Mstrust's Mount TBR Pt #2

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Mstrust's Mount TBR Pt #2

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1mstrust
Bewerkt: nov 15, 2013, 12:56 pm

1. Big Bad Bill (Shakespeare-his works and life)

1. Othello- 5 stars
2.The Merchant of Venice 4 stars
3. The Comedy of Errors 3 stars
4. The English Shakespeare Company 4 stars
5. Richard II 4 stars
6. Shakespeare:The World as Stage 4 stars

2mstrust
Bewerkt: nov 10, 2013, 5:58 pm

2. Always A Mystery

1. Cards on the Table 4 stars
2.Poirot Loses A Client 4 stars
3.Lord Peter Views the Body 3.5 stars
4. Death on the Nile 3.5 stars
5. Gently Down the Stream 3.5 stars
6. Shroud for a Nightingale 4 stars
7. Dead Water 4 stars
8. Sad Cypress 3 stars
9. One Two Buckle My Shoe 4 stars
10. Dead Man's Mirror 3 stars

3mstrust
Bewerkt: nov 29, 2013, 12:02 pm

3. Bubblegum Factory (Food & Drink)

1. Desserts in Jars 4 stars
2. Drinking With Men 3 stars
3. Sweet Serendipity 5 stars
4. Totally Lemons Cookbook 3.5 stars
5. The Drunken Botanist 5 stars
6. The Bubbly Bar 4.5 stars
7. Jamie's America 5 stars
8. Sweet Tooth 3.5 stars
9. The Whole Fromage 3 stars
10. Trader Vic's Tiki Party 4.5 stars
11. Liquid Vacation 5 stars
12. Marguerite Patten's Best British Dishes 4 stars
13. The American Way of Eating 3.5 stars
14. Christmas in Tinseltown 4 stars

4mstrust
Bewerkt: jun 13, 2013, 6:49 pm

4. Diamonds and Rust (On My Shelves)

1. How To Become A Scandal 4 stars
2. Wuthering Heights:The Wild & Wanton Edition 4.5 stars
3. More Information Than You Require 3 stars
4. A Chaste Maid in Cheapside 3 stars
5. Bad Trips 4 stars
6. Not All Tarts Are Apple 2.5 stars
7. A Sentimental Journey 2 stars
8. The Whole Five Feet 4 stars

5mstrust
Bewerkt: dec 1, 2013, 6:59 pm

5. Can't Get It Out Of My Head (Favorite Authors)

1. Squirrel Seeks Chipmunk 3 stars, read with Julie
2. Antigone 4 stars
3. Mr Punch 4.5 stars
4. Service with a Smile 3.5 stars
5. Wicked Plants 4 stars
6. Death Comes to Pemberley 3.5 stars
7. Something Wicked This Way Comes 4.5 stars
8. Notes From a Small Island 4 stars
9. Let's Explore Diabetes with Owls 4.5 stars

6mstrust
Bewerkt: dec 18, 2013, 3:55 pm

6. Gimme Gimme Shock Treatment (New To Me)

1. Britten and Brulightly 4 stars
2. The Hunger Games 4.5 stars
3. In A Sunburned Country 4.5 stars
4. Wrong About Japan 4 stars
5. The Apothecary 4 stars
6. The Black Book 4 stars

7mstrust
Bewerkt: nov 6, 2013, 12:30 pm

7. Take Five (Serials)

1. The Professionals 11: Spy Probe 4 stars
2. Behind the Curtain 3 stars
3. Shroud for a Nightingale 4 stars
4. Dead Water 4 stars
5. Into The Dark 4 stars
6. The Professionals 12: Foxhole 3.5 stars

8mstrust
Bewerkt: nov 26, 2013, 11:31 am

8. Qui Est "In", Qui Est "Out" (French Authors)

1. The Elegance of the Hedgehog 4.5 stars
2. The Shackle 4 stars
3. The Phantom of the Opera 3 stars
4. Maigret at the Crossroads 3.5 stars
5. Gourmet Rhapsody 3 stars

9mstrust
Bewerkt: okt 7, 2013, 8:11 pm

9. Together We're Better (Short Stories)

1. Everything Ravaged, Everything Burned 3.5 stars
2. Las Vegas Noir 3.5 stars
3. Deadly Treats 4 stars

10mstrust
Bewerkt: dec 13, 2013, 5:12 pm

10. Fox On The Run (Something Led Me To The Book)

1. Lolita 4.5 stars January Group Read
2. Breaking the Code 4 stars
3. All Quiet On the Western Front 4.5 stars Group Read
4. The Botanical Gardens at the Huntington 4.5 stars
5. Gently Down the Stream 3.5 stars
6. Sh*t My Dad Says 3.5 stars
7. Awkward Family Photos 3.5 stars
8. Ask Graham 4 stars
9. Mr. Timothy 4 stars

11mstrust
Bewerkt: nov 3, 2013, 11:20 am

11. Seasons In The Abyss (Autumn/Halloween)

1. Squashed 3.5 stars
2. You Wouldn't Want To Meet A Body Snatcher! 4 stars
3. Spooky Little Girl 3.5 stars
4. Which Witch? 4 stars
5. Heart-Shaped Box 4.5 stars
6. The House With a Clock in Its Walls 4 stars
7. Hangmen of England 3.5 stars
8. Cannibalism and the Common Law 4 stars
9. Deadly Treats 4 stars
10. The Phantom of the Opera 3 stars
11. Warm Bodies 4.5 stars
12. Doctor Faustus 3.5 stars
13. The Secret of Platform 13 4 stars
14. Dial-A-Ghost 4 stars

13mstrust
Bewerkt: aug 3, 2013, 7:59 pm

14-Eva-
jun 3, 2013, 10:32 pm

Nice shiny new thread - dropping a comment so I can keep following along!

15rabbitprincess
jun 3, 2013, 10:45 pm

Happy new thread! :)

16mstrust
jun 3, 2013, 11:39 pm

Thanks for dropping by! Here we are at the 6 month mark and I've finished 50 books, so I might get somewhere near that dream of 100 this year. I'm reading as fast as I can!

17SouthernKiwi
jun 6, 2013, 3:54 am

Just stopping by to drop a star :-)

18majkia
jun 6, 2013, 7:25 am

Great job! Don't read so fast you don't enjoy it though.

19mstrust
Bewerkt: mrt 8, 2014, 1:08 pm

Good to see you Alana, and welcome, Jean! No fear of me reading too fast; I'm for sure one of the slower ones on LT. Like those tree sloths that barely move yet somehow get to another branch.

HTML.

51. The English Shakespeare Company: The Story of War of the Roses by Michael Pennington and Michael Bogdanov. In the mid-eighties, leading stage actor Pennington and stage director Bogdanov came up with the idea of touring the U.K. performing Shakespeare's historical "Henry" plays, also known as "The War of the Roses" in consecutive order. It was an ambitious idea, especially as the two were not aligning themselves with either of the two major Shakespearean theatre companies that received the big grants, publicity and audiences. The two formed a theatre company one person at a time, wooing investors and actors to join.
For the next three years the company traveled the world performing in everything from tiny village theatres to the Old Vic to the Tokyo Globe to communist East Berlin. In this book, Pennington and Bogdanov take turns with the story of how they started the company, the contracts, the fights among actors, discovering new talent and all the hassles that went into moving forty people and their stage sets from country to country as they expanded their performances to include Richard III. 4 stars

20lkernagh
jun 6, 2013, 7:24 pm

I have now made my way over to your new thread! *Waves*

21mstrust
jun 6, 2013, 9:35 pm

Glad you made it! Help yourself to the cookies.

22mstrust
Bewerkt: jun 10, 2013, 12:42 pm

52. A Sentimental Journey by Laurence Sterne. Young Englishman Yorick narrates his travels in France, as he falls for every woman he sees. He also hires a wonderful servant who is as friendly as himself.

I know I didn't get as much out of this story as I should have. Published in 1768, the writing is drowned in flowery phrases that often make the meaning indecipherable, and that's with fifteen pages of notes included to explain all the biblical allusions and references to famous people of Sterne's day. It usually took no more than three pages of this dull writing to make my eyes close. Sorry. I'm sure Tristram Shandy has its fans (oh good lord, I have Tristram Shandy on my shelves untouched), but Sterne was a swing and a miss for me. 2 stars

23SouthernKiwi
jun 10, 2013, 11:10 pm

Hmm, that's one for me to avoid I think - a character that falls for every woman he meets would probably annoy me. Final nail is the flowery prose.

24mstrust
jun 11, 2013, 12:21 am

This is the type of book that I feel bad about giving low marks to; Sterne was so popular in his lifetime and he was writing for his contemporary audience. But his style is excruciating.

25DeltaQueen50
jun 12, 2013, 10:54 pm

Hi Jennifer, just dropping by to leave my star!

26mstrust
jun 13, 2013, 10:31 am

Good to see you, Judy!

27mstrust
jun 13, 2013, 7:10 pm

53. The Whole Five Feet by Christopher R. Beha. A memoir by a young man who quit his office job and moved back in with his parents after recovering from cancer, and rediscovered his grandmother's complete collection of Harvard Classics. He set a goal for himself: in one year he will have completed all 51 volumes. Separated by months, Beha relates what he read, how the information or writing affected him and offers instances to how the author relates today, sometimes thousands of years later.
Throughout the book Beha and his family endure serious medical issues, one after another to the point of, "No, not another disease!" For about 100 pages his beloved aunt is dying of cancer in their home, and the universe seems to doing its best to take Beha out. He also dwells on his Catholic upbringing way too much for someone who insists that he has given up religion. But then he returns to his reading and it's clear that this is where he finds comfort, in the words of Marcus Aurelius, Emerson, Cervantes and Kant. His regard for the Harvard Classics made me look through to see if I happened to have any. Dang, just one. 4 stars

28mstrust
jun 20, 2013, 11:48 am

It seems like the last book was ages ago, but it's only been a week. In the meantime I've been to Vegas celebrating some birthdays/Father's Day, got home and spent all yesterday with food poisoning. I took this one with me on the trip, of course, and even read some out loud to keep husband awake during the drive.

54. Las Vegas Noir. A collection of short stories about crime in Vegas. The majority are noir in varying degrees, though one, called "Bits and Pieces" was not and was out of place. The writing varied too; some stories, such as Vu Tran's "This Or Any Desert", about a cop tracking down his ex-wife in a Vegas Chinatown restaurant, are well-done and memorable. Others, like "Bits and Piece" are predictable, while a story from Leaving Las Vegas author John O' Brien, the only "name" in the collection, seems immature.
This is the first Akashic Noir anthology I've read. I have two more on the shelf (Boston and Manhattan, I think). I had such high hopes for this Vegas one; I mean, Vegas+ crime+ money. There were good stories here, but nothing that blew me away. 3.5 stars

29RidgewayGirl
jun 20, 2013, 12:06 pm

I've found the Akashic Noir series to be uneven -- the Mumbai one was very good, although the stories that were strictly "noir" were in the minority. The Long Island one had several stories that were almost cozies, but also a few excellent, dark crime stories. I think that either each guest editor is give a lot of leeway or they have to scramble to find enough stories. I still like the series, it's just erratic.

30mstrust
jun 20, 2013, 12:15 pm

Thanks for letting me know. I did think the inclusion of one or two of the stories were to pad it out, but overall the authors showed a good familiarity with the city beyond the Strip.

