Rooting Tess Page 3

I would prefer BOTH, but if only one, a walk-in library!

Books READ




Pages READ

I have chosen a rather low number this year due to the fact that at least 4 of them are BFB's (Big Fat Books--over 500 pages).

READ IN 2016:

1. The Desperate Hours by Joseph Hayes outdated, much like In Cold Blood** (247 pg)
2-4 Once/Now/Then 3 YA books about the Holocaust by Morris Gleitzman 568 pages (all 3 books)So very good!*****
5. War and Peace Leo Tolstoy 1116 pages Classic! ***** (1167 pgs)
6.People of the Wolf (North America's Forgotten Past Book 1) by Kathleen O'Neal Gear Mystical, warfare, same thing throughout entire book *** (452 pages)
7. Alice Parker's Metamorphosis (Alice Parker's Adventures Book 1) E Book YA fantasy *** (152 pgs)
8.War Horse E-Book Fair *** (112 pages)
9. Atomic Summer E-Book cold war--most "action" took place in a bunker *** (384 pgs)
10. The Midwich Cuckoos 1950's book made into 1960 movie Village of the Damned **** (276 pgs)
11. The Complete Works of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow: Paul Revere's Ride, The Song of Hiawatha,***** Evangeline, Christus: A Mystery, His re-write of the Bible...I skipped this one) The Masque Of Pandora and More (I did not read his version of the Bible-Christus, so 2270 pages. It took more than a year to read!
12. The Blind Side: Evolution of a Game by Michael Lewis True football story ***** (347 pages)
13. Daniel Deronda by my 2nd fav author, George Eliot) ***** 5 stars (896 pages)
14. Book Lust: Recommended Reading for Every Mood, Moment, and Reason by Nancy Pearl ** (287 pgs)
15. And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie *** (276 pages)
16. Whose Body? (Lord Peter Wimsey series Book 1) by Dorothy Sayers ** (153 pages)
17. Italy Out of Hand by Barbara Hodgson 191 pages***
18. Guys and Dolls and Other Writings (Penguin Classics) ***123 pages
19. Uncivil Twilight: The 1920s Death Sentence that Left a Serial Killer Free to Stalk and Kill Children in 1937 (The Colder Case Series) 357 pages **
20. The Far Pavillions by M. M. Kaye 960 pages ***
21. The Gift of Stones by Jim Crace 176 pages *** 1/2 stars
22. Cometh the Hour by Jeffrey Archer}*****416 pages
23. The Recipe Club by Andrea Israel and Nancy Garfunkel 336 pages 3 stars
24. The Long Walk: The True Story of a Trek to Freedom 288 pages 3 1/2 stars
25. Monster by Steven Jackson true tale of serial killer Tom Luther (528 pages) ****
26. No Pretty Pictures by Anita Lobel "Holocaust" story, but 80% of story takes place in relocation locations in Sweden**
27. The Midwife's Revolt Super Read...but would be less so if you don't know early American history. Not so much about midwifes as about midwifes turned rebel spies. 416 pages *****
28. Therese Raquin by Emile Zola 170 pages very dark ***
29. Anne of Avonlea 202 pages ***
30. A Winter in Mallorca by George Sand 260 pages **
31. Under the Garden a novella by Graham Greene **
32. The Chrysanthemums and Other Stories by John Steinbeck ** 1/2 stars
33. Lorna Doone good historical fiction, too many battles 750 pages *** 1/2 stars
34. Madame De Treymes by Edith Wharton Yawn 87 pages ** 1/2 stars
35. Practice to Deceive by Ann Rule 391 pages ****
36. Far Away Home by Susan Denning 328 pages ***
37. Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde Robert Louis Stevenson 96 pages ****
38. The Red Rooster by Michael Wallace 340 pages*****
39. The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt ** (that's generous) 760 pages
40. The Man in the Iron Mask Alexander Dumas 560 pages ***
41. A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith 528 pages 3 1/2 stars
42. Homeland: The Crown Family Saga by John Jakes 1200 pages*****
43. A History of the World in 100 Objects by Neil MacGregor ** Boring--only read 300/600 pages
44. Afton of Margate Castle by Angela Elwell Hunt 351 pages **** 1/2 stars
45. Alaska Days with John Muir by Samuel Hall Young. 96 pages ****
46. All My Love, Detrick by Roberta Kagan 339 pages ****
47. Arlington National Cemetery Cornerstones of Freedom 32 pages ***
48. Ancient Rome Young Discovery Library 36 pages ***
49. Peter Rabbit by Beatrix Potter 22 pages*****
50. Make way for Ducklings by Robert McCloskey 28 pages ****
51. Things we Set on Fire by Deborah Reed ** 260 pages
52. The Autobiography of F.B.I. Special Agent Dale Cooper: My Life, My Tapes 195 pages ****
53. The Diary of Laura Palmer 194 pages ****
54. Winterdance: The Fine Madness of Running the Iditarod by Gary Paulsen giving 4 stars because the language is so bad; when not necessary, especially for a YA book. 272 pages
55. Armoires and Arsenic by Cassie Page free Kindle Book, many grammatical errors, end of story
confusing. ** 292 pages
56. The Righteous: Righteous Series, Book 1 Kindle ebook-Great read about modern day cultish Mormons-fiction. Michael Wallace one of my favorite authors. 338 pages ****
57. The Serpent of Venice by Christopher Moore no matter how hard I tried, I could not keep up with all the characters in the book, nor did I want to! Very ambitious work. Read 284/355 pages and could NOT finish!**
58. Lord Jim by Joseph Conrad Just awful! Only read 10/45 chapters. *
59. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald. *** very mediocre story line. 180 pages
60. Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte 416 pages *****
61. The Cask of Amontillado by Edgar Allen Poe *** very mediocre, for Poe. 14 pages
62. The Light of the Fireflies by Paul Pen potential not realized *** 338 pages
63. Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad 2 1/2 stars 98 pages
64. The Last Train to Istanbul by Asye Kulin *** 396 pages
65. Mrs. Zant and the Ghost by Wilkie Collins 2 1/2 stars 72 pages
66. Ascension Day by John Matthews. **** 576 pages
67. After Anna by Alex Lake 3 1/2 stars 309 pages
68. Avalon by Anya Seton Wonderful read! ***** 413 pages
69. The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet: A Novel by David Mitchell **530 pages
70. The Promise by Ann Weisenberger ** 1/2 stars Great premise (Galveston flood), but way too
simplistic. 321 pages
71. Back to Lazarus by Judy Walker mystery/Florida **** 385 pages
72. Bells On Her Toes (Psychic Seasons: A Cozy Romantic Mystery Series Book 2) by ReGina Welling **** 272 pages
73. The Shell Collector short stories by Anthony Doerr 3 1/2 stars 224 pages
74. Best Russian Short Stories by Thomas Stelzer *** 294 pages
75. Martin Chuzzlewit by Charles Dickens Charles Dickens *** 768 pages
76. Hard Times by Charles Dickens ** 1/2 240 pages
77. Outlander by Diana Gabaldon ***** WOW! 850 pages
78. Yellow Crocus by Laila Abrahim 3 1/2 stars 243 pages
79. Dragonfly in Amber ***** WOW 754 pages
80. Bill O'Reilly's Legends and Lies: The Real West by Bill O'Reilly 304 pages 2 1/2 stars
81. An Old-Fashioned Thanksgiving and Other Stories by Louisa May Alcott 86 pages 2 1/2 stars
82. The Bayeux Tapestry by Lucien Mussett 31 pages *****
83. Voyager by Diana Gabaldon 1074 pages 4 1/2 stars
84. The Sister by Louise Jensen 334 pages 2 1/2 stars
85. Hedda Gabler by Henrik Ibsen 54 pages 2 1/2 stars
86. The Black Book of Secrets by F.E. Higgins 272 pages ***
87. The Old Curiosity Shop by Charles Dickens 632 pages 3 1/2 stars
88. The Drums of Autumn (Outlander #4) 1070 pages 5 stars
89. Black Hills by Dan Simmons 471 pages 2 1/2 stars
90. The Black Robe by Wilkie Collins 225 pages 3 1/2 stars
91. Outlander by Diana Gabaldon 1456 pages 5 stars
92. Black Lotus by Laura Rowland 352 pages 3 stars
93. A Town Like Alice Nevil Shute 368 pages 5 stars
94. A Breath of Snow and Ashes by Diana Gabaldon 1147 pages 4 stars
95. Burying the Honeysuckle Girls by Emily Carpenter 310 pages 2 stars
96. Mrs. Queen Takes the Train 389 pages 3 1/2 stars
97. Parnassus on Wheels by Christopher Morley 103 pages 3 stars
98. The Buried Book by D.M. Pulley. 412 pages 2 stars
99. 1000 White Women by Jim Fergus324 pages 3 stars
100. Winter Garden by Kristin Hannah 354 pages 3 1/2 stars

I meant for my title to say: Rootin Tootin Tess....but alas and alack auto text changes and a quick mouse finger changed that!

