Susan/quondame has her nose in a book 2021 - 4

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Susan/quondame has her nose in a book 2021 - 4

1quondame
Set 1, 2021, 4:22 pm



The year is getting on. I've read lots of books. My back reminds me daily how old it is and how I've misused it and my knees chime in with complaints and refusals. But there is air conditioning when I don't like the weather, dogs, a large variety of good food, a husband I get along with, a daughter who is a delight and did I say dogs? I may get another one of those before the year is out. Oh and books, lots and lots of books! I will get more of those.

2quondame
Modificato: Set 1, 2021, 8:57 pm

204) The Lost Apothecary



If you want a rich version of woman learns lesson from history that puts her life on a better track read Household Gods. This is a tin version, a fun read as long as you don't require any reality, which somehow is shabby in a book which is at least partly about facing reality. Poisoning off the bastards is great fun though.
In 1791 the Duke of Clarence was one of the Royals and unmarried, and the use of Lord Clarence shows no real interest in historical accuracy. Not that the real Clarence didn't deserve poisoning, but many did who weren't.

Read for August TIOLI Challenge #14: Read a book or work (fiction or non fiction) in which the characters or subjects read and discuss their reading

3johnsimpson
Set 1, 2021, 4:37 pm

Hi Susan my dear, Happy New Thread dear friend.

4drneutron
Set 1, 2021, 7:08 pm

Happy new thread, Susan!

5karenmarie
Set 1, 2021, 8:45 pm

Hi Susan, and happy new thread.

I like the clock. Hey - you didn't mention dogs. You like dogs, don't you?

6PaulCranswick
Set 1, 2021, 8:49 pm

Happy new thread, Susan.

7Whisper1
Set 1, 2021, 8:51 pm

Happy New Thread Susan! Truly, I understand your comment about a weak back. Hopefully, your pain is tolerable. And, of course, I can relate about lots and lots of books. I believe there are approximately 3,000 in this two-storied house with a basement and attic...Lots of space to store books, including under the bed.

And, I also love dogs. Lilly is getting older. She is nine. When I recently took her to the vet, when I asked how long Shetland Sheep dogs live, he said 14 or 15 years. I hope it will be longer. She is my dear, sweet dog who keeps me company during a rainy night.

Our neighborhood sustained many flooded basements. My basement is fine, but there is a high window at the top left side of the house. I won't go up those pull-down steps until my grand daughter is here tomorrow.

I hope you are enjoying a book this evening, and are safe from storms.

8FAMeulstee
Set 2, 2021, 5:29 am

Happy new thread, Susan!

>1 quondame: What a lovely book clock, clever idea.
Enjoy your books, dogs, good food, good company, AC, and dogs :-)
Another dog? Do you miss your dachshund, or longing for a Frenchie of your own?

9SandyAMcPherson
Set 2, 2021, 10:06 am

>1 quondame: Hi Susan, "Happy New Thread"! I liked your summary of the pluses that bring joy to your life.

I sure hear you about the back reminding us of how age takes a toll. I didn't adapt well to prolonged travel strain. However, a course of 'Robaxacet' alternated with Naproxen and the success of treatment by my wonderful physiotherapist has put it to rights.

>2 quondame: Household Gods sounds intriguing.

10richardderus
Set 2, 2021, 3:11 pm

Happy new thread!

11richardderus
Set 2, 2021, 7:28 pm

Normally I am a person who Knows My Own Mind. Startling, I realize, for you to hear this...as I've always been such a soft-spoken crowd-goer-alonger.

Stop laughing.

Anyway. I need help. The wisdom of the crowd is sought to help be decide between two equally strong contenders for Read of the Month. I am simply incapable to unparalyzing myself from the FOMO I get thinking about this problem.

Please vote on the poll or you will be directly responsible for my re-admission to the Goofy Garage this birthmonth.

12quondame
Set 2, 2021, 8:25 pm

>3 johnsimpson: Thank you!

You get

14quondame
Set 2, 2021, 8:39 pm

>7 Whisper1: Thank you.

I don't mean to imply for a minute that my back issues are anything close to yours or my knee issues like karenmarie's. No, not a bit. My spine is doing the old age disappearing, so that while my hair now reaches much further down, that's mostly because there's maybe 2" less for it to go. I have to be sure to stretch my back out every morning first thing and that lets me get through the day. Occasionally the lower part of my back locks up and without Mike to push at it and unlock it that's been a bummer, but it just means I do even less more slowly. He should be back on line soon. As for the knee, it's more like it's sending warnings. I know there's arthritis there and I know I should drop a few kilos, but they are ever so sticky.

I've left the majority of our books uncounted - when I first joined LT I entered most of a shelf of the books in my husbands office and all of the books from 10 year of reading that were on Goodreads, but there are still 3 double shelved cases in the office and all the hardbacks uncatalogued.

Not enough good can be said about dogs. They are just the best thing humans ever did for ourselves. Nutmeg is at my ankle chewing on something and making snorty noises.

So. Calif. weather remains decent. Except of course where there are fires, but that's not here in the middle of the city. We could have an earthquake, but haven't scheduled one. And none of the houses on this hill were much damaged in recent ones.

I do need to glom onto the right book just now. My reading hasn't been suiting my mood on the last few.

15quondame
Set 2, 2021, 8:40 pm

>10 richardderus: Thank you.

>11 richardderus: Really? Nope, if you can't decide between those two go for something completely different.

16weird_O
Set 2, 2021, 9:54 pm

My granddaughter Claire went back to college last week, then felt like she was getting a cold, then noticed she couldn't smell either the beans or the brew. Tested positive and was sent into quarantine until next Tuesday. So her mother is taking their schnoodle Iris to keep Claire company until then. So, yeah, the right dog is a good companion when you can't have human contact.

17quondame
Set 2, 2021, 9:57 pm

>16 weird_O: Oh I so hope Claire recovers quickly and without any lingering problems. It's a major bummer just to come down ill at the start of term - I was once locked in isolation for rubella at the university hospital for the first week. Iris should do her a world of good.

18msf59
Set 2, 2021, 10:19 pm

Happy New Thread, Susan. I like that bookish topper.

19quondame
Modificato: Set 4, 2021, 6:21 pm

204) The Diabolical Miss Hyde



There are just so many things that don't work well in this book that it's hard to articulate what does work, but it fits under guilty pleasure if it fits anywhere. Lots and lots happens, all sorts of classic monsters are referenced or make appearances, and hardly any of it comes together cleanly, but it does sort of have its own quirky momentum.

Meets September TIOLI Challenge #8: Read a book where the authors last name has 7 characters or less

20jnwelch
Set 3, 2021, 3:09 am

Happy New Thread, Susan. Dogs and books and a congenial hubby and a/c when it’s hot out - ingredients for a good life.

21karenmarie
Set 3, 2021, 10:31 am

>14 quondame: Not enough good can be said about dogs. They are just the best thing humans ever did for ourselves. Nutmeg is at my ankle chewing on something and making snorty noises. Sweet Nutmeg.

Our kitties make cute noises, too - snoring, grooming snuffles, and they all talk quite a bit, with distinctively different meows and purrs.

22weird_O
Set 3, 2021, 12:48 pm

>17 quondame: Thanks re: Claire. I don't think she's suffering from viral symptoms, since she was vaxxed months ago. It's the isolation and the moment in time, as you pointed out.

23quondame
Set 4, 2021, 12:58 am

>20 jnwelch: Welcome! They sure are!

>21 karenmarie: Pets are the best. I've been known to watch a video or 20. I'm allergic so I have to keep some distance

>22 weird_O: I'm glad to hear she's symptom free. And yes, it is absolutely the wrong moment, but she's probably got lots of company being alone.

24quondame
Modificato: Set 4, 2021, 6:21 pm

205) Trunk Music



Twisty with burst of violence, Bosch is on a new murder with a new team in this long but excellently paced case. There is still plenty of Bosch working by himself when he follows leads to Las Vegas and get complications that have complications.

Oh is it ever a relief to read a really well written, compelling, book after so many that just made it an effort to get back into whatever their virtues or whimsies.

Meets September TIOLI Challenge #13: Read a book for the Readers Imbibing Peril challenge

25humouress
Set 4, 2021, 3:38 am

Happy new thread Susan!

26quondame
Set 4, 2021, 6:19 pm

>25 humouress: Thank you!

27quondame
Modificato: Set 5, 2021, 9:02 pm

206) Shockaholic



Anecdotes from the inimitable Ms Fisher. Some overlap with Wishful Drinking, but more scatological about her stepfather Karl and more intense about Eddie Fisher and her last days caring for him. With a splendid bit about her dealing with that jerk, Ted Kennedy. Oh, yes, and shock treatments, but that's gotten through and left behind before the good stuff.

Read for September TIOLI Challenge #5: Read a book written by a relative of a famous person, state the relationship

28karenmarie
Set 5, 2021, 11:22 am

Hi Susan!

>24 quondame: I’ve been completely enamored with Michael Connelly’s books since at least 2007, when I added some to my catalog. Well written and compelling – yes. I still regret not keeping a reading log before LT.

29quondame
Modificato: Set 5, 2021, 8:47 pm

>28 karenmarie: That's likely a common regret. I've kept a log since 2007 which I imported, but it's just a list of books and completion dates and I would love to have a more complete one for like oh, the whole 60 odd years of my reading life.

Well, I'm likely to be limping about, slightly stoned, for a while. Friday my right big toe was tendre, Saturday it was uncomfortable and Sunday it woke me up with pain and would not let me get back to sleep. So Sunday morning was spent at Kaiser urgent care getting blood tests and antibiotics and prescriptions.

The toe is certainly infected and may be gouty. Oh joy. It may have been helped to this state by a small dog, but that will never be known. But the small dog is not getting more play time with my feet just now. Too bad because she's in here demanding toy pulls and that's easiest with my feet.

30quondame
Modificato: Set 7, 2021, 1:21 am

207) The Victory Garden



Readable drivel. Emily is stifled by her social climbing parents who won't let her participate in any meaningful way in the war effort and when she turns 21 in 1918, this almost universally likable pretty spunky young woman joins the Land Girls Army and goes through a clearly marked path of challenges and woes. And for a book which takes digs at social climbing it can't move the titled big house out of the center of the picture.

Read for September TIOLI Challenge #1: Read a book, in which the last three letters of the author's first name or last name, spelled backwards, form a real word which can be found in dictionary.com

31SandyAMcPherson
Modificato: Set 5, 2021, 10:28 pm

>29 quondame: Hi Susan, sorry to read about the potentially gouty situation and infected toe. I hope it is "only" an infection and that the meds clear it up. Gout is a dreadfully painful disease.

