nannybebette's 10/10/10

Discussie1010 Category Challenge

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nannybebette's 10/10/10

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1rainpebble
Bewerkt: apr 5, 2010, 6:25 pm

I have decided to just go ahead with the 10/10/10 as I did the 9/9/09 and see what happens. I am going to attempt to use categories that I have on my shelves in an attempt to work my TBRs down and possibly eliminate some books from my library thusly.
I am excited for this challenge. I think it will be a real challenge for me this year as it was last year. Good luck one and all.
belva

1/05/2010: DISCLAIMER: I reserve the right to change any and/or all categories and/or books at any time.

Didja read my plan for 2010? Well, forget all that because I have changed the entire reading program. My plan now includes almost exclusively Group Read Categories along with a nonfiction/bio/memoir category and a bonus category on Africa.
belva

2calm
sep 12, 2009, 1:17 pm

hello belva! Good to see you! :)

3rainpebble
Bewerkt: dec 8, 2010, 10:11 pm

My categories for this years challenge are:

1. Le SALON GROUP READS: (three of them)

1) Le SALON TOMES,
2) LIGHTER READS #1, &
3) LIGHTER READS #2.

4. Le SALON De FAULKNER GROUP READS

5. NON-FICTION, BIOS, & MEMOIRS
6. 75 BOOK GIG & INDIVIDUALLY / INDEPENDENTLY HOSTED GROUP READS
7. THE HIGHLY RATED BOOK GROUP:
8. MINI-AUTHOR THEME READS:
9. VIRAGO
10. 2010 AUTHOR THEME READS: BOOKS BY: Stefan Zweig:
11. 10/10 CHALLENGE CATEGORY GROUP READS: PART # 1:
12. 10/10 CHALLENGE CATEGORY GROUP READS: PART # 2:
13. GROUP READS---LITERATURE
14. MONTHLY AUTHOR READS
_____________________________________
Bonus Category: AFRICA & ARC/ERs:

1. The Story of an African Farm by Olive Schreiner
2. The Privileges by Jonathan Dee
3. The Weather in Africa by Martha Gellhorn
4. The Plague by Albert Camus

4rainpebble
Bewerkt: dec 8, 2010, 10:06 pm

1) Le SALON GROUP READS:

#1; TOMES:
5. January-March: Les Miserables by Victor Hugo

_____________________________________

#2; LIGHTER WORKS # 1:

January:
6. Miss Lonelyhearts by Nathanael West

February:
7. My Name is Red by 649039981::Orhan Pamuk

April:

May:

July:
The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis:
8. The Magician's Nephew
9. The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe
10. The Horse and His Boy
11. Prince Caspian
12. The Voyage of the Dawn Treader
13. The Silver Chair
14. The Last Battle

#3: LIGHTER WORKS # 2:

August:

15. Last Vanities by Fleur Jaeggy

September:

November:

December:

5rainpebble
Bewerkt: dec 8, 2010, 10:05 pm

4) Le SALON de FAULKNER GROUP READS

16. January: Light in August by William Faulkner
17. March: As I Lay Dying

6rainpebble
Bewerkt: dec 14, 2010, 3:48 am

5) NON-FICTION, BIOS & MEMOIRS:

18. Carrington: A Life by Gretchen Holbrook Gerzina
19. John Adams by David McCullough
20. Three Houses by Angela Thirkell
21. Pepita by Vita Sackville-West
XX. Sisters by a River by Barbara Comyns

7rainpebble
Bewerkt: dec 8, 2010, 11:18 pm

7) THE 75 BOOK GIG & INDIVIDUALLY / INDEPENDENTLY HOSTED GROUP READS:

22. The Greengage Summer by Rumer Godden; (a blog group read.)
23. World Without End by Ken Follett (hosted by msf59 on the 75 book gig)

The Prydain Chronicles by Lloyd Alexander (hosted by drneutron of the 75 gig)
24. The Book of Three
25. The Black Cauldron
26. The Castle of Llyr
27. Taran Wanderer
28. The High King

29. Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy
30. Moby Dick by the "dreaded" Herman Melville
31. The Plague by Albert Camus
32. Brat Farrar by Josephine Tey
33. The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas
34. Norwegian Wood by Haruki Murakami

_____________________________________

7. THE HIGHLY RATED BOOK GROUP:

35. Mrs. Dalloway by woolfvirginiawoolfle::Virginia Woolf (hosted by St. Richard)
36. A Separate Country by hicksrobert::Robert Hicks

8rainpebble
Bewerkt: dec 8, 2010, 11:19 pm

8) MINI-AUTHOR THEME READS;

January thru April: Joseph Roth
36. Job; the Story of a Simple Man
37. The Tale of the 1002nd Night
38. The Radetzky March
39. The Emperor's Tomb

May thru August: Junichiro Tanizaki

September thru December: ?

9rainpebble
Bewerkt: dec 14, 2010, 3:52 am

9 A.) VIRAGO:

40The Virago Book of Christmas edited by Michelle Lovric
41. Lady Audley's Secret by Mary Elizabeth Braddon
42. Trooper to the Southern Cross by Angela Thirkell
43. Frost in May by Antonia White
44. The Lost Traveler by Antonia White
45. The Sugar House by Antonia White
46. Beyond the Glass by Antonia White
47. Old New York by Edith Wharton
48. Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton
49. Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte
50. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
51. The Lifted Veil by George Eliot
52. Pepita by Vita Sackville-West
53. A Woman of My Age by Nina Bawden
54. A Nice Change by Nina Bawden
55. The Willow Cabin by Pamela Frankau
56. A Lady's Life In The Rocky Mountains by Isabella Bird (a Traveler)
{absolutely love the Travelers}
57. Charms for the Easy Life by Kaye Gibbons
58. Sisters by a River by Barbara Comyns

AND:
9 B.) ANGELA THIRKELL reads:

59. Three Houses
60. Ankle Deep
61. High Rising
62. Trooper to the Southern Cross

Loving the Thirkells. She is beyond wonderful!

I do plan to read one of these before the challenge begins on January 1st of 2010.
I want to read The Virago Book of Christmas at Christmas time and it is my challenge so I shall.

10rainpebble
Bewerkt: dec 14, 2010, 3:53 am

10) 2010 AUTHOR THEME READS: BOOKS BY: Stefan Zweig:

63. The Post-Office Girl
64. Twilight
65. Moonbeam Alley
66. Journey into the Past
67. Letter from an Unknown Woman

11rainpebble
Bewerkt: dec 14, 2010, 4:03 am

11) 10/10 CHALLENGE CATEGORY GROUP READS: PART # 1:

68. The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde
69. In A Lonely Place by Dorothy B. Hughes
70. The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas
71. Briar Rose by Jane Yolen
72. Her Fearful Symmetry by Audrey Niffenegger
73. All Other Nights by darahorn::Dara Horn
_____________________________________
12) 10/10 CHALLENGE CATEGORY GROUP READS: PART # 2:

74. Brat Farrar by Josephine Tey
75. Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery
76. Les Miserables by Victor Hugo
77. John Adams by David McCullough

12rainpebble
Bewerkt: dec 14, 2010, 4:09 am

13) GROUP READS--LITERATURE:

78. Doctor Zhivago by Boris Pasternak
79. 2666 by Roberto Bolano
80. Wives and Daughters by Elizabeth Gaskell

14) JUST BECAUSE:

81. My Abandonment by Peter Rock for my R/L B/C. (for June)
82. Tinkers by Paul Harding for my R/L B/C (for July)
83. About my Sisters by Debra Ginsberg (really liked)
84. Home by Marilynne Robinson for Orange July
85. Housekeeping by Marilynne Robinson for my R/L B/C (for September)
86. The Lace Reader by Brunonia Barry for my R/L B/C (for October)
87. The Witch's House by Charlotte Armstrong
88. Mischief by Charlotte Armstrong
89. A Reliable Wife by Robert Goolrick for my R/L B/C (for November)

13rainpebble
Bewerkt: dec 14, 2010, 4:12 am

15) MONTHLY AUTHOR READS:

January: Thomas Hardy:
90. Tess of the D'Ubervilles
91. The Return of the Native

February: Charles Dickens:
92. A Tale of Two Cities

March: Elizabeth Bowen
93. A World of Love

April: Wilkie Collins
94. The Woman in White

May: Josephine Tey
95. Brat Farrar

June: Mary Elizabeth Braddon
96. Lady Audley's Secret
July: Barbara Pym
97. No Fond Return of Love

August: Edith Wharton
98. Ethan Frome
99. Old New York

September: The Bronte Sisters; Charlotte Bronte, Emily Bronte, & Anne Bronte

100. Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte
101. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte

October: Rex Stout

November:

December:

14rainpebble
Bewerkt: sep 12, 2009, 1:34 pm

>#2
Good morning calm. It is good to be here getting organized and ready for the new year. It is good to see you as well. So nice that you are my first post.
I hope you are having a wonderful weekend and reading a good book.
hugs,
belva

15AHS-Wolfy
sep 12, 2009, 7:58 pm

Those look like some fantastic short stories you've selected. Good luck with your challenge.

16rainpebble
sep 12, 2009, 10:49 pm

Thanx Dave. I was hoping I would get to meet you soon. You are also on the Alphabet Challenge aren't you? I am so excited about that challenge. I can't wait to really dig in and get on with it. But I have spent all of today setting this thing up, digging my books out of my cases and putting them on fresh shelves so I don't have to go looking for them when the time comes. Still leaves a lot of books for my Alphabet Challenge.
Thanx for stopping by and for the luck wishes. I will see you over there.
later,
belva

17chrine
sep 13, 2009, 2:22 am

Hola Belva. What are the Four Great Russian Short Stories?

18SqueakyChu
sep 13, 2009, 9:35 am

Hi Belva,

The 101010 should be great fun. Your choices of books for next year seem to be almost opposite to ones I'd choose for myself! :)

It would be fun if we could overlap some of our religion books (depending how far back in history we go - Christianity did develop from Judaism). What is the The Torah Blessing about?

19AHS-Wolfy
sep 13, 2009, 10:15 am

Hi Belva,

The Alphabet Challenge is indeed one of my (slow moving) challenges (Good job I didn't set myself a time limit on that one). Setting up this challenge is a huge amount of fun. Had been thinking about mine for a while and ended up with a possible 14 or 15 categories before finally whittling it down to just the 10. Though I'm still not sure what my total number of books will be in each of them as while I think 100 books is a doable target for me it won't leave much room for anything else. Although the 999 and subsequently the 1010 Category challenge are my primary targets I still want to be able to continue with the other 4 challenge groups I have going as well.

20rainpebble
sep 13, 2009, 11:01 am

>#17:
chrine;
Good morning. Many of us are getting ready for this challenge, aren't we? Chomping at the old bit, so to speak.
The Four Great Russian Novels are:
First Love by Turgenev,
The Gambler by Dostoyevsky, (am hoping I can finish him this time. I have never been able to read all the way through one of his.)
Master and Man by Tolstoy and
The Duel by Chekhov
Thanks for stopping by. I'll see you on the threads,
hugs,
belva

21rainpebble
Bewerkt: sep 13, 2009, 11:22 am

>#18:
SqueakyChu;
Good morning to you my dear. Yes, the 10/10/10 should prove to be challenging and fun both. I am greatly looking forward to beginning it. I must go over and check your categories and the books you have chosen as well. I made a decision to read only from my books on hand this coming year, excepting for some group reads, and a few "must haves".
Yes, it would be fun if we could overlap our religion choices. I am a Christian by upbringing and by faith but I do carry Jewish blood within my veins. It would be fun to have a running dialog regarding our books within this category.
The Torah Blessing by Larry Huch is written by a Rabbi turned Christian. I will just share a part of the book back for you:
"Discover the jewish roots of your Christian faith with acclaimed writer and leading authority Pastor Larry Huch as he takes you on an incredible journey through the hidden truths of the Torah and God's Word. This revelation will bring the Bible to life as never before releasing mew miracles and blessings into your life, ministry, family, and finances.
Beginning with his own experience at the ruins of an ancient synagogue in Capernaum, Pastor Larry reveals many powerful spiritual truths that will connect you to the rich heritage of your faith---from Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob to Jesus.
The Torah Blessing will help you discover:
What the apostle Paul means when he teaches that believers are "grafted in". (Romans 11/17).
How the bliblical feasts hold the keys to releasing a continuous flow of covenant blessings.
Why the Sabbath is God's appointed time for connecting His people with supernatural promises.
How the Jewish prayer shawl holds the promise of "healing in His wings". (Malachi 4/2).
How Bible prophey is being fulfilled to unite Jews and Christians in these end times."
The author, Squeak, pastors at the "New Beginnings" church that I attended while I was in Texas. It sits right next to "Trinity Broadcasting". I loved the church and the way he preached. Because of his background, you get a lot of early Bible study and preaching as well as N.T. So many churches these days preach only the N.T. I like to use both as the O.T. predicts and points the way to the N.T. and the N.T. shows and proves the prophecy and fulfillment of the prophets and the Words of the O.T.
I wish there was a church like this near me but the closest one I can find is a 2 hour drive each way.
Well, my dear, I hope that answers you question.
hugs,
belva

22rainpebble
Bewerkt: sep 13, 2009, 11:35 am

>#19:
Good morning Dave.
It was tough for me to whittle down my titles. The categories rather picked themselves except for Christianity & Religion, Mysteries, and Series books. I have a lot of books about Christianity and the Bible but vastly prefer to read the Bible as to reading books about the Bible. So with this challenge I will attempt to do both. (as ~~T said to me one day, "Why not do both?") I don't (or very rarely) read the mystery genre nor do I read (or again, very rarely) any series. So these categories were tougher for me.
I love the Alphabet Challenge and it will be slow going for me as well but that is okay. It is helping me to clear my shelves and that is what I am striving for. I didn't set a time limit either. Followed your lead there. I think you will be able to manage all of your challenges. You seem pretty organized and seem to have set them up nicely for yourself.
Good luck with all of them Dave and thank you for stopping by my little thread.
Happy reading,
belva

23SqueakyChu
sep 13, 2009, 4:47 pm

Thanks for the details about the book. What church are you affiliated with at this time?

24rainpebble
sep 13, 2009, 11:28 pm

Squeak;
I haven't actually done church in church for about 2 years. I have been with the Assemblies of God for about 14 years but the past two years all of the churches within a 40 mile radius have changed pastors and so far all of them I have tried-----------I just end up going home more hungry for the Word than when I arrived. So I do a morning devotion here at home. My grandson and I do a Bible study one afternoon a week and I do mine every evening along with reading the Word and prayer. Right now it suits me better than banging my head against the wall trying to find one. I am viewing the Texas one online with live stream but it isn't the same.
We have been prepared for a "falling away", but I would just love to find a church that was a good fit for me.
Thank you for the note.
belva

25SqueakyChu
sep 14, 2009, 12:42 am

We Jews call that "shul (a Yiddish word for synagogue) shopping". In other words, trying to find a religious institution/place/home in which one feels comfortable. Good luck in your search.