31mstrust
jun 26, 2013, 12:20 pm

55. In A Sunburned Country by Bill Bryson. Bryson spends weeks traveling through all parts of Australia by car, plane, ferry and on foot, and sees and comments on Australian subjects. He marvels that anyone could survive in a country with few water sources, a brutal sun and the most poisonous creatures on earth. He sees many animals, reptiles, flowers and trees that only exist in that one spot and writes of the many early explorers who barely lived or died to make new discoveries. He examines the treatment of the Aborigines by White Australians, both in history and in modern times. And he drinks.
I put this book in my "New To Me" category because, while I've read an essay by Bryson years ago, I've never read one of his books. Okay, now I get why he's popular; he has the journalism background that gives his stories depth and answers the questions his readers would have about, say, gigantic earthworms, while being snarky enough to include the name of the hotel where the staff were lazy and rude to him. His humor is often self-deprecating and actually funny. And he visits museums. I love museums and most travel writers seem to avoid them.
I'm sure that many things, such as environmental laws, have changed since the 2001 publication of this book, but it still seems fresh and modern. 4.5 stars

56. The Life and Works of Andy Warhol by Trewin Copplestone. This is a slim book, just 76 pages of works and text, but worth tracking down if you have an interest in Warhol. It includes color high-quality photos representing the beginning of Warhol's career, to his first soup cans, the silk-screened celebrities, some sculptures and, harder to find, his work in later years when he wasn't the new kid anymore and seemed to be struggling with his art. Copplestone analyzes each work and includes information about what was happening in Warhol's personal life at the time. 4 stars

32rabbitprincess
jun 26, 2013, 4:50 pm

In a Sunburned Country is on my list of books to borrow from the BF's parents. Seems like a good summer read for some reason. (Maybe the sunburn in the title?) As for his other books, my BF and I both read and enjoyed Bryson's A Short History of Nearly Everything.

33mstrust
jun 26, 2013, 8:53 pm

Yes, it's part of my summer reading as Bryson is suffering through sun and temps that sound like here in Phoenix, only with more chances to die as there are often hundreds of miles between towns in Australia. I'm also going to try to get to A Walk in the Woods before fall. I look forward to Autumn so much that I refuse to read about hot climates then.
I haven't read A Short History of Nearly Everything so thanks for the rec.

34SouthernKiwi
jun 27, 2013, 4:29 am

I can second the recommendation for A Short History Of Nearly Everything :-)

35mstrust
jun 27, 2013, 1:04 pm

Thanks Alana! I looked on my shelves to see if I owned that one, because it has gotten to the point where I'm pleasantly surprised to discover books that I don't remember buying. Either I'm hitting too many book sales and buying by the cart-full makes it easier to forget, or I'm just losing it.

Anyway, I don't have that one, but I do have Bryson's Shakespeare bio, which will fit in my Shakespeare category nicely, and Notes From a Small Island.

36mstrust
jun 29, 2013, 5:17 pm

57. Good Old Dog edited by Nicholas Dodman. I picked this one up because my boxer is now nine years old and my lab is eight. My boxer seems to develop problems I've never heard of before even though I've been around boxers my whole life, so she keeps things interesting. This book was written by the faculty of the veterinary school at Tufts University and it covers all the health problems that may occur as a dog ages, such as heart disease, types of cancer, joint pain and arthritis. I had no idea that there is a canine version of breast cancer.

Of course, reading all these descriptions of what to look for and which breeds are prone to which problem had me calling my husband to make sure the vet had done a thorough check-up last month. 5 stars

37RidgewayGirl
jun 29, 2013, 6:16 pm

I don't normally enjoy Bryson (he can be a little twee for me, at least when he's talking about England), but A Walk in the Woods is pure comic brilliance. Also, he will have you itching to walk the trail, regardless of your actual feelings about pointless walking.

38mstrust
jun 30, 2013, 12:26 pm

I used to hike nearly every day, but it's strange that a book about it would be funny, probably because most of my hiking has been done in the desert. A Walk in the Woods seems to be Bryson's most popular travel memoir, and by the cover, he gets to walk in a lush forest. With grizzlies. I look forward to it.

39mstrust
Bewerkt: jul 1, 2013, 6:31 pm

58. Richard II by William Shakespeare. After Bullingbrooke, Duke of Hereford and cousin to King Richard, publicly accuses Mowbray, Duke of Norfolk, of treason, the two Dukes decide to settle their quarrel with a duel. But Richard steps in and banishes them instead, giving his cousin a much shorter sentence, which some would think was done out of love. The truth is that Richard doesn't love Bullingbrooke, and may even be jealous that his cousin is so favored by the people. He just might be plotting to ensure that his cousin never returns to England. When news comes that Bullingbrooke has returned to fight Richard it divides the aristocracy, including the King's own family.

Continuing with my Shakespeare category, this is one of the histories, and it's a mix of accuracy and fiction. There's very little action but constant threats of fighting and the stakes are high: first banishment, then deaths, then a fight for the throne. I don't know about you but I found it enthralling. 4 stars

40mstrust
jul 10, 2013, 1:21 pm

59. Wicked Plants by Amy Stewart. From the author of The Drunken Botanist, this is a previous book that lists hundreds of plants that can kill, blind, put you in a coma, wipe out herds of livestock or give a worrisome rash. There's some surprising information here: "raw" cashews are actually steamed cashews, as raw cashews are filled with an oil similar to poison ivy, and Mussolini's henchmen had an odd way of punishing low-level opponents by forcing them to drink copious amounts of castor oil so the results would keep them busy for a while. 4 stars

41lkernagh
jul 10, 2013, 7:36 pm

Interesting reading, Jennifer! I knew about cashews as we had a cashew tree in our yard where we lived as I was growing up but the castor oil tidbit is a new one to me!

42mstrust
jul 11, 2013, 12:20 am

Funny but effective, huh?

43mstrust
jul 11, 2013, 1:58 pm

60. Twelve Angry Men by Reginald Rose. The famous play about justice. Twelve jurors, all men as this was the fifties and apparently women didn't figure, are locked in a room to decide if a sixteen year-old boy is guilty of stabbing his abusive father to death. If they find him guilty, he gets the death penalty.

This is less than a hundred pages, yet it covers so many topics that could bias a jury: race, economic class, parenting, immigration issues and sense of duty. 4 stars

44christina_reads
jul 11, 2013, 5:32 pm

@ 43 -- I didn't realize it was a book! Fantastic movie as well.

45mstrust
jul 11, 2013, 8:45 pm

Yes, it was a tv play first, written after Rose sat on a jury for a manslaughter case. The name "Reginald Rose" was new to me, but he had a long career, mainly writing in television, and won three Emmys. And I agree about the movie. Fonda was goood.

46LittleTaiko
jul 11, 2013, 10:03 pm

Love that movie!! Really made me think.

47psutto
jul 12, 2013, 5:36 am

yep a great movie, I'm guessing it was worth tracking the play down and reading it

48clfisha
jul 12, 2013, 6:31 am

hmm add me to the curious about the book!

49mstrust
jul 12, 2013, 12:32 pm

Hi Stacy, Pete & Claire! I thought the play was well worth the time. Even though there are some dated phrases, the ideas remain relevant. I was surprised to find another great 50's movie, The Seven Year Itch, had been a play first too. I read it last year, and while the storyline was the same, the play wasn't a light comedy.

50mstrust
Bewerkt: jul 16, 2013, 3:43 pm

61. Sweet Tooth: The Bittersweet History of Candy by Kate Hopkins. Hopkins travels to Italy, the U.K. and around the (mostly eastern) States to search for the origins of candy, with much of the focus on the very simple candies like toffees and sugared fruits, things that were truly luxuries at one time. Also covered are the origins of chocolate candy and cocoa and some national confections.

For me, the most interesting sections were Hopkins experiences discovering Italian candy stores while wandering Venice, visiting tiny shops in Scotland and Salem and her description of the tourist-trap that is the Cadbury World
factory tour. Her frequent use of the phrase "my inner child" is grating and the "bittersweet" aspect of the book comes from the history of world slavery which is included in several chapters. Overall a good, though sometimes dry, look at how sweetness was obtained by different cultures and economic classes. 3.5 stars

51lkernagh
Bewerkt: jul 16, 2013, 8:40 pm

I love roaming through candy stores, where ever I happen to be in the world. I haven't made it to Dylan's Candy Bar yet but it is on my to do list for when I go to New York City! Sweet Tooth sounds interesting, especially for the history tidbits..... I love candy, just don't know much about its origins. ;-)

52rabbitprincess
jul 16, 2013, 9:08 pm

I love British candy stores! Should go stock up on jelly babies :)
Strangely, in Inverness I discovered a store called "American Candy World", which had things like Lucky Charms and Twinkies. It was very bizarre.

53mstrust
jul 16, 2013, 10:07 pm

> I've been to Dylan's and it's gorgeous! They have a flight of stairs and a wall of clear lucite studded with colorful candies. This book is interesting and a hundred percent better than Sweet Invention: A Brief History of Desserts which was unbearably dull.

>princess I knew that I didn't have much experience with British candy, having usually picked cookies instead when I was there, but now I really want to try a rhubarb custard. Or a fizz, whatever that is. It sounds like somebody in Inverness spent time in America and got hooked.
Unfortunately, Hopkins lists the great British candy makers that are now foreign-owned or foreign-made now. Like Cadbury having moved much of its production to Poland and Cadbury being owned by Hershey's.

54mamzel
jul 16, 2013, 11:09 pm

Another factory to skip - the Jelly Belly Factory. I could feel my teeth rot as I walked through the front door!

55mstrust
jul 17, 2013, 12:39 pm

Sounds like a recommendation to me. I can say that the Ben and Jerry's tour in Vermont is pretty great. And they sell flavors there that aren't in the store.

56mstrust
jul 19, 2013, 11:02 pm

62. Wrong About Japan by Peter Carey. Booker Prize winner Carey Oscar and Lucinda writes about finding a connection to his twelve year-old son through anime and manga. Eager to pursue their mutual interest, the two travel to Japan, where Carey's literary contacts lead him to interview the most famous anime directors in the country. Having promised his son before the trip that there will be no traditional Japanese cultural activities, Carey manages to slide in an interview with a master craftsman of samurai swords and a day of Kabuki, while his son surprises Carey by having made friends on the internet with a local anime fan who seems to know their every movement and pops up frequently hoping to tag along.
Beginning this, I knew nothing about either anime or manga, but Carey's plot synopsis of several of the popular ones intrigues me. 4 stars

63. New Zealand: The Land at the End of the Earth by Colin Monteath. I like that this book clearly differentiates between the North Island and South Island rather than treating them as one. The photography covers the vast difference between the warm North and snowy South. It further breaks the country up by cities. 3.5 stars

57VioletBramble
jul 20, 2013, 3:45 pm

Dylan's Candy Bar is near where I live. I only allow myself to go in once a year, at the beginning of October. That's just to see if there's anything good I can add to my niece's birthday present and to check if Peeps has started making the marshmallow pumpkins with chocolate cream filling again (found only at Dylan's and not for the past 4 years. Boo!) A year or so ago they expanded into the space next door and re-decorated. The lucite stairs are still there though.
It's a must see. I recommend visiting on a Mon-Fri when school is in session.

58mstrust
jul 20, 2013, 4:33 pm

I did think they had some wasted space on the top floor with the cupcake area that seemed a bit anti-climatic, like it was half finished. But I'm glad to hear they've expanded. And I didn't know about the pumpkin peeps. Sounds awesome!
Another good thing about Dylan's is that you can get a bag of sugar then walk a few minutes to Serendipity!

59VioletBramble
jul 20, 2013, 7:20 pm

I have never visited the upper floor at Dylans. I think the party rooms are up there now. Hmm... a frozen hot chocolate from Serendipity's would be great in this blazing heat. But, I refuse to leave my air conditioning even for icy beverages.

60mstrust
jul 21, 2013, 2:42 pm

They should start delivering.
It was late 2009 when I was there so maybe Dylan's had plans to expand already.
Another place we were excited to visit was the Doughnut Plant on the Lower East Side. We spent an hour and a half on a train, then a subway, then a cab, to get there and yep, it was closed. It was a weekday during their open hours and there was no explanation, just a "Closed" sign.

