Mary (Storeetllr) Needs Murderbot Like Murderbot Needs Sanctuary Moon-2021 Q1

Dit onderwerp werd voortgezet door Mary (Storeetllr) Reads-2021 Pt. 2.

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Mary (Storeetllr) Needs Murderbot Like Murderbot Needs Sanctuary Moon-2021 Q1

1Storeetllr
jan 1, 2021, 11:29 pm

Hi and Happy New Year! Thought I'd make my 2021 book home here at the Green Dragon. Like many others have said, 2020 was a rough year for me reading-wise. I did okay numbers-wise, but many - probably more than half - were rereads because I desperately needed comfort reads and because I had a hard time getting into new-to-me books. I'm hoping 2021 is better, for everything, really, but also for reading.

I'm going to try to be better at reviewing the books I read. Wish me luck on that. I have good intentions at the start of the year, but too often they fall by the wayside as the year goes on.

2Storeetllr
Bewerkt: jun 23, 2021, 4:30 pm



Books Read

January.

1. All the Colors of Night by Jayne Ann Krentz. Audio. Hallelujah! Finished my first book of 2021! It was an okay read. I give it 3.5 stars, mainly due to the crappy reader, but I want to give it a 5-star rating because it made me want to finish it! It's part of a loosely connected series of psi romantic thrillers. I wasn't in love with the main characters and found their romance forced, but it advanced the arc of the storyline and was interesting enough to keep me going.

2. Faithless in Death by J.D. Robb. 4.5 stars. Audio. I don't know how Roberts does it. This is not only a police procedural filled with characters I love but also a look inside a fanatical cult of racist misogynists with terrible secrets. It included triggering things like domestic violence, rape, sex slavery, and, of course, murder - tho somehow murder isn't quite as triggering for me - and power-hungry grifters who lie and cheat and think they can get away with anything. Anyway, no actual scenes of those things, but it talked about them. After reading it, there's no question of how the author perceives these things and the people who perpetrate them.

February.

3. New Suns by Nisi Shawl. 4 stars. eBook. As with most short story collections, there were some stories I loved and some I didn't, some that were deeply disturbing and some that were lighthearted. I admit, with this collection, I skimmed one and DNFd two others (mostly because they were written in styles that don't appeal to me; also, I was in a hurry to finish because my library loan was about to expire). The rest, though, were all great! I especially enjoyed "Come Home to Atropos" and "Burn the Ships" (I think I must have been a bloodthirsty Madam LaFarge-type in a former life, but vengeance/payback fiction is so satisfying to me). I also enjoyed "Deer Dancer," "The Galactic Tourist Industrial Complex" and "Kelsey and the Burdened Breath." If you enjoy spec fic with a side of social justice, try this collection.

March.

4. Carnal Innocence by Nora Roberts. 3 stars. Audio. Romance from 1991, set in the deep south. I thought it was really dated. Some of the attitudes expressed made me uncomfortable. I did like the narrator's rendition of the southern accent tho.

5. The Fires of Vesuvius by Mary Beard. 4 stars. Audio. In depth study of archaeological evidence found at Pompeii (and Herculaneum). Found out that much of what I have believed were incorrect interpretations and that interpretations of the evidence change constantly. Various aspects of life in the ancient city just prior to the eruption in 79 A.D. were discussed, including food (Care for a little fish sauce with that stuffed dormouse, Marcus? Oh, yes, of course, we have kosher fish sauce!), wine, sex (graffiti galore! plus odd statuettes, like the guy with the double phallus and the one holding a knife toward his as if to slash it), baths, and other bits of private and public life. I think I would have gotten more out of it had I read it rather than listened to it, but my old eyes are just so tired these days.

6. The Russian Cage by Charlaine Harris. 4 stars. Audio. Third in the alternate history Gunnie Rose series and very different from the others. Not so much magic; more relationship building. Shows a pretty grim picture of Russian society when the Romanovs ruled.

7. Quiet in Her Bones by Nalini Singh. 3 stars. Audio. Strange murder mystery set in NZ (I think) and read in a thick accent. The story dragged on interminably, then everything was suddenly wrapped up in about a half an hour. Not the best thing she's ever written. I gave it a 3 because parts were good, and some of the characters were interesting, tho most (including the protagonist/unreliable narrator) were unlikeable.

8. The Institute by Stephen King. 3.5 stars. Audio. One thing is incontrovertible: King can write! I got so immersed in the story that it wasn't until I started considering what I would say about the book that I began to see the cracks. First, within the world he built, some of the action was not realistic. I mean, you have a huge gunfight with multiple LEOs killed, and there are no repercussions for one deputy and a civilian who spirit away the main perpetrator and a witness? At least nothing was said about that. Also, why did they believe they had to murder the kids' parents, their entire families? I mean, kidnap the kids, yeah, I get that, but why murder everybody else in the family? They obviously believed the kids would never be found, so what difference if their families were left alive to grieve and search ineffectually? (This is not a spoiler as it happens in the first chapter.) Also, why were those who collaborated with and worked at the Institute allowed to kind of drift away and never be called to justice for what they did? How did the survivors of the massacre in the police station explain how it happened? Such things were not explained in the book, unless I completely missed it.

9. Cosmic Queries by Neil DeGrasse Tyson. 4 stars. Audio. How it happened that I suddenly (a couple of years ago) developed a thirst to learn about physics and especially astrophysics after 70 years of disinterest in such things is quite beyond me, but there it is. Not that I comprehend everything, most especially in the realm of quantum physics, but it's very interesting to read about and try to understand even the most basic aspects. Anyway, not too much new in this recent volume, but a few things I hadn't read before - or don't remember reading. I'm going to reread it because no matter how close attention I pay to books like this, I always miss something.

April

10. My Last Duchess by Eloisa James. 3 stars. Audio. Historical romance. Light reading and ultimately forgettable, but pleasant enough. I thought it was just a tad unrealistic (within the world of regency and romance, anyway).

11. Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro. 3.5 stars. Audio. I almost quit a couple of times, once out of boredom and once out of exasperation, and I can't say I liked any of the characters except, maybe, the neighbor boy. There wasn't a lot of action, and what there was of action was confusing. It's an Ishiguro, tho, so those things are to be expected as part of the reading experience - in my experience, anyway. Ultimately, I'm glad I read it, but it wasn't an easy read, and the ending was really depressing.

12. Later by Stephen King. 4 stars. Audio. Weird little horror story. I really got into it. Vintage King, actually. The reader was good too, which always helps.

13. Trade Secrets by David Wishart. 4 stars. Kindle. Mystery set in ancient Rome and Ostia. No politics in this one! I mean, I enjoy reading about emperors and their minions, families, and peccadillos, but sometimes it can get to be too much. Anyway, this one was set in the early days of the reign of Claudius, and it involves two mystery deaths - one a sleazy ladies' man in the export business found stabbed to death in the alley and the other a wealthy but unsavory import/exporter found stabbed after he'd died of natural causes in the garden of the Pollio library. Are they tied together? Maybe. I like Marcus Corvinus mysteries even tho he talks like a modern day Sam Spade. Somehow the anachronisms make it more fun.

14. The World According to Physics by Jim Al-Khalili. 4 stars. Audio. So, I comprehended about one-tenth of one percent of the concepts discussed in the book (which is about par for the course for me), but I loved that he mainly discussed those concepts and didn't go into the history of physics from Aristotle through Newton to the late 18th century scientists and all the outdated theories and failed experiments and the like the way most physics book authors do. In fact, he didn't even mention the word "ether" once, which makes this the best physics-for-laypersons book I've read. I didn't mind learning about those things, and even found some of it interesting or amusing (like pigeon poop as a possible cause for the discovery of the Cosmic Microwave Background) -- the first and even the second time I read it. After that, I just skimmed (or blanked out) whenever a book started in on that. Anyway, I did learn some new stuff and expanded my comprehension a bit but will be rereading it at some point in order to (I hope) get more out of it on a second go-round. BTW, it was read by the author, who has an accent so thick you could cut it, but I got used to it and really enjoyed his obvious enthusiasm for his subject.

15. Dying Breath by Heather Graham. 3.5 stars. Audio. First Graham paranormal romance. I enjoyed it, but I thought the writing was a bit sophomoric, and this book is far from the author's debut novel. It was easy reading, tho, and I do enjoy a good paranormal/supernatural mystery thriller (like the Bishop series by Kay Hooper and the Harper Connelly series by Charlaine Harris), so it worked okay for me.

16. What the Devil Knows by C. S. Harris. 4 stars. Kindle. Latest in the St. Cyr mystery series, and my favorite so far, partly for the parrot but mostly for the ending. Made me tear up. It was what I had hoped for all along. The crimes were horrifying, many of the characters (including the victims; maybe ESPECIALLY a few of the victims) reprehensible, and the world in which the novel is set a dirty, uncompromisingly venal and inhumane place. Hero plays a strong role in this one, and in one scene she did something so amazing - I really love her! So glad she and Sebastian got together.

17. News of the World by Paulette Giles. 5 stars. Audio. Well, I'm sorry it took me so long to get to this wonderful novel. Friends raved about it, tho, so I was afraid to try it in case I hated it and felt stupid for it. Needn't have worried. It grabbed me from the first sentence, and I finished it in two sittings, and I ugly cried at the end tho it was a lovely, perfect ending. And I gave it a 5/5 star rating. If you haven't read it yet, don't wait another minute. Even if Westerns aren't your bag, this is so much more than just a Western. -

18. Dark Rites by Heather Graham. 3 stars. Audio. Follow-on book to Dying Breath, this one involves a satanic cult.

19. Wild Sign by Patricia Briggs. 3.5 Audio. Latest tale in the saga of Charles and Anna have them going to California to investigate what happened to a bunch of off-the-gridders who had built a town on land owned by the Marrock's mate.

20. Fugitive Telemetry by Martha Wells. 4.5 stars. Audio and ebook. Murderbot is back, solving a murder, protecting humans from danger, connecting with old friends, and making new - well, not friends, maybe, but potential future friends. You know, the usual. This novella, which is set after Exit Strategy and before Network Effect, just came out, and I read it on kindle then immediately started to listen to the audio. A wonderful book with which to end the month.

May

21. The Disordered Cosmos by Chanda Prescod-Weinstein. 5 stars. Audio. Wow, this book is everything! It contains one of the most understandable and wonderful (as in filled with wonder) explanations of quantum gravity, particle physics, spacetime, and other heretofore (mostly) incomprehensible (to me) theories I've read, and why they matter, as well as a discussion of racial and sexist bias in the hererocispatriarchal realm of science and academia. The last section of the book is an intimate and deeply moving discussion of her personal experience of being raped (no details of the actual rape are provided - thank goodness - so it's not triggering in that way, but it does go into her reactions to it). I love her enthusiasm for science, which comes through clear and bright, and her passion for feminist and non-binary gender issues. To be honest, I came for the science but found her take on the social issues powerful and moving in a way I hadn't expected, giving me a better comprehension of how white supremacism, hererocispatriarchy, and colonialism pervades American social structures and why it is so damaging to those who are the direct targets of it and to society in general. There's a lot to digest in this book, and I plan to reread it sometime so I make sure I haven't missed anything, but she's really a good writer and it's definitely worth the time & effort. Highly recommended.