26chrine
sep 14, 2009, 2:59 am

Hola Belva. Thanks. I am planning to read Dostoevsky's The Brothers Karamazov this fall. I started it for a group read than life got in the way. I have been wanting to pick it up again since then. I decided to wait until the fall because summer didn't seem like the time to read Dostoevsky. I think I will either start it on my birthday as a present to myself or after I've finished my last ER book that I haven't read and reviewed yet.

27rainpebble
sep 14, 2009, 10:26 am

>#25:
Good morning Squeak. Yup, I guess that is exactly what I am doing. Shopping for a "shul". If you find one before I do, let me know. ha ha
And thank you. I believe in hope and hopefully I will find the right place for me soon. He will guide me.
luv & hugs,

>#26:
chrine:
Hello. Ohhhhhhhhhh more Dostoevsky. He so scares me!~! But I will read him one day. At least the small one for my challenge. Also I hear really good things about The Brothers Karamazov. --BJ read it for a group read this year and I rather think she enjoyed it. It's a big one, as I recall, and may take a while. I tried him for the first time with Crime and Punishment. No, no, no, no. Don't want to begin there, I am sure.
Happy Birthday (early)!~! I am awaiting an ER book. When they come I try to drop whatever I am reading and get that read and reviewed. But sometimes I am in just too good of a book to do that and so wait until I finish.
Kids are here, gotta run.
hugs,

belva

28chrine
sep 15, 2009, 12:31 am

Hola Belva. I started The Brothers Karamazov for the same group read as BJ was doing. lol What ER are you waiting for?

29rainpebble
sep 15, 2009, 4:05 am

Hello Chrine.
I am awaiting God Ain't Blind by Mary Monroe and the only thing I know about it is that it is about an affair and that the "F" bomb is thrown around quite a bit in the book. That isn't at all what I thought it would be about when I requested it. Fooled me, huh?
When does your GP for The Brothers Karamazov end? It seems like it has been going on forever!~! But then I am not reading the book. I do wish I had signed up for that read. I think I would like to consistently like to be in a group read. I just like that I am reading a book at the same time others are and it is so nice to be able to discuss the same part at the same time.
later dayz,
belva

30chrine
sep 15, 2009, 4:32 am

Hola Belva. Oh my, that book doesn't sound good at all. This is what was on Powell's about it.

"Hilarious, raunchy soul sistahs Annette Davis and Rhoda O'Toole return in this latest wacky adventure in Monroe's God series (God Don't Play, etc.). This time, Rhoda persuades her 46-year-old BFF to have an affair since Pee Wee, Annette's husband, hasn't touched his newly svelte wife in a year. Pee Wee has cancer, but doesn't tell his wife until he's cured so she's ripe for the picking. Rhoda sees nothing wrong with discreet adultery: she's been having an affair for years with her husband Otis's best friend, Bully Bullard. Sexy caterer Louis Baines, who's 30, woos Annette with all the right moves, and Annette finds him irresistible until it turns out he's after her money. Another extreme annoyance is Rhoda's 19-year-old Naomi Campbell look-alike daughter, Jade, who wreaked havoc in Annette's life by trying to steal Pee Wee and has come home with a Mexican hottie who chickens out on marrying her. Monroe's never better than when she's writing about Annette and Rhoda, an outrageous Lucy & Ethel — style African-American comedy duo who are always getting in trouble. (Sept.)" Publishers Weekly (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.)

The group read for The Brothers Karamazov has long ended. I got slightly into it when the read started then realized I wasn't going to have the time to consistently and decently read it at that point. If you'd like to read it slowly with me this fall, I'd welcome any company. The group and threads for it are still there and we might even be able to interest some others.

31cyderry
sep 15, 2009, 10:04 am

Belva,

Don't worry about starting that Christmas one a little early. I did the same thing for 999 reading a Christmas Carol on Christmas Eve. I just told myself that my penalty was I had to finish by 9/9/09 and I did.

I had had the Mitford book on my original list this year but others got in the way. Maybe I'll figure out way to fit it in for 101010.

32rainpebble
sep 15, 2009, 11:27 am

>#30:
chrine;
I knew I should have checked out the book page or amazon before making that request. Darn it. I could ignore the "F" bomb, but it just doesn't sound like a good book, does it. Oh well, I am already committed to the reading and reviewing of it so I shall be a brave little soldier and do my duty. Then put it promptly up for give-away.
How much would I have to read to catch up with you on The Brothers Karamazov? I just may be interested. Let me know as soon as possible and I will make a quick decision, if it is a positive one I will post hastely order said book and we will be off and running. I have always wanted to read it and never have. I have started it a couple of times and just been intimidated by the size of the thing. How many pages, you say?
Let me know all the particulars. K?
hugs,
belva

33rainpebble
Bewerkt: sep 16, 2009, 1:00 pm

Cheli;
gorgeous, sweet, sweet baby. (Can I have him?)
I don't think I shall feel guilty about reading the Christmas book at Christmas time. It is the best time of year to read stories about Christmas, don't you agree?
That reminds me, I need to go over and join the "Halloween" challenge. That sounds like fun and I can use the library for that one.
Did you enjoy the Mitford Christmas story last year? I have only read the first couple, but got my mother the entire set and she reads them over and over as by the time she gets to the end, she has forgotten the first ones. hee hee. Poor mother. She woke up yesterday at 1:00 A.M. and thought it was 7:00 A.M. so she got up and got doing her daily things and finally she called me at 5:45 and asked me what was wrong-------it had been dark all day and her shows weren't on and what was wrong with the PUD. As if they could take care of that one. She thought it was 5:45 P.M. Again I say, poor thing. It is definitely time for assisted living.
Ahhhhhhhhhh sweet life. I hope when I get there, that they stick me in an opium den and kiss me good bye and just let me die happy.
later dayz,
belva

34chrine
sep 16, 2009, 2:20 am

Hola Belva

Well, I'll be looking forwards to your witty negative review of it.

I plan to start rereading The Brothers Karamazov from the beginning and I don't plan to start until Saturday at the earliest, more likely later in the month. My copy has 796 pages total and I have the Pevear/Volo translation. I am a rather slow reader and given that it's a harder book than general reading, I expect to be reading it for much of the remainder of the year, along with other books, of course. You'll probably finish well before me, which is okay. I plan to just use the 999 Challenge reading group for it to post about it, which is here: http://www.librarything.com/groups/999thebrotherskarama I'm not sure where, but I might try to put the word out in case anyone else didn't finish it in February or anyone else wants to read it.

35rainpebble
sep 16, 2009, 12:58 pm

chrine;
I don't even have the book yet. I will most likely order it today. And I am certain that I will not finish it before you as I just joined the group read of War and Peace that was begun in January and is set to end at year's end. So I will be reading 2 biggies, plus I joined the "I'll Read Yours if You Read Mine'' challenge and have a sci-fi to read for that plus I am right in the middle of my own little fluff read.
But, like you, I am all okay with being the last one done. There are just some books that are too intimidating to read alone. (The biggies)
So you and I will just be reading the year away. And then too, one never knows when life will throw a wrinkle in there and perhaps for days you don't have time to touch a book. So let's just read along and see where we end up. Okay?
And please, let's do, by all means keep in touch.
Thanks for the message.
hugs,
belva

36cyderry
Bewerkt: sep 16, 2009, 1:55 pm

#33>> Belva,

First, you CANNOT have my baby! He is just too cute and he is mine!
I will let you have a picture to brighten your day!

