Anita (FAMeulstee) goes on where the books take her in 2023 (2)

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Anita (FAMeulstee) goes on where the books take her in 2023 (2)

1FAMeulstee
Feb 3, 2023, 3:01 am

Welcome to my second thread in 2023!

I am Anita Meulstee (60), married with Frank (61) since 1984. We live in Lelystad, the Netherlands. We both love modern art, books and walking.

Three paintings we saw last December in the Van Abbemuseum in Eindhoven.
Left: Piet Mondriaan - Compositie XIV (1913); right: Lucebert - Prinsenpaar (1962)
 

Gé Röling - Siciliaanse jaarmarkt (1933)


I have been hanging around in this group a few months after finding LibraryThing in March 2008. I skipped one year (2013), when my reading dropped to almost nothing. This was a side effect of taking Paxil. In 2015 I was able to wean off Paxil, and a year later my reading skyrocketed. The last two years it is slowing down, my initial "reading hunger" has waned a bit.

I read (almost) everything, from childrens and YA books to more serious literature, mysteries, historical fiction, fantasy, and I try not to forget to throw some non-fiction into the mix.

2FAMeulstee
Modificato: Mar 1, 2023, 4:02 am

total books read in 2023: 53
7 own / 46 library

total pages read in 2023: 15.824

--
currently reading:

--
books read in February 2023: 30 books, 7.531 pages, 2 own / 28 library)
book 24: De bijzondere woorden van Gioia by Enrico Galiano, 429 pages, TIOLI #15 (msg 59)
book 25: Verweven leven (Entangled life) by Merlin Sheldrake, 383 pages, TIOLI #1 (msg 60)
book 26: Transit (Transit) by Anna Seghers, 295 pages, TIOLI #14 (msg 61)
book 27: Vissen hebben geen voeten (Fish Have No Feet) by Jón Kalman Stefánsson, 345 pages, TIOLI #5 (msg 62)
book 28: Perenbomen bloeien wit by Gerbrand Bakker, 144 pages, TIOLI #4 (msg 76)
book 29: De zaak van Münster (Münster's Case; Van Veeteren 6) by Håkan Nesser, 347 pages, TIOLI #6 (msg 77)
book 30: Verzen van nu by Garmt Stuiveling, 36 pages, TIOLI #12 (msg 78)
book 31: Koning Lear (King Lear) by William Shakespeare, 147 pages, TIOLI #8 (msg 79)
book 32: Pony (Pony) by R.J. Palacio, 303 pages, TIOLI #18 (msg 80)
book 33: Verwilderd (Bewilderment) by Richard Powers, 350 pages, TIOLI #10 (msg 84)
book 34: Karel en Elegast - Anonymus, 96 pages, TIOLI #6 (msg 85)
book 35: De veensoldaten by Wolfgang Langhoff, 252 pages, TIOLI #14 (msg 86)
book 36: Zwarte seconden (Black Seconds; Konrad Sejer 6) by Karin Fossum, 292 pages, TIOLI #7 (msg 87)
book 37: Het hart is een eenzame jager (The Heart is a Lonely Hunter) by Carson McCullers, 367 pages, TIOLI #1 (msg 106)
book 38: Toen ik dit zag by Rutger Kopland, 52 pages, TIOLI #13 (msg 107)
book 39: Wilde rozen en andere verhalen by Konstantin Paustovski, 128 pages, TIOLI #17 (msg 108)
book 40: De memoires van Norton, filosoof en hond (Norton's Philosophical Memoirs) by Håkan Nesser, 94 pages, TIOLI #16 (msg 109)
book 41: De alchemist (The Alchemist) by Paulo Coelho, 171 pages, TIOLI #11 (msg 117)
book 42: Laatste zomernacht by Maarten 't Hart, 109 pages, TIOLI #3 (msg 118)
book 43: Uit de bek van de walvis (From the Mouth of the Whale) by Sjón, 251 pages, TIOLI #9 (msg 119)
book 44: Reisverslag van een kat (The Travelling Cat Chronicles) by Hiro Arikawa, 238 pages, TIOLI #16 (msg 120)
book 45: Madame le Commissaire en de verdwenen Engelsman (Isabelle Bonnet 1) by Pierre Martin, 302 pages, TIOLI #6 (msg 129)
book 46: Het gele behang en andere verhalen by Charlotte Perkins Gilman, 174 pages, TIOLI #17 (msg 130)
book 47: Dat weet je niet by Jens Christian Grøndahl, 361 pages, TIOLI #13 (msg 131)
book 48: Wat bomen ons vertellen (Tree Story) by Valerie Trouet, 296 pages, TIOLI #6 (msg 132)
book 49: De val (The fell) by Sarah Moss, 192 pages, TIOLI #6 (msg 172)
book 50: Zo begint het slechte (Thus Bad Begins) by Javier Marías, 549 pages, TIOLI #13 (msg 173)
book 51: Eurotrash by Christian Kracht, 208 pages, TIOLI #2 (msg 174)
book 52: Een jaar in scherven by Koos van Zomeren, 380 pages, TIOLI #2 (msg 175)
book 53: Vang de haas (Catch the rabbit) by Lana Bastašić, 239 pages, TIOLI #9 (msg 176)

3FAMeulstee
Modificato: Feb 28, 2023, 2:22 pm

February 2023 reading plans

TIOLI February 2023 SWEEP
#1: Read a book with a body part in the title
- Het hart is een eenzame jager (The Heart is a Lonely Hunter) - Carson McCullers, 367 pages (e-library)
#2: Read a book whose first letter of it’s title fits into the following Rolling Challenge – based on “Be My Valentine”
- Eurotrash - Christian Kracht, 208 pages (library)
- Een jaar in scherven - Koos van Zomeren, 380 pages (e-library)
- Verweven leven (Entangled life) - Merlin Sheldrake, 383 pages (e-library)
#3: Read a book whose title pays homage to Cole Porter's "Night and Day"
- Laatste zomernacht - Maarten 't Hart, 109 pages (e-library)
#4: Read a book about twins, or told from 2 POV or has a word indicating 2 in the title
- Perenbomen bloeien wit - Gerbrand Bakker, 144 pages (e-library)
#5: Read a book for the Alphabetical Verbs rolling challenge
- Vissen hebben geen voeten (Fish Have No Feet) - Jón Kalman Stefánsson, 345 pages (e-library)
#6: Read a book with the numbers 6 and 0 in the ISBN
- Karel en Elegast - Anonymus, 96 pages (library)
- Madame le Commissaire en de verdwenen Engelsman - Pierre Martin, 302 pages (e-library)
- De val (The fell) - Sarah Moss, 192 pages (e-library)
- Wat bomen ons vertellen (Tree Story) - Valerie Trouet, 296 pages (library)
- De zaak van Münster (Münster's Case; Van Veeteren 6) - Håkan Nesser, 347 pages (library)
#7: Read a book with either the word “Red” or “Black” in the title
- Zwarte seconden (Black Seconds; Konrad Sejer 6) - Karin Fossum, 292 pages (library)
#8: Read a classic whose adaptation into a movie or play you've seen
- Koning Lear (King Lear) - William Shakespeare, 147 pages (library)
#9: Read a book with an animal in its title AND that animal on its cover
- Vang de haas (Catch the rabbit) - Lana Bastašić, 239 pages (library)
- Uit de bek van de walvis (From the Mouth of the Whale) - Sjón, 251 pages (library)
#10: Read a book with something you'd find on Old MacDonald's Farm in the title or author's name
- Verwilderd (Bewilderment) - Richard Powers, 350 pages (e-library)
#11: Read a book in Portuguese or translated from Portuguese
- De alchemist (The Alchemist) - Paulo Coelho, 171 pages (e-library)
#12: Read a book where the first two words in the title begin with the same letter
- Verzen van nu - Garmt Stuiveling, 36 pages
#13: Read a book with at least two one-syllable words in the title (excludes a, an, the, and & or)
- Dat weet je niet - Jens Christian Grøndahl, 361 pages (library)
- Toen ik dit zag - Rutger Kopland, 52 pages
- Zo begint het slechte (Thus Bad Begins) - Javier Marías, 548 pages (library)
#14: Read a book with a connection to a book you read in 2022
- Transit (Transit) - Anna Seghers, 294 pages (library)
- De veensoldaten - Wolfgang Langhoff, 252 pages (library)
#15: Read a book with a person's name on the page # matching the number of books you read last year
- De bijzondere woorden van Gioia - Enrico Galiano, 429 pages (e-library)
#16: Read a book written from a non-human perspective
- De memoires van Norton, filosoof en hond (Norton's Philosophical Memoirs) - Håkan Nesser, 94 pages (e-library)
- Reisverslag van een kat (The Travelling Cat Chronicles) - Hiro Arikawa, 238 pages (e-library)
#17: Read a short story (or a book of short stories, if you so desire)
- Het gele behang en andere verhalen (a selection from Herland, The Yellow Wall-Paper, and Selected Writings) - Charlotte Perkins Gilman, 174 pages (e-library)
- Wilde rozen en andere verhalen - Konstantin Paustovski, 128 pages (e-library)
#18: Read a Western
- Pony (Pony) - R.J. Palacio, 303 pages (e-library)

4FAMeulstee
Modificato: Mar 1, 2023, 6:53 am

March 2023 reading plans

TIOLI March 2023
#1: Read a book with the word "happy", its synonym, or its antonym in the title
- Het boek van de doodgraver - Oliver Pötzsch, 397 pages (library)
#2: Read a book by an author that you have read before and given 4 or more stars to
- Boud - Eva Rovers, 574 pages (library)
- De foltering van Eldorado - Albert Helman, 467 pages (library)
- Jasper en zijn knecht - Gerbrand Bakker, 395 pages (e-library 14/3)
- De verliefden (The Infatuations) - Javier Marías, 367 pages (library)
#3: Read a book which you did not purchase
- Madame le Commissaire en de uitgestelde wraak (Isabelle Bonnet 2) - Pierre Martin, 284 pages (e-library 14/3)
- De niet verhoorde gebeden van Jacob de Zoet (The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet) - David Mitchell, 621 pages (library)
- De ontdekking van de natuur - Hans Mulder, 256 pages (library)
#4: Read a book with a nationality or ethnicity in the title or author's name
-
#5: Read a book with a word dividable into two words in the title
- De werkplaats van de duivel (The Devil's Workshop) - Jáchym Topol, 189 pages (e-library 19/3)
#6: All or Nothing - Read a book with a word meaning "all" or a word meaning "nothing" in the title or author's name
-
#7: Read a book whose title or author's name includes the words green, white or orange
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#8: Read a book containing two opposite ideas, actions or places
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#9: Read a book that is the basis of a lesser-known film OR a lesser-known book that is the basis of a film
- Haas (The Year of the Hare) - Artro Paasilinna, 173 pages (library)
#10: Read a book set in the nineteenth century or before with characters of colour
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#11: Read a book where the title sounds naughty but isn't
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#12: Read a book that has been criticised, banned or burnt
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#13: Read a book with settings in two or more countries
-
#14: Read a book with a word in the title that has a connection with walking/hiking
- Het plezier van wandelen (Walking: One Step At a Time) - Erling Kagge, 158 pages (library)

