Marell's All 50 States Challenge

This looks like a fun challenge.

Before I start my challenge, here is a list of books I have read from 2009 to today. I was surprised in perusing my books read list that most books I read take place someplace other than the U.S.A., so now I'm even more excited. I won't use touchstones for this list.

NORTH CAROLINA: Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen
FLORIDA: Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston
NEW YORK: 97 Orchard - An Edible History of Five Immigrant Families in One New York Tenement by Jane Ziegelman
OHIO: Letters from Eden - A Year at Home in the Woods by Julie Zickefoose
HAWAII: Honolulu - Alan Bennert (parts take place in Korea; is that okay?
NEW HAMPSHIRE: Eagle Pond by Donald Hall
ALABAMA: The Darling Dahlias and the Cucumber Tree by Susan Wittig Albert

Welcome to the challenge. I've finished, but I'm still following!

Thanks for the welcome! I noticed on your completed list The Moonflower Vine, one of my all-time favorite books and Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet , a book I just got from the library and one I've wanted to read for a while. I'm encouraged by your list. Thanks.

ALABAMA: The Darling Dahlias and the Naked Ladies by Susan Wittig Albert
ALASKA: Two Old Women: An Alaska Legend of Betrayal, Courage and Survival by Velma Wallis
ARIZONA: Cool in Tucson by Elizabeth Gunn
ARKANSAS: Summer of my German Soldier by Bette Greene
CALIFORNIA: Cannery Row by John Steinbeck; Bird of Another Heaven by James D. Houston; The Wayward Bus by John Steinbeck
COLORADO: Plainsong by Kent Haruf
CONNECTICUT: The Hand in the Glove by Rex Stout
DELAWARE:
FLORIDA: Camino Island by John Grisham
GEORGIA:

HAWAII: Bird of Another Heaven by James D. Houston
IDAHO: Basque Moon by Julie Weston
ILLINOIS: The Devil in the White City by Erik Larson
INDIANA: The Friendly Persuasion by Jessamyn West
IOWA: Little Heathens: Hard Times and High Spirits on an Iowa Farm During the Depression by Mildred Armstrong Kalish
KANSAS: Doc by Mary Doria Russell; Little House on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder
KENTUCKY: Hannah Coulter by Wendell Berry
LOUISIANA:
MAINE: Abide With Me by Elizabeth Strout
MARYLAND: Making Toast by Roger Rosenblatt

MASSACHSETTS: Mary ‘Gusta by Joseph C. Lincoln
MICHIGAN: Once Upon a River by Bonnie Jo Campbell
MINNESOTA: On the Banks of Plum Creek by Laura Ingalls Wilder
MISSISSIPPI: Taps by Willie Morris
MISSOURI: One O'Clock Jump by Lise McClendon; Sweet and Lowdown by Lise McClendon
MONTANA: Death of a Dude by Rex Stout
NEBRASKA: The Meaning of Names by Karen Gettert Shoemaker
NEVADA: The Ox-Bow Incident by Walter Van Tilburg Clark
NEW HAMPSHIRE: In the Fall by Jeffrey Lent
NEW JERSEY:

NEW MEXICO: Dance Hall of the Dead by Tony Hillerman
NEW YORK: A Mercy by Toni Morrison; Making Toast by Roger Rosenblatt; The Winter of Our Discontent by John Steinbeck
NORTH CAROLINA: The Night Train by Clyde Edgerton; In the Fall by Jeffrey Lent
NORTH DAKOTA:
OHIO: Sworn to Silence by Linda Castillo
OKLAHOMA:
OREGON: Little Century by Anna Keesey
PENNSYLVANIA: Redcoat by Bernard Cornwell
RHODE ISLAND:
SOUTH CAROLINA:

SOUTH DAKOTA:
TENNESSEE:
TEXAS: Isaac's Storm: A Man, a Time, and the Deadliest Hurricane in History by Erik Larson
UTAH:
VERMONT: Pollyanna by Eleanor H. Porter; In the Fall by Jeffrey Lent
VIRGINIA: The Little Bookstore of Big Stone Gap by Wendy Welch
WASHINGTON: Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet (Jamie Ford)
WEST VIRGINIA:
WISCONSIN: Memoir of the Sunday Brunch by Julia Pandl; Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder
WYOMING: The Virginian: A Horseman of the Plains (Owen Wister)
WASHINGTON! D.C.: Louise's War by Sarah R. Shaber

I have to say, my first two reads in the 50 states challenge have been disappointing. But, third times the charm, as they say, so looking forward to my next USA book.

Hate that you didn't enjoy Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet. I read it a couple of years ago, and it has stuck with me.

The second book in the series, The Darling Dahlias and the Naked Ladies is a "darling" (sorry!) read. These little cozies take place during the Depression. The details are just right, the people believable, and the food and gardening descriptions wonderful. The stories have a "you are there" feel and I really cared about the people in this little town in Alabama. Recipes and natural housecleaning tips in the back of the book. I'm in love with this series as well as Ms. Albert's Beatrix Potter Cottage Tales Series.