I have never read a Mitford story/book. I had heard about them and that was why it was on my list, but I just haven't gotten there yet.

I have The picture of Dorian Gray on my list next year too, do you want to do it together?

37rainpebble
Bewerkt: sep 17, 2009, 1:00 pm

Cheli:
Thank you for the picture on your post to me. I feel so special. He is sooooooooo darling.
I am so happy that I came by here tonight!~!
Yes, I will happily do The Picture of Dorian Gray with you next year.
Ohhhhhh, he is so precious. What is his name?
hugs,
belva

38cmbohn
sep 17, 2009, 12:59 am

He is such a cutie!

Welcome to the challenge, Belva! Are your teen books mostly rereads or new ones?

I have never read any Patricia Highsmith. Do you enjoy her books?

39chrine
sep 17, 2009, 2:57 am

Hola Belva. Ooh, two BIG ones (and many little ones). I don't know how you can do it. I'd get confused. Today has been a no reading day for me so far. I hope to get some done in bed before sleeping. I wasn't sure how fast a reader you were. Some here are super speed demons. I'm glad we're on the same wave length for reading this one.

Hola Cheli. Aww, your baby is so cute! I could just see that teddy bear's ear going right in his little wide open mouth.

40cyderry
Bewerkt: sep 17, 2009, 11:22 am

My little grandson, Jackson, is a real cutie and very well-behaved. He would never chew on a bear's ear, bunny maybe, but not a bear because he knows Nonna loves her bears.

Belva, How about we do it in January? Get started with a Classic?

** I can't believe I said that with all the trouble I had with Classics this year.**

41rainpebble
sep 17, 2009, 1:37 pm

>#40:
cyderry;
I am all good with reading The Picture of Dorian Gray in January. Getting started with a classic will be great!~! I will have to get a few pages of my "very first book of the year" under my belt first though, but I don't need to finish it or anything. I will probably start it while hubby is watching The Rose Bowl Game, etc., on New Years Day. So shall we aim for January 2nd? I promised myself that I would begin a book about Steinbeck as my first read of the year. So as long as I start that one first I will be all good to go. Sound good to you? It is huge----over 900 pages so I will be working on that one for a while. Just picking it up now and then. The Oscar Wilde I can read straight through. It's not very long so you won't have trouble with it.
I thought the baby was yours. You don't seem old enough to be a "Nonna". That is funny. You are Nonna and I am nanny. Grands are great!~! Love 'em!~!
hugs,

>#39:
chrine;
I will order my copy of The Brothers Kamarazov today along with People of the Book for that group read in November. I already have all of my books for my 10/10/10 challenge next year except for my L.T. recx category and I don't know what they will be yet. Hmmmmmmmmm, wonder what I can order to round out the order for free shipping? I will think of something. The books should be here within a week or so.
When would you like to begin or have you started already? Let me know. K?
I have been having a lot of days recently where
the only reading time I have had has been when I go to bed. And that sucks. But winter will be here soon and hopefully mother and kids will all settle in and it will be better for reading.
So----just let me know when you want to start the read. My regular thread is here:

http://www.librarything.com/topic/72987#1503074

I must be honest and say that I don't check this one daily so I had forgotten the title and even who I was reading it with. (sorry 'bout that) Thank God for Kirconnell. She put me back on the straight and narrow. hee hee.
big hug,

>#38:
cmbohn;
Good morning and thank you. Thank you for all you do. We all appreciate it!~!
My Y.A./Children's that I have chosen for this challenge are mainly new to me as I have only read one of them in it's entirety. A Little Princess I have read many times. And I have read bits and pieces of The Secret Garden, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and The Adventures of Tom Sawyer. The others are all totally new and fresh for me.
Regarding Patricia Hightower; the only book I have read of hers is The Talented Mr. Ripley and I enjoyed it tremendously. She is another troubled author and I find her fascinating. I have a bio on her that I will probably read after I finish her series.
I am very excited for this particular 10/10/10 challenge as a great many of the books I have chosen for the year will come off my shelves and go bye bye and make room for those in boxes, bags, and piles all over the house. So a new year and a cleansing of some books that have been on my shelves unread for waaaay too long.
You have a great day and again thank you for setting these up. We all enjoy them so.
hugs,

belva

42cyderry
sep 17, 2009, 6:43 pm

Okay,, first week in January it is. I'll put a note on the group read thread in case anyone else wants to join us.

43ivyd
sep 17, 2009, 6:52 pm

>36 cyderry: Cheli, your grandson is absolutely adorable!

>The Picture of Dorian Gray: I really loved that book when I read it many, many years ago. I wonder if I still would... maybe I'll join you for a re-read...

44ivyd
Bewerkt: sep 17, 2009, 6:53 pm

Sorry, I double posted.

45rainpebble
Bewerkt: sep 17, 2009, 7:38 pm

>#42:
Cheli;
That sounds absolutely great. Perfect timing.
Is there an actual "group read" thread? I didn't know.
I also want to do an Edna Ferber group read sometime next year. Someone mentioned a book by her on their thread and I realized I had forgotten all about Ferber. Now, how does that happen? She is totally an American icon and classic author!~!
hugs,

>#44:
ivyd;
It is very nice to meet you. And we would absolutely love it if you wished to join us for The Picture of Dorian Gray. Oscar Wilde is always worth a reread. It is a re, re, re, reread for me as well. The more the merrier.
later dayz,
belva

46rainpebble
sep 22, 2009, 12:18 pm

I have added 2 bonus categories to my 10/10/10 challenge just to satisfy my reading desires for the year. I think it will still leave me plenty of time for group reads and spur of the moment grabs.

47elliepotten
sep 26, 2009, 9:29 am

47 messages already, Belva?! I think I'm going to join in over here in 2010 - though I'm going for the stepladder approach rather than the 100 books. But you never know, 2010 will be our first full year in the bookshop so I might get more reading done than ever before!

48chrine
sep 30, 2009, 10:38 pm

Hola Belva. Ugh, this is the first time I've been on LT since the 17th. Ugh, I think I'm went through withdrawal. My husband was sick last week and I had to help a friend move and she was seriously underprepared to move. Ugh. I did manage to get half of The Heart is a Lonely Hunter read, which I like more than I thought I would. Have you started TBK? I have not yet. But I'm determined to start in on it this fall. I just got delayed. I have not bit off too much to chew, I am determined! Psyching myself up for the book. lol

49rainpebble
Bewerkt: okt 2, 2009, 2:50 am

No rush, chrine. I am in the midst of a War and Peace group read that I am waaaaaaaaaay behind on and attempting to do the Halloween reads (just some of them) with that group so am half way through Dracula and it is Banned Books Week so I am cramming in as many of those as I can.
I do have my book now though so whenever you are ready; just say one, two, three--------------GO!~! And I am all over The Brothers Karamazov. Okay?
I would at least like to get this week under my belt first though. So say at least after Monday. Okay with you?
Just let me know my dear. It sounds like you have been really busy and I have been spending a lot of time at the hospital with my niece so I will leave it up to you. If you want to wait until after the first of the year that is good too. Pretty much just whatever after Monday.
big hugs,
belva

50clfisha
okt 6, 2009, 9:24 am

Hi Belva, Love the John Steinbeck category. I am planning to read much more of him this year (inspired by a visit to the Steinbeck museum), the Journal of a Novel: The East of Eden Letters sounds really interesting. Thanks for the tip.