5FAMeulstee
Modificato: Feb 3, 2023, 3:05 am

books read in January 2023
book 1: De fundamenten by Ramsey Nasr
book 2: Bestaat er een raarder leven dan het mijne? Jef Last (1898-1972) by Rudi Wester
book 3: Levensgevaar (Rivierdelta 2) by Arttu Tuominen
book 4: Broers (Brothers) by Bernice Rubens
book 5: Mijn dertigjarige oorlog (No Surrender: My Thirty-Year War) by Hiroo Onoda
book 6: Het schemeren van de wereld (The Twilight World) by Werner Herzog
book 7: Eigen welzijn eerst by Roxane van Iperen
book 8: Wolven op het ruiterpad by Tijs Goldschmidt
book 9: Rotterdam: ode aan de inefficiëntie by Arjen van Veelen
book 10: Doctor Vlimmen by Mr. A. Roothaert
book 11: Vlimmen contra Vlimmen by Mr. A. Roothaert
book 12: Vlimmens tweede jeugd by Mr. A. Roothaert
book 13: Het weeshuis in de azuurblauwe zee (The House in the Cerulean Sea) by T.J. Klune
book 14: Job: roman over een eenvoudige man (Job: The Story of a Simple Man) by Joseph Roth
book 15: Vogels van West- en Midden-Europa by Philip J.K. Burton
book 16: De raaf by Louis Beyens
book 17: Zwartboek (The Black Book; John Rebus 5) by Ian Rankin
book 18: Met lichte tred by Ton Lemaire
book 19: Onheilstijding (A Dying Fall; Ruth Galloway 5) by Elly Griffiths
book 20: Leven en lot (Life and Fate) by Vasili Grossman
book 21: Vallende stenen (Konráð 4) by Arnaldur Indriðason
book 22: De opwindvogelkronieken (The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle) by Haruki Murakami
book 23: De uitverkorene (The Elected Member) by Bernice Rubens

6FAMeulstee
Modificato: Feb 3, 2023, 3:06 am

Reading plans in 2023
Reading books from the 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die list
Read some big tomes (1000+ pages)
Read books by Nobel Prize for Literature winners

I join the TIOLI (Take It Or Leave It) challenges each month.

--
Some big tomes I might read in 2023:
Ideeën (1-7) by Multatuli, 3846 pages
De razende Roeland (Orlando furioso) by Ludovico Ariosto, 1783 pages
De kracht van Atlantis (Atlas shrugged) by Ayn Rand, 1373 pages
Inktzwart hart (The Ink Black Heart) - Robert Galbraith, 1190 pages

--
Some other books I want to read in 2023:
Anatomie van een moment (The Anatomy of a Moment) - Javier Cercas, 539 pages
Jean-Paul Sartre : zijn biografie (Sartre: A Life) - Annie Cohen-Solal, 610 pages
Duitse les (The German Lesson) - Siegfried Lenz, 511 pages
Een beloofd land (A promised land) - Barack Obama, 896 pages
Aarde der mensen (This Earth of Mankind) - Pramoedya Ananta Toer, 457 pages
Landlijnen (Landlines) - Raynor Winn, 351 pages

7FAMeulstee
Modificato: Feb 3, 2023, 3:06 am

Tickers

Totals since 2008:




8FAMeulstee
Modificato: Feb 3, 2023, 3:08 am

My reading in previous years in text
2008: 130 books -   35.152 pages   (96,0 ppd)
2009:   78 books -   21.470 pages   (58,8 ppd)
2010: 121 books -   38.209 pages (104,7 ppd)
2011:   84 books -   30.256 pages   (82,9 ppd)
2012:   53 books -   18.779 pages   (51,3 ppd)
2013:   13 books -     3.692 pages   (10,1 ppd)
2014:   17 books -     3.700 pages   (10,1 ppd)
2015:   29 books -   10.080 pages   (27,6 ppd)
2016: 253 books -   72.391 pages (197,8 ppd)
2017: 453 books - 110.222 pages (302,0 ppd)
2018: 534 books - 111.906 pages (306,6 ppd)
2019: 413 books - 110.873 pages (303,8 ppd)
2020: 226 books -   79.216 pages (216,4 ppd)
2021: 288 books -   94.339 pages (258,5 ppd)
2022: 323 books - 102.275 pages (280,2 ppd)

--
Previous threads in 2023
book 1 - 23: thread 1

--
Monthly statistics
January: 23 books / 8.293 pages

9FAMeulstee
Modificato: Feb 3, 2023, 3:08 am

10FAMeulstee
Modificato: Feb 21, 2023, 3:57 am

Series I read, a list to keep track

Alan Banks by Peter Robinson (re-read 4/20)
1 Stille blik; 2 Nachtlicht; 3 Tegenstroom; 4 Zondeval; 5 Schijnbeeld; 6 Woensdagkind; 7 Zwanenzang; 8 Innocent Graves (not translated); 9 Dead Right (not translated); 10 Verdronken verleden; 11 Kil als het graf; 12 Nasleep; 13 Onvoltooide zomer; 14 Vuurspel; 15 Drijfzand; 16 Hartzeer; 17 Duivelsgebroed; 18 Overmacht; 19 Uitschot; 20 Dwaalspoor; 21 Dankbare dood; 22 Slachthuisblues

Ari Thór Arason (Dark Iceland) by Ragnar Jónasson 3/4
1 Sneeuwblind; 2 Inktzwart; 3 Poolnacht; 4 Ademloos

Bernie Gunther by Philip Kerr 7/12
1 Een Berlijnse kwestie; 2 Het handwerk van de beul; 3 Een Duits requiem; 4 De een van de ander; 5 Een stille vlam; 6 Als de doden niet herrijzen; 7 Grijs verleden; 8 Praag fataal; 9 De man zonder adem; 10 De vrouw van Zagreb; 11 De schaduw van de stilte; 12 Pruisisch blauw; 13 Vergeven en vergeten; 14 Metropolis

Broeder Cadfael by Ellis Peters 17/20
1 Het heilige vuur; 2 Het laatste lijk; 3 Het gemene gewas; 4 De kwade knecht; 5 De eenzame bruid; 6 De kille maagd; 7 Het vege lijf; 8 De duivelse droom; 9 De gouden speld; 10 Een wisse dood; 11 Een hard gelag; 12 De ware aard; 13 Een witte roos; 14 Het stille woud; 15 De laatste eer; 16 Het rechte pad; 17 Een zijden haar; 18 Een lieve lust; 19 De heilige dief; 20 De verloren zoon

De Cock by A.C. Baantjer 58/71

Cormoran Strike by Robert Galbraith 5/6
1 Koekoeksjong; 2 Zijderups; 3 Het slechte pad; 4 Witte dood; 5 Kwaad bloed; 6 Inktzwart hart

George Smiley by John Le Carré 5/9
1 Telefoon voor de dode; 2 Voetsporen in de sneeuw; 3 Spion aan de muur; 4 Spion verspeeld; 5 Edelman, bedelman, schutter, spion; 6 Spion van nobel bloed; 7 Smiley's prooi; 8 De laatste spion; 9 Een erfenis van spionnen

Guido Brunetti by Donna Leon 29/30
1 Dood van een maestro; 2 Dood in den vreemde; 3 De dood draagt rode schoenen; 4 Salto mortale; 5 Acqua alta; 6 Een stille dood; 7 Nobiltà; 8 Fatalità; 9 Vriendendienst; 10 Onrustig tij; 11 Bedrieglijke zaken; 12 De stille elite; 13 Verborgen bewijs; 14 Vertrouwelijke zaken; 15 Duister glas; 16 Kinderspel; 17 Droommeisje; 18 Gezichtsverlies; 19 Een kwestie van vertrouwen; 20 Dodelijke conclusies; 21 Beestachtige zaken; 22 Het onbekende kind; 23 Tussen de regels; 24 Ik aanbid je; 25 Eeuwige jeugd; 26 Wat niet verdwijnt; 27 Vergiffenis; 28 De troonopvolger; 29 Duister water; 30 Vluchtig verlangen

Isabelle Bonnet by Pierre Martin 1/5
1 Madame le Commissaire en de verdwenen Engelsman; 2 Madame le Commissaire en de uitgestelde wraak; 3 Madame le Commissaire en de dood van de politiechef; 4 Madame le Commissaire en het mysterieuze schilderij; 5 Madame le Commissaire en de dode non; 6 Madame le Commissaire und der tote Liebhaber (not translated); 7 Madame le Commissaire und die Frau (not translated); 8 Madame le Commissaire und die panische Diva (not translated); 9 Madame le Commissaire und die Villa der Frauen (not translated)

John Rebus by Ian Rankin 5/23
1 Kat & muis; 2 Blindeman; 3 Hand & Tand; 4 Ontmaskering; 5 Zwartboek; 6 Vuurwerk; 7 Laat maar bloeden; 8 Gerechtigheid; 9 Door het lint; 10 Dode zielen; 11 In het duister; 12 Valstrik; 13 Lazarus; 14 Een kwestie van bloed; 15 De rechtelozen; 16 Gedenk de doden; 17 Laatste ronde; 18 Cold case; 19 Saints of the Shadow Bible (not translated); 20 Even Dogs in the Wild (not translated); 21 Rather Be the Devil (not translated); 22 Een web van leugens; 23 Een lied voor duistere tijden

Konráð by Arnaldur Indridason 4/4
1 Smeltend ijs; 2 Boven water; 3 Smeulend vuur; 4 Vallende stenen

Konrad Sejer by Karin Fossum 6/14
1 Eva's oog; 2 Kijk niet achterom; 3 Wie de wolf vreest; 4 De duivel draagt het licht; 5 De Indiase bruid; 6 Zwarte seconden; 7 De moord op Harriet Krohn; 8 Een andere voorkeur; 9 Kwade wil; 10 De waarschuwer; 11 Veenbrand; 12 De fluisteraar; 13 De verduistering; 14 Zwanenzang

Martin Servaz by Bernard Minier 4/7
1 Een kille rilling; 2 Huivering; 3 Verduistering; 4 Schemering; 5 Weerzin; 6 Afdaling; 7 Afrekening