Star Rating System

*-So bad either I could barely finish or I quit after 50 pages/this is literature?
**-Less than average/too slow paced/boring/mediocre/unsatsifying/waste of ink, paper & time
***-Average/good Read/perhaps could have stood some more WOW!/most people would like, I'm just very critical!
****-Exceptional! Great read, would recommend
*****Superior in all ways!

Star Tally:
1*
1 ½
2 ****************
2 ½**********
3 *******************************
3 ½ ***********
4 ******************
4 ½ **
5 ******************

For the year:
1-2 2%
2-16 13%
2 1/2-20 17%

3-31 26%
3 1/2-13 11%
4-18 15%
4 1/2-2 2%
5-18 15%

So many books past target! You're having a great reading year, Tess.

>5 Tess_W: ty, Birgit! I have noticed that while I do have a quantity this year, not nearly as many 4's and 5's as normal. Hopefully the second half of the year will bring the 4-5's on!

Happy new thread, Tess! :)
>4 MissWatson: yeah - and also thanks for helping the group... esp. when some of us are falling behind :-o

Happy new thread :) I'm very impressed with your ROOTing numbers, although sorry you're not getting the great ones we always hope for when we pick up a new book!

Tess, fresh new thread and here's hoping your knee is starting to feel the same! About Heart of Darkness -- I only finally got to it after reading Ann Patchett's State of Wonder, which has lots of similarities (although, in an interview, Patchett said the similarity came as a surprise when pointed out to her...). No more Conrad for me!

Happy new thread! Hope you get a GREAT book soon!

Oh boy! I was just informed by Amazon that I received a $47.98 credit from a lawsuit against Apple!? That sounds like 5-6 books for the Kindle or maybe 3-4 books with audio accompaniment for the car!

>10 Tess_W: whaaaaaaa??? That's amazing!
(Why is Amazon telling you? oh... this story explains in...)

No settlement for me, but congratulations on your $47.98!

Happy new thread, Tess!

>13 connie53: TY

My latest root, The Last Train to Istanbul was a mediocre read. It could have been due to the translation, but the sentence structure was very choppy; short, clipped sentences. The story was also a bit disjointed. It was billed as a story about a Turkish family, but it was really "stories" about individuals who knew each other in Paris, Istanbul, and Marsellies during the occupation of France. This story could have had great potential, but it was never realized. I did learn a lot about Turkey's dilemma in WWII--who should they be more scared of-The Germans or the Russians? Also found several glaring spelling errors. 3 stars

I also read a short novella, my first Wilkie Collins, Mrs. Zant and the Ghost. It was predictable and nothing really remarkable. The story of a widow who thinks she has been embraced by her dead husband--she is telling her story to a stranger she meets in Kensington Gardens. 2 1/2 stars.

Why oh why can't I stay awake to read!? It's been 3 weeks since surgery; per the last knee replacement I would be going back to work. I don't remember being this tired. I don't think I will get any of my reads polished off the remainder of this month. It is my 41st wedding anniversary and hubby will be taking me out to dinner--seafood I think!

>16 Tess_W: Congratulations Tess, 41 years is a great achievement!

>16 Tess_W: Yes, indeed, Tess, Congratulations on #41!

Enjoy your dinner out.

Happy anniversary and enjoy your dinner!

Happy anniversary!

>14 Tess_W: hmm.. that actually sounds interesting, but if it has poor execution, I'll not fall prey to the BB ;)

>16 Tess_W: I bet it's frustrating! But if your body is demanding sleep.....

& Happy 41st Anniversary!

Finished a free Kindle read, Ascension Day, parts I & II and it was very very good! This is the tale of Larry Durrant, on death row and his attorney, Jac LeFranc. The setting is New Orleans and the plot has many twists and tales; some violent parts. 4 stars.



And thank you all for the congrats! Like I tell my best friends, it's a "life sentence"!

In keeping with reading all my titles with the letter "A", my next read should be Avalon. However, after going through 3 bookshelves, I can't find it! I have handled that book may times......I think that I will just go to the next book!

>23 Tess_W: I admire your alphabet-driven reading this year. Good luck finding Avalon, but not having a book in hand is much too painful to contemplate. The next book is a very good idea.

>24 karenmarie: I found Avalon, it was not in the jacket that I remembered? However, I already started After Anna, a novel about a missing and then returned child and it is so good I'm going to finish that one and then begin Avalon. Never without a book--I'm reading on my Kindle The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet: A Novel--the reviews were rave; but I'm finding it to be slow going.

Congrats on 41 years, Tess. That's amazing!

Very impressive ROOTing numbers and good to hear that this surgery was better than the last. You'll be dancing in no time!

>26 Familyhistorian: TY, Meg.

This is the story of a seemingly "normal" family until the 6 year old daughter is kidnapped; then everything falls apart. I had the plot figured out about half way through, so it was a bit slow for the last half; but all in all a good read. 3 1/2 stars

Marathon read Avalon by Anya Seton because it was so good! This story is set in the years when the Vikings were plundering England. The story centers around Merewyn, who believes that she was of royal blood descending from King Arthur. Enter Prince Rumon who came to England to find Avalon, a mystical place of peace and harmony. I like this work of historical fiction because we have real kings, queens, and Vikings! This is a 5 star read!



I have now completed my readings of "A" book titles (except for 2 Anthologies and a book about Auschwitz, which I loaned to a teacher and won't see till August). I'm ready to tackle the B's!

I just finished The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet: A Novel by David Mitchell. I've been trying to write a coherent review; but not being able to do that, I will just list some pro's and cons:

Pros-Excellent research of the time period, interesting little known customs/cultures of Nagasaki during the time period 1799-1817, very descriptive of medical procedures & diseases

Cons-So many Dutch and Japanese names very close in spelling, difficult to keep them straight, (plus sometimes their first names were used and sometimes their last name) plot moved so very slow although the end felt rushed, the main character was not in 75% of the story, some parts of the story did not fit in with anything else in the story line

3 stars

The Promise by Ann Weisgarber left a lot to be desired. The premise of the novel was great--The Galveston Flood of 1900. However, the plot and characters were too simplistic and 2D. The ending was rushed and very unsatisfactory. 2 1/2 stars

You are reading up a storm, Tess. 20 books past target! No wonder the group goal is looking so healthy. I better pull up my socks and start reading some more ROOTs.

>32 Familyhistorian: Well when you don't work during the summer and you are an invalid (knee surgery recovery), not much else to do!

>33 Tess_W: Hi Tess! And how is the recovery coming? It sounds slower than your first knee surgery.

>34 karenmarie: No, Karen, about the same! Except this time I don't have to go back to work until August and this time it's my driving knee so I can't drive right away, either.

>33 Tess_W: Ooh, summer off, lots of reading - sounds wonderful, Tess. I have to work for most of the summer *sigh*.

>36 Familyhistorian: Yes, Meg, lots of people kid me that the only reason I became a teacher was for June, July, and August. While I like being off, I would be teaching regardless of the time off....it's my passion.

My bad! Having not purchased any books for almost 2 years (except 2 needed for my RL book club) I finally gave in (with that $47.28 from Amazon as a settlement in a court case against Apple) and made some purchases. Today Amazon had a Kindle book sale and I bought from the sale: $1.99-3.99. So it's a win-win--all books on sale, for me they were all free as I used my refund, and they are all ebooks--which mean they don't take up shelf space! Here's my haul:

Go Set A Watchman by Harper Lee (next RL book club read)
The Brothers K by James Duncan
The Guardian by Nicholas Sparks always read Sparks when I need a good cry
Where'd You Go, Bernadette: A Novel by Maria Semple
Dreamland: The True Tale of America's Opiate Epidemic Sam Quinones
The Sister by Louise Jensen (can't get touchstone to work )
The Secrets They Kept: The True Story of a Mercy Killing that Shocked a Town and Shamed a Family by Suzanne Handler
Yellow Crocus by Laila Ibrahim

And I still have $ remaining! July 12th is "prime" day--exclusive deals for prime members--will probably spend the rest of my bux then!

>38 Tess_W: Go Set a Watchman is my choice for our book club this year, and we're reading it for the September meeting. I have not ever read To Kill A Mockingbird or seen the movie, and have been told to read it before GSAW.

>38 Tess_W: Great haul! And I am very impressed that you went without buying books for almost two years!

>39 karenmarie: I would advise reading To Kill A Mockingbird first, as GSAW is a followup. My RL bookclub only meets twice per year, so I have until January to read GSAW.

