A Month in Summary - December 2016

Ah, December. Such a busy month with all the birthday and Christmas festivities, not to mention the extra weekend shifts at work and traveling. But I managed to read a whopping total of four books, which is twice as many as I read in November! I'm not sure January will be much better, since my audio listening had dropped off a bit due to a schedule change at work, but I'm not terribly concerned. I'm spending less time on social media and curling up with my books in the evening, so maybe I'll wind up with more print books read, which may actually result in higher ratings. (My audio ratings seem to dip when I'm not fully engaged or take too long to finish a book.)

So, the books and stats!

You Will Not Have My Hate by Antoine Leiris (borrowed) 4.5/5

Fellside by M.R. Carey (borrowed - audio) 3/5

Her Every Fear by Peter Swanson (own - ARC) 4/5

Lots of Candles, Plenty of Cake by Anna Quindlen (own) 4/5

Stats:

Triple Dog Dare Challenge - I really only read one from my shelf, since the Swanson book was a new ARC that I snagged a couple of days before heading off to Oregon for Christmas. The Leiris book is one that I borrowed for the trip, as well. Time to get back to reading more from my shelves!

4 books
2 novels
2 nonfiction
2 memoirs
1 thriller
1 sci-fi
2 new-to-me-authors
3 print
1 audio
1 female
3 male
2 borrowed
2 from my stacks

Favorite of the Month: You Will Not Have My Hate by Antoine Leiris

Reviews to follow   

Looking Back - Giants in the Earth

Looking Back... In an effort to transfer my book journal entries over to this blog, I'm going to attempt to post (in chronological order) an entry every Friday. I may or may not add extra commentary to what I jotted down in these journals.

Giants in the Earth by O.E. Rolvaag
Fiction
1991 HarperPerennial (first published in 1927)
Finished on January 12, 1997
Rating: 5/5 (Outstanding)

Publisher's Blurb:

Giants in the Earth (Norwegian: Verdens Grøde) is a novel by Norwegian-American author Ole Edvart Rølvaag. First published in Norwegian as two books in 1924 and 1925, the English edition was translated by the author and Lincoln Colcord, each of whom also wrote prefatory matter.

Part of a trilogy, the novel follows a Norwegian pioneer family's struggles with the land and the elements of the Dakota Territory as they try to make a new life in America. The book is based partly on Rølvaag's personal experiences as a settler, and on the experiences of his wife’s family who had been immigrant homesteaders. The novel depicts snow storms, locusts, poverty, hunger, loneliness, homesickness, the difficulty of fitting into a new culture, and the estrangement of immigrant children who grow up in a new land.

Giants in the Earth was turned into an opera by Douglas Moore and Arnold Sundgaard; it won the Pulitzer Prize for Music in 1951.

My Original Notes (1997):

Excellent! One of the best sagas I've read. Very bleak outlook (from a female's perspective) on settling in the Great Plains during the late 1800's. I enjoyed it so much that I went out and bought two other books by Rolvaag.

The book was assigned in my Great Plains Literature course at U.N.L. I kept a reading journal on it [which I no longer have!].

Lots of nautical imagery; Christ-like symbolism; Man vs. Nature themes. 

Beautifully written. Not so much an intricate plot, but an in-depth psychological view of life on the prairie.

My Current Thoughts:

20 years later and I still remember this book with great fondness. As I recall, it read like an adult version of the Laura Ingalls Wilder books, which I adored as a young girl. We had only lived in Nebraska for a few years when I took a Great Plains Lit class at the university (having moved from the warm climate in San Diego), so I could truly appreciate the overwhelming sense of panic and isolation on the Plains during blizzards, infestation of locusts, tornadoes, etc. I don't know if I could have survived life on the prairie in the late 1800's. I live in an insulated home with air conditioning and a furnace, have access to all the groceries I could possibly need, and am able to socialize with friends and family either face-to-face or via the Internet, and I still whine about the weather!

I hope to read this novel again someday. I was going to get rid of the mass market copy I own, since the small type is getting more difficult to read as I get older, but I want to go back and see my notations on the pages. 

Highly recommend!

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas to all my dear friends and family!

 Love, Lesley

Wordless Wednesday

A Month in Summary - November 2016

Can we get a do-over? November was pretty much a bust in more ways than one! I'm surprised that I'm able to list these two books, since I really was in a slump and couldn't focus on reading. Now with all the holiday busyness, I'm not getting much accomplished in the way of reading this month, either.

Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson (borrowed - audio) 3/5

Gemini by Carol Cassella (own) 4/5


Stats:

Triple Dog Dare Challenge - Seems odd to say that I stuck with the challenge this month, since I only read two books. And yet, the one from my shelf is one I've been eager to read, so I'm glad I had the challenge as motivation.
 
2 books
1 novels
1 nonfiction
1 new-to-me-authors 
1 print
1 audio
1 female
1 male
1 borrowed
1 from my stacks 

Favorite of the Month: Gemini by Carol Cassella

Reviews to follow

Looking Back - When I Am An Old Woman I Shall Wear Purple

Looking Back... In an effort to transfer my book journal entries over to this blog, I'm going to attempt to post (in chronological order) an entry every Friday. I may or may not add extra commentary to what I jotted down in these journals.

When I Am an Old Woman I Shall Wear Purple by Sandra Martz (Editor)
Nonfiction
1991 Papier-Mache Press
Finished on January 10, 1997
Rating: 2/5 (Fair)

Publisher's Blurb:

This enchanting collection of fiction, poetry, and photographs evokes the beauty, humor, and courage of women living in their later years. More than 1.7 million copies have been sold, thanks to its universal message of aging as a natural gift of life. Winner of the American Booksellers Book of the Year Honors Award (1991), and two Benjamin Franklin Awards: for design and content, literature (1988), and for excellence and innovation in marketing, literature (1992), When I Am an Old Woman I Shall Wear Purple has been applauded for its honest and inspiring approach to the much neglected topic of aging. When I Am an Old Woman I Shall Wear Purple has created a network of support and encouragement: the sixty-plus men and women whose work is included, the readers who have taken the time to share how the book has touched their lives, and the booksellers who have so graciously recommended it to buyers. Stories and poems such as Warning, Like Mother, Like Daughter, Love at Fifty, Near Places, Far Places, and Dear Paul Newman tell of the endearing moments of joy -- and passion -- to be found in the rich and varied world of midlife and beyond. This award-winning anthology has earned a word-of-mouth popularity because, as the Los Angeles Times said, the time is ripe for such a message.

My Original Notes (1997):

I read the poetry and short stories in this book over the course of a year. After reading the whole book, only one poem caught my attention. It's titled "Translations" by Margaret H. Carson. Other than that, I didn't really care for the book.

My Current Thoughts:

This was certainly a popular book 20 years ago! I wonder, though, if I read it too early in my life. I was only 35 years old! Far from becoming an "old woman." However, I have no desire to find a copy and read it a second time, although I am curious about Carson's Translations. I may have to track that one down and see why it appealed to me when it did.

Wordless Wednesday

Annie-Dog

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

 

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling
Harry Potter, #7
Juvenile Fiction/Fantasy
2015 Audio Pottermore from J.K. Rowling (Originally published in 2007)
Read by Jim Dale
Finished on June 23, 2016
Rating: 3/5 (Good)

Publisher's Blurb:

It's no longer safe for Harry at Hogwarts, so he and his best friends, Ron and Hermione, are on the run. Professor Dumbledore has given them clues about what they need to do to defeat the dark wizard, Lord Voldemort, once and for all, but it's up to them to figure out what these hints and suggestions really mean.

Their cross-country odyssey has them searching desperately for the answers, while evading capture or death at every turn. At the same time, their friendship, fortitude, and sense of right and wrong are tested in ways they never could have imagined.

The ultimate battle between good and evil that closes out this final chapter of the epic series takes place where Harry's Wizarding life began: at Hogwarts. The satisfying conclusion offers shocking last-minute twists, incredible acts of courage, powerful new forms of magic, and the resolution of many mysteries.

Above all, this intense, cathartic book serves as a clear statement of the message at the heart of the Harry Potter series: that choice matters much more than destiny, and that love will always triumph over death.

I feel like this final installment was better than the previous two in the series, but the first two were by far the best. I'm glad to have read all seven books, but I can't say that I'm a huge fan. As usual, Jim Dale is an outstanding reader and without his superb narration, I doubt I would have continued with the audio books.