Oliver von Bodenstein & Pia Kirchhoff by Nele Neuhaus 9/10
1 Een onbeminde vrouw; 2 Moordvrienden; 3 Diepe wonden; 4 Sneeuwwitje moet sterven; 5 Wie wind zaait; 6 Boze wolf; 7 De levenden en de doden; 8 Het woud; 9 Moederdag; 10 Eeuwige vriendschap

De Rougons-Macquarts (The Rougon-Macquarts) by Émile Zola 4/20
1 Het fortuin der Rougons; 2 De buit; 3 De buik van Parijs; 4 De verovering van Plassans; 5 De misstap van pastoor Mouret; 6 Zijne excellentie Eugène Rougon; 7 De nekslag; 8 Liefde; 9 Nana; 10 In troebel water; 11 In het paradijs voor de vrouw; 12 Levensvreugde; 13 De mijn; 14 Het werk; 15 Het land; 16 De droom; 17 Het beest in de mens; 18 Het geld; 19 De ondergang; 20 Dokter Pascal

Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Conan Doyle 4/8
1 Een studie in rood; 2 De vallei der verschrikking; 3 De hond van de Baskervilles; 4 Het teken van de vier; 5 Het laatste probleem; 6 Het avontuur van de duivelsklauw; 7 Zijn laatste buiging; 8 De onbekende avonturen van Sherlock Holmes

De tandeloze tijd by A.F.Th. van der Heijden 1/11
0 De slag om de Blauwbrug; 1 Vallende ouders; 2 De gevarendriehoek; 2.1 Weerborstels; 3.1 Het hof van barmhartigheid; 3.2 Onder het plaveisel het moeras; 3.4 Doodverf; 4 Advocaat van de hanen; 5 De helleveeg; 6 Kwaadschiks; 8 Stemvorken

Van Veeteren by Håkan Nesser 6/11
1 Het grofmazige net; 2 Het vierde offer; 3 De terugkeer; 4 De vrouw met de moedervlek; 5 De commissaris en het zwijgen; 6 De zaak van Münster; 7 Carambole; 8 De dode op het strand; 9 De zwaluw, de kat, de roos en de dood; 10 Van Veeteren en de zaak-G; 11 De vereniging van linkshandigen

11FAMeulstee
Modificato: Feb 22, 2023, 12:32 pm

Books acquired in 2023: 6

January (2)
Het gouden boek - Doris Lessing
Episoden uit het leven van Lulu - Almudena Grandes

February (4)
Job: roman over een eenvoudige man - Joseph Roth
Beton - Thomas Bernhard
Correctie - Thomas Bernhard
Watten - Thomas Bernhard

12FAMeulstee
Modificato: Feb 3, 2023, 3:19 am

Welcome!


Have some cake and coffee, today I celebrate my 60th birthday :-)

13charl08
Feb 3, 2023, 3:47 am

Happy birthday Anita. The cake looks good!

14SirThomas
Feb 3, 2023, 3:52 am

Happy birthday, happy new thread and happy life, Anita!

15FAMeulstee
Feb 3, 2023, 3:59 am

>13 charl08: Thank you, Charlotte.
It is my favorite hazelnut cream by 'Maison Kelder', famous in The Hague.

>14 SirThomas: Thank you again, Thomas.
Life is good, you make me smile :-)

16CDVicarage
Feb 3, 2023, 4:10 am

Happy birthday, Anita, and hope the celebrations go well!

17figsfromthistle
Feb 3, 2023, 5:41 am

Happy new thread and happy birthday!

>12 FAMeulstee: Thanks for sharing. The cake looks delicious!

18PaulCranswick
Feb 3, 2023, 6:41 am

Happy new thread, Anita and......

a very happy birthday my friend.

>12 FAMeulstee: If there is a slice left for me, I would gladly join you. xx

19bell7
Feb 3, 2023, 7:26 am

Happy birthday, Anita!

20FAMeulstee
Feb 3, 2023, 7:32 am

>16 CDVicarage: Thank you, Kerry.
Today is all nice and quiet, as I like it :-)

>17 figsfromthistle: Thank you, Anita!
It is delicious. I rarely get it these days, as they only have shops in and aroud The Hague.

21FAMeulstee
Feb 3, 2023, 7:33 am

>18 PaulCranswick: Thank you, dear Paul.
There is enough for everyone, have a slice!

>19 bell7: Thank you, Mary!

22msf59
Feb 3, 2023, 7:54 am

Happy Friday, Anita. Happy New Thread. Enjoy your weekend.

23jessibud2
Feb 3, 2023, 7:58 am

Happy birthday and happy new thread too. Mmmmm, that cake looks yummy!

24FAMeulstee
Feb 3, 2023, 8:20 am

>22 msf59: Thank you, Mark, happy Friday!
Tommorrow we will visit my father, followed by a lazy Sunday.

>23 jessibud2: Thank you, Shelley!
Trust me, it is yummy :-)

25foggidawn
Feb 3, 2023, 10:00 am

Happy birthday! That's a lovely cake.

26Ameise1
Feb 3, 2023, 10:00 am

Happy birthday, Anita. May all your dreams come true. 🎶🍾🎂😘💖

27drneutron
Feb 3, 2023, 10:16 am

Happy birthday and happy new thread!

28RebaRelishesReading
Feb 3, 2023, 12:03 pm

>12 FAMeulstee: That looks like a delicious cake! Happy birthday, Anita! (and also happy new thread)

29hredwards
Feb 3, 2023, 1:06 pm

Happy Birthday!!
I just turned 59 a couple of weeks ago!!
Thanks for the cake!
And happy New Thread!!

30witchyrichy
Feb 3, 2023, 3:24 pm

Happy birthday! Happy new thread! Beautiful cake.

31Caroline_McElwee
Feb 3, 2023, 3:51 pm



Happy birthday Anita. You do know you have to celebrate decade birthdays all year! Glad there is cake. Hope there are some books too.

32FAMeulstee
Feb 3, 2023, 4:30 pm

>25 foggidawn: Thank you, Misti!

>26 Ameise1: Thank you, Barbara, that would be lovely 😊

33FAMeulstee
Feb 3, 2023, 4:32 pm

>27 drneutron: Thank you, Jim!

>28 RebaRelishesReading: Thank you, Reba.
The hazelnut cream cake is special, only available in The Hague, so if you ever get there...

34FAMeulstee
Feb 3, 2023, 4:34 pm

>29 hredwards: Thank you, Harold, belated happy birthday to you!

>30 witchyrichy: Thank you, Karen, thank you!

35FAMeulstee
Modificato: Mar 3, 2023, 3:27 am

>31 Caroline_McElwee: Thank you, Caroline.
Celebrate the whole year?!? No thanks ;-)

Only one book today, as I already got a Walkstool on Frank's birthday in November. I got Job: roman over een eenvoudige man (Job: The Story of a Simple Man) by Joseph Roth, a favorite of last month. And a bit of money from my father, I might buy myself some books ;-)

36arubabookwoman
Feb 3, 2023, 5:23 pm

Happy Birthday Anita!

I enjoyed job when I read it a few years ago. Of your January reads I loved Life and Fate. And I want to read more by Bernice Rubens.

37quondame
Feb 3, 2023, 5:27 pm

Happy new thread Anita!

I hope your birthday was filled with joy and books, which is almost the same thing!

38FAMeulstee
Feb 3, 2023, 5:37 pm

>36 arubabookwoman: Thank you, Deborah.
I have liked all Joseph Roth books I have read so far. Have few others waiting on the shelves.
Life and Fate was a re-read, it remains my overal favorite book of all time.
I got to Brothers by Bernice Rubens through a Dutch book website, where someone had listed it as favorite book. I only knew her name from the Booker Prize she won with The Elected Member. I will look for other books by her.

>37 quondame: Thank you, Susan.
Today was nice and quiet, no visitors, only three phone calls.
There was only one book gift, the shelves are full and I don't know what to cull to get some place for new books. At least I have enough books from the library to fill this month ;-)

39avatiakh
Feb 3, 2023, 7:04 pm

Happy Birthday Anita - lovely to see that you got a book. My January birthday was quiet, I went out with my sons for a meal and that was about it.
I have a couple of Joseph Roth's books on my shelves, not sure when I'll get to them.

40weird_O
Feb 3, 2023, 8:19 pm

Glad to read you enjoyed your birthday, Anita. By best wishes are heartfelt even if a few days late. I don't suppose there's any of that cake left. Too bad for me, huh? It certainly look marvelous.

Cheers for all the reading you've gotten done.

41ffortsa
Feb 3, 2023, 9:15 pm

Happy Birthday, Anita. Did I miss it (at least technically - it's probably past midnight where you are right now)? I hope you have a fine year, and fine reading in it.

42banjo123
Feb 3, 2023, 11:58 pm

Happy Birthday, Anita!!

43WhiteRaven.17
Feb 4, 2023, 1:10 am

Happy new thread and happy birthday Anita! Hope it was a pleasant day.
To your last thread, glad to see you enjoyed The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle that is on my list to read in May as my second Murakami book.

44FAMeulstee
Feb 4, 2023, 5:35 am

>39 avatiakh: Thank you, Kerry, a very belated happy one to you. I wasn't around early in the year.
I love quiet birthdays :-)
Today we will go to my father and have diner in the restaurant of the facility. Tomorrow we will eat out with my brother and sister in law. Thankfully the rest of the week is quiet for me.
Joseph Roth was a very good writer. He was a very succesfull journalist first, and started to write books later in life.

>40 weird_O: Thank you, Bill, you are only 2 hours and 19 minutes late in my time.
And well in time in your time of day.
Of course there is cake for you, virtual cake lasts eternally :-)

45FAMeulstee
Feb 4, 2023, 5:42 am

>41 ffortsa: Thank you, Judy.
You didn't miss it in your time, in my time your message was at 3:15 am. So just at the start of the next day, while I was sleeping.
I am sure it will be a good reading year again.

>42 banjo123: Thank you, Rhonda!

>43 WhiteRaven.17: Thank you, Kro, it was a very pleasant day. No visitors, just me and Frank.
I hope you like The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle when you get to it. I liked Kafka on the Shore even better. Not sure yet what my next Murakami will be, he wrote a lot, and some are very big tomes.

46PaulCranswick
Feb 4, 2023, 5:43 am

Wishing you a lovely weekend dear lady.

47FAMeulstee
Feb 4, 2023, 5:56 am

>46 PaulCranswick: Thank you, Paul, wishing you the same.
We will visit my father today, and have diner there at the restaurant of the facility.
Tomorrow eating out again, with my brother and his wife.