51rainpebble
okt 6, 2009, 6:13 pm

Claire;
Beautiful name; Claire.
I didn't know there was a Steinbeck museum. Where is it? In the valley? Oh, but would I not love to see that. Do you have pictures? You will have to tell me about it sometime. Feel free to P.M. me at any time.
I read everything I can get my hands of or about John Steinbeck and it is great to learn of another fan of his.
I am very happy to meet you Claire and I hope we will have the opportunity to chat again soon.
Enjoy your reading.
belva

52chrine
okt 30, 2009, 2:00 am

Hola Belva. I have no been on LT since Oct 2. I have been having withdrawal. =) I haven't even finished a book this month yet. (I have two days left still.) So yeah. The Brothers Karamazov. I have no idea where it stands. (I've had to move it to a lovely prominent place on the bookshelf by my desk. It kept staring at me and giving me the worst guilt trip.) I did have the best of intentions to start reading a book here and there because just because I wanted to. Little did I know that I would not be reading much at all. I figure it is best to tell you straight up that I have no idea when I will be reading it and that I did not mean to lead you on. (I know you will be forgiving.) Because it is a lovely book and now we own it and it will get read sometime. Actually, you'll probably start reading it at some point, then I'll see you reading it and start it. Looking forward to seeing what you're reading as I catch up on the threads over the next few days.

53rainpebble
nov 1, 2009, 1:47 am

Hello chrine;
I have not been on here much either. Life has rather gotten in the way, but it happens. I do not intend to begin reading The Brothers Karamazov until after the first of the year. I want to get the holidays behind me first. Will that work for you? And it's not a have to at that point. I am content to wait until you are ready. So let's just wait and see how it plays out but I won't begin without letting you know and talking to you. Okay?
big hug and I hope you are doing well.
xoxo,
belva

54chrine
nov 13, 2009, 10:29 pm

Hola Belva
It has been hectic lately but I am doing good. It's beginning to settle again currently. My years seem cyclic like that. Super busy then nice normal routine in turns. I do think January/February would be a good time to consider TBK again. Plus then we can count it for our 1010s.

55mathgirl40
nov 14, 2009, 7:03 am

Hey, nannybebette and chrine, I have The Brothers Karamazov on my 1010 list too. Would love to join you in January/February if you're starting then. I'll keep an eye on this thread.

56chrine
nov 16, 2009, 2:09 am

We would love to have you, mathgirl. I'm sure we'll post the read in the group reads thread too once we settle on a timeframe.

57RosyLibrarian
dec 9, 2009, 11:04 am

Hi Belva!

I just wanted to say that I was particularly interested in your Biography category. For one of my categories I'm reading Hollywood biographies and you've inspired me to perhaps add Frank Sinatra's to the list. Right now I just have Ginger Roger's and Fred Astaire's, so Mr. Sinatra would really round things out. Good luck in your challenge!

58rainpebble
jan 4, 2010, 11:32 pm

Hi everyone. I guess I haven't been over here for a while.
Have begun 3 group reads to start my year off and will start another on the 15th.
1. Les Miserables
2. The Greengage Summer
3. Doctor Zhivago and on the 15th
4. World Without End

Am not rushing through any of them. I haven't even read quite 200 pages yet this year, but there has been an awful lot going on with the passing of my father-in-law and family company since the 17 of December. They will be leaving early Thursday A.M.
Will get back with you all on TBK. K?
hugs,
belva

59cmbohn
jan 5, 2010, 8:23 pm

Take your time, Belva. The books can wait.

60juliette07
jan 6, 2010, 12:23 pm

We will still be here watching out for you! Take care x

61rainpebble
jan 11, 2010, 7:10 pm

And the good times just keep rolling here at the Hull-Pendergrass estate!~!
3 days after my f-i-l's service I spent the entire day in E.R. with my mother. She is agreeable now that at 91 years of age, she should no longer live alone. We would like for her to come and stay with us until she decides where she wants to settle, but she is dragging her feet. So belva is spending most of the time I am not doing child care, down at my mother's.
Saturday after watching our lab, (who turned 1 November 24th), take forever to get up and then hop on her hind feet, we took her to the Veterinary Animal Hospital. And yes, even at just 1 yr of age, she has hip dysplasia and her knee joints are extremely inflamed. $10,000.00 in U.S.D. for the hip replacements; the vet opted for medical intervention and then perhaps surgery to remove the top of the ball of her hip joint, if necessary. Dear hubby and and the Dr. Fay, (who also has a yellow lab and has been Abby's vet since birth), were all in tears. So she gets a shot every Wed. and Sat. and three medications daily. She is not so crazy about the fish oil that we must put on her food and has stopped eating. We figure that when she gets hungry enough, she will eat it. It is strange. One day she was getting up and moving fine and within 3 days she was at the Vet's.
On a lighter note; I am now a great grandmother. Our 23 year old grand daughter, Erin, gave birth evening before last to a beautiful bouncing baby girl. Weighing in at 8 lbs. 1 oz and 19 inches long, she is just a bundle of joy!~! So go to my profile page and please meet little Maidsen Lena. She has strawberry blonde curly/wavy hair and is lovely. Great nanny is not proud at all. Also any of you who can bust into my facebook act, she is there also Under me, her Auntie Haley, her mommie, Erin and perhaps her Auntie Rachel.
I feel like I did it myself.
Now..................back to the group read of Doctor Zhivago!~!
hugs,
belva

62DeltaQueen50
jan 11, 2010, 7:17 pm

Belva, sorry to hear about difficulties with your Mom. I know it's so hard when you have to step in and make decisions for a parent. Also sorry about your dog, that's a hard one to deal with. You've just had so much on your plate the last few months.

But of course, congrats on the newest member of your family, she looks like an angel. Perhaps this will change things around and good luck will start shining through to you and yours.

63sjmccreary
jan 11, 2010, 8:53 pm

Congratulations on the new baby! Just the thing to lighten the load you've had to bear lately. She is just as sweet as can be!

64tymfos
jan 11, 2010, 9:43 pm

What a sweet, sweet baby! With all the other things you're going through, I'm glad for you to have such a sweet bundle of joy come into your life and family!

65thomasandmary
jan 11, 2010, 10:51 pm

Belva,
Congratulations on the great-grand baby! She is lovely. May she bring joy and blessings.
Regina

66vestafan
jan 12, 2010, 11:58 am

Belva

Happy New Year and congratulations on your great granddaughter's arrival. It sounds as if you've been having rather a time of it lately - I can identify with what you say about reading being your 'safe place' - it's temporarily taken me out of some stressful situations in the past year or two.

It sounds as if you've got plenty to read, but I was wondering if you'd ever tried any of the No 1 Ladies Detective Agency books by Alexander McCall Smith - they're very gentle books where the major characters are very human but essentially good. I'm reading Teatime for the Traditionally Built at the moment.

Take care and enjoy the new arrival.

67rainpebble
jan 15, 2010, 10:29 pm

DeltaQueen50;
Hello and thank you for your kindness, concern and congrats. We have had to deal with a lot of recent but God is good and I love my life. He has given me the grace to deal with whatever comes my way. Occasionally I stumble, but there is always someone to pick me up and help me on my way again. I have found a lot of those someones right here on L.T. and I treasure each and every one of those acquaintances and friendships.
Our new baby is a doll. Erin (mommy) says she is only getting up 3 times at night. WOW, I say!~!

sjmccreary;
You hit the nail right on the head. Babies can cure a lot of troubles. And the entire family is focusing on the good things in our lives; such as having Pa as long as we did, mother's general health being so very good at 91. I take more meds than she does, for Pete's sake.
Yup, little Madisen Lena is our angel and just the thought of her makes all of us smile.

tymfos;
Hi there. She is sweet and the timing was perfect. She was 2 weeks early and still weighed in at 8 lbs, 1 oz. Into each life a little rain must fall but He always sends sunshine after the rain.

thomasandmary;
Hello and thank you. We think so too.
When I get low, as we all do at times, I like to remember this one:

Rainbows after the Rain

Whatever your cross,
whatever your pain,
there will always be sunshine,
after the rain ….

