, I was. It is not as complicated or full of surprises as WUBC or Kafka on the Shore. Alex So-and-So for the Guardian compares it to The Prophet and The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho, as a book that would have great significance to you as an adolescent, but would be a bit embarrassing as an adult.

I’ve read both of those and his description of the Prophet fits for me (I was posting revelatory quotes on my dorm room door until more mature guys started making fun of me. Now my adolescent love for it is a bit embarrassing). I read The Alchemist pretty recently, after avoiding it my whole life, on the recommendation of a treasured friend who doesn’t read much now, but identified this as one I had to read. I found it a bit embarrassing, with its ending predictable from the start, but i could see why he and many others placed it so high in the pantheon. It’s a simple fable with a moral that will always be valuable.

I admire Alex for the Guardian for having the chutzpah and courage to write derisively and disparagingly about a new book from an acclaimed author. Do I agree with him?

Nope. The City and Its Uncertain Walls is a fable, but it is nothing like the other two with their smooth, well-rounded corners and morals wrapped up in a bow. Instead Murakami takes us on a strange journey that is a mix of what seems to be our reality (with some unsettling elements and unexpected pathways) and a surreal town with uncertain walls that at first seems to be a paradise but turns out to be something quite different - not a hell by any means, but not heavenly either. The town has golden-furred unicorns whose rather harsh lives belie their beauty. The girl of his dreams lives there, but she is not the same as her counterpart in the real world, with whom he falls in love in the real world.

It has all the earmarks of a fable, but Murakami’s corners are not well-rounded or square, and they may well stretch to infinity. We are given an interior logic for shadows: they may be separated from us, and shown to be holding us back from desirable adventures; they may be protective of us and essential to our wholeness; we may be simply a separated shadow of the real us who lives in tranquility in the town, or it may be the other way around. As you’d expect with this author, there are no morals tied up with a bow.

What we have is a search for completion, for love, for peace. But what is completion? What is love? What is peace? Are any of them as desirable as we think they are? Are we better off without them?

Alex from the Guardian did not fall under Murakami’s spell. He is superior to this book. I admire him for his courage in writing the review he did, and feel sorry for him because his superiority nets out to a loss. There is a popular saying right now: mileage may vary, meaning that the person making the statement expects that others may not have the same experience as s/he did. My mileage was excellent for this book. I normally drive ten miles over the speed limit on the highway; this time I drove serenely under the speed limit the whole way. As a consequence, I paid much more attention to the countryside and the little towns, finding many delights and prompts for thinking. And I was happy with the destination I reached, which seemed both inevitable (but not predictable) and somehow comforting.

In the book there’s an amusing section in which two characters analyze the “magic realism” of Gabriel Marquez’s books. One talks about the different perspectives of reality and surreality in his books, while the other points out that there is no division between the two, that the author sees the two naturally mixed together and simply describes what he sees.

“In his stories the real and the unreal, the living and the dead, are all mixed together in one,” she said. “Like that’s an entirely ordinary, everyday thing.”

“People often call that magical realism,” I said

“True. But I think that although that way of telling stories might fit the critical criteria of magical realism, for García Márquez himself it’s just ordinary realism. In the world he inhabits the real and the unreal coexist and he just describes those scenes the way he sees them.”

That’s what’s always drawn me to Murakami: his feats of sustained imagination, the scenes he sees and describes. Genius.

Where does this one fit with Kafka and Wind-up Bird? I don’t know yet. Right now I’d give the edge to those two, for their complexity and surprises. But this new one is a timeless fable, written by an experienced master in sure control of his powers. Five stars from me. Your mileage may vary.

>118 jnwelch: Beautiful review of Uncertain Walls and your uncertainty where to place it with his best work speaks volumes. You definitely are getting me pumped about reading this one but God knows how long it will take before I get to it but I WILL. For me I would also include 1Q84, which for me is the kind of reading experience that you so elegantly describe above.

Happy Friday, Joe. I am also nearing the end of The Covenant of Water, which I highly recommend. Whenever you get in the mood for a big, meaty family drama by an excellent writer.

>119 msf59:. Thanks, Mark. Yeah, 1Q84 was a great one that I’d like to re-read soonish.

As I mentioned, something else interesting is that The City and Its Uncertain Walls was 40 years in the making, having started as a short story. He doesn’t usually write afterwords, but he did for this one, explaining the book’s evolution.

I’m curious about Covenant of Water. I look forward to your final comments.