48BLBera
Feb 4, 2023, 11:33 am

Happy new thread, Anita. I love the art at the top. Good luck with your father.

49FAMeulstee
Feb 4, 2023, 5:36 pm

>48 BLBera: Thank you, Beth. So did I, worth to share.
Thanks, he was still a bit frail today.

50FAMeulstee
Feb 5, 2023, 5:24 am

Read, not yet reviewed:
#24: De bijzondere woorden van Gioia by Enrico Galiano
#25: Verweven leven (Entangled life) by Merlin Sheldrake

Reading now:
Transit (Transit) by Anna Seghers
Vissen hebben geen voeten (Fish Have No Feet) by Jón Kalman Stefánsson

51PersephonesLibrary
Feb 5, 2023, 2:12 pm

Happy new thread! I was hoping the threads would slow down a bit in February - not yours. ;-)

I hope you had a wonderful birthday! Did you get any bookish birthday presents? The cake looks wonderful!

52FAMeulstee
Feb 5, 2023, 6:06 pm

>51 PersephonesLibrary: Thank you, Käthe!
I got one book, Job: The Story of a Simple Man by Joseph Roth (in Dutch translation), as I liked it very much it when I read it last month. The shelves are full, so one book was enough ;-)

What a lovely birthday card!

53EllaTim
Feb 6, 2023, 1:00 pm

Happy Belated Birthday wishes, Anita! And a happy 60th year of life!

I’m curious about the Sheldrake book.

>1 FAMeulstee: Love the Mondriaan!

54johnsimpson
Feb 6, 2023, 5:04 pm

Hi Anita my dear, A belated Happy 60th birthday my dear friend, i will be joining the 60's club in July. Happy New Thread my dear.

55FAMeulstee
Feb 7, 2023, 3:33 am

>53 EllaTim: Thank you, Ella!
The Sheldrake book was good, fungi are facinating.
I loved the Mondriaan too :-)

>54 johnsimpson: Thank you, John.
1963 was a good year :-)

56FAMeulstee
Feb 7, 2023, 3:34 am

Read, not yet reviewed:
#24: De bijzondere woorden van Gioia by Enrico Galiano
#25: Verweven leven (Entangled life) by Merlin Sheldrake
#26: Transit (Transit) by Anna Seghers

Reading now:
Vissen hebben geen voeten (Fish Have No Feet) by Jón Kalman Stefánsson
De zaak van Münster (Münster's Case) by Håkan Nesser

57Crazymamie
Feb 8, 2023, 10:51 am

Belated Happy Birthday wishes from me, Anita. That cake looks full of fabulous. I love hazelnut anything.

I really like how you have your series listed - so easy to see exactly where you are and which one is up next.

58FAMeulstee
Feb 9, 2023, 2:43 am

>57 Crazymamie: Thank you, Mamie, I am with you in loving hazelnut anything.
The series listing works well. Since I started to list this way, I don't forget series in progress anymore.

59FAMeulstee
Feb 9, 2023, 2:55 am


book 24: De bijzondere woorden van Gioia by Enrico Galiano
library, e-book, YA, translated from Italian, no English translation, 429 pages
TIOLI Challenge #15: Read a book with a person's name on the page # matching the number of books you read last year

Gioia doesn't fit in at school, she is different. Her parents are divorced, so there isn't money for nice clothes or fancy smart phones, like her classmates have. She loves words from other languages that are untranslatable and capture a feeling, like the German 'Fernweh'. When she meets Lo, she finally meets someone who understands. They become friends, but Lo has his own problems.

Title translated: The special words from Gioia

60FAMeulstee
Feb 9, 2023, 3:11 am


book 25: Verweven leven by Merlin Sheldrake
library, e-book, non-fiction, translated, original title Entangled life, 383 pages
TIOLI Challenge #2: Read a book whose first letter of it’s title fits into the following Rolling Challenge – based on “Be My Valentine”

The facinating world of fungi, from mushrooms to the Wood Wide Web.
Fungi live beneath the surface, and were long overlooked. They play an important role in nature, that is only recently scientifically discovered. Merlin Sheldrake writes passionate and sometimes poetic about all kinds of fungi, and the research in this field.

This book was mentioned in Robert Macfarlane's Underland, and if you like Macfarlane, you will probably like Sheldrake.

English and Dutch title are the same

61FAMeulstee
Feb 9, 2023, 3:22 am


book 26: Transit by Anna Seghers
1001 books, library, translated from German, English translation Transit, 295 pages
TIOLI Challenge #14: Read a book with a connection to a book you read in 2022

A young man has escaped from a Nazi-camp in Germany, and is living in Paris now. Then the Germans invade France, so he leaves Paris and ends up in Marseille, with many others. All refugees try to escape Europe, but they need the right papers to get on a ship. So they stand in line before the concerning consulates to get visa. They also need transit visa for the countries they will travel through, a permit to leave France, and their permit to stay in Marseille has to be renewed regular...
We follow the young man, and others around him, in this bureaucratic labyrinth.

English and Dutch title are exactly the same

62FAMeulstee
Feb 9, 2023, 3:52 am


book 27: Vissen hebben geen voeten by Jón Kalman Stefánsson
library, e-book, translated from Icelandic, English translation Fish Have No Feet, 345 pages
TIOLI Challenge #5: Read a book for the Alphabetical Verbs rolling challenge

Keflavik once had an American base, that made the place prosper, but now they are gone.The fishing industries are gone as well, as all fishing rights are sold.
Ari returns to Keflavik, where he suddenly left his wife and children two years ago. His unnamed friend tells his story, and the story of his parents and grandparents. The stories show how this place, and Iceland as a whole, changed in the 20th century. Al described in a poetic way, with some thoughts about indentity, the role and faith of women, and friendship. Larded with (dark) humor.

English and Dutch title are the same

63WhiteRaven.17
Feb 9, 2023, 4:31 am

>60 FAMeulstee: This one is already on my list, but nice to have confirmation that's it's a good read.
>62 FAMeulstee: This one seems interesting, taking note of it, I'm particularly fond of dark humor.

64FAMeulstee
Feb 9, 2023, 4:36 am

>63 WhiteRaven.17: You are welcome, Kro, I learned a lot from Entangled life.
Humor is always difficult to advise about, sense of humor is very individual. In this book it is rather subtile, and it made me smile, not laugh out loud.

65karenmarie
Feb 9, 2023, 8:29 am

Hi Anita, and belated happy new thread!

From your last thread, I loved IQ84 and read it in 2012. My copy is in 3 volumes, 1184 pages. It was for book club and my first Murakami.

>6 FAMeulstee: I’m listening to The Ink Black Heart, am on the 25th of 27 CDs. It’s fantastic.

>9 FAMeulstee: I love your lists!

>10 FAMeulstee: I decided to buy the first George Smiley book, Call for the Dead. I’m looking for books to kickstart my non-romance reading.

>12 FAMeulstee: Belated Happy Birthday. I hope it was a good one, and that cake looks totally yummy. Best wishes for a wonderful year.

66msf59
Feb 9, 2023, 8:33 am

Sweet Thursday, Anita. Thanks for stopping by my thread and sharing your waterfowl report. I always enjoy those. Fish Have No Feet sounds like a good one. I love reading about Iceland.

67FAMeulstee
Modificato: Feb 9, 2023, 9:12 am

>65 karenmarie: Thank you, Karen, I had a good birthday.
That is helpful, so my next Murakami will be 1Q84.
I have to wait my turn in the library for The Ink Black Heart. Too many are waiting for it now, I usually wait until copies are on the shelves to take.
Call for the Dead isn't the best Smiley book, more a whodunnit then a spy novel. But it is the first, so a good one to start.

>66 msf59: You are welcome, Mark, I know you like these reports.
I like most Icelandic writers, somehow two of them ended up in my February reads. Nex one is From the Mouth of the Whale.

68avatiakh
Feb 9, 2023, 3:43 pm

>67 FAMeulstee: I've read several of Murakami books though not The Windup Bird Chronicle and also highly recommend 1Q84.

My library has Transit so I'll be requesting it. They also have the DVD of the 2018 film based on the book, though looks to be set in the present day and about displaced people.

>65 karenmarie: I'm wondering how the audio is for The Ink Black Heart as there were so many pages of internet chats, many shown as happening simultaneously by being placed in three columns.

69BLBera
Feb 9, 2023, 3:54 pm

Transit sounds really good; I've been wanting to try Seghers, so this may be a good place to start.

70FAMeulstee
Feb 9, 2023, 4:21 pm

>68 avatiakh: Another vote for 1Q84, thanks Kerry.
Transit is of course about refugees/displaced persons, so I can imagine it set to present times.

>69 BLBera: It was my first Seghers, Beth.
It was no smooth read, both the language and the subject were not easy. But well worth the read.

71FAMeulstee
Feb 10, 2023, 5:39 pm

Read, not yet reviewed:
#28: Perenbomen bloeien wit by Gerbrand Bakker
#29: De zaak van Münster (Münster's Case; Van Veeteren 6) by Håkan Nesser
#30: Verzen van nu by Garmt Stuiveling

Reading now:
Verwilderd (Bewilderment) by Richard Powers
Koning Lear (King Lear) by William Shakespeare
Pony (Pony) by R.J. Palacio

72EllaTim
Feb 10, 2023, 6:14 pm

Thanks for the review of the Sheldrake book, Anita. On the TBR it goes. Fascinating isn’t it? So many new things still being discovered.

I have Bewilderment on my list as well, but you will certainly beat me to it.

How do you like reading plays? Don’t you feel you’re missing something by only reading, or doesn’t that bother you?

73FAMeulstee
Feb 11, 2023, 4:13 am

>72 EllaTim: Facinating indeed, Ella, and I like how Sheldrake writes about it all.
Probably, I think I will finish Bewilderment tomorrow.

I rarely read plays, when I do it usually because of a TIOLI Challenge. To me it is just an other book, in a different format.
I did see Koning Lear with English class 42 years ago at the theatre of toneelgroep De Appel.

74charl08
Feb 11, 2023, 7:55 am

I thought Transit was brilliantly done, Anita. I just find it amazing/ awful that it is still relevant today. Hope you have a good weekend: it's been a bit milder the last few days so I have been feeling guilty about the garden. I've not touched it since before my mum got sick. But there are some new buds showing nonetheless.

