CBL reads 75 in 2013, part 5

Welcome to my fifth thread where I'll continue to track my 2013 reading. You'll find my previous thread here.

Top reads from my fourth thread:
Nine Coaches Waiting by Mary Stewart
The Tenth Witness by Leonard Rosen
How the Light Gets In by Louise Penny
The Garden of Evening Mists by Tan Twan Eng

Top fiction reads reviewed on my third thread:
Macbeth by William Shakespeare (audio)
Red Bones by Ann Cleeves
In Other Rooms, Other Wonders by Daniyal Mueenuddin
Framley Parsonage by Anthony Trollope
The Last Child by John Hart (audio)

Top fiction reads reviewed on my second thread:
N or M? by Agatha Christie (audio)
Because of Winn-Dixie by Kate DiCamillo
The Daughter of Time by Josephine Tey (audio)

Top fiction reads reviewed on my first thread:
The Farming of Bones by Edwidge Danticat
Major Pettigrew's Last Stand by Helen Simonson

Top non-fiction reviewed on my third thread:
14 Cows for America by Carmen Agra Deedy (picture book)
The Transformation of Virginia, 1740-1790 by Rhys Isaac

Top non-fiction reviewed on my second thread:
Prince Among Slaves by Terry Alford

Top non-fiction reviewed on my first thread:
Eighty Days: Nellie Bly and Elizabeth Bisland's History-Making Race Around the World by Matthew Goodman

First 75 books:




Next 75 books:

My latest distraction from reading:

He's just so cute. Happy new thread!

Thanks Leah! He's as sweet as he is cute. I'm glad we found each other.

Hi Carrie, it's interesting that both you and Lynda are having some reading difficulties, I have been struggling as well. I finally put the novel I was reading aside and turned to a Graphic Novel and now a book of short stories which seems to be helping. I thought my problems were due to a letdown after completing this year's Category Challenge.

129. Junipero Serra: California's Founding Father by Steven W. Hackel
TIOLI #1 Title's first word has 8 letters

Since I'm not from California and I'm not Catholic, I first heard of Junípero Serra when I visited the mission he founded in San Diego. I've been curious about him ever since, so I jumped at the chance to read this biography. Father Serra was already well into middle age by the time he arrived in what is now California and began the work for which he is remembered. The first half of the book covers unfamiliar ground for those who are familiar with Serra only as the founder of California's missions: his early life in Majorca and his years of mission work in New Spain (now Mexico) in the Sierra Gorda and Baja California.

The tour guide and the tourist brochures at the mission in San Diego highlighted only Serra's achievements and positive character traits. Hackel's biography presents a more complicated picture of Serra's work and character. He was a devout, disciplined Catholic who heard a divine call and never lost sight of his goal. However, he seemed to be a difficult person for others to get along with since he appeared to want to control others as tightly as he controlled himself. He was in a decades-long struggle with secular government and military officials for control of the missions and their converts among indigenous people groups. Neither side seems very heroic. Both the Franciscans and the secular officials were motivated by their religious beliefs, but these beliefs compelled them to exert control over every aspect of the lives of their Native American converts, forcing them to adopt an agricultural lifestyle within the mission settlements.

The primary market for this book is probably Californians who want to learn more about their state's history. However, it will also appeal to readers with an interest in Majorca's history, Mexico's history, Catholic history, the history of missions, and missionary biography. Recommended.

This review is based on an electronic advanced reading copy provided by the publisher through NetGalley. Illustrations and index not seen.

3.5 stars

Next up in nonfiction: Mary Shelley by Muriel Spark

This week's acquisitions:
Col. Wm. Dudley's Defeat Opposite Fort Meigs, May 5th, 1813: Official Report from Captain Leslie Combs to General Green Clay - ebook (free download)
All But Forgotten by James L. Emch (purchased)
Marie Curie and Her Daughters by Shelley Emling (September ER book)

Carrie, I'm glad to see that Adrian is going to be the star of this thread as well. We LTers love our dogs...and cats! Lucky found a tennis ball in the yard and we let him carry it on our walk last week. He was so happy and wagged his tail much of the time! I loved your comments on The Moon is Down on your last thread. It was a surprise to me when I read it as I didn't know he had written anything like this. I too loved the backstory about the distribution of the book.

Thanks Donna! I didn't know Steinbeck had written anything like that either. Now I'm anxious to see the movie version.

I'm enjoying Adrian's company. I've tried reading outloud to him once or twice!

Lovely new thread, Carrie! I would be curious to learn if Adrian develops a preference for what type of books he likes to listen to. ;-)

Happy new thread to YOU, Carrie!

Lori, I'll be sure to let you know. I don't think he's too fond of my current audiobook (Frankenstein).

Thanks Anne!

Happy New Thread, Carrie. Adrian is a cutie. Good luck with your next book.

Adrian looks like a happy puppy. Maybe that is why Frankenstein doesn't appeal to him.

Thanks Beth!

Meg, I think he is happy, and that makes me happy since when I took him to the vet the day after I got him the vet thought he was depressed. I don't think she would say that now.

Carrie, dogs are smart and know when they are loved. No wonder he has perked up!

130. Ten Lords a-Leaping by C. C. Benison
TIOLI #16 - Book set in a member nation of the UN Security Council (U.K.)

In order to raise money for much-needed church repairs, Vicar Tom Christmas and others from his parish participate in a skydiving fund raiser at Eggescombe Park. After the locals complete their jump, the Leaping Lords put on one of their skydiving shows. The show has more drama than usual when one of the Lords' parachutes fails to open after a mid-air scuffle with a fellow Lord. While all ends well for the Lord, Tom has badly sprained an ankle in a rough landing, spoiling his travel plans. Since Tom can't drive, he and his 10-year-old daughter Miranda stay on as guests at Eggescombe Hall. Tom soon learns that it isn't all Happy Families at the Hall when the Dowager Countess and one of the guests fill him in on the family tensions among the siblings, half-siblings, and cousins gathered at the hall for the occasion. After an unsettling night, Tom seeks spiritual solitude in the Labyrinth, but instead he finds the body of one of the Lords.

The third installment of this series takes the vicar out of the midst of the usual suspects in the village. In some ways that's a good thing since the cast of villagers is rather large and was hard to keep track of in the first couple of books. However, while there are fewer residents and guests to track at Eggescombe Hall, the complexity of their interrelationships presents a different difficulty for the reader. Jane Bee, the amateur sleuth from the author's earlier series, made a brief appearance in the first book in this series, and her fans will be pleased that her character has a major role in this book.

In many ways this is the best book yet in the series. However, I was very uncomfortable with the vicar's behavior in this installment, and it somewhat marred my enjoyment of the book. In evangelical circles, a minister who did what the vicar did in this book would most likely lose his job, probably through resignation. While Tom isn't proud of his moral lapse, it doesn't trouble him as much as I think it should.

This review is based on an electronic advanced reading copy provided by the publisher through NetGalley.

3.5 stars

I took Adrian for a walk right after I got home from work this afternoon and noticed a problem that needs medical attention. The problem is that I'm supposed to be in an all-day meeting in Knoxville tomorrow and I can't take him to see the vet until Monday. I had already made arrangements with a friend to pick him up tomorrow morning and keep him at her house for the day. I called to give her a heads-up about Adrian's condition and found out that the vet is going to be at her house tomorrow afternoon. I won't be there, but my dog will. She's going to see what she can find out from the vet to pass along to me so that I'll know signs that would indicate he needs emergency attention.

The closest veterinary clinic to me is actually the Pet Emergency Clinic that is only open at night and on weekends. I really like the female vet that has staffed it the time or two that I've had to use it with Brumley. You might want to see if there is such a clinic near you that provides for emergency care.

The person I talked with at the vet's office thought it could wait until Monday. There is an emergency clinic she recommends, plus I'm not that far from the vet hospital.

The vet clinic inside PetSmart near West Town has extended and weekend hours. It used to be Banfield and was staffed by a vet I cared very little for, but I believe they have changed since I was there last, 5 years ago. It's something to keep mind in a pinch though.

Thanks for the tip Leah! If I'm ever desperate enough to need emergency advice, I do know one of the professors from the vet school well enough to call at home. I wouldn't do it unless I thought it might be a life-threatening emergency.

Hi Carrie, I enjoy the dog-talk. I do hope he (and you) will be freed of all the medical problems, so you'll be able to properly enjoy each other's company. Cute dog, btw.

>23 Trifolia: Thanks! We were cross-posting on each others' threads! I changed his dog food back to the first blend I tried in this brand. I think that might solve part of his problem. A couple of days ago I began to suspect that the ingredients in the other blend I tried weren't agreeing with him. He seems to prefer this flavor, too. It has fish in it, and after hearing from a few friends that they don't feed their dogs fish because it makes them smell fishy, I had been persuaded to try a different blend. I'm going back to the fish blend because I'd rather live with the fishy smell than deal with the digestive problems he's been having.