22. Phantom Evil by Heather Graham. 3.5 stars. eBook. First in the Krewe of Hunters series of paranormal mystery thriller romances. The assembling of the team pits Jackson Crow, formerly of the Behavioral Science Unit of the FBI, and Angela Hawkins, formerly a cop from Virginia, against whoever - or whatever - killed the wife of a popular, up-and-coming Louisiana state senator in their newly renovated New Orleans mansion. I'm not much into romance these days, so I basically paged through the 2 or 3 sex scenes, but I was kind of wishing the two main characters hadn't jumped into the sack so soon after meeting. Because there just wasn't enough tension between them for that. Still, the mystery was okay, and I liked reading about New Orleans. I only wish the writing was a bit better.

23. The Lady Has a Past by Amanda Quick. 3.5 stars. Audio. Well, I usually enjoy Amanda Quick paranormal historical romance thrillers more, though this one wasn't too bad. Just can't seem to get into the Burning Cove books as much as I did her earlier ones. I did like the main female character Lyra who was more assertive than her usual female protagonists in this series. The main male character Simon was okay, tho I didn't really "feel" him. The mystery was a bit convoluted. I didn't care for the reader and had to turn the speed up to 1.2. I gave it 3.5 stars because, after I got about a quarter of the way in, I started to enjoy it, and it turned out to be a pleasant few hours.

24. Unexpected Peril by Deanna Raybourn. 3.5 stars. Audio. The continuing saga of Veronica Speedwell and her partner Stoker. In this episode, a famous woman mountain climber was killed in a seeming accident while climbing a mountain with which she was familiar in a small country in the Alps, but Veronica believes she was murdered. Was it her purported lover, a duke of that country? A male rival who "stole" her "first to the peak" title and has been blackballed since? Someone else? A little plodding but enjoyable, especially the personal aspects of Veronica's life.

25.

3Storeetllr
Bewerkt: mei 23, 2021, 2:07 pm

Currently reading

Heart of Evil by Heather Graham. eBook.
Angel of the Overpass by Seanan McGuire. Audio.

Up Next

The Only True Biography of Mae Jemison, by Sneeze, Her Cat by Dan Greenberg. E-book (Early Reviewer copy)
Foreign Bodies by David Wishart. Kindle.

4Storeetllr
Bewerkt: mei 29, 2021, 1:03 pm

Recommendations

Falling Felines - libraryperilous (Diana)

Recommended by Karlstar (Jim)
No Ordinary Time: Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt: The Home Front in World War II by Doris Kearns Goodwin
The Path Between the Seas by David McCullough
Washington: A Life by Ron Chernow
Grant by Ron Chernow
Krewe of Hunters by Heather Graham - NorthernStar

5Storeetllr
Bewerkt: mei 29, 2021, 1:04 pm

DNFs

So You Want To Be A Robot by Merc Fenn Wolfmoor - Kindle - I enjoyed the first short story, but the next few kind of bored me and I ended up letting the loan term run out.
Machine by Elizabeth Bear. Just not my cuppa.
Annabel Lee by Mike Nappa. Totally not my cuppa. (It's a Xtian thriller ffs. I mean, I don't mind when someone's faith or religion comes into it when it's an integral part of the story, but here it's obviously a way to talk about Jesus.)
The Scorpion's Tail by Preston & Child (Audio) Not sure why I just couldn't scrape together the mental energy to go back to this after reading about 1/3 of it. The story just didn't grab me for some reason. I'll probably go back to it sometime when I have more mental stamina.
Caste by Isabel Wilkerson-About half finished when library loan ended. Will go back to it. Very powerful.
Riot Baby by Tochi Onyebuchi-The audio version was difficult for me. I've got the eBook on hold.
Too Much and Never Enough by Mary Trump-Interesting but depressing, I just couldn't finish. I'm so over hearing about TFG (The Former Guy).
Grant by Ron Chernow. Started it but ran out of time. Plan to get back to it.
Einstein's Fridge by Randy Alfred. Audio. Hated the reader. Also, boring.
The Lost Apothecary by Sarah Penner. Audio. Didn't like the readers. Also, boring. To elaborate, I don't like stupid characters. I mean, one or two in a novel, I guess, is okay, but all of them? Plus I'm not a fan of split time novels, where one story is set in the past and one in the future. Unless they are connected on a deep level, like ancestor/descendant or soulmates .
Gouache in 4 Easy Steps by Anna Koliadych Kindle. Lost track of time, but skimmed the whole thing. Noting it for future reference.
Code Breaker by Walter Isaacson. Have a hold request again to finish the last couple of chapters which I couldn't finish because I ran out of time.
Piranesi by Susanna Clarke. Kindle. Just wasn't grabbing me. I'll try again another time.
Dictionary of Lost Words by Pip Williams. Audio. Ran out of time because I was reading other books.

6MrsLee
jan 2, 2021, 1:26 am

Welcome!

7MrAndrew
jan 2, 2021, 3:00 am

Also kudos for the most interesting/confusing/amusing thread title of 2021. So far.

8YouKneeK
jan 2, 2021, 7:15 am

>1 Storeetllr: Happy new year, and welcome (or welcome back?) to the Green Dragon! I look forwarding to seeing what you read this year.

9majkia
jan 2, 2021, 7:54 am

Love the title of the thread! Go Murderbot!

10Sakerfalcon
jan 2, 2021, 8:59 am

Happy new year, and welcome to the group! I hope you have a great year in books and in life.

11pgmcc
jan 2, 2021, 9:34 am

>1 Storeetllr: Happy New Year, and welcome to The Green Dragon.

12jillmwo
Bewerkt: jan 2, 2021, 10:20 am

As so many ahead of me have said, welcome to the Pub. It's a good group. (Oh, and happy new year!)

13tardis
jan 2, 2021, 11:19 am

Everybody needs more Murderbot! Happy New Year!

14Marissa_Doyle
jan 2, 2021, 1:25 pm

Ooh, another Murderbot fan! Yay!

15Storeetllr
jan 2, 2021, 2:34 pm

Hi, everybody! Thanks so much for your warm welcome!

I guess I should explain about the thread title. You know how Murderbot (MB) rewatches episodes of Sanctuary Moon when it needs to calm down? Well, I relisten to/reread the MB books for relief from the real world. So far, I have relistened to the MB novellas about two dozen times each and Network Effect about a half dozen times in the past couple of months. (It's been a rough couple of months, what with the political situation here in the U.S. and the pandemic on top of the holidays, which is always a stressful time for me. Anyway, I think I can safely say that MB saved my sanity more than once.

Looking forward to a year of fun, fellowship, and good reading here at the Pub.

16Narilka
jan 2, 2021, 4:08 pm

Welcome to the pub and happy reading in 2021!

17Storeetllr
jan 2, 2021, 4:21 pm

Thanks, Gale!

18tardis
jan 2, 2021, 4:49 pm

The reader for the audio versions of Murderbot is very good. I listened to them all in the fall and Network Effect just last week. Only twice, though :)

19Storeetllr
jan 2, 2021, 5:41 pm

He IS good, isn't he! I wasn't as happy with his job with Network Effect the first time I listened to it, but now that I've listened to it *sigh* six or so times, it's grown on me. I admit I had to read it in book form to get the full effect of MB's snark. Somehow that also made me enjoy the audio more.

20clamairy
jan 2, 2021, 9:17 pm

>1 Storeetllr: I am so happy you decided to start a journal here! And the title is perfect! (I kind of wish Martha Wells would write a Sanctuary Moon series...)

I do hope your reading in 2021 is all that you wish for.

21Storeetllr
jan 2, 2021, 9:36 pm

Oh! Wouldn't that be fun! Just so long as a Sanctuary Moon series wouldn't take time away from her writing more Murderbot. (Maybe someone will do some Sanctuary Moon fanfic .)

Thanks for the warm welcome, clam! I'm feeling really good about being here.

22clamairy
Bewerkt: jan 3, 2021, 10:53 am

>21 Storeetllr: "I'm feeling really good about being here."

This brings me much joy. :o)

Edited to add: She's got a new Murderbot coming in the Spring, I believe!

23fuzzi
jan 2, 2021, 10:19 pm

>1 Storeetllr: glad to see you here in TGD.

And Murderbot, too.

Thread is starred!

24Storeetllr
jan 3, 2021, 3:53 pm

>22 clamairy: Yes! New Murderbot's coming in APRIL!

>23 fuzzi: Yay! Thanks, fuzzi!

25libraryperilous
jan 3, 2021, 9:32 pm

>15 Storeetllr: Your thread title is fantastic, but I love this even more. I'm glad the Murderbot books have brought you such comfort in a difficult stretch. I hope your 2021 is better and calmer.

My mom, who is not a sci-fi fan, absolutely loves the Murderbot series. They are such appealing stories.

>20 clamairy: Would read. I also would like an Aeslin mice series from Seanan McGuire. Or at least an almanac of Aeslin mice holidays to celebrate year-round.

26NorthernStar
jan 3, 2021, 10:43 pm

Happy New Year!

27reconditereader
jan 4, 2021, 4:31 pm

>21 Storeetllr: "Maybe someone will do some Sanctuary Moon fanfic ."

Your wish is granted! (Not by me, though.) Search archiveofourown.org .

28reading_fox
jan 5, 2021, 4:29 am

Happy New Year!

I do like re-reading, but not quite to the same degree that you do! I once read LotR once a year for about 5 or 6 years in succession, but even that became too much. There is something very comforting about re-reading a favourite book knowing what it coming up and how the characters resolve.

29Storeetllr
jan 5, 2021, 12:59 pm

>25 libraryperilous: Thanks, Diana! Murderbot's been a lifesaver! Glad your mom's on board with the Murderbot books. They are definitely appealing. In fact, Murderbot is the most appealing character I've read in a long time, and the themes of the books - what defines consciousness and the meaning of personhood - as well as the juxtaposition of the main polities - the Corporation Rim and the Freehold Worlds - that shows future possibilities if we remain on our current course, is both timely and set out in a very appealing way. As I mentioned above, I follow Murderbot on Twitter, and it's so nice to come across one of its tweets while I'm scrolling down through the gloom-and-doom tweets that are prevalent these days.

30Storeetllr
jan 5, 2021, 1:01 pm

>26 NorthernStar: Thanks, NorthernStar!

>27 reconditereader: Woot! I've bookmarked the site to read when I have a chance. Looks like there are quite a few fanfic stories on Murderbot there! Thanks!

31tardis
jan 5, 2021, 1:03 pm

>29 Storeetllr: Murderbot is on Twitter? Ah, why did I not know this? Followed!

32Storeetllr
jan 5, 2021, 1:11 pm

>28 reading_fox: Thanks, reading_fox! There were a couple of decades where I did very little rereading, but the past few years (4 to be precise) and especially this past year have shown a huge uptick in rereads for me. My attention span and ability to stay engaged have deteriorated badly, and it's very worrying. My hope for 2021 is to get back to reading mostly new-to-me books. Your story about rereading LoTR every year made me smile because I did the very same thing when I first "discovered" Tolkien back in the late 60s/early 70s. Even as recently as 20 years ago, I reread LoTR once every 5-10 years. The film adaptations spoiled that for me, though.

33Storeetllr
jan 5, 2021, 1:12 pm

>31 tardis: Right?!? I discovered it only a couple of weeks ago myself.