>39 karenmarie: I'd agree with that too. To Kill a Mockingbird is an extraordinary book. I haven't dared read GSAW because I don't want to spoil the characters in my head.

>42 Jackie_K: Jackie, that is what all the hub-bub is about GSAW....the characters are "true" to themselves in the first book. Although written by the same author, she was in her doting years.

Back to Lazarus by Judy K walker was a free Kindle ebook. It was very very good, and I'm not a real big mystery fan. The story takes place in the Florida panhandle when Sydney is asked to research a case of a man on death row who committed suicide.

>41 Tess_W: Wow. Two times a year. No excuse to not read the book for sure. Ours meets monthly. We met last night, in fact, to discuss The Story of Land and Sea by Katy Simpson Smith. I didn't finish it, didn't particularly like it. I then proceeded to amuse the group by admitting that I only read about 60% of the books completely. Too many books, too little time.

>45 karenmarie: Yes, we only meet twice a year, although most of us read 50+ books per year. We are all teachers and except for me they all have 3+ children and there is just no time for a monthly read and meet. We decided that monthly would be drudgery and a feeling of "trapped" into reading a book that we may not have read otherwise. We all agreed that twice a year is good and that leaves the element of "fun"! (Plus we all see each other daily and often talk books at lunch). Personally, I could be a couple more times per year, but then I have no children at home.

I read Go Set A Watchman last year and liked it while I read it and then totally (and thankfully) forgot it after! Of course, I read it with the idea that this was Harper Lee's original blueprint story for what would later become TKAM - which I thought is a rather unique thing - to see an author's story metamorphose from one thing to another.

>47 avidmom: Wow, I thought GSAWM was an epilogue of To Kill A Mockingbird, not a prequel? Now, I am excited to read it. Our RL book club will not meet again until December, so I will put off reading this until November so everything will be fresh in my mind.

My latest root was a quick, quirky, and enjoyable Kindle read: Bells On Her Toes (Psychic Seasons: A Cozy Romantic Mystery Series Book 2) by ReGina Welling. I'm not one for mysteries, but Kindle sure does offer them alot for free This particular book had a plethora of unusual things that came together to make for an interesting and light story: architecture, jewelry, family dysfunction, love, etc. ****

Okay all you Outlander fans.....I'm getting ready to start book 1!

I finished one of the manyy short story books I have started The Shell collector: Stories by Anthony Doerr. There were 8 stories in this collection and the best were the first and the last. Not all stories had to do with shells, but all stories had to do with nature or trying to survive in nature. I particularly did not like the short story dealing with the revolution in Liberia featuring Charles Taylor. In general, I'm not a short-story fan. I read this book because I so loved Doerr's All the Light We Cannot See. 3 1/2 stars.

>49 Tess_W: Ooh! I sincerely hope you are hooked from page 1, Tess. Bated breath.....

>49 Tess_W: Outlander!! Those books are soooooo good!

Any knee news since the end of June? I hope your less tired than in >16 Tess_W:. And a belated Happy Anniversary!

>52 connie53: TY, Connie! Knee is progressing about the same as the first one...I am off the cane about 2 weeks earlier than the other one; however, the stiffness/pain is about the same--not so bad now at week 4. I am less tired. TY for asking! TY for the anniversary wishes.

Been having really bad pain in back of knee, down leg, into arch of foot for last 3-4 days. Went to Dr. today and now he tells me its the sciatic nerve, which is sometimes "bothered" during any type of leg or back surgery. There is nothing to do, but hope it settles back down. To that end I now have back therapy with the knee therapy and also he gave me some cortisone tablets (6 days worth) to help with the inflammation. This just couldn't be easy for me, eh? I always do things the hard way! Wahhhh!

Sciatica! How awful. I had it when pregnant and my leg kept giving out on me. And that nerve pain! It just knifes through you. You're not supposed to make this interesting, your recovery is supposed to be easy and rapid.

>55 karenmarie: Karen, this is my life!

I'm a bit behind, but...glad to hear your surgery went well. I just hope the new pain goes away soon :(. Sounds bad.

I have Wuthering Heights in my ROOT TBR pile and really, really hope I get to it this year. I'm excited about it.

I was supposed to read Heart of Darkness in high school but even though it was so short, I just couldn't finish it! I did finally read the whole thing a few years ago because I felt like I should, but I didn't like it. Glad it's not just me.

I got $12.56 from that Apple settlement, but I guess you can't use it if you have other gift card credit. I mean, you have to use up all your available credit first before you get down to the settlement money :(. Oh, well. Maybe I'll make it before it expires next year.

>56 Tess_W: Love it! That looks like parts of my life, too.

Hope the sciatica pain is reducing, Tess!

>59 Jackie_K: Thanks, Jackie. It is in fact lessening. The physical therapist for my knee gave me exercises for the back where the sciatica originates and it's getting better daily.

Finally, after almost one year, I finished Best Russian Short Stories collected by Thomas Seltzer. I'm not a fan of most short stories and this book was no different. I just don't find the plot or characters developed and at the end I ask, "And the point of the story was???????" 3 stars



I have the actual 1925 book (2nd printing) but you can get this book for free on Amazon (Kindle) or from Gutenburg Press

P.S. I am loving Outlander, but it's so very long and there are 7 more books to go! I'm thinking that I will probably read one every other book.

Purged: Martin Chuzzlewit (read 340/768 pages) and Hard Times (read 70/240 pages) by Charles Dickens. I have started both of these several times and have never made it through either one. Out they go! I was about 50% of the way through each. They are both "signature" works of Dickens, poor vs. rich with a slimy intermediary. I am going to count them as roots since I did read over 50% of each (more than once!)

I have read Martin Chuzzlewit all the way through, but it was hard-going! I generally find with Dickens that I need to have seen a dramatised version first in order to have any chance of keeping all the characters right in my mind and follow the many various stories going on. There was a BBC dramatisation of Martin Chuzzlewit many years ago (must have been mid-90s, I think) - I wouldn't have attempted it if I hadn't seen that first! I can't remember a thing about it though, so I'm not sure I'd try it again.

>61 Tess_W: Hi Tess! I'm so glad you're loving Outlander. My combination of mass market paperbacks and hardcovers of the Outlander series was 7,530 pages. I read 8 Outlander and 6 non-Outlander books from April 10 - July 1 and was totally immersed in it. In addition, we were watching the Starz series, which is what inspired me to re-read the first 4 and continue on with the last 4. Every other book might be a good idea - but I personally found that as soon as I put one book down I almost immediately went to the next. A couple of them had a few dry spots, but they didn't last long and I was avid to continue reading about Jamie and Claire and etc.

Outlander by Diana Galbaldon is probably the best historical fiction that I have read in quite awhile. It is the story of Claire (post WWII USA) and Jamie (1700's Scottish Highlands). Yes, there is one episode of time travel-2 pages. I am NOT a fan of time travel at all, but it worked in this story. Claire finds herself in the middle of tensions/war between the British and the Scots. She is rescued from a sadistic English Captain by Jamie (James) Fraser. It is a story of love and war. Again, I'm not into romance, but this is not a cheesy romance novel, either. This is a one year journey taken by these two people that begins in Scotland and ends in Rome? (suggested at the end of this book). It is love that transcends boundaries; it is unconditional. Pretty good for not being a love story, eh? I really liked this book because I am a historian even teaching about James II's abdication and Charles II ascension to the throne. Of course, I only knew the story from the British perspective, until now. I loved that it dropped names that I knew and others that I didn't; which I had to research. The book seems to be researched thoroughly and very accurately. The book is graphic and gut-wrenching but fairly depicts life in the Highlands in the 1700's. Want to finish up another book I'm also currently reading and then get on with book 2--which I will buy with an audio companion as school will be starting in a few weeks and I can read (listen) to it on the way to school and back home--an extra hour of "reading" each day. ***** for sure!

>65 Tess_W: You will LOVE the audio versions of the various books in the series- they are read by Davina Porter and she is flipping AWESOME. The only problem: I got so used to hearing Porter as Outlander characters that when I listened to an Anne Perry that she narrated, I couldn't separate her new narration from Claire and the others. It was distracting.

>65 Tess_W: Hi Tess! I am so glad you liked Outlander. You've captured the essence of the book nicely.

edited to refer to correct message!

95 degrees here today (F). Am having all 16 members of my family here: mother/husband, sister/husband, 2 children/spouses, 6 grandchildren. (Only my brother/wife is missing--he is antisocial and she has panic attacks if around more than 1-2 people!) We are cooking out, swimming in the pool, and having corn hole and croquet tournaments! Have been cooking for 3 days--but it's finally here!

Yellow Crocus is the story of the love of a wet nurse, Mattie, and her suckling, the plantation owner's daughter, Elizabeth. Although written in novel form this is a true story. Better than average, although a bit elementary. 3 1/2 stars



Now I'm going to start book # 2 in the Outlander series!