Adrian isn't the sole reason for the drop-off in my reading time. I've become enamored with Castle and I've been glued to TNT in the evenings when they show several episodes back to back. I'll be able to reclaim some of my reading time once I catch up to the current season.

I don't know much about dogs, but it seems right to give the poor animal the food he likes. He might be allergic to some of the ingredients in other pet-food which might also be the reason he ended up in an asylum in the first place. Few people are willing to give animals the TLC they deserve and that you apparently are giving him. Good for you (and the dog)!

Believe it or not, but the current season of Castle is being broadcast right now on Belgian television. I never watched it so it would be weird to start following it now. However, as of Monday, the first season is being broadcast on a daily basis for at least the next two weeks, so I already have my recorder ready. Let's see if I like it as much as you do.

131. Mary Shelley by Muriel Spark
TIOLI #1 - First title word has 4 letters

Muriel Spark wrote her biography of Mary Shelley before she published her first novel. Decades later she substantially revised the biography. Although she doesn't explicitly state this, I'm sure her experience as a novelist informed the revision, particularly the critical section of the book. I like reading novelists on other novelists because they have a different insight into the creative process than biographers who write only non-fiction.

I appreciated Spark's comment in the introduction that she “ha{s} always disliked the sort of biography which states 'X lay on the bed and watched the candle flickering on the roof beams,' when there is no evidence that X did so.” I also dislike that sort of biography, and when I read them I always end up questioning the facts as well as the added color. Spark comes across as a careful and conscientious biographer who does not speculate farther than is warranted by the historical evidence and, where her interpretation differs from Shelley's other biographers, acknowledges these differences of opinion.

I read this biography as a companion to Shelley's Frankenstein on audio and I'm glad I decided to do that. I knew the barest details about how Shelley had come to write Frankenstein, but not enough of the details of Shelley's life to affect my interpretation of the novel. Shelley's husband, poet Percy Bysshe Shelley, died young, and all but one of the couple's children died in infancy or early childhood. I didn't realize that Mary Shelley only knew her famous mother, Mary Woollstonecraft, through her writings and the stories she heard from others since Mary Woollstonecraft died very soon after her daughter's birth. Mary Shelley lost other family members and friends to illness or accident while she was still in her twenties, and the accumulation of loss affected her writing.

Shelley's life is covered in the first third of the book, while the last third contains a critical reflection on her work. Readers whose primary interest is in one or the other could read just the section corresponding to their interest. However, it's worthwhile to read the work as a whole since there are some critical comments in the biographical section and the critical section refers to some of the biographical details of Shelley's life.

4 stars

Next up in non-fiction: Marie Curie and Her Daughters by Shelley Emling

The visit at the vet's went well and I think we're on the right track for addressing Adrian's digestive problems. He got an antibiotic shot after a minor procedure and he's on a bland diet for a couple of days.

132. Tiepolo's Hound by Derek Walcott
TIOLI #5 - Title letters spell a Halloween word (potion)

Poet and painter Derek Walcott uses one form of artistic expression to contemplate the other in a book-length poem. Walcott compares and contrasts himself as an artist with 19th-century impressionist Camille Pissaro, who, like Walcott, was born in the West Indies. Themes that run through the poem include nature, time, inspiration, Old vs. New world, and the legacies of slavery and colonialism. Reading poetry is harder work than reading prose, and I found that reading aloud to my dog helped maintain my concentration and enhanced my appreciation of the work.

3.5 stars

>2 cbl_tn: Adorable!

Thanks Joanne! He's as sweet as he looks.

I'm glad to hear Adrian is doing well. Carrie. Oh, you new mothers! Can't be too careful, though. I've heard good things about Castle but I'm staying away. I have a few shows I watch on TV and don't need anymore distractions. The granddaughters take enough time away from my reading, though I am not going to complain about that.

I had no idea that Muriel Spark had wrriten a biography of Mary Shelly. Looks good in spite of her losing so many of her loved ones. I'll try to remember it for a Halloween read next year. I really liked Frankenstein when I read it many years ago.

Hi Carrie - I hope Adrian is well. The Shelly bio sounds great. Onto the list it goes.

Hi Beth! Adrian is doing well. We're having a great weekend so far. We've been on a couple of outings in the car and we had a long nap in the recliner yesterday afternoon.

I hope you enjoy the Shelley biography when you get to it!

Oops, I missed you Donna! I hope you enjoy the Shelley biography too. It does make a good Halloween read. The good thing about Castle is that it comes with its own series of books since Richard Castle is supposed to be a best-selling author along the lines of James Patterson, Dennis Lehane, Michael Connelly, and Stephen J. Cannell (who all appear occasionally as Castle's poker buddies).

133. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
TIOLI #6 - Title word or author's name starts with a letter with straight lines

If Death was anywhere during World War II, it was certainly active in Nazi Germany. What story would Death tell of life in Germany under the Nazis? Possibly this one – the story of a young girl driven by loss and grief to become a book thief. The protagonists in the book aren't Jews or Nazis. They're poor Germans whose strongest loyalties lie, not with government or party, but with family, friends, and neighbors. Their sense of decency and dignity drive some to quiet resistance to the Nazi regime. It's not a comfortable book to read, but it's an unforgettable one. Characters like Liesel Meminger, Rudy Steiner, the Hubermanns, Ilsa Hermann, and Max Vandenburg will haunt readers' memories just as they haunt Death's.

4.5 stars

Just one acquisition to report this week:
Peter Pan by J. M. Barrie - free audio download (read by Christopher Cazenove)

134. Frankenstein by Mary Shelley
TIOLI #6 - Title word or author's name starts with a letter with straight lines

In some ways Mary Shelley was ahead of her time with Frankenstein. If she had written it about 150 years later, I can imagine it featuring a robot or human cloning. However, in other ways Shelley was a product of her time. The narrative is dialogue-heavy and the horror loses its intensity in its wordiness. It's hard not to think of the many Hollywood adaptations while reading the book (or in this case, listening to it). The narrator's voice for Victor Frankenstein sounded a lot like Gene Wilder in Young Frankenstein - just one instance of Hollywood's influence on the interpretation of the novel.

3 stars

Next up in audio: Riders of the Purple Sage by Zane Grey

135. Leaving China: An Artist Paints His World War II Childhood by James McMullan
TIOLI #1 - Non-fiction book about change

Through a combination of watercolor images and short biographical sketches, illustrator James McMullan remembers his early childhood in China and his global wanderings with his mother during World War II. James's paternal grandparents went to China in the late 19th century as missionaries with China Inland Mission. James's father became a successful businessman, importing Western goods to sell in China and exporting Chinese goods to the West. James was born in 1934, just three years before the Japanese invasion of China and the second Sino-Japanese war.

James remembers the beauty of his early environment – the landscape, architecture, interior design, and artwork, but his early memories of events seem to be more painful than happy. James was a sensitive child, more interested in art than athletics, and he sensed that his personality and temperament were a disappointment to his parents. His childhood loneliness is reflected in the illustrations. Influences that led to his career as an artist are seen in his early interest in the Chinese artwork in his home, watching his Canadian aunt's artist neighbor at his work, winning school friends through is cartoon drawings, and the encouragement of a boxing instructor to pursue his interest.

This book should find a place in many libraries. It will appeal to readers with an interest in memoirs of artists, World War II memoirs, children's experiences of war, pre-revolutionary China, and perhaps even missionary history and biography.

This review is based on an electronic advanced reading copy provided by the publisher through NetGalley,

4.5 stars

My little furry intruder is back. I found evidence last night in my silverware drawer and the cabinet below it where I keep my baking pans. I had a meeting last night and could only make a start on the cleanup since I didn't want to mess up my dress clothes. I've washed a dishwasher full and I've hand washed (with bleach) some of the things I can't run through the dishwasher. Tomorrow afternoon's project is cleaning out the kitchen cupboards and looking for and plugging up whatever hole the creature is using to get into the cabinets. I need to get rid of some things I don't use anyway so I'm trying to look at this as an opportunity rather than a crisis!

I have some kittens that need homes and I'm sure they'd love to help you with that problem. ;)

Leah, I don't think my dog would be happy with that arrangement. The neighbor across the strret has cats that spend a lot of time over here and it drives Adrian crazy!

Sorry about your visitor, Carrie. I wonder if he's looking for a place to take up winter residence?

Judy, he must have missed the "No Vacancy" sign!

I'd offer to bring Brumley for a visit, but he's a terrible mouser!