Today’s Bargain: River of the Gods by Candice Millard for $1.99 on e-readers. The 19th century search for the source of the Nile by Richard Burton and another Brit. Superbly written; a mesmerizing jungle adventure. She’s one of our elite NF writers in what often seems to be a Golden Age of NF.

>103 jnwelch: >104 jnwelch: Lovely photos of the family Joe.

>118 jnwelch: Saving your review until I have read it.

>103 jnwelch: What cute Turkey Trotters!

>118 jnwelch: Your review of TCaIUW's is very thoughtful and I am delighted you enjoyed it. Perhaps, after I read a few more from Murakami's canon, I too may see its attributes. Until then, I'll remain on the fence.
Have a wonderful weekend, Joe!

Joe. Fina's sure got compelling eyes. Riveting.

I'm actually doing some holiday shopping. No decorating, of course. Just clutter. :-) Fist pump dispatched for Debbi.

>122 Caroline_McElwee:. Thanks re the photos, Caroline. It was a grand get-together.

The review will wait for you. Can’t wait to hear you reaction to the Murakami book.

>123 Carmenere:. Thanks, Lynda. We love those
little Turkey Trotters.

I’m glad you liked the Murakami review and understand your fence-sitting until reading more. I can’t quite imagine reading this one as the first from this author. For me the territory felt generally familiar; the world of Hard-Boiled Wonderland.

>124 weird_O:. Hiya, Bill. Debbi and i thank you for the fist pump. We’re going to see the Wicked movie today, her first “event” since the operation. We’ll be in handicapped seating that will keep her clear of clumsy and inattentive people.

Fina’s eyes attract a lot of attention. I’m so glad her baby blues turned out to be permanent. She reminds me of a niece who became a professional actress; I won’t be surprised to see Fina become a performer of some kind. Right now she loves dance.

Good luck with the holiday shopping. It’s hard to make clutter festive, but I have faith in you.

Today’s Bargain: the Briar Club by Kate Quinn for $1.99 on e-readers. Can’t believe her newest is available as a bargain! I liked this one a lot. Several women in a 1950 boarding house in Washington DC. If you liked her The Alice Network, you’ll like this.

>126 jnwelch: Wow! I jumped on that deal. I've been meaning to read that one; maybe owning the ebook will motivate me.

>127 foggidawn:. Good! Glad to hear it, foggi. Another one of her hard-to-put-down novels. This is the most surprising bargain I’ve seen, given how recently it was published. I’d love to know the thinking behind it. Enjoy!

Today’s Bargain: Tai-Pan by James Clavell for $1.99 on e-readers. This is a worthy accompaniment to his beloved Shogun. What a storyteller!

I’m now reading Before We Forget Kindness by Toshikazu Kawaguchi, set in the same time travel cafe as the author’s Before the Coffee Gets Cold. You’re poured a cup of coffee, and can tavel to the past or future, but what you do there will never change the present, and you have to be back before the coffee gets cold, resulting in trips of ten minutes or less. These are interlinked short stories, quick vignettes cleverly done. People often want to go back and meet someone, or to change something they did at a critical moment. How that plays out, and how it all affects the cafe employees, is where the fun lies.

>129 jnwelch: Lent by Jo Walton is also worth a look for fantasy fans.

>118 jnwelch: What an excellent review. I put a hold on it at the library and can't wait till it's my turn.

>131 quondame:. Thanks, Susan. Sounds good. I’ve enjoyed reading Jo Walton.

>132 figsfromthistle:. Thanks, Anita! I’m glad you liked the The City and Its Uncertain Walls review. When the time comes, if you think of it, please let me know your reaction to the book.

>133 Wakeel:. Thank you, wakele. Debbi continues to do well, with an excellent cardiologist visit yesterday. They’re signing her up for cardio rehab, and taking her off one of her meds. She walked, with no cane or walker, a mile and a half yesterday.

Today’s Bargains: Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk by Ben Fountain and Pattern Recognition by William Gibson, each for $1.99 on e-readers. The first is an NBCC award winner and NBA finalist that Karl Marlantes called “the Catch-22 of the Iraq war.” The second is a very good near-future sci-fi novel by one of my favorite sci-fi authors. A woman searches for her missing father and the creator of some strange internet videoclips.

>135 jnwelch: Debbi's progress is really inspiring!

And, what is the address where you or daughter send your poems?
My daughter wants to send mine.

>137 m.belljackson:. Thanks, Marianne. Debbi did another long errand walk this morning (Trader Joe’s). Her conscientious fitness training for years has paid off over and over again on this latest adventure.