61rabbitprincess
jul 21, 2013, 3:09 pm

Oh no! That would be such a disappointment. Reminds me of the time the BF and I drove down to Smiths Falls for a weekend to tour the Hershey plant (the plant has since been shut down), but of course we had to pick the day of their annual maintenance shutdown! The store was still open though so we loaded up on chocolate.

62mstrust
jul 21, 2013, 8:12 pm

Oh, I'd love to go to Hershey Park. Please, a whole town devoted to chocolate? And you can get it brushed all over you as a spa treatment?
Btw, I've had the brownie pedicure from Bliss Spa and I wanted to drink the water my feet were soaking in.

63mstrust
Bewerkt: jul 23, 2013, 3:56 pm

64. Londoners: The Days and Nights of London Now by Craig Taylor. This is a thick compilation of Londoners talking about their perception of the city, how they came to be where they are, and how they enjoy/hate/loathe London. Taylor includes all types of people, from new immigrants, the city planning officer, a nightclub worker, a housewife, a clerk at the lost property department of transportation, a squatter, a pub owner, a Middle Eastern student whose been searched by the police, a policeman...really, just about all segments of the population must be here. Some people get more space than others and some have more interesting stories to tell. I'll say that the one that surprised me and made me laugh was that of a female commuter who has a rather posh name and begins by explaining how it's so worth it to commute an hour and a half into London everyday from her perfect country cottage with its lovely garden. She goes on to complain about the filthy train she must take and the horrible, smelly people she must ride with and how so often they are drunk and how, once, someone threw up on her shoes. But then she glides over her own obnoxious behavior in a hilarious self-absorbed way: spilling a pot of glitter make-up on a businessman, sneaking into first class, and getting so enraged at the sight of children on the train because they might slow her down. There are lots of more mundane people, but Taylor captured the spectrum of how many different personalities a city runs on.4 stars

64-Eva-
jul 24, 2013, 12:48 am

I have Londoners on Mt. TBR - sounds like I was right to cause it to be there. :)

65mstrust
jul 24, 2013, 3:40 pm

I hope you like it too. I've never read another book like it.

66mstrust
jul 25, 2013, 9:43 pm

65. The Chronicles of Downton Abbey by Jessica Fellowes and Matthew Strurgis. Sectioned by characters on the show, this book begins each chapter discussing that particular role, how it was developed and how the actor perceives the character. It's a jumping off point to a much longer and interesting discussion about what an actual footman or housemaid of that era could expect in their job, how WWI effected the grand homes and the British population and what sort of life the individual members of a family such as Lord Grantham's tended to have. 4.5 stars

66. The Complete Book of Hummingbirds by Tony Tilford. Don't you just wish hummingbirds would slow down long enough for you to get a good look? The large, color photos here are gorgeous, with the birds identified and information such as territory and habits for each. 4 stars

67mstrust
jul 26, 2013, 7:14 pm

67. Cabinets of Wonder by Christine Davenne, photos by Christine Fleurent. The history of curiosity cabinets that focused on science, botany, marine life or often a mixture of all things exotic and strange. Many of the cabinets are actually rooms or even whole homes, and the age ranges from collections that are more than 300 hundred years old to a few that are currently being built or artists that make pieces that harken to the days of curiosity collections.
To be honest, the sight of many of the collections is pretty gross: embalmed bodies clearly had their admirers. I much prefer the seashells and sculptures. 3 stars

68mamzel
jul 27, 2013, 4:46 pm

I've always loved hummingbirds. My father lives in the Caribbean and I sent him some feeders after Hurricane Marilyn because every single flower had been stripped giving them nothing to eat. He still feeds them and the cute little birds called banana quits so named because of their yellow breasts.

69mstrust
jul 27, 2013, 7:15 pm

That's good that he's caring for them. I'm at my parents in Vegas right now and a hummingbird happened to be diving around their oleanders so I grabbed the book and maybe identified an Anna Hummingbird.

70psutto
jul 29, 2013, 6:27 am

cabinets of wonder sounds up my street, definite BB there

71mstrust
jul 29, 2013, 8:09 pm

Glad to get you with one, Pete. Brace yourself for some of those photos!

72LittleTaiko
jul 30, 2013, 8:59 pm

The Downton Abbey book sounds great. I'm suffering from Downton withdrawal.

73mstrust
jul 31, 2013, 11:43 am

I know. What is it, January when it starts again? Popular shows get these ridiculously long spans between seasons now and then a season is just so short. I did just come across Hugh Bonneville in a small part in a Simon Pegg movie called "Burke and Hare". Tim Curry too.

68. Library: An Unquiet History by Matthew Battles. The history of book collections, beginning with ancient times and coming up to modern libraries. The writing tends towards dry and fact-filled rather than engaging, especially for the first several chapters. I wish I could say it was better. 3 stars

69. Sh*t My Dad Says by Justin Halpern. Written by the guy with the mega-popular twitter feed (that has taken a back seat since he started making money), this is a collection of his father's unusual and profane wisdom. Each section is prefaced by a father/son story from Halpern's past that gives the reader an idea of how challenging it would be to have this dad raising you. 3.5 stars

74mstrust
aug 1, 2013, 8:41 pm

70. The Whole Fromage by Kathe Lison. Lison decides to track the origins of traditional French cheeses and tries to track down cheesemakers still using the traditional methods. Her credentials are pretty much just that she's from Wisconsin and speaks French, but she manages to get time with some very busy farmers.

I like cheese. If I'm honest, every time I pick up a book about tracking something nostalgic down, I hope that it will be another Candyfreak by Steve Almond. That isn't fair and everyone can't be that funny. I'll just say that The Whole Fromage starts slowly, has interesting bits, boring bits and a little humor. 3 stars

75mstrust
aug 2, 2013, 2:38 pm

71. Whatever Happened To Pudding Pops by Gael Fashingbauer Cooper and Brian Bellmont. A fun book for anyone who grew up in the 70's-80's, as we're reminded of all the crap we owned because it was so cool. Most of the things featured here- Dixie riddle cups, the plastic Halloween masks with tiny air holes, Maybelline's Kissing Potions, Rankin/Bass stop action shows, Honeycomb Hideout commercials...well, they probably aren't coming back. But it's nice to know that Dr. Demento is still around (on the web) and I got excited seeing that Hostess still makes Chocodiles on the West Coast, until I remembered, oh yeah, Hostess. Still a fun and snarky book of things I had forgotten I once needed in my life. 4 stars

76rabbitprincess
aug 2, 2013, 4:54 pm

I love Rankin-Bass stop-motion movies! Santa Claus is Comin' to Town was my favourite :)

77mstrust
aug 2, 2013, 6:58 pm

Me too, and Mickey Rooney was really good in that one. My favorite for Christmas is Rudolph, but my favorite Rankin/Bass is "Mad Monster Party" with Boris Karloff. Do the Mummy!

78lkernagh
aug 2, 2013, 9:14 pm

Okay, seriously, the last thread I was at mentioned Pop Tarts. I come here and find a book about Pudding Pops. My travels through LT right now appear to be providing me with a trip down foods of my youth memory lane, which is a little scary...... ;-)

79mstrust
aug 3, 2013, 11:47 am

I know what you mean. The pudding pops book mentioned a long-lost flavor of Doritos, so what did I do? Yep, there just happened to be a bag in the house.

80mstrust
aug 3, 2013, 8:10 pm

72. America's Neighborhood Bats by Merlin D. Tuttle. I may be weird, but I've always thought bats were kinda cute. Not "ooh, I want one" cute, but they have big round eyes and soft fur and they squeak. So this is a good book for seeing the various bats that live in America (we definitely have them in Phoenix), finding out how they live and dispelling myths that make people so terrified of them. There are even instructions for how to build a "bat house" to draw them. The author is an authority and a founder of a bat conservation foundation, so the information is pretty thorough and interesting. If you aren't freaked out by bats. 4 stars

81VioletBramble
aug 3, 2013, 10:11 pm

#60 - I've never been to the Doughnut Plant but I read somewhere that when they run out of doughnuts, instead of making more doughnuts, they close the store. Maybe that's why they were closed. If I head downtown for junk food I go to Milk & Cookies (salted oatmeal white chocolate chip cookies...yum), Pudding by Clio ( milk chocolate pudding with salted caramel sauce) or "SMAC (9 different kinds of mac'n cheese)
I'll have to look for Whatever Happened to Pudding Pops. It sounds like a fun book. I love the old Rankin-Bass movies. My sisters and I used to say that when my father woke up in the morning his hair looked like the Heat Miser. Now the Heat Miser always reminds me of my Dad.

82SouthernKiwi
aug 4, 2013, 4:08 am

Hi Jennifer, just stopping by to catch up. Looks like you've had a good string of books lately. I'd never heard of Colin Monteath before, but I've just checked out his website and the 2nd image I saw was a stunner of a lake that is 30min from where I grew up, I'll have to try and find some more of his work.

83mstrust
aug 4, 2013, 7:18 pm

>81 VioletBramble: Violet That's probably what happened. Be nice to have a sign in the window to say so. You really like the salted stuff, huh? The pudding sounds really good. It's been a couple of years since we were in NYC but we went to Rice To Riches for rice pudding so many times. My favorite was the Rocky Road flavor. And we did go to a mac n cheese place a couple of times. I'm blanking on the name but it was served in little iron skillets and the employees were surly. Great mac n cheese.

And I went to high school with a girl who had Heat Miser's hair! On purpose!

>82 SouthernKiwi: Alana I didn't even think of looking for a website for Monteath, but I'm glad you got to see his photos. How great to see one of home!

84mstrust
aug 4, 2013, 7:41 pm

73. Duel With the Devil: The True Story of How Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr Teamed Up to Take on America's First Sensational Murder Mystery by Paul Collins. Though Burr and Hamilton already had a certain amount of tension towards each other, circumstances led them to being two of the lawyers defending a young Quaker man accused of murdering a young woman in 1799.
The body of the twenty year-old Quaker woman was found in a city well and suspicion immediately fell on a carpenter who had boarded in the same house and had escorted the victim about town occasionally. The young man's older brother was a wealthy builder with business ties to both Burr and Hamilton, so the two men were somewhat forced to put aside personal feelings and defend a man who had already been convicted in the media.

Collins is also the author of the wonderful Sixpence House, a personal memoir. Duel With the Devil is slow going for about the first 100 pages, which is a good chunk for a book that runs just a little over 200. Once the actual trial starts though, the witnesses arrive quickly and we get a picture of how differently the law worked two hundred years ago. There is also a brief chapter of the infamous duel that occurred a few years after the trial.
I tend to prefer my history given in facts rather than having conversations and feelings imagined by the author as happens here, but it's an interesting story that I'd never heard about before. 3.5 stars

85SouthernKiwi
aug 5, 2013, 4:42 am

>84 mstrust: That's quite a title!

86-Eva-
aug 5, 2013, 11:11 pm

"having conversations and feelings imagined by the author"
That's always tricky, isn't it. When it's done well, it can be very evocative, but since it very rarely is done well, it's usually a disappointment. Sounds like a fascinating story regardless.

87mstrust
aug 6, 2013, 12:15 pm

>85 SouthernKiwi: That's a mouthful all right.

>86 -Eva-: I sorta think it was it was written that way in order to flesh out the book as the actual trial lasted just two days. They were extremely long days, 15 hours or more, but just two.

88mstrust
Bewerkt: aug 8, 2013, 8:06 pm

74. Death Comes to Pemberley by P.D. James. Darcy and Elizabeth Bennett have been married about six years now and are happy in their little kingdom with their two young sons and Darcy's young sister, Georgiana. Jane and Mr. Bingley live nearby and visits from Elizabeth's obnoxious sister Lydia are few because her husband, Wickham, is not welcome at Pemberley. It doesn't stop the Wickhams from coming onto Darcy's land and maybe killing a traveling companion there, which brings scandal to Pemberley.