34Copperskye
jan 13, 2021, 8:33 pm

Hi Mary! I was wondering if you were going to start a thread. Thanks for letting me know where to find you. I'm glad you're somewhere and it looks like you've settled in very well (and I see a couple of familiar names!). I've got you starred so I'll be sure to say hi every now and then. This year, I again questioned whether or not to have a thread, but then I kind of decided that I wouldn't worry about keeping up. I'm sorry if that sounds antisocial and I guess it does. I don't mean to be. I'll lurk and post when I have something to add, and I'll always respond to anyone who posts on my thread. I know I won't get a lot of visitors that way but, c'est la vie.

Wishing you a happy, healthy, and very bookish 2021 (fingers crossed!)!!

35MrAndrew
jan 14, 2021, 5:26 am

Ooh! Who are the familiar names?

wait, let me guess. Eleanor and Wolfmoor. If i had a dollar for every time i've seen those names...

36Storeetllr
jan 14, 2021, 1:53 pm

>34 Copperskye: Thanks, Joanne! Happy 2021 to you too. No, I don't think you're being antisocial, just feeling exhausted from trying to keep up. Somehow I haven't felt the pressure here that I was feeling over there. Not quite sure why, but there it is. Same as you, I'll visit some of the threads occasionally, but not feeling pressured to do it every day is a relief.

>35 MrAndrew: Eleanor and Wolfmoor. Hahahaha

37Storeetllr
jan 14, 2021, 2:14 pm

I've been deep in a reading slump for a few months now. It's been worse the last couple of weeks. All I seem able to read (well, re-re-reread) are the Murderbot books. But I started another book last night which seems promising. At least, I didn't stop reading it last night because I was bored with it but because I had to go to sleep, so that's a good sign. Anyway, it's The Scorpion's Tail, the second in the Nora Kelly spin off series (from the Agent Pendergast series) by Preston & Child.

38libraryperilous
jan 21, 2021, 7:35 pm

>29 Storeetllr: Ooh, Murderbot Twitter!

I hope you're able to bust out of your reading slump soon.

39Storeetllr
Bewerkt: feb 1, 2021, 1:37 pm

>38 libraryperilous: Thanks, Diana. Unfortunately, January was a wash. I did not finish one book (tho I started a few). I've been worrying about my inability to find anything I care to read, but it doesn't seem to be helping, so I'm just going to let it go and stop worrying. If/when I find a book that grabs me, I'll read it. Otherwise, I'm going to stop worrying and do other things. Coincidentally, Annabel Lee, a book I requested from the library, is available, so I'm going to start it today. Crossing my fingers and hoping for the best (and trying not to let anxiety get to me).

Right now, I'm painting with watercolors. Here are two of my most recent attempts.


Nickel the African Grey Parrot


Ruby (my granddaughter), 2 years old

40fuzzi
feb 1, 2021, 1:37 pm

>39 Storeetllr: wow, nice!

I dabbled in watercolors back in high school, discovered that I didn't have the flair.

41pgmcc
feb 1, 2021, 1:50 pm

>39 Storeetllr: Wow! Wonderful paintings.

By the way, for what it is worth, I would not worry about not finding a book that grabs me. It happens to everyone. All of a sudden you will find one that takes you on a journey and leaves you breathless at the end.

42-pilgrim-
feb 1, 2021, 1:52 pm

>39 Storeetllr: Nice work. Particularly in getting Nickel to hold still for you!

43Storeetllr
feb 1, 2021, 2:16 pm

>40 fuzzi: Thanks, fuzzi! Watercolor painting is definitely an exercise in serendipity. Watercolors are hard to control, and that was one reason I decided to paint with them, because I have a habit of overcontrolling (or trying to) everything.

44Storeetllr
feb 1, 2021, 2:18 pm

>41 pgmcc: Thanks, Peter! Glad you like the paintings. You're right, of course, but it was starting to really upset me. I've never gone an entire month without reading ONE BOOK. Not even when I did NaNoWriMo.

45Storeetllr
feb 1, 2021, 2:22 pm

>42 -pilgrim-: Haha, you're funny. I painted from a photo I took of her.

46MrsLee
feb 1, 2021, 2:40 pm

>39 Storeetllr: Stunning!

47clamairy
Bewerkt: feb 1, 2021, 5:08 pm

Amazing paintings. Perhaps you should take a break from trying to read and focus on that instead. You're very talented.

48-pilgrim-
feb 1, 2021, 5:28 pm

>45 Storeetllr: Thank you for the picture - I hadn't imagined Nickel was a "she" until you explained.

I wasn't being facetious. My mother had a wonderful ability to catch animals and children in watercolour sketches like that. Me - I preferred my subjects not to leap about, and so tended to stick to landscapes and still life.

49Storeetllr
feb 1, 2021, 5:29 pm

>46 MrsLee: Thanks, Mrs. Lee!

>47 clamairy: It's more social media that I need to take a break from, not trying to read, but thank you for your kind words, Clam!

50Storeetllr
feb 1, 2021, 5:32 pm

>48 -pilgrim-: Oh, wow, I'm in awe of anyone who can paint from life. I'm still in the paint-from-a-photo - or the imagination - stage. As for Nickel, she won't even stay still for a photo, much less for a quick sketch. I have taken thousands of pictures of her over the years, only a few dozen are in focus. Do you still paint?

51-pilgrim-
feb 1, 2021, 5:40 pm

>50 Storeetllr: Unfortunately I cannot. My hand was too damaged; I can only use it for short periods now. I very occasionally sketch, but that is all. I used to enjoy doing fine, detailed work - which is now impossible.

I have done portraits in water colour in the past - but I needed a very patient sitter! My mother's ability to catch an animal at play, or small children, with a few quick lines and some washes of colour, amazed me; I am in awe of anyone who can do that. It was way beyond me.

52YouKneeK
feb 1, 2021, 5:56 pm

>39 Storeetllr: Those are amazing paintings!

I for one am impressed by anybody who can (or ever could) paint or sketch at all. I have zero skills in that area. You all would NOT want me on your Pictionary team! ;)

53Storeetllr
feb 1, 2021, 8:12 pm

>51 -pilgrim-: Oh, I'm so sorry. I didn't realize your hand is damaged. I'm sure it's not the same, but I get inflammation so bad in my hands sometimes I can't even move my fingers/thumbs. Thank goodness I can still hold a brush (tho I can no longer knit). Sometimes I can't do detail work; that is when I do really really loose painting, just wetting the paper and laying down color in various places and seeing what it ends up being.

54Storeetllr
feb 1, 2021, 8:25 pm

>52 YouKneeK: Thanks! I've always sketched (my mom called it doodling) but was always a bit hesitant to paint. It wasn't until a couple years ago that I decided to try. I started with rock painting and enjoyed that, then was seduced by watercolor.

55Narilka
feb 1, 2021, 8:57 pm

>39 Storeetllr: Lovely paintings.

56Sakerfalcon
feb 2, 2021, 9:36 am

>39 Storeetllr: Wow! Those are beautiful paintings. Thanks for sharing them with us. What with embroidery, colouring, cooking and painting this is a very talented group!

57-pilgrim-
Bewerkt: feb 2, 2021, 10:39 am

>56 Sakerfalcon: Don't forget the singers, like WholeHouseLibrary!

58-pilgrim-
feb 2, 2021, 10:43 am

>53 Storeetllr: Yes, that loose style is something I was never able to develop.

If I try to do anything controlled with my hand now, it starts to cramp, and then either goes into neurological spasms or locks up completely (it both on succession). Painful, but more importantly, makes it pretty useless.

I do sympathise with the arthritis - I am guessing that that is the source of the inflammation? - and am glad you have been able to develop a style that you are able to continue with.

59Sakerfalcon
feb 3, 2021, 9:47 am

>57 -pilgrim-: Doh! I'm a singer myself!

60-pilgrim-
feb 3, 2021, 9:55 am

>59 Sakerfalcon: And how could I have forgotten that?!

61fuzzi
feb 3, 2021, 10:55 am

While going through another thread, I came across this link to a Murderbot short story:

https://www.wired.com/story/future-of-work-compulsory-martha-wells/

Enjoy.

62tardis
feb 3, 2021, 1:36 pm

>61 fuzzi: Thank you!

63Storeetllr
feb 3, 2021, 6:44 pm

>55 Narilka: Thank you! I love your artwork too!

>56 Sakerfalcon: Thanks. I appreciate your kind words. I'll say this group is talented! It's good to have creative endeavors during these tough times.

64Copperskye
feb 3, 2021, 6:47 pm

I just love your watercolors, Mary!

65Storeetllr
feb 3, 2021, 6:51 pm

>58 -pilgrim-: I'm so sorry about your hand. I know I get terribly frustrated when my arthritis (yes, it is, plus bursitis too in some of the joints, a genetic gift from my grandmother) stops me from using my hands.

>61 fuzzi: Thanks, fuzzi! I read it awhile back but always enjoy rereading anything Murderbot. She wrote another short story from Dr. Mensah's viewpoint and appended it to preordered copies of Network Effect. I preordered the audiobook but apparently audiobooks weren't included in that deal so I didn't get it, and I can't find it anywhere so I will have to wait until it gets into an anthology someday I guess.

66Storeetllr
feb 3, 2021, 6:51 pm

>64 Copperskye: Thanks, Joanne!

67fuzzi
feb 3, 2021, 11:37 pm

68Storeetllr
feb 4, 2021, 3:03 pm

>67 fuzzi: Eh. I still have the rest to enjoy on reread.

So, I started to read Riot Baby and it started out so good that I think I'll be finishing it! If I do, it'll be my first book for 2021. Woo-hoo! (Right, I shouldn't have even mentioned it until I finished it for fear of putting the kibosh on it but really, I'm that excited.)

69libraryperilous
feb 4, 2021, 5:30 pm

>68 Storeetllr: Fingers crossed for you!

70clamairy
feb 5, 2021, 9:25 am

>68 Storeetllr: I don't want to jinx you, but best of luck!

71Storeetllr
Bewerkt: feb 6, 2021, 2:11 pm

Thanks, library and clamairy. It's short, so I should be able to manage it, tho I did get stalled at about the 20% mark. It started out really good, but it uses a lot of slang that I don't understand and will need to look up, which kind of makes it hard for me to stay in the story. And the story is intense, as you might imagine, which is hard on my nerves just now. Still, I think it will be worth it in the end, if I can stick with it.

I also scored a couple of audiobooks that I had on hold at the library that I'm kind of hopeful about: Until the End of Time by Brian Greene ("exploration of the cosmos and our quest to find meaning in the face of this vast expanse") and Turning Darkness Into Light by Marie Brennan (fantasy featuring the "granddaughter of Isabella Camherst (Lady Trent, of the riveting and daring Draconic adventure memoirs"), both on audio.

ETA that it looks like I DNFd the Brennan novel back in 2019. As I was listening to it, I kept thinking it seemed familiar, so I checked. Unfortunately, I didn't make a note of why I didn't finish it. I wonder if I'll like it any better now.

72Storeetllr
feb 23, 2021, 6:57 pm

Just saw that Hillary Clinton and Louise Penny collaborated to write a political thriller. Here's an article about it.