I love that your daughter is going to submit your poems for publication. A tip of the hat to her. We don’t have an address list. We look in the back (or front) of the poetry books for contemporary poets I like for where the book’s poems were first published. Then we use the internet to get addresses and submission requirements. (The latter often differ). Good luck!

>138 jnwelch: Hope You and Mark enjoyed the poems too!

>139 m.belljackson:. I did, Marianne. I’m pretty sure I got them to Mark. He and I don’t actually live next door to each other.😀

>140 jnwelch: Good - so here's Poem For The Day:

Light snow falling

Kisses from Heaven.

>141 m.belljackson:😀

Today’s Bargains: Yellowface by R.F. Kuang and The Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway, each for $1.99 on e-readers. In the first a non-Asian “finishes” her deceased Asian friend’s top quality novel and takes full credit for it, defending her authorship as it all begins to unravel. The second is a classic Hemingway novel, beautifully written.

>118 jnwelch: I love your Murakami review, Joe. My first try of hi didn’t go well at all, unfortunately. But I am thinking I should read some Garcia-Marquez now.

>141 m.belljackson: I agree with Joe!

>144 EllaTim:. Thank you, Ella. That’s very nice to hear about the Murakami review.

Garcia Marquez is a treat to read. His famous One Hundred Years of Solitude is always a good place to start.

Hope all going well for you in your lovely part of the world.

>145 jnwelch: I read 100 Years ages ago, and found it almost unreadable. Maybe I'll try it again one of these days.

>146 ffortsa:. Oh gosh, Judy. I hope it was a matter of timing. I love that book, and at least two of his others.

Today’s Bargain: A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court by Mark Twain for $1.99 on e-readers. A factory supervisor is swept back to King Arthur’s time and uses his wits to survive and thrive. A fun, thought-provoking read.

Joseph! I saw your post on Shelley's thread with the link to the Pacita Abad book. Is it really 2023 pages?!! That page was a minefield of clickbait. I took a hit from a book about Dorothea Lange's studio work. From that book page were clickbait links to other photo books, including one for a book about Hollywood that was priced at $244.00. After the discount. Sheez.

>149 weird_O:. i can’t answer to the 2023 pages, Bill, but the Pacita Abad book was HUGE and heavy. I read it in the library. Besides the enticing illustrations, they have scholarly comments and news reports about her and oral commentary. A real labor of love. She was a social activist as well as a ground-breaking artist. I think she’s someone you’d find very interesting. I thought it was too big and heavy to haul home, so I read the book at the library. Her art is in many museums, so I’m going to keep a sharp eye out now. I’d like to see some of it in person. She died twenty years ago.

Ha! Dorothy Lange’s work grabs me, too. I should look for a collection of her photos. $244 is a bit much, isn’t it.

>118 jnwelch: That's quite the review, Joe! It almost tempts me to read Murakami but I'm not sure its in my wheelhouse.

>103 jnwelch: Your grandchildren are incredibly beautiful. Those blue eyes are very pretty and noticeable right away!

>149 weird_O:, >150 jnwelch: - I have requested the Abad book from the library and hopefully, my turn will pop up soon. Those rabbit holes can be dangerous, for sure!

Her exhibit is on until mid- January so I will be returning one more time before it goes. So look for more photos in my first January thread of 2025!

>151 Familyhistorian:. Thanks, Meg. I had fun writing that review. If you want to try a more conventional (less weird) Murakami, try Norwegian Wood. It’s the one that began his fame. I loved the more conventional Sputnik Sweetheart, which I hope to re-read soon.

>152 Whisper1:. Thank you, Linda! It’s a little hard to step back and see Rafa and Fina as others do, but they do seem like a couple of good-looking buckaroos. Their mom insists on giving me credit for the blue eyes, but they’ve sure done better with them than I ever did. Thank you for mentioning our two favorite little troublemakers. If we were meeting up in person, I could bend your ear about them for quite a long time!

>153 jessibud2:. Good luck with your pursuit of the Pacita Abad book, Shelley. Thanks so much for bringing her and her work to our attention! I’m very glad that I’m familiar with her now. I’d love to be able to put one of her pieces up on our wall.

I’ll look even more forward to your first January ‘25 thread now.😀

Today’s Bargain: Terry Pratchett A Life With Footnotes by Rob Wilkins for $1.99 on e-readers. I know this author has a lot of fans, and this appears to be a well-regarded bio.

