labfs39's seriously serendipitous reading in 2014 pt. 2

Currently reading:



Sakhalin Island by Anton Chechov, translated from the Russian by Brian Reeve

Mother-Daughter Read Aloud:



Little Town on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder

May: 355 p.

53. The Dog Stars by Peter Heller, narrated by Mark Deakins (Audio, 4.5*, 10 hours and 41 minutes)
52. A Spy among Friends: Kim Philby and the Great Betrayal by Ben Macintyre (NF, 3.5*, 355 p.)

April: 3487 p.

51. Story of a Secret State by Jan Karski (NF, 4.5*, 391 p.)
50. In Paradise by Peter Matthiessen (F, 3*, 244 p.)
49. The Round House by Louise Erdrich (F, 4.5*, 321 p.)
48. Same Difference and Other Stories by Derek Kirk Kim (YA GN, 3*, 143 p.)
47. Daniel Stein, Interpreter by Ljudmila Ulitskaya, translated from the Russian by Arch Tait (TF, 4*, 408 p.)
46. Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank (YA, 4*, 283 p.)
45. Mrs. Pollifax on the China Station by Dorothy Gilman (M, 4*, 185 p.)
44. Independent People by Halldór Laxness, translated from the Icelandic by J.A. Thompson (TF, 2.5, 482 p.)
43. Mrs. Pollifax on Safari by Dorothy Gilman (M, 4*, 167 p.)
42. A Palm for Mrs. Pollifax by Dorothy Gilman (M, 4*, 180 p.)
41. Among the Mad by Jacqueline Winspear (M, 4*, 303 p.)
40. The Elusive Mrs. Pollifax by Dorothy Gilman (M, 4*, 208 p.)
39. The Amazing Mrs. Pollifax by Dorothy Gilman (M, 4*, 172 p.)

March: 3444 p.

38. Mrs. Tim of the Regiment by D.E. Stevenson (F, 4*, 331 p.)
37. The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein (F, 2*, 354 p.)
36. The Unexpected Mrs. Pollifax by Dorothy Gilman (M, 5*, 208 p.)
35. Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card (SF, 4.5*, 351 p.)
34. Out of My Mind by Sharon M. Draper (YA, 5*, 295 p.)
33. Zoe's Tale by John Scalzi (F, 4*, 335 p.)
32. The Two Mrs. Abbotts by D.E. Stevenson (F, 2.5*, 276 p.)
31. The Last Colony by John Scalzi (F, 3.5*, 324 p.)
30. Miss Buncle Married by D.E. Stevenson (F, 3.5*, 330 p.)
29. The Long Winter by Laura Ingalls Wilder (YA, 334 p.)
28. An Incomplete Revenge by Jacqueline Winspear (F, 3.5*, 306 p.)

February: 3265 p.

27. The Ghost Brigades by John Scalzi (F, 4.5*, 374 p.)
26. The Light Between Oceans by M.L. Stedman (F, 3*, 343 p.)
25. Old Man's War by John Scalzi (F, 4.5*, 314 p.)
24. War Brothers: The Graphic Novel by Sharon E. McKay and illustrated by Daniel Lafrance (GN, 4*, 166 p.)
23. The Chrysalids by John Wyndham (F, 4*, 200 p.)
22. Comedy in a Minor Key by Hans Keilson, translated from the German by Damion Searls (TF, 4*, 135 p.)
21. The Picture of Dorian Gray: An Annotated, Uncensored Edition by Oscar Wilde, edited by Nicholas Frankel (F, 4.5*, 295)
20. Resistance by Owen Sheers (F, 3.5*, 306 p.)
19. Miss Buncle's Book by D.E. Stevenson (F, 4*, 299 p.)
18. Life Goes On by Hans Keilson, translated from the German by Damion Searls (TF, 3*, 265 p.)
17. The Upstairs Room by Joanna Reiss (YA, 3*, 196 p.)
16. Specials by Scott Westerfeld (YA, 372 p.)

January: 4582 p.

15. Pretties by Scott Westerfeld (YA, 346 p.)
14. Uglies by Scott Westerfeld (YA, 425 p.)
13. The Summer Book by Tove Jansson, translated from the Swedish by Thomas Teal (TF, 4*, 170 p.)
12. A Tomb for Boris Davidovich by Danilo Kiš, translated from the Serbian by Duška Mikic-Mitchell (TF, 4*, 135 p.)
11. The Great War: A Photographic Narrative by Mark Holborn and Hilary Roberts (NF, 5*, 502 p.)
10. Five Days at Memorial by Sheri Fink (NF, 4.5*, 558 p.)
9. Norwegian by Night by Derek Miller (F, 4.5*, 290 p.)
8. Testament of Youth by Vera Brittain (NF, 4*, 661 p.)
7. The City of Ember by Jeanne DuPrau (YA, 2.5*, 270 p.)
6. Bloodlands: Europe between Hitler and Stalin by Timothy Snyder (NF, 5*, 524 p.)
5. Drawing from Memory by Allen Say (YA, GN, 4*, 63 p.)
4. Al Capone Does My Shirts by Gennifer Choldenko, read by Kirby Heyborne (YA, audiobook, 4*)
3. Where'd You Go, Bernadette? by Maria Semple (F, 3*, 330 p.)
2. Season of Migration to the North by Tayeb Salih, translated by Denys Johnson-Davies (TF, 4.5*, 139 p.)
1. Messenger by Lois Lowry (YA, 3.5*, 169 p.)

Reading Globally
A list of books by the author's ethnicity (as decided by me):

Australian
The Light Between Oceans by M.L. Stedman

Dutch:
The Upstairs Room by Johanna Reiss

German:
Life Goes On by Hans Keilson, translated by Damion Searls
Comedy in a Minor Key by Hans Keilson, translated by Damion Searls
Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank

Icelandic:
Independent People by Halldór Laxness, translated by J.A. Thompson

Irish:
The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde

Japanese:
Drawing from Memory by Allen Say

Polish:
Story of a Secret State by Jan Karski

Russian:
Daniel Stein, Interpreter by Ljudmila Ulitskaya, translated by Arch Tait

Serbian:
A Tomb for Boris Davidovich by Danilo Kiš, translated by Duška Mikic-Mitchell

Sudanese:
Season of Migration to the North by Tayeb Salih, translated by Denys Johnson-Davies

Swedish:
The Summer Book by Tove Jansson, translated by Thomas Teal

TIOLI Challenges

Februrary:
Challenge #1: match
The Picture of Dorian Gray
Challenge #4: Read a book that has an older person as a main character
Old Man's War
Challenge #5: Read a book that is part of a series
Specials (#3)
Challenge #17: Read a book with a phrase from a nursery rhyme in it
War Brothers (Pussycat, Pussycat, where...)
Challenge #20: Read a book with an object on the cover that starts with a letter in rolling alphabetical order
Resistance (insignia)

January:
Challenge #3: Instances of the Number 14: Read a book that has some connection with the number 14
Messenger by Lois Lowry (ISBN)
The City of Ember by Jeanne DuPrau (NPRs Ultimate Backseat Bookshelf: 100 Must-Reads for kids 9-14)
The Summer Book by Tove Jansson (cost $14)
Challenge #4: Read a nonfiction work from the N.Y. Times 100 notable books of 2013
Five Days at by Sheri Fink
Challenge #11: Read a book that has two of something in the title
Bloodlands: Europe between Hitler and Stalin by Timothy Snyder (2 dictators)
Challenge #15: Takes place during "The War to End All Wars" (1914-1918)
Testament of Youth by Vera Brittain
The Great War: A Photographic Narrative by Mark Holborn and Hilary Roberts
Challenge #16: Read a book with an ugly cover
A Tomb for Boris Davidovich by Danilo Kiš
Challenge #17: Read a book about the city, state (province), or country in which you live
Where'd You Go, Bernadette? by Maria Semple (Seattle)
Challenge #18: Read a book by an author from Sub-Saharan Africa
Season of Migration to the North by Tayeb Salih (Sudan)
Challenge #19: Read a book with a walking or standing figure on the cover
Drawing from Memory by Allen Say
Norwegian by Night by Derek Miller

Saved

I think I'm going to create a separate thread for my Nobel Prize list. It's too long to keep copying over.

Anyway, I'm now open for business!

That was fast. I wasn't paying attention, and I kept hitting jump to the first unread... I thought something was wrong with my computer because it wouldn't go anywhere. It all but said "pay attention dummy".

You may inspire me to do some Nobel reading myself . . . .

Congratulations on your new thread, Lisa. I'll be eager to hear what you think of Miss Buncle's Book. I haven't read it and never heard of it before LT but so many people here seem to love it.

I am one of the LTers who loved Miss Buncle's Book. I read it last year, and I am reading the second book now, Miss Buncle Married. Enjoying it very much.

From previous thread:

#268 Thanks, Monkey, I'm sure I'll get back to it at some point. I'm waiting for the Belknap Press copy from the library first.

#269 Too bad that Tim wasn't necessarily the best discussion leader, qebo. Some people are very good at leading book clubs, et al. Others, not so much. Speaking of book clubs, we read The Song of Achilles, a book I thought brilliant, but that one of my fellow book club members insisted on calling (to this day) gay porn. I would have left the group thinking, this is not a good fit, but some of the other members are great (one member reads Knulp by Hesse every year as it's her favorite book-that's delightfully quirky). And finding a book club is much harder than it should be.

and both thought I belonged in the other camp

Ugh, sounds unpleasant. In my case, I was being courted by various factions and deathly afraid that a misstep would put me in the middle of something nasty. Too bad that some areas of academia have to have these divisive elements.

#270 Ha, ha! I have a to-do list a mile long, but carved out some time this afternoon when I was alone at the house to just sit and finish my book (Miss Buncle's Book). Quite satisfying, although the butcher has to be paid at some point.

#271 The play is very funny too, Rebecca, but I do have an enduring fondness of Colin Firth. And Judi Dench. Or were you thinking of one of the other movie versions? There have been so many, including a film of the Broadway play, an all-Black cast, and at least two made for tv versions.

Hi Lisa- Congrats on the SS thread! We've been busy beavers on LT today. What do you think of Fahrenheit 451? This was my first Bradbury. Have you read him before?

#7 That's funny, Colleen. My thread all of a sudden shrank drastically!

#8 You have so many admirable reading goals, Rebecca: Reading Globally themes, Balzac, etc. I don't know how you do it all. I remain far too serendipitous, but admire those who have more discipline.

#9 I had never heard of it either, Pat, but am always on the lookout for smart "happy" books that I can run to when my usual reading fare depresses even me. This one definitely fit the bill. I just finished it and am happily contemplating getting the sequels to stock up against future need.

#10 I think I first heard of it from you, Colleen. It was wonderful escape reading. Is the sequel as good as the first?

#12 Whoops, another cross-post today. Sorry Mark! I have read Fahrenheit 451 before and love it. When my daughter said she wanted to read it, I thought it would be a good book to read together. I found it quite depressing to read aloud (perhaps because it is taking longer?) and suggested that we pick a light reread for a break. So we are actually half way through F451, but taking a break with The Long Winter at the moment. F451 is the only Bradbury I've read, but I recently picked up The Martian Chronicles and am looking forward to that. Which Bradbury's have you read?

11: Seemed to be confusion about Tim's role - facilitator or participant. I don't think he intended to be a discussion leader, but since he's the boss, his posts get attention. Lorannen and Matt have been setting up the threads. It'll probably take them all several rounds with different types of books to figure out what works. I hope they keep at it.

>13 labfs39: Lisa, I am loving it so far. I read the first in October, and was saving the second for a time when I needed something light. Very enjoyable. I also loved her Mrs. Tim of the Regiment.

#15 Seemed to be confusion about Tim's role - facilitator or participant... since he's the boss, his posts get attention.

Yes, I can see that. It's an interesting idea, I just don't know if so many disparate people can have a quality discussion. Sometimes I think it works better when people don't necessarily agree, but do come at it from the same level of intensity. Otherwise it's putting a Bridges of Madison County lover in a bag with a Proust lover and shaking it vigorously.

#16 I'm glad to hear that Miss Buncle Married is starting off well. And it's funny you mention Mrs. Tim, I have that one sitting in my "happy books" pile along with Mrs. Ames by E. F. Benson. Sadly it's a pile of only two, so I will have to be judicious with their application. ;-)

13. The Summer Book by Tove Jansson, translated from the Swedish by Thomas Teal

What a delightful little book! In a series of short vignettes, the relationship between six-year-old Sophia and her grandmother is slowly uncovered with all its quirky, lovable details. Sophia is by turns precocious, imperious, frightened, and maternal, while her grandmother swings between the wisdom and the childishness of the very old. Together they explore the small island that is their home for the summer, shared only with nature and, very peripherally, Sophia's father. Together Sophia and her grandmother build secret hideaways and a miniature Venice, write the definitive book on bugs, concoct life-saving remedies, and trespass on a newcomer's island. Sophia learns about life and love in the dappled light, while her grandmother considers her own mortality. The stories are an ode to life and to the natural beauty of the islands in the Gulf of Finland, where the author spent much of her own life. Don't expect life-changing insights or a gripping plot, but rather the quiet joy of summer and childhood and a life well-lived.

Hi Lisa,
I'm glad you enjoyed The Summer Book. I really loved it when I read it a couple of years ago. Your little review reminds me well of what I loved about it. Nicely done.

I'm hoping to get around to everyone's threads in the next few days. One week of workplace hell and I am miles behind. It's been so tough that I haven't even been able to read much. I hope things settle down now.

I've never read Fahrenheit 451 but your comments make me want to read it. I've only read The Martian Chronicles by Bradbury but I loved that!

Oh, and I promised info about Dan Siegel, author of Mindsight and Brainstorm. I think you might be interested in his work.

Thanks again for doing the driving to Portland and back. I hope we get to connect again soon. I'd love to plan another meet up at TPB or somewhere else in our area.

11 I liked the Colin Firth and Judy Dench version, but I imprinted on the original b&w version at an early age so that's the one that stands out in my memory when I think of the moview.

13 It's true that I have somewhat amorphous reading goals, Lisa, but I always end up reading serendipitously as you do. I guess I just try to guide it a little with Reading Globally, since I do have so many books on my TBR. With Zola, I just fell in love with him, but I try to space the books out . . . Realistically, I know I won't end up trying to read Nobel Prize winners, but it sounds appealing!

18 I've been avoiding The Summer Book, despite all the raves on LT, because I thought it would be too charming for me. But since I consider you a fellow member of the Gloom and Doom Book Club, maybe I would end up liking it too.

If The Summer Book wasn't already on my TBR, you would have put it there.

I really need to get myself a copy of The Summer Book! I keep seeing all these rave reviews here in CR, on top of the fact that for some time now several of my Finnish colleagues have been doing their best to convince the rest of us that there's more to Tove Jansson than the Moomins.