Perhaps you may stumble,
perhaps even fall,
But God’s always ready,
To answer your call …

He knows every heartache,
sees every tear,
A word from His lips,
can calm every fear …

Your sorrows may linger,
throughout the night,
But suddenly vanish,
in dawn’s early light …

The Savior is waiting,
somewhere above,
To give you His grace,
and send you His love ..

Whatever your cross,
whatever your pain,
“God always sends rainbows ….
after the rain.

Believe me, it helps.
Thank you so much for the congrats.

vestafan;
Hello. Thank you as well for your congrats.
Reading is great therapy and I have used it as such since I was 5 and began to read. Sometimes it completely takes me away; sometimes it simply gives me a respite but I am always grateful that I have a book nearby.
And I am thankful for you that it has helped you out as well. We all have circumstances come into our lives that we can use a break or get-away from and it is not always possible to get away literally. But the books can get us out of that moment and into another place for a time.
I have not read any of the Alexander McCall
Smith No 1 Ladies Detective Agency books. Sounds interesting. I may need to try them. Sometimes, though I love her, I get tired of running back to Anne of Green Gables. Does one need to read them in order? I will check into the library and see if I can put one on hold to try out.
Thank you so much for your good wishes, congrats, and soothing words. They mean more than you could know.

And that goes for all of you.
Thank you all for stopping by. I appreciate it so very much.
big L.T. hug,
belva

68elliepotten
jan 16, 2010, 9:35 am

What a lovely poem, Belva - and what a lovely baby! Even though it's been a rough few months for you, it's inspiring and heartwarming how you always seem to come through it with a deep sigh and a little smile... I do hope 2010 only gets better for you from now on, xxx

69rainpebble
jan 21, 2010, 11:44 am

thank you sweetie.

70rainpebble
Bewerkt: feb 4, 2010, 4:06 pm

I just finished In a Lonely Place. Some call it pulp fiction, some call it noir fiction; whatever it is I enjoyed it a great deal. An easy rather formulaic read but that's okay this time because I liked it. Man meets girl; man falls in love with girl; man meets trouble; girl falls in love with man; man loses grip due to troubles; man loses girl. Just a good, solid, quick read. In fact I enjoyed it so much that I think I need to acquire more pulp/noir fiction books for those days when I need a quick and easy but interesting read. Rather reminded me of a film noir movie, and I love those old B & Ws.
belva

71VictoriaPL
feb 4, 2010, 4:26 pm

I'm glad you enjoyed In a Lonely Place. Have you seen the film adaptation of it starring Humphrey Bogart?

72rainpebble
feb 5, 2010, 1:50 am

No, I have not. But if Bogey is in it I would think it would be good. Does he play the writer or the Gumshoe cop? Do you recall who played the love interest? I will have to see if I can rent it. I really like those old B & W films.
Did you enjoy the book and was the movie better or worse?
Thank you for stopping by.
belva

73cmbohn
feb 5, 2010, 1:01 pm

I meant to ask, why the name change?

74VictoriaPL
feb 5, 2010, 2:35 pm

>72 rainpebble: Hi Belva,
Bogie plays the writer. I did enjoy the book. The book and the movie are different, just be prepared for that.

75rainpebble
feb 11, 2010, 5:26 pm

>#73:
cmbohn;
I found out what my Native American name is and I liked it a lot so I changed my user name to that. I am 1/16 Cherokee on my father's side and have some Souix on my mother's side of the family. Anyhoo, that's why I did it. I just like it.
Thanx for popping by,
belva

76rainpebble
feb 11, 2010, 5:31 pm

This is my first book in my bonus category of "Africa".
The Story of an African Farm by Olive Schreiner:
My thoughts and comments:

I found it to be more of an essay than a story for the most part. I loved it. It speaks to the very heart and soul of mankind.
The story takes place in South Africa on a sheep farm. The main characters are three children, two young girls and one young boy, the overseer and the Boer owner of the farm. There are interactions, of course amongst the characters and the little boy I especially warmed up to. But most of the prose is the thought processes of these characters and a lot of it is very soul searching with a lot of depth.
Here is just one quote out of the very, very many I would love to share:

"They say that in the world to come time is not measured out by months and years. Neither is it here. The soul's life has seasons of it's own; periods not found in any calendar, times that years and months will not scan, but which are as deftly and sharply cut off from one another as the smoothly arranged years which the earth's motion yields us.
To stranger eyes these divisions are not evident; but each, looking back at the little track his consciousness illuminates, sees it cut into distinct portions, whose boundaries are the termination of mental states.
As man differs from man, so differ these souls' years. The most material life is not devoid of them; the story of the most spiritual is told in them. And it may chance that some, looking back, see the past cut out after this fashion"

I was quite drawn in to this little novel and I am sure that it will not be long before I read this one again.
belva

77rainpebble
feb 19, 2010, 10:51 pm

"Twilight" by Stefan Zweig

My thoughts and comments:

"Twilight" by Stefan Zweig is a wonderful short story about a woman who has for all practical intents and purposes ran the court of the King of France. It is based on the true life of Madame de Prie. It is not a pretty story but I am finding that Zweig writes nothing but great stories.
Madame de Prie is asked by the King to leave court and expels her to her country estate. I don't believe we ever truly find out the reason she falls out of favor unless it has to do with one of her lovers at court, the Duke of Bourbon, who is likewise dismissed from his duties as prime minister in charge the affairs of state.
At any rate, Madame de Prie finds living in the country and away from court to be unbearable and this is the story of her state of mind throughout her exile to her death.
It is not a pretty story, but it is a wonderfully written one and one I highly recommend.
belva

78rainpebble
feb 19, 2010, 10:55 pm

Les Miserables by Victor Hugo

My thoughts and comments:

I finished Les Miserables as part of the Le Salon group read yesterday morning and, (attempting to keep it spoiler free), yes, this is indeed a book that I loved and will read again over the years. Hugo has a way about writing that almost made me feel like he was attempting to lure my head from the story at times, but if so, he sadly failed. He tends to do what my mum calls "going off on a tangent". He gets caught up in a netherwind and is off and running with it for a while but then here he brings it back to the story line and yes, it usually had some little/big something to do with one or the other of the characters, including Paris.
By the way, this is the best book with Paris as the backdrop that I have ever read.
So I really liked it; I cared very much about most of the characters. I think that the only character I actually detested was Thenardier. I liked how Hugo built his characters so they were multifacted and layered and not just one dimensional. And he took the time to do it, which not all authors do; sometimes all parts of a character are described at once. But not here. Here, we actually got to see the growth (to the bad or the good) of the characters.
Thank you Le Salon, for organizing this read. For me, it was a reading experience of a lifetime for me. I highly recommend Victor Hugo's Les Miserables.
belva

79elliepotten
feb 20, 2010, 11:01 am

I hope I end up loving The Count of Monte Cristo as much as you liked Les Miserables. Then there's the Three Musketeers trilogy to read, and The Hunchback of Notre Dame, and the Scarlet Pimpernel novels... :-)

80juliette07
feb 20, 2010, 11:03 am

Bravo Belva - great comments. Well done you - a reading experience of a lifetime - that is some accolade!