From the article: "State of Terror" will be out in October. Simon & Schuster and St. Martin's Press acquired the rights to the book from Robert Barnett and David Gernert, who represent Clinton and Penny, respectively.

A novice Secretary of State joins the administration of her rival, a president inaugurated after four years of American leadership that shrank from the world stage. A series of terrorist attacks throws the global order into disarray, and the Secretary is tasked with assembling a team to unravel the deadly conspiracy, a scheme carefully designed to take advantage of an American government dangerously out of touch and out of power in the places where it counts the most.
ā€” Synopsis of "State of Terror"

I tried reading the first Three Pines book but just could not get into it, tho a lot of my friends love that series.

73Sakerfalcon
feb 24, 2021, 6:19 am

>72 Storeetllr: I was given a later book in the Three Pines series to start with, A trick of the light, and I loved it. So I went back and read the early books. I think if I had started with the first one it would have put me off too. Penny's writing and plotting improves a lot as the series progresses.

74Storeetllr
feb 25, 2021, 1:04 pm

>73 Sakerfalcon: Hmm, I may have to do that. So many people can't be wrong about how great the series is.

So, yesterday my daughter and I took the baby to Central Park Wildlife Conservation Center, also known as Central Park Zoo. It was a glorious, unseasonably (for this winter) warm, sunny day. We were only there a couple of hours, but it was my first real outing in months, so I pretty much collapsed when I got home. But, it was worth it!


Looking southwest toward the Central Park Tower, soon-to-be tallest residential building in the world. The views must be breathtaking, but I wouldn't want to live there.


When they went back into the Penguin House, I stayed outside but moved to a sunnier spot. They didn't see me where'd they'd left me so I called to them, and Ruby started running to me. Where that child gets her energy is - I was going to say "beyond me," but what I really mean is "something I'd like to know so I could get some too."


That face!

75Copperskye
feb 25, 2021, 1:22 pm

>72 Storeetllr: I saw that, too. Interesting! I wonder if Clinton writes in complete sentences. I thought the first few Three Pines books were just ok (Ralph Coshan's audio versions were excellent). The most recent one was great, though.

I have such fond memories of the Central Park Zoo! I went there as a child quite often and went again with my family about 12 years ago. The penguin house is a favorite. Also the clock at the entrance - just the best!!

I'm glad Ruby (and you!) have those memories now!

76clamairy
feb 25, 2021, 4:50 pm

>74 Storeetllr: Great photos. I didn't even realize the zoo was still there. I've never visited it. When we wanted to go to a zoo we always headed to the much larger Bronx Zoo.

77YouKneeK
feb 25, 2021, 5:52 pm

>74 Storeetllr: Lovely photos, Iā€™m glad you had a great time. Ruby is adorable!

78Sakerfalcon
feb 26, 2021, 6:42 am

>74 Storeetllr: Great photos! Ruby looks like she is having so much fun! Is the Central Park Tower the one which is so tall that residents can feel it swaying, and they are pretty unhappy?

79fuzzi
feb 26, 2021, 9:44 pm

>74 Storeetllr: cutie!

And her coat is cute, too.

80Storeetllr
mrt 1, 2021, 1:27 pm

>75 Copperskye: Haha, I imagine she has no problem writing in full sentences. I have her book What Happened around here somewhere, so I'll check. (I was too disheartened right after the election to read it, and then I got distracted by other books, and now I'm too scattered to do much reading - though I am in the middle of Caste, which is powerful and horrifying, and Too Much and Never Enough, which is simply horrifying.)

That's the first time I've been to Central Park Zoo, and I really enjoyed it. Such a beautiful place! Next outing (after I get my second shot next week) I'd like to go to the Maritime Aquarium, and then the Bronx Zoo, and then the NY Botanical Garden, then the beach. We were planning to spend a week on the Jersey shore later this summer but decided our house needs too much work to spend that kind of money just now, so we're just going to take day trips.

81Storeetllr
mrt 1, 2021, 1:30 pm

>76 clamairy: I hadn't know there was a zoo in Central Park either, until my daughter suggested going there. She said she thought it would be better for me to navigate because it's smaller. It is smaller, but there are a lot of stairs and inclines, so it's not that much better. I really do need to get into physical therapy - or ask my doctor if a hip replacement is right for me. I am still having a lot of hip pain from last week!

82Storeetllr
mrt 1, 2021, 1:32 pm

>77 YouKneeK: Thanks! It's always fun to go places with Ruby, though, at 2, she's starting to be more independent. Like running away from us and not always coming back when we call. But that's nothing unusual for a 2-year old.

83Storeetllr
mrt 1, 2021, 1:47 pm

>78 Sakerfalcon: After being inside so much this year so far, getting out ANYWHERE is fun for Ruby. It was fun for me too. I'm an introvert, but even I was starting to go stir crazy.

I don't know if the tower sways, but I bet it does. I mean, I worked in a highrise in downtown L.A., and that building swayed, but it was only half as tall as the tower. Also, if you look closely at the pic, there are two tall slender buildings. One is the Central Park Tower; the other, which is still under construction, is the Steinway Tower. I would not like to live in either of them. (Here's an article about it.)

84Maddz
mrt 1, 2021, 2:02 pm

>82 Storeetllr: I remember going to the zoo with my eldest nephew (must be twenty+ years ago now!) He was about the same age and I remember his total fascination with a tigress that was stalking up and down one side of her enclosure, snorting loudly each time she turned.

He objected strenuously to being moved on to catch up with the rest of the family... I seem to recall something about lying down in the middle of a roadway howling.

85fuzzi
mrt 1, 2021, 2:07 pm

>83 Storeetllr:
you
couldn't
pay
me
enough
money
to
live
there!

86hfglen
mrt 1, 2021, 2:40 pm

>85 fuzzi: I can only agree! For non-Saffers, US$1 = about ZAR15, so divide the prices in the story by 15 to get approximate dollars.

87Storeetllr
Bewerkt: mrt 1, 2021, 3:20 pm

Our local chapter of Moms Demand Action held a toiletries drive to help struggling families in the county, and this morning my daughter and Ruby joined me and other Moms volunteers at the Nyack Center to deliver some of the products (the rest goes to the MLK Community Center in another nearby town). Afterwards, we went to the park and then to a local restaurant to pick up some pastries as a treat (a chocolate chip muffin for Ruby and almond croissants for me and my daughter). Everybody wore masks and stayed a safe distance from each other, but it was nice to see my fellow Moms volunteers in person after a year of Zoom meetings.


Masked Moms


"Higher, Mama!"


Ready for St. Patrick's Day (Ruby's dad's favorite holiday) (She's got the hat and the side-eye down pat)

ETA pun not intended, but it is pretty funny.

88fuzzi
mrt 1, 2021, 3:22 pm

>87 Storeetllr: it's the unintended pun that's the funniest!

89Storeetllr
mrt 1, 2021, 3:26 pm

>84 Maddz: Haha, yes, they don't call them the "Terrible Twos" for nothing! Central Park Zoo doesn't have big cats, as far as I could tell. There are penguins, seals, a jungle house with exotic birds, mongooses, and monkeys (maybe more, but it was too hot in there so we left sooner than we'd have liked), and bears (which was up a hill so I didn't see them). There's also a petting zoo, with goats and sheep and cavies (i.e., ROUS), but no cats. Or elephants.

90Storeetllr
mrt 1, 2021, 3:30 pm

>85 fuzzi: and >86 hfglen: Right!?!

>86 hfglen: Seriously, that's an obscene amount of $$.

91hfglen
mrt 2, 2021, 4:45 am

>90 Storeetllr: Myself, I wouldn't willingly be seen dead anywhere near it (like fuzzi); my acrophobia means I'm strictly a ground-floor person. And I like LOTS of personal space around me.

>89 Storeetllr: Unfortunately I don't have a picture of what is held to be one of the funniest signs in southern Africa. At the parking lot for the Table Mountain National Park enclave at Boulders Beach, Simonstown, there is a sign warning visitors to check under their cars for stray penguins before leaving. Genuinely, it is a problem.

92Sakerfalcon
mrt 2, 2021, 6:39 am

>83 Storeetllr: Wow that's an obnoxious building! Here's the one I'd read about which people have already moved into and are unhappy with. Some of the problems are the result of shoddy work but really, a little common sense should tell you that a very very tall, very very thin tower would sway in the wind.

>87 Storeetllr: It's great that you were able to see friends and do some good together. Little things like this make all the different, both to you and to the people who will benefit from your good work.

93MrsLee
mrt 4, 2021, 6:08 pm

>87 Storeetllr: What a darling way to celebrate! That expression is priceless!

94-pilgrim-
Bewerkt: mrt 4, 2021, 7:02 pm

>92 Sakerfalcon: At which point I start thinking of the Ben Aaronovitch novel, which helpfully explains what an architect should do about this ... Broken Homes, I think?

95Storeetllr
Bewerkt: mrt 8, 2021, 5:02 pm

>92 Sakerfalcon: You'd think. I once lived in a loft in downtown L.A. on the 11th floor, which was high enough. I loved it, and there was no swaying in quakes, but the building took up almost an entire block. I also worked on the 34th floor of a building in downtown L.A. (one of the Wells Fargo towers). There was swaying in that building during quakes, but we were used to it and it was never too bad. They built the buildings to do that in quakes and high winds.

It was a good feeling to do something for the community, especially after having been almost in isolation for a year. and with so many people hurting. We had a huge outpouring of donations. It was gratifying.


Some of the donations to the MLK Community Center

96Storeetllr
Bewerkt: mrt 10, 2021, 2:42 pm

>91 hfglen: Me neither. I haven't even been to the top of the Empire State Building. Your comment about needing a lot of room around you made me remember my visit to ChichƩn ItzƔ back in the 1990s and the claustrophobic trip inside the large pyramid known as the Castillo. You would not have done well in there. I almost didn't manage to make it through, but I really wanted to see the "chac mool" in the chamber at the top. ETA it might have been the jade jaguar throne that I saw inside the pyramid. It's been so long and I can't remember where I put my journal of that trip. Either way, it was quite an experience, I do remember that!

Wow. Having to check under your car for penguins. I mean, I remember being told to check inside the hood for cats warming themselves on the engine block during one cold snap in California, but penguins.

97Storeetllr
mrt 8, 2021, 5:30 pm

>93 MrsLee: She's got a whole repertoire of expressions, and she knows how to use them! I think she takes after her mama who was a musical theater performer for a decade or so before giving it up. Except her mom was a drama queen, while Ruby is more a comedian.

98YouKneeK
mrt 8, 2021, 6:55 pm

>96 Storeetllr: Your discussion about tall buildings reminds me of the very brief trip I managed to sneak in to go to Paris a few years back when I was on business in France. I hadnā€™t been to Paris before and I like heights, so I wanted to go to the top of the Eiffel Tower. I donā€™t know if Iā€™m remembering it as worse than it was, because they surely had some sort of capacity restrictions, but I remember it as being shoulder-to-shoulder crowds. Even though I have no issues with heights, being trapped in a crowd with no way to break away and get some space made me a little too twitchy to fully appreciate the scenery. I had much more fun when I was just walking around.

99Maddz
mrt 8, 2021, 7:08 pm

>98 YouKneeK: Well, if you ever make it to London, do try and book a 'flight' on the London Eye. That's great fun, but bring a shooting stick or campstool because you have to queue for an hour or more...