I almost forgot the extraordinary experience Adrian and I had on our walk yesterday morning. I live on a fairly short road, and we usually start out one direction, then turn around and walk past the house in the other direction. When we got back to my driveway intending to go on down the road, I looked up and saw a deer standing in the road about 150 yards away. Adrian stayed very still and we all stood and looked at each other for about three minutes until the deer decided to head back into the woods. I wish I'd had a camera with me!

I'll be dog sitting for the next 24 hours. My friend is bringing her Cairn terrier over after church. She was adopted from the same shelter the same day as Adrian so they're already friends. It will be an interesting day. I'm not sure how much reading I'll get done. Maybe I can listen to my audiobook.

Wildlife sighting, how cool!

Miss Stella arrived right after lunch. I took both dogs for a long walk and they both went to sleep about as soon as we got back inside the house. I think I'm going to let them lie. I've heard it's best to do that.

136. A Christmas Hope by Anne Perry
TIOLI #3 - Book with a holiday theme

Claudine Burroughs finds the fulfillment that she doesn't find her marriage through volunteering at Hester Monk's clinic for London's prostitutes. Although she doesn't love her husband and has nothing in common with him, Claudine fulfills her social obligations by accompanying her husband to dinners, parties, and special events, including a society Christmas party. The festivities end abruptly when a young woman of dubious moral character is assaulted and possibly fatally injured. Claudine is among the first of the guests to rush to the scene. A Welsh poet with a reputation for heavy drinking and womanizing is accused of the assault, but Claudine isn't sure that he's as guilty as he appears to be. Perhaps the three young men from good families who witnessed the assault are not as innocent as they claim to be. Claudine enlists the help of Squeaky Robinson, the clinic's bookkeeper, in ferreting out the truth.

Claudine is not as sympathetic as some of Perry's other characters. Her motives for volunteering at Hester's clinic don't seem to be entirely altruistic. She seems to regret choosing a comfortable life with a man she doesn't love over a less stable but more fulfilling existence. Her husband's only fault seems to be that he is unkind to her and cares more about appearances than true virtue. However, Claudine seems to be equally unkind to him, so it feels a lot like the “pot calling the kettle black”.

Claudine isn't looking for clues, but she is looking for someone among the witnesses who will tell the truth. Along the way she has an opportunity to counsel some young adults about the consequences of the choices that are available to them, using her own life as an illustration. She also reflects on the true meaning of Christmas. It shouldn't be a time to ignore the ugly things in life. It should be a time for generosity of spirit and a hope for change.

Reading Anne Perry's Christmas novellas has become a holiday tradition for me. They are a good reminder that, beneath the glitter of the holiday decorations and festivities, there are hurting people, and one of the best gifts we can give at Christmas time is something that will alleviate even just a little of others' suffering.

This review is based on an electronic advanced reading copy provided by the publisher through NetGalley.

3 stars

Hi Carrie - Good luck with your critter. Nice review of the Perry book. I haven't read any of her holiday books, but you've reminded me that I am really far behind on her series. I should pick one up soon.

Last week's acquisitions:

The English Reader: What Every Literate Person Needs to Know compiled by Diane & Michael Ravitch - from the library book sale

Hi Beth! Thanks for the good wishes! If I can find and plug up the hole it's using to get in I think I'll be in good shape.

Carrie - I think we were posting at the same time. The English Reader sounds interesting...

I've heard it's best to do that.

:D

What a wonderful wildlife sighting! (The deer, not the sleeping dogs.)

Both dogs are crated for the night. My friend's dog is a bit whiney but she seems to be settling down. My dog looks like he's already asleep.

Here's what it looked like at my house last night:

Oh, they look so comfy-cozy! What a cute scene (especially since there's books in it!).

#35 -- caught a trailer for The Book Thief movie version on TV last week -- and snapped up the book when it became a Kindle sale one.

I won a copy of A Christmas Hope as my October ER book and am (im)patiently awaiting its arrival. (Re touchstones: for some reason when I typed in that title, what came up but "A Velveteen Rabbit". I must admit that I'm at a loss as to the possible connection here...

>56 countrylife: Thanks Cindy! We had a fun time, although being responsible for a dog I don't know very well was a little stressful. It made me realize how well Adrian and I have adjusted to each other in the last 6-7 weeks!

>57 Chatterbox: Since it's so close to the publication date maybe you'll get a final version rather than an ARC. It's always nice when that happens! I noticed that odd touchstone when I added the review to my thread. Nothing about rabbits or even velveteen in Anne Perry's book. Although if it was widely available in the 1860s I suppose some of the party guests might have worn something made out of it...

I think the Anne Perry book is "in transit" to my library via ILL right now. I've got a whole boatload of library books to read right now but I'll probably move that one to the top of the library book stack.

I thought I got 3 weeks for Kindle book loans, but alas, it's only 2 weeks so I am racing to finish the new Bill Bryson book right now.

Linda, it's a very quick read so you won't need to set aside much time for it.

137. Marie Curie and Her Daughters by Shelley Emling
TIOLI #15 - Title completes the phrase "I am thankful for..."

Shelley Emling begins her biography of Marie Curie and her daughters where others might end it - with the awarding of Marie Curie’s second Nobel Prize. When readers meet Marie, she is a widow and single mother raising two young daughters. Emling immediately launches readers into the scandal surrounding Marie’s affair with her married colleague, Paul Langevin. The “private life” of Curie and her daughters consists mainly of Curie’s affair with Langevin, the family’s domestic arrangements, the girls’ education, the letters exchanged between mother and daughters, and occasional interactions with Marie’s siblings. Emling makes much of Marie’s friendship with American journalist Missy Meloney, but Meloney is scarcely mentioned outside of the chapters about Marie’s fund-raising trips to the United States.

Emling seems to have relied heavily on interviews with Marie Curie’s granddaughter, Hélène Langevin-Joliot, and access to the family’s papers. While some of the details may not have been published before, they won’t necessarily generate a lot of excitement for most readers. Life was all about science for Marie and for her oldest daughter, Irène, and there didn’t seem to be much of anything else to their lives. I was most interested in the effects of the publicity surrounding Marie Curie’s affair, the effect of World War I on Marie’s research and the role she and Irène had during the war, the family’s travel to the United States, Irène’s own Nobel Prize (shared with her husband), Irène and her husband’s discoveries that in part led to the discovery of nuclear fission, and the impact of World War II. I was less interested in the details from their correspondence and detailed itineraries of their travels that amounted to little more than dates and names of officials and organizations they visited.

Since this book skips most of Marie Curie’s early life and the years of work for which she was awarded the Nobel Prizes, this wouldn’t be the best place to start reading about her. The book is best suited for readers who are already somewhat familiar with her work and her legacy.

This review is based on a complimentary copy provided by the publisher through LibraryThing’s Early Reviewers program.

3 stars

I finished the Anne Perry Christmas novella late last night. I think I liked it, and Claudine, a bit better than you did.

>62 lindapanzo: Linda, I'm glad! I think part of my problem with Claudine might be that I read it along with this month's Trollope group read, which takes place in approximately the same time period. It's possible to get too much of a good thing!

Hi Carrie, are you still planning on reading Mrs. Miniver for the WW II RTT theme? I will be picking it up next which looks to be in a couple of days.

I'm signed up for Santa Thing.

Carrie, your wants and mine sound almost interchangeable.

Judy, I have Mrs. Miniver out and I'll probably get to it next week. The copy I have is a 1942 paperback that belonged to my mother's mother. I was very close to her, and I'm particularly looking forward to reading it because it's one of the few books I have that belonged to her.

Linda, wouldn't it be funny if we end up with the same books from our Santas?!

For next year, I'm more interesting in reading books about the U.S. during the 20s and 30s so it's a bit different. I also asked for mysteries set outside the U.S./UK just because I more than I can handle in these two places.

I'm trying to add to my Christmas wishlist, based on GeoCAT and other challenges.

Linda, I'll have to take a look at your wishlist! I may find a few that ought to be on mine! :)

I'm not counting this in my total since it's not the kind of book anyone would read cover-to-cover, but I thought I'd post the review here:

The Christmas Encyclopedia by William D. Crump

You could celebrate Christmas all year by sampling an entry or two per day in The Christmas Encyclopedia. Although it’s a reference work that isn’t intended to be read cover-to-cover, a quick look-up could easily turn into an extended browsing session. Articles address both sacred and secular aspects of the holiday, traditions in many of the world’s regions and countries, traditional carols, popular songs, books for children and adults, short stories, films, and television specials. Christmas trivia includes lists of events that took place on Christmas Day, lists of Christmas place names, lists of Christmas plants, works of art depicting scenes related to Christmas, superstitions related to Christmas, and Christmas celebrations in the U.S. White House listed chronologically by president. I was particularly fascinated by the article “NORAD Tracks Santa” and the history behind this Christmas tradition.