75FAMeulstee
Feb 11, 2023, 11:38 am

>74 charl08: Yes, the link to present times is so sad, Charlotte. Still way to many refugees, and most people over here only complain there are to many coming in. They all should read this book!
The garden will do well on its own, maybe a little more work later in the season.
Yesterday I noticed the first snowdrops have flowers, spring is on its way :-)

76FAMeulstee
Feb 13, 2023, 4:05 am


book 28: Perenbomen bloeien wit by Gerbrand Bakker
library, e-book, Dutch, no English translation, 144 pages
TIOLI Challenge #4: Read a book about twins, or told from 2 POV or has a word indicating 2 in the title

The twins Klaas and Kees, their younger brother Gerson, little dog Daan, and father Gerard try to pick up their lives, as their mother has left. She sends postcards now and then, but no adress. When they are on their way to Gerard's parents, they end up in a car crash. Kees and Gerard are wounded, and Gerson looses his sight. After a long time in hospital Gerson returns home, where Daan has decided to become his helping dog. It is hard for all to find ways to pick up their life again.

Title translated: Pear trees flower white

77FAMeulstee
Feb 13, 2023, 4:15 am


book 29: De zaak van Münster by Håkan Nesser
library, translated from Swedish, English translation Münster's Case, 347 pages
TIOLI Challenge #6: Read a book with the numbers 6 and 0 in the ISBN

Van Veeteren book 6
Van Veeteren is mostly absent in this book, he quitted and runs a second hand bookshop. So Münster and Moreno have to solve the case. An older man is murdered stabbed multiple times. He came back from a night out with three friends, celebrating their lottery win. When the police questions the friends, one of them is also missing. The team can't find any clues, so Münster finally asks Van Veeteren for help.

Dutch title translated: The Case from Münster

78FAMeulstee
Feb 13, 2023, 4:43 am


book 30: Verzen van nu by Garmt Stuiveling
own, poetry, Dutch no translations, 36 pages
TIOLI Challenge #12: Read a book where the first two words in the title begin with the same letter

Garmt Stuiveling was a well known member of the Social Democratic Workers' Party in the Netherlands.
His poems are about socialist ideals, and the hard road to get there.
This collection, his fourth, was published in 1933.

Dutch title translated: Verses from now

79FAMeulstee
Feb 13, 2023, 4:52 am


book 31: Koning Lear by William Shakespeare
1001 books, library, play, translated, original title King Lear, 147 pages
TIOLI Challenge #8: Read a classic whose adaptation into a movie or play you've seen

King Lear wants to leave his kingdom to his three daughters, but first wants to know how much they love him. His eldest two obey, but his youngest sees no need to put her love in words. So Lear disowns the youngest, and leave his kingdom to the oldest daugthers. They both betray him, and Lear realises to late that only his youngest daughter really loved him.

I first lended this book from the e-library, but that edition turned out to be an early 20th century translation in old spelling, although it was published only a few years ago.

English and Dutch title are the same

80FAMeulstee
Feb 13, 2023, 5:07 am


book 32: Pony by R.J. Palacio
library, e-book, translated, original title Pony, 303 pages
TIOLI Challenge #18: Read a Western

Ohio 1860. Twelve year old Silas lives with his father, as his mother died when he was born. His father is a bootmaker, and photograper. One night his father is taken by a gang of forgers, they try to take Silas too, but he manages to stay out of their hands. When the Arabian pony of the gang returns the next day, Silas decides to go and find his father. Together with the pony and Mittenwool, a ghost he knows all his life, he goes into the woods. He gets some help on his way.

I would not have heard of this writer without this group. I have read her wonderful Wonder a few years ago, and was pleased to find an other book by her.

English and Dutch title are the same

81FAMeulstee
Modificato: Feb 13, 2023, 4:34 pm

Read, not yet reviewed:
#33: Verwilderd (Bewilderment) by Richard Powers
#34: Karel en Elegast - Anonymus

Reading now:
De veensoldaten by Wolfgang Langhoff
Het hart is een eenzame jager (The Heart is a Lonely Hunter) by Carson McCullers

82curioussquared
Feb 13, 2023, 1:48 pm

I'm late, but happy new thread, Anita!

83FAMeulstee
Feb 13, 2023, 2:04 pm

>82 curioussquared: Thank you, Natalie, you are welcome here any time!

84FAMeulstee
Feb 15, 2023, 1:53 pm


book 33: Verwilderd by Richard Powers
library, e-book, translated, original title Bewilderment, 350 pages
TIOLI Challenge #10: Read a book with something you'd find on Old MacDonald's Farm in the title or author's name

Theo Byrne recently lost his beloved wife, and has to take care of his special needs son Robin. They have their best moments together camping out in the midst of nature. When things get out of hand at school, Theo doesn't want to medicate his son, and finds an alternative experimental neural-feedback therapy for him. This works well, and soon Robin develops into a kind of Gretha Thunberg, standing up for climate change.

Again a good story by Richard Powers, although I liked his other books (The Overstory and The Time of Our Singing) better.

Dutch title translated: Running wild or Feral


85FAMeulstee
Feb 15, 2023, 1:54 pm


book 34: Karel en Elegast by Anonymus
library, Middle Dutch and translated into Dutch, Dutch Canon, no English translation, 96 pages
TIOLI Challenge #6: Read a book with the numbers 6 and 0 in the ISBN

Middle Dutch classic. The story how Charlemange discovers a plot against him, though Elegast, a knight he previously disowned. Written in rhyme. Can't find English translations on LibraryThing.

Title translated: Charlemange and Elegast


86FAMeulstee
Feb 15, 2023, 1:55 pm


book 35: De veensoldaten by Wolfgang Langhoff
library, translated from German, no English translation, 252 pages
TIOLI Challenge #14: Read a book with a connection to a book you read in 2022

When the Nazi's got in power in 1933, actor Wolfgang Langhoff was taken in "preventive prisonment". First in prison in Düsseldorf, where most others were communist workers who had the same fate. Most prison guards were not very bad, but regular the SS came by and they took prisoners for very violent interrogations. Langhoff also describes the strong bond between the communist prisoners. They organised themselves, shared everything they had, and took care of their comrades who came back from interogation. After some months Langhoff was send to Börgermoor, one of the first concentration camps near the Dutch border. There Langhoff and Johann Esser wrote the famous song Peat Bog Soldiers, the music was composed by Rudi Goguel. After a short stay in the Lichtenburg concentration camp, where circumstances were even worse (not for him personally), he was released after 13 months imprisonment.

He managed to get to Switzerland.
There he wrote this book, one of the first accounts of the Nazi atrocities. published in 1935. It was translated into English at that time, but I could not find any editions on LT.

An impressive and poignant read, only bearable because the violence is balanced by a lot of solidarity between the communist prisoners.

Title translated: The Peat Bog Soldiers


87FAMeulstee
Feb 15, 2023, 1:56 pm


book 36: Zwarte seconden by Karin Fossum
library, translated from Norwegian, English translation Black Seconds, 292 pages
TIOLI Challenge #7: Read a book with either the word “Red” or “Black” in the title

Konrad Sejer book 6
A girl goes out to buy a magazine and some sweets in the nearby shop, but doesn't return.
Konrad Sejer and his team goes searching for her.

A good police procedural, investigating is hard work. Getting to the truth even more.

English and Dutch title are the same


88FAMeulstee
Modificato: Feb 15, 2023, 2:54 pm

Up to date with my reviews, so five library books can be returned to the library tomorrow. Three books are waiting there to be picked up.

Reading now:
Het hart is een eenzame jager (The Heart is a Lonely Hunter) by Carson McCullers
Uit de bek van de walvis (From the Mouth of the Whale) by Sjón
Toen ik dit zag by Rutger Kopland

--
Had fun today with the Valentine Hunt. Found all answers, so back to my books!

89quondame
Modificato: Feb 15, 2023, 4:06 pm

>88 FAMeulstee: Anita - I somehow "solved" all the 14 but - I have no idea which version of Valentine's Cards worked for me as the banner never showed. If you can let me know the URL for #1 I'd appreciate it.

90FAMeulstee
Feb 15, 2023, 4:10 pm

>89 quondame: If I remember well #1 was the tag page for Valentines:
https://www.librarything.com/tag/Valentines
.
When the hunt is over the answers should appear on the hunt page.

91quondame
Feb 15, 2023, 4:28 pm

>90 FAMeulstee: Thank you! I must have clicked on it on my way to somewhere else and then didn't think to try it again. I keep my own record and usually copy the URL down immediately so that one was really annoying me.

92FAMeulstee
Feb 15, 2023, 5:55 pm

>91 quondame: You are welcome, Susan. I was glad to remember it right :-)

93FAMeulstee
Feb 17, 2023, 5:01 am

Read, not yet reviewed:
#37: Het hart is een eenzame jager (The Heart is a Lonely Hunter) by Carson McCullers
#38: Toen ik dit zag by Rutger Kopland

Reading now:
Uit de bek van de walvis (From the Mouth of the Whale) by Sjón
Wilde rozen en andere verhalen by Konstantin Paustovski

94karenmarie
Feb 17, 2023, 8:15 am

Hi Anita! Happy Friday to you.

>88 FAMeulstee: I read The Heart is a Lonely Hunger as a teenager and I’m sure I missed most of what it’s about. Congrats on getting all the Valentine Hunt answers. I’ve got three…

95SirThomas
Feb 17, 2023, 9:49 am

Just popping in to wish you a wonderful weekend, Anita.

96hredwards
Feb 17, 2023, 10:08 am

Have a great weekend Anita!!

97curioussquared
Feb 17, 2023, 11:30 am

The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter is on my lists of books I want to read this year, Anita. Glad to see I'm in good company!

98alcottacre
Feb 17, 2023, 11:33 am

Checking in on your "new" thread, Anita. I hope you have a wonderful weekend!

99FAMeulstee
Feb 17, 2023, 4:05 pm

>94 karenmarie: Thank you, Karen, happy Friday!

Probably you missed some at that age, personally I wasn't taken by The Heart is a Lonely Hunter.
The Valentine Hunt went fairly fast, only needed help with a few answers this time.

>95 SirThomas: Thank you, Thomas, the same to you.

100FAMeulstee
Feb 17, 2023, 4:11 pm

>96 hredwards: Thank you, Harold, I hope yours will be great too!

>97 curioussquared: Thanks, Natalie, for calling me good company :-)
I hope you like it better than I did, when you get to it.

>98 alcottacre: Thank you, Stasia, I hope the same for you.
I have put my review of Life and Fate on the book page, so you can find it there if needed.

101FAMeulstee
Feb 18, 2023, 6:24 pm

Read, not yet reviewed:
#37: Het hart is een eenzame jager (The Heart is a Lonely Hunter) by Carson McCullers
#38: Toen ik dit zag by Rutger Kopland
#39: Wilde rozen en andere verhalen by Konstantin Paustovski
#40: De memoires van Norton, filosoof en hond (Norton's Philosophical Memoirs) by Håkan Nesser
#41: De alchemist (The Alchemist) by Paulo Coelho
#42: Laatste zomernacht by Maarten 't Hart

Reading now:
Uit de bek van de walvis (From the Mouth of the Whale) by Sjón
Reisverslag van een kat (The Travelling Cat Chronicles) by Hiro Arikawa

102streamsong
Feb 20, 2023, 11:09 am

Happy Monday, Anita!