>30 quondame: I love your description of Rhys Bowen's book, Readable drivel. Indeed. I've tried a few of this author's novels and the only one I finished (silly me to bother) was A Royal Pain. I kept seeing quite a number of acclaimed novels by Rhys but I guess this author's style of narrative is simply not to my taste.

It took me awhile, I'm with the crew who advise Life is too short to waste on unsatisfactory books. This is especially pertinent to me because I'm a very slow reader and a book that probably takes you one evening will take 3x that for me!

(Edited at least 3 times, 'cause I'm trying to get used to a new computer/sensitive keyboard).

32ronincats
Set 5, 2021, 10:15 pm

I hear you about the back and knees, not at the level of Linda and Karen respectively, but just general aging. Hope the toe clears up without complications. Sorry your reading hasn't been better. I do enjoy the Royal Spyness books by Bowen, but just for fun.

33LovingLit
Set 6, 2021, 1:23 am

>27 quondame: I read Wishful Drinking a while ago now, and wasn't that fussed with it. I really admire her though, and wanted to like it more.

34jjmcgaffey
Set 6, 2021, 3:55 am

I've never gotten into the Royal Spyness, nor her Irish books, but I like a good many of her Ewan books (police procedurals in the Welsh(?) countryside).

35SandyAMcPherson
Set 6, 2021, 9:57 am

>34 jjmcgaffey: What Ewan books? This sounds intriguing. I do like me Brit-police procedurals.

36karenmarie
Set 6, 2021, 11:14 am

>29 quondame: I’m sorry about the infected and possibly gouty toe. Anything that interferes with walking properly absolutely sucks.

37jjmcgaffey
Set 6, 2021, 3:57 pm

Evans Above (Evan, not Ewan...oops) is the first one. They're fun (even aside from the punny titles).

38SandyAMcPherson
Set 6, 2021, 6:21 pm

>37 jjmcgaffey: I decided to borrow Evans Above, since Overdrive actually had an e-book available.
I'll see if it's my style of mystery... although I may have to delve deeper into the series. The reviews didn't look encouraging.

39jjmcgaffey
Set 6, 2021, 6:22 pm

It's pretty pure fluff. But as I recall (it's been a while since I read it, and apparently I didn't review it here), it was good fluff.

40quondame
Set 6, 2021, 7:54 pm

>34 jjmcgaffey: She writes well enough and knows how to pace, so given some actual characters and and something to make a real plot I can imagine a much better book.

>36 karenmarie: No kidding. A bad foot throws everything off, and I spend 20min every morning just stretching my back and legs to get close to on.

Today was back to urgent care at 10:00AM from which I emerged after 4:00PM - more tests and 2 rounds of IV antibiotics and a shift change, blood tests and xray. The xray was clear and the infection is slightly less bad, but a literal line has been drawn around the inflamed area and I'm to get to the emergency if the red spreads beyond the line.

41karenmarie
Set 6, 2021, 9:11 pm

Oh wow, Susan, what an awful day. I hope the rounds of IV antibiotics keep it in check - no straying outside the red line!!

42quondame
Set 7, 2021, 1:01 am

>41 karenmarie: And back I go tomorrow. It would be much worse if I didn't have the kindle with me. I've got a lot of reading done.

43quondame
Set 7, 2021, 1:43 am

208) The Lost Sisters



The events are familiar, the viewpoint has been shifted. Regret and forgiveness are anything but straightforward.
Meets September TIOLI Challenge #13: Read a book for the Readers Imbibing Peril challenge

209) The Long Take



A long poem in love with its own noirity that substitutes modern sensibility and language for that of the post WWII decade and expects us to accept that. I didn't. A lost soul condemning itself to a slow decline in the dark side of LA's self-remake of the 1950s, it makes its points but however much the Scott gets LA it's the tinsel town LA he's got.

This came up on Crazymamie's thread.

Meets September TIOLI Challenge #3: Read a book where the author’s first and last name start with the same letter

210) The Book of Atrix Wolfe



There are scraps of this fantasy that always stay with me. And it is so rich that it has always been a fulfilling read.

Read for September TIOLI Challenge #7: Read a book with the word "BOOK" in the title

44quondame
Set 7, 2021, 2:26 am

I just found the time setting on my profile was set at EDT. So I reset it to PDT. I wonder how long it changed before I noticed it.

45richardderus
Set 7, 2021, 11:09 am

>44 quondame: A lot of confusion is now avoided.

Gout plus infection. O.W.W.

Massive improvement soon *whammys*.

46quondame
Set 7, 2021, 4:32 pm

Today I spent less that 3 hours at Urgent Care. Yes the foot is better, add another antibiotic since it was yesterday's antibiotic that probably made the big difference. Keep a close watch. Tomorrow the podiatrist and Thursday a check up at UC.

>45 richardderus: It's looking more infection and less gout at this point. I'll ask more about that tomorrow though. At least I was able to get some decent sleep the last two nights.
Thanks.

47quondame
Set 7, 2021, 11:45 pm

I'm 40% into a long book and went to look up when I purchased it only to find I'd read it 3 years ago and rather liked it - but nothing seemed familiar about it. What was going on in July 2018? And do I continue reading or go on to the next due library book or a book to meet another challenge......

48Berly
Set 8, 2021, 12:21 am

Sorry about the toe! I vote for infection over gout. I hope the antibiotics continue to improve the situation. Dang.

If you are enjoying the book this time round, read it again. If it's only so so, let it go.

49karenmarie
Set 8, 2021, 6:44 am

Bummer about all the medical visits, glad that you have the availability of all the medical visits. I hope today's and tomorrow's visits bring more relief and good news.

Thank goodness for your Kindle.

50SandyAMcPherson
Set 8, 2021, 9:17 am

>47 quondame: The scenario of reading a book, then discovering you had read it before...
that was when I started a spreadsheet to record all my non-work-related reading. Some 25 years ago now (before I'd ever heard of LT).

It's strange ~ both how many books I've recorded both here and the old spreadsheet, and have very little stick with me ~ and how some have persevered in my mind. Perhaps I delude myself, because some re-reads have been decidedly startling as to how much I had forgotten of the plot.

Thinking back to July 2018 ~ what sticks in my mind for our area were all the huge wildfires and so much smoke that confined us indoors to places with good air purification.

Just for laughs I looked at my first entries on LT (April 2017): Witch World and Lavender-Green Magic by Andre Norton.

51richardderus
Set 8, 2021, 1:37 pm

Wow...what were the first books I cataloged in 2006? Hm. Ezra Pound's ABC of Reading was numero uno. I wonder why...first book that came to hand, probably.

52quondame
Modificato: Set 8, 2021, 2:09 pm

Well the podiatrist is pretty sure it's gout with infection added. I'm to drink lots of water and not drink Rooibos because that has some association with kidney stones, so yetch, water.

>49 karenmarie: Yes, medical help when required is a real privilege, though that's sort of sad.

>50 SandyAMcPherson: I think it's the book rather than the environment. It has been a very easy read, without anything that shocks or disturbs me or that are my favorite or most despised tropes.

>51 richardderus: I transferred what was in Goodreads and added in missed volumes from my list back to 2006. Though I suspect my first additions were from my costume and clothing construction shelves.

53jjmcgaffey
Set 8, 2021, 2:42 pm

The first book I entered into LT was One Good Knight by Mercedes Lackey in March 2007 - possibly I'd just read it? Or that's just where I decided to start entering stuff (since the next many books are also Mercedes Lackey - a weird choice, but it worked.

The first book I noted as read on LT was Field of Thirteen by Dick Francis, in August 2007. Took me a little while to start using the reading dates, I suspect...though not as long as I'd thought, I thought it was a year or two later that I joined the 75 Book Challenge and started noting dates.

Ooh, and looking for this I found a neat bug - using the Charts & Graphs month of review to look at my catalog, but clicking to re-sort changed the filter from Review Date: 2008-01 to Publication Date: 2008-01. Very odd!

54richardderus
Set 8, 2021, 3:36 pm

>52 quondame: I can honestly say it's extremely likely to be gout because 1) you woke up in the middle of the night in severe pain b) you drink rooibos (calcium! no no no no!) and iii) the infection's in the right great toe.

No juice. No tea. No acidic anything. Plain water, sugarless black coffee, or bust.

I have over 40 years' experience...trust me.

55SandyAMcPherson
Set 9, 2021, 10:56 am

Susan, so sorry you've been inflicted with gout.
I'm surprised by RD saying 'nothing acidic' because the gastric juices keep things acidic until the large colon.

I don't have gout, but the hubs does, and one of the biggest no-no's that have a credible physiological basis is the frequent consumption of seafood in the shellfish category and organ meats.
As for water, my MIL who also had gout, drank water only under the strictest advice from the physician and pressure from her immediate family. We found adding about a tablespoon of freshly-squeezed lemon juice to 500 mL water ameliorated her dislike of water.

56quondame
Set 9, 2021, 4:03 pm

>54 richardderus: >55 SandyAMcPherson: Since I like tart flavors above sweet ones, lowering the acid content is going to be a challenge. Seafood has been rare other than tuna, and I just won't increase the levels. Not that I'm going to make major dietary changes without consulting an internist and getting a more systemic approach than that of a podiatrist looking at a single toe. It's not quite at the enemy action stage, having not even passed coincidence. Of course I could assign all toe joint pain to gout, and that seems as likely as anything else since I've been diligent in avoiding any shoe that presses on that big toe joint since my 30s and wasn't much into them before, styles being what they were.

I do OK with water and it's so much quicker to get it from the fridge door than brewing or even reheating what I've brewed of the Rooibos - that doesn't get bitter like tea with over brewing or sitting.

The toe is very much improved and much less painful to walk on or touch, though it remains bright red, swollen, and even a bit shiny. All topped by a jagged white toenail which I don't want to clip just now, thinking point objects and infected flesh a bad juxtaposition. It's a bummer that I'm not allowed to drive, as insurance companies seem to think driving with an inflamed toe reckless. I do hope that doesn't last long.

57richardderus
Set 9, 2021, 6:06 pm

Gout is the excess of uric ACID in your bloodstream...need I go on?

No...driving while gouty-but-untreated is an awful idea. A study of "unintended acceleration" accidents showed a high correlation between those and gout sufferers. It's kinda logical, since the onset of the stabbys induces violent responses in the most equanimous of us.

58quondame
Modificato: Set 9, 2021, 7:48 pm

211) Starless



I have taken .5 star from my rating of this because I remembered nothing from it until very close to the end when a single detail was slightly familiar. It's a good read but really so unoriginal that it melts into the background of fantasy quests collage even with its gender ambiguous character.