Yes, I'm a conference interpreter. I haven't read Bel Canto, and in fact I had no idea what it was about until you made me curious, so I looked it up. I might give it a go when I need a not-too-taxing read. My career choice was actually inspired by a book - a novel by Javier Marias (title escapes me for the moment), who himself used to be an interpreter, in which the the narrator is an interpreter.

I read Bel Canto a long time ago, but it is one that I would definitely recommend to anyone who enjoys a good gripping story.

A friend forced Bel Canto on me, as I had been avoiding it because of all the hype, but I ended up loving it.

That's exactly why I'd been keeping away, Rebecca - but if you liked it then it's maybe not the book I assumed it to be! And gripping is definitely good, Colleen...

After a few days away from the PC it's taken me a while just to catch up on your threads, and what a fascinating discussion I missed. I learned a lot about The Picture of Dorian Gray, and will now have to read it again since the version I read several years ago was probably the "mild" one.

The Summer Book is on my reading list this year for Literary Centennials, and I'm looking forward to it.

I also loved The Summer Book. I think it was one of the first books I read after joining LT. I'm pretty sure Darryl recommended it. It was only afterwards that I discovered the Moomins who I also now love.

#19 Thanks, Ellen. I'm having the week from hell myself, and it's only Monday night. I hope today went more smoothly for you.

I tend to think of Ray Bradbury as a sci-fi writer, and yet the only book of his that I have read is dystopian. I think it's easy for authors to get pigeon holed, and that's why I forgive authors who write outside their comfort zone, even if the result is less than stellar.

Thanks for the reminder about Dan Siegel, I will see what the library has.

#20 I imprinted on the original b&w version at an early age so that's the one that stands out in my memory

So, Rebecca would that be the 1952 version with Michael Redgrave, the 1946 version with Alban Blakelock, or the 1937 version with John Abbott? There were also versions done in 1986, 1992, 2002, and 2011. Who knew there were so many versions?! I might see if some of these are on Netflix.

I don't know. The Summer Book is not so much charming, as quirky, I would say. But then, I may be biased on this one because my grandparents had a cabin on a lake and, when I was a kid, I spent a lot of time there with them. The book brought to mind some nice memories of my own childhood. Save it for when you need a break or distraction. It's a quick read that is easy to dip in and out of because each chapter is so short.

#21 Thanks, Colleen!

#22 The Summer Book might be just the thing for between contractions, Rachel!

I love the idea of choosing a job based on a book. Was it Heart so White? I hear about Javier Marías on the Three Percent podcast all the time. Maybe I'll look for it. Obviously you must have liked it!

#23-25 I've read Bel Canto a couple of times, most recently for my RL book club. I think the language is beautiful and the character of the translator, in particular, fascinates me. It was a pleasant surprise.

#26 Hi Stephen, I hope your stay away from LT was refreshing and not due to unpleasant recurrences.

It's hard for me to imagine you ever reading the "tame" version of anything :-p . My version doesn't have an introduction, so I only determined which version I had by counting the chapters. I thought even my version was probably racy for Victorian times, so I'm curious to see the uncensored version. It surprised me a bit that Wilde worked so hard to create a draft that was socially acceptable, or at least more acceptable to his audience. I pictured him as taking a more devil-may-care attitude. I probably should read a biography, as Lola suggested.

I struggled a bit to place The Summer Book as a centennial read, and then I realized the author was born a hundred years ago. Bit slow sometimes.

#27 I saw a whole display of Moomin books at Powell's, Pat but sadly I was dashing through that section and didn't stop to check them out. I'm already thinking I need a return trip to Powell's. My dad is flying out from Maine at the end of the week for a visit, and I thought we might be going to Portland as he had a business interest down there, but no. Shucks!

Sped through Resistance by Owen Sheers in the last 24 hours. It's my first alternate history novel, and I quite enjoyed it. Very suspenseful.

>28 labfs39: Heart so White, that's the one. I was living in Spain at the time, teaching English, 22 years old, a graduate in Modern & Medieval Languages without a clue what to do next, when someone lent me the book...and that was that.
Right then, I'm off to order The Summer Book right away in the hope of bringing on those contractions!

28: I looked for the uncensored version on B&N, but the descriptions aren't clear enough for me to be sure what's what. I gather the original magazine version was censored also. I got the impression that the B&N uncensored version is the longer book with the censored bits returned.

Lovely review of The Summer Book, Lisa. I've had Tove Jansson on my wishlist for a long time.

#30 Now, I didn't say they would bring on contractions, simply that the book has short enough bits to read between contractions. :-)

So which languages do you translate, Rachel?

#31 The Belknap Press version published by Harvard University in (HC 2011, PB 2012) edited by Nicholas Frankel is the one, I believe, qebo.

More than 120 years after Oscar Wilde submitted The Picture of Dorian Gray for publication in Lippincott’s Monthly Magazine, the uncensored version of his novel appears here for the first time in a paperback edition. This volume restores all of the material removed by the novel’s first editor.

Upon receipt of the typescript, Wilde’s editor panicked at what he saw. Contained within its pages was material he feared readers would find “offensive”—especially instances of graphic homosexual content. He proceeded to go through the typescript with his pencil, cleaning it up until he made it “acceptable to the most fastidious taste.” Wilde did not see these changes until his novel appeared in print. Wilde’s editor’s concern was well placed. Even in its redacted form, the novel caused public outcry. The British press condemned it as “vulgar,” “unclean,” “poisonous,” “discreditable,” and “a sham.” When Wilde later enlarged the novel for publication in book form, he responded to his critics by further toning down its “immoral” elements.

http://www.hup.harvard.edu/catalog.php?isbn=9780674066311

Amazon

#32 I think I might like to try something else by Jannson,Linda. Darryl (kidzdoc) recommended The True Deceiver last year, and it sounds like a dark, psychological novel, i.e. very different from the Summer Book.

33: Yeah, that's the one I found on B&N, but with a better description. It restores what had been edited out for the magazine version, but seems to retain what was added for the book version. Not entirely clear. Still, the best of available options, and the book that I would've read had I known. I'm not so terribly keen to read the entire thing again though.

>33 labfs39: no, you didn't, to be fair; I extrapolated -wishful thinking ;-) Anyway, ordering it didn't bring them on, so maybe book and contractions will arrive together...

I do French, Spanish, Italian and Polish into English.

Thanks for the link, Lisa. I never would have found you otherwise. The Summer Book sound like one I should have on hand when I need a lift! I looked for the two Jennifer Holm books your daughter recommended and couldn't find them so I picked up Turtle in Paradise instead. Hope my gr-dtr hasn't already read it.

Hi Lisa- It looks like you asked me a question and I never responded. I have read Fahrenheit, Something Wicked This Way Comes, Dandelion Wine and the Martian Chronicles. He is consistently very good. I still have several more I want to read.

I'm sorry I missed that display of the Moomin books at Powell's. I'd love to get a nice edition of some of those books. Oh well, I guess I will just have to go back.

I too loved The Summer Book. NYRB has reissued several of Jansson's novels. I keep hoping they will reissue more.

#34 So, qebo I picked up my copy of the Belknap Press The Picture of Dorian Gray: An Annotated, Uncensored Edition and read the extended introduction. It is indeed the original manuscript that Wilde submitted to the magazine, and only that. It does not include the edits made by the editor of the magazine and some other person unknown. Nor does it include all the edits, revisions, and extra chapters that Wilde made to make the magazine version acceptable to the book publisher. However, it does include an appendix that lists every change that was made between this version and the first published version. Interestingly, the majority of changes were punctuation, capitalization and spelling changes. Then 500 words were expunged, but not just to tone down the homoerotic aspects. No, the editors were just as worried about Dorian's extramarital affairs and removed references to them as well. Also interesting is that the edits were done by an American, not British, editor.

#35 Well, good luck with that, Rachel! You must be counting down the minutes. Be sure to tell someone how to log on for you and give us an update after the big event! We'll all be thinking of you.

Wow, I am so in awe of polyglots. The Romance languages together make sense, but Polish is a whole other kettle of fish. How did you choose it?

#36 I'm sorry and surprised that you couldn't find Our Only May Amelia, Jan, since it is set in this area (southern Washington to Astoria). We got the Boston Jane trilogy at the library. I'll keep an eye out for you.

#37 Thanks, Mark; which was your favorite? BTW, did you listen to the BOTNS podcast today? I was very disappointed with Michael's description of The Martian. I feel like he gave away a major spoiler. I tried to turn it off before he got it all out, but it was too late. I hate spoilers. *pouts petulantly*

#38 I guess a revisit to Powell's could be in order, Pat. Or... I checked and Third Place Books has some too. Hint, hint...

#39 That's good to know, Mary. In addition to The Summer Book, NYRB has published The True Deceiver, which Darryl reviewed, and Fair Play. They all sound very different. All translated by Thomas Teal.

40: That's so simple. Why didn't they just say so? Thanks.

Hi Lisa - Nice new thread. The Summer Book sounds lovely. Maybe I'll get to it this summer.

#41 That's what LT is for!

#42 Thanks, Beth. It would be a nice beach read. Not in the sense of being fluff, but because it takes place on an island.

18. Life Goes On by Hans Keilson, translated from the German by Damion Searls

Written when the author was only twenty-three and published in 1933, Life Goes On is an autobiographical novel that is in part a depiction of Keilson's father and in part a commentary on the post-WWI years and the generation that grew up during 1920's Germany.

Seldersen the shopkeeper had never in his life wanted anything to do with people whose heads seemed to be bursting with big, boundless ideas. What he needed was right there next to him, in arm's reach at all times; his type is absorbed in everyday life, and he always kept his air of calm mastery, not without a certain restraint and reserve. He was a whole man, and behind him stood a whole age. He was past fifty by that time and his life up until then had been nothing but one long struggle... He had survived the war on the front lines unharmed, even if those four years seemed like ten... His wife had run the business during those four years, while raising two children. Despite how hard she tried, Herr Seldersen had found nothing but ruins when he came back: shelves empty, customers gone, a distressing outlook all in all...

He lost all his money in the inflation and this time had to struggle hard to barely get back on his feet... But he made enough to get by and was satisfied. So times were tough and there were signs of even more serious problems ahead—you just had to be a man and shoulder whatever burden there was. But there was no getting around old age.

Albrecht is still a boy in school when the novel opens, and his ideas about his country, manhood, and intellectual life are in development. He watches, almost as a disinterested third party, as his father struggles to keep the store going in a worsening economic climate and faces the end of his dreams of an easy retirement. As Albrecht gets older, he starts to make his own decisions about the right way to face the inflation, labor unrest, and despair that grows steadily around him and pulls his generation into its grip.

This is not a cheerful book, and from the first page, you know things are only going to get worse. But no one knew how much worse, not even the author. The Nazis banned his book in 1934 and later forced him to emigrate. He ended up in the Netherlands, joined the Dutch Resistance, and became a Dutch citizen. He would spend his life helping treat children traumatized by war. His parents, the shopkeepers immortalized in this debut novel, were murdered at Auschwitz. Keilson would go on to write two more critically acclaimed novels, The Death of the Adversary and Comedy in a Minor Key, but at the age of 100, Keilson approached The New York Times and said he would love to see his first novel reissued and translated. I would recommend this novel for those interested in Keilson's life and a somewhat dry, but true depiction of life in interwar Germany.

Good review of Life Goes On, Lisa. The period between the wars, especially in Germany, is an interesting time. This year I'm going to try and focus on books on WWI but as we move ahead it will be interesting to read about the aftereffects too.

It's one of the books I got at Powell's, Pat. I was looking for Comedy in a Minor Key, but came home with this. I'm glad I read it, and it has made me more keen to read his later (and supposedly better) novels.

Lisa- I think Dandelion Wine is my favorite Bradbury, but it's been a long time since I read Fahrenheit.
I LOVED the Martian. And I loved Michael's review of it and didn't think he spoiled anything. What did you think was a spoiler?

44: But no one knew how much worse, not even the author.
So much more distressing to read, I'd think.

>44 labfs39: I'm just curious Lisa. Is there any clarification provided on why the Nazis only forced Keilson's emigration, while killing his parents at Auschwitz?

#47 Hi Mark, I thought it was a spoiler when Michael said that he does make contact with Earth control and with the departing ship. Until then, other reviews I read had only said he was left behind. I think part of the suspense was if he did make contact. Just my opinion! I may still read it.

#48 It was, qebo. Things are so bad: labor protests getting ugly, suicides, bankruptcies. But as a read I knew this was only the beginning of the truly bad (for the shopkeeper and his family are Jewish): the rise of the "thugs and male hysterics".

#49 Linda: This is taken from an interview with the NYT in 2010:

Dr. Keilson did leave, but his father — “a decorated veteran from World War I” — did not want to go. His parents followed him a few years later. But they were too old and ill “to really sense the situation,” and he said he did not press them hard enough to hide. Like most Jews in the Netherlands, they were arrested and deported; they died in Auschwitz.

Even at 100, Dr. Keilson blames himself for failing them: “My parents were the basis of my life. I still feel guilt over my parents, and it never ends.” Then later, he said, “Sadness is the basis of my life.”

Eek, go away for a few days to try and get some reading done and there's 40+ new posts here! Slow down, you jabberjaws, or a girl can never catch up around here! ;P

Life Goes On sounds like quite a book, poor guy :(

I'm sorry I missed your post on my previous thread, Miriam. I'm quoting it below to give context.

#263 labfs39-To answer your question, the Wilde play I like best is the one I have just read (or reread). Right now, it is The woman of No Importance. It is a hilarious send-up of upper class English country-house snobbery. Practically every line is funny.

I guess the Importance of Being Earnest is really my favorite, then A Woman of No Importance, then An Ideal Husband, and last Lady Windermere's Fan.

I never read Salome, or Vera or the Nihilists. Salome was his favorite play, and it was used for the libretto of the opera by Richard Strauss.

I like your answer! You are so witty. I don't read plays very often anymore, and I don't where I could find where I could find these others staged. Maybe the next time I feel the urge to watch tv I'll try to find A Woman of No Importance. Wasn't there a version made with Annette Benning?

#51 Thank you for coming back, Monkey, I know things have been a little crazy on the threads. It gets busy every January, but this year seems busier than usual. At least I'm not a Paul Cranwick (on thread 13) or Richard (8 threads so far)!

52-She may have been the femme fatale in The Ideal Husband. I don't remember who was.

Haha, don't worry, I don't plan on being away more than a few days at a time, no more than a week! I agree, I could swear it wasn't this hectic last year! :P Goodness, how do they have so many threads, that's insane! Lol

#29 I had no idea there were so many versions, Lisa, but I was thinking of the Michael Redgrave one.

What a week! I've been saddened to hear of two LT family losses. Miriam's son passed away after a long battle with cancer, and then Monica (JustJoey) lost her dad very suddenly. It made me treasure even more the time with my own father who was visiting from Maine. He left to go home yesterday, and I'm feeling that post visit let down. His health is not great, and I worry about him.