A very late happy 60th birthday. We are close in age, although I am a few years older than you. We'll share the 60's decade for a few years yet.

Wow, your reading is galloping along again this year. And I'm so impressed with the way that you keep up with reviews.

You've probably answered this before, but are most of your reads from the library?

103FAMeulstee
Feb 20, 2023, 3:14 pm

>102 streamsong: Thank you, Janet!

A lot of us are in the same age range, but somehow age doesn't really matter here :-)
Indeed, the books treat me well. I am a little behind with reviews now, 8 books are read and not yet reviewed. I hope to make a start with those tomorrow.

Yes, most books are from the (e-)library, I keep the numbers in >2 FAMeulstee: At this moment of 44 books read this year, 37 came from the library (19 e-books and 18 tree books).
I do want to read more of my own books, but when the scedule gets tight, or some unexpected reads come in between, the owned books are the first to be moved to next month, as they don't have a return date.

104kidzdoc
Feb 20, 2023, 3:22 pm

Happy Belated 60th Birthday, young Anita! (I'll celebrate my 62nd birthday next month.)

105FAMeulstee
Feb 20, 2023, 3:52 pm

>104 kidzdoc: Thank you, Darryl!
Frank is from the same birthyear as you are, so it is easy for me to remember your age :-)

106FAMeulstee
Feb 21, 2023, 4:50 am


book 37: Het hart is een eenzame jager by Carson McCullers
library, e-book, translated, original title The Heart is a Lonely Hunter, 367 pages
TIOLI Challenge #1: Read a book with a body part in the title

A very sad story where we follow 5 characters in the Southern part of the USA in the late 1930s. The deaf-mute John Singer; Mick, a girl who dreams of a musical carreer; the black doctor Copeland; Jake, an alcoholic workman; and Biff, the owner of a local bar. They all visit John Singer, and tell him everything, and because he can't speak, they all see their own words reflected in him.

Maybe my expectations were too high, as I saw a lot of praise for this book. I didn't like it as I hoped I would.

English and Dutch title are the same


107FAMeulstee
Feb 21, 2023, 4:58 am


book 38: Toen ik dit zag by Rutger Kopland
own, poetry, Dutch, no translations, 52 pages
TIOLI Challenge #13: Read a book with at least two one-syllable words in the title (excludes a, an, the, and & or)

The last poetry book by Rutger Kopland. After a servere accident he was in coma for a while. He writes some poems about trying to connect to the world afterwards. And some poems about (famous) paintings, and nature.

Dutch title translated: When I saw this

108FAMeulstee
Feb 21, 2023, 5:03 am


book 39: Wilde rozen en andere verhalen by Konstantin Paustovski
library, e-book, translated from Russian, no translations, 128 pages
TIOLI Challenge #17: Read a short story (or a book of short stories, if you so desire)

Five short stories written between 1924 and 1964, all set in the USSR.
Liked them all, Paustovski is such a great writer.

English and Dutch title are the same


109FAMeulstee
Feb 21, 2023, 5:09 am


book 40: De memoires van Norton, filosoof en hond by Håkan Nesser
library, e-book, translated from Swedish, English translation Norton's Philosophical Memoirs, 94 pages
TIOLI Challenge #16: Read a book written from a non-human perspective

Memoirs of Norton, Håkan Nesser's Rhodesian Ridgeback. Norton traveled a lot with his owners, went to Egland, New York, and some places in Sweden.
Quick read, not very memorable.

Dutch title translated: The memoirs of Norton, philosopher and dog

110Ameise1
Feb 21, 2023, 11:47 am

Hi Anita, what a great reading year you have so far. 😀

111FAMeulstee
Feb 21, 2023, 2:43 pm

>110 Ameise1: Thank you, Barbara. I have read a nice mix of fiction, non-fiction, and mysteries :-)

112Oregonreader
Feb 21, 2023, 2:55 pm

Anita, a belated Happy Birthday. I have a February birthday as well, turning 79 recently. You are still so young!
Happy reading.

113FAMeulstee
Feb 22, 2023, 5:34 am

>112 Oregonreader: Thank you, Jan, belated happy birthday to you!
Compared to you, I am still young.

114figsfromthistle
Feb 22, 2023, 8:07 am

Happy mid week!

Did you receive a lot of books for your birthday?

115FAMeulstee
Feb 22, 2023, 10:30 am

>114 figsfromthistle: Thank you, Anita, for being a regular visitor, even when I am a bit quiet.

I got one book on my birthday, as shelf space is very limited, Job by Joseph Roth.
Today two more will arrive Beton (Concrete) and Correctie (Correction) by Thomas Bernhard, both recently published in Dutch translation.

116FAMeulstee
Feb 22, 2023, 10:33 am

Read, not yet reviewed:
#41: De alchemist (The Alchemist) by Paulo Coelho
#42: Laatste zomernacht by Maarten 't Hart
#43: Uit de bek van de walvis (From the Mouth of the Whale) by Sjón
#44: Reisverslag van een kat (The Travelling Cat Chronicles) by Hiro Arikawa
#45: Madame le Commissaire en de verdwenen Engelsman by Pierre Martin
#46: Het gele behang en andere verhalen (a selection from Herland, The Yellow Wall-Paper, and Selected Writings) by Charlotte Perkins Gilman

Reading now:
Wat bomen ons vertellen (Tree Story) by Valerie Trouet
Dat weet je niet by Jens Christian Grøndahl
De val (The fell) by Sarah Moss

117FAMeulstee
Feb 23, 2023, 4:21 am


book 41: De alchemist by Paulo Coelho
1001 books, library, e-book, translated from Portugese, English translation The Alchemist, 171 pages
TIOLI Challenge #11: Read a book in Portuguese or translated from Portuguese

A Spanish shepherd goes on a quest to find a treasure near the pyramids in Egypt.

This story didn't really grab me.
The book is in the Swedish 1001 books list.

English and Dutch title are the same.

118FAMeulstee
Feb 23, 2023, 4:27 am


book 42: Laatste zomernacht by Maarten 't Hart
library, e-book, Dutch, no translations, 109 pages
TIOLI Challenge #3: Read a book whose title pays homage to Cole Porter's "Night and Day"

In summer a group of biology students is on a field trip. On the last evening at the site their relations are under pressure. A couple did split up during the trip, giving others possible opportunities.

Title translated: Last summernight

119FAMeulstee
Feb 23, 2023, 4:34 am


book 43: Uit de bek van de walvis by Sjón
library, translated from Icelandic, English translation From the Mouth of the Whale, 251 pages
TIOLI Challenge #9: Read a book with an animal in its title AND that animal on its cover

Iceland, 17th century. Jónas Pálmason is banned, this self thaught philosopher, healer and scientist was way ahead of his time, and shaked the wrong people. He is on an island on the coast, not able to get back to the mainland, or to escape the country. He thinks back how all happened.

Well written, enjoyable read.

English and Dutch title are the same.

120FAMeulstee
Feb 23, 2023, 4:41 am


book 44: Reisverslag van een kat byHiro Arikawa
library, e-book, translated from Japanese, English translation The Travelling Cat Chronicles, 238 pages
TIOLI Challenge #16: Read a book written from a non-human perspective

Satoru found an injuered stay cat, his by a car, and took him home. The cat reminded him of a cat he had in his youth, as he has almost the same coloring. He called him Nana, and they had some wonderful years together. Then Satoru and Nana go on a journey to Satoru's friends, hoping to find a new home for Nana.

Sweet story.

Dutch title translated: Travelogue of a cat

121FAMeulstee
Feb 23, 2023, 4:44 am

Read, not yet reviewed:
#45: Madame le Commissaire en de verdwenen Engelsman by Pierre Martin
#46: Het gele behang en andere verhalen (a selection from Herland, The Yellow Wall-Paper, and Selected Writings) by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
#47: Dat weet je niet by Jens Christian Grøndahl

Reading now:
Wat bomen ons vertellen (Tree Story) by Valerie Trouet
De val (The fell) by Sarah Moss
Zo begint het slechte (Thus Bad Begins) by Javier Marías

122FAMeulstee
Feb 23, 2023, 6:17 am

Yesterday the two Thomas Bernhard books that we ordered at the publisher arrived. Besides Beton (Concrete) and Correctie (Correction) they also added Watten as an extra gift to the package :-)

--
Last week my father had some check ups at the hospitals.
The scan of his head was good, right after his fall they saw some blood next to the skull, but that was all gone now.
The other was to determine if his heart or ateries were the cause of his fall. Nothing unusual found there, so that is also a relief.
He also did feel a bit better this week, now hoping he doesn't overdo.

123karenmarie
Feb 23, 2023, 8:02 am

Hi Anita! Happy Thursday to you.

>103 FAMeulstee: somehow age doesn't really matter here :-) Agree 100%.

I now have 6 hearts in the Valentine Treasure Hunt. Badge worthy, at a minimum.

124FAMeulstee
Feb 23, 2023, 10:19 am

>123 karenmarie: Thank you, Karen, the same to you.

Two was enough for the Valentine badge, so you are more than safe now :-)

125mdoris
Feb 23, 2023, 4:38 pm

Hello Anita, Hope all is well. Impressive reading going on over here!

126richardderus
Feb 23, 2023, 8:52 pm

Hi Anita! Visiting at last...I'm still moving more slowly than I was but I'm getting close and closer to normal.

127ronincats
Feb 23, 2023, 9:32 pm

Sorry to have missed your birthday, Anita, but so happy you are enjoying reading so much. Hugs to you and Frank!

128FAMeulstee
Feb 24, 2023, 3:22 am

>125 mdoris: Thank you, Mary, all is well.

>126 richardderus: So glad to see you here, Richard dear!
Of course you are moving slower than before, but all improvement is good.

>127 ronincats: Thank you, Roni, and a thanks from Frank.
The books treat me well. After a slight dip in reading at the start of the month, I am reading full speed again.

129FAMeulstee
Feb 24, 2023, 4:48 am


book 45: Madame le Commissaire en de verdwenen Engelsman by Pierre Martin
library, e-book, translated from German, no English translation, 302 pages
TIOLI Challenge #6: Read a book with the numbers 6 and 0 in the ISBN

Isabelle Bonnet book 1
After being badly injured in a terrorist attack in Paris, Isabelle Bonnet, former head of a special police team, returns to the small village Fragolin in the south of France, where she was born. Taking a break, as she isn't fit to return to her job. When an English inhabitant of the village goes missing, she is asked to take the case.