I hope you enjoy Dragonfly in Amber, Tess! Have fun.

>69 Tess_W: That sounds interesting - might have to add that to the wishlist!

The Outlander series is sooooooooooo good that I can not read anything else! It's a good thing I've already surpassed my goal, because each of these books are 800+ pages! I'm usually reading 3-4 books at once, but can barely focus on anything but Jamie and Claire!

Hi Tess. Getting here finally! And I'm really thrilled you love Outlander. I've read the whole series and seen the first two seasons (several times) and now I'm contemplating re-reading them! And I never ever do re-read! But I'm loving Claire and Jamie. When I think of them I see the actors in my mind! I'm in love with Jamie!

I hope you will love Dragonfly in Amber as much as I did!

Good to hear the backpain is lessening. And laughed out loud reading >56 Tess_W:

>72 Tess_W: You're hooked! Yay. The writing is rich, the characters compelling. It's just plain fun reading, too. I was obsessed from mid-April to the end of June. I've only watched the TV series once, but did buy the first season on blu-ray and am thinking about watching it again soon. I'll buy the second season, too.....

>73 connie53: >74 karenmarie: I will read all the books before I watch the movies....it's just a thing--reading first and watching 2nd that I've done all my life.

>75 Tess_W: That's what I do - I had actually read the first four books as they came out in paperback so the first four this year were a re-read.

There's one book/movie recently where I saw the movie first then read the book and was disappointed.... hmmm. Can't remember offhand, but it was an exception to the rule.

OMG--I have been literally sobbing for two hours while finishing the last 2 chapters of Dragonfly in Amber. I don't know if I can take 6 more books of this type or not! *****

Between you, you are making me rethink Outlander, maybe (when the Jar of Fate is a little less full) I will try them out ...

>78 Jackie_K: Don't let me scare you away! They must be really good to make me cry!

WOW for all the Outlander love!! I have it on Kindle, must get to it!

>78 Jackie_K: and >80 detailmuse: You. Must. Read. These. Books.

>77 Tess_W: I didn't sob over the last two chapters of DIA, but must admit that I choked up a lot over the 8 books. Laughed a lot, too.....

>81 karenmarie: I agree! I'm reading Outlander now! I could not help myself. And I'm loving it all over again. And I read the books when they were first published so I saw the movies after!

I am a big fan of O'Reilly's works on Kennedy, Lincoln, and Patton. However, was not impressed with his Bill O'Reilly's Legends and Lies: The Real West. It seemed like a recap of 10 famous outlaws and not much more material than I remember reading about them when I was in grade school. 2 1/2 stars

An Old Fashioned Thanksgiving and Other Stories by Louisa May Alcott was a small book of 3 short stories. I'm generally not a fan of short stories, but admit I did enjoy these more than the norm, especially the title short story. 2 1/2 stars

I really enjoyed my re-read of The Bayeux Tapestry by Lucien Musset. I had the pleasure of visiting the Tapestry in 2005 while I was in France. This was my "souvenir" of that wonderful site. This was a good review for me as I don't teach that time period. Unfortunately, we only had about 2 hours to spend at the Tapestry and it would take hours or days to really see and learn all the details--hence this glossy colored book! *****

Except for the Outlander series, I have been reading through my library alphabetically, by title. I've finished all the A's and am now reading the "B's." My next 2-3 titles are all best known works of_______, so I will choose the first one, Best Known Works of Ibsen and read perhaps one per day. But for my "meaty" read the next in line is The Black Book of Secrets by F.E. Higgins. This book was sent to me by another LT reader, who worked a Scholastic Book Sale.....I think it was Johanna, but I could be very wrong! BTW...I have 5 books that all have BLACK as the first word in their title--interesting!

You know, Tess, I had forgotten your Alphabetic ROOTs Quest, but slipping in the Outlander series periodically is a perfect method to reward yourself two ways.

Finished Voyager, the 3rd book in the Outlander Series. Although I did like it, it's getting "old" in that how many times can somebody escape death? I think I will take a break from the series for awhile. 4 1/2 stars.



Reading will be really slowing down as I'm going away for 4 days and then school begins. Besides working fulltime I have been contacted by a local university to teach an online course and I accepted; so I will be quite busy.

Hi Tess. I just started in part 3. I'm curious if my feelings are the same after finishing. So far I'm loving it.

Congrats on the 'new job'.

Good luck with teaching the online course!

>90 rabbitprincess: TY RP!

>88 Tess_W: Yes, congrats on the new job!

>92 MissWatson: TY, Birgit. I'm glad to get it, although at my age, I don't really need an additional part-time job--from a physical standpoint, but I wanted to get my foot in the door for when I retire in a couple of years---then I would like to teach online.

>93 Tess_W: I think the technical side of it could be quite challenging? But then I am one of those antidiluvian persons who do not want to mess with smartphones and stuff like that.

That's fantastic about the online teaching, Tess. It'll swamp you a bit now, but is great for retirement, I'm sure.

>94 MissWatson: Birgit, teaching has made me step into the 21st century, wanting to or not. Gradebooks, curriculum, etc, everything is online...students even submit their papers to me online. So the learning curve for teaching an online course for me is not too big, just a different platform than I'm used to.

>95 karenmarie: That's what I'm thinking, Karen!

Finished off two books while offline the last several days:

The Sister by Louise Jensen was billed as a psychological thriller. It wasn't exactly that and it moved terribly slow. I had it figured out about half way through. 2 1/2 stars

Hedda Gabler by Henrick Ibsen was a play about a spoiled socialite that learns too late that her games have sensational endings. Yawn! 3 stars

I was a tutor for a few years for the Open University, so (other than a few phone tutorials and 3 or 4 face-to-face tutorials per group - over a 9 month period) most of the teaching was online. I really loved it, for the most part. There was a fair bit of hand-holding needed (which took up a lot more time than I had originally anticipated), as the students were often mature students with little or no experience of further education, and often had really tough lives (eg caring responsibilities, illness, etc) as well as many doing the study on top of full time work. But it was so rewarding. I found the students in general were much more open to my constructive feedback than the students I taught face to face when I was doing my PhD, and so I could really see very clearly their progress from one assignment to the next. I stopped doing the tutoring just before I had my daughter - I had been doing it in my own time on top of my job, but realised that with a little person around she wouldn't be so understanding about my use of my own time!

Finished a free book, The Black Book of Secrets by F.E. Higgins. This was a better than average YA super-natural book about a "secret" pawn broker, who people told their secrets to as a way of unburdening, they were written down in a black book by the pawn broker's apprentice, in this case Ludlow, a 10 year old run away boy from the city. 3 stars

Dickens' The Old Curiosity Shop if very Dickens: rich vs poor, poorhouse, scoundrels, etc. I was a bit disappointed because the namesake wasn't an integral part of the book! 3 1/2 stars

Hi Tess! Dickens, eh? I had some discussions on my thread with a few folks about a group read in September of Great Expectations. I've never managed a group read before and even the idea is a bit stressing, but I'll figure it out, I'm sure. If you're interested, let me know!

Dickens is not one of my faves, but my RL book club is always choosing a Dickens! (At least once a year). I have read Great Expectations many years ago; but as I remember it was one of the better ones along with Bleak House. Let me know about the group, I can give it another re-read.

Hi Tess, have a good Sunday.

You, too, Connie!

Friends:
I've started my own group on LT: Gothic Novels. If you have ever read, or plan on reading a gothic novel, please join! It will not be a heavy posting group, as gothic novels are not real popular...but at least when you read one, pop on over!

http://www.librarything.com/groups/gothicnovels

>102 Tess_W: Hi Tess! Our group read of Great Expectations is set to start September 1. Here's the thread that Paul Cranswick so thoughtfully set up for me:

Great Expectations Group Read

>106 karenmarie:, Ok Karen, I signed up....but not really sure if I will be able to pull it off or not. Firstly, I'm halfway through book #4 of Outlander, 1/2 through Black Hills have a textbook and another read for the online class I'm teaching, which is taking about 10 hours per week--really cutting into my reading time--but hey, I'm making some extra cash! Even if I don't read, I will follow along!

Dang! Amazon sent me an email about Kindle books on sale for $1.99 there were 50 of them......I haven't really bought non-work related books for about 2 years (except Outlander Books 2-4)......so....I bought like a woman possessed! Here's my haul:
Illumination Night: A Novel by Alice Hoffman
The Lucky One by Nicholas Sparks (sequel to The Notebook
The Headmaster's Wife by Jane Haddam
The Pearl That Broke Its Shell: A Novel by Nadia Hashimi
Winter Garden by Kristin Hannah
Take Me With You by Catherine Ryan Hyde

Good thing: all on Kindle so they don't take up space and the cost was only$11.94 for 6 books!