>150 jnwelch: I probably didn't couch that as well as I should. The $244 book is a Taschen item about Hollywood, illuminated with photos from the Life magazine archive. The volume of Lange's studio work is a mere $25-30. I'm not immediately interested in either of them.

>142 jnwelch: Joe, Mark, & Paul and For all Poets among LT -

here's one with a guy whose name sounds like a poem,

ALGERNON CHARLES SWINBURNE:

DEDICATION

To POEMS AND BALLADS

(1866)

The sea gives her shells to the shingle,
The earth gives her streams to the sea;
They are many, but my gift is single,
My verses, the first fruits of me.

...

>157 weird_O:. Ah, that makes sense, Bill. I was wondering about the high ticket on a Dorothy Lange collection, as good as she was.

>158 m.belljackson:. That’s a nice one, isn’t it, Marianne. How does one give shells to the shingle, I wonder? My image of a beachside roof encrusted with shells may miss the meaning of an older phrase.

>159 jnwelch: Joe - I looked up the UK definition for "shingle" - it's a large group of stones setting along a beach.

I'd love to see that and his shells...

With a name like his, he had to become a poet!

>160 m.belljackson:. He certainly has a name that would cause me to think “poet, Marianne. Algernon Charles Swinburne: his destiny was right there in his name.😀

Thanks for following up on the shells to the shingle question. Fits much better and is good to know.

Has anyone read Birnam Wood by Eleanor Catton? It’s a $2.99 bargain today, and looks like it’s widely well-regarded, but I don’t know it.

Madison, Wisconsin - Every School Everywhere Needs Security Protection from Gun Violence.

>163 m.belljackson:. ?? I’m not sure why you posted this, Marianne.

>164 jnwelch: Joe - I taught for over 25 years in Madison and my kids went to Madison elementary, middle, and high schools -
and now have friends still in Madison schools...cannot believe that nothing has changed beyond prayers...

>163 m.belljackson:
Did something happen in the Madison Schools that hasn't made the news yet?

>166 benitastrnad: See Cnn and NYT...

>159 jnwelch: >160 m.belljackson: I didn't realise that 'shingle' as in beach was a particularly British word. That would be the meaning that would come to my mind first, if I thought hard I might remember that shingles had something to do with roofs, but then again possibly not. A shingle beach is effectively a gravel beach (although people never use the term gravel when it comes to beaches), so bigger grains than sand, but smaller than pebbles. My least favourite sort, at least in the U.K.

>167 m.belljackson:. Crap. Abundant Life Christian School. Now I see why you posted that.

I know, I can’t believe the lack of change regarding gun violence either. Not enough people in leadership with the spine to get things done. Banning assault guns is the easy, low-hanging fruit, and they can’t even get that done.

>169 jnwelch: >166 benitastrnad: Sorry - I thought I was among the last to know.

Beyond sad...

>170 m.belljackson:. Yes, beyond sad. May the victims rest in peace, and their families heal.

Hard to change direction from that one. Being a parent (or teacher) is that much tougher these days. You have to worry about your child getting caught up in a school shooting, and if you have a mentally troubled child, you have to watch out for violent tendencies.

Direction change, as we carry on while remembering Madison, and those that came before (can’t we do better than this? If Kamala had won, we’d have a chance):

Right now I’m reading The Mistletoe Mystery, featuring Nita Prose’s investigative hotel maid Molly Gray, and it’s quite holiday-charming. What’s really going on with the Secret Santa exchange? Our daughter kindly lent me her copy.

>168 SandDune:. Sorry I missed you there, Rhian. Yes, that meaning of “shingle” is new to me. I like it. Adding shells to the gravelly shingle no doubt spruces it up.

Happy Wednesday, Joe. I hope the Welch Clan is doing dandy. Yep, another tragic school shooting. More thoughts and prayers.



-Clay Bennett

BTW- Have you done LT's Top 5 Books of the Year yet? If not, get crackin' sir.

https://www.librarything.com/list/46058/Top-Five-Books-of-2024

Today’s Bargain: Deadeye Dick by Kurt Vonnegut for $1.99 on e-readers. It’s not easy to find a Vonnegut I haven’t read, but there are some. This one has tons of 5 star ratings on Goodreads, so I grabbed it.

>169 jnwelch: The thing that crossed my mind was how rare that the shooter was a female student, has that happened before Joe?

My thoughts are with the loved ones. It is certainly a US issue.