I'm a fan of James and love her Dalgliesh series. I didn't love this one, as it spent too much time on the social conventions, which took time away from the actual murder mystery, but it's certainly better written than the majority of the Austen pastiche. James got the tone and character personalities right and that's probably the hardest part. 3.5 stars

75.Trader Vic's Tiki Party by Steve Siegelman. I looove tiki! And this is an excellent resource for Trader Vic's history, plus tiki history in general. There are lots of exclusive and traditional tiki cocktail recipes, non-alcoholic drinks and food recipes from the restaurant for party appetizers . So how good does this sound...

Peachtree Punch

I medium peach, peeled, pitted and quartered
1 1/2 oz silver rum
2 oz orange juice
1/4 oz coconut syrup
1/4 oz peach liqueur
1 1/2 c crushed ice, plus ice cubes
1 sprig mint
grated nutmeg

Combine 3 of the peach slices, rum, juice, syrup, liqueur and crushed ice in a blender and pulse just until uniform. Pour into a wine or old-fashioned glass and fill with ice cubes. Garnish with the remaining peach slice and mint, then dust with nutmeg. 4.5 stars

76. Awkward Family Photos by Mike Bender. If you like the website, you'll like the book. Makes you feel better about your own family. 3.5 stars

Hey, I've hit my 75th!

89mamzel
aug 10, 2013, 2:44 pm

Well done!
I'll toast you with a Peachtree Punch.

90lkernagh
aug 10, 2013, 4:37 pm

Congrats on reaching 75 books read this early in the year! I will raise a Stella in toast to this achievement, after I finish the laundry. ;-)

91rabbitprincess
aug 11, 2013, 8:37 am

Woo hoo, 75! Enjoy your Peachtree Punch! (I'll toast with an imaginary glass of the amber ale I had yesterday at Les 3 Brasseurs.)

92mstrust
aug 20, 2013, 1:54 pm

Thanks, guys. I have another book to list that will give us all more reasons to drink.
Since my last posting my dad died. He was diagnosed with stage four lung and brain cancer in early July, so I've been in Vegas for since then helping Mom care for him at home. The old man was tough- he outlasted every timeline the nurses gave him.

93mstrust
aug 20, 2013, 2:14 pm

77. Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury. Best friends Jim and Will are intrigued when a circus comes to town in the fall, arriving at night and luring crowds with strange scents. Then they meet Mr Coogan and Mr Dark, the circus owners who spot that Jim has a quality that would make him an easy addition to their freakshow. Will and his father pit themselves against Dark to save Jim and themselves.

The more I read of Bradbury, the more I like him. This book has a little bit of a dated feel due to some of the language used by the boys ("Boy!" "Gosh!") but the story is tense, Mr Dark isl a scary villain and there are complexities, especially with the father, that keep it from being outdated. Recommended. 4.5 stars

78. Liquid Vacation by P. Moss. Am I the first to list this? Well, it came out just last month and I was able to get one signed by all the authors at Frankie's Tiki Room, as Moss is one of the owners. This book contains the history of tiki culture in Vegas along with 77 cocktail recipes, many of which are currently on Frankie's menu. It also contains photos of every tiki mug Frankie's has issued (they are made by Tiki Farm) and the photos throughout are pretty great. Here's the recipe for one of my regulars:

Sea Hag

In an ice-filled 14 oz double old-fashioned glass, pour the following-

11/2 oz Cruzan Aged Dark Rum
1/2 oz blackberry brandy
1/4 oz Cherry Heering
2 oz guava nectar
2 oz papaya nectar

Pour the contents into a cocktail shaker, then without shaking, pour bake into the glass. Garnish with cherries.

94christina_reads
aug 20, 2013, 2:32 pm

@ 92 -- mstrust, I'm so sorry to hear that! :( My thoughts and prayers are with you & your family.

95-Eva-
aug 20, 2013, 3:19 pm

->92 mstrust:
So sorry to hear - sending all my good wishes your way. Good to hear he was a tough one, though!

96rabbitprincess
aug 20, 2013, 5:58 pm

Oh no! I am very sorry to hear about your father. Take care.

97lkernagh
aug 20, 2013, 7:39 pm

My condolences on your loss, Jennifer. Glad to see you were able to be with him during his final days and provide comfort during that difficult time. Take care of yourself.

98mstrust
aug 20, 2013, 7:49 pm

Thanks everybody. I am glad that I was able to spend those last weeks with him.

99DeltaQueen50
aug 21, 2013, 12:30 am

Jennifer, so sorry to hear about the loss of your father. Glad that you were able to spend some time with both him and your mother. My sister has been diagnosed with Diffuse Large B Cell Lymphoma and I know how difficult this is on the whole family.

100mstrust
aug 21, 2013, 1:07 pm

I'm sorry to hear that, Judy, and I hope for the best for you and your family. I know it's scary.

101SouthernKiwi
aug 22, 2013, 3:53 am

I sorry for your loss Jennifer.

102mstrust
aug 22, 2013, 12:30 pm

Thank you, Alana.

103mstrust
aug 22, 2013, 12:38 pm

79. Naked by David Sedaris. A collection of stories from Sedaris' life, from his struggle with nervous tics as a child to his time as an apple picker in Oregon to a week at a nudist's camp filled with elderly campers. Most of the stories are very funny, especially the ones during his childhood that detail his severely odd family and the opening story about his desire to be wealthy and good-looking. 4.5 stars

104paruline
aug 22, 2013, 4:54 pm

Adding my condolences. Very sorry to hear about your loss.

105Bjace
aug 23, 2013, 9:43 pm

So sorry to hear of your loss. It's good that you were able to spend time with your parents.

106mstrust
aug 24, 2013, 12:39 am

Thank you, paruline and Beth.

107mstrust
Bewerkt: okt 6, 2013, 12:54 pm

I've been pulling and stacking my selections for my Autumn/Halloween category reads. Each year I do this category I end up looking at an enormous pile and saying, "Really?" How does someone who doesn't think of themselves as a horror fan end up with all these choices? I figure it's because I love Halloween.
There's actually a little of everything in there- horror, thrillers,fiction, non-fiction, adult and kids, history, fantasy and one or two mash-ups. I'm just going to list all the possibilities and see what I end up reading. Do let me know if you see a favorite. I'll be starting in a week or two.

The Murder of Helen Jewett
Hangmen of England
Olde London Punishments
You Wouldn't Want to Meet a Body Snatcher!
Dreadfully Ever After
The Apothecary
Perfection
Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter
Squashed
Lives of the Monster Dogs
Heart-Shaped Box
Warm Bodies
Spooky Little Girl
The House With a Clock in Its Walls
If You're Reading This, It's Too Late
The Phantom of the Opera
In A Glass Darkly
Stardust
Into The Dark
Permanent Londoners
A Skeleton At the Helm
Arabat
The Casebook of Victor Frankenstein
Mistress of the Art of Death
Marilyn Manson: The Long Hard Road Out of Hell
Doctor Faustus
An Unkindness of Ravens
The Secret House of Death
The Monk
Howl's Moving Castle
Which Witch?
A New England Autumn

108rabbitprincess
aug 24, 2013, 6:57 pm

Anything with London in the title is bound to pique my interest, although I think my favourite title is If You're Reading This, It's Too Late.

109mstrust
aug 24, 2013, 9:17 pm

The same author has another called This Book Is Not Good For You.
I'm with you about London books- I see the word and whip around to see what it's about.

110RidgewayGirl
aug 25, 2013, 5:45 am

Heart Shaped Box is creepy and good and if you haven't read anything by Joe Hill, you really should. I'm not a horror fan, and have a tendency at some point to just find it all very silly, but Hill is good.

On the other hand, I disliked Mistress in the Art of Death, which was well-written and with an interesting mystery, because the main character was a modern person dressed up in olde timey clothes. I mean, was it possible for a highly educated and well traveled person of that time to be surprised by the existence of anti-semitism? It would not have surprised me had she whipped out a bottle of hand sanitizer and insisted everyone use it. But an awful lot of readers love that series, so maybe you will too?

111mstrust
aug 25, 2013, 3:17 pm

I do want to get to Hill as he's gotten great reviews on LT. And he was the little boy in "Creepshow"!

Funny that you hated Mistress of the Art of Death as someone just messaged me about how much she loved it. Ooh, a divisive one! Like you, I prefer my history based on facts rather than political correctness, so I can see the character with a modern view being annoying, but I'll most likely get to it to see why it's been so popular. And I didn't know it was a series.

112-Eva-
aug 25, 2013, 9:55 pm

That is quite a nice pile to start the fall season with! And, I see you have some of my all-time favorites on the list, so I know you'll have a great time reading!!

113mstrust
aug 26, 2013, 1:04 am

Which ones are your favorites?

80. Sad Cypress by Agatha Christie. Old Mrs. Welman doesn't have long to live, but she's surrounded by people who care for her- two nurses, a niece and nephew, a housekeeper and the young woman Mrs Welman put through school. When Mrs. Welman dies without having made a will, someone takes steps to ensure the money is theirs.

This has much more emphasis on romantic relationships than most Christies, and Poirot doesn't pop his egg-shaped head in for nearly one hundred pages. Other than that, this one sits right in the middle for me. 3 stars

114-Eva-
aug 26, 2013, 1:10 am

Stardust, Abarat, and Which Witch? are all excellent. Howl's Moving Castle is really good too, as long as you don't expect it to be like the film. :)

I'm going to have to add that Olde London Punishments to the wishlist - looks very interesting indeed, if a bit morbid. :)

115mstrust
aug 26, 2013, 1:29 pm

I just looked at the page for Olde London Punishments. "Richly illustrated" could be a selling point or a warning.

I'm glad you liked those books. It seems like both Arabat and Howl's Moving Castle have been on my shelves for years. And I haven't seen the movie for HMC. But wasn't there a tv series for Which Witch?

116-Eva-
aug 26, 2013, 6:01 pm

"a selling point or a warning"
For Halloween, probably a selling point. :)

I'd love to see a film or TV version of Which Witch?!

117psutto
aug 28, 2013, 12:27 pm

just catching up - belated condolences!

118mstrust
aug 28, 2013, 1:26 pm

Thanks, Pete. I know I spent a few days trying to catch up when I got home. I'm glad to see you had such a good time in Scotland, you lucky devil!

119mstrust
aug 29, 2013, 1:53 pm

81. Notes From a Small Island by Bill Bryson. It's 1994 and Bryson decides to take a trip around his adopted home of Britain for a last look before moving his family to the States. Having lived in the U.K. for 20 years, he knows the place pretty well, but he takes trains, buses and walks much of the way, seeking out little villages and towns that have slight or no claims to fame. He bitches relentlessly about things like lost heritage, ugly architecture, train schedules that don't match up and the lack of diversions in such places after dark. His confrontation with a hotel owner in Weston-super-Mare who locks him out is hilarious, as is his account of how he met his wife while both were employed at a mental institution.

I've put this one in my Favorite Authors category as Bryson has become someone to look forward to. It could just as well have gone in my On The Shelves category though, as I've been looking at this one on my travel shelf for five years or more. Why didn't I read it before? It has everything-the U.K. with its rainy weather, obscure history and Bryson's humor. 4 stars

120mstrust
sep 1, 2013, 1:00 pm

82. Punch and Judy in 19th Century America by Ryan Howard. As the title states, this is the history of Punch and Judy shows in Eastern American dime shows, museums and traveling acts.
This is an ER book. The author is a professor of art and a puppet enthusiast, and the research he's done on the subject makes the word "exhaustive" seem like an understatement. He seems to have uncovered every newspaper article and billing featuring Punch and Judy from that time (the bibliography runs seven densely typed pages) and the book contains over 100 pages listing the names of what must be every American man to ever be involved in a Punch and Judy performance during this period. This is one reason why I don't think the book would do for the reader with just a casual interest in the subject- it's been organized and padded out as if every reader was a professor who is going to use it as a textbook. Which brings us to the problem of its lack of fun. Punch and Judy shows are loud and violent. Punch beats or kills nearly everyone who comes near him. He throws his baby off the stage for crying and gleefully kills the police officer who comes to arrest him. It's dark, anti-social humor and I expected something of a celebration of all that with this book, but none was there. I give the author credit for all the work that had to go into researching and near the back of the book are two scripts for Punch and Judy plays, which is great. 3.5 stars

121psutto
sep 2, 2013, 8:33 am

>119 mstrust: - I keep thinking I should read that

W-S-M is pretty close to us in Bristol - the locals call it Weston-Super-Mud

122mstrust
sep 2, 2013, 2:26 pm

It is such an odd name for a place, like "the super horse of the West". But then Bryson revels in listing some of the quirky names found on the map of the U.K.