The preface to the 3rd edition indicates that 281 main entries have been added and that some main entries have been created from subheadings in the previous edition. There is no indication in the preface that articles from the earlier edition have been updated. I noticed that the article on the Glastonbury Thorn does not mention the 2010 vandalism. I did find a few omissions. There are entries for the Andy Williams and Bing Crosby Christmas specials, but not for the Perry Como Christmas specials. Articles are included for Christmas books by Debbie Macomber, Richard Paul Evans, and John Grisham, but there is no mention of Anne Perry’s Christmas novellas.

While the introductory material and the 12-page bibliography provide evidence of extensive research, citations are not provided for individual articles. The index and cross-references are thorough, although the index could be improved with separate indexes for books, music, and film and television. I was tempted to create my own holiday reading list of the entries about books and Christmas stories as I worked my way through the volume.

This reference work would be useful addition for all types of libraries. It would also make a nice addition for a home library or a holiday coffee table display.

This review is based on a complimentary copy provided by the publisher through LibraryThing’s Early Reviewers program.

4 stars

138. The Yiddish Policemen's Union by Michael Chabon
TIOLI #4 - Title contains 15 or more letters

After two weeks of working my way through this book, I can sum up my reaction in one word: disappointed. When I looked beneath the alternate history, the unfamiliar Yiddish dialect, the hard boiled attitude, and the chess theme that permeates this book, I found a typically negative stereotype of people of faith who lean toward the conservative end of the spectrum (in this case, Jews who look forward to the coming of the Messiah and Christians who look forward to Jesus' second advent). It all clicked at about the three quarter point and I could see exactly where events were headed. I expected more, especially since I really liked the other two books I've read by this author. It hasn't discouraged me from reading more of Chabon's books, but it has lowered my expectations from him.

2.5 stars

Ouch! Sorry to hear that was such a disappointing read, Carrie, particularly after all that time reading it.

Thanks Susan! I do regret spending so much time on that one for so little reward.

139. The Penderwicks by Jeanne Birdsall
TIOLI #20 - Letters in title can be rearranged to form a different title (Shipwrecked Ten)

This story about a family of four girls, their widowed father, and their summer vacation at a country estate seems timeless. The dialogue and many of the activities seem modern. For example, two of the girls play soccer, which is much more popular now than it was during my childhood. One of the sister, an aspiring author, types her finished novel on her father's computer. At the same time, modern technology is rarely mentioned in the book. The children spend most of their time outdoors. The oldest girl mails letters to her best friend back home. No mention of emails, texting, or Facebook. The family relies on a paper map rather than a GPS device to find their rental, adding some unexpected excitement to the journey. Technology changes so quickly that references to specific technologies can make a book seem dated within a short period of time, so the absence of references to contemporary technology might extend the book's popularity.

This is a perfect book for escaping from a cold and dreary autumn day. It reminded me of the seemingly endless summers of my childhood. Warmly recommended for both children and adults.

4 stars

The weather forecasters were predicting up to 2 inches of snow for my area. I don't think we're going to get that in my neighborhood. We have a light dusting on some parts of the ground but not on the road. I don't think the temperature has dropped below freezing.

At least it's not raining steadily like it did yesterday. I had a battle of wills with Adrian every time he needed to go out. He would have preferred to stay inside. The little raincoat I bought for him a couple of weeks ago helped, and once he realized he would stay drier by wearing it, he stayed still while I put it on him.

Hi Carrie - I liked the Chabon book more than you did. And I agree with you totally about The Penderwicks. I hope to be able to read it to my granddaughter.

Have a Happy Thanksgiving.

Happy Thanksgiving Beth! I'm sure Scout will enjoy The Penderwicks when she's old enough. I wonder which of the sisters she'll identify with? If I had read it as a child I probably would have identified with Jane, although I might have gone with Rosalind since she's the oldest!

Hi Carrie, I hope you have an enjoyable Thanksgiving holiday.

Thanks Judy!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! I'm going to a friend's house a little later this afternoon for a meal and I don't have a lot of cooking responsibilities this year. I made my favorite Jello salad* and it's chilling in the refrigerator until it's time to leave. I had to watch the Macy's parade earlier to look for the granddaughter of a friend. The National Dog Show came on right after the parade and I've had a great time watching it. My dog, on the other hand, just ignores the TV. I guess he's not as impressed as I am with the show dogs!

*My favorite Jello salad is Coca-Cola salad - black cherry Jello, canned black cherries, crushed pineapple, chopped nuts, cream cheese, and the not-so-secret ingredient, Coke. Yum! Last I heard there will only be 6 of us at lunch so maybe I'll be able to enjoy the leftovers for the rest of the weekend.

140. Can You Forgive Her? by Anthony Trollope
TIOLI #2 - Title contains an indirect reference to a woman

It seems that everyone but Alice Vavasor can forgive Alice for waffling over her engagements. (Except for her cousin George, but by the end of the book readers won't care what George thinks about anything!) But can the reader forgive her? Or is it Lady Glencora we're supposed to forgive? Or perhaps even Mrs. Greenow? All three women face similar circumstances. Each must decide which of two men to accept. Will they follow their hearts or their heads? Will they accept or reject advice? Will any choice lead to happiness, or is it just a matter of choosing the lesser of two evils?

I couldn't help comparing Alice to both Anne Elliot in Jane Austen's Persuasion and Lily Dale in Trollope's The Small House at Allington. Both Anne and Alice are motherless with fathers who have largely abdicated their parental responsibilities. Anne follows the guidance of a family friend in deciding whether to accept or reject a suitor, while Alice refuses to be guided by any but her own inclinations. Neither course of action works out well for these women. Alice is better suited for Lily Dale's life than is Lily Dale. She has money of her own and would not be a burden to other family members if she chose not to marry.

Aunt Greenow, recently widowed by a much older wealthy husband, provides comic relief. While she is the master of every situation and everyone does her bidding, she manages to make people think it's their idea to do what she wants them to do. The suspense for the reader is not in what might happen, but in how it will unfold.

Lady Glencora is my favorite of the three women. She may not know much about politics, but she understands people and she isn't easily fooled. My affinity for Lady Glencora is probably proof that I wouldn't have been cut out to be a society wife in Victorian England either.

I read this years ago but remembered very little of it. I was probably too young to appreciate it the first time around. Now I'm eagerly looking forward to discovering the pleasures ahead in the remaining books in the Palliser series.

4.5 stars

141. A Small Place by Jamaica Kincaid
TIOLI #20 - Title letters can be rearranged to form another "title" (Alpaca Smell)

If you're thinking of going to Antigua on vacation, you probably shouldn't read this before you go. You might end up canceling your reservations. This isn't a sentimental reminiscence about the author's native country. It's full of anger at tourists, at the former colonial government, and at corruption in the post-colonial government. I don't know what Kincaid intended to accomplish with this extended essay, but it seems like she means to discourage North American and European tourists from visiting, and she would rather have Antigua left to the Antiguans. Since Antigua's economy is based largely on tourism, I'm not sure how discouraging visitors will improve things. There are enough interesting facts interspersed with the rants to make me feel like I gained something from reading it.

3.5 stars

142. Mrs. Miniver by Jan Struther
TIOLI #6 - Includes title words beginning with letters with straight lines

Mrs. Miniver is a compilation of short stories that originally appeared in a London newspaper in the late 1930s. The book doesn't have a plot, yet there are some story arcs that can be traced through the collection, particularly the build-up to World War II. The stories depict middle class life between the wars and give readers an idea of what was at stake in World War II. Struther's style is an appealing blend of pragmatism and imagination (or perhaps curiosity). I can see why this book was so popular in its day and why it still attracts readers decades later. Here's a small taste from the story “Gas Masks”:

...if the worst came to the worst, these children would at least know that we were fighting against an idea, and not against a nation. Whereas the last generation had been told to run and play in the garden, had been shut out from the grown-ups' worried conclaves: and then quite suddenly had all been plunged into an orgy of licensed lunacy, of boycotting Grimm and Struwwelpeter, of looking askance at their cousins' old Fräulein, and of feeling towards Dachshund puppies the uneasy tenderness of a devout churchwoman dandling her daughter's love-child. But this time those lunacies—or rather, the outlook which bred them—must not be allowed to come into being. To guard against that was the most important of all the forms of war work which she and other women would have to do: there are no tangible gas masks to defend us in wartime against its slow, yellow, drifting corruption of the mind.