Looking Back - The Country Ahead of Us, The Country Behind

Looking Back... In an effort to transfer my book journal entries over to this blog, I'm going to attempt to post (in chronological order) an entry every Friday. I may or may not add extra commentary to what I jotted down in these journals.

The Country Ahead of Us, The Country Behind by David Guterson
Fiction - Short Stories
1996 Vintage Books (first published in 1989)
Finished on January 6, 1997
Rating: 3/5 (Fair)

Publisher's Blurb:

Like his novel, Snow Falling On Cedars, for which he received the PEN/Faulkner Award, Guterson's beautifully observed and emotionally piercing short stories are set largely in the Pacific Northwest. In these vast landscapes, hunting, fishing, and sports are the givens of men's lives. With prose that stings like the scent of gunpowder, this is a collection of power.

My Original Notes (1997):

By the author of Snow Falling on Cedars. Good, but not great. Short stories. The last was the best ("The Flower Garden"). Guterson writes beautifully. I just wasn't interested in fishing and hunting themes.

My Current Thoughts:

I wrote about Guterson's Snow Falling on Cedars here. I really enjoy Guterson's prose, but I'm not a huge fan of short stories. It would be fun to go back and reread The Flower Garden, but I have no interest in revisiting the entire collection.

Wordless Wednesday

Today is the day Annie came to live with us in 2007. Happy Adoption Day, sweet girl!

Click here to see last year's post with more photos.

Looking Back - A Literary Christmas

Looking Back... In an effort to transfer my book journal entries over to this blog, I'm going to attempt to post (in chronological order) an entry every Friday. I may or may not add extra commentary to what I jotted down in these journals.

A Literary Christmas Edited by Lilly Golden
Nonfiction
1992 Atlantic Monthly Press
Finished in January 1997
Rating: 3/5 (Fair)

Publisher's Blurb:

The finest writers throughout the centuries have graced us with their literary visions of Christmas. Charles Dickens, O. Henry, Truman Capote immediately come to mind. Dozens of collections contain history's best. But what has been sorely missed on bookstore shelves is a collection of great contemporary Christmas stories by today's most gifted writers. Here, gathered in one volume, are twenty-seven stories that celebrate the spirit of Christmas present. In Ray Bradbury's tale an aging priest becomes reconciled with his past on Christmas Eve, while in Frank O'Connor's story a young boy's Christmas morning brings the end of innocence in the devastating knowledge that there is no Santa Claus. Paul Bowles tells the traumatic account of a small boy's Christmas that is overshadowed by his cruel father, while Ron Carlson offers an inspiring story in which a loving husband's unspoken Christmas wish is granted when his wife tells him she wants to have a baby. Though these stories share the subject of Christmas, whether as a central theme or as subtext, each explores a unique aspect of the holiday season and its psychological and emotional reverberations. And most important, in each of these marvelous stories, some uplifting, some deeply melancholy, we are given a Christmas tale of the highest literary order.

My Original Notes (1997):

So-so. So many of the short stories were depressing! I enjoyed these, though:

Bless Me, Father, for I Have Sinned by Ray Bradbury

Auggie Wren's Christmas Story by Paul Auster

Christmas for Sassafrass, Cypress & Indigo by Ntozake Shange

Christmas by Harper Lee

Where You'll Find Me by Ann Beattie

The Night of the Magi by Leo Rosten

The H Street Sledding Record by Ron Carlson

My Current Thoughts:

I no longer own this book, so I can't go back and re-read these stories. After 20 years I have absolutely no recollection of any of them!

Wordless Wednesday - Dogs of Germany (2015)

For more Wordless Wednesday, click here.

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince by J.K. Rowling
Harry Potter, #6
Juvenile Fiction/Fantasy
2015 Audio Pottermore from J.K. Rowling (Originally published in 2005)
Read by Jim Dale
Finished on June 9, 2016
Rating: 3/5 (Good)

Publisher's Blurb:

The war against Voldemort is not going well: even Muggle governments are noticing. Ron scans the obituary pages of The Daily Prophet looking for familiar names. Dumbledore is absent from Hogwarts for long stretches of time, and the Order of the Phoenix has already suffered losses. And yet …

As in all wars, life goes on. Sixth-year students learn to apparate, and lose a few eyebrows in the process. The Weasley twins expand their business. Teenagers flirt and fight and fall in love. Classes are never straightforward, though Harry receives some extraordinary help from the mysterious Half-Blood Prince.