The 'flight attendants' were very sweet and let my Mum sit on a chair at the entrance while I queued for both of us. She must have been in her 70s when we were there.

100YouKneeK
mrt 8, 2021, 8:05 pm

>99 Maddz: Iā€™ve done that actually, and did enjoy the London Eye very much! I did it the day I arrived and I had gotten very little sleep on the overnight plane flight, so I was pretty tired, but that was much more fun than the Eiffel Tower for me. :)

101hfglen
mrt 9, 2021, 6:24 am

>96 Storeetllr: What makes Boulders Beach special is that it's home to the only colony of penguins on the African mainland. The downside is that they get everywhere, and find visitors' cars a useful source of shade in summer. And if you get too close, they peck.

102fuzzi
mrt 9, 2021, 9:35 am

>96 Storeetllr: I did Empire State building as a teenager, class field trip to NYC, and did Rockefeller Center too, but not to the top I don't think.

A few years ago we went to Chicago and did the top of the Sears Tower (now the Willis Tower). We rode the elevator to the Skydeck, 1353' high, with glass balconies that extend past the windows. My dh refused to go out on the balcony, he hates heights. When I stepped out on a balcony I took a quick look down and had to look back up immediately, it frightened me. But within a minute I was able to look down at the street waaaaaaaaaaay below my feet. If you've ever seen the movie Ferris Bueller's Day Off the characters visit the observation deck. There were manikins dressed up as Bueller's friends positioned by one of the windows in the tower.

Heights don't bother me if they are secure heights, but not if they are swaying!

103haydninvienna
mrt 9, 2021, 12:02 pm

One of my favourite places is CN Tower in Toronto, which has a glass floor in the lift. I was in Toronto with Mrs H a couple of years ago and we went thereā€”she did not enjoy looking down at the ground as it shrank away.

104pgmcc
mrt 9, 2021, 12:32 pm

I spent a week in Chicago in 1989 for work. The company I was visiting had its office on the 32nd floor of building. This was by no means the top floor. While at their offices I was looking down on the railway station and the trains looked like toys. That was on the Monday.

On the following Saturday I visited Sears Tower. The viewing gallery at that time was the 103rd floor with the top floor being the 110th and when I was there it was occupied by a TV station. While on the viewing floor I looked down on the building I had been in on Monday. It looked like a tiny toy way below.

105Storeetllr
mrt 10, 2021, 2:44 pm

>98 YouKneeK: Heh, the crowds would have bothered me too, although it might have been worth the Eiffel Tower in Paris. I loved walking around in Italy (which I talked about a little (hopefully not a little too much) on your thread). I tried to avoid the worst of the crowds, but sometimes it wasn't possible. Like Easter in St. Peter's Square. What a crush!

106haydninvienna
mrt 10, 2021, 4:13 pm

We lobbed into Rome over Easter weekend once, Mrs H, me, and three of my gang including Laura, who would have been no older than 7 or 8 at the time. We almost lost Laura in the crowd in St Peterā€™s Square.

107YouKneeK
mrt 10, 2021, 7:38 pm

>105 Storeetllr: Definitely not too much. I love hearing about peopleā€™s travel experiences, especially to countries I havenā€™t been to!

108hfglen
mrt 11, 2021, 2:41 am

>105 Storeetllr: I agree with YouKneeK. If you have pictures, a day-by-day Trip Report would be welcome!

109Storeetllr
mrt 12, 2021, 9:31 pm

>106 haydninvienna: Yep. Easter at St. Peters Square was really something!

>107 YouKneeK: Thanks, You! Inspired by you, I'm posting some pics of my Italy trip below.

>108 hfglen: Okay! You asked for it!

110Storeetllr
Bewerkt: mrt 12, 2021, 9:46 pm



Tuscan countryside as seen from the terrace of the Hotel Santa Caterina where I stayed for 3 nights while in Siena. I rented a car to get around and got lost every time. I reminded myself it was better to be lost in Italy than found in Los Angeles.



The Bay of Naples. I hired a guy with a boat to take me to the Blue Grotto. I got seasick, but it was so worth it.

111Storeetllr
Bewerkt: mrt 12, 2021, 9:51 pm

These were taken in either Pompeii or Herculaneum.


I love red doors!


A calderium (hot tub) at the public baths.


According to Mary Beard in The Fires of Vesuvius, which I just finished reading, this was previously thought to be a fast-food takeout place. More recent research has apparently concluded these bins held dry goods, like chick peas, and hot food was cooked in another area.



An outdoor shrine.



A mosaic. Brilliant colors, even after 2,000 years.

112pgmcc
mrt 13, 2021, 2:42 am

>111 Storeetllr: Thank you for sharing your pictures. They are great. Is that you serving at the Pompeii McDonald's?

113YouKneeK
mrt 13, 2021, 6:00 am

>110 Storeetllr:, >111 Storeetllr: Those are amazing pictures and they make me want to go to Italy even more now! It also makes me happy to read about somebody else spending a portion of her vacation being lost too. ;)

114hfglen
mrt 13, 2021, 10:31 am

>110 Storeetllr: >111 Storeetllr: Yummm! What YouKneeK and Pete said. But surely that was Herculaneum, not Pompeii?

115haydninvienna
mrt 13, 2021, 10:49 am

>111 Storeetllr: The Bay of Naples and the Isle of Capri: yet again, Mrs H was troubled by her fear of heights during the bus ride up the hill. The Blue Grotto was pretty interesting though.

116Bookmarque
mrt 13, 2021, 11:58 am

The pics are terrific. What a memorable trip.

117Storeetllr
mrt 13, 2021, 3:39 pm

>112 pgmcc: Yep, that was me! Looking back, I sure was svelte, wasn't I?!? Also, happy. It was so amazing and wonderful being there.

>113 YouKneeK: Oh, you really must visit Italy! I don't know what it's like these days, whether you can get as close up as I was. I mean, we were able to actually touch some of the ruins, the scorched furniture inside some of the dwellings in Pompeii and Herculaneum. I loved the Forum Romana and spent a lot of time wandering around there, resting on the blocks of ruined buildings that lay scattered around. I think because of the danger from so much tourism they've restricted some of that now. Even so, the museums and ruins and just the ambience of the everyday life in the cities, towns, seaside, and countryside is worth the trip.

>114 hfglen: I grabbed these random photos out of order of when they were taken, so wasn't sure. I went to both ruins when I was there, and it was 18 years ago so my memories aren't perfect, but I suspect it was Herculaneum rather than Pompeii, yes.

118Storeetllr
mrt 13, 2021, 3:41 pm

>115 haydninvienna: Ah, I didn't get there (got too seasick seeing the Blue Grotto; also, the boat guy took me out onto the Bay to see some rock formation, which made me feel even worse). I always regretted not going to Capri.

>116 Bookmarque: Thanks! It was that!

119MrsLee
mrt 13, 2021, 5:13 pm

Love the photos! Thank you for sharing them.

120YouKneeK
mrt 13, 2021, 8:07 pm

>117 Storeetllr: That would have been wonderful being able to actually get up close and touch things! That was a frustration for me in England as I very much wanted to touch all the cool, ancient stuff I was seeing. It was still fun to see it though. I expect youā€™re probably right that things are more restricted in Italy too now.

121Storeetllr
Bewerkt: mrt 14, 2021, 6:09 pm

>119 MrsLee: You're welcome! I enjoyed looking at them again.

>120 YouKneeK: Yes, tho I can't help but be relieved they're taking conservation seriously so these treasures from the past stay around for future generations to enjoy.

So, there's been a lot of discussion about the publisher removing some of the Dr. Seuss books and the issue with Little House on the Prairie books. I've been doing a bit of thinking about it, and reading about it, because book-banning is troubling; on the other hand, racist/misogynistic imagery in children's books is troubling too. Here's a blog post written by a librarian that I thought set it out very well: Cancel Culture and "Classics": EDI and RA Implications.

122NorthernStar
mrt 14, 2021, 1:52 am

>121 Storeetllr: your link doesn't work properly, but I googled it. Really well stated article, thanks!

123Storeetllr
mrt 14, 2021, 6:10 pm

>122 NorthernStar: Um, that was weird! Thanks for letting me know about the broken connection! I edited it and now it works. Glad you enjoyed it.

124Sakerfalcon
Bewerkt: mrt 15, 2021, 9:07 am

>111 Storeetllr: What amazing pictures! I really want to go back to Pompeii because my camera stopped working the day I went there! And I never made it to Herculaneum but your pics make it look fantastic. I've always heard that it is better preserved than Pompeii.

>121 Storeetllr: That is a very good post about the public librarian's perspective on this issue. She is absolutely right that the PL's mission is to curate a collection that meets the needs of the community, not to be a repository.

125Copperskye
mrt 17, 2021, 1:06 am

Beautiful photos, Mary! And such great memories for you. Thanks for sharing!

126Storeetllr
Bewerkt: mrt 20, 2021, 9:52 pm

>124 Sakerfalcon: Glad the pics took you back! Both Pompeii and Herculaneum are amazing places, but I vaguely recall spending more time in Herculaneum for some reason. I wish I could remember where I put my notes about the trip. Much of the logistics has faded from memory. Tho not the train rides (one, from Rome to Florence, was spent sitting on someone's trunk in the middle of the aisle because the train was so crowded; another when I was sitting with some people practicing my Italian and one of the guys said, "What's a matter wit' Bush?" because he had just invaded Iraq a month prior. (In fact, I contemplated postponing the trip because of anti-American feelings in Europe, but I knew if I didn't go then I probably never would, so I went and had no problem. Tho a lot of anti-American sentiment was around, no one was ever rude to me for it.) I said, "I don't know. I didn't vote for him." That was the only time anyone discussed politics with me while I was there, and the guy wasn't being mean, just genuinely curious, I think.) Anyway, I hope when this pandemic eases a bit you get to go back to Italy and visit the Amalfi Coast again.

Also, glad you enjoyed the article.

127Storeetllr
mrt 20, 2021, 5:35 pm

>125 Copperskye: Thanks, Joanne! Glad you enjoyed looking at them as much as I enjoyed sharing them.

128Storeetllr
mrt 20, 2021, 5:36 pm

129Storeetllr
mrt 29, 2021, 8:11 pm

Yes, this would be me.

130clamairy
mrt 29, 2021, 8:50 pm

131fuzzi
mrt 30, 2021, 1:09 pm

>129 Storeetllr: mine! Mine! Mine!

132Storeetllr
mrt 30, 2021, 2:52 pm

I just preordered it! Now I just have to wait until April 27. Unless I run into It in some storm drain. *shiver*

133Storeetllr
Bewerkt: apr 1, 2021, 5:16 pm

Wow, I won an Early Review copy of The Only True Biography of Mae Jemison by Sneeze, Her Cat (co-author Dan Greenburg). I hope it's good (by which I mean I hope I like it). I stopped requesting Early Review books because too many of them were just not for me and were struggles to finish and review. It's a children's book (ages 8-12), tho, so I should be able to handle it.

Aside: I learned about Mae Jemison from reading one of my granddaughter's books to/with her. Jemison was featured, along with Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Malala Yousafzai, Frida Kahlo, and other strong, accomplished women. Baby Feminists board book.