Review from 2018:
A complete save-the-world fantasy with a good combination of new and classical elements. It brought home the advantage a very young protagonist being educated outside the mainstream of the action has in presenting world building. I found the first ⅔ of the narrative more enjoyable as the we follow our protagonist prepare for the roll of shadow or protector of the young princess, finally meet the young princess and embark on the voyage to a new home which takes an unexpected turn. After that it becomes more of a Baron Munchausen tale of overcoming overwhelming challenges with the special talents of a special crew. There are even zombies. My least favorite adversaries. The pace is sprightly throughout, the quick changes of scene in the last ⅓ make it a bit frenetic. The characters are very well done, the world intriguing, though desert strongholds are pretty routine, and the plot original enough and angled enough from norm to be worthwhile.

I read this because the title caught my eye as I was scrolling though my Kindle contents and I'm glad it
Meets September TIOLI Challenge #4: Read a book where “bestselling author” is included somewhere on the cover

59quondame
Set 10, 2021, 10:19 pm

My right big toe continues to improve. My sister said that if it was just the gout the pain can go away hours after taking Colchicine, but that wasn't at all what I experienced. Even with the pain meds, it hurt almost as much the next day and only markedly improved after the second antibiotic IV.

60SandyAMcPherson
Set 10, 2021, 10:42 pm

>59 quondame: It seems quite fashionable these days to have gout as the diagnostic answer to pain in the big toe. Or in the foot.

Myself, that was a doctor's comment when my toe joint became rapidly swollen overnight. A blood test showed right away I had no uric acid levels that are diagnostic for gout.
I have a great drugstore, so I asked the pharmacist, and was recommended an over-the-counter topical gel-ointment containing an absorbable NSAID to treat inflammation. Worked like a hot damn and within a few hours, no pain at all.
Turned out some footgear I had was stressing an osteoarthritic joint.

Yeah I know. This isn't a medical thread... but I was so delighted to find inflammatory relief, that I keep this OTC medication on hand for my poor old swollen knuckles when I've overdone gardening chores.

Anyway, I really hope the antibiotics do the trick and you'll regain some pain-free mobility (spinal pains aside, which seem to be an everlasting 'bugbear').

61quondame
Set 11, 2021, 12:32 am

>60 SandyAMcPherson: One of the first things I did was put some of that jell, which I have for my thumbs, on the joint. It made no difference. I have no doubt of the infection, the heat and the sort of pain and the movement of the redness were consistent with that. And my uric acid is slightly high. The podiatrist says that uric acid levels sometimes drop once the offending chemical has crystalizing in the joints taking it out of the blood. Since my sister had gout, probably at about my age, I have always considered it a possibility and mentioned it when I went for a check up in July, but I see that Dr. did not order a uric acid level. Oh well.
My sister is an MD/PhD and super pro-active where health and medical procedures are concerned to the extent I find uncomfortably aggressive. She's been working on Covid Testing in TX, which can't be easy. Retirement didn't work out for her so when she was offered a position as dean in Fort Worth, she grabbed it. So if she agreed with her Dr.s that she had gout, it's really likely I do too. We are very very similar physically.

62SandyAMcPherson
Set 11, 2021, 10:23 am

>61 quondame: That's reassuring ~ having such reliable expertise in your reach.
I had a poor experience with a mistaken diagnosis. Didn't know gout was such a heritable trait, though. I must have gotten lucky because my father's family had one or two members with gout (as did he).
I sure hope your toe infection clears up forthwith. Thanks re the details about the sis in TX. Her situation must be oh-so-difficult to soldier through these days.

63quondame
Set 11, 2021, 2:29 pm

>62 SandyAMcPherson: My sister is a born fighter. When my younger brother was in DC he'd sometimes be approached by men, often powerful ones, who after confirming his relationship with her, would tell him of my sister slugging them. When asked, she'd just say the SOB deserved it, which was probably correct. Accusing her of assault wouldn't look good on them, she being 5'6" and not all that hefty. But she has always been scary strong. We think she was hired to be a figure head, but that the university got a bit of a surprise there.

64quondame
Set 11, 2021, 2:39 pm

212) Call of Madness



Deryni fan fiction. The pacing is decent, but there is little originality and the word usage can be wincingly clumsy as can the characters' behaviors.

Meets September TIOLI Challenge #2: Read a book with the word "all" or "nothing" in the title or author's name

65quondame
Set 12, 2021, 12:34 am

I am not enjoying The Personal Librarian. It's all first person and I don't believe in what the authors have created to represent the remarkable Belle da Costa Greene. Nor have any of the other characters taken on real life and personality.

66msf59
Set 12, 2021, 7:29 am

Happy Sunday, Susan. Like Mamie, I also loved The Long Take. I am glad you gave it a shot.

67karenmarie
Set 12, 2021, 9:30 am

Hi Susan!

It sounds like having your sister on my side in a fight would be a good thing.

Sorry your last two books aren't stellar, and am glad to hear that your right toe continues to improve.

68quondame
Set 12, 2021, 9:59 pm

>68 quondame: I can see the attraction, but for a poet to get the language wrong is no small sin, and he was writing about my stomping grounds.

>67 karenmarie: Well, that's the thing - she isn't the best at picking up on the nuances of someone else's fight, so she might just level some ground you were hoping to use as a lookout.

But she is responsible for the existence of legislation mandating the inclusion of women in medical studies and other gender specific medical practices. She had to work indirectly through an organization she helped found and informed its strategies and goals since she worked at NIH during reactionary presidencies.

She's 7 years my senior and I kind of look to her as a bellwether for health matters, since we are the same height, bone structure and blood type I figure she is the best model, but there are significant differences as well.

69quondame
Modificato: Set 12, 2021, 10:03 pm

213) The Personal Librarian



2/3rds of this are sort of plodding, will they find out I'm passing tension during which very interesting activities are going on in the background and the last 1/3 is a series of staccato encounters in which our heroine is validated. I didn't feel the authors created a believable avatar of their subject and I certainly felt the people surrounding her lacked dimension and flavor.

Meets September TIOLI Challenge #14: Read a book with a shade of red or orange among the First words

70richardderus
Set 12, 2021, 10:38 pm

>69 quondame: *sigh* that doesn't sound very scrumptious, sadly.

Um...those NSAIDS? They probably prolonged your pain...aspirin revs up gout.

71quondame
Set 12, 2021, 10:56 pm

>70 richardderus: The active ingredient in the jell I use on my thumbs and elbow is Diclofnac Sodium. Is that a NSAID? It's not aspirin. I was told to take Ibuprofen for the toe, but then I'd been told not to take Ibuprofen for my other joint pain earlier, but to take aspirin. I didn't though, just used the jell. I've only taken the Ibuprofen once since the toe problem and that was because of a persistent headache.

The toe is much better again today. I put a shoe on the foot and went with Mike and Becky to see Shang-Chi, which was quite fun, but I think it's a mistake to dismount from a dragon exactly the same way one exits an SUV. Some acknowledgement and display of respect please! Clearly the director did not have head in story for that one and didn't see the dragon, just the green drum Shang-Chi and Xialing were sitting on.

72richardderus
Set 12, 2021, 11:04 pm

>71 quondame: The stuff you're using is an acetic-acid benzene ring NSAID that'll help swelling go down. It's really down to the infection, at this point anyway. Your likely dietary gout issue will be easily manageable with either a kidney-flogger like feldene (if the uric acid levels weren't terribly high) or allopurinol (if they were Elevated). Colchicine, I hope I hope, won't be needed daily. It is rough on the gut!

73quondame
Set 12, 2021, 11:10 pm

>72 richardderus: That sister of mine said allopurinol didn't work for her and she's on Uloric. That might be a problem for me with high blood pressure. The uric acid level was just above normal, so we'll see how that goes.

74richardderus
Set 12, 2021, 11:32 pm

Allopurinol is pretty rough stuff on your guts, like colchicine; the way it works is to get rid of the acid. Uloric stops your body from making uric acid, not so much about getting rid of it by all means possible, so there are more drug interactions to worry about because your immune system is being shoved to the mat.

75quondame
Modificato: Set 14, 2021, 1:05 am

214) The Wonder



Another woman takes a blow from Ireland novel. English nurse Lib, having nothing much better to do takes a lucrative job in the center of Ireland watching a young girl said to have eaten nothing for 4 months. She is sure of many things, one of them being that she will catch the girl eating in a matter of days. Her sureties change.

Meets September TIOLI Challenge #10: Read a book where the title of the first chapter is a common noun (and nothing else)

76quondame
Set 14, 2021, 1:11 am

Toe report: I'm back to regular shoes. The toe is uncomfortable, but holding at a fairly low level of pain.

This is Kira, we are going to meet her on Sunday and if she thinks we are a good match for her needs she may eventually join our family. She weighs 15lbs.

77karenmarie
Set 14, 2021, 5:24 pm

I'm glad the toe is getting better and Oh My! Kira is such a cutie.

I hope she's a match for your family and you are all a match for her needs.

78richardderus
Set 14, 2021, 6:37 pm

>76 quondame: What a sugarpunkin smileyface!

>75 quondame: The Wonder wasn't a perfect read but it came out The Bad Year so I might not remember it accurately.

79quondame
Set 14, 2021, 11:28 pm

>77 karenmarie: Thanks!

>78 richardderus: I can only take a dram of the Irish and it's served in pints.

80quondame
Set 14, 2021, 11:30 pm

214) Child of the Grove



Once this fantasy adventure gets going, and that takes a while, a few gleams of originality shine from the pseudo-Tolkien porridge. I am much more a fan of Tanya Huff's later books, which while firmly in the modern mode of fantasy have a much more individual voice.

Read for September TIOLI Challenge #9: Read a book with something in the title referring to religious worship

81FAMeulstee
Set 15, 2021, 3:17 am

>76 quondame: What a happy face, Susan!
I hope Kira is a match for you and yours.

82quondame
Set 16, 2021, 7:32 pm

83quondame
Set 16, 2021, 7:33 pm

215) Ten Thousand Stitches



Sparkling light fun. Giving Cinderella a whirl to some purpose, the didactic is completely integral.

Meets September TIOLI Challenge #1: Read a book, in which the last three letters of the author's first name or last name, spelled backwards, form a real word which can be found in dictionary.com

84richardderus
Set 16, 2021, 7:38 pm

>83 quondame: Not for me.

>80 quondame: Interesting! I had no idea La Huff had done Tolkienesque stuff at an early stage. She sure worked to get rid of it.

Cheerio.