I didn't get much reading done while my dad was here. We took a jaunt down to Portland for an overnight, and I went to Powell's for the second time in my life (and in the same month). I bought four more books, including the other two novels written by Hans Keilson, Comedy in a Minor Key, which I read last night, and Death of the Adversary. I also purchased the next Miss Buncle book, Miss Buncle Married, and The Chrysalids, an NYRB book for which I have been looking for ages.

I am now four reviews behind: The Tomb for Boris Davidovich, Resistance, Miss Buncle's Book, and Comedy in a Minor Key. Not sure when I'll get to them, but I did like all four books for different reasons.

My daughter hatched out a baby chick and promptly bought two more so that it wouldn't imprint on her and become a house chicken. Good idea, I guess, although now our family room is filled with the sound of peeping. Having a mini-Gerard Durrell living with you has its moments...

The repairman just left after an hour and a half of work, telling me that the problem with our gas fireplace may not be what he thought it was. Sigh.

Off to buy some sustenance for the horde of preteen girls on their way over to spend the night. Not sure when I'll make it back here, but I've been trying to buzz around your threads. Happy Reading!

57: a mini-Gerard Durrell living with you
What fun! Yeah, probably wise to discourage imprinting.

>57 labfs39:, I feel you completely about the time with dad. My dad - who is 75 - was just visiting. He could live another ten years. Or not. While this is always true, in some sense, one feels it more acutely when loved ones are older.

I love that your house is full of baby chicks. I'm sure my cats would adore such playthings.

Chicks! How fun! I really want to have some chickens to raise for "pets" and their eggs. Either that, or quails. Quails are cuter, and their mini eggs mean I could use them in recipes when I want to cut it in half except they require 1 or 3 eggs... :P

I was fortunate that my father lived across the park from me so we could see each other frequently; I know it it is so much harder for people who don't live close to their parents.

Love the chicks! Maybe your daughter could post some pictures on her thread!

61: Maybe your daughter could post some pictures on her thread!
Ooh, yes, I second this idea.

Wonderful review of Life Goes On, Lisa. I think I will look for that or Comedy in a Minor Key even though you have not yet posted your comments.

I hope your time with your dad was positive. Of course, you did the jaunt to Portland and another swing through Powell's so that can't be bad.

I think I have one more week of intensity to get through and then I hope things ease up a bit. I'll be working tomorrow (until the women's basketball game at 2pm) but it will take a tremendous amount of pressure off if I can get my budget proposal done.

Take care.

#58 Although I grew up in Maine with various animals (often for food), my husband grew up in Manhattan and never had any pets. My feels like a land baron on our little acre. My daughter has always had a penchant for nature: animals, birds, gardening, you name it, and we encourage her little experiments to the extent we can. She also loves art and draws wonderful pictures of her pets, plants, insects, etc. I think she'll end up in some science-y field, if she can get through elementary school math with any self confidence left. Unfortunately, memorizing facts is hard for her and so much of what they do at this age is multiply and divide numbers, decimals, fractions, etc. I worry she'll give up before getting to the good stuff.

#59 My husband is allergic to cats, Fanny, so that's one pet we don't have. And our old black lab learned early that animals are part of our pack and doesn't pay them the least mind. We've had chickens who would ride on him, and he just snuffles the latest acquisitions then goes back to his heated sleep pad.

My dad has struggled with his weight his whole life, and has a bad thyroid. Now he has diabetes too. He works hard at a physical job and owns his own company which is stressful. I'm worried the combination will give him a heart attack.

#60 My daughter's last chickens were bantams, Monkey, also small with tiny eggs. She likes them hard boiled as they are bite sized, but baking with them is rather impractical.

#61 It's become even harder, Rebecca, now that my father has grown a bit timid of flying. The new TSA precheck has helped, in that he doesn't have to take off everything. But he still gets anxious. I was surprised he came out this time of year, as the prospect of snow and cancellations had him in a tizzy.

#61 and 62 Thank you for visiting my daughter's thread. She loves showing off her babies, and it helps her html skills. ;-) With homework in full gear, she doesn't have as much time for writing reviews, but at least she is logging the books she reads.

#63 Thanks, Ellen. I would recommend Comedy in a Minor Key. It is better written than Life Goes On with a faster pace. It was his second novel, and I dare say his best.

I was sad to see that I was going to miss Powell's 30% off sale. Although I do think that Third Place Books is less expensive overall and has a better sale. Powell's is bigger so it did have some books that I have been unable to find at TPB, although not as many as I thought they might.

I've been meaning to take my daughter to a women's basketball game, but right now she is single-mindedly focused on soccer. She scored her team's only goal last night and is basking in pride.

Good luck getting through your budget proposal. Hopefully March will bring sunnier skies to your world, Ellen.

I've buzzed through several small books in a rather sleep-deprived haze of late, but this morning I resumed my comparison reading of The Picture of Dorian Gray. I finished the annotated, uncensored version recommended by Lola last week (the Belknap Press version). The footnotes were so extensive that entire pages were given over to columns of them exclusive of text. I ended up being so distracted that I skipped the majority of them until I finished the text, then went back. Now I have returned to my 1891 version and am comparing it closely with the original. There are some small changes of interest, but the most obvious changes are the inclusion of the extra chapters. So far I have read two of the chapters that Wilde wrote to tone down the original so that it could be published as a book. The first was about Lord Henry visiting his uncle and served to paint Henry (and his family) in a darker, more manipulative light. The second added chapter is about Sylvia Vane and her mother and brother. Sylvia only appears briefly in a single scene in the original; and the mother is only mentioned. The brother is a new character altogether. The purpose of this chapter seems to be to make Sylvia seem completely innocent (and featherbrained). To me, both chapters simply slow down the plot which is primarily the moral slide of Dorian. I hope to finish up my extensive Dorian study soon as I'm ready to be done, although I must say that it has taught me much about Wilde, the age, and the text.

64: I've always been a city person. My yard is about 25'x40', and I've run out of places to put plants, so I'm searching for a larger yard with a smaller house, a difficult combination. An acre would seem both luxurious and alarming; I'm figuring about 1/4 acre will be manageable. Very cool for a kid to have space to experiment! I am in awe of scientific illustrators; an excellent skill to develop.

65: You are more diligent than I am. I got the uncensored version, but that's the extent of it, and nothing more will happen until I wind up other books for February, and then it'll be time for the next OLTOB.

19. Miss Buncle's Book by D.E. Stevenson (1936)

A delightful little book guaranteed to lift the spirits of the most determined reader of depressing books with its gentle humor.

Miss Buncle is in financial straits. Her investments are no longer bringing in what they once did, and, although frugal to the point of frumpishness, something must be done. Although her maid, Dorcas, wants to begin raising chickens as a source of income, Miss Buncle decides to write a book. Such is the genesis of Disturber of the Peace, a bestseller about the inhabitants of a small English town, whose peaceful existence is shaken by the arrival of a piped piper.

Miss Buncle is unprepared for the book's success or the turmoil it causes when some of the inhabitants of her village see themselves in the book's characters. Determined to track down the author who characterized them so well, too well, if truth be told, the villagers are swept up in a manhunt with unintended consequences.

A humorous look at art mirroring life, and life mimicking art, as well as a satire of life in a small town.

Sarah laughed softly, and Nell (the setter) stirred in her sleep and raised her beautiful head.

"You know, Nell, you miss a lot by not being able to read," Sarah told her. "These people are real live people—they are quite delicious."

I'm glad you liked Miss Buncle. I thought it was delightful.

A delightful little book guaranteed to lift the spirits of the most determined reader of depressing books with its gentle humor.

Hmm. Could you mean me there?

Hi Lisa- I haven't been by in a week or so and thought I better check in. Hope you had a good restful weekend.

57: My daughter hatched out a baby chick
FYI, the February Scientific American has an article about chicken intelligence and communication.

Oh - Miss Buncle's Book sounds just wonderful!! And my library has it!

#66 We love having a bit of land, qebo, both for ourselves, and for Katie. We live on a cul-de-sac, which gives her the added bonus of a paved area that can be coned off for bike riding and playing with the 15 kids (ages 3-19) living in it.

You should see some of her drawings of her chickens. Maybe I can get her to scan and post some.

#67 I have good intentions, qebo, but I haven't been very energetic about finishing the book version of Dorian Gray. Part of it is that I haven't been sleeping well and have been reading lighter things the past couple of weeks.

#69 I did, Colleen, and I have Miss Buncle Married on my bedside table waiting for the next time I need a comfort read.

#70 Ha, ha! Rebecca, you can be the vice-president of the depressing books club.

#71 Thanks, Mark, and I hope your foot is feeling better. Do you have the new inserts yet?

I read a great graphic novel that I would recommend if you haven't read it yet. It's called War Brothers and it's about child soldiers in Uganda. The story is grim but real, and the artwork is creative.

#72 Thanks for pointing that out, qebo. We don't have access to the online version, but the library has a paper copy. I'll go make a photocopy.

#73 I got my copy at Powell's, Juli, and enjoyed it so much that I made sure to go back to Powell's when my dad and I were in Portland so that I could get the next one in the trilogy.

>74 labfs39:: Maybe I can get her to scan and post some.
Oh, do!

you can be the vice-president of the depressing books club.

I would be honored, Madam President!

#75 I'll work on her.

#76 I'm sure you'll have no problem getting elected, Rebecca!
;-)

76-can I be asst vice president?

20. Resistance by Owen Sheers

The women of a remote isolated valley on the border of Wales and England wake late one morning to discover that all the men of the valley have disappeared without a word. It's not impossible to guess where they have gone—to join the Resistance. Hitler invaded England that summer, and his troops have made inroads into the midlands. In shock, the women meet and agree to help each other carry on with the farming chores and to support each other until their menfolk return.

Captain Albrecht Wolfram of the Wehrmacht is chosen for a special mission. He picks a squad of men and heads north, happy to be avoiding the siege of London. He winds up in the women's valley, where he establishes an uneasy truce so that they might all survive the winter in obscurity. The results of this tentative collaboration are not difficult to predict, but nonetheless lead to some dramatic moments.

This was the first work of alternative fiction that I have read, and I wasn't sure if I would like it, given that I've read a fair amount of WWII history. But I found it to be less about the war, and more about the nature of resistance and collaboration. It was a light read, but entertaining, if predictable. The image of Churchill's last speech before departing England for Canada was quite humorous.

The idea of Auxillary Units of farmers and vicars who were to provide the last defense of England is based on historical fact. Certain locals were provided caches of arms which they hid in underground bunkers. Fortunately they were never activated, but an author's note at the end of the book includes an interview with one of the secret resisters of last resort.

Hi Lisa!

"...my daughter...scored her team's only goal last night and is basking in pride."
Several days later, I say to your daughter: congratulations! That is very cool.
P and I will be attending the women's Pac-12 Tournament at Key Arena next week. I don't expect the Huskies to do very well but the tournament should be fun. Stanford, Cal, Oregon State ... all look good to go to the NCAA tournament.

I hope you have a great time at the event at EBB tomorrow. I'll be interested to hear about it afterwards.

Have a great weekend ---

22. Comedy in a Minor Key by Hans Keilson, translated from the German by Damion Searls

This is the second the of the three novels written by Hans Keilson, a German Jew who escaped Germany in 1936 and joined the Dutch Resistance. His parents refused to go into hiding and were deported to Auschwitz where they were murdered. Hans did spend time in hiding, and this book reflects his understanding of the tensions inherent in long-term isolation, for both the hidden and the hiders.

Wim and Marie are an ordinary Dutch couple who take in and hide a Jewish man they know as Nico, not out of sympathy for the plight of Jews or a sense of humanism, but out of simple patriotism. The past year of hiding turns out to be easier than they expected, although not without its trials. But now they have a problem on their hands. Nico has died of pneumonia, and they need to get rid of the body.

In flashbacks, the author presents the tensions, misunderstandings, and growing compassion from both the perspective of the Dutch couple and the Jewish man they are hiding. What is great about this novella is not any extraordinary action or insight, but its average normalcy. This is the story of the unsung; no less courageous because of their lack of notoriety.

I've never been one for alternative history, but it sounds entertaining. And Comedy in a Minor Key is the one book by Keilson I've read; I thought it gave a good feeling for the claustrophobia of being cooped up in a blacked-out room and of the Dutch resistance.

Lisa, back in January you assigned me responsibility to remind you about leading a March group read of Independent People. Well, tomorrow is March 1st... I am about 50 pages into it and loving it.

Lisa, thank you for your review of "Resistance." I am adding it to my wish list.

Lisa - You've been doing some great reading. I enjoyed Miss Buncle's Book, too, and your comments captured its spirit perfectly. Resistance and Comedy in a Minor Key both sound good, too.

>78 almigwin: Ha! The more the merrier! Well, not merrier, but you know what I mean!

>80 EBT1002: After a day spent in the trenches, er snow, with my daughter's girl scout troop selling cookies, I was too frozen and tired to think of driving downtown to EBB. The girls are trying to earn enough to go on a train trip to Portland for an overnight and to go backpacking. It's a tough sell. Too many people think GS are like Boy Scouts, when in actuality GS is very inclusive and not religiously dogmatic. It's too bad that politics (and Catholic bishops) often get in the way of girls. Also, people see buying cookies as being about cookies, not about supporting GS. We are happy to take donations for Operation Cookie Drop (cookies for the troops) or for our Troop Gift of Caring (this year to the Maltby Food Bank).

>82 rebeccanyc: I wasn't sure what to expect with an alternate history, but I did learn something from the author's note and it was, as you say, entertaining. I'm interested in Hans Keiler as a person, and, as I've not found a biography, reading his semi-autobiographical novels is as close as I have gotten to understanding him.

>83 Linda92007: Thank you, Linda. I started a group read thread for Independent People today.

>84 harray: Thanks, Harriet. I hope you like it.

>85 BLBera: Thanks, Beth. What a baby picture on your profile page! Is she your daughter or granddaughter?

Hi Lisa- The inserts are going fine. I am trying to break in a newer pair of boots too, so there is a bit of discomfort there.
Thanks for the War Brothers rec. Always appreciate a GN rec. Thanks for setting up the G.R. thread for Independent People. I still plan on reading it but won't be able to start it for a couple weeks.

Lisa, I would buy cookies from your daughter. Just sayin'.

I ordered a copy of Comedy in a Minor Key from Amazon and should get it this week.

Having spent much time outside selling those cookies, I feel your exhaustion. I wonder if the right-wing attempt to stop people buying GS cookies because the Girl Scouts is inclusive is having an effect?

I meant to buy some GS cookies at the grocery last week, but when I came out after buying groceries they were gone. I had no idea about "CookieCott" until Ridegway Girl mentioned it. I guess no matter what you do, someone will manage to be offended. Sigh.

Oh Lisa - You are so nice. Little Scout is my granddaughter.