So here's the first of my Autumn reads:

83. Squashed by Joan Bauer. Sixteen year-old Ellie has spent months growing a super-sized pumpkin she calls Max. Every year the prize for biggest pumpkin goes to the town oaf, Cyril, who rubs it in everybody's face. This year, Ellie is doing all she can to make sure Max is happy and well-cared for, because winning the prize is the most important thing to her, especially when the teenaged president of the Agricultural Club is transferred to her school.

This is a cute, fast read, perfect for the season. 3.5 stars

123mstrust
sep 4, 2013, 8:55 pm

84. Olde London Punishments by Alan Brooke and David Brandon. From the time it was a Roman settlement, there have been people who decided the punishment, people who carried out the decision, crowds who gathered to watch and the people who experienced the punishment. This book covers anything that was officially done to punish political enemies, heretics, murderers, pickpockets, pirates, clippers, witches, debtors, seducers and one man who rode a donkey into Bristol, which was felt to be an imitation of Christ. So, of course he was taken to London, put into the pillory, then whipped through the streets to another pillory, where a hole was made in his tongue with a red-hot iron and the letter B was branded on his cheek for "Blasphemer". He was then taken back to Bristol and made to ride on the donkey facing backwards. Then back to London and put in prison. And didn't he have it coming to him?

There's is so much information like this, about individuals and their crimes, about types of punishment used in London, the various prisons throughout the city, the prison hulks, and even a brief chapter on ye olde S&M brothels. I know it all sounds gruesome, but if you can handle history, you'll probably be fine with this. The book actually has some odd photos included among the contemporary etchings of hangings, like why is there a photo of a pub the prison warders drank in? And another photo of a pub that was built across the street from where a prison used to stand? I'm just going with it because I like history books that focus on the individual stories while still giving the big picture. I was unaware that England had sent thousands of criminals to America as punishment up until the Revolutionary War. 4 stars

124-Eva-
sep 7, 2013, 7:43 pm

Even more intrigued now - Olde London Punishments is staying on the wishlist (despite the odd photos...).

125mstrust
sep 8, 2013, 11:44 am

I hope you're able to find it. And I just considered the meaningless photos to either be 1.quirkiness
2. padding out the pages
or, just as likely,
3. the author wanted to write off his pub crawl as a business expense.

126clfisha
sep 8, 2013, 2:56 pm

Oo sounds right up my street & being British there can never be enough photos of pubs :) if you haven't read & have the patience London Labour and the London Poor by Henry Mayhew is amazing.

127-Eva-
Bewerkt: sep 8, 2013, 4:09 pm

"write off his pub crawl as a business expense"
A fully legit reason as far as I'm concerned. :)

->126 clfisha:
Bullet taken.

128mstrust
sep 9, 2013, 11:51 am

>126 clfisha: Thanks for letting me know about that one. I think I'd like that one so it goes on the WL. Very rare for someone back then to interview the poor.

>127 -Eva-: What I wouldn't give to have that same excuse.

129clfisha
sep 10, 2013, 4:48 am

He did get a bit of flack for it and the reliability of his methods (i.e. he used to pay them etc..) but it's still fascinating. I would get the abridged version.. even that can be repetitive going through each costermonger :) (not a straight through read maybe!)

130mstrust
Bewerkt: sep 11, 2013, 3:11 pm

85. One, Two, Buckle My Shoe by Agatha Christie. M. Poirot dreads his visits to the dentist, though he knows Mr. Morley to be an excellent dentist with a thriving practice. Morley is a dull man who leads a quiet life with his sister, so everyone is surprised when he commits suicide in his office just hours after Poirot's appointment. Poirot and Inspector Japp have a slew of suspects and motives right in Morley's waiting room.
This was a good one because it had some unusual aspects: Poirot fears something (dentists), gets chewed out by another character and experiences real self-doubt as to his detecting abilities. 4 stars

86. You Wouldn't Want To Meet A Body Snatcher by Fiona Macdonald. Another for my Autumn/Halloween Challenge-From the British series of children's books that introduce unsavory history such as Salem witches and Irish famine ships, this title focuses on the grave robbers of Edinburgh who supplied corpses to surgeons for the purpose of teaching anatomy before dissection was legal. Much of the book covers the infamous Burke and Hare case. The illustrations are what I'd call cartoonishly scary and perfect for the darkly humorous text, which includes such questionable information as, "Some people say that you are unlikely to catch nasty diseases from people who handle dead bodies, but do you really want to take the chance?" and an illustrated step-by-step explanation as to how Burke and Hare were able to kill their victims without leaving marks on the bodies comes with a preface that says " So even if a dissected body was traced back to them, no one could prove it was murder." 4 stars

131mstrust
sep 15, 2013, 1:28 pm

87. Spooky Little Girl by Laurie Notaro. Autumn/Halloween Challenge. Lucy comes home from a girl's trip to Hawaii to find that her fiancee has thrown her out of the house and changed the locks without a word. That's the beginning of Lucy's problems that lead to her absentmindedly walking in front of a bus and landing in a classroom to learn how to be a ghost. If she doesn't complete the task that will tie up the loose strings of her life she will be stuck on earth forever.

The first couple of chapters didn't do much for me and I thought about tossing this one aside, but I kept going because I've liked Notaro's books of essays. And the story became much more interesting once Lucy was dead; Notaro creates a unique version of the afterlife. 3.5 stars

Hey, has anyone else started (or planning) their October reads?

132lkernagh
sep 15, 2013, 1:58 pm

All I have done is map out how many more books I need to read to complete my challenges. Since I need 13 books to complete my ROOTs reading, I will probably pull my October reading from my TBR bookshelves.... I must have something good and atmospheric for October reading lurking there!

133mstrust
sep 15, 2013, 2:08 pm

You probably do- like I said in a previous post, I'm always surprised by how many books I have that fit in the category. But then, I'm a sucker for anything with a pumpkin on it.

134christina_reads
sep 16, 2013, 10:44 am

@ 131 -- mstrust, I've planned out all my October reads at this point! I pretty much know every book I'll be reading for the rest of the challenge. :)

135mstrust
sep 16, 2013, 1:03 pm

Alright, another person who gets squirrley over Autumn! I have that huge stack to choose from so I don't know exactly what I'll pull out. Part of the fun is turning on all the fans and pretending it isn't over 100 outside.

136rabbitprincess
sep 16, 2013, 5:30 pm

I'm planning some of my October reads, or at least jotting down ideas for the various CATs.

137DeltaQueen50
Bewerkt: sep 16, 2013, 11:09 pm

Me too, I have a list of Halloween reads that I am hoping to get to. Over at the 75 Group, there is a Halloween Theme Thread hosted by Stepen (Ape) this year, you should check it out!

**I just went there to get the link for you, but see you've already found it!

138mstrust
sep 17, 2013, 3:20 pm

>137 DeltaQueen50: Judy- yes, just found it recently, but thanks for thinking of me!

>136 rabbitprincess: princess- I'm hoping to get some recommendations for next year, so I'll be dropping by everybody's threads to see what you're up to.
Oh, and I've been putting up the Halloween decorations a little at a time. Just an Autumn leaf garland here, a big stuffed raven there, a painting of Bloody Mary who whispers, "Hello? Is anyone there? I'm so cold," that makes the dogs leave the room. It's not too early, right?

88. Which Witch? by Eva Ibbotson. Autumn/Halloween Challenge. With the threat of another, more powerful wizard approaching, Arriman the Awful decides to secure his lineage by holding a contest to decide which of the Todcaster witches will be his wife. There are only a handful of eligible contestants, as Arriman wants a wife who practices black magic. He finds, after his announcement, that those tend to be the dirty old crones and one young witch who fails every time she tries to do something evil, until she befriends an orphan boy. Suddenly, insignificant Belladonna can turn flowers into eyeballs.

First published in 1979, this book feels a lot like the quirkier parts of the early Harry Potter books. The creepier and more horrible the actions, the more the admiration for the character. It's fun yet not childish. This is the first I've read from this author but I'll be looking for more of Ibbotson. 4 stars

139-Eva-
sep 18, 2013, 1:21 am

Ah, Witch Witch? is a childhood favorite of mine - so glad to hear you liked it! I need to reread.

140mstrust
sep 18, 2013, 12:01 pm

It must have been fun to read Ibbotson as a kid. Weird that her stuff never came my way before now, but I have two more in the mail to me. Btw, is she the author who tried to sue Rowling?

141-Eva-
Bewerkt: sep 20, 2013, 11:15 pm

I am biased due to my childhood love, but I adore all of her YA books. Haha, no I think Ibbotson has been quite complimentary to Rowling - I think the author that tried to sue her was American, but I can't remember his/her name.

142mstrust
sep 23, 2013, 12:13 am

You're right, Eva. It was an American author named Nancy Stouffer.

143-Eva-
Bewerkt: sep 23, 2013, 12:20 am

That does sound familiar! I now remember wondering if she was a Stouffer of the frozen food Stouffers. :)

144mstrust
sep 23, 2013, 12:34 pm

I didn't know that bit. Glad to hear she isn't starving after losing ;)

89. Heart-Shaped Box by Joe Hill. Autumn/Halloween. Jude Coyne is a mega rock star who doesn't have to work anymore. His status as an icon has made him wealthy and still relevant into his fifties. His taste in girlfriends runs to much younger Goth girls who live with him at his farm for a few months. Currently it's Georgia, but before her it was Florida, a depressed girl Who Jude sent home after realizing he couldn't help her anymore.
When Jude buys a haunted suit online to add to his collection of the bizarre, it turns out that Jude was the person meant to own it.

This was a Bram Stoker Award winner for 2007, and Hill's first book. It's broken into three sections, and for me, the first section was the most frighteningly as Jude and Georgia are cut off from the world in the farmhouse. The feeling of isolation that runs through the book is at its highest level in the house, but the story is well-written and pretty scary throughout. I know, you see the words 'haunted suit' and say "Whaaat?" 4.5 stars

145-Eva-
sep 23, 2013, 4:22 pm

Sorry, I'm not sure she actually is of that family (or if it is even owned by a family of Stouffers). I clearly wondered and then ignored actually looking it up... :)

146mstrust
Bewerkt: sep 25, 2013, 2:55 pm

No problem!

90. The House With a Clock in Its Walls by John Bellairs. Autumn/Halloween. Ten year-old Lewis goes to live in Michigan with his Uncle Jonathan, a man he's never met. It turns out that Jonathan lives in an old mansion and is a magician, while his best friend, the old woman next door, is a witch. Jonathan has filled the mansion with ticking clocks in an effort to block out the sound of the ticking the can be heard non-stop in every room, the sound of a clock that can't be found.

I bought this because I have had a murky memory of watching the film version as a kid but never knew it was a book first. And Bellairs has written what must be 25 children's books but I've never heard of him. This was a good find; it's just scary enough for kids but it has fleshed out characters and the side plot of Lewis trying to fit in to a new school and make friends and the illustrations are by Edward Gorey. 4 stars

147mstrust
sep 28, 2013, 2:16 pm

91. Hangmen of England by Brian Bailey. Autumn/Halloween. Bailey gathers every bit of information on the history of executions and executioners throughout England, with some of Scotland, Wales and Ireland's history on the subject as well.