4 stars

143. King Solomon's Mines by H. Rider Haggard
TIOLI #20 - Title letters can be rearranged to form a different title (Gloominess in Monks)

A man looking for his missing brother recruits elephant hunter Allan Quatermain to lead a search that will take them through an uninhabitable desert. The brother was headed for a region said to be the location of the biblical King Solomon's mines. The odds are that the search party will not survive their mission, but the possibility of riches is enough to tip the scales in favor of the quest. Quatermain, the brother of the missing man, a retired naval officer, and two African guides set out on what soon becomes a page-turning adventure across the desert, over the mountains, and into an unknown kingdom.

I was pleasantly surprised by the humor in the book. The story is laced with laugh-out-loud passages like this one:

As those who read this history will probably long ago have gathered, I am, to be honest, a bit of a coward, and certainly in no way given to fighting, though somehow it has often been my lot to get into unpleasant positions, and to be obliged to shed man's blood. But I have always hated it, and kept my own blood as undiminished in quantity as possible, sometimes by a judicious use of my heels.

Haggard's style reminds me of Mark Twain, and the plot bears some similarities to parts of A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court. Haggard's book came first, and it would seem that it had some influence on Twain.

This is a book I've wanted to read ever since reading Elizabeth Peters' The Last Camel Died at Noon a couple of years ago. Now I know why Peters was a fan. The book will also appeal to readers who love adventure movies like the Indiana Jones series and the National Treasure films.

4 stars

144. Riders of the Purple Sage by Zane Grey
TIOLI #4 - Title contains 15 letters or more

Although I'm not a fan of Westerns, Riders of the Purple Sage is a classic in the genre and I've wanted to read it for some time. A Zane Grey group read gave me the motivation I needed. I listened to the audio version read by Mark Bramhall and I'm almost certain that I enjoyed listening to Bramhall's narration more than I would have enjoyed reading the book. His voice for each character was just right, even for the women. A lot of the dialogue was dated, but somehow Bramhall managed to keep it from sounding corny.

I wasn't as bothered as some were with the negative portrayal of Mormons. The book is set in Utah Territory in 1871, at a time when there was a great deal of mistrust between the Mormons and the non-Mormons who lived there. Brigham Young was still living and the church had not yet rejected polygamy.

The thing that eventually got to me was Jane Withersteen's gun phobia. It seemed to be more than pacifism. She had a horror for guns, and she did everything she could to get the gunman Lassiter to give up his guns. Jane Withersteen was the owner of a large ranch with lots of livestock. Guns would be necessary for protecting the livestock from predators or for quickly putting fatally injured animals out of their misery. Jane needed to know how to use guns, and her employees needed access to guns. Her attitude toward guns made no sense for her position or life in that place and time.

Westerns will never be a favorite genre for me. However, at some point I would like to try Grey's Frontier trilogy, starting with Betty Zane, since it's based on Grey's family history.

3 stars

Next up in audio: The Mysterious Howling by Maryrose Wood

Nice batch of reading, Carrie! How was your Thanksgiving at your friend's house.... were there leftovers to enjoy over the weekend? ;-)

Hi Lori! My friend sent me home with a plate of leftovers for Friday. I still have some Jello salad left that I'll do my best to finish off!

Hi Carrie, looks you and I felt pretty much the same about Mrs. Miniver, after I got over the shock of it being nothing like the movie, I quite enjoyed it. My brother has the movie and we are planning on watching it when I go over to the Island on my Christmas visit.

I do think you will enjoy Zane Grey's frontier trilogy a lot more than Riders of the Purple Sage. I know I did!

I haven't seen the movie so I didn't have any preconceptions about the book. I can see why it was so popular during the war.

The public library has at least the first book in the Frontier trilogy available as an audio download. It's on my wishlist, but so are lots of other books!

Hi Carrie! Just catching up. I loved the picture of Adrian and his friend the cairn terrier. We have a male cairn so I'm very partial to the breed. :-)

When I read you were getting 2 inches of snow, it reminded me of your last winter (I think it was last year) when it seemed your weather went from bad to worse very quickly. Hope this winter is an easier one.

Thanks Pat! We ended up with just a dusting of snow. It's hard to rely on the winter weather forecasts here because a difference in temperature of just a degree or two between the prediction and what actually happens is often the difference between snow and rain. One of the DJs on a local radio station gives a horse forecast in the winter. His horse is as good as the local forecasters at predicting snow!

Our cairn terrier friend spent the evening with us on Friday. Her owners went out of town and left their sons & daughter-in-law home with the animals. They wanted to go to a movie but didn't want to leave the dog home by herself for that long. She's comfortable here and Adrian enjoys her company. We were happy to have her visit for a few hours!

Gracious! That jello salad sounds good. Googling for it gave me several different versions - besides the black cherries, found it with maraschinos, cherry pie filling; without nuts, with celery; with the cream cheese cubed in, softened and blended in, layered under, mixed with cool-whip and used as a topping. Which one do you use?

Congratulations on reading so many books this year.

The Book Thief is incredible. I liked the book so much that I hesitate to see the movie version.

With the exception of To Kill a Mockingbird, I find that movies do not do the book justice.

You mentioned reading a book re. China and WWII. I am currently reading The Rape of Nanking: The Forgotten Holocaust of World War II. This was such a horrific travesty. The Japanese were quite brutal. The time frame is 1937-1944.

Visitors!

>91 countrylife: My mother got the Coca-Cola salad recipe from a neighbor sometime in the early 1960s. It's a pretty simple recipe:

2 small pkg. or 1 large pkg. black cherry Jello
2 cans dark sweet cherries
1 large can crushed pineapple
1 c. chopped nuts (in the South these are always pecans!)
2 small Cokes (I think small Cokes were 6 oz. so I use 12 oz. of Coke)
8 oz. pkg. cream cheese

Mix Jello & boiling water as directed. Cool. Drain fruit, reserving some of the cherry juice. Add Coke, fruit, & nuts and pour into 9"x13" dish. Chill until set. Mix some of the reserved cherry juice with softened cream cheese (for color and for easier spreading). Frost Jello with cream cheese as if frosting a cake.

>92 Whisper1: Linda, it seems like a good sign that you're feeling well enough to visit threads. Thanks for the book recommendation. I've seen it mentioned on other threads and I'll keep it in mind the next time I want to visit the WWII era.

Those old small Cokes were 6.5 ounces each.

>94 thornton37814: I was close! It seems to work OK with 12 oz. instead of 13. Maybe it's just a bit thicker than it would be otherwise. I had a 12-oz. bottle that was convenient to use!

It would make it a little hard to figure out the one fluid ounce from another source. I suspect most people do the same thing. I remember having the Coke salad as a kid. I remembered that it used black cherry jello!

I've neglected reporting my acquisitions of the last couple of weeks. There aren't too many to report:

The Christmas Encyclopedia by William D. Crump (October ER win)
The Christmas Mystery by Jostein Gaarder
A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens (free audio download, read by Simon Prebble)

I sense a pattern here....

Ho-Ho-Ho

It's that time of year!

I spent most of the day (when I wasn't at the dentist's) dealing with a foul odor in a public area at work. Last night we had determined that the odor was coming from behind a bookcase. I started unloading it first thing this morning so that the guys from maintenance could move the unit. This involved taking up all of the carpet squares in front of it. The smell was coming from inside the wall, so there's probably a dead mouse in there. We had the option of either doing nothing and waiting a week or so for the smell to dissipate or drilling holes in the wall and piping in a really strong deodorant, leaving us with a strong orange smell in the area for about 2 weeks. We opted for the orange smell. By the time we got the bookshelf back in place and all of the books loaded on it, the decaying animal smell was gone, but we couldn't really smell the citrus either. We definitely made the right choice. The workers who have to spend a lot of time in that area certainly think so! The only downside is that they had to replace a couple of carpet tiles with a different pattern in a slightly darker color. It's in the corner so it probably won't be noticeable to anyone except staff, but it annoys the perfectionist in me.

I have a bad citrus allegy and can't tolerate the smell, so I probably would have voted for Eau de Dead Mouse! :)

Perfectly understand about the carpet tile irritation, by the way.

Liz, I was concerned about potential allergies to the deodorant, and the staff member who spends most of her day in that area does have allergies. Wednesday is her day to work the evening shift so she wasn't there when we had to make the decision. I called her, though, and she said she'd rather have the orange smell. She thought she could handle it.

Haha, I'd rather smell an orange than a dead mouse any day! I came over here to congratulate you on your #1 Hot Review of Can You Forgive Her?. Great job, Carrie. I gave you another thumbs up so it would stay up there longer and lure other readers into the Trollope Wonderland!

Thanks for the memories of Coca Cola salad. It will be on the Christmas celebration table. I think my grandkids will get a kick out of a salad made from a soft drink. Plus, it's yummy!

Thanks Donna! Maybe we can get a few more Trollope readers by the time we're ready to continue with the Palliser series.