85quondame
Modificato: Set 16, 2021, 9:21 pm

>84 richardderus: Wizards and Dwarfs and Dragons oh my.

Well it was fun, the Atwater, that is.

86SandyAMcPherson
Set 16, 2021, 10:44 pm

>83 quondame: Ten Thousand Stitches looks great but my libraries don't have any copies in the system. Boo Hiss. no Olivia Atwater in any form.

87quondame
Set 16, 2021, 11:23 pm

>86 SandyAMcPherson: Does your library take suggestions? Sometimes you need a bit of cotton candy reading.

I got a new iPhone today. Apple sent out an eMail with price reductions and a sleek purple 12 caught my eye - I mean purple, how could I resist a purple phone? Well I did. It was smaller and more expense than the newer-than-mine-SE so I got an SE in red. Red is good, I've been wanting red for a while. This time I got a screen protector and and case though, so should another slight fall occur it's a bit less likely to have critical consequences.

The toe is holding with just mild discomfort. It occurred to me somewhat belatedly that 2.5 days spent largely without drinking at UC probably weren't the best thing for my system. It's kind of hard to toss back a lot of fluids while wearing a mask and having to hobble to the restroom.

88karenmarie
Set 17, 2021, 6:02 am

Yay for a new phone, a red one at that. I had a red flip phone in days gone by and I never accidentally left it at work as I did with the black ones.

Mild discomfort is good news, right?

89msf59
Set 17, 2021, 7:41 am

Happy Friday, Susan. I also like The Wonder. I thought The Pull of the Stars was even better. Kira is a cutie. Keep us updated.

90quondame
Set 17, 2021, 2:23 pm

>88 karenmarie: I'm being more cautions this time so the phone, yay red!, is in a case, which makes it less fun to hold. But if it slips off my lap again it has a better chance of surviving and it's less likely to slip with the cover.
Good news in that it's not cringe worthy pain, not so good in that it's gout confirmation.

>89 msf59: They are still full of woe to women, Irish flavor, with which I've little patience.

91SandyAMcPherson
Set 17, 2021, 11:20 pm

>87 quondame: The Public Library in our jurisdiction has had so many funding cuts that new acquisitions seem curtailed when it comes to patron suggestions.

Mind you, this very day (and just released yesterday), I have an eBook, Indian in the Cabinet, our attorney general who stood up for ethics and rule of law, then was thrown out of the Liberal caucus because that pouty, spoiled brat of a Primer Minister couldn't get her to let the SNC Lavalin corruption go unchallenged.

I was hoping that Justin Trudeau gets his ass kicked on Monday, but the polls indicate that the split in the Conservative party will mean split votes for the opposition, so the bet is more Liberal party corruption and there goes Canada further down the drain.

I guess you really weren't looking for that little rant, just a simple library request filled because , yes, I need a bit of cotton candy reading!

92mahsdad
Set 17, 2021, 11:23 pm

Did you feel that one? 4.4-4.6 in Carson. About 8miles from me. 🤘

93quondame
Set 17, 2021, 11:26 pm

>92 mahsdad: Yep, sure did. I hope it didn't cause damage to my favorite Philippine restaurant. Or anyone, actually.

94mahsdad
Set 17, 2021, 11:49 pm

I know. For us it was a big jolt, no rolling, no damage. But weirdly the bottles and stuff in the refrigerator were rattling for a good 30 seconds.

It was the first time in a long while my adrenaline was actually up after one.

95quondame
Set 18, 2021, 1:24 am

>91 SandyAMcPherson: It is certainly rant worthy. Alas, so much is these days. Back to the books.

>94 mahsdad: It was less adrenaline stirring all these miles to the north, and my hillside is less prone to swaying than the surrounding flatlands.

96quondame
Modificato: Set 18, 2021, 2:39 am

216) Legendborn



Everything old is new again. Yes, I groaned a bit when the King Arthur aspect was introduced, and when there were two hot guys one clearly trouble's child and one ever so nice and perfect, but Bree is interesting in herself, her conflicts and strategies and the magic systems are not unambiguous or simple minded. The pacing could have been smoother and perhaps sharper, but at least a lot happens along the length and this is one new series I will look forward to continuing.

BB from scaifea

Meets September TIOLI Challenge #6: Read a book with school, or equivalent in the title or which starts or has significant action in an educational establishment

97richardderus
Set 18, 2021, 10:44 am

>96 quondame: It's nice to see a woman's face, not her profile or her back, for a change. That cover/jacket cliché is so so so so so so tired.

98quondame
Set 18, 2021, 12:12 pm

>97 richardderus: There are a few of them out there:


But this one is more confrontational than most.

99EBT1002
Set 18, 2021, 5:52 pm

You meet Kira tomorrow. I look forward to hearing how it goes!

100karenmarie
Set 19, 2021, 9:10 am

>99 EBT1002: What Ellen said! Except tomorrow is today.

101richardderus
Set 19, 2021, 6:59 pm

Well, how was the poochie-meeting?

>98 quondame: It's still not common.

102quondame
Modificato: Set 19, 2021, 11:35 pm

>99 EBT1002: >100 karenmarie: >101 richardderus: I think the Kira visit went pretty well. Nutmeg was very enthusiastic from the start. We were sitting in a small enclosure, made from the driveway from the back of the house to the garage, with patio furniture and artificial turf and chatted for quite a while before Kira felt like getting down from her perch on the back of the chair where her foster person sat. But then she and Nutmeg dashed about turn and turn about for another fairly longish while.
Kira is very soft and seemed to show a friendly curiosity toward me in between later run arounds with Nutmeg. We agreed to a home visit and a temporary foster-to-adopt, and will be waiting for the organization's official person to get in touch with us. Kira is a little taller than Nutmeg, but 2/3 as wide with a head about 1/2-1/3 the size and a very prominent lower jay, say a bit over 1/4" beyond her snout. Lots of fractions there, eh?
When we finished, we ordered from Brent's, a favorite deli and picked up our order half an hour later, and drove home to a lovely meal.

>101 richardderus: Unfortunately true, but full face covers don't seem to be the style for any of what I've been reading.

103karenmarie
Set 20, 2021, 9:15 am

It sounds promising, and I'm glad you'll get a home visit and temporary foster-to-adopt.

Last time I acquired dogs was in the early 1980s, and people were just glad to find homes, nevermind how good. It's much more complicated now, isn't it?

104quondame
Set 20, 2021, 5:06 pm

>103 karenmarie: So much has changed - the efforts to remove puppies from pet stores seems to have shifted the market and efforts to move from puppies to adoptions as well. The lock down and work from home, of course, is the real difference - we need dogs to keep us sane.

I just filled out the foster application and the next thing is scheduling Kira's visit to us. If the foster person thinks the house is OK then it sounds like Kira will stay with us for a trial.

105quondame
Set 21, 2021, 12:44 am

Yay! Kira will be coming over on Sunday!

Now to get back on topic:

106FAMeulstee
Set 21, 2021, 3:20 am

>105 quondame: That is great news, Susan!

107quondame
Set 21, 2021, 9:50 pm

>106 FAMeulstee: Thanks, we're quite please. We'll see if Kira likes us and we are a good fit.

Today was the dentist. He is threatening to take out my upper right wisdom tooth if I don't treat it right (bone loss and gum pocket are the issues)

I am reading, but not very fast due to long pointless book.
I am likely to finish in the next day or two, I hope, I hope.

108karenmarie
Set 22, 2021, 8:57 am

Congrats on getting a Kira visit on Sunday.

Boo hiss to the dentist.

Do you ever abandon books?

109jnwelch
Set 22, 2021, 10:34 am

Hi, Susan. That's good news re Kira. I have no wisdom teeth left, but getting them taken out was no picnic, especially since I went to a money-saving clinic where a dental student learned while taking them out. I was a brave, cheap soul back then.

110quondame
Set 22, 2021, 12:57 pm

>108 karenmarie: Thanks. I have, but not often.

>109 jnwelch: Oh ouch. Nope. I once went beauty school cheap on a hair cut. Not in my mouth. Eeek!

111quondame
Modificato: Set 22, 2021, 1:01 pm

217) Against a Dark Background



We aren't given much reason to give a damn about Sharrow, we aren't given any feeling for the connection between her and the remaining 4 of her original 7 virally bonded battle companions, and we have no sensory connection to the exotic landscapes they risk on the supposedly (because, really who cares?) harrowing scavenger hunt of antiquities to find the one that will save Sharrow's life. If you like huge pointless body counts, gruesome dismemberment and think there is a point to saving a life by risking all the lives that matter, sure sink more hours than you can really spare in 644 pages of pleated plot that hides the near complete lack of ability to write more than isolated scenes. But that's only if you think that escaping after waking up in the custody of your enemies is a valid trope, because that happens repeatedly, past ad nauseam. Banks surely thinks well of himself, but no one else need bother.

Read for September TIOLI Challenge #15: Read a book with a title that has a preposition plus "a"

112richardderus
Set 22, 2021, 2:48 pm

Yay for your home visit, and "Branch Librarian" made me howl.

113quondame
Set 24, 2021, 5:00 pm

>112 richardderus: Thanks. Yep, that's the prize.

114quondame
Modificato: Set 25, 2021, 10:44 pm

218) The Magician King



Well, 3.25 if I'm picky. It read well, but Quentin still hasn't shown he's worth much even if he's paid a lot. Quentin half walks through the big quest that he half backed into and Julia's history is related. Steep prices are paid. The entities that proclaim the prices are a varied set of puzzles with which even powerful magic doesn't seem to have leverage. And what exactly did the dragons do? We left them in the air and never heard from them again.

Meets September TIOLI Challenge #4: Read a book where “bestselling author” is included somewhere on the cover

115quondame
Modificato: Set 27, 2021, 4:58 pm

219) The Conductors



The characters and their community are the stars of this novel, with its interesting magic systems and setting in the young black community in Philadelphia where the white world impinges but is mostly absent and irrelevant to the story. Not only are the main pair Hetty and Benji a delight to spend time with, there is a depth to the depiction of a changing community with has shifted goals since the end of slavery and is undergoing different stresses with its members following divergent ambitions. The mystery itself contributes the least to mix but serves as a framework and a lesson.

Meets September TIOLI Challenge #12: Read a book where the title implies a journey of some kind

116quondame
Set 26, 2021, 6:01 pm

Kira is here. Nutmeg went hyper, but they are much calmer now following each in and out of rooms. Kira has poked her nose in my bedroom where I'm at the computer a few times, but turns and trots away.