Just finished A Mercy by (Toni Morrison). Beautiful. It is a book that should be read aloud.

Finished The Virginian: A Horseman of the Plains by Owen Wister. For years I often visited a small branch library and saw the book just about every visit, never borrowing it. I finally did, and was rewarded with a marvelous story. I think I'm in love with Wyoming and the Virginian, the man and the book!

Cool in Tucson by Elizabeth Gunn is a fast-paced police procedural. I anticipated a lot of it but it was a quick read and held my interest to the end.

I just finished Bird of Another Heaven by James D. Houston. It is a historical fiction novel that takes place in Northern California (Sacramento and Bay areas) and on the island of Oahu. I went to Oahu last year and this story made me wish I had learned more about Hawaiian history and culture before my trip and made me want to jump on a plane and go back.
I also liked the parts of the book dealing with the main character (Nani's) family in California. I was less interested in the present-day life of Nani's great-grandson and found myself impatient to get back to the historical story.
All in all, it was a pretty good book and as I said before, it really piqued my interest in Hawaii.

Doc by Mary Doria Russell. What a book! I could hardly put it down. Outstanding writing right from the first line. I appreciate the author giving some background at the end, given the lack of true facts and all that has been written over the years about these figures. Although there are bits that take place in Georgia and Texas, most of the action takes place in Kansas, specifically Dodge City, so I will count this as a Kansas book.

I think I could listen to John Holliday talk all day long.

This is the first book I have read by this author. Now that I've finished Doc, I can't wait to read her other books. As Doc would say, "I am agog with anticipation."

Hm, the first books I finished in January and February are westerns. Is there a theme in this somewhere?

One O'Clock Jump by Lise McClendon is a mystery that takes place in Kansas City, Mo. The book begins on September 1, 1939, the first day of WWII. It has a wonderful sense of time and place. The language used also reflects the time and locale, with lots of slang. The writing was somewhat jerky and awkward at times with jarring transitions from scene to scene.

It was a good read but not stellar in my opinion. There is a sequel, Sweet and Lowdown, which I would like to read. I think this would have been a good basis for an interesting series and the writing perhaps gotten better and smoother over time, but there are only the two books.

I got this book as an Amazon Kindle. It was a terrible copy with numerous typos throughout. I don't have a lot of experience with Kindle, so I don't know if the poor quality is typical. It was only 99 cents so . . .

Pollyanna by Eleanor H. Porter is a children's classic which I enjoyed very much. I loved the movie with Hayley Mills when I was young and have wanted to read the book for some time. The book is a little different than the movie but not a lot. Sometimes Pollyanna's incessant chatter got a little tiresome but it is a good story nonetheless. The ending is a little abrupt but then it is a children's book after all.

Making Toast by Roger Rosenblatt takes place mostly in New York and Maryland. It is a memoir of a father dealing with his daughter's death and about him and his wife helping their son-in-law care for their three grandchildren and the family's struggle to carry on and cope with their lives. It is often painful to read but full of love as well.

Isaac's Storm by Erik Larson was a fascinating and horrifying account of the 1900 Galveston Hurricane. A lot of technical information to take in, combining history, politics, egos and, of course, weather.

The Night Train by Clyde Edgarton

Not a long book, the story takes place in 1963, in Starke, North Carolina. The civil rights movement is making itself known and change is on the horizon. Change is happening in the music world as well, and this story is really about music. Two friends, 16-year-old boys, one white, one black, love music. Larry Lime loves the piano, and once he begins learning how to play jazz, he wants to play like Thelonious Monk. Dwayne Hallston and his bandmates are adding to their repertoire James Brown's album," Live at the Apollo," featuring the song "The Night Train," complete with his dance moves. I just loved this book. A strong sense of place and time, funny, poignant, with good food to boot.

I've heard wonderful things about Clyde Edgarton's book. We have it in our library. I always thing I'll get around to reading it. Your review makes me want to get to it sooner -- since it's about the music!

Thanks! I was in 8th grade in 1963, in California, not the South, but I remember it all so well. It's a quick read too.

In the Fall by Jeffrey Lent. What a story. The book takes place in Vermont, New Hampshire and North Carolina. The sense of these places and history is as central to the story as the story itself. Begins at the end of the American Civil War and ends right before the beginning of the Great Depression. A full, heartbreaking and wonderful read.

Memoir of the Sunday Brunch is a book of life in all its fullness and pain, full of heart and faith, and it's hilarious.

Plainsong by Kent Haruf. Oh, what a beautiful and beautifully written book. I cared so deeply for the characters. It has a wonderful sense of place. Just perfection in every way. This is the first book of his I've read and now I can hardly wait to read the others. Started it yesterday and finished it today and I didn't want it to end.

Death of a Dude by Rex Stout. Nero Wolfe in Montana, of all places! Enjoyed this one very much.