Your grandkids are at the perfect age for a soft drink salad! I hope you all enjoy it at Christmas! I'll be at my brother's in Texas for Christmas. I may try to talk my SIL into letting me make it for Christmas dinner.

145. Un Lun Dun by China Mieville
TIOLI #2 - Title or author's name includes something you would find on a holiday table (china)

Two preteen girls from a London housing estate mysteriously find themselves in a place that definitely isn't London, yet is strangely reminiscent of London. The meet some unusual characters and gradually learn from them about the evil menace that lurks over the city. At least one of the girls is expected as the prophesied hero who will defeat the evil forces that threaten this world. However, things don't work out as expected...

The plot is reminiscent of other fantasy stories like C. S. Lewis's Chronicles of Narnia, where children from this world find a hidden gateway to another world and engage in a quest to save the alternate world from a terrible fate. The fun in this one is its description of the alternate London and its inhabitants. It's a world that will amuse and delight any reader, although readers familiar with London may have a greater appreciation for it. Some of the symbolism may be too subtle for children, yet too obvious for adult readers. I enjoyed reading it once, but I don't think Un Lun Dun is a place I'll be drawn back to like I am to Lewis's Narnia.

3.5 stars

146. The Mysterious Howling by Maryrose Wood
TIOLI #3 - Rolling location challenge

After completing her education at the Swanburne Academy for Poor Bright Females, 15-year-old Penelope Lumley accepts a post as governess at Ashton Place. The intrepid governess is not daunted upon learning that her three charges have just been captured in the woods where they have been living in the wild. Miss Lumley simply adds instruction in personal grooming, wearing clothing, and speaking to her curriculum of mathematics, geography, language, and literature (with occasional distractions from squirrels). Miss Lumley's skills will soon be put to the test when the lady of the house decides to host a Christmas party with the children in attendance.

Katherine Kellgren's narration further enhances an already delightful fairytale-like story. All of her characterizations are outstanding, but I particularly enjoyed hearing the children's voices as they struggled with human speech. Readers should be forewarned that the story ends with a cliff-hanger. I'm eager to get my hands on the next book in the series, and it will have to be the audio version now I that I know how good it is in that format.

5 stars

Next up in audio: A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens

147. House of Stone by Anthony Shadid
TIOLI #14 - Book started for another TIOLI challenge but not finished

American journalist Anthony Shadid covered the war in Lebanon in 2006. At the end of the conflict, Shadid visited his ancestral home in Marjayoun, a town in southern Lebanon. There he found his great-grandfather's house, empty, with a partially exploded Israeli rocket in the top floor. Some combination of nostalgia for his family's past and a desire to anchor himself to the present motivated Shadid to take on the task of rebuilding his ancestral home. He took a leave of absence from his newspaper and spent a year in Lebanon overseeing the project. His memoir describes the home's reconstruction, as well as the people he encountered in the process. Stories of Shadid's great-grandfather, who built the house, and his grandmother, who was sent to America at age 12, are interspersed throughout the book.

Shadid goes into great detail about the men hired to work on the home and the materials used in the construction project. This is the weakest part of the book, mainly because there are no accompanying illustrations - no before and after photos, no close-ups of the architectural features Shadid describes, no photos of the garden and the variety of trees and plants he placed there.

The best parts of the book describe the residents of Marjayoun, the emigrants who left there, the history of Lebanon from the closing years of the Ottoman Empire, Lebanon's religious and political climate, and Shadid's family history. I also felt the lack of illustrations in the sections about Shadid's ancestors. He described photographs he had seen of his ancestors. I would have loved to have seen at least one or two of those photographs so that I would have had faces to put with the individuals brought back from the past in this book.

When I Googled for pictures of the house, I discovered that Shadid died unexpectedly shortly after completing the book. Knowing that he had so little time to establish a home in the restored house added a sense of poignancy to my reading. Shadid left two children behind. This book won't make up for growing up without their father, but it will at least help them to know him and something of their heritage.

3.5 stars

Currently reading: Jack Maggs by Peter Carey and The Ladies' Paradise by Emile Zola.

I haven't posted any pictures of Adrian for a while. Here he is in his favorite spot. He loves to look out the window and sits there so long that sometimes he'll fall asleep.

He looks very comfortable, Carrie, and very sweet.

Thanks Judy! I think he's sweet! :)

Hi Carrie - Cute picture of Adrian. Nice review of The Mysterious Howling - I look forward to reading this series with Scout.

Thanks Beth! I think both you and Scout will enjoy that series!

LibraryThing is responsible for all of this week's acquisitions. My November Early Reviewers book arrived early in the week: Personal Archiving' edited by Donald T. Hawkins.

My SantaThing books arrived yesterday. i had already planned to open them when they arrived since I'll be away from home over Christmas and I have a weight and space limit for my luggage. My Santa did a good job picking books for me:
The Culture Clash by Jean Donaldson (so I can better understand Adrian)
The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield
At Home by Bill Bryson

I'm looking forward to reading all of them!

Oh, The Thirteenth Tale is lovely. I've been meaning to reread it for a while.

I'm looking forward to hearing what you think about Personal Archiving. It certainly sounds interesting and looks like it has information I could definitely use as a family historian with a medium sized family archive. However, I took 'a look inside' at Amazon and while the topics are interesting I'm wondering how much of the information in the book is philosophical and how much of it is actually helpful/practical.

I hadn't heard about the book Personal Archiving until your post. (When I am busy I tend to go through the ER list by just checking out the small amount that are available for my country - in November I was so busy because both courses I was taking needed time stealing projects done.)

I am another family history researcher eager for your review.

Carrie, that is a great review of House of Stone. What a sad ending for the author and his family, but what a legacy he left behind. Nice trio of books from your LT Santa. Bill Bryson is always a fun read. I need to get to more of his books for some lighter reading.

>114 leahbird: Good to know Leah! I'm looking forward to reading it!

>115 Samantha_kathy:, 116 I've read the first five essays so far, and they're a mixture of philosophical and practical. The most practical chapter so far is the one written by a Library of Congress employee and, since he wrote it in his capacity as a government employee, it's in the public domain. It's available under the "Overview" heading here: http://www.digitalpreservation.gov/personalarchiving/

>117 Donna828: Thanks Donna! I'm looking forward to the Bryson book. I have another of his books in my TBR stash but it hasn't yet worked its way to the top of the pile.

148. Jack Maggs by Peter Carey
TIOLI #1 - Has a two-word tag with both words starting with the same letter (Australian author)

Increasingly desperate characters are thrown together by chance in late Georgian/early Victorian London. Their desires and fates soon become so intertwined that it becomes impossible for any of them to extricate themselves from their present situation. Their power struggle results in events spiraling out of control toward an unavoidable crash. The only question seems to be how badly things will end.

Peter Carey imagines a back story for characters from Great Expectations. While alert readers will spot the connections, this isn't a retelling of Dickens' novel. I would suggest that the strongest similarity is in the characterization. Like Dickens, Carey paints memorable characters, all flawed to some degree, yet all human enough to arouse the reader's sympathy. I raced through the last third of the book, anxious to see how it would end. Recommended for most readers of historical fiction.

4 stars

149. The Christmas Mystery by Jostein Gaarder
TIOLI #7 - Share a read

While shopping for an Advent calendar in a Norwegian town, a young boy and his father discover a one-of-a-kind calendar in a bookshop. Joachim looks forward to opening each day's door to learn more about a little girl, Elisabet, and her companions who are on a journey across Europe and backwards through time to be present at Christ's birth in Bethlehem.

I easily read this book in a single day, but I think it would be more pleasurable to read a chapter a day throughout December leading up to Christmas. Some of the chapters become repetitive, a useful feature if you're reading the book over a 3 ½ week period but a flaw if you're reading it in a short period of time. Besides its obvious use for religious instruction during Advent, this book could also be used to introduce children to some of the events and key figures in European history.

3 stars

150. A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens
TIOLI #7 - Share a read

I've seen multiple television and film adaptations of A Christmas Carol, but I don't think I had read the original story/novella before now. While this was my first experience with the book, it won't be my last. Dickens' tale is full of nuances that are missing from the adaptations I've seen. The humorous parts were funnier and the melancholy parts were more heart-wrenching than the movies. I wish I could have experienced the book just once without images from the films crowding my mind. I'd like to form my own image of Dickens' descriptions of Scrooge, his office, his home, Marley's ghost, and the ghosts of Christmas past, present, and future.

5 stars

Next up in audio: A Christmas Grace by Anne Perry

Nice review of Jack Maggs!

I, too, have managed to miss reading A Christmas Carol all these years. I ordered the audio from my library just as soon as it was listed on challenge #7, but it still hasn't come my turn. Your review makes me hope that it comes my way before Christ-mas.