134Storeetllr
Bewerkt: apr 20, 2021, 8:38 pm

Wow, already April! Spring has sprung! Started my first seeds indoors (two kinds of peppers and rosemary); I'll be starting lemon cucumbers, melons, basil, and tomatoes today or tomorrow. The rest of the veggies I plan to plant this year can be sown outdoors.

Anyway, I think I finally broke out of the reading slump! *touch wood* I read two books in January and ONLY ONE in February - totally not like me - but five in March! Here are the ones I read in March:

Carnal Innocence by Nora Roberts. 3 stars. Audio. Romance.
The Fires of Vesuvius by Mary Beard. 4 stars. Audio. Archaelogical study
The Russian Cage by Charlaine Harris. 4 stars. Audio. Alt history fantasy
Quiet in Her Bones by Nalini Singh. 3 stars. Audio. Mystery.
The Institute by Stephen King. 3.5 stars. Audio. Paranormal thriller.

My mini-reviews for all the books are in >2 Storeetllr: above.

135fuzzi
apr 6, 2021, 2:54 pm

LOOK! LOOK!

New book by Martha Wells in the Murderbot universe: "Home" (no Touchstone) is only 99 cents for pre-order at Amazon today!

https://www.fantasticfiction.com/w/martha-wells/home.htm?utm_source=ff&utm_m...

137Storeetllr
apr 11, 2021, 8:08 pm

Thanks, fuzzi and Maddz. I pre-ordered it. It's only 19 pages, but I don't mind paying a dollar (or 72p) for it. I need as much MB as I can get, and I'm happy to support the creator of such a great character and series.

138Storeetllr
Bewerkt: apr 19, 2021, 2:12 pm

Pretty stoked about the Hugo Award Nominees this year. For a number of reasons, I am rooting for Murderbot, er, I mean, Martha Wells, author of the Murderbot Diaries. Here are the nominees in the categories I'm most interested in(bolded=read):

Best Novel

Black Sun, Rebecca Roanhorse (Gallery / Saga Press / Solaris)
The City We Became, N.K. Jemisin (Orbit) (DNF)
Harrow The Ninth, Tamsyn Muir (Tor.com) (DNF)
Network Effect, Martha Wells (Tor.com)
Piranesi, Susanna Clarke (Bloomsbury) (TBR)
The Relentless Moon, Mary Robinette Kowal (Tor Books / Solaris)

Best Novella

Come Tumbling Down, Seanan McGuire (Tor.com)
The Empress of Salt and Fortune, Nghi Vo (Tor.com)
Finna, Nino Cipri (Tor.com)
Ring Shout, P. DjĆØlĆ­ Clark (Tor.com)
Riot Baby, Tochi Onyebuchi (Tor.com) (TBR)
Upright Women Wanted, Sarah Gailey (Tor.com)

Best Series

The Daevabad Trilogy, S.A. Chakraborty (Harper Voyager)
The Interdependency, John Scalzi (Tor Books)
The Lady Astronaut Universe, Mary Robinette Kowal (Tor Books/Audible/Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction/Solaris)
The Murderbot Diaries, Martha Wells (Tor.com)
October Daye, Seanan McGuire (DAW)
The Poppy War, R.F. Kuang (Harper Voyager)

ICYMI, you can see all the categories here.

139pgmcc
apr 19, 2021, 2:46 pm

>138 Storeetllr:
You should try the Daevabad trilogy. It is excellent.

140Storeetllr
apr 19, 2021, 3:59 pm

>139 pgmcc: Thanks! I'll add it to the TBR list and check to see if the library has the first one.

141pgmcc
apr 19, 2021, 4:06 pm

>140 Storeetllr: I have been avoiding Murderbot as I have such a big TBR mountain.

142jjwilson61
apr 19, 2021, 4:42 pm

>141 pgmcc: They're pretty quick reads

143pgmcc
apr 19, 2021, 5:21 pm

>142 jjwilson61: So I understand.

144fuzzi
apr 19, 2021, 9:49 pm

The new Murderbot short story is now downloaded to my phone, yippee!

145Storeetllr
apr 20, 2021, 12:41 pm

>141 pgmcc: >143 pgmcc: They're so worth pushing all the other books to the side to read first. And >142 jjwilson61: is right. The first 4 novellas are a quick read - listening time for each is between 3 and 4 hours. Not sure about the time to read in text, but surely not any longer and, depending on how fast you read, probably shorter.

>144 fuzzi: Yippee! I think I have it too but haven't gotten to it yet. I started reading News of the World and got hooked, so MB will be next after I finish that.

146fuzzi
apr 20, 2021, 2:36 pm

>145 Storeetllr: agreed on the Murderbot being quick reads.

I have #5 on the shelf, whimpering to be chosen next...

147ScoLgo
Bewerkt: apr 20, 2021, 4:42 pm

>146 fuzzi: Surely Murderbot would never whimper. It would merely roll its eyes, (behind the helmet visor), and go back to watching Sanctuary Moon until you decide to interrupt... ;)

>141 pgmcc: Eh. What's another 150-ish pages added onto the TBR? Certainly not the proverbial straw, I'm sure...

148NorthernStar
apr 20, 2021, 4:55 pm

>141 pgmcc: I agree with the above comments - move Murderbot up your TBR list. You will not regret it.
>144 fuzzi: It is a very quick read. Just a tease really.

149Storeetllr
apr 20, 2021, 9:00 pm

>139 pgmcc: I just looked at the trilogy. Turns out City of Brass was a book I started but DNFd last year. I didn't get very far into it, and last year was difficult for me reading wise, as were the first couple of months of 2021, so it's possible I will enjoy it if I try it again. I will, but not hurrying to do it. Also, there's an 8-week wait for it at the library, so I couldn't hurry if I wanted to. :)

150Maddz
apr 21, 2021, 2:43 am

>149 Storeetllr: I read the first of the trilogy for the Dublin Hugos and thought meh. Himself got the others as they appeared on Kindle deals, and has read them, but so far I've not bothered. Like yourself, I too had a problematic reading year - most of the year was comfort reads, not really anything new. I'm picking up the pace this year though.

151pgmcc
apr 21, 2021, 4:48 am

>149 Storeetllr: >150 Maddz:
The City of Brass resonated with me given my growing up in Belfast during the Troubles. It was about divided communities and being set in an Arabian Nights like world it let me look at communal conflict in a more object fashion than is possible when looking at one's own situation. While the story was set in a world with magic, the way unscrupulous "leaders" manipulated the situation to build their own power base was very familiar to me given my background. Everything that happened in the story at personal, neighbourhood, inter-area, and at the highest level of government, had an example in my life. I knew of real life incidents of areas being attacked, people being murdered because they had formed an attachment across the community divide, of politicians spreading lies to stir up old grievances, of force being used to intimidated populations, etc... For me The City of Brass was a text book on inter-community unrest and the way people are used for political ends. The book could be describing the Northern Ireland (NI) Troubles, the Middle East Conflicts, and the trouble in The Balkans.

The final book, The Empire of Gold, even has an equivalent of the NI Peace Process.

These were factors that made this trilogy excellent in my view.

152fuzzi
apr 21, 2021, 9:20 am

>147 ScoLgo: oh, Murderbot's not whimpering, it's the binding that is such a baby...

153Storeetllr
apr 21, 2021, 12:16 pm

>150 Maddz: Yes, last year was problematic for me too, and a lot of people, I think. Until 2016, I seldom reread anything because there are always so many new books calling to me. Since then, tho...well, suffice it to say that in 2020 I think more than half my reading was comfort book rereads. This year seems to be better for me so far. I hope it's better for you too!

154Storeetllr
apr 21, 2021, 12:18 pm

>151 pgmcc: Ah, perhaps that's why I could not get into it - not only does it sound like what you experienced in Dublin, it sounds a lot like what America has experienced particularly since 2016. As I mentioned in the above post, 2020 was a year in which most of my reading was rereads of comfort books. This year seems to be shaping up differently, so I may try City of Brass again.

155Storeetllr
apr 23, 2021, 1:40 pm

I've been thinking of changing my LT handle. After all these years (I've been a member since, I think, 2006), I'm tired of "Storeetllr." I made it up because "Storyteller" was already taken, and at the time I was writing novels (or trying to) so it was apropos. Now, though, I've stopped writing mostly and started painting. Also, a lot of people over the years have commented on how hard it is to figure out how to pronounce "Storeetllr" or what it even means. Anyway, I was thinking it's time for a change but am not sure if it's a good idea at this late date, since it's been my handle here for almost 15 years. (FIFTEEN YEARS!?! Holy cow, that's a long time!!!)

Oh, my initial ideas? "ArtistReads" or "GrannyReads" or "ArtistsLife." Maybe "StorysArt" (keeping part of my old name in the mix, without the possessive apostrophe, which bothers me but I could get over it). Any thoughts on this?

156ScoLgo
apr 23, 2021, 1:49 pm

>155 Storeetllr: I notice that "SanctuaryMoonGoddess" does not seem to be taken... ;-)

Not that I think it's necessary to change a handle; not too many people here know what mine is all about either, (hint: initials).

157Storeetllr
apr 23, 2021, 2:36 pm

>156 ScoLgo: SanctuaryMoonGoddess! Hahaha, good one! MurderbotLove also is available. Dang, so many choices!

What IS ScoLgo about?

158ScoLgo
apr 23, 2021, 3:13 pm

>157 Storeetllr: It doesn't have a meaning. It's just mine and Mrs. ScoLgo's initials smooshed together to form a 'word', I guess you could say. It also happens to make for a relatively unique username on the internets so, if I need to setup an account somewhere, I don't usually have to worry about variations or adding numbers to the mix or any of that goofy stuff. But don't look for ScoLgo on FB, Instragram, or other social media sites. I don't participate in social media except for here, and occasionally on Goodreads, (same username on GR but I'm not very active there at all).

159Storeetllr
apr 23, 2021, 3:36 pm

Got it. Yes, it is unique which would be helpful.

I suppose I could use my own initials, or mine and my granddaughter's (who is currently my most beloved), but somehow it doesn't work as well as yours does. Oh, well, changing my handle is just a thought. I'll keep thinking about it.

160YouKneeK
apr 23, 2021, 7:22 pm

>155 Storeetllr: I donā€™t have any good suggestions, but I hope you can find one you like!

>158 ScoLgo: I have to admit Iā€™ve wondered about your handle but never got around to asking. My working theories were: something to do with Legos, something about going to school, or something about eyes if I read it backwards as Ogl(e) Ocs.

I was disappointed a few months ago when I tried to create an account on Reddit and discovered this handle was already taken. It wasnā€™t an account Iā€™d set up myself eons ago and forgotten about; their posts were definitely not mine. I feel sort of like we should both give up our handle everywhere we have it now. :) I'm not happy with the handle I chose as a replacement, but you can't change it there without creating a new account.

161ScoLgo
apr 23, 2021, 9:03 pm

>160 YouKneeK: "...or something about eyes if I read it backwards as Ogl(e) Ocs."

Oohhh, I like that one! Never even occurred to me. Neither did the Legos idea. Sadly, the truth is so much more mundane.

I am occasionally active on reddit! (more so than GR) but my handle is completely different. As in, not even close - because I prefer to remain as anonymous as possible on that site.