>87 msf59: I read a GN before Mark? Wow, I've really branched out.

Please feel free to join in the group read whenever you get ready. I know you have lots of challenges going on!

>88 EBT1002: I know you would, Ellen. I just get frustrated at times with the US federal government taking time out of running the country to pass resolutions supporting homophobic Boy Scouts but Girl Scouts getting boycotted. I just want the girls in my troop (and all girls really) to be able to reach their goals.

I'll look forward to what you think of Keilson's book.

>89 RidgewayGirl: Having spent much time outside selling those cookies

Oh, were you a Girl Scout or Girl Guide or leader or all of the above? I'm very curious about scouting in other countries. In France, it seems to be very divided by religion with Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, and Muslim girl scouts. I tried to connect with a council when I knew we were going to be in France last summer, but didn't hear back from anyone. :-(

Here's the Daily Beast's take on CookieCott for anyone not familiar with it.

>90 markon: I know. I hate the fact that young girls are the targets. Local moms have said that one or two people have felt compelled to tell these girls that the reason they won't buy cookies is because Girl Scouts are being indoctrinated to support abortion. That's just wrong. On so many levels.

I appreciated how in the Daily Beast article I cite above, they point to some of the Republican women touted, but somehow these Waco anti-abortionists feel free to pick and choose what they want to distort.

>91 BLBera: Did I already tell you how much I love the name Scout? To Kill A Mockingbird is a favorite.

Reposted from the group read thread for Independent People:

I finished the first book of Independent People today, and I have to agree with ChocolateMuse who wrote in her review (which I've only skimmed, not wanting spoilers):

The book opens in Bjartur’s perspective – a peasant who has just, after long struggle, bought himself a freeholding, has married a wife and is arriving at his own land as an independent man. He is isolated and dirt-poor – and the most horrible, awful man one could ever not help liking in the history of fiction.

It's true, Bjartur treats his wife (and dog) horribly, but I can't help liking him when he tries to capture the reindeer and ends up fighting the storm as though it were a demon from myth.

There are parts of the book I identify with being of rather independent New England stock. I like the way Laxness includes Icelandic myth and folklore. I just don't know if I like the book!

Yeesh. I didn't know that people were going after Girl Scouts. I have oddly not seen any Girl Scouts selling cookies in the several years I've lived here. Don't know why.

>93 labfs39: I got Independent People as an e-book because I'm curious, but I'm not sure when I'll have time to read it, just started an ER in an effort not to review six months after the fact.

My daughter was a Scout in SC. It was interesting when her younger brother wanted to join the Boy Scouts -- I was an enthusiastic supporter of the Girl Scouts, so I had to unpack my reasons for not wanting him to have a similar experience. Our eventual compromise was my SO becoming Pack Leader and a good friend becoming his Den Leader. If you can't beat 'em, go around them.

My daughter's favorite book is To Kill a Mockingbird, and she was pretty set on the name Scout from the beginning. It took a while to convince her husband, but she read the book aloud during her pregnancy, and the character won him over.

>93 labfs39: Correction: I had finished the first half of the first book of Independent People. Anyway, I really liked the voice of Nonni in the opening of the the next part, but then we switched back to Bjartur. I'm looking forward to other people's thoughts and comments on the group thread.

>94 qebo: Girl Scouts are under attack quite often. Catholic Bishops were upset last year, or maybe the year before. Oh, well. Who knew taking girls camping was quite so political?

>95 qebo: No worries. I owned Independent People for several years before this group read got me motivated to read it. Which ER are you starting?

>96 RidgewayGirl: Good for you! The whole point is getting kids out and connected with nature, their community, and each other. It's too bad adults have to muddy the waters.

>97 BLBera: I brought Scout up as a name for my daughter and was nixed by my husband. I should have tried reading the book aloud to him!



Real life is crazy at the moment, so I don't know when I'll get to the stack of books I need to review. The important thing is I'm trying not to fall too far behind on your threads. I don't want an anemic wishlist!

Hi Lisa, just catching up. The Summer Book is now firmly on my wishlist!

Sorry your life is so crazy right now, Lisa!

Insomnia for over a week is making my brain a foggy morass of nothingness.

>101 labfs39: Oh, blech, been there, and insomnia really does wreak havoc.

>101 labfs39: I feel for you Lisa. I also suffer insomnia, but only in winter. Roll on April.

Blergh - insomnia is awful. Hope you get some rest soon.

I've gone through periods of insomnia, and all I can say is yuck! Hope you get some sleep soon.

Try reading Tristram Shandy it's doing an excellent job of sending me to sleep, seriously though, hope you manage to get over your insomnia soon.

I found retirement to be a great remedy for insomnia. Hope yours improves soon, Lisa.

Just poppin' in to see what you are reading, Lisa. Hope your life becomes a bit less crazy and you can get some decent sleep (I sympathize, truly)

"I don't want an anemic wishlist!" Hahahahahaha!!!

Hi Lisa,
I hope you're doing well despite being so busy!

ETA: As a lifelong insomniac, I know it is miserable. I hope you get a good, solid night of sleep SOON!

Good luck with the sleep. Since 50, my sleep is iffy. I am so grateful when I have a good night's sleep.

Hi Lisa- I am nearly done with my March AAC pick and then I will read read another quick one and then on to Independent People. Are you finished with it yet?

On audio, I've been totally loving An Officer and a Spy. This one might just be your cuppa. Have I ever steered you wrong?

Sorry to hear about the insomnia, Lisa. I hope you find the perfect book to help lull you to relaxation and sleep.

Sorry I've been AWOL on my own thread; today is the first day that I've felt halfway human in weeks. Thank you all for your kind comments.

Once I could focus, I began reading again, but mostly sci-fi rereads (like the Old Man's War series and Ender's Game) and "happy" books (like D.E. Stevenson's Miss Buncle trilogy). I might write some quick recaps of some of them, but I've read nothing meaty lately, and my February books seem so remote now.

This one is due back at the library, and it warrants mention. Thank you to Merrikay for bringing it to my attention:



24. War Brothers: The Graphic Novel by Sharon E. McKay and illustrated by Daniel Lafrance

My story is not an easy one to tell, and it is not an easy one to read. The life of a child soldier is full of unthinkable violence and brutal death. But this is also a story of hope, courage, friendship, and family. We Ugandans believe that family is most important.

I thought you should be prepared for both the bad and the good. There is no shame in closing the book now.

Jacob is fourteen when the book opens. He comes from a loving family, enjoys playing soccer with his friends, and is brilliant in math. One night after light's out, the door to his school dormitory is kicked in and just like that, he and his schoolmates are abducted and forcibly inducted into the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA). Beaten, starved, and treated as beasts of burden, the children are worn down, traumatized by violence, and forced to become child soldiers. Their lives are truly horrific. And unfortunately Jacob's story is far too close to being a true story.

War Brothers is also about friendship, loyalty, and faith. When all sees lost, the light can come again. The artist Daniel Lafrance depicts Jacob's life in the LRA in frames on black pages, whereas his life before his abduction is drawn on white pages. In addition to this stark contrast, Lafrance sparingly uses a bold red to highlight the violence. The result is a horrifying and claustrophobic reading experience interspersed with moments of light and open space. Although the author has also written a young adult novel of the same name, I think reading it would be a very different experience.

If you like this, you might like: Ishmael Beah's memoir A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier. On a side note, I see that Beah has a new book out, a novel, called Radiance of Tomorrow.

I should also return to the library:



28. An Incomplete Revenge by Jacqueline Winspear (Maisie Dobbs #5)

Although not much of a mystery reader, I have enjoyed this series to date because of it's focus on issues that arose from the First World War. In this installment, British psychologist and detective Maisie Dobbs helps a friend investigate a potential business transaction, but in the process becomes involved with a mystery involving a traumatized town, an arsonist, and a caravan of gypsies. Because the war was only tangentially involved, I found this a less memorable read. There is a significant development in Maisie's personal life, but I found it less affecting and perhaps less well written.

33. Zoe's Tale by John Scalzi

I reread Old Man's War by John Scalzi and was captivated all over again by the snarky main character, John Perry. The sequel, Ghost Brigades, was a reminder that Scalzi can do more than sarcasm. I had to buy a new copy of The Last Colony, because my husband left the copy I had purchased for him on the plane. Grrr! ;-) It was a new read for me, and brought back my old friend John Perry. The fourth in the series, Zoe's Tale, is a retelling of The Last Colony from the perspective of a teenager. Although I enjoyed this last installment, I found the voice of Zoe to be remarkably similar to that of John. I thought it interesting that in an afterward the author talks about how Zoe's Tale was written in direct response to readers who wanted more about this world Scalzi had created (he had said at the end of The Last Colony that he wasn't going to write about Perry any more) and to readers who had criticisms about holes in The Last Colony. Evidently Scalzi is a well-followed blogger and his books are heavily influenced by his readers.

Glad you are feeling better, good to see you back.

Hi Lisa - Good to see you back. I loved the Beah book, so I might take a look at War Brothers. I am also a fan of the Maisie Dobbs series. Nice comments

Hi Lisa- I just started independent People. I think this one will be very special...

Hi Lisa. Great to see you back! Hope you are back to normal sleep. I plan to attend a talk by Ishmael Beah next week. Should be very interesting.

I finished Independent People last night. It was a great read and I hated to see it end. I have two others of his books on the shelf: World Light and Paradise Reclaimed.

Glad you are feeling somewhat better!

"Halfway human" is a good first step. Nice to see you back.

Hi Lisa,
I hope this means that you're sleeping better.
I also hope that you soon feel wholly human. :-)

I've wanted to read the Jacqueline Winspear series. It sounds worthwhile: mystery series with a bit more than average substance?

I've always thought of the Maisie Dobbs series as less of a mystery series and more a general series about England between the wars.

Welcome back, Lisa!

>116 baswood: One good day, followed by several difficult ones. I have been trying to get caught up on your thread, Barry, but you require concentration which I am lacking. Thank you for stopping by though.

>117 BLBera: Hi Beth. Love the photos of Scout. I assume she's all better now? I like the Maisie Dobbs series, but do find it a bit uneven. I suspect it's because I like the historical bits best, and Winspear does more with some books than others.

>118 msf59: I'll look forward to your reactions, Mark. I know many people love it. I am struggling to finish. I have such a strong dislike for the main character than it's hard for me to look past it to the wonderful writing.

>119 Linda92007: I hope you'll post some notes on the Beah talk, Linda. I missed him when he was in Seattle recently.

I find it interesting how much you liked Independent People, and I really look forward to discussing it with you since I've had such a different experience. I'm still plugging along. Slowly. I wonder if all of his books have a similar tone.

>120 fannyprice:, >121 rebeccanyc: Thanks, if only I could sustain it!

>122 EBT1002: When I started the Maisie Dobbs series, I was warned that the first book was the slowest, because it was mostly background (i.e. her experiences in WWI). I found it was one of my favorites! Not being much of a mystery reader, I find the characters and the history the most interesting. Suits the bill when I need something... not comforting, and not exactly predictable, but satisfying in a similar sort of way.

>123 SuziQoregon: That's a good way to put it!

>124 kidzdoc: Thanks, Darryl.

Have tried watching a few things on Netflix when I can't read.



Watched a couple of episodes of Orange is the New Black, but found it a bit too gritty for me.



I also tried watching two episodes of A Young Doctor's Notebook, based loosely on A Country Doctor's Notebook by Mihail Bulgakov, which I read and loved a couple of years ago. It stars Jon Hamm and Daniel Radcliffe. Although well acted, it bears vague resemblance to the book and has bloody dark humor which doesn't set well with my tummy.



Settled for watching episodes of All Creatures Great and Small with my daughter. :-)

They're starting a new "season" of Call the Midwife this Sunday.....

And I LOVED that old series "All Creatures Great and Small." It's a classic!

>127 EBT1002: Thank you for the reminder about Call the Midwife. I need to make sure that my DVR has it in the lineup. :)

Thanks, I got an email this morning from our local PBS reminding me of the new season. Although I like the show and will continue watching, I continue to aver that the memoirs, beginning with Call the Midwife, are the best!

I read a couple of so-so books for my book club, which continues to vary widely in quality. Fortunately, since neither of the last two months books were very challenging, I was able to finish them both in a couple of days and make it to the meeting prepared.



The Light Between Oceans by M.L. Steadman

I read this for my February book club and found it a quick, sentimental read. After several miscarriages, young Isabel finds a boat with a dead man and a live baby washed up on the beach of tiny Janus Island. Her husband, Tom, is the lighthouse keeper, a veteran of World War I, and a very hard man to persuade to do something against his moral beliefs. Alternating between the isolation of Janus and the close knit community of Point Partageuse on the Australian mainland, the novel touches on issues of what it means to be a family, what is in the best interests of a child, and what it means to be loyal to those we love. Although I enjoyed the descriptions of a lighthouse keeper's life and the beautiful to be found in isolation, I found the novel too sentimental for my tastes and with a few too many unfortunate coincidences.



The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein

After successfully avoiding this book for several years, a hard thing to do in the author's hometown of Seattle, my book club chose this title for our March read. Narrated from the point of view of a dog, this novel of a race car driver and his family is necessarily limited in scope. Enzo, the lab, adores his master, Denny, believes he is to be reincarnated as a human (per a documentary on television), and philosophizes about life, evolution, and death. When Denny's wife becomes ill, the debts mount, and a nasty child custody battle threatens the family, Enzo remains loyal and supportive, doing all he can to keep his human family together. A book that has its rabid fans, I just couldn't buy into it. To me it felt like a writing workshop final exam: creative, but contrived and sappy. How did this book become so popular?

Sorry that those last two were disappointing, Lisa. I think you will find Mrs. Tim of the Regiment a pleasure.

>130 labfs39: I loved The Art of Racing in the Rain. Mostly, I think, it's because I wish I knew everything my dog thinks. Then again, I still (years after reading the book) can laugh myself sick thinking about Enzo and his disgruntlement at not having opposable thumbs.

Hi Lisa--I hope you are feeling better. When you do feel better, let's get together at TPB--I'm in NY now, but will be back April 1.

Hi Lisa - I hope you're feeling better. I think Maisie Dobbs is my favorite one in the series. I do like the fact that she allows time to pass, and the time period is one that I find interesting. Sorry the last two books were disappointments.

Hi Lisa,
Regarding The Art of Racing in the Rain, "creative, but contrived and sappy" pretty much captures it. I will say that I enjoyed it quite a bit, but I read it very shortly after moving to Seattle, while I was still trying to make this feel like home. That was a serious struggle for me and I think the place references in this novel helped in an odd sort of way. I live very near "Blue Dog Park" (I walk by it on my way to the bus every morning!) and that made a nice connection for me.

Time to join a different book club Lisa?

We could start a new one....

Glad your are feeling better. But frustrating not to be able to concentrate. Wishing you better days (and books) ahead.