Looks like you've got some nice ones there, Tess!

>108 Tess_W: LOL. I still am thinking about grabbing a few out of that 50 list. But I need to NOT!!!!

Ooooh .... Gothic Novel Thread.... headin' over. :)

>107 Tess_W: Not to worry - being forced to try to read something is one of the worst hells I can think of. Following along will be excellent.

Hello! I couldn't possibly catch up on the threads after my crazy-long absence, but I just wanted to drop by and say hello :)

>100 Tess_W: hmm that's on my shortlist for chunksters to read .. soon'ish. Sounds like I'll probably enjoy it, despite the fact that the namesake wasn't an integral part of the book... but that is good to know going into it!

>105 Tess_W: love it :) Joined.

>108 Tess_W: lol man, what a temptation!
I get emails from Amazon, Book Riot, Goodreads, and Bookbub about discounted kindles... I've had to start deleting them w/o even opening them ;p
But that's just til things are under control again :)

Looks like a fun selection of cheap ebooks!!

Had to pop in to report I've joined the Outlander love :) Haven't been able to get to it often enough in August but when I do, it flies!

>114 detailmuse: Yeah, An other Outlander fan!

Outlander isn't really the kind of thing I'd go for at all, but all the recent ROOT-love for it meant that I did at least look for it on my recent Barter Books trip. They didn't have any - I guess people are wanting to hang onto their copies to read again, rather than donate them to 2nd hand shops! I'll maybe look again when Mt TBR is a bit lower...

>116 Jackie_K: I think you might like it Jackie as the first 2 books take place entirely in the Scottish Highlands with Bonnie Prince Charlie. But be warned each book is at a minimum 800 pages in length and the one I'm reading now is over 1000 pages (book 4). There are 8 books so I figure this is about a year's worth of reading for me, at least while school is in session.

Hi guys! I re-read the first 4 books of the Outlander series and then read the last 4, for a total of 7,530 pages. Totally worth it, but it has greatly reduced the number of books I've read so far this year.

>117 Tess_W: and >118 karenmarie: wow. that's a lot of pages!
And I thought I was doing well w/ my ~4000 pages of the Otherland Series ;P

>118 karenmarie: Yes, I feel that it is hard to justify that many new pages when I still have so many existing TBRs. One day! (roll on retirement...)

>118 karenmarie: That's my constant debate with myself--number of books or number of pages? For a while it was number of books. Now I seem to focus on number of pages.

All this Outlander conversation is making me wonder if I should dust off my copy and reread at least the first three.

Read this as a requirement for teaching my online course at a Christian University. I thought it did an excellent job explaining the various theories on the view of how mankind/world originated. It was a quick read and nothing quirky or just plain stupid! 5 stars

>118 karenmarie: - >121 Sace: This is the first year I've (successfully) had a spreadsheet with books read. It is inspired by drneutron's statistics. I've made sure to include the number of pages in each book and the number of pages in the original edition for audiobooks. So far this year I've recorded 63 books; I've listened to the equivalent of 2,434 pages and read 22,916 pages. Quite a few chunksters this year for me - I've read 13 books of 500 pages or more.

>123 karenmarie: That's impressive! I bow to you. Chunksters are so hard for me. I've considered listening to audio books, but I don't have a long commute or anything so it's about 30 minutes a day (if there's traffic.) If it ever cools off I want to listen to books while I walk.

One thing I love about LT are all the stats available to me about my books.

>123 karenmarie: Karen, that's how I've "read" the first 3 Outlander books, I listened to them on audio Kindle to and from work (30 mins each way) and also when I'm in the kitchen cooking for any length of time. I think that's why it has taken me so long...about 7 months for the first 4 books, but I am enjoying another way to "read" a book. But when I lay down in my bed one hour before I need to go to sleep, I have my "real" book with me.

>124 Sace: and >125 Tess_W: I don't have a commute any more so don't have much time to listen to audiobooks. (I know, a nice problem to have!) I cannot sit still in the house to listen, and listening while doing things around the house just doesn't work for me. So I'm not sure if I'll ever listen to all 7 Harry Potter books again - I used to listen to them once every 18 months or so.

I love the stats, too, Karen. I also love downloading my catalog to Excel periodically and just fooling around with it to see what patterns emerge. :)

>97 Tess_W:, interesting point on Hedda Gabler - I really enjoyed the play when I first read it (and have enjoyed stage productions as well) as I read it more as Hedda increasingly desperate, trying to have control/power over *something* in her life as once she was married she lost any real ability to influence the world and realise her ambition (rather than her being spoiled and unaware of the consequences, I thought she was desperately trying to CAUSE something).

Her dolt of a husband and his emotional affair with the incredibly self-righteous Ms Elvsted (?) were the spoiled and hypocritical villains in the version I saw.

That said - most of my class agreed with you on both the *yawn* and the dislike of Hedda. I think this is one of those plays that people have wildly varying interpretations of - but I'm sorry it was a dud for you!

>127 Caramellunacy: A nice take on Hedda Gabbler that I had not thought of!

Finished book #4 in the Outlander series, Drums of Autumn and will begin book #5 this weekend after finishing my paper book, Black Hills. Teaching just 1 extra class is really cutting into my reading time!

I have opened a new book group, just a very casual group....Gothic Novels. Check us out! No number of books to read, no requirements, just a place to discuss the Gothic Novels, IF AND WHEN you ever read one!

What's a Gothic Novel, you ask? Everyone's definition will probably vary. I think a gothic novel, besides being written in the time period (1790-1900???) has elements of fiction, maybe romance, maybe horror. Gothic actually refers to a type of architecture, popular in the medieval age, where many of the novels take place. Subject matter often includes curses, madness, and mystery. In fact, my school librarian says Gothic novels are still written today if they contain the elements. Examples of Gothic Literature: Wuthering Heights, Jane Eyre, Rebecca, Frankenstein and hundreds more!

Hope to see you there!

http://www.librarything.com/groups/gothicnovels

I joined recently! (And added several Gothic novels to my shelves.)

>131 Sace: TY!

At long last I finally finished Black Hills. I was excited when I purchased this book because it was billed as historical fiction. It even had a picture of Mt. Rushmore on the cover! However, what was between the covers was mystical, dry, and boring. You might like it if you are one who likes "foreign" words (Lakota, Cheyenne, etc.) in every single sentence just because the author can! You might like it if you like ghosts inhabiting people. You might like it if you like jumping around from 1896 to 1937 to 1876, all within one chapter. You might like it if you would like to read a letter that the ghost of Custer would like to write to his still alive wife. You might like if you wanted the last 40 pages to be when a raven takes the main character on a ride into the future. But, none of that worked for me. 2 1/2 stars.

>133 Tess_W: I'm surprised you gave it that many stars from your review. There is nothing there that appeals to me. I absolutely adored his Darwin's Blade, however.

>134 karenmarie: To be honest, Karen, there were about 2 good chapters when Gutzon was chiseling away at the cheeks of Jefferson! I liked the history of Mt. Rushmore's construction; but there was way too little of that.

Hi Tess, Happy Sunday to you!

I keep track of my books read and the pages. But I did not total them. I have to search for a way to do that on LT. Or start a spreadsheet next year to keep track. I did read 19 chunksters though including all Outlander books.

>122 Tess_W: sounds very interesting! onto the wishlist it goes...

>126 karenmarie: oh, listening to HP every 18 months or so.. sounds like a great schedule! :)

I do listen to audio books during my "commute" -- it's only 15-20 minutes each way, but I listen at 1.5 speed and... I find that that's enough. But I don't know if I could do something really long w/ that. Probably ~500 pages is about the limit of my attention span for an audio book listened to at that speed....

>136 connie53: Hi Connie! I have a spreadsheet. I was inspired by drneutron's statistics and added pages read.

Well after being "sober" (not buying anybooks except Kindle reads for RL bookclub) for almost 2 years, I went off the deep end and bought 7 books on Kindle today to finish out my Righterous series. Well, at least they are not taking up any shelf space AND I got them at a steal for only $37 for 7 books! They are about the Mormon Cult, quite good! I read book 1 earlier this year. Michael Wallace is one of my favorite authors, especially his book Red Rooster (Le Cock Rouge).

Blood of the Faithful (Righteous Series Book 8)
Mighty and Strong (Righteous Series)
The Wicked (Righteous Series)
The Blessed and the Damned (Righteous Series)
Hell's Fortress (Righteous Series Book 7)
The Gates of Babylon (Righteous Series Book 6)
Destroying Angel (Righteous Series Book 5)

Since I'm only in book 5 of the Outlander Series, who knows when I will even have time to read them. They are just there...hanging around in the cloud!

Hi Tess! Wow. I'm impressed with your period of sobriety.