Enjoyable police procedural, set in a fictional village. First in a series, so more to go. I already got the next one from the e-library.
We have been to that region twice, and it was fun to recognise places we have visited.

Title translated: Madame le Commissaire and the disappeared Englishman

130FAMeulstee
Modificato: Feb 24, 2023, 4:57 am


book 46: Het gele behang en andere verhalen by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
1001 books, library, e-book, translated, a selection from Herland, The Yellow Wall-Paper, and Selected Writings, 174 pages
TIOLI Challenge #17: Read a short story (or a book of short stories, if you so desire)

Twelve stories from Herland, The Yellow Wall-Paper, and Selected Writings.
Het onverwachte (The Unexpected, 1890); Een uitgestorven engel (An Extinct Angel, 1891); Het gele behang (The Yellow Wall-paper, 1892); Waarom ik 'Het gele behang' schreef (1913) not sure about the original title of this one 'Why I wrote The Yellow Wall-paper'?; Verweven (An Elopement? 1893); De rollen omgedraaid (Turned? 1911); Mevrouw Elder heeft een idee (Mrs. Elder's Idea, 1912); Word wijs (Bee Wise, 1913); Als ik een man was (If I Were a Man, 1914); Het sanatorium van dokter Clair (Dr. Clair's Place, 1915); De erfenis (A Surplus Woman? 1916); De ontaarde moeder (Joan's Defender? 1916)
All stories are either about the bad treatment of women, or about how much better the world would look like if women had their say.

Dutch title translated: The Yellow Wall-Paper and other stories

131FAMeulstee
Feb 24, 2023, 5:20 am


book 47: Dat weet je niet by Jens Christian Grøndahl
library, translated from Danish, no English translation, 361 pages
TIOLI Challenge #13: Read a book with at least two one-syllable words in the title (excludes a, an, the, and & or)

David and his English wife have one daughter, Zoë.
The story is told alternating from the perspective of David and Emma, so we see the same scenes from different views. Zoë has her first exposition at the art school, and introduces her new boyfriend, Nabeel, who was born in Pakistan. His background makes Emma think how she is a stranger in Danmark, and David, who originates from Jews from Lithuania, about the faith he left behind.
And how well can you know an other human, even when it is your partner for years?

I read this book in a special format called 'Dwarsligger', a very small (8 x 12cm) bound book on thin paper. This was introduced in 2010, and I know some people really love the format. It was fun to try.
More about Dawrliggers and their intoduction abroad at https://lis653.wordpress.com/2019/04/09/dwarsliggers-the-future-for-the-book/

Dutch title translated: That you know not

132FAMeulstee
Feb 24, 2023, 5:26 am


book 48: Wat bomen ons vertellen by Valerie Trouet
library, non-fiction, translated, Jan Wolkers Prize 2020, original title Tree Story, 296 pages
TIOLI Challenge #6: Read a book with the numbers 6 and 0 in the ISBN

Dendrologist Valery Trouet explains how dendrochronology (or tree-ring dating) helps us to understand climate change in the past. And how it could help us in today's climate troubles.

Enjoyable and informative read.

Dutch title translated: What trees tell us

133FAMeulstee
Feb 24, 2023, 5:31 am

Read, not yet reviewed:
#49: De val (The fell) by Sarah Moss

Reading now:
Zo begint het slechte (Thus Bad Begins) by Javier Marías
Een jaar in scherven by Koos van Zomeren

134msf59
Feb 24, 2023, 8:01 am

Happy Friday, Anita! You recently turned 60? Happy Birthday, my friend. You are trying to catch up with me, I see. 😁

Have a good weekend.

135LachlanJorgenson
Feb 24, 2023, 8:01 am

Questo utente è stato eliminato perché considerato spam.

136FAMeulstee
Modificato: Feb 24, 2023, 8:16 am

>134 msf59: Thank you, Mark, Happt Friday!
Yes, I am 60 now. No catching up, when all stays well, I just follow those ahead of me 😁

137FAMeulstee
Feb 24, 2023, 8:49 am

Oh, I nearly forgot the good news. Last week Frank had his yearly appointment with the diabetes nurse at the GP office. His blood counts were good again, so now after 5 years he was declared diabetes free, no more yearly checks needed! :-D

138SirThomas
Feb 24, 2023, 9:08 am

Yay!
Have a wonderful weekend, you two!

139FAMeulstee
Feb 24, 2023, 9:37 am

>138 SirThomas: Thank you, Thomas!
Working weekend for Frank, both tonight and Saturday night. So lots of reading time for me :-)

140ursula
Feb 24, 2023, 10:13 am

>131 FAMeulstee: That format sounds super interesting! I will be on the lookout for them, definitely.

141Ameise1
Feb 24, 2023, 10:29 am

>137 FAMeulstee: Hooray, that's great news.

142jessibud2
Modificato: Feb 24, 2023, 11:16 am

Wow, amazing good news for Frank! Is this common, that someone can rid themselves of diabetes? You don't hear this very often. You two should celebrate this very special event! He should be the poster boy for how to do this!👍😊

143curioussquared
Feb 24, 2023, 11:45 am

Good news for Frank!!

144FAMeulstee
Feb 24, 2023, 1:11 pm

>140 ursula: I hope you can find books in this format, Usula. They are samll, so easy to take with you.

>141 Ameise1: Thank you, Barbara, we are very happy about it.

145FAMeulstee
Modificato: Feb 24, 2023, 1:29 pm

>142 jessibud2: Thank you, Shelley.
This is about diabetes type 2. After being diagnosed at the end of 2017, Frank changed his diet: low carb, no sugar, no alcohol. He lost weight by reducing his meals withh 1/3rd, and we started walking at least an hour each day. At first he got Metformin, but he could stop those within a year. To be officially declared free his glucose levels had to stay under 6 mmol/l for five consecutive years.
The first years he was very strickt with all, now on vacation or a night out he does sometimes eat some sugar or drinks some beer again. As long as this doesn't happen very often all stays well.

>143 curioussquared: Thank you, Natalie!

146charl08
Feb 24, 2023, 5:16 pm

Congratulations to Frank!
My friend's dad did the same thing (in his 70s). It's an impressive achievement.

I've not read a Dwarsligger - there were something similar in the shops here for a while I think but I've not seen any lately. (But I haven't been looking that closely!) I do love the idea of a book you can get in your pocket.

147quondame
Feb 24, 2023, 6:00 pm

>137 FAMeulstee: What great news! Congratulations to you and Frank.

148richardderus
Feb 24, 2023, 6:28 pm

Frank's wise actions have, as we know from decades of evidence saved him from so many terrible complications to his aging process. Bravo to him for meeting the goal!

Your recent reads are most all tempting, especially >132 FAMeulstee: (translated, thank goodness!) so I'm off to fatten my library list. Happy Saturday!

149figsfromthistle
Feb 24, 2023, 8:16 pm

>137 FAMeulstee: That is great news! Quite a few changes he made but easier to do with you by his side.

A friend of mines husband was also diagnosed two years ago and she changed the way the whole family eats and exercises. It was as if the whole family was diabetic. Made it easier for him to stick with it and it also produced results.

Hope you have a great weekend!

150Whisper1
Feb 24, 2023, 10:56 pm

>1 FAMeulstee: I like the clarity of the painting Gé Röling - Siciliaanse jaarmarkt (1933)!

I always learn when I visit your threads! Thanks!!

>137 FAMeulstee: What great news about Frank's health!

151PaulCranswick
Feb 25, 2023, 12:02 am

>145 FAMeulstee: Frank is an inspiration, Anita.

I am worried about the gifts my dear wife has just returned from the Netherlands with - all of which are sugar laden and tempting.

152WhiteRaven.17
Feb 25, 2023, 12:51 am

>119 FAMeulstee: This one sounds interesting. I feel like I've marked a couple Icelandic reads from you now this year.
Also, congrats to Frank, that is some very good news indeed.

153ursula
Feb 25, 2023, 1:56 am

I totally missed the news about Frank somehow, that is great! Good work on making the lifestyle changes that were required and sticking to them.

154FAMeulstee
Feb 25, 2023, 3:14 am

>146 charl08: Thank you, Charlotte, we are very happy how it turned out for Frank.
It was my first Dwarsligger, the only available copy at the library was in this format. It was fun to try, but I think the e-reader took over most of their potential market.

>147 quondame: Thank you, Susan.

155FAMeulstee
Modificato: Feb 25, 2023, 3:26 am

>148 richardderus: Thank you, Richard, happy Saturday.
It seems very few take this route, the diabetes nurse said that Frank was her first patient who accomplished this.
Not translated for you, although the author is from Belgium, she works in the US, and wrote Tree Story in English. I think you would like it.

>149 figsfromthistle: Thank you, Anita.
I went along with most of Frank's diet changes, I only still have some more pasta on days that is on the menu.
Most is on him, as he does all the groceries, and all cooking.
I hope your weekend is a good one, although you probably have to work.

156FAMeulstee
Modificato: Feb 25, 2023, 3:48 am

>150 Whisper1: Thank you, Linda, glad you liked the Gé Roling painting.
We are very pleased that Frank's health has improved.

>151 PaulCranswick: Thank you, Paul.
Diet changes are not easy to accomplish, and probably almost impossible if other family members don't do the same. We simply have no sugered items in the house anymore, the only sweet is some 85% dark chocolate.

157FAMeulstee
Feb 25, 2023, 3:44 am

>152 WhiteRaven.17: Thank you, Kro, we were very pleased.
I really liked From the Mouth of the Whale, Iceland has some very good writers. It started with Haldór Laxness a few years back, I loved both Independent People and The Happy Warriors.

>153 ursula: Thank you, Ursula.
Frank was determined to take this way, and he is way better in keeping track than I am.

158WhiteRaven.17
Feb 25, 2023, 4:10 am

>157 FAMeulstee: Noted. I'll have to make a list and go on an Icelandic reading binge. I'm actually thinking of planning a holiday to Iceland within the next year so seems like a perfect time to get acquainted to their literature as well. Thanks for the recs. :)

159FAMeulstee
Feb 25, 2023, 4:14 am

>158 WhiteRaven.17: You are very welcome, Kro.
I would like to go to Iceland some day, until then I read about it, and love reports from others who get there :-)

160FAMeulstee
Feb 26, 2023, 10:22 am

Read, not yet reviewed:
#49: De val (The fell) by Sarah Moss
#50: Zo begint het slechte (Thus Bad Begins) by Javier Marías

Reading now:
Een jaar in scherven by Koos van Zomeren
Eurotrash by Christian Kracht

161banjo123
Feb 26, 2023, 8:49 pm

>137 FAMeulstee:. Hooray for Frank!