So it's the home front that takes center stage in the multilayered sixth installment of the story of Harry Potter. Harry struggles to uncover the identity of the Half-Blood Prince, the past owner of a potions textbook he now possesses that is filled with ingenious, potentially deadly, spells. But Harry's life is suddenly changed forever when someone close to him is heinously murdered right before his eyes.

With Dumbledore's guidance, he seeks out the full, complex story of the boy who became Lord Voldemort, and thereby attempts to find what may be his only vulnerability.

There's really not much to say about this series that hasn't already been discussed. I thought this installment was better than Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, but not as good as the first two in the series. Jim Dale is a marvelous reader for the audios, so I was entertained. I was also very sad to learn that another beloved character had died. Yes, I lived under a rock, ignoring all the chatter about the details of this character's demise. ;)

Looking Back - The Duchess of Bloomsbury Street

Looking Back... In an effort to transfer my book journal entries over to this blog, I'm going to attempt to post (in chronological order) an entry every Friday. I may or may not add extra commentary to what I jotted down in these journals.

The Duchess of Bloomsbury Street by Helene Hanff
Nonfiction - Memoir
1995 Moyer Bell (First published in 1973)
Finished in December 1996
Rating: 4.5/5 (Terrific!)

Publisher's Blurb:

When she’s invited to London for the English publication of her wildly successful book, 84 Charing Cross Road—in which she shares two decades of correspondence with Frank Doel, a British bookseller who became a dear friend—New York writer Helene Hanff is thrilled to realize a lifelong dream. The trip will be bittersweet, because she can’t help wishing Frank was still alive, but she’s determined to capture every moment of the journey.

Helene’s time in London exceeds her wildest expectations. She visits landmarks like Buckingham Palace and Windsor Castle; explores Shakespeare’s favorite pub, Dickens’s house, and the Oxford University courtyard where John Donne used to walk; and makes a host of new friends from all walks of life, who take her to the theater, introduce her to institutions like Harrod’s, and share with her their favorite corners of countryside.

A love letter to England and its literary heritage, written by a Manhattanite who isn’t afraid to speak her mind (or tell a British barman how to make a real American martini), The Duchess of Bloomsbury Street is an endearing account of two wildly different worlds colliding; it’s an outsider’s witty, vibrant portrait of idiosyncratic British culture at its best, as well as a profound commentary about the written word’s power to sustain us, transport us, and unite us.

My Original Notes (1996):

Just as good as 84, Charing Cross Road. I would love to see it as a movie! A wonderful way to see London again [I had recently visited England]. Helene Hanff has a wonderful sense of humor. Both books would make a great gift set for anyone who loves England, books or romance! Should be read at least once a year.

My Current Thoughts:

Well, I must have loaned my copy out, because I can't locate it anywhere and I know I loved it. Darn it!

Highly recommend.

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by J.K. Rowling
Harry Potter, #5
Juvenile Fiction/Fantasy
2015 Pottermore from J.K. Rowling (Originally published in 2003)
Read by Jim Dale
Finished on May 31, 2016
Rating: 2.5/5 (Fair)

Publisher's Blurb:

Harry Potter is due to start his fifth year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. His best friends Ron and Hermione have been very secretive all summer and he is desperate to get back to school and find out what has been going on. However, what Harry discovers is far more devastating than he could ever have expected...

Suspense, secrets and thrilling action from the pen of J.K. Rowling ensure an electrifying adventure that is impossible to put down.

Boring! I was really not interested in this installment at all, but decided to keep going since I wanted to finish the series. The book was ok, but I didn't love it like the first in the series. I did go on and read the remaining books, though. I had to see what happened next.

Election Day 2016

VOTE!