Overall the writing is fine but sometimes the author betrays his lack of professional experience by suddenly referring to himself. Often these sentences are to remind the reader that Bailey is anti-death penalty. Yea, he starts off the book by letting the reader know his stance, which seems like, "I don't believe in capitol punishment, but let's look at a bunch of people who do!" It's quirky. And yes, he stresses sentences with exclamation marks. I think the book would have benefited from a more structured layout of time periods or one executioner at a time rather than jumping back and forth in referring to them.

Even though I have these criticisms I would recommend the book for the enormous amount of research it must have taken as it was writing before the internet, for the little bits of obscure info about long forgotten people, the interesting and pertinent sketches and photos included and for the history of English law in centuries past when a person could be put to death for stealing bits of cloth and children as young as nine years old could be hung. 3.5 stars

148-Eva-
sep 30, 2013, 6:28 pm

I know I use an inordinate amount of exclamation marks in my informal writing, but in formal writing, it does irk me quite a bit. The topic seems very interesting, though, so it goes on my Potentials-list

149mstrust
sep 30, 2013, 6:35 pm

Yes, there is a huge difference between informal and informal, or professional, writing! One is meant to be personal and the other is not! A professional who is writing for adults on a serious topic should know the difference! Should I stop now?!
I don't remember where I got this one but it seems to be the highest rated on the subject that I've come across, and I always keep in mind when a subject would be really difficult to research as I've done my share.

150-Eva-
sep 30, 2013, 6:40 pm

"Should I stop now?!"
By all means, go right ahead. :)

I can imagine that there isn't an unlimited amount of books on the topic, and sometimes you just have to take what you can get, right? :)

151mstrust
sep 30, 2013, 6:52 pm

True. I'm reading a book on cannibalism right now and when it comes to that subject it's feast or famine. I'm just saying that some authors aren't cut out for it and they often bite off more than they can chew. ba-dum-ba!

152-Eva-
sep 30, 2013, 6:56 pm

Haha!

153mstrust
okt 1, 2013, 1:24 pm

92. Cannibalism and the Common Law by A.W. Brian Simpson. Autumn/Halloween. A look at all the different ways the legal system can interpret cannibalism for survival. Simpson profiles cases of frontier cannibalism, touching briefly on the Donner Party, then more extensively on Alferd G. Packer, "The Colorado Man-Eater". Much of the book involves murder and cannibalism at sea, a situation known as "the custom of the sea", which was not uncommon in days when ship owners would intentionally send crews out with insufficient food simply to cut costs. Many of the chapters are devoted to the case of the Mignonette, and English ship that wrecked in 1884. The group of survivors in a small boat eventually killed the seventeen year-old cabin boy and ate him, a fact they never tried to hide upon rescue. The captain and his mate were, after a long trial that involved two district courts and multiple high court judges, convicted of the murder. It's one of the very few trials of its kind, as murder had traditionally been overlooked in cases of cannibalism at sea.

I actually started this one around this time last year, got about 30 pages in, then put it on a shelf and forgot all about it. Can I say that this is a good look at the subject? It's pretty surprising at how many cases of survival cannibalism the author finds, especially among sailors. Most, but not all the cases of survival included here involve cannibalism, and Simpson provides legal information throughout. In fact, his chapters of the legal battle involved in the Mignonette began to seem like they would never end, but it does give a thorough insight as to how the court system operated at that time, and explains a little used strategy that would eventually mutate into The Court of Appeals.

As with my book #91, this is from an English author in the 1980's, and their writing style has one thing in common: at some point both authors put themselves into their discussions. In this one the book goes along for over 200 hundred pages when suddenly the author recalls a childhood memory of how intimidating the sight of a high court judge was to him. Just a little odd, but I seem to be getting used to these quirks. 4 stars

154mamzel
okt 1, 2013, 5:42 pm

How do people come up with these book ideas??? And where did you come across it?

155mstrust
okt 1, 2013, 8:11 pm

You know, today I was trying to remember where I'd bought that one but it's been on the shelf for years and years, so it's left my brain. Until I started reading it I'd always assumed it was an old textbook because of its size and the pages of solid text.

Who comes up these ideas? Weirdos!

156mstrust
Bewerkt: okt 4, 2013, 6:47 pm

93. The Apothecary by Maile Meloy. New To Me. Janie Scott and her parents move from LA to London to escape the people who have begun following the family. It's 1952, and Janie's scriptwriting parents might be Communists, so job offers to work in British television come at the right time. Janie hates being the new kid at school, but soon she's made friends with the son of the local apothecary, a boy who wants to be a spy and sees intrigue even in the local park. Soon Janie is involved in the Cold War, but she and her friends have a book that comes in very handy.

I had this placed in my Autumn/Halloween challenge but it doesn't belong there; this is a fantasy that involves elixirs, science, WWII and the Soviets, and there's a teensy bit of romance too. So it goes in my challenge for authors that are new to me that I want to read more from. 4 stars

157VioletBramble
okt 5, 2013, 5:57 am

The Apothecary is about magic and IS set in autumn. I don't see why it couldn't go into your Autumn/Halloween category.

158mstrust
okt 5, 2013, 2:13 pm

Well, I guess it ultimately has more of a fantasy/politics/war theme than what I expected when I placed it in my Autumn challenge. It's a very good book, and tense with that Cold War angle. I'll look for the follow-up.

159christina_reads
okt 5, 2013, 6:25 pm

And onto the TBR list goes The Apothecary...

160mstrust
okt 7, 2013, 8:38 pm

Gotcha!

94. Deadly Treats edited by Anne Frasier. Autumn/Halloween and Short Stories. You know how disappointing some short story collections can be, especially ones filled with authors you've never heard of, and halfway through you start to feel like you're reading the uneven results of a freshman college assignment? I'm looking at you, Akashic Noir.
It can get even worse when there is a theme involved and you realize that the only reason some of the stories were included was because they touched on the theme in some way, such as being placed in a certain city, but it seems like the author could have dropped any city name in and it wouldn't have changed the plot one iota and I look at A.N. again.
Deadly Treats is a surprising exception. This collection of Halloween themed stories has no famous authors, yet each story is well-written. Really. The creep factor varies, going between criminal activity to supernatural, though none feature graphic violence. My favorites were "World's Greatest Dad", about a petty criminal brought back to life by his stupid teenage sons, and "Friday Night Dining with Marianne" about a hard to please food critic. 4 stars

161-Eva-
Bewerkt: okt 8, 2013, 2:53 pm

"I'm looking at you, Akashic Noir."
Haha! I just found out that I'll be getting USA Noir from Early Reviewers, so I'll have to see what it's like. :)

162mstrust
okt 8, 2013, 3:33 pm

Hope you like it! I've only read one Akaschic, Las Vegas Noir, and was underwhelmed. The feedback I got was that the series tends to be one or two good stories and a lot of filler, which is great because I have two more of the series on my shelf already ;)

163-Eva-
okt 8, 2013, 3:37 pm

The description of USA Noir says that it contains 37 stories picked from 32 of their volumes, so I hope they picked the best ones! :)

164RidgewayGirl
okt 9, 2013, 4:54 am

I've read a couple of the Akashic Noirs and while they are very uneven, I've found them worthwhile - each book has given me a few new authors to look into.

165mstrust
okt 9, 2013, 2:46 pm

>Eva and Alison I'm sure my high expectations of "noir + Las Vegas = literary nirvana" led to my disappointment. And the fact that several of the stories could have been placed in Omaha for all the location counted.

166RidgewayGirl
okt 9, 2013, 2:59 pm

I think that each volume depends on the guest editor for both quality and tone. The Mumbai one I read was really well done and the Long Island one was ok, but mostly not noir and often veering toward cozy (which I can't stand). The editor even called described the stories as more "gris" than "noir".

167mstrust
okt 9, 2013, 8:22 pm

That sounds like an editor who doesn't really like noir. I would expect that, like Vegas, it would be a matter of picking the best of Long Island noir stories, not that you couldn't find enough.

168clfisha
okt 10, 2013, 4:43 am

The only one of Akaschic I have read is Havana Noir and that was a very mixed bag, although most of them were dark tales of crime (some too dark). You could definately see the guest editors tastes runing through it.

169mstrust
okt 14, 2013, 2:40 pm

Yes, it seems like the publishers give the editor a lot of control over the choices. Which is usually a good thing, unless the editor has a lot of friends who want to be published ;) With Deadly Treats, the editor actually included two of her own stories- one under her real name and one under her nom de plume. That's some nerve, so it's a good thing both were well-done and fitting for the theme.

95. The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux. Autumn/Halloween and French Authors. Young Raoul is a Viscount who loves Christine, an up-and-coming opera singer. His attempts to spend time with Christine are mostly thwarted, though she does seem to like Raoul. These mixed signals cause Raoul to stalk Christine and find out why she keeps the other man in her life a secret.

I thought I had a pretty good idea what the plot of The Phantom of the Opera was about: monster who loves music also loves (obsesses over) pretty girl and kidnaps her. That's some of it, but the story is more complex. For instance, it's a surprise to learn that the phantom's name is Erik. That's not a spoiler, it's all over the place in the story. I kept thinking 'Erik the Monster'. I also thought this book was older, like from the Victorian era, but it was published in 1911. And it isn't entirely tense, as there are bits of humor in the story.
The writing style was fine for me, but I didn't think the horror aspect of the story had held up well. There are tense passages but they come more from chases or a character's imprisonment than from the intended fear of Erik. At least for me. I thought the story could have wrapped up about 60 pages sooner, as the chasing back and forth between Raoul and Erik over the beloved Christine became a bit monotonous. 3 stars

170-Eva-
okt 14, 2013, 10:20 pm

"included two of her own stories"
LOL - great definition of chutzpah, right there! :)

171mstrust
Bewerkt: okt 15, 2013, 12:45 pm

Isn't it? (*ahem*) Perhaps she just couldn't find another writer's story that met the criteria and so was forced to add another of her own.

172RidgewayGirl
okt 15, 2013, 2:54 pm

On the other hand, I read an anthology put together by a favorite author and was a little disappointed there was nothing by her in it, besides the introduction.

173mstrust
okt 15, 2013, 6:35 pm

It would be disappointing when you're expecting a certain author's work, yet I think it's generous of the famous author to choose other authors who may need the exposure more. And you can see what works your favorite author admires.

174mstrust
okt 17, 2013, 3:48 pm

96. Warm Bodies by Isaac Marion. Autumn/ Halloween. 'R' is a zombie at an airport with lots of other zombies, just wandering around with nothing much to do. He has a friend, 'M', and they enjoy each others company as much as zombies can. 'R' also has a zombie wife and zombie kids, but he prefers to spend his time listening to Frank Sinatra and trying to remember his name.
While out hunting, meaning killing and eating people, 'R' sees the lovely Julie and keeps her from being eaten. He takes her back to his airport pad and works desperately to re-connect with what he remembers of human feelings, despite knowing the Dead want to eat Julie and her Living people would shoot him.

Yep, it's a zombie Romeo and Juliet, and it's pretty good. If you've seen the movie, the book has a few things that didn't make it to the screen.4.5 stars

175mstrust
okt 19, 2013, 12:46 pm

We went to the AZ state fair and found that my cherry chocolate chip bars had gotten 3rd place for its division and my Black Magic chocolate cake got 2nd place. Not bad.
Also, at the fair, I finally saw Cheap Trick in concert, after being a fan since elementary school. Add in eating a deep fried Moon Pie and a Navajo fry bread taco. That's living.

176DeltaQueen50
okt 19, 2013, 1:49 pm

Congratulations on doing so well with your baking. Cheap Trick was my brother's favorite group, that sure brings back memories!