Thanks Cindy! I hope your turn comes up soon for A Christmas Carol. Do you know which reader it will be? I know there's a version read by Miriam Margolyes. I loved her narration of Oliver Twist.

151. Lamentations of the Father by Ian Frazier
TIOLI #1 - Has a two-word tag with both words starting with the same letter (short stories)

A couple of pieces in this collection had me laughing out loud. One was the title essay bemoaning typical child behavior (table manners, etc.) in biblical style. The other was a reflection on the problem of recall in middle age, when it's no longer easy to mentally delineate between, for example, H. G. Wells, George Orwell, Orson Welles, and Orson Bean. (And was it ever easy to keep Robert Conrad and William Conrad straight?)

Unfortunately the other 34 pieces didn't so much as tickle my funny bone. Perhaps Frazier and I have so little in common that we don't even share a sense of humor, and others who share Frazier's outlook on life would see the humor that I missed. After all, this collection did win the Thurber Award for American Humor. The judges must have found more to laugh at than I did.

2 stars

I'll be sure to avoid that one!

Lori, I'm pretty sure you wouldn't like it!

>115 Samantha_kathy:, 116 SK & Meg - I've read 2/3 of the papers/essays in Personal Archiving and it leans much more toward the theoretical or toward professional practice than toward practical applications for individuals. Practical applications aren't completely absent, but you'd need to mine the endnotes to find them. One of the papers I just read referenced this site, which has some practical advice for individuals: http://www.paradigm.ac.uk/workbook/appendices/guidelines.html

I had some excitement this evening. Adrian & I went to town for some errands. I got a call on the way home that I couldn't answer because my phone was out of reach. (I don't like to use the phone while driving anyway.) It was my friend who adopted a cairn terrier the same day I adopted Adrian. She had gone out for the day and her dog was home with her daughter-in-law. The daughter-in-law let her out in the (fenced) yard, but then couldn't find her when she was ready to go in. The dog is black and it was dark. My friend called to see if I would take Adrian over there and see if his presence would attract her from wherever she was. Shortly after Adrian and I joined the search, my friend's son spotted a pair of eyes under the air conditioning unit. She had somehow wedged herself underneath. It took him several minutes to work her out from under there. She was cold but otherwise seems OK. Meanwhile, Adrian thought it was an adventure. I hope Stella didn't give him any ideas since he'll be staying there next week when I go to my brother's for Christmas.

152. In the Dark Streets Shineth: A 1941 Christmas Eve Story by David McCullough
TIOLI #5 - Title includes a word related to light

In midst of the holiday rush, it's refreshing to set aside a few minutes for quiet reflection about the season. This brief story of Christmas at the White House in 1941 will inspire readers of any age with the spirit of Christmas. Author David McCullough helps younger generations of readers find new meaning in the familiar songs “O Little Town of Bethlehem” and “I'll Be Home for Christmas”. The accompanying DVD is a live recording of the author's recitation of the story to the musical accompaniment of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. Historical images from World War II in both the book and the DVD will help readers visualize the setting. The book includes the 1941 Christmas speeches of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt and Prime Minister Winston Churchill. The half hour it takes to read the book and watch the DVD would be time well spent.

4 stars

Carrie, that's a very cute picture of Adrian up the thread :-) I'm glad your friend's dog was found safe - maybe if she and Adrian are playing together next week they'll only choose hiding places that are big enough for the two of them.

Thanks Susan! I checked with my friend to see how Stella is doing this morning. She's fine except for some slight abdominal bruising.

153. A Killer's Christmas in Wales by Elizabeth J. Duncan
TIOLI #3 - Author is from a different country than the 3 previous listed authors

Things are busy for manicurist Penny Brannigan in the weeks before Christmas. Penny and her business partner, Victoria, plan to open their new spa in time for Christmas. They've also agreed to judge the Christmas window display competition among the Welsh village's merchants. They still don't know the identity of the decades-old remains found in the spa during the building's renovation. Penny gets even busier when a newcomer to the village is murdered at Conwy Castle. The prime suspect is one of Penny's customers, and she asks Penny to look into the murder to make sure that the police don't overlook any other suspects. Since Penny and her art group were touring the castle when the murder occurred, it's possible that she noticed some unusual detail that would point to the murderer's identity. On top of everything else, a petty thief is on the prowl in the village and Penny is dismayed when she finds that she's become one of the thief's victims.

The mysteries in this series aren't terribly complicated or cleverly plotted. The Welsh village setting and the pleasant characters are what continue to attract me. I've been to Conwy Castle so it was fun for me to “return” there with Penny and other characters in the book. This series is a lot like another cozy village series I enjoy – the Dorothy Martin series by Jeanne Dams. I think Dorothy Martin's fans would also enjoy this series and its surprising connection to this book.

3.5 stars

154. A Christmas Grace by Anne Perry
TIOLI #19 - Book with a Nativity scene character in the title (Christ)

Since Charlotte Pitt is sick, her sister, Emily Radley, responds to their aunt's summons to Charlotte to come to her in Ireland. Their Aunt Susannah is dying and may not last until Christmas. When Emily arrives, she finds that the small Irish village is also dying under the weight of an unsolved murder. Then another stranger arrives and stirs up memories of the murdered man. Will history repeat itself? Or will Emily be able to uncover the truth, and in so doing restore life to the village?

I've always liked Emily, who has sometimes assisted Thomas Pitt in delicate murder investigations among the upper class. This was one of the more enjoyable Christmas novellas for me since it features Emily. However, the plot relies on an improbable coincidence and illogical assumptions that I found difficult to accept. Recommended with reservations to fans of Perry's Thomas and Charlotte Pitt series.

3 stars

Next up in audio: The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri

155. The Fleet Street Murders by Charles Finch
TIOLI #7 - Share a read

When two newspaper men are murdered within minutes of each other, Charles Lenox is consulted by Inspector Jenkins of Scotland Yard without his superior's knowledge. Before Lenox gets very far in his investigation, he is called away to the north of England. The Member of Parliament for Stirrington has just died, and there will be an election to replace him in two weeks. Lenox will be the Liberal Party candidate for the seat, and he must dedicate himself to the campaign in the short time before the election. When his assistant/trainee, John Dallington, learns that an old acquaintance has been arrested for the murders, he begs Lenox to come back to London to find the truth. Lenox is torn between his calling as a private investigator and his desire to serve his country in Parliament.

The book focuses as much on the election campaign as on the murder mystery. I had recently read Trollope's Can You Forgive Her?, in which a special parliamentary election also played a role, and I think Finch must have done the same thing in his research for this book. The campaign is conducted much like those in Trollope's works.

The focus on the election shortchanges the development of the mystery plot. Lenox regrets being away from London and fears that the wrong person will be convicted for the murders since he isn't able to investigate. After these thoughts are repeated several times, it begins to come across as arrogance.

The likeable characters are the book's best feature, and they're why I'll continue reading this series. I enjoy spending time with Lenox, his neighbor and fiance Jane, his butler/valet Graham, Lenox and Jane's friends, the McConnells, and Inspector Jenkins.

3 stars

Merry Christmas, Carrie and Happy 2014.

Thank Beth!

Happy Christmas, Carrie, and all the best for another great year of reading in 2014.

Thanks Susan! Happy Christmas to you, too!

Merry Christmas to all my LT friends. I'm staying with my brother in Texas for a few days. We'll have our dinner tonight, the traditional time for Christmas dinner in Mexico, and open stockings and presents tomorrow morning like my brother and I did when we were growing up. Multicultural Christmases are so much fun! Tomorrow Adrian will get the Christmas stocking I left for him. I'll miss being with him, but I'm pretty sure he won't know the difference.

Merry Christmas to you, Carrie! Your Christmas plans sound wonderful.

I've been catching up (two months' worth!) and you have done some terrific reading, including a few of my favorites (The Book Thief, The Penderwicks). I have some to add as well, especially The Mysterious Howling and of course, the Palliser series.

Carrie, enjoy Christmas with your brother. I think Adrian will miss you more than you know. But he will enjoy that stocking!

Thanks Donna, and thanks for the adorable reminder of my sweet little Adrian!

I had forgotten that The Fleet Street Murders was about an election until you did your review and reminded me about how much I like that series. I will have to get back to it. I agree that the characters are what I like but that particular book has Lenox outside his usual milieu for too long. I have the next book in the series and will have to give it a read.

Have a Merry Christmas, Carrie.

Merry Christmas Carrie!

Hope you've had a wonderful Christmas with your brother, Carrie. A multi-cultural Christmas does sound like fun. Hope Adrian and Stella behave themselves!

Thanks Meg, Leah, and Pat!