117quondame
Modificato: Set 26, 2021, 9:12 pm

220) Lolly Willowes



The story of a spinster aunt who takes her life out of her siblings' hands and goes of to a small village which is quite pleasantly normal, then, when her nephew comes to write his novel in the village and requires her support, willingly sells her soul to be comfortably rid of him. The final sections are quite strange to one acclimatized to modern Wiccans and tropes of urban fantasy, and lean toward didactic, though the ambiguity of Lolly's Satan is refreshing.

BB from richardderus

118SandyAMcPherson
Set 26, 2021, 10:41 pm

>115 quondame: Intriguing. Not sure about it being a BB so I put the link to this post on my "Try this" list. Always handy to have a list that probably stretches me.

>116 quondame: Kira sounds a suitably laid-back little soul. Nice.

119quondame
Set 27, 2021, 1:49 am

>118 SandyAMcPherson: Kira won't let any of us get near her. She will walk through rooms we are in or peep into rooms with only one entrance, but we are currently trying to get her far enough upstairs to close off the stairway so she isn't loose in the entire house all night.

120figsfromthistle
Set 27, 2021, 5:51 am

Happy Monday!

>76 quondame: Aww. Kira looks energetic. Congrats on the potential new addition to the family.

>75 quondame: I quite enjoyed that one as well.

121karenmarie
Set 27, 2021, 9:34 am

I didn't realize it would be a doggie slumber party. I hope Kira did well last night and is more accepting of humans and Nutmeg today.

122quondame
Set 27, 2021, 2:23 pm

Kira is much the same this morning as yesterday afternoon and evening. We did get her into our room and she slept on the foot of the bed quite soundly, I patted her once when I woke in the early morning and she didn't twitch. I give her small treats to get her to come to me, but she doesn't always engage enough to take them. She and Nutmeg seem to go from room to room in a disjoint fashion, never far from each other but not interacting directly.

123quondame
Set 27, 2021, 4:58 pm

221) Dark Waters



Our viewpoint character is Brian and he is ready to leave winter behind looking forward to a sunny excursion on lake Champlain far away from haunted cornfields and lodges. But the title clues us that the danger is not limited to land.

Meets September TIOLI Challenge #13: Read a book for the Readers Imbibing Peril challenge

124FAMeulstee
Set 27, 2021, 6:48 pm

>122 quondame: Sounds like Kira needs time to adjust, I hope interaction gets better soon.

125quondame
Set 27, 2021, 8:32 pm

Kira escaped out the front door, ran several blocks north to a FWY exit got on the margins, caused a crash and disappeared over the shrubberies into one of the neighborhoods. We are all so upset we aren't able to think, and the foster mom came over to start the hunt while Mike is at the copy shop getting the fliers done up. I will be surprised if they let us keep her if she is found.

126SandyAMcPherson
Set 27, 2021, 9:05 pm

>125 quondame: Oh Susan... this is just awful. I confess I wept for you and Kira and family.
I think it must be as dreadful as if one's child was in the same circumstances.
I felt that way about our family dog, so for me, this situation does feel like "one of the children". Sending virtual hugs.

127quondame
Modificato: Set 27, 2021, 9:33 pm

>126 SandyAMcPherson: Thank you. I can't even assess how upset I am. We've posted on Nextdoor and I signed up for an amber alert package, but Kira is untrusting, small, quick and smart and can jump pretty high so it will take a very skillful person to catch her.

128humouress
Set 28, 2021, 1:18 am

Hi Susan; I haven't been by in a while, I'm afraid - your thread moves quite fast.

I'm is sorry to hear about Kira. I hope you get her back safely.

129quondame
Set 28, 2021, 2:28 am

>128 humouress: I've posted wherever I can and we were out for a couple of hours putting up notices. We are neither of us in condition to paper the neighborhood but we hit intersections where walkers are likely. I'm so sad thinking of the poor shy thing in the cold noisy area around the FWY and Expo tracks.

130FAMeulstee
Set 28, 2021, 2:53 am

>125 quondame: Oh no, that is very stressing, Susan.
I hope Kira is found and caught very soon.

131karenmarie
Set 28, 2021, 8:25 am

How awful. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that she's found quickly.

132quondame
Set 28, 2021, 5:50 pm

The dog search continues. I drove Mike around last night while he put up fliers and this morning we left a flier at the shelter and all the local vets. And I added Kira to FB's Pawboost alert. She went into an area that is deep shrubbery, a local for our more reclusive homeless. Including a very hostile-to-dogs cat lady.
I'm told most pets are found and Kira is chipped, so that's really all I can base hope on. This is so upsetting. I feel guilty I'm not out doing more.

133karenmarie
Set 28, 2021, 8:17 pm

So stressful for you all, Susan. I've been wondering about it all day. I'm sorry she's still missing.

134quondame
Set 28, 2021, 10:06 pm

Kira was found.
She will not be returned to us.

135ronincats
Set 28, 2021, 10:25 pm

I'm happy Kira was found, but so sorry for the stress for all of you.

136quondame
Set 28, 2021, 11:37 pm

222) The Magician's Land



In which the awesome magic of perfectly cooked bacon is deployed. The book, its characters plot pacing etc. are a real mix, we do find offhandedly what the dragons did, but not why the Chatwins were all that. While Quentin's developments seem mostly displayed in his ability to accept he doesn't seem to develop himself particularly though it's important in the book that he has changed.

Meets September TIOLI Challenge #6: Read a book with school, or equivalent in the title or which starts or has significant action in an educational establishment

137quondame
Set 28, 2021, 11:41 pm

I treated myself to a mostly healthy meal of grilled vegetables and chicken with tomato cucumber salad from my favorite Bosnian restaurant and am feeling much more thing, my nerves significantly de-jangled. Running 2 days with donuts for fuel has not been the best strategy.

138karenmarie
Set 29, 2021, 8:12 am

I'm glad Kira's been found, sorry she won't be returned to you.

139SandyAMcPherson
Set 29, 2021, 9:40 am

Hi Susan, what an emotional roller coaster for you all. I'm pleased to hear that Kira was found. It's such a shame that the shelter can't see that there is a learning curve for everyone and that Kira is still a very nervous dog no matter where she's placed. Your household has a history of owning dogs and that should have stood you in good stead. I hope you aren't too disheartened.

140FAMeulstee
Set 29, 2021, 3:31 pm

>134 quondame: Glad Kira was found, Susan, sorry she won't come back to you.

141figsfromthistle
Set 29, 2021, 5:45 pm

So glad that Kira was found! How nerve-racking. Sorry about the shelter being so judgemental. They should really understand that stuff like that can happen. Especially in a new environment. Ah well. Don't sweat it, the right one will come along :)

142quondame
Modificato: Set 30, 2021, 12:47 am

>138 karenmarie: >139 SandyAMcPherson: >140 FAMeulstee: >141 figsfromthistle: Thank you all. Yes, we are very glad Kira was found, tired and hungry but otherwise OK. We understand that the people who run pet rescues are very protective of these animals and can be very intense. It pretty much is part of what it takes to do this good work. We are sad that Kira won't be with us, but she really was attached to her foster mom, who was fond of her but has 3 other dogs and doesn't enjoy getting up as early as Kira likes.

This morning came super early to get Mike to Cedar-Sinai at 6AM for his procedure to increase mobility to his replaced knee. A closed knee manipulation. The surgeon was concerned about the scratches he acquired looking for Kira so he will be on antibiotics for a couple of weeks. At the hospital everything was running late but we were able to be home by 11AM. I got a bit of a nap in, which I really needed.

143richardderus
Set 30, 2021, 4:01 pm

It has been a real up-and-down time for you all. I'm sad about the way it happened, but it sounds to me like Kira had other ideas about her living situation.

I'm very pleased that you enjoyed Lolly Willowes, I'm BBd by Dark Waters, and am still recovering from my energy-intensive visit. Off to nap, I think.

144quondame
Set 30, 2021, 8:17 pm

>143 richardderus: I've never acquired a dog that was pleased to find its self among us for the first few days. I think they need a mourning period, then one morning they wake up and everything smells right. But we will have to adjust to a Kira-less family. I got distracted by a dachshund bitch, but haven't heard anything back from my intro.

145quondame
Modificato: Ott 2, 2021, 12:42 am

223) 1177 B.C. The Year Civilization Collapsed



So this is a re-read, but of an updated edition.
I still think a 200-300 year drought is quite sufficient to kickoff and finish a few civilizations, causing all sorts of mischief as it would.

Meets September TIOLI Challenge 11: Read a book whose protagonist is in high school, has something to do with the number 12 or 17, or has a character or author named Alex or Alexander

146quondame
Modificato: Ott 2, 2021, 12:42 am

224) Shiver



A romance between a high school girl and werewolf. Not your change under the moon werewolf, but a different sort triggered by cold (why is the pack in Minnesota rather than Louisiana?) and where the wolf takes over completely after a couple of decades. Grace is an abused by benign hands off parenting which seems to have become a thing in YA while I wasn't looking.

Meets October TIOLI Challenge 11: Read a book that features a character who has paws

147PaulCranswick
Ott 1, 2021, 11:53 pm

Susan,

>136 quondame: & >145 quondame:

You seem to have two 222nd books?

According to what I can see your next one is your 3x75?

Have a lovely weekend.

148quondame
Ott 2, 2021, 12:43 am

>147 PaulCranswick: Thanks. Fixed. At least, presuming no other dups.

149sibylline
Ott 2, 2021, 12:58 pm

Glad your toe is improving.

Truly sorry things did not work out with Kira. So so glad she was found.

150quondame
Ott 2, 2021, 4:19 pm

>149 sibylline: Thank you.

Yes, it would have been devastating if she wasn't recovered. Now it's just sad and upsetting.

151quondame
Ott 2, 2021, 4:28 pm

225) Half Share



Cotton candy as Ishmael Horatio Wang shows more people skills, and his stud muffin side, at 18 than belongs in one novel - or a whole series.

For now it
Meets October TIOLI Challenge #5: Read a book in which at least one of the title words begins with an “S”

152karenmarie
Ott 2, 2021, 4:58 pm

3 x 75. Fantastic. Congrats.

153FAMeulstee
Ott 2, 2021, 6:00 pm

>151 quondame: Congratulations on reaching 3 x 75, Susan!

154richardderus
Ott 2, 2021, 8:41 pm

155figsfromthistle
Ott 3, 2021, 8:11 am

Happy Sunday!

Congrats on reading 225 books.

156SandyAMcPherson
Modificato: Ott 3, 2021, 10:27 am

>154 richardderus: Yeah, I needed that... I so do not have an arithmetic brain.