You must be liking Outlander to get to book 5.

>Love them! But they are so lengthy...I think the shortest is 750 pages!

Oooooh. That Righteous series looks really good. I just got one!

>139 Tess_W: Omigosh!! I went ahead and bought the first book in the series and added audible narration so I could start listening on the way home form work. IT'S SO GOOD. I only have a 10-15 minute drive, but I didn't find myself daydreaming while I listened. I have a hard time with audio books. I'm so glad I saw this today. I think this is one I'll be able to pay attention to!

>143 Sace: Sace, I also bought the audible and listened to it to and from work, but I have a 20-30 minute commute each way. I hope the rest of the series is as good as this one, but Wallace is one of my favorite authors.

>139 Tess_W: Nice haul! And you deserved to buy some new ones! Not buying anything for 2 years seems an impossible thing to do (for me, that is)

Just finished The Black Robe by Wilkie Collins. This was my second Collins book and I'm still trying to figure out why all the hype. This is the story of a very feeble minded (selfish in my opinion) man who has a nervous condition and is preyed upon by the Catholics to convert and hand over his estate to the Church. Of course, this entails leaving his wife, which he does. Father Benwell is very devious! Not a bad story, but lacks a punch! Continuing reading alphabetically by title I begin Black Lotus (Sano Ichiro Novels).

These Outlander books have really slowed my numbers down, but I'm loving them! I just finished The Fiery Cross (book 5). I really liked this book except for the ending. It seemed like it could have been a final ending, instead there are 3 more books to go! *****



I also finished Black Lotus by Laura Joh Rowland. I really do like books set in the ancient Orient, but this one was less than satisfying. The setting was Shogunate Japan, but it was a mystery and very superficial. I don't thing I learned one new thing about the time period. Easy, mindless read. ***



I now need to begin Go Set a Watchman for my RL bookclub and also I'm beginning A Town Like Alice on audio for my drives to and from school. Outlander will take a wee bit o rest!;)

Friends:
I've started my own group on LT: Gothic Novels. If you have ever read, or plan on reading a gothic novel, please join! It will not be a heavy posting group, as gothic novels are not real popular...but at least when you read one, pop on over!

http://www.librarything.com/groups/gothicnovels

>144 Tess_W: I finished the book and really enjoyed it. I'm eventually going to get to the other books in the series as well. I think I should poke about for a Gothic Novel to finish out the month ;-)

>149 Sace: Gothic is good for Halloween!

>150 Tess_W: it certainly is! And I have an old, dusty copy The House of Seven Gables sitting on my shelf!

I'm getting into the house remodeling mood. We have 2 spare bedrooms and they are both made up as guest rooms with queen beds, closets, nightstands, etc. I'm thinking I want one to be a library. we don't need 2 guest rooms....our grandkids don't like to sleep in them anyway...they prefer to sleep on the sofa or in the Lazy Boy. The smallest of the rooms is 8 x 10 feet. I think with bookshelves floor to ceiling on 3 walls it would make a nice cozy library. It has a window. Any suggestions or hints?

>152 Tess_W: My only suggestion would be to make sure that the structure supporting the room you want to make a library is strong enough to support the weight of the bookshelves + books.

>152 Tess_W: I never thought of that, but we live in a ranch with a full basement....so all of the rooms are on the cement block....but I will ask my carpenter son about the weight of the books on the wood floors...I would think it would be ok, but never hurts to ask.

>154 Tess_W: Ah, the cement block would definitely be better! But yes, I think better to make provisions now than to put all the books in and realize that the floor is starting to sag.

I found this picture, that I like for the shelves.....I would like shelves floor to ceiling with a fancy trim on two walls. Wall 3 has a closet door in it and wall 4 has a small window. I think for the time being I would like to keep those two walls open. I would like to get a lounge sofa, something in velvet, though, to feel luxurious for when I read, and it could also be used a bed for a guest. (like the bottom pic) I'm not sure of the color of my shelves...the floor is white oak with a natural stain and the current woodwork is white. I'm thinking dark, but that would make a tiny room even darker and smaller????? But aren't' most libraries dark? I was thinking perhaps gray shelving? Or peacock blue? The sky's the limit here--paint doesn't cost much! Give me some ideas!

>156 Tess_W: I think the color may depend on what you do with the other two walls. I like shelves to be the same color as the wall so the eye isn't drawn to the shelving...like in the bottom picture. What it all boils down to though is personal taste. I saw something new, to me at least, a few days ago where the paint store now has paper like the paint color samples come on and you can paint a large strip the color you want to try and put it on the wall. It can be easily removed, like a sticky note. Remodeling is lots of fun...and lots of frustration, but you'll figure out what you like.

Hi Tess! Congrats on getting a library! My library has 2 walls with floor to ceiling shelves. The carpet is a light Berber, the walls a pale yellow. The adjustable shelves are white. The furniture is dark wood for a nice contrast, but I personally like the white shelves to keep the room looking bigger.



Whatever you do will be wonderful, for sure.

>152 Tess_W: You're planning a library, oh, that's great! If I ever win the lottery, I'm prepared, I have mine planned. Wall-to-ceiling walnut shelves, Persian rugs, and some truly comfortable sofas. Looking forward to see yours!

>159 MissWatson: I think I am going to go dark with the shelving, Birgit....cherry, I think!

Love that library plan, Tess. I'm terrible with room decorations, so I'm not a big help there. If I could choose, I would go for the first picture with the sofa! The blue room is a bit too blue for me.

Oh fun! I'm looking forward to reading about the project. I'm a little jealous :-)

>161 connie53: Oh no Connie, no blue room for me...that is too much! But I liked the velvet sofa. I like the shelves on the first pic.

Just finished the delightful novel A Town Like Alice by Nevil Shute. A great story about a young woman, Jean Paget, who is taken prisoner by the Japanese in Malaya during WWII and marched for hundreds of miles to Singapore. She is witness to the cruelty of the Japanese, including the crucifixion of a man named Joe Harmon, who confessed to a crime that Jean really committed to save her from punishment. Jean returns to England but is dissatisfied with her humdrum life. A distant relative dies and leaves her quite wealthy. She decides to return to Malaya to look up some old friends and then decides to go to Australia to find Joe Harmon. This is just a great great book. ***** 5 stars! I'm off to begin book number 6 in the Outlander series now!

Thanks for the review, Tess! Watch my wishlist grow!

Hi Tess!

Just a quick hello after being away for 16 days - I'm just drawing a line in the sand and continuing on from here!

I'm experiencing very severe library envy here! I've no clue about decorating, but just the thought of floor to ceiling books makes me very happy!

Also, >164 Tess_W: I have that on my TBR pile. I did start it once (it was my RL book group book one month, some years ago), but had so much on that I didn't get very far with it. I remember being somewhat uncomfortable with the language used to portray certain groupos, but obviously it is very much 'of its time'. I certainly haven't written it off and am looking forward to getting to it some day.

>166 karenmarie: Hi Karen, glad to see you are back

>167 Jackie_K: I guess that "timely" language doesn't bother me because I'm so used to reading it as a historian/history teacher.

Hi Tess! I just added it to my wishlist, too.

>139 Tess_W: For going off the wagon, I think you showed remarkable restraint! :)
And 2 years... very impressive!

>146 Tess_W: This book has been recommended by coworkers... hmmmm, sounds like another book I should approach w/ managed expectations :)

>152 Tess_W: fun! Oh I love converting a room into a library! bookshelves and comfy chairs in an 8x10 room sounds lovely! Adding some non-overhead lights and throws and maybe a nice rug will round it out nicely :)

>153 rabbitprincess: >154 Tess_W: ... I have never considered that this would be an issue. I hope my rooms are all okay! ;)

>156 Tess_W: oooh I love the idea of a lounge sofa in velvet! And i love those pics :)
I don't think that dark shelves necessarily make the room smaller (dark walls can, depending on the lighting, size/shape of room, etc.), but the books themselves will probably close in the space a bit. That being said, making it more cozy is probably the goal, so I wouldn't worry about it :) Both gray and peacock blue sound great -- personally, I'd probably go the blue (or green) route -- adds some intrigue to the room :)

>158 karenmarie: huh, those white shelves really do change the look! I tend toward darker shelves (when I have the choice).. but that's pretty too!

I recently split up my books even more.. sort of the opposite of making a library! What used to be my "book nook" (you can see pics in my member gallery on my profile page) is becoming a parlor of sorts... it still has 3 bookshelves in there on 1 wall, but we're putting the liquor cabinet and "china" (my tea sets) in there along w/ the "piano" (electronic) and 4 chairs & a coffee table... then the living room has 2 large'ish shelves... and then I moved the rest upstairs into what I'm calling the imagination room, which serves as a craft room/art room/play room/reading room... 2 pics (just 2 different perspectives using the panoramic feature):

>170 avanders: very nice, Althethia!