162FAMeulstee
Feb 27, 2023, 6:38 am

>161 banjo123: Thank you, Rhonda.

163bell7
Feb 27, 2023, 3:50 pm

That's great news about Frank, Anita! Hope you're having a wonderful day.

164atozgrl
Feb 27, 2023, 5:24 pm

Hello, Anita! I have finally made it over to your thread, more than a month after you welcomed me to the 75ers. Apologies that it took so long. But there are so many to visit, and so many long threads to review!

I am so impressed with your reading! 51 already! Congratulations!

165FAMeulstee
Modificato: Feb 27, 2023, 6:09 pm

>163 bell7: Thank you, Mary.
We had a very special evening, we went out to see the northern lights.
It is very rare here that northern lights can be seen over here.

(not my picture, but taken at the place where we went)

>164 atozgrl: No apologies needed, Irene, just glad you made it over here. The threads can be overwhelming.
Indeed, I have read a lot. I hope to finish two more tomorrow.

166FAMeulstee
Feb 27, 2023, 6:10 pm

Read, not yet reviewed:
#49: De val (The fell) by Sarah Moss
#50: Zo begint het slechte (Thus Bad Begins) by Javier Marías
#51: Eurotrash by Christian Kracht

Reading now:
Een jaar in scherven by Koos van Zomeren
Vang de haas (Catch the rabbit) by Lana Bastašić

167atozgrl
Feb 27, 2023, 6:56 pm

>165 FAMeulstee: What a beautiful picture! Seeing the northern lights is on my bucket list. I've never lived where they are visible.

168FAMeulstee
Feb 28, 2023, 3:44 am

>167 atozgrl: I never expected to see northern lights so close to home, Irene.
It rarely happens in the nothern parts of our country, but this year it was seen even a bit more south from us.

169streamsong
Feb 28, 2023, 10:54 am

Frank's accomplishment is so impressive! I also have TII, and although I get several hours of outdoor exercise each day, I really need to work on my diet.

170curioussquared
Feb 28, 2023, 12:31 pm

>165 FAMeulstee: So gorgeous! I heard we could have seen them here in Seattle, but of course it was cloudy so they weren't visible. I have only seen them once, out the window of an airplane during a flight to Iceland.

171FAMeulstee
Feb 28, 2023, 3:17 pm

>169 streamsong: Thank you, Janet, he was very persistant to get where he wanted.
I hope you get to work on your diet, I knoe that isn't easy.

>170 curioussquared: Yes, it was so beautiful, Natalie. I never expected to see the northern lights myself.
We went to a parking lot at the middle of a dike, and were surprised how many other people had the same idea. The parking place was nearly full, and the northern side of the dike was crowded.

172FAMeulstee
Mar 1, 2023, 2:55 am


book 49: De val by Sarah Moss
library, e-book, translated, original title The fell, 192 pages
TIOLI Challenge #6: Read a book with the numbers 6 and 0 in the ISBN

November 2020. Kate and her son Matt are in preventive quarantaine, as being exposed to Covid. Kate has a hard time feels locked up, and decides to break the rules by taking a walk. On her way she feels so good that she goes way further than planned.

English and Dutch title are the same

173FAMeulstee
Mar 1, 2023, 3:13 am


book 50: Zo begint het slechte by Javier Marías
library, translated from Spanish, English translation Thus Bad Begins, 549 pages
TIOLI Challenge #13: Read a book with at least two one-syllable words in the title (excludes a, an, the, and & or)

Madrid 1980. Juan de Vere found his first job after graduating, as personal asistant for Eduardo Muriel, a well known movie director. has just graduated and found his first job, working as secretary/researcher for the well-known B-movie director Eduardo Muriel. After some time he realises there is something wrong with Muriels marriage with Beatriz. In public Eduardo treats her well, but in private he ignores her. Then Eduardo asks Juan to find out more about a rumour about Jorge Van Vechten, a doctor who might have treated some women in a bad way.

Remembering/forgetting both have impact, so do knowing/not knowing, revenge, suspicion etc.
An intriguing and very well written story.

Dutch title translated: So begins the bad

174FAMeulstee
Mar 1, 2023, 3:24 am


book 51: Eurotrash by Christian Kracht
library, translated from German, no English translation, 208 pages
TIOLI Challenge #2: Read a book whose first letter of it’s title fits into the following Rolling Challenge – based on “Be My Valentine”

Christian Krach, the narrator, goes to Zürich to visit his 80 year old alcoholic mother. They always had a difficult relationship. They go on a roadtrip through Switzerland by taxi, spending a lot of (dubiously gained) money. Meanwhile we are told about the parents and grandparents past, they originated in Germany, and how the family got rich.

Dutch title translated: Eurotrash

175FAMeulstee
Modificato: Mar 1, 2023, 4:05 am


book 52: Een jaar in scherven by Koos van Zomeren
library, e-book, Dutch, no translations, 380 pages
TIOLI Challenge #2: Read a book whose first letter of it’s title fits into the following Rolling Challenge – based on “Be My Valentine”

In 1987 Koos van Zomeren kept a diary to be published.
He writes about his daily life, his family, walking the dog in the polder, watching birds, visiting old friends and family in Herwijnen, the village where his father grew up, and he spend many summers.
He also writes about his years in the early 1970s in the Socialistiese Partij, a Dutch far left (Maoist/Leninist) politial party.

Dutch title translated: A year in splinters (or A year in fragments)

176FAMeulstee
Modificato: Mar 1, 2023, 4:04 am


book 53: Vang de haas by Lana Bastašić
library, translated from Serbo-Croatian, English translation Catch the rabbit, 239 pages
TIOLI Challenge #9: Read a book with an animal in its title AND that animal on its cover

Sara left Bosnia twelve years ago, and lives happily in Dublin. On day she gets a desperate call from Lejla, her former friend in Bosnia. Sara goes back to the world she left behind, triggering memories. Lejla wants Sara to drive her to Vienna, to see her brother Armin, who disappeared at the start of the war. Sara had a crush on him.

Sara and Lejla had different entnic backgrounds. The war is never explicit, only present between the lines.

English and Dutch are the same

177FAMeulstee
Mar 1, 2023, 4:57 am

February 2023 in numbers
  (Totals for the year between brackets)

30 books read, 7.531 pages, 269,0 pages a day
  (53 books read, 15.824 pages, 268,2 pages a day)

--
books:

• own books: 2 (7)
• from the library: 28 (46)

• male author: 21 (39)
• female author: 9 (14)

• originally written in Dutch: 5 (15)
• translated into Dutch: 25 (38)
  - original language of translated books:
    • Danish: 1 (1)
    • Dutch (Middle): 1 (1)
    • English: 8 (14)
    • Finnish 1 (1)
    • German: 4 (6)
    • Icelandic: 2 (3)
    • Italian: 1 (1)
    • Japanese 1 (3)
    • Norwegian: 1 (1)
    • Portugese: 1 (1)
    • Russian: 1 (2)
    • Serbian: 1 (1)
    • Spanish: 1 (1)
    • Swedish: 2 (2)

• fiction: 26 (40)
• non-fiction: 4 (13)

• paper books: 14 (28)
• e-books: 16 (25)

• mystery/police procedural: 3 (7)
• childrens/YA: 2 (4)
• 1001 books: 4 (5)
    Total 1001 books since 2008: 260
• Dutch Canon: 1
    Total Dutch Canon since 2008: 43 of 125

--
pages:

0 - 100 pages: 3 (4)
101 - 200 pages: 8 (10)
201 - 300 pages: 8 (15)
301 - 400 pages: 9 (14)
401 - 500 pages: 1 (5)
501 - 999 pages: 1 (5)
1000+ pages: 0 (0)

• longest book 549 pages (959 pages)
• shortest book 36 pages (36 pages)
• average book 251 pages (299 pages)

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date first published:

13th century: 1 (1)
17th century: 1 (1)

20th century
1910s: 1 (1)
1930s: 2 (4)
1940s: 2 (2)
1950s: 0 (2)
1960s: 1 (2)
1970s: 1 (2)
1980s: 2 (5)
1990s: 2 (4)

21st century
2000s: 3 (3)
2010s: 8 (11)
2020s: 6 (15)

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ratings:

0 (1)
3 (5)
12 (22)
9 (18)
6 (7)

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best books in February


Verweven leven (Entangled life) by Merlin Sheldrake
De veensoldaten by Wolfgang Langhoff
Zo begint het slechte (Thus Bad Begins) by Javier Marías

178Ameise1
Mar 1, 2023, 6:56 am

Nice stats. Wishing you a wonderful day. 😃

179FAMeulstee
Mar 1, 2023, 7:29 am

>178 Ameise1: Thank you, Barbara, wishing you a happy first day of March.

180figsfromthistle
Modificato: Mar 1, 2023, 10:16 am

>165 FAMeulstee: Oh wow. Cool that you can see the lights without having to travel. Yesterday, I was able to see Jupiter and Venus with the naked eye ( looked like two bright stars). They looked so close together but of course they are not. I have a telescope in a box but have not set it up yet.

>177 FAMeulstee: As always, your stats are quite impressive.

Happy Start to March

181atozgrl
Mar 1, 2023, 6:14 pm

>177 FAMeulstee: Impressive! Congratulations!

Hoping you have a great March!

182charl08
Mar 2, 2023, 2:26 am

>165 FAMeulstee: That looks amazing. I'd love to see the lights. They were visible in parts of the UK too but not (as far as I know) near us.

Congrats on the reading stats. From your recent reads I love the cover of your edition of the Sarah Moss.

I have some time off next week, hoping to get to a gallery (or two!)

183FAMeulstee
Mar 2, 2023, 2:45 am

>180 figsfromthistle: Thank you, Anita, I never expected to see the northern lights so close to home.
I noticed Venus and Jupiter nearing eachother in the last week. I was about to look up wich planets I had seen, when it came all over in the news.
Happy Thursday.

>181 atozgrl: Thank you, Irene, February was a good reading month.
Happy reading in March!

--
I will start my March thread later today.

184Caroline_McElwee
Mar 18, 2023, 12:21 pm

>165 FAMeulstee: How lucky you were Anita. I hope to see them one day.

185FAMeulstee
Mar 18, 2023, 12:39 pm

>184 Caroline_McElwee: I always assumed we would have to travel to see the northern lights, Caroline.
We were very lucky to see them so close to home.
Questa conversazione è stata continuata da Anita (FAMeulstee) goes on where the books take her in 2023 (3).