>151 quondame: Yay Susan... I hope the reading allows your brain some comfort ~ I've been using books as a numbing mechanism wrt anxiety. Everything seems major-major to me when really, lots of these upsets are nothing like what you've experienced in the Kira episode. And then there was Lucy's dog-saga. So difficult to lose a pet at any time, but a pandemic seems even worse.

Edited to say, "OK. That was maybe not so cheerful" ~ but I keep lurking and not posting. Now everybody knows why!

157quondame
Ott 3, 2021, 6:57 pm

>156 SandyAMcPherson: Ah yes, books have been my drug of choice since just before I hit my teens. My dyslexia faded and books became doorways rather than walls. I went through and haven't been found since. Can't blame anyone as I skip for world to world ahead of anyone who's cared to search.

158johnsimpson
Ott 4, 2021, 6:32 am

Hi Susan my dear, congrats on reaching 225 books read for the year, figures i can only dream about, lol.

159SandyAMcPherson
Ott 4, 2021, 1:21 pm

>157 quondame: ... and books became doorways rather than walls. I went through and haven't been found since.
How very poetic! I like that thought and can certainly relate my childhood-growing 'up' years to that sentiment.

160quondame
Ott 4, 2021, 2:38 pm

>152 karenmarie: >153 FAMeulstee: >154 richardderus: >155 figsfromthistle: >158 johnsimpson: Thank you. (curtsy)

>159 SandyAMcPherson: Again, curtsy. I think it was and is so for many of us.

161quondame
Ott 4, 2021, 3:32 pm

226) House of Many Ways



A light adventure we enter when Charmain, a bookish teen is tasked to take care of her wizard-great-uncle-by-marriage's house while he is off being cured by elves. Charmain, out from the repressing reign of her mother finds out there's more to life than books and being respectable and the plot doesn't get bogged down in it's villains who mostly show up after Charmain has got her grip on a new life.

Meets October TIOLI Challenge #13: Read a book that is on an LT List

162SandyAMcPherson
Modificato: Ott 4, 2021, 4:04 pm

>161 quondame: I enjoyed this book very much, although I read it so long ago, the plot doesn't come to mind now.
At the time, I understood it was supposed to be a sequel to Castle in the Air, but I didn't think the stories were structured similarly. Maybe I should add it to the comfort-escapist reread pile... even though I awarded only 3*'s because I had trouble following the storyline!

163jjmcgaffey
Ott 6, 2021, 12:13 am

There's two books that are supposed to be sequels to Howl's Moving Castle - my review of House of Many Ways comments that both of them (that and Castle in the Air) were completely different people having completely different adventures, though they both encounter Howl and company at some point in the story (near the end, both). Neither is (to me) a satisfactory sequel, nor among my favorite DWJs - which makes them upper-middling-good in the full pantheon of fantasy books (the worst of DWJs are better than some other's bests...). I should read all three again.

164quondame
Ott 6, 2021, 2:07 am

>162 SandyAMcPherson: >163 jjmcgaffey: Not continuations of the original story as we think of sequels, but more continuations of the built world, as Becky Chamber's novels have been. I'm fine with either. I felt Howl's Moving Castle didn't need to be continued, so new stories are fine. I don't know if I've read Castle in the Air. Is Miyazaki's Castle in the Sky based on it?

165quondame
Ott 6, 2021, 2:09 pm

227) Feral Creatures



I found this a chore to get through. Shit Turd as an anxious helicopter parent wasn't appealing, nor was the fight against bigger badder zombie ex-MoFos. What was the point of eliminating MoFos if they just get supercharged in their destructiveness. There were some delightful passages, but those were short temporary respites.

Meets October TIOLI Challenge #1: Read a book that pictures something with wings on its cover.

166jjmcgaffey
Ott 8, 2021, 1:03 am

>164 quondame: No, that's based on the last book of Gulliver's Travels (or at least Laputa the floating island comes from there). Castle in the Air starts out more or less in the Arabian Nights and then moves to Western fairy tale land (is what I wrote in my review). It's not a bad book - but I think I would have enjoyed it a lot more if I hadn't been waiting for Howl and Sophie to show up. So calling it a sequel was a major minus for me.

167quondame
Ott 8, 2021, 7:01 pm

>166 jjmcgaffey: Well, that's confusing. I don't remember much about Castle in the Sky and probably haven't read Castle in the Air.

168quondame
Modificato: Ott 24, 2021, 5:15 pm

228) The Last Graduate



A swift stream of a book with rough rapids and sharp curves but few backwaters and sharp plunge of an ending. The seldom named anti-social heroine reluctantly acquires allies who formulate a scheme that is quite different in scope and goals than we have any reason to expect at the beginning of this ride.

Meets October TIOLI Challenge #13: Read a book that is on an LT List

169karenmarie
Ott 8, 2021, 8:28 pm

>165 quondame: Logically, I completely understand your criticisms of Feral Creatures. I guess I liked S.T. so much that I was able to make it one big adventure instead of two separate books and the linkage worked well for me.

170quondame
Ott 8, 2021, 9:21 pm

>169 karenmarie: I liked the S.T. of Hollow Kingdom. I didn't find much of him in Feral Creatures.

171humouress
Ott 8, 2021, 10:36 pm

Susan, I'm so glad Kira was found but I'm sorry she won't be returning to you.

Congratulations on triple 75!

>157 quondame: 😊 I like that sentiment! Does dyslexia fade? I don't know much about it, I'm afraid, but I'm glad that it does potentially go away.
I charged through that doorway quite early on; reading was to me what screen time is for my kids these days.

172quondame
Ott 8, 2021, 11:41 pm

>171 humouress: Apparently dyslexia doesn't fade on it's own for some girls as I was told decades ago, but it can be adapted to, which may have been what the SRA modules did for me - give me actual metrics I understood to deal with a problem. Certainly back in the 50s there wasn't a diagnosis available, just sorting kids by slow, speech impediments (I lisped) and later separating out the smarter kids.

173EBT1002
Ott 9, 2021, 7:04 pm

Susan, I'm so sorry about all the trauma around little Kira. I'm glad she was found but sorry she won't be joining your family. Sigh.

174quondame
Ott 10, 2021, 11:34 pm

>173 EBT1002: Thank you. We have feelers out for other dogs - we may take in a senior left behind when a friend's father died a week ago. She won't be with us long but our friend won't have to deal with putting down her father's dog because she can't keep her.

175quondame
Modificato: Ott 11, 2021, 8:00 pm

229) Drat These Brats!



Amusing and wry. If you liked Edward Gorey's Amphigorey these verses are unlikely to repel you.

Read for October TIOLI Challenge #14: Read a book with informal language, including contractions and slang expressions, in the title

176humouress
Ott 11, 2021, 3:05 am

>174 quondame: That would be nice, if it works out. She’d still have a chance to see a familiar face.

177quondame
Ott 11, 2021, 5:01 pm

>176 humouress: Well, no. It's not my story by our friend was only reunited with her biological father a few months ago and he was not local.

178quondame
Modificato: Ott 11, 2021, 8:00 pm

230) How the Word Is Passed: A Reckoning with the History of Slavery Across America




In a series of visits to public places with history associated with the slavery Clint Smith explores what is taught, obscured, avoided and misrepresented or unknowable about each of those places past. The scope and depth of the horrendous outrages of US slavery are presented more from a cerebral level than gut one, which makes this book hardly harrowing at all, which in itself made me somewhat uncomfortable.

Meets October TIOLI Challenge #8: Read a book with a tag that includes 'history' or 'historical'

179richardderus
Ott 11, 2021, 7:53 pm

>178 quondame: I think that came up in NetGalley and I just couldn't. I'm glad you did, it's such a necessary topic.

180quondame
Modificato: Ott 11, 2021, 8:08 pm

>179 richardderus: As I doubt you have any investment in the sanitized history this is building bulwarks against I doubt you would find it particularly harrowing. I won't say it was comfy, but I didn't have the lumps it was set on rasping.

My daughter and I were discussing our dentist's office where I've gone since the late 70s and she since she outgrew her pediatric practice and I was reminding her of the staffs names, one of whom, Connie, really opened my eyes decades ago by a causal mention of how uncomfortable she was made to feel at a local Chinese restaurant. While I had a decade or so of knowing I lived among many racists, I hadn't thought of feeling it on a day to day basis and from then on I was much more alert to it.

181LovingLit
Ott 12, 2021, 12:02 am

>43 quondame: I read The Long Take after meeting the author at a readers festival here, and afterwards immediately buying a copy. I am super attracted to books written in verse, but this one seemed to be not "versey" enough for me. Rather it was a story with a plot and I couldn't seem to see past the verse to access the story. I will read it again though and see.

>152 karenmarie: >154 richardderus: lol, you guys!

182quondame
Ott 12, 2021, 1:30 am

I'm doing a little happy dance because I bagged on eBay a miniature set of tools, bench and tool box, a total of about 15 items by a well known miniature artist for what I have been known to bid for 3 or 4 of the items. And no duplicates with the 3 own by that artist. Yay me.

183karenmarie
Ott 12, 2021, 5:45 pm

>174 quondame: Good luck with the feelers out on other dogs and perhaps taking in your friend's father's senior dog.

>182 quondame: Exciting news for a collector. Congrats.

184quondame
Ott 13, 2021, 3:53 pm

>183 karenmarie: Thanks. I had a nice interview for a darling dog yesterday, but zip feedback. My worse nature is suspecting bribes are expected.

185quondame
Modificato: Ott 16, 2021, 9:33 pm

231) Grave Mercy



At half the length this start of series may have rated an extra star, but the handling of the romance element and the dawdling pace made it not worth the time I spent reading it. With a near historical setting and present deities it seems to stagger in the steps of Bujold's Five God books without the humor or humanity which separate those works far from the common.

The reason for October TIOLI Challenge #4: Read a book with a title associated with death

186quondame
Modificato: Ott 16, 2021, 9:33 pm

232) The Hundred Foot Journey



Pleasant enough and saturated with food, but all the bumps seemed external to the protagonist, whatever the impact on him. He just plows ahead and even the changes in direction and implied sacrifices are more events than development. Good food descriptions but any passion leaves the book when Hassan leaves Lumière.

Read for for October TIOLI Challenge #16: Read a book which starts in a café or restaurant with a given name or address

187richardderus
Ott 14, 2021, 7:30 pm

>186 quondame: Oh drat. That was on the TBRalaya but honestly...surfaces without depths bore me, so no and thanks and bye.

188Berly
Ott 14, 2021, 8:12 pm

Glad Kira was found and sorry that she will not be yours. You will find the right one.

Belated congrats on 3 x 75!! Whoohoo!