>130 labfs39:, 136, 173: This sounds like the making of an "avid reader" question: How much do you, or would you, compromise your tastes or read outside your comfort zone for the sake of reading with a companion or group?

Hi Lisa - You have such a wonderful and fun thread. Life Goes On sounds interesting if depressing. I have also avoided the dog book but think I may break down and read it. My husband and I always argue about what the dog is thinking. :) Nice projective technique. I enjoyed your reviews and your tv show reviews also.

Oh and the chick stories. My daughter just got three new ducklings. She had one duck and several chickens and the whole family is very attached to them. The duck was eaten by a coyote and we think he was trying to protect his favorite chicken, Tina. It was heartbreaking. The next day Tina followed my daughter around all day crying. Jeez. A bunch of company arrived right at dusk and we all got distracted and by the time she went out to lock up the chickens, it was too late. Stupid coyote. But I love coyotes so it's all double awful. I need to go read Cackophonia or whatever that book about chickens was. I think I have it on my kindle.

Nice to catch up.

>131 NanaCC: I had a nice lie-in this morning and finished Mrs. Tim, Colleen. Although it started rather slowly for me, once she got to Scotland, I found it quite enchanting. Just the thing for a rainy morning. I have requested the second in the quartet from the library.

>132 lesmel: Hello, lesmel. Thanks for stopping by. The Art of Racing has legions of fans. My faithful old black lab is lying at my feet as I type, and I'm sure he were wishing his heated pad were closer and lunch was in the offing. Food is never far from a lab's mind. :-)

>133 arubabookwoman: It would be lovely to have lunch and some TPB shopping, Deborah. I hope all your grandchildren are doing well, and you are having a nice visit. Did Gil go with you? I stopped by Elliot Bay Books after a doctor's appointment on First Hill and was quite disappointed. It was my first visit to their new locale, and it seemed so much smaller, tidier, and lacking used books. I still came away with three books that I had been unable to find elsewhere, but still...

>134 BLBera: Thanks, Beth. I shall continue with the series and have already placed a library hold on Among the Mad which sounds promising. ;-) The title alone puts me in mind of the Regeneration trilogy. I saw on Netflix the other day that Regeneration has been made into a movie and put it in my queue. I'm sure it won't hold a candle to the book, but I'm curious enough about the time period and the characters to give it a go.

>135 EBT1002: Both The Art of Racing and Where'd you go, Bernadette were good for Seattle references. It is fun to read about places that you can picture so vividly. Although I did feel a moment's pang for the people who live on Mercer Island while reading the Stein book. He depicts the Twins so evilly!

>136 baswood: Fine words coming from you, Barry! Don't you have many colorful words to describe your book club's choices? Ha, ha. But no, it's a valid question. This particular club is a neighborhood thing, and I was invited by a friend. To leave would be a bit tetchy, and it's not all bad. There is one woman with similar tastes to mine, although she appears more forbearing of the other choices. Unfortunately, here in the hinterlands, there is not a lot of options...

>137 EBT1002: That would be fun, Ellen, but alas the distances... Which is what makes LT a godsend. I do enjoy the idea of sitting together in person with scrumptious treats and good camaraderie, but with modern day schedules, the virtual world ensures that someone is almost always on when I need a "fix".

>138 dchaikin: Thanks, Dan. We all have our moments. I read recently that negative comments on Facebook have been proven to spread negative emotions throughout the virtual world, even to people not living under a rain cloud (literally). It made me wonder if my spates of ill humor brings down the mood in my little corner of LT and have resolved to avoid spreading the lack of cheer. Unless of course it is about a wonderful book that just happens to have a rather gloomy aspect. Not that I have ever been known to read that sort of thing...

>139 StevenTX: I should check out the avid reader thread, Steven. It's a great question. I think it was Ellen that was saying that she is less likely to finish meh books these days as she is more aware of how many wonderful books she will never get to read and time is too short. In the case of my book club, I tend to feel an obligation to finish, but I'm not sure it is an obligation that satisfies either myself or others in my group, who realize I found it dull. When it comes to taste, I may need to reevaluate my priorities. Reading outside my comfort zone is, I think, a bit different. I welcome the challenges that I have undertaken as a result of taking a recommendation from you or another LT friend to read something I might never have attempted, such as authors from other parts of the world. For instance, I first read Murakami as part of an LT group read and found it difficult but rewarding. There is always a bit of awkwardness when I read a book with a friend and find our experiences vastly different, but I find it easier here on LT than in real life with people whose children are friends with mine and whom I see in non-book contexts. What about with you?

>141 labfs39: - There is always a bit of awkwardness when I read a book with a friend and find our experiences vastly different, but I find it easier here on LT than in real life with people whose children are friends with mine and whom I see in non-book contexts. What about with you?

I've never belonged to a face-to-face reading group, nor do I generally exchange book recommendations with others, so it's rarely happened that I've discussed a book in person with someone who has also read it. I can see how it would be awkward, especially if one's negative reaction might be construed as dismissive of another person's tastes.

I participated in an online reading group for about eight years until it finally fizzled out late last year. Our tastes, interests, and educational levels were all pretty much the same, so I never had to consider myself compelled to read a book that didn't interest me or that I found objectionable. Early on I think I would have done so for the sake of group participation, but more recently I've tried to focus more on personal reading goals. I haven't been doing any "group reads" here on LT, but I do participate in "theme reads" when I can decide what to read and when.

I am thinking about giving Nick's Book Club at the U Bookstore a try, in addition to the TPB group I'm in. I enjoy the latter but you're absolutely right about the time and distance. Nick's group meets three blocks from my office at 6pm on the last Monday of the month. I missed this month but in April they are reading Hunting Season by Andrea Camilleri.

Tonight they were doing a compare-and-contrast of The Mystery of Rio by Alberto Mussa and Hotel Brasil by Frei Betto. I own both but have read neither.

>142 StevenTX: I only participate in LT group and theme reads to the extent that they are books I want to read anyway. Sometimes the group aspect is a good motivator to get to books that are languishing, other times I learn from other readers' interpretations. I'm impressed that you were in an online book club for eight years, Steven. How did it work? Like a group read on LT?

>143 EBT1002: I'll look forward to hearing your review of Nick's book club, Ellen. I tried to find a list of upcoming books for his club, but found instead an interesting Seattle Times article about a book club he formed years ago in which instead of one book a month, he did one book with four weekly meetings. I wonder what that was like. Since you already own books that he is discussing, it seems like it might be a good fit.

I'm reading a very interesting book at the moment called Daniel Stein, Interpreter: A Novel in Documents by Ljudmila Ulitskaya. I picked it up at Powell's because it was touted as the winner of the Russian Booker. I wasn't sure what to expect, but I'm absolutely hooked. It's based on the life of a real person who lived a very interesting life. But what makes the book even more appealing for me is that by making it a novel, rather than a biography, the author is able to create a montage of a life through the words and anecdotes of others, including the author herself. The reader discovers the man through letters, diary entries, telegrams, transcripts, etc from many different perspectives and by moving back and forth through time. Lest it sound confusing, let me assure you that it is not, and therein lies the genius of it. The novel is extremely well crafted, yet as far as I have been able to discover, is very accurate historically as well. Not only as a biography, but historically. Bloodlands: Europe Between Hitler and Stalin made an enormous impression on me, and now when I read about this area of the world, I am always comparing it to the history presented by Snyder. I'm only half way through, but I might end up comparing this to an intellectual HHhH in it's metafictional construction of a historical event/person.

No Place on Earth (2012 documentary directed by Janet Tobias; available on Netflix)

Chris Nicola is an American businessman who loves to travel the world caving. While exploring gypsum caves in Ukraine, he discovered artifacts that suggested that people had lived there in the not too distant past. After years of searching, he finally found out who these people were: a group of 38 Jews who hid in the caves for almost two years during WWII. Four of the survivors share their incredible story, interspersed with snippets of Nicola's search for the truth. The physical hardships, sensory deprivation, and stress they endured is incredible. The will to survive was augmented in the Stermer family by a disciplined matriarch and a strong sense of duty to family that gave them something larger to hold on to then their own survival. Fascinating. I wish I could find a copy of the first-hand account, We Fight to Survive, but it seems to be extremely rare and out of print.

>145 labfs39: It sounds wonderful, Lisa!

Had a great time catching up with your thread. I really liked The Art of Racing in the Rain, but I didn't read it and I think listening to Enzo, not reading, made a bit of a difference.

No Place on Earth sounds incredible. I'll have to look for it on Netflix (along with "All Creatures").

>146 labfs39: Oh, wow, added to my queue.

>144 labfs39: We varied the format occasionally, but basically the book read one book per month. We chose them a year at a time by a nomination & voting process in the fall. This group has its own website (ReadLiterature.com), but I've also done the same for shorter periods with Yahoo groups. As I mentioned, the group has dwindled to only three regular participants, so we stopped the group reading. I've tried to recruit them to LT and Club Read, but so far without success.

That video is going on my list. Don't you hate it when books go out of print?

Hi Lisa - Daniel Stern, Interpreter sounds great. I'm goint to see if it's available in the library. No Place on Earth sounds like a good choice for Friday night movie.

Thanks!

Re: book clubs. I've belonged to one that started in 2000, and I really enjoy it. Somehow, the group has worked really well. No one takes herself too seriously, and disagreements about books never lead to hard feelings. There are three or four of us who have been in the group pretty much the whole time, but others come and go.

>146 labfs39:, Wow. That sounds like an amazing film. Thanks for mentioning it's on Netflix, I will definitely add it to my list.

Crazy times today: science symposium tonight, girl scout camping trip this weekend, summer travel plans half made, a million little things. But I did whip through The Amazing Mrs Pollifax for a fun before bed and between things read last night/this morning. I love the character of Emily Pollifax, quiet widow and grandmother turned CIA agent. Written primarily in the 70s, this series begins with a couple of smashingly good reads.

Will respond individually as soon as I am able, but I will not have internet access over the weekend. Instead I'll be herding tween age girls through the rain teaching orienteering and making sure they don't shoot each other (or themselves) on the archery range!

Hi Lisa- Somehow, I lost you in the shuffle. I am back, though. First off, I wanted to thank you for the nudge on Independent People, which I probably would have kept putting off. I think it is a great read. I love the Icelandic world, Laxness created. The lead is difficult and frustrating but I think he's one of the top literary creations, IMHO.
The Art of Racing is a guilty pleasure of mine and I thought it worked very well on audio. I also have The Light Between Oceans saved for my audio pleasure.

>154 labfs39: I'll be herding tween age girls
Sounds like a blast! Really.

I downloaded Independent People for the group read, but as usual my eyes are bigger than my brain, don't know when I'll get to it.

>139 StevenTX: Mentally note your avid reader suggestion!

>143 EBT1002: I just started Camilleri's Hunting Season. I'm enjoying it, but it's a switch from the Montalbano stories.

>146 labfs39: That's quite a story, Lisa!

Hi Lisa, hope your weekend with the girls was entertaining. That documentary (No place on earth) sounds fascinating!

Don't know if you saw that Peter Matthiessen passed away this weekend: New York Times obit. I received an ER copy of his just published book, In Paradise.

Hi Lisa, just letting you know I'm slowly getting back into LT. I've read all of your posts, but there's just too much to comment on and it would be a bit out of date, I guess. I'm sorry yet touched to hear that the death of my father affected you so much. I think that, after all is said and done, it's important to realize that you cannot tell or show anyone too often how much you really love or appreciate hm or her. It's the small things that matter and I'm sure your dad cherishes the time he spent with his daughter as much as you do.

You read quite a few books during my absence, some of them I've read (and agree with you opinion) and some of which I would like to read. I'm still thinking of finally continuing Independent People, getting beyond the first 50 pages, you know...

>147 EBT1002: Hi Ellen, I got distracted from Daniel Stein, Interpreter because I wanted to finish Independent People, which I finally did. Now I am trying to finish the comparison of the two versions of The Portrait of Dorian Grey, as the unedited version is due back at the library. I hope to get back to Daniel after that!

>148 avidmom: >149 qebo: No Place on Earth was interesting. It starts with the amateur spelunker and then gets into the story of the Jews who hid in the caves. The story within a story framework worked well, I think. And watching the spelunker squeeze through passages and slide through the mud, made it visually clear how difficult the conditions were. Simply hearing the story wouldn't have had the same impact. I hope you get a chance to watch it.

>150 StevenTX: I perused your past reading list on ReadLiterature.com. It was a nice mix of books I've read and enjoyed and books I've wanted to read, which makes me think that I would have liked that book club. Perhaps before joining a RL book club, each participant should submit a list of their recent reading and wishlist to see if we are compatible. Minimum amount of overlap required. :-)

>151 mkboylan: I should be more aggressive in pursuing out of print books. Isn't that what those Expresso Machines in bookstores are for? I've never requested a book that way, because I worry that the type will be funky or I won't like the binding, but at least I could read it.

>152 BLBera: I will be curious to see if you both find it and like Daniel Stein, Beth. I have friends that have been in the same book club for years, and it makes me envious. The participants must be sympatico in order to keep going for so long. What do you think makes for a good and long-lasting book club?

>153 fannyprice: When I had my hips replaced I started using Netflix, but then cancelled it once I was mobile. I found that I missed it though. I never seem to have something Tivoed that suits my mood, but I can always find something on Netflix.

>155 msf59: Hi Mark, I finally finished Independent People. I've been a terrible group read leader on this one. Maybe I should only volunteer for books by authors I already know and love! Oh well, not every book for every reader. At least I finished, and a lot of other people liked it.

Someone else mentioned listening to The Art of Racing in the Rain and enjoying it. I hope you do too.

>156 qebo: Well, qebo, my weekend camping trip was memorable! It was rainy and cold Saturday, but fortunately we were able to go canoeing during a break in the weather, and Sunday, when we hiked around the lake was nice. The girls have their moments, but are a good group, and most have been together for 4-5 years now. In fact, Thursday night they did a presentation on their Bronze Award project and were so impressive that they were asked to do the opening flag ceremony for the older girls' Gold Award (equivalent to Eagle Scout) state ceremony. It's a nice honor, although I don't think enough girls will be in town to make it work.

>157 rebeccanyc: Hi Rebecca!

>158 markon: It's nice to hear from you, Ardene. Interesting is one way to put it! I love those girls, but sometimes they do try my patience. One minute they can't agree on whether puppets of three kittens should all look alike or have one different (and it becomes a serious non-negotiable argument), the next minute they are supporting each other and achieving truly impressive things. Personally I think they are aliens.

>160 Trifolia: Thank you for stopping by, Monica. I hope your presence on LT means you are feeling a little better. My dad is hoping that I will stay in Maine for a while when we go back for my sister's wedding in June. I'm not sure if I'll be able to stay then or go back later in the summer. It's hard to live so far away from family, and yet it's healthier this way too. I get a little nuts when I spend too long embroiled in daily minutiae.