Rafa and Fina at their first Pittsburgh Steelers pro football game

The Bletchley Riddle by Ruth Sepetys (Salt to the Sea) and a partner. Teen siblings Jakob and Liz are invited to help at Bletchley Park during WWII. Both are insightful decoders, although Liz ends up as an among-the-huts messenger due to her age. She is convinced that her mother didn’t die when the Nazis invaded Poland, and is determined to find her. Coded messages that show up indicate that she may be right. Their efforts to help crack the Germans’ Enigma coding machine, to thwart the Nazis plans to invade England, and to find their mother, make for another engrossing story from this top YA author.

I Refused to Be a War Bride by Howard Norman. An ARC. A quirky noir-toned GN that I got a kick out of. Detective Jonathan Levy and art photographer Alexa intend to get married, and banter like Nick and Nora. An elderly woman enlists their help to find her daughter. The scope of the story is modest but well done, as are the drawings. It reminded me a bit of Britten and Brulightly. Howard Norman is the talented author of The Bird Artist.



Illustrations by Annie Bakst

>175 msf59:. Hiya, Mark. What a sadly perfect cartoon. Makes me wonder what our late friend Keith would’ve done with this.

>176 msf59:. Happy Wednesday, buddy. Good reminder! I’ve not done my Top 5, and I Always enjoying reading the Top 5s of others. Off the top of my head I’m sure mine will include James, Playground, Table for Two, The city and Its Uncertain Walls, and This is the Honey. I may need a Top 10!

>180 jnwelch: If you're not familiar with Steve Sheinkin, he's a force in his own right, though he usually writes juvenile nonfiction. Bomb: The Race to Build - and Steal - the World's Most Dangerous Weapon is worth a read at any age.

>178 Caroline_McElwee:. Hi, Caroline. Arrggh. LT is so wonky for me today. It failed to post my post to you, so I’ll try again.

Yes, it is extremely unusual for the school shooter to be female. She’s the first, as far as I can recall. Before her it was almost all teen boys. The top cop of course immediately started being asked whether she was trans (such a big deal here among the Magas). We’ll learn more, no doubt. It reminds of that female serial killer. We men normally produce the monsters, but not always.

>183 foggidawn:. Hi, foggi, thanks. As you guessed, I’m not familiar with Steve Sheinkin. They apparently met at some book tour or writer’s conference and really hit it off. Wanting to write something together, they came up with this idea. As a practical matter, how do writers divvy up the writing in this situation? I’m sure there’s more than one answer. I sure couldn’t see the seams or different patterns in this one.

Books worth reading “at any age” are near and dear to my heart. E.g., is The Book Thief YA or adult? Thanks for the tip on Bomb: The Race to Build by SS.

>179 jnwelch: An investment in solid fans!

>187 jnwelch:. 😂. Their mother is an avid Steelers fan, and their father, a Bears fan from Chicago, is getting there. I suspect R&F will indeed be solid fans as they grow up, Susan. Pittsburgh is a really good sports town, although they need an NBA and WNBA team. The latter supposedly is in the works.

Today’s Bargains: Knife by Salman Rushdie and The Gift of Asher Lev by Chaim Potok are both available on e-readers for $1.99. I’ve wanted to read both, and bought them. The first is the author’s account of and thoughts about the knife attack on him at a public lecture. The second is more of the story of the artist featured in the terrific My Name is Asher Lev.

>183 foggidawn:
I have read 3 of Sheinkin's nonfiction for YA's and all of them are good. The best one I have read so far is Port Chicago 50 which also happens to be the first of his books that I read. I also liked the one on Daniel Ellsberg. Lincoln's Grave Robbers was one of those fun narrative nonfiction books designed to get YA's reading nonfiction and so I thought it was rather light weight in comparison to Port Chicago 50 or the one on Ellsberg.

The first time I heard of the Port Chicago Disaster was when I read Studs Terkel's book Good War so I didn't come into that book completely ignorant of the event. However, Sheinkin's book was an eye opener about the way Black's were treated in the US military during, and directly after, The Good War, or the Big One (WWII). It would catch the interest of anybody who sat down to read it. Sheinkin is an author that I would happily recommend for anybody looking for nonfiction books for YA's.

>188 jnwelch: I saw the Potok book and almost went for it, but then I thought that I should reread My Name is Asher Lev first. So, both “Asher Lev” books are on the way to me, one happy camper!

Karen O

Forgive me if I’ve said some of this before.