A Month in Summary - October 2016

This year is flying by so quickly! Wasn't it just summer? It still feels like it here in Nebraska. We've had a few chilly days (and a couple of frosty mornings), but for the most part it's been fairly mild, if not downright hot. The leaves are falling, but our grass is still green. I'm sure winter is just around the corner, so I'd better get my ice scraper and shovel in the car. {sigh}

October proved to be a decent month for audio books. I listened to three and read one book in print. I think I've been distracted by the election and have spent far too much time on social media. Hopefully, November will be a bit better. {fingers crossed...}

So here's what I read. I actually read My Name is Lucy Barton in the print format and then listened to it on audio, although I didn't finish listening until November. A good friend said it was one of her most favorite books, so after a ho-hum read, I thought maybe the audio would be better. You'll have to wait until November's recap to see what I thought about that. :)

My Name is Lucy Barton by Elizabeth Strout (borrowed) 3/5

Behind Closed Doors by B.A. Paris (borrowed - audio) 5/5

Sleeping Giants by Sylvain Neuvel (borrowed - audio) 4/5

The Bridge Ladies by Betsy Learner (borrowed - audio) 3.5/5

Stats:

Triple Dog Dare Challenge - This turned out to be the worst month for reading from my stacks. I was in such a reading slump that it was all I could do to read one book in print. The audio books saved me from a total fail. I did get rid of a few more unread ARCs, so there is still hope for a reduction in the number of books we'll have to move to Oregon next summer.
 
4 books
3 novels
1 nonfiction
1 thriller
1 memoir
1 science fiction 
3 new-to-me-authors 
1 print
3 audio
3 female
1 male
4 borrowed
0 from my stacks 

Favorite of the Month: Behind Closed Doors by B.A. Paris.

Reviews to follow

Looking Back - 84, Charing Cross Road

Looking Back... In an effort to transfer my book journal entries over to this blog, I'm going to attempt to post (in chronological order) an entry every Friday. I may or may not add extra commentary to what I jotted down in these journals.

84, Charing Cross Road by Helene Hanff
Nonfiction
1990 Penguin Books (First published in 1970)
Finished in December 1996
Rating: 5/5 (Terrific!)

Publisher's Blurb: 

This charming classic, first published in 1970, brings together twenty years of correspondence between Helene Hanff, a freelance writer living in New York City, and a used-book dealer in London. Through the years, though never meeting and separated both geographically and culturally, they share a winsome, sentimental friendship based on their common love for books. Their relationship, captured so acutely in these letters, is one that will grab your heart and not let go.

My Original Notes (1996):

One of my all-time favorite books ever read!! I loved it! I feel as if I know Helene and all her friends at Marks & Co. How heartbreaking that she never did meet Frank Doel. I saw the movie before reading the book and they were both equally wonderful. Ann Bancroft and Anthony Hopkins play Helene and Frank. A wonderful romance. Now I want to go back to London!

My Current Thoughts:

I've read this lovely gem of a book at least three times and it never fails to entertain and touch me. It's been ages since I watched the movie (which I'm sure I've seen at least twice), so maybe I'll add it to my Netflix queue and watch it later this winter.

Highly recommend to all lovers of books and bookstores!

I love the cover art for the different editions of this book. I've also included a couple of images from the movie. 

Her

Her by Harriet Lane
Fiction
2015 Little, Brown and Company
Finished on May 30, 2016
Rating: 4/5 (Very Good)

Publisher's Blurb:

You don't remember her--but she remembers you.

On the face of it, Emma and Nina have very little in common. Isolated and exhausted by early motherhood, Emma finds her confidence fading fast. Nina--sophisticated, generous, effortlessly in control--seems to have all the answers.

It's easy to see why Emma is drawn to Nina. But what does Nina see in her?

A seemingly innocent friendship slowly develops into a dangerous game of cat and mouse as Nina eases her way into Emma's life. Soon it becomes clear that Nina wants something from the unwitting Emma--something that might just destroy her.


Now that five months have passed, I'm tempted to drop my rating to just three stars. I had to re-read the final chapter to refresh my memory of the details of the conclusion and why I was so irritated when I finished the book. As I said on Goodreads, I would have thrown this book across the room when I read the final page, had it not been 3 a.m. It was definitely not the ending I was expecting! However, I was sucked in from the opening pages and couldn't stop reading long into the subsequent nights.

Final Thoughts:

This page-turner is one that you'll either love or hate. It's been compared to The Girl on the Train, with its sinister, ambiguous finale, but I didn't care for it quite as much as Paula Hawkin's debut hit. It's a compulsively readable story and perfectly paced, but nonetheless, a disappointment. Maybe that's not fair, though. Maybe my distaste is in the individual's actions rather than the book itself. And thus, my 4/5 rating. Not a keeper, though.

Note: 

I did find some of the British vocabulary a bit confusing, resorting to Google for clarification. For example, plane leaves are sycamore leaves; E-numbers are European food additive codes.