162YouKneeK
apr 24, 2021, 7:10 am

>161 ScoLgo: I mostly just lurk on Reddit, but once in a while Iā€™ll comment if Iā€™m dying to say something. Iā€™m not a fan of the way conversations drop into oblivion as time passes, as opposed to how a traditional message forum like this one brings topics with new comments back up to the top. Sometimes the comments can be more interesting than the original post, and you can miss out on that if you read the Reddit posts too soon, before people have commented.

163Copperskye
apr 25, 2021, 9:33 pm

Hi Mary!

Regarding a new LT handle, you should wrangle your birdā€™s name in there somewhere says the woman whose name is that of her two best dogs...

164Storeetllr
apr 26, 2021, 3:47 pm

Hey, Joanne! Haha, yes, I hear that. (I didn't get to meet Copper, but I agree that Skye is just super special!) NickelsMomReads is just too long. I am hoping to think of something simple, short and snappy, like MaryReads or something. Tho that's boring.

165Storeetllr
Bewerkt: mei 4, 2021, 1:48 pm

I had a great month of reading! Thank all the reading gods and goddesses and elves and whatever my reading slump (seems to be) over. Finally! Here are the books I read in April, with special note of the TWO 5-star books!

My Last Duchess by Eloisa James. 3 stars. Audio. Historical romance. Light reading and ultimately forgettable, but pleasant enough. I thought it was just a tad unrealistic (within its own world of regency and romance).

Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro. 3.5 stars. Audio. I almost quit a couple of times, once out of boredom and once out of exasperation, and I can't say I liked any of the characters except, maybe, the neighbor boy. There wasn't a lot of action, and what there was of action was confusing. It's an Ishiguro, tho, so those things are to be expected as part of the reading experience - in my experience, anyway. Ultimately, I'm glad I read it, but it wasn't an easy read, and the ending was really depressing. I kept going also because the theme seemed to be similar to the Murderbot theme (I know, I know, I've got Murderbot on the brain), which is an exploration of what makes a person.

Later by Stephen King. 4 stars. Audio. Weird little horror story. I really got into it. Vintage King, actually. The reader was good too, which always helps.

Trade Secrets by David Wishart. 4 stars. Kindle. Mystery set in ancient Rome and Ostia. No politics in this one! I mean, I enjoy reading about emperors and their minions, families, and peccadillos, but sometimes it can get to be a bit much. Anyway, this one was set in the early days of the reign of Claudius, and it involves two mystery deaths - one a sleazy ladies' man in the export business found stabbed to death in an alley near the shrine of a little-known water goddess, and the other a wealthy but unsavory import/exporter found stabbed after he'd died of natural causes in the garden of the Pollio library. Are they tied together? Maybe. I like Marcus Corvinus mysteries even tho he talks like a modern day Sam Spade. Somehow the anachronisms make it more fun.

The World According to Physics by Jim Al-Khalili. 4.5 stars. Audio. So, I comprehended about one-tenth of one percent of the concepts discussed in the book (which is about par for the course for me), but I loved that he mainly discussed those concepts and didn't go into the history of physics from Aristotle through Newton to the late 18th century scientists and all the outdated theories and failed experiments and the like the way most physics book authors do. In fact, he didn't even mention the word "ether" once, which makes this the best pop-physics-for-laypersons-who've-read-a-few-books-on-physics-before book I've read. (I didn't mind learning about those things, and even found some of it interesting or amusing (like pigeon poop as a possible cause for the discovery of the Cosmic Microwave Background) -- at least not the first or even the second time I read it. After that, I just skimmed (or blanked out) whenever a book started in on that.) Anyway, I did learn some new stuff and expanded my comprehension a bit but will be rereading it at some point in order to (I hope) get more out of it on a second go-round. BTW, it was read by the author, who has an accent so thick you could cut it, but I got used to it and really enjoyed his obvious enthusiasm for his subject. (Note: I originally gave it 4 stars but upped it to 5 on second thought.)

Dying Breath by Heather Graham. 3.5 stars. Audio. First Graham paranormal romance for me. I enjoyed it, but I thought the writing was a bit sophomoric, which is sad because this book is far from the author's debut novel. It was easy reading, tho, and I do enjoy a good paranormal/supernatural mystery thriller (like the Bishop series by Kay Hooper and the Harper Connelly series by Charlaine Harris), so it worked okay for me.

What the Devil Knows by C. S. Harris. 4 stars. Kindle. Latest in the St. Cyr mystery series, and one of my favorites so far, partly for the parrot but mostly for the ending. Made me tear up. It was what I had hoped for all along. The crimes were horrifying, many of the characters (including the victims; maybe ESPECIALLY a few of the victims) were reprehensible, and the world in which the novel is set a dirty, uncompromisingly venal and inhumane place. Hero plays a strong role in this one, and in one scene she did something so amazing - I really love her! So glad she and Sebastian got together.

News of the World by Paulette Giles. 5 stars. Audio. Well, I'm sorry it took me so long to get to this wonderful novel. Friends raved about it, tho, so I was afraid to try it in case I hated it and felt stupid for it. Needn't have worried. It grabbed me from the first sentence, and I finished it in two sittings, and I ugly cried at the end tho it was a lovely, perfect ending. And I gave it a 5/5 star rating. If you haven't read it yet, don't wait another minute. Even if Westerns aren't your bag, this is so much more than just a Western.

Dark Rites by Heather Graham. 3 stars. Audio. Follow-on book to Dying Breath, this one involves a satanic cult.

Wild Sign by Patricia Briggs. 3.5 Audio. Latest tale in the saga of Charles and Anna have them going to California to investigate what happened to a bunch of off-the-gridders who had built a town on land owned by the Marrock's mate and then disappeared.

Fugitive Telemetry by Martha Wells. 5 stars. Audio and ebook. Murderbot is back, solving a murder on Preservation Station, protecting humans from danger, connecting with old friends, and making new - well, not friends, maybe, but potential future friends. You know, the usual. This novella, which is set after Exit Strategy and before Network Effect, just came out, and I read it on kindle then immediately started to listen to the audio. A wonderful book with which to end the month.

166Storeetllr
Bewerkt: mei 4, 2021, 1:49 pm

Here are my stats for April, with special note of the TWO 5-star books! (I just can't get over that!)

11 books read:

1 Western
1 Scifi (MURDERBOT!!!)
1 Historical Romance
3 Paranorman/Supernatural Romances
2 Historical Mysteries
1 Literary novel
1 Horror
1 Non-fiction/science (physics)

Ratings:

5 star: 2
4-1/2 star: 1
4 star: 3
3-1/2 star: 3
3 star: 2

167Busifer
mei 1, 2021, 9:29 am

I told you, you'd get around to Fugitive telemetry before I did!
Good to hear that it lived up to your expectations; I'm looking forward to reading it VERY soon now (I made the executive decision last night to not finish my present read before sleeping, because that had meant staying up until 3-ish AM. And I try to be grown up about needing to sleep, not least because it's critical for my covid-recovery... I am pretty proud that I managed, lol).

168Storeetllr
Bewerkt: mei 1, 2021, 12:42 pm

I only wish it had been longer. It's also a bit different from the first four novellas, in that it's a murder mystery, but Murderbot is still trying to figure out its place in the scheme of things, and humans still annoy it. I'm glad you are being disciplined and taking good care of yourself. Recovering from Covid is no cake walk, is it?

169Busifer
mei 1, 2021, 12:58 pm

No, it isn't. At least not for me. A colleague who is perhaps 20 years my junior caught it not long ago and for her it was just like a simple cold, no special recovery needed. Almost everyone whom I know of at about my own age (born mid-60's) has had a ride much like mine, though, so age definitely seems like a factor.

Definitely looking forward to picking up Murderbot, any hour now!

170Storeetllr
Bewerkt: mei 1, 2021, 1:06 pm

I wish I were more disciplined. Last night, I stayed up way past when I wanted to go to sleep. I was reading The Disordered Cosmos, which is way more than just a book about physics. Oh, it's got a lot about astrophysics and quantum theory and other concepts - a few of which she explains so well I was able to comprehend them much better - but its also about misogyny and racism in the scientific and scholastic community, about her own (she is a theoretical physicist specializing in early universe cosmology and a feminist theorist) and previous women scientists whose work was either appropriated by the males with whom they worked or discounted - such as woman physicist who was told by her male mentor that her (I think post-doctoral) research paper was b.s. and not to publish, so she didn't, only to have that male mentor later publish her theory as his own. Like that. I think I've become a Prescod-Weinstein stan. (Am I using that word right? I'm so not hip to modern slang anymore - my daughter's too old to keep me up-to-date on it and my granddaughter too young.)

171Storeetllr
Bewerkt: mei 4, 2021, 8:17 pm

Thought I'd share something I painted this over the weekend from a picture I took of some pears I thought were too lush and beautiful to eat.


Pears in Blue Glass Bowl (unedited)


Reference photo

Here's the edited version. I was going to delete it, but then the subsequent conversation about it wouldn't make sense.


Pears in Blue Glass Bowl (edited to look good on my screen)

172Busifer
mei 3, 2021, 3:14 pm

Well done!

173Narilka
mei 3, 2021, 8:47 pm

Very nice :)

174Sakerfalcon
mei 4, 2021, 9:12 am

>171 Storeetllr: Gorgeous! I love the intense colours.

175Storeetllr
Bewerkt: mei 4, 2021, 12:59 pm

>172 Busifer:, >173 Narilka:, >174 Sakerfalcon: Thanks!

>174 Sakerfalcon: I'm not sure the colors are really that intense. I edited the image I posted because it looked washed out on my screen, but then I looked at it on a different screen and the colors were really saturated. Not sure how to handle that issue. Perhaps I should also post the unedited photo for those who have decent laptops. (This is a really old laptop that I inherited and am using because my "good" laptop is falling apart, and by falling apart I mean the screen is separating from its back and won't close and half the keys on the keyboard won't work.) Let me know how the photos of the paintings look on your screen?

176YouKneeK
mei 4, 2021, 5:08 pm

>175 Storeetllr: That's an amazing painting! So realistic. For me, the unedited version looks best, or at least more realistic color-wise.

177Storeetllr
mei 4, 2021, 5:36 pm

>176 YouKneeK: Not surprised. I'm sure it's the screen on this laptop. I should delete the edited photo. Glad you like it (the unedited version).

178YouKneeK
mei 4, 2021, 5:37 pm

>177 Storeetllr: The edited version has a really cool look to it too, very intense colors as >174 Sakerfalcon: mentioned.

179fuzzi
mei 4, 2021, 7:36 pm

>171 Storeetllr: what paint did you use? Acrylic?

180Storeetllr
mei 4, 2021, 8:13 pm

>179 fuzzi: No, it's watercolor. Many, many layers of watercolor (to get that depth of color).

181clamairy
mei 4, 2021, 8:38 pm

Love the painting, and I am sooo happy to hear you're reading new stuff again!

182Storeetllr
mei 4, 2021, 8:48 pm

>181 clamairy: Oh, Clam! It's such a great feeling to be able to read new stuff! I hope I never get into another slump as deep and dark as the last one!

Thanks, I'm glad you like the painting!

183clamairy
mei 4, 2021, 9:12 pm

>182 Storeetllr: I hope so, too!

184Sakerfalcon
mei 5, 2021, 6:49 am

>175 Storeetllr: I like both versions of the painting. The unedited one is truer to life, but the colours are still vibrant. And I still like the edited one for the way it slightly exaggerates the reality.