Debbi update: she's doing beautifully. Graduated out of at home PT and has started cardio rehab at Shirley Ryan, which will go for probably six and a half weeks. Can walk a mile (and sometimes more) without walker or cane. Afib was a concern; now they're dropping the afib med and monitoring her for a month. She's still sore but pain has lessened. Doesn't have to wear compression socks! Weight is still low but appetite is back.

We've moved back home from the one floor apartment and are getting that much closer to normal. Wheee!

>191 jnwelch: Fewer meds, her own bed and home surroundings, food appealing again... That's all wonderful news, Joe. It's been a lot to deal with, and it sounds like you and Debbi have risen to the challenge. I'm so glad she's feeling better...it will be easier from here on.

>189 benitastrnad:. Thanks, Benita. Appreciate the tips in particular on Port Chicago 50 and the Ellsberg one. I’ll add the former to my WL. It’s good to have a good NF YA author I can learn to recommend. That’s a rarer commodity than the YA fiction. Have you read Lauren Tarshis? I like her “I Survived” books like i Survived the Battle of D-Day. She’s more middle grade than YA, though, methinks.

>190 klobrien2:. Oh, I’m so excited for you, Karen! That first Asher Lev is so good, and the second has gotten very high marks. I’ve meant to read it for years. Buen provecho!

>192 laytonwoman3rd:. Thanks, Linda. It will be easier from now on.. “From your lips to God’s ear”, as Debbi would say. It is easier now, for sure. Can’t wait until she’s full strength. They’re working her hard in rehab, but we know that’s the best thing for her.

P. S. Fewer meds: they’re probably taking her off the no clotting med Warfarin in about 3 weeks. That’s the one she really does not want to be taking, so she’ll be a happy lady when that changes.

There’s going to be a tv adaptation on Netflix of One Hundred Years of Solitude. It’s getting lots of rave reviews. Here’s one: https://www.thewrap.com/one-hundred-years-of-solitude-netflix-review/

Can’t wait!

>191 jnwelch: That's a great update to read, Joe, and hope things continue to go smoothly for Debbi.

>196 bell7:. Thanks, Mary. She took two one mile walks today with different pals, and is exhausted. Wow, what a long way she’s come!

Good to see that Debbi is making good progress in her recovery. Nice to graduate from the apartment to home.

>154 jnwelch: Thanks for the advice re Murakami reads, Joe. According to my LT library catalogue I actually have a copy of Norwegian Wood, now all I have to do is find it!

>179 jnwelch: They look very proud of their "It's my first game" signs!

Today’s Bargain: News of the World by Paulette Jiles for $1.99 on e-readers. Set in the Wild West after the Civil War. Great book; if you missed it the first time, here’s your bargain chance.

>198 Familyhistorian:. Thanks, Meg. Debbi’s progress is wonderful to see, although she still gets crushingly tired. What a major body trauma this was and is.

How excellent that you already have Norwegian Wood. I’ve had that happen. Kindle is so capacious i’ll find a book I wanted to read is already tucked in there somewhere from a purchase I’d forgotten. I hope you enjoy it!

Ha! Yes, those two were proud of their “It’s My First Game” signs. They are very enthusiastic about life, the little scooterninjas.

I'm very glad to hear that Debbi is doing well, Joe!

>191 jnwelch: "Ah! There is nothing like staying at home for real comfort." - Jane Austen

Solstice cheer, Joe!

>191 jnwelch: Great news about Debbi, Joe!! Thanks for keeping us up-to-date.

I am looking forward to the adaptation of One Hundred Years of Solitude. So many promising shows to get to right now. We are currently watching S2 of Silo. Not as strong as S1 but still strong enough. Glad to hear you are enjoying "Black Doves". That is on my list too.

Hope all is well at the Welch Manor!

>202 kidzdoc:. Thanks, Darryl. She is doing well indeed. We just finished another mile walk. She sends you her best.

>203 m.belljackson:. Thanks, Marianne. Always lovely to hear from Ms. Austen. She’s so right, as usual, isn’t she.

>204 richardderus:. Solstice cheer, Richard! Aren’t those pretty. Our first city on Mars should look like that.

>205 lauralkeet:. Thanks, Laura. I’m glad that you and others enjoy the updates. It’s nice to feel the support. She’s resting now after our mile long walk. She just keeps getting better. Patience is the byword. Waving a magic wand has no effect, unfortunately.

>206 msf59:. Doesn’t that adaptation sound great, Mark? Tra-loo Tra-lay!