My friend sent a picture of Adrian and Stella today. He looks like he's having a great time. He loved the canned dog food from his stocking but he wasn't thrilled with the treats. I have yet to find a dog treat that he really likes. He loves Rice Chex so that's what I've ended up using with him for training/rewards.

Hi Carrie - Stopping by with belated Christmas wishes and to wish you a

Thanks Lori! I had a quiet day with just a bit of shopping for friends I won't see until next week, plus picking up a gift for the friend who is taking care of Adrian while I'm away.

My time in Texas has flown by. I head home this evening, and I'm hoping that Adrian (and his sitter) will meet me at the airport. I miss the little fellow!

Carrie, I bet he's missed you too! Have a good flight.

I made it home safely last night and my dog remembered me! He sat on my lap and slept the whole way home. (It was getting close to his bedtime.) Stella eased her way over at some point during the ride and snuggled up next to me with her head on Adrian's back. My friend said that they like to share a seat and they often snuggle up together. I'm looking forward to my weekend with both dogs in a couple of weeks!

156 Murder on the Candlelight Tour by Ellen Elizabeth Hunter
TIOLI #5 - Solstice challenge

Ashley Wilkes is excited that her home has been selected for Wilmington's annual Candlelight Tour of its historic homes, even though she hasn't completed its renovation. The home's previous owner never allowed it to be open for the tour. Ashley isn't so excited when a friend is murdered during the tour. What secrets does her house harbor?

The mystery showed promise until the last few chapters, where it took a strange turn with the addition of a Wiccan, tarot card readings, etc. I wasn't expecting that. Even though I had guessed which of the suspects was the murderer, the resolution of the murder depended on knowledge that wasn't shared with readers until the final summation. I didn't care for the romance between Ashley and the homicide detective, and I think I'd quickly tire of their relationship if I read more books in the series. The strong Christmas theme made this an enjoyable holiday read, but I don't have much interest in reading other books in this series.

3 stars

157. A Secret Gift by Ted Gup
TIOLI #4 - Title includes the word "secret"

After his grandmother's death, journalist Ted Gup became the custodian of a suitcase filled with family papers. He was at first puzzled by a bundle of letters to a “B. Virdot” among the suitcase's contents. A little research revealed that his grandfather, the owner of a business in Canton, Ohio, had taken out a newspaper advertizement in the week before the Christmas of 1933 in the name of B. Virdot. He offered monetary gifts to families hit hard by the Depression. Gup tracked down descendants of the recipients of his grandfather's anonymous gifts of cash. He also discovered new information about his grandfather's family and their origins.

Reading this book during the Christmas season provided a reminder of the generosity of spirit that is too easy to lose in all of the “busy-ness” and commercialization of the season. It also provided insight into the effects of the Depression in the Midwest, where family on both sides of my family tree weathered the Hard Times. The author's grandfather had hidden some parts of his history and fabricated others. Although family history isn't the primary focus of the book, information about the author's research into his grandfather's past might suggest new avenues of research for other family historians with similarly difficult ancestors in their trees. Highly recommended for readers with an interest in Canton, Ohio, and its history; in the Depression era, in family history, or in philanthropy.

4.5 stars

I had to revise my top 5 list to include this one!

Hi Carrie, A Secret Gift sounds like an interesting book. I have added it to my list of books to hunt for.

Glad to hear that Adrian gave you a warm welcome home!

Hi Meg! I think anyone with an interest in family history would like A Secret Gift. I hope you're able to track down a copy!

Possibly my last acquisitions of the year are both free ebooks from Project Gutenberg:

The Aspern Papers by Henry James
My Antonia by Willa Cather (On my January 2014 reading list)

158. The Ladies' Paradise by Emile Zola
TIOLI #3 - Rolling country of origin

Depending on how you look at it, The Ladies' Paradise is either a story of a romance across lines of class and wealth, or it's a story of sexual harassment. The Ladies' Paradise is a rapidly expanding department store in 19th century Paris. Its growth is driving the neighborhood's small retailers out of business. The owner, Octave Mouret, is a young widower who has affairs with society women and shop girls. Denise Baudu, a recent arrival from a provincial town, is the young niece of one of the struggling retailers and a surrogate mother to her two younger brothers. Denise does not have affairs with either wealthy men or fellow salesmen. There is a battle of wills between small retailers and big business, social welfare and capitalism, and, on a personal level, Mouret and Denise. I was fascinated by the account of the rapid growth of the department store and the change it produced in consumer attitudes and behavior. I wasn't so fascinated by the romance (if you could call it that).

3.5 stars

I have one last book I'd like to finish by midnight tomorrow. Would you believe one of the characters in the book is reading Can You Forgive Her?!

End of the year meme, using titles of books I read in 2013:

Describe yourself: Daughter of the Air

Describe how you feel: Old Bones

Describe where you currently live: Framley Parsonage

If you could go anywhere, where would you go: The Garden of Evening Mists

Your favorite form of transportation: A Walk in London

Your best friend is: The Unexpected Miss Bennet

You and your friends are: People of the Book

What’s the weather like: Half of a Yellow Sun

You fear: The Book Thief

What is the best advice you have to give: Duel with the Devil

Thought for the day: Why Shoot a Butler?

How I would like to die: Lost in a Good Book

My soul’s present condition: Imperfect Harmony

159. Personal Archiving: Preserving Our Digital Heritage edited by Donald T. Hawkins

This collection of essays examines the emerging field of personal digital archiving and is built on the first three conferences dedicated to this subject. The content is geared toward readers with a professional interest in the topic. However, a few of the essays will be of interest to family historians, estate executors, or others with a more personal interest in the subject. As a whole, the collection leans a bit more toward theory than practice, with an emphasis on a definition of the scope of the field, the philosophy that should guide practice, and identification of challenges that must be addressed. A couple of the articles describe current software applications and practices; these chapters are more likely than the others to become dated fairly quickly. This book should be in the professional reading collection of all librarians, archivists, and other information professionals. Family historians and other individuals without a professional interest in the subject will probably want to borrow this one from a library.

This review is based on a complimentary copy provided by the publisher through LibraryThing's Early Reviewers program.

4 stars

Happy New Year, Carrie.

#158 I think all of us fear the book thief! Happy New Year, Carrie!

Yes, Sandy! I had several choices for that one - The Hangman, Free Fire, Evil Under the Sun The Snake, the Crocodile & the Dog - but The Book Thief topped them all!

I came close to putting The Book Thief and Framley Parsonage in the places you did. I'm glad I chose alternates so we would not end up with many of the same books in our memes.

I almost chose A Small Place instead of Framley Parsonage, but I decided that Framley Parsonage was actually a better fit.

I wasn't sure that either Framley Parsonage or The Family Mansion fit, but either worked.

160. Cornish Conundrum by Gene Stratton
TIOLI #2 - Title contains something you'd find on a holiday table (corn)

American Priscilla Booth has inherited a house in Cornwall from her cousin Sylvia, who died from an accidental fall. The terms of Sylvia's will require Priscilla to spend 30 nights in the house in order to secure her inheritance. Priscilla asks her lover, Mort Sinclair, to join her. Soon after their arrival, they learn that the police are investigating Sylvia's death as a possible murder. Although Priscilla is a police officer, she has no jurisdiction outside the U.S. and she is frustrated by her exclusion from the investigation. Mort establishes a tenuous relationship with the inspector in charge of the case that allows the couple to be involved in the investigation in a very limited way. The suspects include both locals and members of a film crew using a nearby estate as a filming location.

Although this self-published mystery has a number of flaws, it's as good as some professionally edited and published mysteries I've read. A professional editor possibly could have turned this into at least a 3-star book. I think the main problem is with the potential audience. It fits many of the characteristics of the cozy genre, but the level of sexual promiscuity in the book exceeds what many cozy readers would be comfortable reading. The genealogy angle isn't integral to the plot, and I suspect an editor would probably recommend cutting that part of the book. Most readers who select this book based on an interest in genealogy will be disappointed with the lack of meaningful genealogical content.

2 stars

That completes my 2013 reading!

Personal Archiving: Preserving Our Digital Heritage sounds like it's more about the philosophy of preserving digital files than it's about actually doing it. Am I right in that assesment, going off your review?

>167 Samantha_kathy: Yes, you're right. The essay with the most helpful advice on how to do it is written by an employee of the Library of Congress and as such is in the public domain. The .pdf of that chapter is available on this page. There are a couple of other chapters that I think would interest you, but I'm not sure it's worth buying the book just for those chapters if it's possible for you to borrow it from a library.

It's highly improbably I'll ever be able to access it through the library. And I've made a note that it's not worth buying. But I am going to read that chapter that's online. Thanks for the link.

Love your end of the year meme. People of the Book! Great answers all around. And a happy new year of reading!

Thanks Cindy!