Off school with some sort of crud today. Went to the minute clinic and I have an ear infection, sinus infection, and tonsillitis. 5 days of antibiotics and I will be as good as new. I will be back to school tomorrow. Hope I feel good enough to read this afternoon and evening. Tonight will be my comfort food: homemade macaroni and cheese! Hubby doesn't like this so he will cook his liver and onions--which I dont touch. We will have a communal salad and all will be well!

I always liked being sick enough to stay home but well enough to read. And homemade macaroni and cheese sounds wonderful.

>172 Tess_W: sorry to hear about your ear infection, sinus infection, AND tonsillitis!! Glad you are able to fix it relatively quickly/easily :)

>173 karenmarie: & I agree.. homemade mac & cheese does sound lovely!

Ok, so I've fallen off the two year of not buying books wagon twice in the last month....once when Amazon gave me $47 in a settled lawsuit (that I knew nothing about!) and then today on the way to the Dr's....that dang library was having a sale! All paperbacks 50cents. Most were picked over, but I came home with:

Rashi's Daughters by Maggie Anton
Stolen Prey by John Sanford
Embers by Sandor Marai
Incantation by Alice Hoffman
The Club Dumas by Arturo Peres-Reverte
The Beach Street Knitting Society and Yarn Club by Gil McNeil
The Last Time They Met Anita Shreve

Off they go to the shelves to take root!

I've got all three books in the "Rashi's Daughter's" series. I've only read the first two, but I really enjoyed them. What a stroke of luck to find them for 50 cents!

It's impressive enough that you didn't buy a book for 2 years, let alone spending less than $4 when you did start buying. I bow down to you! That is amazing!

I hope you're starting to feel better, even though it's early days still. Homemade mac & cheese is something that I keep screwing up, though I don't know what my problem is. For now I try once a year or so, and stick with Kraft the rest of the time. It's such a comforting food!

>172 Tess_W: Best wishes for a speedy recovery, Tess! And congrats on the lucky book find. Embers is on my TBR, too.

Good morning, Tess!

Excellent haul, and excellent prices!

I hope you're feeling better.

Thanks all, I THINK I'm feeling better, trying to convince myself of it anyway. I think all I have left is this crazy cough. I have teacher friends who have had "this" bronchitis and tell me the cough hangs on for weeks. Going to go fix myself and hubby a good hearty brunch now--fried potatoes, eggs, bacon, and cherry-almond scones.

>180 Tess_W: Oh I hope you avoid the cough. The cherry almond scones sound tasty. I'm getting hungry :-)

Don't know about your side of the pond, but here there have been some really nasty bugs doing the rounds over the past few months. I was floored with a viral chest infection for 6-7 weeks a few months ago, and then a month or so ago had a nasty cold which lasted 2+ weeks. No fun!

Your brunch sounds like excellent medicine though :)

>175 Tess_W: a perfectly good reason ;)
And some great books discovered, despite the shelves being picked over!

>180 Tess_W: glad you're starting to feel better.... convincing yourself of your improvement is at least half the battle anyway, right? ;)
Mmm your brunch is making me hungry!

Just finished book #94 for the year, A Breath of Snow and Ashes, Book #6 in the Outlander Series. I need a break from these, so I will save books #7 & 8 for my new reading year where my theme is going to be: Finish the Series! This one was good, but became a bit tedious in places. 4 stars. Going to read something light next........

Enjoy your light read! I think with world events as they are, some light reading is definitely called for :)

>184 Tess_W: Congratulations!!!! Wow...books one through six. That's a huge accomplishment. I admire your literary stamina :-)

Hi Tess!

I'm glad you're continuing the series, but rather than burning out and abandoning it, it makes sense to delay the last two for next year. Going to something light is good, too.

You do realize that there is a book 9, Go Tell The Bees That I Am Gone? Book 8 came out in 2014 and she has written on her website that it takes her 2-3 years to research and write a book. At a minimum it will be 2017 but more likely 2018-2019 'til it is actually published.

>187 karenmarie: It would take me that long to read them!

As well as Outlander, I have also never read any of the Harry Potter series, but am thinking I would like to. One day, when the TBR pile is a bit less daunting! ...

Hoping you are feeling better than excellent since your ENT gradoo. I am trying so very hard to avoid sick people and germs/bacteria/viruses. Taking an immunosuppressant forces you to gain a real awareness of possibilities of illness and what they can do. Thank Heaven I have done pretty well so far and what little immunity I have retained fights dirty when it encounters an invader.

Outlander is a great series but I agree that it can bog down at times. I loved it but was never able to plow through the series (or any other series, for that matter). I don't know if I lose interest or just can't pay attention past one book but I have to take breaks between books in a series. I'm the same way with a TV series. I have to move on to something else before I can go back and pick up where I left off.

How's the library coming? Any further ideas or plans?

>188 Jackie_K: I am a serious HP fan, having read the books twice and listened them oh, perhaps 5-6 times (while I was still commuting!)

Good morning, Tess!

>185 Jackie_K: true! I'm definitely NOT interested in reading anything heavy or morose right now!

>185 Jackie_K: LOL. I avoid heavy and morose as much as possible. Escapism only, please. :-)

>191 avanders: - >192 Sace: I picked up The Naked Mole Rat Letters by Mary Amato last night and it's a very funny YA romp. Definitely not heavy and definitely not morose. Even just the title makes me smile.

>193 karenmarie: the title does sound fun! Nice to find something light ;)

Finished Burying the Honeysuckle Girls by Emily Carpenter. I was really intrigued by the title, however that was the only intriguing aspect of this book. It's the story of 4 generations of women who "see" honeysuckle girls and a red crow. Althea is traumatized by her mother's untimely death and told by her dying mother "if the honeysuckle girl doesn't find you, you find her." It's the story of 4 southern women who seem to go crazy about age 30. All the characters, even from their names, are southern stererotypical. When the "mystery" was finally solved, it was very anti-climatic. There were so many characters and what with one chapter being 1937 and one being 2012, it was difficult to keep up with what characters were when. 2 stars 301 pages.

>187 karenmarie:, Yes, Karen, I did read that. My 2017 "theme" is going to be" Serious about the Series." I have 50+ books that complete series that I have already started and those are going to be my reading list for next year. I'll add that one!

>195 Tess_W: bummer :-/ At least it's done!

>196 Tess_W: I love the theme! :)

>189 enemyanniemae: No serious plans for the library, just mulling it over. Have to get a new roof and downspouts as the next house project, then gut a bathroom and replace, THEN the library. But planning is half the fun!

You'll definitely deserve your library after the disruption of a new roof!

>196 Tess_W: fifty??!? I can see how you're going to have to make a theme of it. Sounds fun, though.....

>198 Tess_W: We just finished up a bunch of house projects - I definitely know how that goes! Good luck with all of them, especially the library.

If I don't post this now, I will forget! Currently reading Mrs. Queen Takes the Train. It is amusing in parts, a novel based off of Queen Elizabeth II. This quote, "The Queen would rather give Mr. Putin a pedicure than go to a rock concert." Just tickled my funny bone!

>201 Tess_W: I thought this was a fun book. I can certainly see how she could decide to walk away one day when she wasn't under watch.

>201 Tess_W: lol great line! ;)

Another fun book about Queen Elizabeth II is The Uncommon Reader by Alan Bennett. The premise is wonderful: When her corgis stray into a mobile library parked near Buckingham Palace, the Queen feels duty-bound to borrow a book.

>204 karenmarie: That book is on my wish list, Karen!

Hi Tess! We read The Uncommon Reader for book club in 2008. It was one of my favorite reads for that year.

Just finished Mrs. Queen Takes the Train. It was a slightly amusing albeit predictable book about the "fictional" Queen Elizabeth II who goes off on her own and sneaks a ride on the public train. 3 1/2 stars

Tomorrow I'm leaving on a little vacation to sunny Florida so the warm sugar sand beaches of the Gulf Coast. Only 5 days but since it was only 19 degrees (F) when I left for work this morning, I'm ready! Got my Kindle and a paperback and am ready to soak up the sun and read read read! We always stay across from Holmes Beach and Anna Maria Island.

Sounds great, I hope you have a relaxing 5 days.

Enjoy you trip!

Have a wonderful break - it sounds amazing! It's freezing here (literally), so beach and sun sound perfect to me!

I hope you enjoy your trip, Tess. Somewhere warm and sunny sounds wonderful right about now.

Look at you reading all those Outlander books. I only read the one but am considering a second one. I attended a workshop given by Diana Gabaldon at the Surrey International Writer's Conference. She was talking about underpainting - all that description she puts in that adds depth to the story. She went through a few of the passages of one of her books and showed us how she added things to come up with the affect that she wanted.