Yes, we just finished Black Doves, and loved it. Keira Knightly and the whole cast are excellent. Fast-moving.

I read Wool, on which the Silo adaptation is based, and wasn’t as taken by it as others were. He is another one of those great stories about self-publishing first, the book becoming popular, and all this success following. This is one where I feel I know the story and am less tempted to see the adaptation.

Yes, the Welch clan is doing well, thanks. I hope yours, with Master Jackson, is doing well, too. Our Pittsburghers are traveling to Colombia today to visit for the holidays. A little warmer there than here: 91F.

Don’t forget to drop off that link to the Club Read poetry thread that you’ll be monitoring! You made me think of Good Bones, which will always be one of my favorite poems. I just re-posted The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock over on FB and got some good responses.

Ada Limon’s below poem is engraved on a panel, in NASA’s Europa Clipper. It is voyaging for 5+ years to investigate Jupiter’s second moon, Europa. Europa appears to have lots of water, which in turn raises the possibility of life.

In Praise of Mystery: A Poem for Europa

Arching under the night sky inky
with black expansiveness, we point
to the planets we know, we

pin quick wishes on stars. From earth,
we read the sky as if it is an unerring book
of the universe, expert and evident.

Still, there are mysteries below our sky:
the whale song, the songbird singing
its call in the bough of a wind-shaken tree.

We are creatures of constant awe,
curious at beauty, at leaf and blossom,
at grief and pleasure, sun and shadow.

And it is not darkness that unites us,
not the cold distance of space, but
the offering of water, each drop of rain,

each rivulet, each pulse, each vein.
O second moon, we, too, are made
of water, of vast and beckoning seas.

We, too, are made of wonders, of great
and ordinary loves, of small invisible worlds,
of a need to call out through the dark.

>209 jnwelch: My impression of Wool - and at least 1 sequel, was that except for the one clever detail, I'd read something so much like it so many times.

Today’s Bargain: Fingersmith by Sarah Waters for $1.99 on e-readers. Set in a Victorian-era London slum, Sue is enlisted to care for Maud Lilly, initially in a plan to steal Maud’s fortune. But the two develop feelings for each other, and everything changes. An award-winner and perennial favorite.

>211 quondame:. Ditto, Susan. I think you put your finger on it. The clever twist made him a whole lot of money, but besides that I didn’t find much original in Wool.

Don't have a source for this, but it's thought-provoking. I'm skeptical of the last claim.

As someone said, you probably don't want this in a house with a cat or dog. :-)

A good reminder short story from Ram Dass:

There are two waves drifting along in the ocean, one a bit bigger than the other. The bigger wave suddenly becomes very sad and upset. The smaller wave asks what's wrong. "You don't want to know," the bigger wave says. It then explains: "You can't see it, but I can see that, not too far from here, all of the waves are crashing on the shore. We are going to disappear!" The smaller wave, somehow, is unperturbed. So the larger wave tries to convince her, to no avail. Finally, the smaller wave says, "What would you say if I told you that there are six words, that if you really understood and believed them, you would see that there is no reason to fear." The big wave doesn't believe it -- what does the small wave know that he doesn't -- but he's desperate. After a while, the big wave gives in, and says, "Fine, fine, tell me the six words." "Okay", the small wave says. "You're not a wave, you're water."

Another Bargain: The First Ladies by Marie Benedict for $1.99 on e-readers. Based on the real life friendship between black activist Mary McLeod Bethune and Eleanor Roosevelt. Having loved this author’s The Personal Librarian, I quickly snapped up this bargain.

>215 jnwelch: - LOL! True, so true!

I wish you and your loved ones a happy and blessed festive season.

Nadolig Llawen, Happy Christmas and Happy Holidays!

>218 jessibud2:. Right, Shelley? What a wonderful cat or dog toy, from their POV. So thoughtful.😀

>219 Ameise1:. Thank you, Barbara. Merry Christmas!

>>220 SandDune:. Nadolig Llawen, Rhian! I wish I could speak, write, Welsh. What an enthusiasm of letters that language has!

I love the little creche creations. Is that yours? Most appealing one I’ve seen.

Wow, I am loving The Gift of Asher Lev so far. I forgot how much I enjoy Chaim Potok. What an eye-opener he was for a Presbyterian (pre-Buddhist) boy in a smallish Midwestern town. The tension between the miracle of artistic creativity and religious strictures is so gripping.

>210 jnwelch: Awesome Limon poem. Thanks for sharing.