IP was a long hard struggle for me to finish. If the first fifty pages didn't draw you in, I don't now that you'll find it easy either. Not much changes in either tone or plot.

I'm looking forward to your thoughts on Independent People, Lisa, even though we don't agree on the book. It's always good to have different perspectives. I hope you don't regret having invested the time to finish it.

>162 Linda92007: Hi Linda, the completist in me is glad I finished it, but I never did get past my active dislike of the main character. His comments about women and rape clinched it for me. I found nothing heroic in his stubborn pride, only a lack of basic human empathy. I appreciated the writing and the mythology. I wonder if I would like other works by Laxness? I'm in no hurry to find out, however.

---

I picked up two books at the library sale today:

Double Cross: The True Story of the D-Day Spies by Ben Macintyre

I am Nujood, Age 10 and Divorced by Nujood Ali and Delphine Minoui, translated from the French by Linda Coverdale

Jackpot!

I've just finished reading Double Cross by Ben Macintyre and found it enjoyable and interesting. The author makes passing reference to Operation Mincemeat and Agent Zigzag during the course of the story.
I hope you enjoy the book.

I recently read Agent Zigzag, and highly recommend that one. It was one of those truth is stranger than fiction types of books. I have Operation Mincemeat and hope it is as good.

Hi Lisa.

I think I'll not be adding Independent People to my TBR stack. I ordered In Paradise and hope to read it soon. I've only read the first in Matthiessen's Florida trilogy but I liked it a lot (especially being a Florida native).

>164 mkboylan: Since then I have also picked up a copy of The Old Man and the Sea (I had lost my copy), purchased The Round House (which is due for my book club read on Tuesday!), and received an ER copy of A Spy Among Friends, about Kim Philby, by LT favorite, Ben Macintyre.

>165 harray: Welcome to my thread, Harriet. I have Operation Mincemeat on my TBR as well. So I know have three unread Macintyre's begging to be read. I'm looking forward to an espionage splurge.

>166 NanaCC: Agent Zigzag is the one I don't have, but I will look for it.

>167 EBT1002: In Paradise is so completely different from the Florida trilogy (being a novel about the Holocaust) that I'm very curious to see what it is like.

Other people absolutely loved Independent People, so I hesitate to counsel you off it, but for me it was a dismal slog.

I have been off LT for a long time for a variety of reasons, the most recent being that as soon as I returned from camping with the Girl Scouts, I had to dig in to my work for the Friends of the Library. There was a newsletter to get out and a board meeting to prepare for. Then there is World Book Night. For those of you who may not know about it, go check it out!

World Book Night U.S. is a celebration of books and reading held on April 23, when 25,000 passionate volunteers across America give a total of half a million books within their communities to those who don’t regularly read.

Each year, 30- 35 books are chosen by an independent panel of librarians and booksellers. The authors of the books waive their royalties and the publishers agree to pay the costs of producing the specially-printed World Book Night U.S. editions. Bookstores and libraries sign up to be community host locations for the volunteer book givers.

After the book titles are announced, members of the public apply to personally hand out 20 copies of a particular title in their community. World Book Night U.S. vets the applications, and the givers are chosen based on their ability to reach light and non-readers. The selected givers choose a local participating bookstore or library from which to pick up the 20 copies of their book, and World Book Night U.S. delivers the books to these host locations.

Givers pick up their books in the week before World Book Night. On April 23rd, they give their books to those who don’t regularly read and/or people who don’t normally have access to printed books, for reasons of means or geography.

It is an amazing operation. I was a giver two years ago, the first year it was held in the US. I gave at Tent City, a community of homeless people. Last year I was busy getting my hips replaced and didn't participate. This year I'm going to a low-income senior housing complex with a Large Print edition of Where'd You Go, Bernadette?. Yes, I know I didn't love the book, but it was the only LP choice!

Then I also proposed that the Friends of the Library do a Group Give. There are nine of us, and we are going to a literacy fair organized by Head Start and then a food bank. We are giving

Where'd You Go, Bernadette?
Corner of Bitter and Sweet (both set in Seattle)
Zora and Me YA
Same Difference YA graphic novel
The Dog Stars
Ruins of Gorlan YA fantasy
Code Name Verity

It's been a lot of work organizing the Group give (whereas the individual one is a cinch). Not much time for reading even. But after the board meeting, three World Book Night events, book club meeting, Girl Scout troop meeting, and training to be a summer camp volunteer, all next week, I should have some time for LT again!

What's also difficult at the moment is that I have so many books going at the same time. I usually have two: one I'm reading and one with my daughter. But currently I am trying to madly finish Daniel Stein because it's so good; my comparison read of The Portrait of Dorian Gray, because one of the copies is a library book; Same Difference because it is the book I'm giving away at the Group WBN events next week; a read alongside with my daughter of The Diary of a Young Girl; and our bedtime read aloud, a Little House book. I also need to read The Round House by Tuesday for my book club, and I have two ER books stacked up waiting. Do you ever feel pressure to read, even though it's all for pleasure not work? It's like the books themselves are reproaching me!

You really have been busy, Lisa, but it sounds like it's all fun and rewarding.

Do you ever feel pressure to read, even though it's all for pleasure not work?

Absolutely. That's the downside of having reading plans, goals, challenges, groups, themes, etc. But without them I probably wouldn't have put forth the effort to read many of the more rewarding but challenging books I've read in recent years.

Hi Lisa - I especially enjoyed reading about your experiences with giving away books. Yes you have been busy! Thanks for telling us those stories.

Fascinating work you are doing, Lisa; thanks for telling us about all of it.

>170 StevenTX: But without them I probably wouldn't have put forth the effort to read many of the more rewarding but challenging books I've read in recent years.

True. I think just being on LT has made me feel as though I need to read more and with more scrutiny. I am much more aware of what I read now and the quality of my reading. When I had my comfort reading binge lately, I was aware that it would not be what my LT visitors would be expecting. I have traded unthinking spontaneity for conscious choice-making. Most of the time I think that's a good thing.

>171 mkboylan: World Book Night is a fun experience. I hope it spreads beyond the US/UK/and I think Germany.

>172 rebeccanyc: I stopped working when I was having all the hip troubles, and I haven't gone back yet. It's been nice to have time to read without simultaneously dealing with health problems. And I do manage to fill my time.

---

Phew. I finished two books today and feel loads better. Anne Frank and Daniel Stein are no longer lingering neglected. Now to finish up the graphic novel and Oscar Wilde. I have a stack of books waiting to be reviewed, but I haven't been in the mood to write lately. I just want to keep reading...

> I know it's volunteer work, but it's still work! And it's interesting!

>169 labfs39: But after the board meeting
Phew! You've been busy. Sometimes volunteer work is more demanding because it's less routine, spills into odd hours, and will take all the time it can get from people who feel responsible for getting things done.

Do you ever feel pressure to read, even though it's all for pleasure not work?
Aaagh! Yes! And mostly this is a good thing, because it nudges me to pick up books that I want to have read, but then there's that relentless 75 at times like now when I'd rather be gardening.

>173 labfs39: I was aware that it would not be what my LT visitors would be expecting.
This visitor is relieved to see light books and single paragraphs on occasion. You set a high standard.

Hi Lisa- It sounds like you've been busy. LOL. We considered World Book Night, but never followed through. I am very glad it has caught on the way it has and the selection of books is very impressive. If you can't find something in that bunch, something is seriously wrong.
I also have Double Cross in my sights. I was crazy about Agent Zigzag and want to read all of his work.
Hope you are having a fine weekend.

>174 rebeccanyc: Having always worked professionally, I have had a hard time making the mental shift required to think of what I do as "work".

>175 qebo: The yard is starting to bloom, and I've been out trying to tame things a bit too. It seems like spring will never come, and then all at once everything is happening. I went camping for two days, and when I came back it was like I had missed weeks of blossoming. Seattle had its rainiest March ever this year, and that's saying something. I try to get out and prune, weed, and plant in between bursts, but some weeks I just have to put on my raincoat and go for it.

>176 msf59: Oh you should apply next year, Mark! You would be great at it. And if the WBN reception at our local bookstore was any indication, they need more male givers.

Have you read any of the books on the Best Translated Book Awards 2014 shortlist?

The Planets by Sergio Chejfec
(Open Letter Books)

Prehistoric Times by Eric Chevillard
(Archipelago Books)

The Colonel by Mahmoud Dowlatabadi
(Melville House)

Satantango by László Krasznahorkai
(New Directions)

Autoportrait by Edouard Levé
(Dalkey Archive Press)

A Breath of Life: Pulsations by Clarice Lispector
(New Directions)

The Hunger Angel by Herta Müller
(Metropolitan Books)

Maidenhair by Mikhail Shishkin
(Open Letter Books)

Transit by Abdourahman A. Waberi
(Indiana University Press)

My Father’s Book by Urs Widmer
(Seagull Books)

The only one I've read is The Hunger Angel, although I've read an excerpt from Maidenhair.

The Colonel is the only one I've read (several years ago -- not sure why it's on the list this year) and it is excellent (and I think you would like it too). I'm eager to read both Satantango (because I loved Krasznahorkai's War and War). I have both of them on the TBR. I also have The Planets and Prehistoric Times from my Open Letter and Archipelago (now expired) subscriptions. I've read another book by Waberi, In the United States of Africa, which I found strange and frustrating, but I might try something else by him.

>178 labfs39: That's last year's shortlist, Lisa. Satantango won the BTBA in 2013.

Whoops! No wonder. I thought it strange that The Hunger Angel was on it this year. Here we go:

Horses of God by Mahi Binebine, translated from the French by Lulu Norman (Morocco; Tin House)

Blinding by Mircea Cărtărescu, translated from the Romanian by Sean Cotter (Romania; Archipelago Books)

The Story of a New Name by Elena Ferrante, translated from the Italian by Ann Goldstein (Italy; Europa Editions)

My Struggle: Book Two by Karl Ove Knausgaard, translated from the Norwegian by Don Bartlett (Norway; Archipelago Books)

Seiobo There Below by László Krasznahorkai, translated from the Hungarian by Ottilie Mulzet (Hungary; New Directions)

Tirza by Arnon Grunberg, translated from the Dutch by Sam Garrett (Netherlands; Open Letter Books)

A True Novel by Minae Mizumura, translated from the Japanese by Juliet Winters (Japan; Other Press)

The African Shore by Rodrigo Rey Rosa, translated from the Spanish by Jeffrey Gray (Guatemala; Yale University Press)

Leg Over Leg Vol. 1 by Ahmad Faris al-Shidyaq, translated from the Arabic by Humphrey Davies (Lebanon; New York University Press)

The Forbidden Kingdom by Jan Jacob Slauerhoff, translated from the Dutch by Paul Vincent (Netherlands; Pushkin Press)

Ah, that explains why I'd had several books for a long time. I have the Archipelago and Open Letter titles from my subscriptions, and Seiobo There Below for the reason I gave in >179 rebeccanyc:, and The Forbidden Kingdom because it looked intriguing in the bookstore. That one may be calling to me . . .

Hi Lisa - Thanks for the recommendation for "No Place on Earth." Loved it. I've been thinking about the secret of a successful book, and I think it's luck. Our group is pretty tolerant of different opinions, and everyone has a pretty good sense of humor - and we're not strict about finishing the book. We don't have a lot of rules or structured discussions. I don't know why, but it works.

Just got back from the low income senior housing apartment complex where I gave out books for World Book Night. It was great fun. My daughter came, and we had a festive tablecloth, balloons, the books, as well as literary cookbooks, book diaries, and book note cards donated by the King County Library System Foundation. The ladies (and one gentleman) were delighted with the gifts, and it turned into quite the party! I wish I had taken pictures.

Last night was book club night, and we discussed The Round House by Louise Erdrich. The book was excellent, very gripping, and I read it between Sunday night and Monday fairly compulsively. I was a bit disappointed that the discussion wasn't more robust, given the material we had to work with, but it was a fun evening.

I picked up a couple of books off the library sale shelves yesterday:

Story of a Secret State by Jan Karski is a nondescript little book without a dust jacket published in 1944. I picked it up when I saw the Polish Underground being referenced. I just now looked at the book page on LT, and it gets 4.5 stars and appears to have been reissued by Penguin. It's the story of a Pole who is conscripted, captured by the Soviets, escapes, is captured by the Gestapo, escapes, and evidently writes well about Poland during the war and has a personal need to testify to the horrors he witnessed. It's compared to Vassily Grossman's books. Seems like my impulse buy might turn out to be a gem.

A Treasury of Russian and Soviet Short Stories - not sure what the translations will be like, but like reading collections like this

>182 rebeccanyc: I've never subscribed to any of the publishers. I like to support them, but prefer to pick and choose. Do you still subscribe to both, or did you let one lapse?

>183 BLBera: I'm glad you liked "No Place on Earth", Beth. Our book club met last night, and most of the time we talked about other things, but when we did talk about the book, it was interesting. Everyone liked it, which is rare. I thought The Round House was one of the best books we've read, after The Song of Achilles.

I've just finished watching ‎Claude Lanzmann's 9 hour documentary 'Shoah' (1985) and Jan Karski testifies for quite a bit towards the end, he was the person who told the Allies about the Final Solution and then had to watch them do nothing to stop it. Apparently there are hours of extra footage of Karski talking that have been preserved but not available as yet. The Polish government have made 2014 the year of Jan Karski ' to honor, on the 100th anniversary of his birth, the legacy of Poland’s wartime emissary'.
You can see the footage of his Lanzmann interview here: http://www.ushmm.org/online/film/display/detail.php?file_num=4739

I want to read more about what he did after watching this film.

Wow Lisa hit the jackpot! Good instincts Lisa and excellent info Ava. What timing!

Wow, Lisa, you've certainly got your reading groove back and have been really busy.

It's great to hear about your World Book Night work. I really should get involved myself one year.

Daniel Stein, Interpreter sounds like something I might enjoy. I'm glad to hear you rate it so highly.

I can definitely relate to the feeling of pressure a pile of partially read books can exert, although my whole TBR pile has that effect on me, which is why I need to make it smaller!

I'll be curious to see what you think of Story of a secret state Lisa.

And though I'm not buying any more books this month (or until I read the ones I've bought), there are several on the translation prize list that look interesting to me:

A true novel by Mizumura (though I've not read Wuthering Heights)

Seiobo there below by Krasznahorkai
(looks like a Japanese theme may be emerging)

and possibly
The story of a new name by Ferrante (2nd in a trilogy)
The African shore by Rey Rosa

P.S. The links for Blinding & The forbidden kingdom go to the wrong books (and I didn't find them on LT).

>184 labfs39: I've let the Archipelago subscription lapse, largely because only a very few of their recent and upcoming books intrigue me. The Open Letter books intrigue me more (and I like that they come with a letter from the publisher talking about how they came to publish the book), but I've been sadly remiss about reading most of them.

>188 markon: Here are the links to Blinding and The Forbidden Kingdom.