TY all, I had a wonderful time! I visited, ate too much, shopped too much, and ate almost every meal outside on the beach--it was wonderful! I was able to get some reading in and finished another book I started before I left: Parnassus on Wheels by Christopher Morley. To me this story could be interpreted 2 ways: 1) "charming" story of a rolling bookstore or 2)a lady entering a man's world. This wasn't a deep book nor did it contain anything rollicking funny. The best phrase to describe it is quaintly amusing. 3 stars

>211 Familyhistorian: I'm addicted to those Outlander Books! Really, for me, they are more than just entertainment. There is so much accurate history in them that I have probably done 10-12 hours of research from just reading the first book concerning the Jacobite Uprising, Bonnie Prince Charlie, and the Battle of Culloden. Before reading this book, I only knew the English "side" and I find this entire thing just fascinating!

Hi Tess! Glad you had a great time.

>211 Familyhistorian: Hi Meg - interesting word 'underpainting'. I have loved the books because they were so detailed and nuanced.

>212 Tess_W: So glad you had a nice trip. The Gulf Coast is one of my favorite places.

That sounds fabulous - I am very jealous of your trip, but am really pleased you had such a good time.

>211 Familyhistorian: That does sound like a really interesting concept, and it makes so much sense.

>207 Tess_W: >212 Tess_W: sounds like a lovely trip! Eating almost every meal outside on the beach sounds perfect! :)

Finished The Buried Book by D.M. Pulley and it was a real clunker! The story moved very slow and it was also very predictable. I read about 50% of this book and listened to the other 50% on my way to and from work. The reading on the audio was also terrible! This is the story of 9 year old Jasper who is left with his aunt and uncle by his mother who has gotten herself involved in organized crime. Jasper suffers some really brutal physical injuries from beatings and then when a tornado throws him for miles. The audio was narrated by Luke Daniels and the only 2 voices he had was a child's voice and a real deep forced yelling voice. Both book and audio--2 stars! Now, I go in search of about 2 books to finish me out for the year--with a Christmas theme!

>218 Tess_W: Oh I hate that you had such a clunker! I hope your next one is better!

>218 Tess_W: Sorry, too, Tess. I abandon books - last week I abandoned Tishomingo Blues by Elmore Leonard after getting almost halfway through, about 200 pages. Just couldn't stomach the idea of continuing.

Next year I'm going to have a separate spreadsheet tab to keep track of pages read before abandonment - I'm not kidding when I say I've probably read 400-500 pages this year but never finished the books.

Good luck on the next two.

>218 Tess_W: sorry the last book was a chore. I'm with Karen- I toss a book when it no longer interests me/never got my interest in the first place. In the latter instance, I will give it about 50 pages. It used to be 100. Hahaha.

>221 enemyanniemae: I don't usually finish books that I don't like; but this one was on the edge..I kept thinking it would get better!

Serendipity for me today! Got out my Christmas cards from last year and found an Amazon gift card, unused in one! So..........here's my haul:

The Girl Who Drank the Moon
The Beautiful Pretender (A Medieval Fairy Tale)
Stalin's Daughter: The Extraordinary and Tumultuous Life of Svetlana Alliluyeva
The Last Jew of Treblinka: A Memoir
The Suspect: A true story of love, betrayal, marriage and murder
Ashley's War: The Untold Story of a Team of Women Soldiers on the Special Ops Battlefield

>223 Tess_W: Serendipity indeed! I was considering Yukon Ho! as my next read, but then went for one I haven't read yet. But I think I'll curl up with Hobbes first.

Wow! An unused Amazon card from a year ago. Aren't you the clever one! Good haul.

Wow, that's a great find! I'd really like to read Stalin's Daughter.

>223 Tess_W: Woo hoo! What luck!! Those books look interesting. I've put The Beautiful Pretender on my amazon wishlist.

>223 Tess_W: whaaaaa... that would never happen w/ me ;)
Nice haul!

>223 Tess_W: Great haul, Tess. See, you do get rewarded when doing the yearly tasks!

Finished 1000 White Women by Jim Fergus This was an odd/interesting read. It was totally fiction, except for one character, but it read like hard-core historical fiction. An important Cheyenne Chief requested of the Grant administration the gift of one thousand white women as brides for his young warriors. Although the request was an actual historical event,the story of May Dodd and her journals is entirely a work of fiction by the author. The Cheyenne's request was not well received by the white authorities and the Cheyenne's were actually sent home. The white women did not go. But in this novel, the white women did go and this is the story of May Dodd, as told from her surviving journals. This was a great premise for a novel, but the writing was rough and used a lot of cliches. Then ending seemed rushed and unfinished. 3 stars

Today begins Christmas Break, teachers be like:

https://youtu.be/OgHnrK-EYX4

Happy holiday break, Tess!

Enjoy your break, Tess - you (and all teachers) thoroughly deserve it! I couldn't do your job in a million years, so I definitely reckon those holidays are well-earned!

>232 MissWatson: TY, Birgit!

>231 Tess_W: Perfect video! That is exactly how I felt Friday afternoon!

>230 Tess_W: ooooh. That's on my shelves. I didn't know it was fiction!!
Interesting... thanks for the informative review!

Enjoy your holiday break!

And some holiday cheer on your page as well!

>237 avanders: TY Ava!

My 100th and last read for 2016, Winter Garden by Kristin Hannah. This was a predictable read told by episodic fairy tales. The section on survival in Leningrad during the German invasion was very good. 3 1/2 stars.

I decided to see how my reading year "went" as far as reading pleasure. So did a few statistics. I am surprised that I had as many "2"'s as I did; that's not usual! But the good news is that 69% of my reads were average-superior, with 43% being over average (3). I'm hoping even more next year!

For the year:
1-2 2%
2-16 13%
2 1/2-20 17%

3-31 26%
3 1/2-13 11%
4-18 15%
4 1/2-2 2%
5-18 15%

>239 Tess_W: I'm normally skeptical of statistics (as the are often used as ammo against teachers), but I LOVE these statistics. Will you be making any data driven decisions based on them? hee hee.

Did the Santhting this year and I received 3 VERY lovely books:

Someone Knows My Name: A Novel
Madame Tussaud: A Novel of the French Revolution
The Innocent Man: Murder and Justice in a Small Town

AND THEN!!!!!!!!!!! Between my husband, my chillin (lol, children), and students at school I got the following:

The Thorn Birds I have an original 1980's copy that has been read at least 4 times and it's in bad shape, going to pitch it and re-read this book, one of my all time favs. And this type of book is so unlike me...I don't know@

4 Elizabeth Gaskell Books: North and South Cranford Wives and Daughters and Mary Barton. Now, they are paper books. However, they are all free on Kindle! (Oh well, as gifts I personally did not pay for them!)

Ok, need to find room on the shelves and then get to reading!

Stopping by to say Happy Holidays!

Ooh sounds like Santa was very good to you!

>243 Jackie_K: very good, Jackie! Besides the books I got a couple of candles, a gift card to a restaurant, and a one of those big industrial type stand mixers with the slicer/shredder attachment. I've never had one of those before in my entire life. Since my kids are gone I'm not sure I will be using it as much as I would have when they were younger, but I can't wait to get a good bread recipe and begin to use it.

>241 Tess_W: >244 Tess_W: It sounds like a great haul!

Tess; you made my day. What a brilliant Christmas card. I love it. Thank you so much nd I hope your Christmas was wonderful.
warm & gentle hugs to you............
belva

Hi Tess!

>241 Tess_W: Cranford is a lovely book, slow and detailed, yet if you write down all the events that take place in its pages, full of drama, courage, and tragedy.

A Belated Merry Christmas to you. I'm venturing out into the LT world again today, baby steps at first, and am going to draw another line in the sand and go forward on all the threads and friends I haven't had the heart to engage in and with lately. Appropriate oohs and aahs, and congratulations and so sorrys,..... but here's an Early Happy New Year to you and best wishes for all good things in 2017.

>239 Tess_W: you inspired me to do the same.. ;P I didn't store the information anywhere (I had written it all on the back of an envelope that was actually my dad's mail), but I was kind of surprised to see how many 4s I gave this year! I felt like I was more critical this year, yet over 50% of my reads still got 4s. ;P ah well, I suppose it's not bad that I think everything is pretty great ;D

>241 Tess_W: yay!!! I LOVE SantaThing and I'm so happy to hear you are excited about your books!
Awesome re all your book scores this Christmas!

>244 Tess_W: ohhh sounds like a wonderful day all around! :)

With this post I say goodbye to 2016! May you and yours have a very happy New Year. I hope to see you again in the 2017 ROOT boards!

>Same to you, Tess!

Happy New Year & see you in the new 2017 group!