>214 jnwelch: Very disheartening. I wonder if we could ever turn this around?

Merry Christmas & Happy Hannukah, Joe. Have a great holiday with the family. Warm wishes and safe travels to Jesse & Co.

We are going to my BIL's home this afternoon to celebrate the day. Of course Master Jackson will be in attendance, along with the rest of my crew. It will be loud and chaotic but we will enjoy it anyway.

>191 jnwelch: That is great news Joe. Have a lovely festive season both of you.

Winslow and all of us wish you a very happy holidays!

>158 m.belljackson: Thanks Marianne. Swinburne was an excellent versifier.

Thinking of you at this time, Joe. Hani sends her best to you guys too.

I'm kinda lonely over here....

https://www.librarything.com/ngroups/24622/75-Books-Challenge-for-2025

>231 drneutron:. You poor guy, Jim. It’s about time for a new thread anyway. I’ll join you soon, my friend. I hipe you and yours are having a lovely holiday season.

>223 msf59:. I’m glad you like that Limon poem as much as I do, Mark. The whole thing is so cool. NASA came to her and asked her whether she would write one for the space ship! A high-up guy at NASA obviously is a poetry fan.

She researched and studied and tried to put all kinds of learned detail in the poem, and struggled. Finally, her husband said, just write one of your own poems, and that made all the difference. You can tell she felt strongly the water connection - we’re largely made of water, and so is the moon Europa (something I wasn’t aware of - exciting!)

She also thought the poem would just be kept somewhere on the ship, not engraved on a panel. I love this. It’ll probably come to not much, but who knows? A tip of the hat to the NASA guy who propsed it to her.

P. S. The bad vs reading situation in >214 jnwelch:: like many things, I think all we can do is share our love of reading and support al things reading and books, and hope it starts being more attractive to more people. We know how rewarding it is, but to many it’s a lot easier to watch videos and tv and play videogames to relax, right?

Checking in on you, Joe. I do hope things are going well there for both you and Debbi!

Happy holidays!!

>232 jnwelch:. Thanks for checking in, Stasia. We’re doing great, thanks. The rehab people are kicking Debbi’s butt, and that’s just what she needs. Stronger every day.

We all got some good books for the holidays (including, for me, The Enlightened Spaniel: A Dog’s Quest to Be a Buddhist).

I’m loving The Gift of Asher Lev. Have you read Chaim Potok? He’s so good.

Hope you and yours are enjoying the holiday season.

>224 msf59:. A belated Merry Christmas, Mark. I hope you and your loud gang, including Master Jackson, had a lovely one. Thanks for the GN tips.

>225 johnsimpson:. Thanks, John, old pal. Christmas often makes me think of your lovely part of the world. I hope you and Karen and the family have been having a festive time together.

>226 Caroline_McElwee:. Thanks, Caroline. I hope you’re having a relaxing and toasty holiday season.

>227 AMQS:. Ha! What a great photo of Winslow, Anne. Our daughter’s dog Indy also made herself comfortable among the presents, understandably assuming they all were for her. I hope you’re having a wonderful holiday season.

>234 jnwelch: I love Chaim Potok! One of my all-time favorite books is his The Chosen.

I am glad to hear that you got some good books for the holidays. Really, who would want bad books for the holidays? Lol

We are having a great holiday season, thanks!

>236 jnwelch:. Great! The Chosen is a knockout, isn’t it? Maybe it’s my love for art and creativity, but I put My Name is Asher Lev and now The Gift of Asher Lev right up there with it.

The only bad Christmas book I ever got was when we were playing a silly gift swap game whose goal was to give the other person something awful, and I received a Trump book. They know me welll. I recoiled just opening the wrapping paper.😀

>228 Whisper1:. How lovely, Linda. We wish you the same!

>229 PaulCranswick:, >230 PaulCranswick:. Thanks, Paul. I’m woefully under-read when it comes to Swinburne, but will try to fix that.

Thanks for thinking of us at our holiday time. We miss you and Hani. Our best wishes to you two, and your photogenic children, and Little Pip. I’ll have to catch up on the family doings on your fast-moving thread. I’m in a Potok enthusiasm mode right now; you’ve probably read him, but if not, he’ll make you reach for the stars.

Today’s Bargain: Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi for $1.99 on e-readers. Beautifully written, award-winning book about two half-sisters who grew up in different villages in Ghana, and their descendants. One married an Englishman and lived a life of comfort, the other was captured and sold as a slave. A contrast with far-reaching effects.