81rainpebble
feb 20, 2010, 2:28 pm

I loved it. Just when things began to drag for me, something most interesting & plot guiding would enter the scene..
And I am finding The Count of Monte Cristo and The Three Musketeers to be wonderful also. Is there a group read for The Hunchback of Notre Dame? If so, I missed it somehow. But I am ready for The Scarlet Pimpernel when it comes time.
Thank you lovely ladies for stopping by. I do appreciate it. Wonderful to "see" you.
hugs,
belva

82cmbohn
feb 20, 2010, 7:21 pm

I never finished The Three Musketeers, but I *loved, loved, loved* The Scarlet Pimpernel.

83rainpebble
feb 21, 2010, 8:13 pm

Oh good; re: The Scarlet Pimpernel. Glad to hear that. And I am enjoining The Three Musketeers thus far and loving 2666. It is very different. I think I am liking everything I am reading right now since I dumped Clarel and Paradise Lost. But hopefully I will be able to pick them up one day again and enjoy them. I am not even minding Moby Dick this time around since I only have to read 100 pages per month.
catcha later & thanx for popping by,
belva

84petermc
Bewerkt: feb 21, 2010, 8:40 pm

If I were to rank my favourite books (fiction), then The Three Musketeers would be number one. I would also very highly recommend the sequels to the "d'Artagnan Romances", i.e. Twenty Years After and The Vicomte de Bragelonne.

As for The Scarlet Pimpernel, the 1982 film adaption, starring Anthony Andrews as Sir Percy Blakeney (aka The Scarlet Pimpernel), is superb. Anthony Andrews was also brilliant in another all-time personal favourite - the TV serial "Brideshead Revisited" (1981), in which he plays the role of Sebastian Flyte.

85juliette07
feb 22, 2010, 2:38 am

Oh - Brideshead Revisited - a favourite book and a memorable TV serial - loved it and the title music was so very apt!!

86elliepotten
feb 22, 2010, 10:17 am

Ah, see, I saw the television series with Richard E. Grant as Sir Percy... I had the most wonderful crush on him, with those amazing blue green eyes. I think I was an early bloomer in that sense - I was only about 8!

87rainpebble
feb 28, 2010, 10:05 pm

>#84:
Hello Peter;
Long time, no talk. How is your reading going? I really need to hit your thread. I hit maybe 2 or 3 a month. But I am getting my reading done so I guess it's a good thing. Are you still reading non-fiction? I used to get a lot of recx from you when I "was" reading threads. It was good.
Nice to hear your rec of The Three Musketeers. I am certainly enjoining the four of them thus far. And I did note your recx for the sequels to the "d'Artagnan Romances", i.e. Twenty Years After and The Vicomte de Bragelonne. I have them listed in my TBR notebook and on my "shopping/mooching" list.
re: "As for The Scarlet Pimpernel, the 1982 film adaption, starring Anthony Andrews as Sir Percy Blakeney (aka The Scarlet Pimpernel), is superb. Anthony Andrews was also brilliant in another all-time personal favourite - the TV serial "Brideshead Revisited" (1981), in which he plays the role of Sebastian Flyte." Do you think the film adaptation and TV serial are better than the books?
Thank you and I hope all is well with you and yours.

>#85:
Hello Julie;
Well, I guess that really answers that one question I had for Peter. Good to "see" you. Hope things are well in hand for you and that you are reading something great.

>#86:
Guess I need to watch & read them, hm?
How is our miss ellie? I hope all is well with you, sis, mum & dad, and the shop as well.

Thanx to all for stopping by and hugs to all,
belva

88rainpebble
Bewerkt: feb 28, 2010, 10:52 pm

My Name is Red by Orhan Pamuk

My thoughts and comments:

At about 100-150 pages in I was ready to put this one down but I am so thankful that I did not.
The book is written in many short chapters; all in the first person of one of the characters and there are quite a few characters. It took me a while to figure out what the book was actually about and it turns out to be an Ottoman era whodunit. The characters are all clearly drawn out and Orhan Pamuk gives the reader time to get to know them, but do we "really" know them? He lays out what drives them, but do we "really" know them? We know them well enough to understand why they do what they do and why they react the way they do, but do we really "know" them?
The story is set in Istanbul and is about the world of the master miniaturists & calligraphers who work on books for the Sultan, who then locks them away from the world in a treasury. It is about jealousy, greed, religion, love and murder.
My Name is Red took me a few days to read and I did read some other works before I picked it up again. Things made a lot more sense at that point. I guess I just needed a cooling off period.
I highly recommend this read but for some of you.......give yourself time to "get into it". I needed to. Enjoy.
(I think I need to re-read The Name of the Rose)
belva

89rainpebble
feb 28, 2010, 11:43 pm

2666 by Roberto Bolano

My thoughts and comments:

This is a very difficult book to review. There are actually five books in one and very little to link them to one another. Bolano wanted them published separately but as they were published posthumously he didn't have much say after all.
I first checked the book out of the library and when I began to read it, I found myself reaching for a pen and highlighter as there was just so much that I wanted to follow up on. Well, you just cannot deface a public library book so I took it back to the library and went to my favorite independent bookshop and shelled out thirty bucks for my own copy so I could deface it.
On the book, as a whole, I have really mixed emotions and thoughts. All but one of the books I really liked, but the fourth book I did not care for at all. I think it just held too much violence for me. I loved the last book and it did kind of bring things together for me.
I do guardedly (because of the violence) recommend this book. It is very well written. The characters that I cared about, I cared deeply about. The ones I cared not for, I truly cared not a whig about them. But I will be looking for more Bolano books to read as well as a good bio on him. I have a feeling he was a fascinating man.
belva

90rainpebble
feb 28, 2010, 11:49 pm

The Tale of the 1002nd Night by Joseph Roth

My thoughts and comments:

Well, I finished The Tale of the 1002nd Night by Joseph Roth and thanx to alexdaw's wonderful summary of the book I will just share my feelings and thoughts.
I didn't care for the book at all. This is my first negative "review" of a book this year. Reading it, I felt as though it was somehow disjointed. It felt as though it jumped from here to there and I didn't care about any of the characters other than Zenower and he wasn't a major player until near the end. I cared so little about the characters that I didn't even care about what happened to them. The pearls were much more interesting to me.
Sorry Mr. Roth.
My next Joseph Roth will be The Radetzky March as soon as it arrives as it is in transit through my library. I hope I like it better.
belva

91petermc
mrt 1, 2010, 8:18 am

#87 Belva - Yep! Still reading NF - almost exclusively! So when I see your review of 2666, I look over at my copy on the shelf, full in the knowledge that, as a work of fiction, it has my lowest priority and will likely remain unread for a very long time (if it's ever read at all!).

As to whether those film adaptations are as good as the novels... Well, personally I don't think any book can be truly successful on the big (or small) screen if it is 100% faithful to the book. They are two very different mediums, so I expect some artistic license by the screen writer and director; and I do believe, in the case of these two books, they have done a great job! Unfortunately, I've yet to see a good film adaptation of The Three Musketeers.

Feel free to pop by any time, you can always find me at home, deep within the bowels of Conflict Castle. I'm on a mission to read the BIG books in 2010, so my reading rate is very low. At the moment I'm focusing on the Vietnam War, and the life and times of Winston Churchill.

92elliepotten
Bewerkt: mrt 4, 2010, 10:48 am

Hi Belva!