I have Warm Bodies on my wishlist and you've jogged my memory about it. Will bring it forward to add to my 2014 Category Challenge.

177lkernagh
okt 19, 2013, 2:24 pm

Good job on the 2nd and 3rd place wins at the state fair! Now I have a terrible craving for chocolate.... and I just ate!

178mstrust
okt 20, 2013, 1:43 pm

Thanks, Judy and Lori.
>176 DeltaQueen50: Hope you like it! I picked up the book after hearing Marion being interviewed on NPR. Seemed like a fun guy.

>177 lkernagh: When it comes to chocolate, there's no time like the present.

97. Permanent Londoners by Judi Culbertson and Tom Randall. History. This is a thick guide to the cemeteries of the city, with a focus on the burial places of the rich and famous. In London, that means royals, poets and writers, and historical figures. It starts off at Westminster Abbey, proceeds to The Tower of London, covers St. Paul's, Highgate, Hampstead and Golder's Green, then into South London and Windsor. Along with directions and descriptions of burial spots, biographies or historical information about the person or grave marker is included, which is why I ended up putting this book in my "History" category. There are black and white photos of many of the tombs. 4 stars

179-Eva-
okt 21, 2013, 12:18 am

->175 mstrust:
Congratulations!! Cherry chocolate chip bars sounds excellent! Although I wouldn't turn down a Navajo fry bread taco either!

180SouthernKiwi
okt 21, 2013, 3:39 am

Congratulations on your baking wins Jennifer! They sound fantastic.

181mstrust
okt 21, 2013, 1:39 pm

Thanks Eva & Alana! I have to admit that I looove seeing a ribbon on my stuff! I'll also admit that I get a kick out of seeing how things look a week after baking. Some stuff ages just fine while others look like cement.

182mstrust
okt 23, 2013, 12:27 pm

98. Into The Dark by Peter Abrahams. Serials. 13 year-old Ingrid is snowshoeing through the woods of Echo Falls with her boyfriend when they find the local conservation agent whose been missing. He'd been making problems for Ingrid's grandfather, and Grampy had threatened the agent, whose body is now lying on Grampy's land. Ingrid wants to prove her grandfather didn't murder the agent, but Grampy's lousy personality makes it difficult to believe he isn't involved.

This book does get into darker territory with a break in the family, tales of WWII survival, a serious injury for one character and a minor character late in the book who could have come out of The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo. This is the third, and I think, the last of the Echo Falls Mysteries so far. I hope Abrahams continues the series as I'm fond of Ingrid, the child with much too old taste in Basil Rathbone movies and Fresca. 4 stars

183mstrust
okt 25, 2013, 3:31 pm

99. Doctor Faustus by Christopher Marlowe. Autumn/Halloween. Doctor Faustus doesn't believe in hell, and so has no fear of conjuring a demon. Faustus wants to sell his soul, which he does, in return for fame, status and knowledge. He quickly begins moving in circles with the Pope and the Holy Roman Emperor, able to conjure Alexander the Great and Helen of Troy and make himself invisible so he can punch people. His plan is to spend his allotted time being rich, famous and devious, then repent in order to save his soul from Lucifer.

For the Elizabethan audience, this play must have been like nothing else. There are devils, the Pope and his Cardinals, Alexander killing his foe Darius, and whores. The theatergoer must have left feeling they had gotten their money's worth. Marlowe was the bad boy of playwrights and this play shows why he had that reputation.
The big surprise for me was the amount of Latin spoken, which is a lot. I don't know how much Latin the average person would have understood, especially since illiteracy was the norm, but Marlowe certainly flaunts his fluency in it. 3.5 stars

185rabbitprincess
okt 27, 2013, 9:04 pm

Holy moly, what a haul! Nice work!
I'll be interested to hear what you think of Henry VIII: Wolfman; I read Queen Victoria, Demon Hunter by the same author and was amused.

186-Eva-
okt 27, 2013, 9:09 pm

That's a huge pile of loot - well done you!

187DeltaQueen50
okt 27, 2013, 9:41 pm

Great book haul, I'm drooling over the Agatha Christies'!

188mamzel
okt 28, 2013, 12:08 pm

Good for you, supporting your library!

189mstrust
okt 28, 2013, 2:49 pm

Hi everybody! I'm just doing my part for the community. I always take one of those little rolling grocery carts like the little old ladies push around NYC, but this time I filled it past the top and had to roll it upright, very slowly, because if I tipped it back at all everything would would cascade out.
I've just finished putting the stacks away, or rather, finding resting spots for them on top of other books. Whenever I see someone on LT talking about banning themselves from buying books I always think "Why?" Now I see why. I don't like the idea, but I'm considering.

>185 rabbitprincess: princess I read Queen Victoria: Demon Hunter and it was pretty funny. Didn't know this was the same author, so maybe it will have the same weirdness.

190mstrust
okt 28, 2013, 3:09 pm

100. The Secret of Platform 13 by Eva Ibbotson. Autumn/Halloween. At three months old, the prince of the Island, a place inhabited by hags, ogres and fairies, was stolen from his nannies when the took him to visit London for the day. Years go by before a rescue attempt can be made by the Islanders, but when they finally meet the prince, they really don't want him back.

I'm not sure if this was Ibbotson's first book or just the first published in the U.S., but it's fun. Full of ghosts and all kinds of monsters, plus a spoiled brat to hate. 4 stars

I've hit 100!!! I've never done that before. Slap it high!

191aliciamay
okt 28, 2013, 3:57 pm

A nice haul indeed...I like the image of you with your overflowing grocery cart! Congrats on reading 100 for the year!

192christina_reads
okt 28, 2013, 5:00 pm

*High five!*

193mstrust
okt 29, 2013, 11:46 am

Thanks, Alicia and Christina! I should celebrate by buying myself some b... oh wait, I've already done that.

194mstrust
nov 3, 2013, 11:19 am

Just back from a Halloween in Vegas. I'll try to post some pictures later, but I've got to spend today putting away decorations and doing laundry. I did get to finish my last Halloween read, so that category is finished.

101. Dial-A-Ghost by Eva Ibbotson. Autumn/Halloween. The new owner of Helton Hall is orphaned Oliver. Having no guardian, his distant cousins suddenly appear to care for him, and that includes having a ghost placement agency send their most hard-to-control spirits to keep the young boy company in his scary old home. 4 stars

102. Marguerite Patten's Best British Dishes. Food and Drink. This is a great cookbook for the very traditional dishes we all read about in novels. Now I can see what a freshly made Eccles Cake looks like (something I would eat a dozen of). It's all written for the home cook, so nothing that takes too many gadgets, though some ingredients wouldn't be so readily available to the American cook. Am I going to make a Pigeon Pie, Jellied Fish Cream or Jugged Hare? No. But Cheese Pudding and Gingernuts sound awesome. 4 stars

195mstrust
nov 6, 2013, 12:31 pm

103. The Professionals 12: Foxhole by Ken Blake. Serials. Bodie, Doyle and Cowley deal with two ex-military who build a foxhole on a warehouse roof that gives them a straight shot into the post-op ward of a nearby hospital. If they don't receive the two million pounds they demand, patients will die. Afterwards, Bodie and Doyle are assigned to guard the deposed leader of an African nation who seems likely to be assassinated. 3.5 stars

196RidgewayGirl
nov 6, 2013, 1:55 pm

Hooray on hitting 100 and breezing right on. And I am jealous of your haul -- there are some fantastic finds there.

197mstrust
nov 7, 2013, 7:09 pm

Thanks, Alison! And I think I got really lucky at the book sale too, as I got to knock a few off my WL.

198mstrust
nov 10, 2013, 6:07 pm

104. Dead Man's Mirror by Agatha Christie. Always A Mystery. A collection of four short stories featuring Poirot. The title story concerns an arrogant Lord who summons Poirot to his manor to discuss fraud, but the detective finds himself investigating a locked room murder instead. This is the only Christie I've read so far where the answers seemed so glaringly obvious.
This book also goes by the title of Murder in the Mews, which is the best story in the collection. A young woman with a good life commits suicide, or maybe someone has made it look like suicide. Poirot is assisted by Inspector Japp and the woman's roommate. 3 stars

199mstrust
nov 13, 2013, 12:16 pm

105. The American Way of Eating by Tracie McMillan. Food & Drink. McMillan goes undercover to pick produce in central California, work at Walmart in Detroit and in the kitchen of a New York City Applebee's. Her goal is to find out what it takes to get the fruits and vegetables on the table of the average American, while learning how corporations get their stock, how difficult it is for their low-paid employees to get by and how a chain restaurant prepares the customer's meal.

While not scary like Fast Food Nation, but McMillan gives plenty of info the average person doesn't even consider. Like where does a garlic company get its product when the California season is over, what does Walmart do about pest-control and how can a restaurant bring you a steak dinner in 14 minutes? An interesting look at the (mostly) produce side of what we eat. 3.5 stars

That's 13 books for my Food & Drink category. Done!

200lkernagh
nov 13, 2013, 10:36 pm

You are right.... I probably don't want to know what Walmart does about pest control. I would probably never enter another Walmart store.

Congrats on closing out another category!

201mstrust
nov 14, 2013, 11:10 am

Thanks, Lori! I'll tell you about the situation McMillan encounters because it isn't as gross as what you're thinking. She's working the produce section and sees a big bird sitting on the lettuce display and eating. Okay, that's gross. So she's new and goes to a couple of employees who have been there longer to ask what to do. The employees tell her that management won't call pest control because of the expense and say that whenever birds get in the store they open a certain door hoping it will fly out, because otherwise they just let it stay until it dies somewhere.
McMillan's point to the story was how disturbed she was by the lack of concern all the way round.

202lkernagh
nov 14, 2013, 4:59 pm

All I can say to that is ....... Wow. o.O

203mstrust
nov 15, 2013, 1:16 pm

Indeed.

106. Shakespeare: The World as Stage by Bill Bryson. Shakespeare Category. Bryson's bio of the Bard. The structure of this book seems to always keep the image of the successful playwright as the focus while branching off into different aspects of his life like his education, personal relationships and the mention of his name in legal documents. Bryson admits there is very little solid fact to go on, with previous biographers piecing together a life out of assumptions. So Bryson sets out to give the reader information about how a man of Shakespeare's profession, fame, income level and connections would have lived. We also get the history of the Globe Theatre and its rivals, the bits of information known about Shakespeare's family, wife, business associates and contemporaries, and the laws and practices of Elizabethan England. That may sound like padding but it's all woven together to provide a more complete idea of what Shakespeare's life must have been like. 4 stars

204mstrust
Bewerkt: nov 20, 2013, 1:14 pm

107. Ask Graham by Graham Norton. Something Led Me To The Book. His talk show is consistently one of the best things on BBC America, but until I got this one I didn't know Norton was also an advice columnist for one of the London dailies. 4 stars

and here's one I'm not counting as there's almost nothing to read, but I'm listing it just so everybody knows it exists:
Underwater Dogs by Seth Casteel. A big color book of dogs having fun in the pool. Gave it to my husband for his birthday.

205mamzel
nov 20, 2013, 3:36 pm

Graham Norton cracks me up. That has to be the most uncomfortable couch I've ever seen.

206mstrust
nov 20, 2013, 4:40 pm

Must be why the guests are always sitting way forward.
What's so great about the show is that it's funny no matter who the guests are, and especially when it's people who are known for being serious. A few weeks ago he had Harrison Ford and Benedict Cumberbatch telling each other what fans they were of each other and giggling. And then Norton's sitting there giggling because he knows how funny it is.

207rabbitprincess
nov 20, 2013, 5:27 pm

And then B did a Chewbacca impression! Adorable :D

208mstrust
nov 21, 2013, 11:03 am

I'd forgotten about that! Norton gets people to do some irregular things.