185fuzzi
mei 5, 2021, 8:08 am

>180 Storeetllr: ha! At first I though watercolor, but thought it was too dense. You fooled me.

186Storeetllr
mei 7, 2021, 12:35 pm

187Storeetllr
mei 7, 2021, 12:51 pm

>184 Sakerfalcon: I admit I like the edited version for the same reason. I wish I could get that deep saturation with just the paint. I may have to invest in more expensive paint. (I'm using a set I got from Arteza, which isn't professional grade but which I like okay. But I belong to a few watercoloring groups on Facebook, and from what others have said some paints are richer, creamier, and are more responsive. I mean, they interact with water better. So, not this month - or even this year - but maybe I'll gift myself a set of Sennelier or Daniel Smith or QOR, which are some that others have touted, for Christmas.) Also, I'm still practicing on paper that isn't 100% cotton, so that might make a difference too. I bought some 100% cotton paper, but I'm being miserly with it, using it only for things I plan to give away, not for just practice.

188Storeetllr
mei 7, 2021, 1:28 pm

>185 fuzzi: Heh. I didn't mean to fool you. That was my over-editing fiasco. Frankly, I like watercolor because it ISN'T dense enough to hide the paper unless you layer a lot. Speaking of layering, I've been practicing a technique that lets you paint flower petals you can see though, making multiple layers of petals. I heard it called the x-ray effect. I'll take a pic of it and post it when I can. It's pretty cool.

189fuzzi
mei 7, 2021, 9:12 pm

>188 Storeetllr: I'm looking forward to it!

190pgmcc
mei 8, 2021, 3:44 am

>171 Storeetllr:
Very nice. Very impressive.

191Storeetllr
Bewerkt: mei 8, 2021, 2:50 pm

>189 fuzzi: Here you go.


Practicing florals


Detail of x-ray technique

192Storeetllr
mei 8, 2021, 2:34 pm

>190 pgmcc: Thanks! I've got a long way to go but am loving the journey!

193Storeetllr
Bewerkt: mei 8, 2021, 2:49 pm

Look what I got in the mail yesterday. The latest Murderbot novella! A "bookstagrammer" I follow on Instagram sent it to me. I already read it (four or five times) in ebook and audio format, and though I like ebook and audio formats just fine, and love the reader of the audio version a lot, somehow having the actual paper book in my hand gives me the warm fuzzies (sorry, fuzzi, not punning you) and is a feeling that can't be duplicated by electronic media.

194pgmcc
mei 8, 2021, 2:45 pm

>192 Storeetllr:
I think you are well along the road. Continue to enjoy the journey.

195Busifer
mei 8, 2021, 3:37 pm

>193 Storeetllr: Physical books has that special feel, don't they? I just can't seem to let them go, I love the tactility, but also the physicality of "place": of knowing exactly how far along in the book you are, at any given point. Progress bars really aren't a substitute.

(And good job on the flowers and x-ray technique!)

196YouKneeK
mei 8, 2021, 5:16 pm

>191 Storeetllr: This is beautiful!

197pgmcc
mei 8, 2021, 5:19 pm

>191 Storeetllr:
Execellent. Great effect.

198Narilka
mei 8, 2021, 6:27 pm

>191 Storeetllr: That is a neat effect.

199fuzzi
Bewerkt: mei 8, 2021, 8:46 pm

>191 Storeetllr: you've more patience and talent than I!

And I prefer real books, too.

200clamairy
mei 9, 2021, 9:20 am

>191 Storeetllr: Very cool effect! They look diaphanous.

201ronincats
mei 16, 2021, 10:12 pm

I hope you are enjoying Murderbot!!

202Storeetllr
mei 20, 2021, 4:44 pm

Hi, Peter, Pella, YouKneeK, Gale, Clare, fuzzi, and Roni! Thanks for visiting and keeping my thread warm while I've been away.

I haven't been doing much reading, although today I start the third Ghost Roads book - Angel of the Overpass - by Seanan McGuire. I love this series about a wandering ghost and have been hoping the next installment would be coming out soon when I learned today when I went to visit Roni's thread that it's here!

203Storeetllr
mei 25, 2021, 1:49 pm



Tor.com is offering a FREE DOWNLOAD of Nghi Vo's novella When the Tiger Came Down the Mountain. I haven't read anything by Vo yet, but this sounds like it might be a good place to start.

Download available until 11:59 PM ET, Friday, May 28th 2021.

204Storeetllr
mei 28, 2021, 3:15 pm

Saw this on Twitter (on @murderbotbot's feed) and wanted to share it. Not all are as I picture them in my imagination, but I do like Ratthi, Pin-Lee, Dr. Baradwaj and maybe Gurathin. I picture Dr. Mensah as being thinner and with lighter hair, Arada as being younger, and Valescu as being thinner, younger, and dark-haired. I've seen a lot of renditions of SecUnit, none of which quite match my mental picture of it. One problem is it never describes itself to any degree, so it's hard to know. What do you think?


Artist: @donuthologram

205Busifer
mei 28, 2021, 4:47 pm

>204 Storeetllr: One of the, to me, big benefits of written material is how much is left to the reader to imagine/fill in. I can honestly say that I never gave a thought to how the various people featured in the Murderbot books would look; just as I don't much picture the cast of any book, except when the author actually describes a person, such as is done in various stories trying to explore what happens when humankind moves to the Moon, or Mars, with a lower gravity, et cetera.

I do respect that for some the mind demands distinct faces, and that for some people the compulsion to express themselves through images is strong. But given that Murderbot is set far in an imaginary future... isn't these quite, um, stereotypic? Will naming standards still adhere to ancient customs linked to cultures that would had evolved immensely, since "our" time? Do we today still use name forms from the 15th century? In all the cultures that I know of (admittedly few) some names stay the same but a lot of them evolve or change over time, yet some vanish altogether. Strung across the universe and across centuries, surely naming standards will evolve, too?

Sorry. Just my thoughts.

206Marissa_Doyle
mei 28, 2021, 6:19 pm

>204 Storeetllr: Speaking of which, did you see Tor's announcement that there will be three more Murderbot Diaries works coming out?

207Storeetllr
mei 28, 2021, 6:50 pm

>205 Busifer: We all take in books differently. I also don't usually have complete and detailed mental pictures of characters unless the description is detailed, but it's fun sometimes to see what others imagine.

>206 Marissa_Doyle: YES!!! I was so happy to see it, tho I admit my second thought was "only three?" I'm hoping she keeps writing Murderbot stories forever. :)

208Busifer
mei 29, 2021, 4:24 am

>206 Marissa_Doyle: Wooot! I had missed it! This makes me so happy :-)

>207 Storeetllr: Yes, it CAN be, but most often I get so disappointed. The fan art for the Daevabad trilogy that the author linked to was so stereotypically pointy-eared it almost ruined my experience of the story. So I tend to stay well away.
That's just me, though.

209pgmcc
mei 29, 2021, 4:51 am

>208 Busifer:
You are not alone.

210clamairy
Bewerkt: mei 29, 2021, 8:35 am

I tend to steer clear as well, but I love the blank space for Murderbot itself.

The only time I felt I really benefited from having real faces to go with the names was reading Martin's A Song of Fire and Ice. I had only read the first book before the HBO series started. There are just so many characters that having actual faces in my head made it much easier to keep track of who was who going forward with the rest of the books.

211fuzzi
mei 29, 2021, 8:46 pm

I used to draw the characters from books I read...not well, but close enough. Most of the time the images I have in my mind are very different from illustrations I later see...except for The People of Pern.

212Busifer
mei 31, 2021, 12:40 pm

>210 clamairy: Agree on the blank for Murderbot: very much in tone with the entire premise of the stories.

213Storeetllr
jun 1, 2021, 12:52 pm

I read only four books during May, but one of them was a five-star gem so it was a good if sparse reading month. All four books were by women authors, one was non-fiction, two were paranormal mystery romance thrillers, and one was an historical mystery.

The Disordered Cosmos by Chanda Prescod-Weinstein. 5 stars. Audio. Wow, this book is everything! It contains one of the most understandable and wonderful (as in filled with wonder) explanations of quantum gravity, particle physics, spacetime, and other heretofore (mostly) incomprehensible (to me) theories I've read, and why they matter, as well as a discussion of racial and sexist bias in the hererocispatriarchal realm of science and academia. The last section of the book is an intimate and deeply moving discussion of her personal experience of being raped (no details of the actual rape are provided - thank goodness - so it's not triggering in that way, but it does go into her reactions to it). I love her enthusiasm for science, which comes through clear and bright, and her passion for feminist and non-binary gender issues. To be honest, I came for the science but found her take on the social issues powerful and moving in a way I hadn't expected, giving me a better comprehension of how white supremacism, hererocispatriarchy, and colonialism pervades American social structures and why it is so damaging to those who are the direct targets of it and to society in general. There's a lot to digest in this book, and I plan to reread it sometime so I make sure I haven't missed anything, but she's really a good writer and it's definitely worth the time & effort. Highly recommended.

Phantom Evil by Heather Graham. 3.5 stars. eBook. First in the Krewe of Hunters series of paranormal mystery thriller romances. The assembling of the team pits Jackson Crow, formerly of the Behavioral Science Unit of the FBI, and Angela Hawkins, formerly a cop from Virginia, against whoever - or whatever - killed the wife of a popular, up-and-coming Louisiana state senator in their newly renovated New Orleans mansion. I'm not much into romance these days, so I basically paged through the 2 or 3 sex scenes, but I was kind of wishing the two main characters hadn't jumped into the sack so soon after meeting. Because there just wasn't enough tension between them for that. Still, the mystery was okay, and I liked reading about New Orleans. I only wish the writing was a bit better.

The Lady Has a Past by Amanda Quick. 3.5 stars. Audio. Well, I usually enjoy Amanda Quick paranormal historical romance thrillers more, though this one wasn't terrible. Just can't seem to get into the Burning Cove books as much as I did her earlier ones. I did like the main female character Lyra who was more assertive than her usual female protagonists in this series. The main male character Simon was okay, tho I didn't really "feel" him. The mystery was a bit convoluted. I didn't care for the reader and had to turn the speed up to 1.2. I gave it 3.5 stars because, after I got about a quarter of the way in, I started to enjoy it, and it turned out to be a pleasant few hours.

Unexpected Peril by Deanna Raybourn. 3.5 stars. Audio. The continuing saga of Veronica Speedwell and her partner Stoker. In this episode, a famous woman mountain climber was killed in a seeming accident while climbing a mountain with which she was familiar in a small country in the Alps, but Veronica believes she was murdered. Was it her purported lover, a duke of that country? A male rival who "stole" her "first to the peak" title and has been blackballed since? Someone else? A little plodding but enjoyable, especially the personal aspects of Veronica's life.

214clamairy
jun 1, 2021, 10:04 pm

>213 Storeetllr: I think you got me right between the eyes with that Chanda Prescod-Weinstein book.

215Storeetllr
jun 2, 2021, 6:51 pm

>214 clamairy: Oh, you won't be disappointed, I think! When you've read it, I'll be interested to know what you thought.
Dit onderwerp werd voortgezet door Mary (Storeetllr) Reads-2021 Pt. 2.