>185 avatiakh: Wow, that's serendipitous, Kerry. I'm very interested in reading the Karski book now. Maybe you can pick up a Penguin copy of it. Thanks for the link too. I think I'll watch it after reading the book.

>186 mkboylan: I know! I'm glad I make room for spur of the moment purchases.

>187 Rebeki: Yes, I think I'm getting back into the reading groove. I read The Round House for book club this week and just finished In Paradise. Now if I can only get back the desire to write reviews!

I would highly encourage you to apply to be a World Book Night giver next year. It's a good cause, it's free, and it's very rewarding.

>188 markon: I listened to the Three Percent podcast where Chad Post went book by book through the entire list. There were several that sounded interesting, but the format was a bit long.

Lisa - I checked my kindle a/c and the Karski book I got was Story of a Secret State. I actually paused the documentary while I perused a few websites about Karski and then went on to get the book, didn't recognise the title when you first mentioned it.
I've just finished Landscapes of the Metropolis of Death by Otto Dov Kulka and can recommend it highly. He was only a child when caught up in the Holocaust and has spent his academic life specialising in Jewish history. This is his first book that confronts his memories of the past, not at all your typical memoir, more of a fragmented investigation of memory and imagination.

Glad you had a good time with World Book Night. I am also pleased you enjoyed the Round House. I've been meaning to get to that one for awhile. Hope you had a nice weekend.

>191 avatiakh: Sorry to be dense, but was is a Kindle a/c? Account? Anyway, it sounds like we have the same book. I think I'm going to read it next, despite the queue jumping. I've also added the Kulka book to my wishlist. I find memory to be a fascinating topic, and as it regards history, collective memory, etc. I finished In Paradise today, and I found it disappointing. I must write a review, as it is an ER book. Maybe the act of actually writing a review will get me back in the habit...

>192 msf59: Thanks, Mark. I just gave The Round House to Bill to read. I'm looking forward to seeing what he thinks. Have you read other books by Erdrich? I've only read her children's trilogy, beginning with The Birchbark House, which I quite enjoyed.

Thanks for the weekend wishes. I just came in from gardening, so I'm smelly earthy, but I'm happy! How are your feet?

Yes, a/c short for account. My kindle doesn't automatically download the books so I have to go into my amazon account to check recent purchases.

The Politics of Memory: the journey of a holocaust historian might interest you, I haven't read it yet but it's on Mt tbr.
I'm not reading that much of late, more dipping into lots of nonfiction books for info.

>193 labfs39: About Erdrich, I read a lot of her work a long time ago, but I've been enjoying some of her more recent books too. If you liked The Round House, you might also enjoy The Plague of Doves which takes place in an earlier era but has a couple of characters who appear (when they're much older, of course) in The Round House.

50. In Paradise by Peter Matthiessen

In Paradise is a book about loss, memory, and whether it is possible for non-survivors to interpret the Holocaust. The main character Clements Olin, an American academic, joins a week-long spiritual retreat at Auschwitz, ostensibly to research his book on Tadeusz Browski, a Holocaust survivor and novelist who committed suicide at the age of twenty-five. But there is a more personal reason behind his trip, and as the other retreat participants share their stories, the reader is asked to consider questions of identity and modern anti-Semitism.

I wanted to enjoy this book more than I did. For me, the author too frequently used his characters to expound history, which felt pedantic and unnatural. I was also uncomfortable with some of the national stereotypes which he used. That said, I thought Matthiessen raises some interesting questions, including whether non-survivors can legitimately add anything to the discourse about the experience of the Holocaust and whether words are the proper medium for that discourse.

Sadly, I've read very little Erdrich. I think I read Four Souls many moons ago. I have no excuse either, since I have several of her books on shelf.

**I have been having problems with touchstones this evening.

>194 avatiakh: I see, Kerry. I haven't yet succumbed to an e-reader, but I am envious of all the inexpensive e-editions I keep hearing about on the threads. Thanks for the recommendation of The Politics of Memory.

>195 rebeccanyc: The Plague of Doves has the judge in it, doesn't it? I would like to read it, thanks.

>197 msf59: Touchstones are not working for me now, either. Hmm.

>196 labfs39: - rip Peter. Sounds like a tough imperfect book but somehow it's nice to see it get read here.

>196 labfs39: Lisa, I have a little bit still to go in In Paradise, but on this one I agree with you. Sadly so, being the last work we will have from a wonderful, wonderful writer.

>198 labfs39: To be honest, Lisa, I don't remember about the judge. But the grandparents of the boy in The Round House, or some contemporaries of them, are young people in the book. You can see how well I remember books I read a while ago!

>196 labfs39: Interesting question about whether non survivors can legitimately add anything to the discourse about the experience of the Holocaust and whether words are the proper medium for that discourse. Given the small numbers of survivors still alive, this would mean that future discussion would centre on interpretation of those accounts with all the attendant biases, and historical investigation. Something to think about the day after Holocaust Remembrance Day.

>202 SassyLassy: I would add to what Sassy said that there were many more non-survivors than survivors and someone needs to speak for them too.

>199 dchaikin: I know Mathiessen as a writer about nature, so I was quite surprised at this choice of subject matter. I wonder what triggered his desire to write this book. I wonder if we will ever know, now that he has passed...

>200 Linda92007: I agree, Linda. And as I mentioned to Dan above, I would love to hear an interview with him about how he came to write this book.

>201 rebeccanyc: Don't you hate that, Rebecca? I used to remember books so clearly, now I sometimes forget if I have even read it?!

>202 SassyLassy: Although Mathiessen's themes are cloudy, I believe that is one of the points he is trying to make: that once the last survivors are gone, it is more a matter of people interpreting their experience with the literature, not with the event itself. Even interpreting our experience of the places, such as Auschwitz, is limited in duration, as the places are falling apart, and the author hints that developers will probably end up with the land eventually.

In addition, there is a brief but interesting passage where Olin goes to an old Church building's basement to see the mural being painted there by a survivor. The idea is expressed that visual art may be a better way of depicting the Holocaust, because words are too limiting.

>203 rebeccanyc: If I am understanding you correctly, Rebecca, you are suggesting that someone needs to speak for the non-survivors, like ourselves. It's an interesting question: how do you interact with the Holocaust literature and historical sites without becoming a voyeur or tourist? There is also the slippery slope towards putting the Holocaust on a pedestal as the ultimate in suffering (aka Timothy Snyder's discussion of how the West has collectively interpreted the Holocaust) while simultaneously demonizing the Nazis and removing ourselves and human nature from both sides of the equation.

Or, as I see now, I think you meant non-survivors to mean those who perished. Rhetorically I will ask, can anyone speak for them? Is it audacious to even try?

Speaking of non-survivors, I am interested in books like Maus and The Lost, which reflect the experience of the generation born to survivors. There are those who try to relive their parent's life and share her experience by writing a biography memoir, and there are others who focus on the impact that the Holocaust has had on them through the lens of their parent survivors. Soon the authors of even the literature once removed will be gone.

I am half way through Jan Karski's book Story of a Secret State and thoroughly enjoying it. He tells his story well, without grandiosity or embellishment, and although there is no translator listed in my 1944 edition, I assume it is translated well too. In addition to being a memoir, it is the story of how four parties came together to form an Underground state which worked in tandem with the government in exile. Karski acted as a courier between the two and was privy to its innermost workings. Since the book was published before the war had ended, it makes me curious as to what he left unsaid. I look forward to following Kerry's link to interviews with him, which I plan to listen to after I finish the book.

>204 labfs39: I realize now that the term "nonsurvivors" wasn't clear. I meant the people who were killed, and was heavily influenced in thinking about them by Bloodlands which made it clear that we in the west think of survivors, because US troops liberated camps that had survivors, but most of the people who were killed in the Holocaust were killed in regions "liberated" by the Soviets and thus we don't think as much about them. I was particularly struck in Bloodlands by the documentation that more Jews were killed by bullets, one by one, than by gas.

So, can anyone speak for them? I would say of course, because otherwise they would be forgotten. But it's tricky, because how can someone speak for them? Coming back to Bloodlands, I think Timothy Snyder did it masterfully because he was able to tread the fine line between statistical data and making individuals (and not just the victims of the Holocaust come alive as individuals. I think it has to be done respectfully, and I think it would be very very difficult to do in fiction.

more Jews were killed by bullets, one by one, than by gas

I found this to be chilling. It seems more personal when I think of a person shooting individuals, sometimes hundreds of them at a time, usually at close range. It makes the "just following orders" argument seem ludicrous. I thought Snyder did a good job though of addressing this by talking about how the Wehrmacht soldiers, even with propaganda, couldn't handle it (especially shooting women and children) and special units, the Einsatzgruppen, had to be created.

Coming back to Bloodlands, I think Timothy Snyder did it masterfully because he was able to tread the fine line between statistical data and making individuals (and not just the victims of the Holocaust come alive as individuals. I think it has to be done respectfully, and I think it would be very very difficult to do in fiction.

Agreed. I think that's why I tend to read more memoirs about the Holocaust than historical fiction.

I seem to have been off serious non-fiction so far this year, but Story of a Secret State sounds very much like something I would like to read. I've just "looked inside" it on Amazon and, while the subject may be heavy-going, the style seems very readable.

The first half of the book is mainly a memoir of his life from the time he is called up in 1939 until he is firmly established in the Underground. Then he spends a handful of chapters detailing how each part of the Underground worked. There are chapters about the press, schools, liaison women, etc. I'm finding it both interesting and well-written. I had no idea that Poland had such a well organized secret government operating below the radar. The Polish apparatus of resistance and government was so very different from that of France, whose Resistance and Vichy Government were more familiar to me.

While non-fiction about the holocaust is important, especially since some records and archives only became available as Eastern Europe opened up, it's really difficult to find fiction written by people who weren't present that doesn't feel exploitative to some degree. I think that eventually it will be possible to write fiction about it, but not yet. We're fine, after all, with fiction about the Black Plague or Spanish Inquisition.

48. Same Difference and Other Stories by Derek Kirk Kim

This graphic novel is the book I gave out at the food bank as part of my World Book Night activities. I chose a graphic novel, because it often feels more accessible to a non- or light reader. Same Difference is written by a thirty year old Korean American for a young adult audience.

The first story, which comprises the majority of the book, is about Simon and Nancy, two friends who search for meaning in relationships old and new. Simon runs into a blind girl whom he had jilted in high school, and Nancy writes letters to a lonely man, pretending to be his girlfriend. Both have to eventually face the people towards whom they had a prejudice, while simultaneously dealing with prejudice themselves.

Although I appreciated the themes, I felt that there was little subtlety in the book, neither in messaging, which could be heavily applied, or language, which was occasionally graphic. The ideal audience might be twenty-somethings used to sound bites and interested in issues of identity and belonging.

>210 RidgewayGirl: Good points, Kay.

Hi Lisa. Story of a Secret State is available at the central library so I will have a look for it - sounds really interesting.

I am enjoying following your discussion about how we can interpret the Holocaust, and will get Bloodlands out of the library too. It's been on my book radar since Rebecca read it. I haven't been reading much non-fiction this year but am going to make more effort this term. Daniel Mendelsohn's book (The Lost: A Search for Six of Six Million) also blended his search for his relatives with contemplation about what gets forgotten and who gets to tell the stories.

Lisa - I got a reconditioned kindle through a reseller on a local trading site, it hasn't given me any problems as yet. I got it mainly for travel as we went away for 3 months late last year and I didn't think having to share an iPad between 2 others would be good for my reading. I no longer get much thrill from lugging a suitcase full of books across the world and always being worried about weight limits.

My husband has just related a late night skype call he had last night. He was contacted via FB by an Israeli woman and when they spoke it was clear they were related. She was born in 1942 in Poland and her parents immediately gave her to the care of a Polish woman. Her mother died the same year. After the war her father came to reclaim her and the Polish woman refused to give her back. In the end he married her, she converted and they did aliyah to Israel. Her father always resented the marriage, but the step-mother was a very positive influence on her. She said her father blocked all her attempts to find out more about her family or what happened in the Holocaust and only since his death has she been able to start finding out. Her son found my husband through a genealogy site.

I'm hoping to start Story of a secret state once I get my present nonfiction read out of the way.

>210 RidgewayGirl: I think I took so long to post my last review that we cross-posted, Kay. I agree that we are in an interesting time for writers (and readers) of East European history. In the last few years several important new history books have come out (Gulag: A History and Bloodlands spring immediately to mind) thanks to greater access to archival material. Important not only for adding to our knowledge of what happened but also for allowing new interpretations. Laurence Binet raises an interesting point in his book HHhH; he asks why write fiction when the truth is so incredible. What would be the point of “inventing” Nazism? And yet he wrote a very interesting book that is an historical fictional memoir, successfully blurring the lines between fiction and nonfiction.

>213 cushlareads: Hi Cushla! I enjoyed all three of the books you mention. One book that I would like to read that sounds as though it might be similar to the Lost is The Family: Three Journeys into the Heart of the Twentieth Century by David Laskin. (Total aside here, but I didn't realize he is the author of The Children's Blizzard. I've heard good things about it as well.)

>214 avatiakh: I'm assuming you saw my post on Steven's site, Kerry. Yes, I think there are times when an e-reader would be really useful. I had to laugh when I read I no longer get much thrill from lugging a suitcase full of books across the world.

Then I stopped laughing and got goosebumps: what an amazing story about your husband's call last night. I've tried to imagine what it must have been like to give up your baby in that situation, to lose your wife and be unable to claim your child, to love a child and have someone come back, seemingly from beyond the grave, and want to take the child back, and then to marry for the child's sake but be so unhappy. And I failed miserably. I just can't imagine what it must have been like from any of their perspectives. I would have to agree with Binet, what is the point of inventing stories when the truth is like this?

Thank you for sharing.

>214 avatiakh: sharing the iPAD not good for your reading? See I was thinking it would not be good for your relationships!

Thanks so much for telling us that amazing story about your husband's call.

>209 labfs39: That particular description, telling about the way the different parts of the underground worked, makes me want that book.

I finished Story of a Secret State last night. Wow. Towards the end Karski writes about going undercover into the Warsaw Ghetto and into the Izbica extermination transit center outside Belzec. What he witnessed was so horrible, I Googled it to ensure it's validity. Unbelievable. Those two chapters surpass even Vassili Grossman's account of Treblinka I think. Then Karski goes to Britain, America, and the UN and bears witness to all he has seen and experienced inside Poland and the Underground, and what was happening to the Jews. Anyone who says the Allies didn't know what was happening to the Jews is sadly, grossly mistaken. Can anyone recommend a book that answers the question, Why didn't the Allies do something to save the Jews?

BTW, there are some Holocaust deniers who have written that Karski is a fraud. Their argument is that in his book, Karski writes that he visits a camp outside of Belzec, which they interpret as being in Belzec and thus the death camp known as Belzec, which he did not visit. Thus he is a fraud. But Karski never claimed to visit the Belzec camp, and Izbica is outside Belzec, and others witnessed the events there. I hate how the deniers twist even the most straight forward statements to try and create doubt. It's sick.