And congrats on the Ebay artist stuff! : )

189quondame
Ott 16, 2021, 12:49 am

>187 richardderus: I was hoping for Babbette's feast and left famished.

>188 Berly: Thanks. I do hope we find the right pooch soon. And thanks again.

My treasures arrived this afternoon and a just as nice as pictured and one is much better - I was guessing it could be either a wood plane or a level and it's a lovely little level and has the artist's initials. As I already have a wood plane of different design that was a bit of good luck.

190quondame
Modificato: Ott 16, 2021, 9:33 pm

233) Afterlife



Antonia, retired and widowed on the same day about a year before the story, the second of four sisters born in the Dominican Republic and grown up in the USA, deals with a pair, soon to be three, young undocumented immigrants from Mexico and the disappearance of her older sister Izzy, traveling from Boston to Chicago for Antonia's birthday. I never felt connected to Antonia and never felt her connection with her sisters, though I did recognize the contours of limits Antonia uses to structure her life.

Read for for October TIOLI Challenge #15: Read a book by an author of Hispanic heritage

191msf59
Ott 16, 2021, 8:05 am

I have been wanting to read Alvarez for awhile now. I think I have In the Time of the Butterflies saved on my Kindle. I should bookhorn it in.

192quondame
Ott 16, 2021, 9:32 pm

100)* Fugitive Telemetry



Murderbot comes up against it's own inner limitations as well as accepted limitations of it's new environment, and an unexpected adversary and must employ it's people skills, so an interesting time is in store for us.

Re-read for for October TIOLI Challenge #10: Read a book which is a reread from either 2020 or 2021

*Re-read from April

193quondame
Ott 17, 2021, 2:19 am

Somehow I seem to have checked out an excess of very long books which don't want to be read quickly. I think I'll drop any that are starting a new series for now, and maybe even the on that is continuing an old one and find shorter more appealing reads. I mean I've done 2 non-f&fs novels and one non-fiction, so that probably over my quota for well, outside my comfort zone, and I read for comfort.

194FAMeulstee
Ott 17, 2021, 3:29 pm

>193 quondame: The same her this month, Susan, and because of our vacation my reading numbers dropped.
I will have to pull a few from the TIOLI challenges, replacing by shorter/faster reads.

195quondame
Ott 17, 2021, 3:43 pm

>194 FAMeulstee: Yeah, shorter is better sometimes. I started a 700+ fantasy and it is just so awkwardly put together that I can't, even for the diversity factor. Diversity isn't enough, though I love it when something takes me to a world the west has not had a view of yet.

196richardderus
Ott 17, 2021, 4:12 pm

>193 quondame: When it ain't workin' wave bye-bye.

There is no law or custom that prevents you from trying again at a later date, after all.

197ronincats
Ott 17, 2021, 8:03 pm

Sorry your reading hasn't been up to par in quality, but Murderbot is always a good cure for that in the short term. I'm glad you liked House of Many Ways and The Last Graduate, both of which I enjoyed.

198quondame
Ott 17, 2021, 10:43 pm

Well we've just agreed to adopt Gizmo, who we met this afternoon. It only remains for her foster person to set up a transfer time and place and we will be bringing this little sweetie home. She is quite a bit more mellow than Kira.
Here she is on the right meeting Nutmeg.

199FAMeulstee
Ott 18, 2021, 3:18 am

>198 quondame: Congratulations, Susan!
Nutmeg and Kira look good together, is Kira a pug?

200humouress
Ott 18, 2021, 9:10 am

>198 quondame: That is good news.

201quondame
Ott 18, 2021, 3:13 pm

>199 FAMeulstee: Thank you! Gizmo is probably a pug/chihuahua mix. They were pretty polite at the meeting but eventually started in with a bit of play.

>200 humouress: Yes it is. We thought Gizmo was already spoken for when her listing vanished, but that was because they had enough applicants.

We are scheduled to pick Gizmo up at 2PM!

202Whisper1
Ott 18, 2021, 3:32 pm

>14 quondame: glom brings back many memories of when Will and I discussed words. I mentioned the word glom. He disagreed that it was a word. I won!

203richardderus
Ott 18, 2021, 3:40 pm

>198 quondame: Yay for Gizmo coming home with you!

204quondame
Ott 18, 2021, 4:21 pm

234) Wolfbane



This repulsively occluded crystal of a book is not about werewolves of the transform into canine sort, but about human wolves who are a bane almost 300 years into a future earth rent from the solar system where humans have devolved not into savagery but into an ultra-civilized society the formalities of which would make Genjii's court look like yahoos. The climax is near perfect, the ending a disagreeable muddle.

Read for for October TIOLI Challenge #17: Read a book whose title would make a good name for a Superhero

205karenmarie
Ott 18, 2021, 4:44 pm


>198 quondame: Congratulations on Gizmo, Susan! Yay for mellow, and she looks adorable.

206alcottacre
Ott 18, 2021, 6:27 pm

Not even trying to catch up, Susan, I just stopped by to say "Hello."

>198 quondame: Congratulations for both you and Gizmo!

207ronincats
Ott 18, 2021, 9:20 pm

Looking forward to following Gizmo's integration into the household!

208quondame
Ott 18, 2021, 9:58 pm

>205 karenmarie: Well, mellow isn't exactly right, though she's not nervy she's just sort of steady non-stop. Nutmeg gets excited and has shown some signs of exhaustion but Gizmo just moves steadily, dodging, levitating onto any surface within in 3-4' of where she is and down again, between legs, no hurry but no stop.

>206 alcottacre: Thank you!

>207 ronincats: Well that's part of the report. Mike wanted me to clip one of Gizmo's claws. She disagreed. Now she's supervising his dinner. She's absolutely food motivated.

209Berly
Ott 19, 2021, 9:05 am

Welcome Gizmo!!

210quondame
Ott 19, 2021, 3:00 pm

>209 Berly: Thank you!

211quondame
Ott 19, 2021, 3:15 pm

234) Even and Odd



A silly sweet portal coming of age fantasy. Two sisters alternate days in which one of them has magic and the other doesn't. One wants the magic desperately and the other is happier without it. Then the portal between the magical world and the town on earth where their parents run a border store closes.

Read for for October TIOLI Challenge #6: Read a book that doesn't fit in any October 2021 Challenge, but would fit in a September 2021 Challenge

212quondame
Ott 21, 2021, 12:44 am

Well, today was a bit of a bust. Gizmo was coughing up a storm so Mike took her to the vet about 4:30AM and was back about 5:45. She has kennel cough and is expected to get over it in 2 to 3 weeks. Meanwhile she'll be coughing.
I wasn't awake until after 11 and had to go buy coffee because I am out of beans. Then later I had to do a round of the 3 libraries and picked food up from the Italian Deli and Tehran market. So I'm provisioned, but what with catching up with eBay, Facebook and LibraryThing, there hasn't been much reading. Or dog cuddling.
Gizmo is certainly what Nutmeg has been lacking, though Gizmo isn't sure Nutmeg is what she wants.

213karenmarie
Ott 21, 2021, 9:40 am

I'm sorry about the kennel cough, glad it's only kennel cough. But 4:30 a.m. Sheesh.

Being out of coffee beans gives me the heebie-jeebies. We've had to find a different source in the last several months and think we've settled on a brand. We get 2 lbs a week. Sometimes we need that many, sometimes we don't. We've got about 4.5 lbs in stock right now. I like the cushion.

I hope the Gizmo/Nutmeg needs/wants scales balance.

214richardderus
Ott 21, 2021, 12:27 pm

Coffee beanage is good. Makes the dog's kennel cough much easier to deal with not having a caffeine-withdrawal headache.

215quondame
Ott 21, 2021, 5:18 pm

>213 karenmarie: >214 richardderus: If I had my druthers I'd buy 1/3lb beans at a time. That way it's pretty fresh. I'm now forced into 1/2lb which is OK, but takes me just long enough to drink that I notice the flavor has fallen off. A few weeks back Peet's had set out a full pound for me and was surprised I wouldn't take it for the price of 1/2lb. I didn't explain that 1/2lb of not good enough coffee wasn't a bargain.

We were told Gizmo was submissive. I think she was faking it in a house with a pit bull (excuse me Staffordshire Terrier).

But Nutmeg is no longer spending 4-6hrs a day trying to get us to play with her, so that far getting her a companion has succeeded. However, Gizmo finds Mike irresistible, so while she's friendly with me and cuddles when he's not around, when he's within reach he's it. Of course we caught him bribing her with pita, so it's not like he plays fair.

216quondame
Modificato: Ott 22, 2021, 2:17 pm

235) Sixteen Ways to Defend a Walled City



Charmingly idiosyncratic mash of Roman, eastern Roman, and a few other empires, siege against a hoard headed by a barbarian. Orhan, of a race despised by the Robur empire has become through guile and competence colonel of engineers, the only fragment of the army availble to defend a walled port city. He is full of snark and self deprecation while telling of the strategies and devices he deploys against a large army brilliantly if ruthlessly deployed against a city whose citizens have more invested in killing each other than the enemy outside the walls.
In this gunpowderless (the walls of Constantinople were attacked with cannon) alternate reality the mix of war engines doesn't match any particular historical period and the Romans of either antiquity or middle ages weren't notably racist nor were the former really masters of naval power, ruling the land around the sea but not being happy sailors. Still, this isn't the story of any real then, it's a story for these days.

"Common sense dictates that any voice you hear inside your head must be just you, thinking; so, if you know it's just you and you know you're basically an idiot, what possesses you to do what the stupid voice tells you?"

BB from SandDune

Meets October TIOLI Challenge #3: Read a book that involves a disaster

217quondame
Modificato: Ott 22, 2021, 5:32 pm

It's out!

Knot of Shadows

218figsfromthistle
Ott 22, 2021, 4:28 pm

>198 quondame: Congrats! How exciting. I am glad you found the right fit for your home.

She is adorable :)

Have a wonderful weekend.

219richardderus
Ott 22, 2021, 5:30 pm

>217 quondame: That's good news...now to go get one.

220quondame
Ott 22, 2021, 5:31 pm

>219 richardderus: That happened as soon as I saw it on Amazon. It's getting it entered into the publication order series on LT that's a snarl.

221richardderus
Ott 22, 2021, 5:34 pm

>220 quondame: Not LT's smoothest functionality.

222quondame
Modificato: Ott 23, 2021, 1:18 am


Have a bit of fun at 2021 Halloween Treasure Hunt

223PaulCranswick
Ott 23, 2021, 2:14 am

>222 quondame: Couldn't resist so I went and got me a couple of Jack O'Lanterns quickly.

Have a nice weekend, Susan.