209-Eva-
nov 21, 2013, 11:57 pm

Norton is a fantastic host, isn't he. Am adding Ask Graham to my list - can't wait to see what kind of advice he gives.

210mstrust
nov 22, 2013, 11:21 am

I expected lots of snarky humor in his replies, but his advice is actually pretty sensible, which is good because many of the questions are about serious problems. But when someone has a non-problem and is just whining, he gives it to them and it's funny.

211mstrust
nov 23, 2013, 11:32 am

108. Maigret at the Crossroads by Georges Simenon. French Authors. A dead man is found sitting in a new car inside Carl Andersen's garage.The car belongs to Andersen's neighbor, who says it was stolen from him in the night and replaced by Andersen's old beater. Which makes Andersen look like a very dumb criminal, and a weird person in general as he has a bizarre relationship with his sister, who also heard nothing the night a car and dead man were put in the Andersen's garage.

This is my second Maigret and I like how Simenon's style moves from what begins like a police procedural, moves almost to a cozy, then into noir. I was surprised at how many thoroughly British words are being used by the French and Danish characters, things like "chap" and "bloke". 3.5 stars

212mstrust
Bewerkt: nov 26, 2013, 11:48 am

109. Gourmet Rhapsody by Muriel Barbery. French Authors. A famous food critic, a man who has spent his life thinking about food and pursuing flavors, lays dying in his Paris apartment. He recalls tasting food and drink with a passion usually given to love, and his wife and children are the worse for it.

Yes, here comes the invariable comparison to Barbery's earlier The Elegance of the Hedgehog. I like that book so much, and so the description of her follow-up, about the dying food critic mentioned in TEOTH, sounded great. But the prose is so over-the-top florid that it becomes exhausting. For instance, the thought of having a drink of whiskey takes up two and a half pages. Chewing bread is described likewise. It isn't bad, but I don't love it either. 3 stars

213lkernagh
nov 26, 2013, 10:32 pm

I am with you in liking The Elegance of the Hedgehog over Gourmet Rhapsody, Jenn. If I am not mistaken, Gourmet Rhapsody was the author's debut novel, followed by Hedgehog, but they were released as English translations in reverse order.... so maybe it is fair to say that Barbery has matured as an author.... I don't know.

214mstrust
nov 27, 2013, 11:29 am

Thanks for letting me know that, and I'm happy that the author has progressed rather than regressed!

215mstrust
Bewerkt: nov 29, 2013, 12:20 pm

110. Christmas in Tinseltown by Frank DeCaro. Decaro spent a few years as the movie critic on "The Daily Show", and this is a mash-up of recipes, career overviews, Christmas movie reviews and a little gossip. Each recipe was printed in some long ago magazine or star cookbook as being used by the actual celebrity. This is a follow-up to DeCaro's previous book, The Dead Celebrity Cookbook, which I haven't read. Some of the recipes here look pretty good, like Donna Reed's lemon bundt cake and Alec Guinness's baked stuffed peaches. I will not make Burl Ives's stuffed leg of goat Hawaiian.
It's a fun book. 4 stars

216mstrust
nov 29, 2013, 12:25 pm

Just have to say how sad I am to hear of the death of Lewis Collins, who played Bodie on "The Professionals". Not having grown up in the U.K. or the countries where the show was broadcast, I came upon the episodes on Youtube about 4 years ago and became instantly obsessed. Collins fought cancer for five years. That's a tough guy.
To see some of the gorgeousness that is missing from the world now:
http://www.express.co.uk/news/showbiz/445617/The-Professionals-actor-Lewis-Colli...

217mstrust
dec 1, 2013, 7:05 pm

111. Let's Explore Diabetes with Owls by David Sedaris. Favorite Authors. A collection of essays about his life with short stories mixed in, this is Sedaris doing what made him famous: writing about the strange episodes in his life and the weird thoughts he tries to keep to himself. Very funny. 4.5 stars

218LittleTaiko
dec 1, 2013, 8:21 pm

Is the Owls book better than the sqirrel/chipmunk book? Wasn't a fan if that one so have been reluctant to pick up the owls book.

219mstrust
dec 1, 2013, 8:38 pm

Owls is much better. The squirrel chipmunk book had an overall depressing outlook to me as many of the stories were about him wandering around and barely making enough to eat.
Owls has one or two stories from this time but they are funny. Nothing to fear!

220RidgewayGirl
dec 2, 2013, 4:21 am

I thought Owls was among his funniest books. I read the essay on getting a colonoscopy while waiting for my SO, who was getting a colonoscopy. I suspect that all that giggling in a hospital waiting room was unseemly.

221LittleTaiko
dec 2, 2013, 11:38 am

Okay, now I'm sold. Definitely moving that up the wishlist.

222mstrust
dec 2, 2013, 12:56 pm

>220 RidgewayGirl: now that's an odd coincidence! You must be the only happy person that waiting room has ever seen.
I need to re-read "Santa Land".

>221 LittleTaiko: I hope you like it too!

223mstrust
dec 13, 2013, 5:32 pm

112. Mr. Timothy by Louis Bayard. Something Led Me To The Book. Mr. Timothy is Tiny Tim, all grown up and not doing very well. Due to Uncle N's interest in the Cratchits all those years ago, Timothy's leg is mostly healed, but the recent death of his father haunts Tim as he wanders the squalid streets of London. In exchange for giving the madame reading lessons, he takes a room in a brothel and tries to find something to do with himself. With so much time to walk he seems to be the only one to notice that little girls are turning up dead in the street, and they've been branded.

A good story using loved characters from Dicken's A Christmas Carol in a very different way. Normally I would scrunch my nose at something like that, but the writing is very good and the story is equally interesting, though the crimes committed are horrible. There were a few scenes that read like an action script, specifically towards the end, but that's not bad.

I've put this one in its category because it sat on my shelf for several years until Lori (lkernagh) said how perfectly it would meet the criteria for a Christmas murder mystery. Thanks Lori! It took me so long to finish only because this past week has been busy and I could only read for a few minutes before bed. 4 stars

224lkernagh
dec 13, 2013, 11:43 pm

Very happy to see Mr. Timothy was a good read for you, Jennifer! I have only read two of Bayard's books so far - the other one being The Black Tower where he breathes life into the French Revolution with a gritty crime story focused on Vidocq, the famous former criminal turned police investigator. I have The Pale Blue Eye waiting for me on my TBR bookcase and hope to read it next year.

225RidgewayGirl
dec 14, 2013, 6:21 am

I'm a huge fan of Louis Bayard ever since reading Mr Timothy. It may also have been the first time I'd found a book based on someone else's literary character to be worth reading. They are few and far between!

226mstrust
dec 14, 2013, 11:51 am

>224 lkernagh: Lori, The Black Tower happens to be on my shelf. It's been there longer than Mr. Timothy, so I'm very happy you've pushed me towards a new discovery. He'll definitely be in my challenge for 2014.

>225 RidgewayGirl: Alison, I usually avoid pastiche or character borrowing unless it's done humorously, but Bayard created Tim with such a different personality that I forgot he belonged to Dickens.

227DeltaQueen50
dec 14, 2013, 1:33 pm

I've had Bayard's books on my wishlist for a long, long time. They sound like books I would love so will have to make a point of including at least one in my next year's challenge!

228mstrust
dec 16, 2013, 1:25 pm

Judy, I hope you enjoy Bayard too. Since Mr. Timothy is ten years old now, I'm sure I'm way behind.
It seems I'm not the only one who collects practically the whole catalog by an author before reading a single one. It's the reason why I need to crack one by Christopher Brookmyre or one of the Aunt Dimity series.

229mstrust
dec 18, 2013, 4:26 pm

113. The Black Book by Ian Rankin. New To Me. Inspector Rebus is working on a big case involving a crime boss who has slipped through the Edinburgh policeman's fingers before. Rebus has little faith that this will be the time, yet he badly wants to put this particular criminal away. At the same time, Rebus begins to work a five year old case, that of a hotel fire in which a charred body was found but never identified. To make things worse, Rebus' girlfriend kicks him out and his younger brother shows up needing a place to stay.

This is my first Rankin. With all the fans here on LT and having seen him interviewed recently, I decided to jump into the Rebus series. This book is from 1992, so five years after the first of the series. I like Rebus! 4 stars

and here's my last read for 2013. I'm not counting it as it took all of 3 minutes:

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer by Robert L. May. This is the original poem from 1939 with the original illustrations by Denver Gillen. May was a Montgomery Ward employee who created Rudolph to promote the store. The poem is a bit different from the Rankin/Bass show we're all familiar with, with Santa delivering toys to reindeer as well as human children, and waking Rudolph in his room to get him to work. How's this for an opener-

'Twas the day before Christmas, and all through the hills
The reindeer were playing...enjoying the spills
Of skating and coasting, and climbing the willows...
And hop-scotch and leap-frog (protected by pillows!)


So now I have about two weeks to catch up on a big stack of magazines, get a head start on 2014, play the new Fender Strat my husband got me for Christmas (yea!!! Now all I need are lessons...) or just do nothing reading-wise. Like that will happen.

230rabbitprincess
dec 18, 2013, 5:23 pm

Yay, Rebus! That's the one Rebus book I myself own (my mother collects the rest of them). Will be looking forward to reading it.

Enjoy your Christmas gift! That is pretty sweet! :D

231lkernagh
Bewerkt: dec 18, 2013, 9:41 pm

I haven't been bitten by the Rebus bug yet, but he is high up on my reading list for my Tartan Noir category for the 2014 challenge. If I find the Rebus bug bits me, I know I can pick up copies of the Rebus books at the annual book sale in town in the spring.... that book sale always has stacks of Rankin books!

232mstrust
dec 19, 2013, 9:46 am

>230 rabbitprincess: princess The Black Book was the only one I owned until I ran out to a little bookstore yesterday and picked up a copy of the first in the series, Knots and Crosses. It will fit in nicely somewhere in next year's.
I'm having fun with my guitar. I've had it a little over a week and I'm already playing an unrecognizable and tuneless rendition of "Swing Low Sweet Chariot".

>231 lkernagh: Lori Rankin is definitely one of those authors I walked past for years without noticing. Because his books are everywhere I was never interested until I saw how many fans he had on LT. We tend to be a picky lot, so I figured I'd give it a shot. Let me know when you give Rebus a shot!

233DeltaQueen50
dec 19, 2013, 6:30 pm

Glad to hear that we have another fan of Rebus here at LT!

234mstrust
dec 19, 2013, 8:24 pm

After 350 pages, he does grow on you. But there were plenty of twists to keep a mystery fan guessing.

235mstrust
dec 31, 2013, 12:23 pm

Happy New Year everyone!
I've been doing pretty much what I said: reading from my dusty pile of magazines and gearing up for 2014's challenge. And I start guitar lessons in two weeks.
I don't know about you, but I'll be glad to put and end to 2013. The. worst. year.

Here's my brief tally of my reads this year. At first I thought I had been really stingy with my 5 star ratings, but then I see that my lowest rating was a single 2 star (for A Sentimental Journey), so I don't feel so churlish.

5 stars-4
4.5 stars-16
4 stars-51
3.5 stars-23
3 stars-15
2.5 stars-2
2 stars-1

236lkernagh
dec 31, 2013, 6:38 pm

Guitar lessons, now that sounds like fun! Happy New Year, Jennifer!

237mstrust
jan 1, 2014, 11:40 am

Happy New Year to you, Lori! I am looking forward to the lessons. I've promised Mom I'll learn to play "Waltz Across Texas" but I want to play The Ramones.

238christina_reads
jan 2, 2014, 9:43 am

@ 237 -- You can always play both! :) Learn some Clash songs, too!

239mstrust
Bewerkt: jan 2, 2014, 10:26 am

Oh, I will! And the Sex Pistols too *crossing my fingers that the instructor isn't into folk music*