Hi Lisa. I think I'd like to read Story of a Secret State. I received the third in the My Struggle series from Archipelago today, but it seems that I would want to read the first two, well, first.

>217 labfs39: Wow, surpassing even Grossman's account of Treblinka. That's something!

I think the answer to your question is that the Allies didn't care about the Jews; even leaving anti-Semitism aside, their focus was on winning the war. I know that doesn't really answer your question, and maybe I'm just in a bitter mood.

>215 labfs39: Yes, I only lugged half a suitcase of books along with the kindle!
I was also very taken with that woman's story and had to share.

>217 labfs39: So it is an interesting read, I'm dying to start it but have to finish at least two of my current reads.
I haven't read specifically on the Allied response but these books seem worth investigating:
The Abandonment of the Jews by David Wyman
While Six Million Died: A Chronicle of American Apathy
Why We Watched: Europe, America, and the Holocaust
Churchill and the Jews

Another interesting account of prewar apathy and worse toward those trying to escape Germany is None is Too Many, detailing efforts to keep refugees from landing in Canada.

And adding also Ruth Gruber's Haven: The Dramatic Story of 1000 World War II Refugees and How They Came to America. I haven't read this but I have her Raquela on my to read list.

I just heard about a book called How Could This Happen: Explaining the Holocaust by Dan McMillan because someone I know knows someone who knows the author. Other than that, I know nothing about it.

I ordered a copy of The Story of a Secret State last night. As I said, I haven't been in the mood for serious non-fiction this year, but all that you've said about this book means that I'm now itching to read it - that's some promotional work you've been doing!

>213 cushlareads: Waving to Cushla, whose thread I've failed to keep up with at all so far this year (after being absent from LT for most of last year). I will get there at some point!

>218 EBT1002: Do you subscribe to Archipelago Books now, Ellen? How is it working for you?

>219 rebeccanyc: The difference between the two accounts is that Grossman arrived at Treblinka three (?) days after its liberation, whereas Karski was inserted into the Warsaw ghetto and Izbica while Nazi's were still hard at work killing Jews. Both accounts are key testimonies, and I'm surprised that I had never heard of Karski before now.

I think you are right, Rebecca. When Karski was meeting with the leaders of the Jewish Bund and the Zionist movement, asking them what they wanted him to convey to the West on his diplomatic trip, they knew that Karski would face denial, anti-Semitism, and military strategists who would not see saving the Jews as a viable strategy. They told Karski to tell the free Jews to refuse to leave politician's offices, to repeat their cry over and over and over again, and to not eat until the politicians agreed to act. Only by the starvation of free Jews, did the leaders think that anyone would listen and act. But they also knew that even this was unlikely to be enough or in time to save East European Jewry.

Karski carried the message (and microfilm with evidence of the extermination of the Jews) to leaders in France, Spain, the Polish government in exile, England's political leaders, the United Nations, Anthony Eden, the press, even to President Roosevelt himself. This was in 1942-43. You know the rest.

>220 avatiakh: Thanks for the suggestions, Kerry. I have The Abandonment of the Jews, but haven't read it yet. It's just so depressing. Even for me. I also bought a copy of IBM and the Holocaust this weekend.

>221 SassyLassy: Thanks, Sassy. I have not read anything about Canada's policies toward the Jews, so this would be interesting.

>222 avatiakh: I have Haven as well, but have not read it yet. So many books that I want to read it's hard to prioritize.

>223 rebeccanyc: How Could This Happen seems to be getting good reviews.

>224 Rebeki: I always worry that I am overselling a book and that others will be disappointed. I hope that doesn't happen in this case. The second half slows a bit when it changes from memoir to description of how the Polish Underground worked and was organized, but I found it interesting and informative. I'll look forward to your comments. Miriam (almigwen) is reading it currently, and she is raving about it so far.

I worked the Friends of the Library book sale all day Friday and took a few minutes in the afternoon to do a little shopping. I purchased some art history and technique books, as well as a Gerald Durrell book and a bird book for my daughter and the following for myself. All for $1 each.

Too Jewish: Challenging Traditional Identities by Norman L. Kleeblatt
IBM and the Holocaust by Edwin Black
A Commonwealth of Thieves: The Improbable Birth of Australia by Thomas Keneally
A Norton Critical Edition of Notes from the Underground by Dostoevsky
The Reformation by Will Durant (I'm trying to complete my set)

>225 labfs39: Lisa, I do subscribe to Archipelago Books but I don't know how long I'll do it. I love the editions, but I haven't gotten to reading them at an acceptable rate. We'll see how it goes.

>225 labfs39: Don't worry, Lisa. This is definitely a subject that interests me, so it's enough for me to know that the book is well written and has engaged your interest. I'm just hoping that this is a sign of a changing reading mood and that I'll now feel like reading some of the non-fiction I already own!

>227 EBT1002: I love the Archipelago Books too, but not all of the titles appeal to me. As much as I would like to support them by subscribing, every time I look at the list of upcoming books, I get cold feet. Some I will buy anyway, others I will happily miss and support my local Indie bookstore instead.

>228 Rebeki: I do think it was well written and engaging. I'll look forward to your comments!

---

I finished A Spy among Friends today. It was the first Ben Macintyre that I've read, but I own two others that I am eager to get to. I was a bit disappointed that his book on Philby didn't break any new ground, but it did come at the story from a different angle (friendship, particularly the nature of British friendship), and Macintyre writes well. As opposed to some ARCs, this one was still a long way from finished and was missing photos, footnote numbers, and an index. At least, hopefully, it was missing these things. It was also rife with typos, which was a little surprising. Hopefully it has been thoroughly edited before going to press. It's due out in July.

51. Story of a Secret State by Jan Karski

You will be forgiven if at first you mistake Jan Karski's 1944 memoir for a thrilling spy novel. His story is gripping. In 1939 Karski was called up and sent to the front; the first day of the war, his position was destroyed and the army was in a disorganized retreat. Captured by the Red Army coming from the West, he was transported by freight train to Siberia where, with a bit of cunning and bravado, he was able to be transferred back to German-occupied Poland. Finding German camps even worse than Soviet ones, Karski was able to escape and return to Warsaw. Shocked at the speed with which the Germans had destroyed Poland, he was determined to fight and soon found his way into the Polish Underground. He began as a simple courier, but his intelligence and determination marked him for increasingly difficult tasks. As his responsibilities grew, so did the danger, until he was finally caught by the Gestapo. And on it goes.

Equally fascinating is his description of the Polish Underground and the entire Polish Government which existed within Poland, under the radar of the German and Russian occupiers. All branches of the government existed in this shadow world, and unlike the rest of occupied Europe, Poland never accepted it's defeat or the right of the Germans to rule. There was no collaborative government. General Sikorski was the head of the Polish diplomatic and military corps outside the country, and Karski was a key conduit of information between the Polish government and its functionaries abroad. In this role, Karski was able to testify to the world as to the state of the Polish Underground, the Polish Government underground, and the fate of the East European Jews. The second half of the book contains much of what he shared with the Allies: how the government functioned, what family life was like, the state of education, and what he witnessed inside the Warsaw Ghetto and an extermination transit camp outside Belzec.

Both a memoir and a testament to life within Poland during the occupation, Story of a Secret State is well-written, informative, and difficult to put down. The importance of Jan Karski and his testimony is hard to overestimate and now is the perfect time to read this book. Poland's Parliament declared that 2014 is Jan Karski Year, and conferences have been scheduled in Brussels, Berlin (with the participation of Timothy Snyder), Washington, DC, Chicago, and Warsaw. On April 1, 2014 the United States Senate unanimously passed a resolution (S.Res.371), honoring the legacy and accomplishments of Jan Karski on the centennial of his birth. To learn more, see excerpts from his interview with Claude Lanzmann for the movie Shoah and the website dedicated to Jan Karski Year.

Lisa, Story of a Secret State sounds like a fascinating account and different from others I have read from this period. Onto the wishlist it goes!

>230 labfs39: Thank you for a very intriguing review of Story of a Secret State.

Pushing it closer to the top of TBR with that great review!

Great review of Story of a Secret State

Hi Lisa! It looks like I haven't been by in a spell. Bad Mark. Terrific review of Story of a Secret State. That immediately landed on my WL.

How is A Spy Among Friends coming? After, I read and loved Agent Zigzag, I want to read all of Macintyre's books.

>231 Linda92007: Thanks, Linda. I think you will like it.

>232 NanaCC:, >233 mkboylan:,

>234 baswood: Thanks, Barry. I've been working through your thread, trying to get caught up. Read about thirty posts today.

>235 msf59: No worries, it's always nice to see you when you pop by. I finished A Spy among Friends and enjoyed it. I will definitely be reading the other works of his that I own. I'm not sure this was his best book, as in the introduction, he talks about how what he is writing is not new, just with a new slant. I think his other books are more original, written from primary sources. Well written narrative fiction though.

I want to get to Double Cross or Operation Mincemeat, when I am ready for him next.

How is Dog Stars coming? I LOVED the audio.

That certainly is a great review, Lisa. My copy turned up yesterday and it looks good! I want to finish the books I'm currently reading before I get started on it, including the book of Arthur Schnitzler stories I've been reading forever. I'm hoping my eagerness to read Story of a Secret State will give me the kick up the backside that I need, but don't hold your breath!

A Spy Among Friends also sounds interesting. I'm ashamed to say that I know very little about Kim Philby other than the most basic of facts, so the fact that the book doesn't cover new ground wouldn't be an issue for me.

Excellent review of Story of a Secret State, Lisa!

Great review of Story of a Secret State, and I'll look for it. I am definitely going to read A Spy among Friends when it comes out, because I really enjoyed the other books by Macintyre I've read, especially Agent Zigzag.

I just read this and thought you might like to read this article about the UK court martial of Jews in the Polish Army-in-Exile during World War Two. '21 Jewish soldiers who left their units because of anti-Semitism and attempted to join the British forces.'

>237 msf59: I loved the audio too, Mark. I thought the narrator, Mark Deakins, had the voices just right. A couple of times I had to sit in the car in the garage listening because I didn't want to get out and not hear what was coming next!

>238 Rebeki: I'm glad your copy of Story of a Secret State arrived. I hope you like it.

I didn't know much about Philby either, Rebeki. I was surprised, however, at how heavily the author relied on secondary sources. As you say though, it was all new to me, so it didn't matter as much as it would to an expert on the subject.

>239 kidzdoc: Thank you, Darryl, and it's nice to see you back on LT!

>240 rebeccanyc: I think you would like Karski's book, Rebecca. I'm definitely planning to read more Macintyre as well. I own Operation Mincemeat and Double Cross already. I picked up the latter right after finishing A Spy Among Friends, but in doing so I dislodged a pile of TBR books and caught a glimpse of Sakhalin Island, which I've been wanting to read since Linda's review. It appealed to my mood, so I switched and am reading it instead. It's very good so far. I finished the section called "In Siberia" and just arrived at SI. My only quibbles are no maps and no numbers on the end notes. Excellent writing though.

>241 avatiakh: Interesting article, Kerry, thank you for bringing it to my attention. I was familiar with anti-antisemitism in the Polish Underground and partisan groups. It's disappointing to hear it extended to the Army in exile as well. I read somewhere, perhaps in Timothy Snyder's book, about how many Jews were killed by Poles after the war had ended. And such things were not limited to Poland by any means.

>241 avatiakh: Thanks for the link to that article, Kerry.

>242 labfs39: I want to get to Sakhalin Island too, Lisa; just not sure when.

52. A Spy among Friends: Kim Philby and the Great Betrayal by Ben Macintyre

Nicholas Elliot looked up to Kim Philby and was one of his greatest admirers and friends. They were very similar in education and background, they belonged to the same exclusive clubs, and both did wartime intelligence work. Their families spent time together, they met after work to talk shop, and Elliot even dressed like Philby. One would have assumed they were cut from the same cloth, but beneath his hail-fellow-well-met charismatic exterior, Kim Philby was something else: a long-time spy for the Soviets, and Nicholas Elliot had no idea.

Ben Macintyre's book carries little new information about the Cambridge spy ring or Kim Philby, but he does approach the subject from a different angle, that of relationships. He writes about what it meant to be a friend in WWII intelligence circles and during the cold war that followed. In particular what it meant to be a British friend in the duplicitous and yet chummy world of MI6. How could Elliot not have known that Philby was a spy? What in the nature of their friendship allowed Philby to deceive him so completely and for such a long time?

In the preface, Macintyre acknowledges that he is not breaking new ground with this narrative. Until the M16, CIA, and KGB files are opened, it is impossible to know for sure what happened and who knew what when. Instead, he tries to explore the story in a new way and potentially lead to a more nuanced understanding of the most notorious double agent in Allied history.

Well-paced and with colorful anecdotes, the narrative reads like a spy novel. Graham Greene and Ian Fleming, both spies turned novelists, are quoted in the book, and John le Carré writes the afterword, so one does feel as though the line between truth and fiction is a bit blurry. I look forward to reading the other WWII spy narratives Ben Macintyre has written, including Operation Mincemeat, Double Cross: The True Story of the D-Day Spies, and Agent Zigzag : a true story of Nazi espionage, love, and betrayal.

Happy Mother's Day, Lisa! I hope you had a nice day with the family! Good review of A Spy among Friends. It's now on the list.

>244 labfs39: That's an angle that would grab my interest. These days however I'm barely plodding through lighter fare. I've added it to the wishlist as a someday... in the right frame of mind...

Hi Lisa, just catching up with your thread. There's a lot going on in your life!

Your comments about Daniel Stein, Interpreter: A Novel in Documents intrigue me. Will definitely look for it. Also, Story of a Secret State and A Spy among Friends sound fascinating. Excellent reviews of both!

I loved Agent ZigZag which I listened to not too long ago. I have Operation Mincemeat and Double Cross on my Kindle. It looks like I might have to add A Spy Among Friends to the collection. :)

ETA: I just pe-ordered the audio version of A Spy Among Friends. It comes out at the end of July, and is read by the wonderful John Lee.

>245 msf59: Thanks, Mark! We ended up spending the day gardening too. 'Tis the season.

>246 qebo: I think that's a good place for it, qebo. I am reading again, but am disastrously behind in writing reviews. C'est la vie.

>247 Poquette: Nice to see you out and about, Suzanne. I think you would like Daniel Stein, it's a fascinating story and written in a unique way. I wish I had written a review of it. It's one of those books that needs more visibility. Story of a Secret State is another book I would highly recommend. I am currently making my way through the movie "Shoah", in part so that I can watch Karski's interview with Claude Lanzmann.

>248 NanaCC: That's an idea. Maybe I should see if my library has the audio of Agent Zigzag. Thanks, Colleen!