224quondame
Ott 23, 2021, 2:54 am

>223 PaulCranswick: It's good to see you're out and about. Enjoy the hunt!

Thanks.

225quondame
Ott 23, 2021, 2:56 am

236) Too Many Magicians



A romp through a magical alt-present (1966) London where the Plantagenets still rule and magicians take the place of scientists and engineers. There are multiple murders and a various red herrings before the fish is netted.

Meets October TIOLI Challenge #7: Read a book for the Trick or Treat challenge

226jjmcgaffey
Ott 23, 2021, 5:00 am

>225 quondame: I do love Lord Darcy...

227richardderus
Ott 23, 2021, 6:18 pm

>225 quondame: Is that the one where Lord Androu Duglasse appears?

228quondame
Modificato: Ott 23, 2021, 6:35 pm

>226 jjmcgaffey: I found him a bit of a cold fish this time around.

>227 richardderus: Nope. Intelligencers murdered.

229richardderus
Ott 23, 2021, 6:58 pm

230quondame
Modificato: Ott 24, 2021, 1:52 am

I was going through my reads list of what I tag fantasy frontier or weird west. I look for more north American than European, African or Oriental setting and culture, and less of the Elves/Fairies/Trolls type monster. I just realized I left off the Alvin Maker books, which would give me two men for authors, the others all being by women.






231msf59
Ott 24, 2021, 9:40 am

Happy Sunday, Susan. Go Gizmo! Is she part of the family yet?

232quondame
Ott 24, 2021, 2:57 pm

>231 msf59: Oh yes, Gizmo is really letting her tail wag after several days with us.

233quondame
Modificato: Ott 25, 2021, 7:56 pm

237) The Memory of Babel



A real page turner. Ophelia escapes her home with a little help from her friends to seek Thorn and enrolls under a false identity on the ark of Babel to gain access to the ultimate truth. Some of her painful experiences reveal that some of the important truths are within her. In the ark of Pole, there are glimpses of disturbing developments.

Meets October TIOLI Challenge #12: Read a book where a major character spends a significant part of the narrative outside the nation of their birth

238) Knot of Shadows



Penric is given a case which features that were foreshadowed in Curse of Chalion, but with, of course, complications. This is Bujold playing with her world and offering it up to us in delightful knots.

Meets October TIOLI Challenge #12: Read a book where a major character spends a significant part of the narrative outside the nation of their birth

234karenmarie
Ott 24, 2021, 5:46 pm

I'm glad to hear that Gizmo is settling in.

235quondame
Ott 24, 2021, 5:52 pm

>234 karenmarie: Mike is in love. He bought her a fitbit collar so he can track her. Not that he needs to, if she can't be heard she's sleeping on or next to him.

236richardderus
Ott 24, 2021, 7:08 pm

>233 quondame: #237 is utterly unknown to me. Time to go looking.

#238 is, of course, known like my socks are known. I always enjoy Bujold books!

237quondame
Ott 25, 2021, 3:29 pm

Gizmo showing off her FitBit collar. We got a call from the vet this morning telling us she tested positive for influenza and to keep her isolated another 21 days. Well, now we're worried about Nutmeg, but Gizmo seems symptom free. We'll also have to watch Zette, but she does pretty well at keeping herself isolated.

238richardderus
Ott 25, 2021, 7:28 pm

>237 quondame: Poor Gizmo! I hope to heck she stays symptom-free. Send her an ear-schmoozle from me, Susan.

239alcottacre
Ott 25, 2021, 7:42 pm

>216 quondame: Adding that one to the BlackHole!

>225 quondame: I have an omnibus edition around my house somewhere that has Too Many Magicians in it. I really need to get it read someday.

>233 quondame: Adding the Dabos series to the BlackHole. Thanks for the recommendation, Susan.

>237 quondame: I hope that Gizmo is feeling better soon and that the influenza does not spread!

240karenmarie
Ott 26, 2021, 8:15 am

>237 quondame: I'm not a dog person, but that's one cute little girl! Sorry about her influenza and now having to keep her isolated. And worrying about Nutmeg.

241quondame
Ott 27, 2021, 2:40 pm

>238 richardderus: >240 karenmarie: Gizmo is fine. She's starting to show a good deal of personality. Nutmeg is coughing and limping and scratching poor dear, but still about and playful. Thanks for the interest in the wee beasties.

>239 alcottacre: I hope you enjoy the books. As I see your posts on yesterday's threads I imagine you hopping about like a reverse image Santa, consigning books into an ominous dark sack.

242quondame
Ott 27, 2021, 2:41 pm

239) Winterlight



The sad thing is that if I'm still alive when the next book comes out, I'll probably read it.
Sir Karigan mostly staggers her way through another gauntlet of (mis)adventures racking up enemies and allies honors and wounds. Not much fun is had in ‎845 pages, but there are eddies of interest.

Meets October TIOLI Challenge #7: Read a book for the Trick or Treat challenge

243alcottacre
Ott 27, 2021, 7:17 pm

>242 quondame: I can safely not consign that one to my Santa's BlackHole :)

244Whisper1
Ott 27, 2021, 7:23 pm

Congratulations on the adoption of Gizmo!!!

245quondame
Modificato: Ott 27, 2021, 7:41 pm

>243 alcottacre: Well the series has its fans, every bit as insistent on its virtues as well, R.A. Salvatore or Patrick Rothfuss fans, though perhaps not quite like Steven Erikson fans. But the impossibly surviving Kerigan, mutilated and spindled and much beloved as she is, is one of the only women who is entirely the center of this epic, and so rather rare, though P.C. Hodgell's Jame comes close.

>244 Whisper1: As you can tell, while we enjoy Gizmo, her accompanying virus is much less welcome. And really, it's not a huge surprise that the adoption group exaggerated somewhat totally when they claimed she was housebroken.

246alcottacre
Modificato: Ott 27, 2021, 7:40 pm

>245 quondame: No idea who Steven Erikson is, but I am glad he has fans :)

I have a couple of Hodgell's books, but have not yet read them.

247quondame
Ott 28, 2021, 12:03 am

>246 alcottacre: Malazan Book of the Fallen series appears to be up there with Game of Thrones and Wheel of Time for fan boy loyalty. Darker and more obscure than either from what I've gathered.

248quondame
Ott 28, 2021, 12:06 am

240) Lord Arthur Savile's Crime



The wry distanced tone in which these stories are composed and the consistent observations on the characters are mostly at odds with other tonal elements in these stories and the last is largely a frame around shards of Shakespeare's sonnets supporting the argument that they were addressed to a young actor who left Shakespeare's troupe but later returned. This is not rewarding for someone seeking a consistent mood from Oscar Wilde.

Read for October TIOLI Challenge #9: Read a book that is (supposed to be) humorous

249quondame
Ott 29, 2021, 6:36 pm

I'm still alive and well, and the weather's fine but I'm deep in a Storm.

250PaulCranswick
Ott 29, 2021, 11:59 pm

>248 quondame: I haven't read that one, Susan, although I do admire the wit of Oscar Wilde. Seems to have overplayed his hand a bit?

>249 quondame: I hope the read is not a tempestuous one!

251alcottacre
Ott 30, 2021, 12:06 am

>247 quondame: I have no intention of ever reading Martin's series if he has no intention of ever finishing writing it :) I have just started The Wheel of Time, which I have never read, so we will see how much of a fangirl I become, lol.

Have a wonderful weekend, Susan!

252quondame
Ott 30, 2021, 4:37 pm

>250 PaulCranswick: The collection could be tagged horror I guess, but unlike Dorian Grey it doesn't quite work for me.

>251 alcottacre: Even unfinished The Game of Thrones does enough with the fantasy tropes to be worth reading. I think there's been some fantasy already strongly influenced or enabled by it's limit stretching, not necessarily because no one else did it, but because it was done with such overwhelming success.

Nutmeg seems to have come through the flu and is back to her regular snoring and heavy breathing. She is not a quiet presence. Gizmo is prospering and the two dogs are developing their interactions in which Nutmeg has weight and pull and Gizmo has mobility. They are both pretty klutzy.

253quondame
Ott 30, 2021, 4:56 pm

241) Degrees of Separation & Block Party



Two sweet Liaden™ stories about finding a new life, helping and being helped.

242) Storm



12 days. A storm arises, crosses the Pacific, hits California ending a drought. The people who watch it and are responsible for dealing with its consequences in the Weather Bureau, highways, power, telephone, railroad, water management and air control are followed as well, but while the storm is named, Maria, only a few of the people are, and those whose inner workings are described as well as most others are referred to by job title often just initials.

Read for October TIOLI Challenge #2: Read a book with a one-word title signaling danger

254richardderus
Ott 30, 2021, 5:32 pm

George R. Stewart was underrated. I'm glad to see more of his work returning to print.

255quondame
Ott 30, 2021, 9:01 pm

>254 richardderus: Strange to read a book written so close to WWII where there isn't even a hint of a smidge of it. I wasn't thrilled by the few women with walk on parts or even just mentioned. Twice women walked away from cars into bad weather. Not likely. Send hubby out, sure, get evening duds sopped, nope.

256quondame
Ott 31, 2021, 4:39 pm

243) Stargazy Pie



We are thrown into a backwater with the Jemis, scion of a disgraced father who abandoned his college career after a devastating personal loss. But backwater that it is, the local ground of his home region soon surrounds Jemis in strange and dangerous goings on. Amusing and just different enough to whet the appetite.

Meets October TIOLI Challenge #5: Read a book in which at least one of the title words begins with an “S”

257quondame
Ott 31, 2021, 10:02 pm

244) The Legend of Auntie Po



In this hardback GN Mei lives and works with her father who is cook at a lumber camp and her friend Bee is daughter of the foreman. Mei tell the stories of Auntie Po who takes care of the workers at lumber camps and is better than Paul Bunyon. A fable of friendship and loss and young longing.

Meets October TIOLI Challenge #8: Read a book with a tag that includes 'history' or 'historical'”

258PaulCranswick
Ott 31, 2021, 10:09 pm

Constantly impressed by your rate of reading, Susan.

259alcottacre
Ott 31, 2021, 10:12 pm

>252 quondame: Glad to know that the animals are doing well, especially Nutmeg. I know that the flu was worrying.

Have a wonderful new week, Susan!

260quondame
Nov 1, 2021, 2:29 pm

>258 PaulCranswick: It's what I do. I read and I forget things.

>259 alcottacre: Thank you, we are much happier now that Nutmeg seems to have passed through. She wasn't ever very ill, just coughing a lot, but with muzzle-less breeds that sounds just awful.
Questa conversazione è stata continuata da Susan/quondame has her nose in a book 2021 - 5.