All is going well over here in Book End-land, thank you... I'm just here, reading as much as possible and trying VERY hard to be nice to the customers! I've had a couple of nice 'weekends' (Tuesdays and Wednesdays) off reading fluff and eating far too much as usual, but in the meantime Bakewell is getting busier and the sun is sneaking out every now and again to brighten everyone's spirits. Plus there's a really nice man called James who runs the National Hawking Centre nearby, who brings a few owls and hawks every weekend to a display right outside our shop door, which is bringing in more business! To my utter delight, in return for 'babysitting' the owls while he moves his car, and plying him with coffee and questions on these cold days, he's offered to take me out on one of their falconry days, FREE! Sometimes it really pays to be nice... :-)

Hope all is good with you! xx

93rainpebble
mrt 5, 2010, 1:04 am

If any of you would like to see a picture of my brother with his three gorgeous daughters, (mom was taking the picture), I have changed my profile picture to show them for a few days. He lives in Alaska and I haven't seen him in a couple of years and was just missing him so I hung him up on my profile page. hee hee
belva

94elliepotten
mrt 6, 2010, 6:22 am

What a lovely picture!

95rainpebble
Bewerkt: mrt 7, 2010, 10:37 pm

Why, thank you miss ellie. I think so too. And Mike & Linda's girls are as beautiful inside as they are outside. Vera has 2 girls and a little boy, Mary has a little girl and Barbie is childless at this point but in a long term relationship and is a workaholic. She is a professional photographer and does a lot of weddings. She has even been flown to Europe to do weddings.
If you are interested in seeing some of her work, just go to:

www.barbiehull.com

She has done some beautiful work.
xoxo
luvs n hugs,
belva

96rainpebble
mrt 7, 2010, 11:03 pm

The Privileges by Jonathan Dee

My thoughts and comments:

This is the story of a wealthy family in which the father works for a very influential brokerage firm and makes very good money. However Adam is not challenged by his work. Everything comes too easy for him. So he finds an associate, (who finds other associates), and begins insider trading and the whole intrigue of it is quite exciting to him.

excerpt:
Adam: "Devon, (the associate), "you're going in to work today, right?"
He fingered his suit. "Some of us have to," he said.
"Well, when you do, just take a minute and look around you at everyone else in that office, everyone you work for, everyone who works for you. All of them with their fingers crossed, all of them so afraid that if getting some kind of inside information meant never seeing you again they would make that trade in a heartbeat. I think I know what you think of those people. But you are not one of them. You are Superman. You are a fucking gangster. The day we go back to feeling safe from risk is the day you can no longer look at them and say to yourself that there's any difference between them and you. Are you really ready to go back to that? Are you really ready to go back to reading bullshit quarterly reports and trying to use those to figure out how the world works? It's no kind of life, leaving your future in the hands of forces that have nothing to do with you and calling them fate or luck or whatever. And there is only this life, dude. I don't want to get all mystical on you, but this is the only life we get, and either you leave your mark on it or it's like you were never here."

His wife, Cynthia is an at-home mom who does volunteer work in her spare time.
They have a teen aged son and daughter who are both very smart and well behaved children.
Then their world changes. The owner and boss of the firm Adam works for decides he wants to retire and gift the firm to Adam. Adam thinks about this and what it will mean to his life and his "side job" and decides to decline, wanting everything to stay the same.
Shockingly the firm owner becomes very angry at Adam for what he sees as treachery and fires him immediately.
Now Adam really has to ponder this situation as it changes everything possibly even more than his taking over the firm would have.
He decides to stop the insider trading immediately and informs his "associate". There is a little anger and resentment there. He also decides to come clean with his wife, Cynthia, who is immediately concerned about the fact that they have all these millions of dollars in offshore accounts and now Adam has no job and no way of explaining their lifestyle should it become necessary to deal with the S.E.C.
A lot of things begin to happen from this point forward with Adam, Cynthia and both of their children. Needless to say things change immensely, but perhaps not how you think they will.
I found this book very interesting and somewhat plausible. I did think that the author wrapped it up too quickly. But it was pretty good for a quick and easy read.
belva

97rainpebble
mrt 9, 2010, 8:03 pm

Midnight's Children finally arrived today and I just finished Job: The Story of a Simple Man by Joseph Roth, which was a wonderful story, so now I begin my first Rushdie for the 75 book gig G/R hosted by Mark.
later dayz,
belva

98rainpebble
Bewerkt: mrt 17, 2010, 3:27 pm

Well, it has been a while. I made it half way through the Mark's G/R of Midnight's Children and put it back to bed on the shelf. I just was not appreciating nor enjoying the read. Same with Infinite Jest excepting I gave that one up on about page 80. I just was not getting it. Se la vie...............or however you put it.

I did finish a beautiful biography on Dora Carrington entitled Carrington: A Life by Gretchen Holbrook Gerzina. This book was a wonderful study of a fascinating woman who lived on the cusp of the "Bloomsbury Group"; not quite within but not quite without. She was a painter and did mainly stills that are quite different but beautiful. She spent her adult life loving and in love with Lytton Strachey, who was a homosexual. He loved her madly as well, but not romantically. And they continued those feelings right to the end.
She did marry but felt very coerced into it. And she had affairs; one of which was with another woman. But I don't believe that she was a lesbian. She just love Strachey so much and couldn't have him romantically. They did share a house and it was quite an open house with other artists & "Bloomsburies" coming and going at all times.
If you like bios of artists of any kind and are not turned off by the homosexual aspect (which I was not), I think you would like/love this book.

99rainpebble
Bewerkt: mrt 23, 2010, 6:35 pm

I just completed the 1276 page Tome of Alexandre Dumas entitled The Count of Monte Cristo. I tried to follow the reading calendar for this G/R, but could not. I simply had to continue reading through to the finish. I do no believe I have washed my dishes since the end of last week!~! :-(
But what Ho!~! What a piece of literature! What a book! I know that generally speaking I love my books more than most people I "know" and certainly more than most people who "know" me. I loved loving this book. I read and read every day until the letters all blurred together and I seemed half-blind. Everything was blurry. When they cleared up, I was right back to it.
The "count" is an unbelievable hero except in this book. I wanted to believe that he was capable of doing and in fact did all the things they spoke of in the book. My one and only disappointment was his "love life" & how that part of the book ended. But it made sense within the book that it was indeed the proper "love" ending for The Count of Monte Cristo.
(5 of 5)
And since continuing on with this one has set me so far behind on my G/Rs anyway, I am going to selfishly grab a Virago, Pepita, (a recent rec for me) and kick back and enjoy it at my leisure.
Good Reading all.

100AHS-Wolfy
mrt 24, 2010, 8:45 am

I do like the story of The Count of Monte Cristo but I've never read the book. *hangs head in shame* At 1100 pages (for the version I have) it's just too much to take on right now especially when I have a few other chunksters set for this years challenge. I've read Stephen Fry's modern retelling, The Stars' Tennis Balls, and seen a few big and small screen adaptations and pretty much enjoyed every single one of them. The anime version, Gankutsuou, being my favourite. Anyway, I'm glad you liked it so much.

101rainpebble
mrt 26, 2010, 6:30 pm

I did. Can't quite get it all out of my head, though I am enjoying Pepita. I am almost finished with that one and then it back to the G/Rs.
Thanx for popping by.

102rainpebble
mrt 27, 2010, 6:46 pm

I finished Pepita last night and I really enjoyed this read. It is by Vita Sackville-West and I have yet to find a book by her that I do not care love. There is just something about this author that I am really taken with!~!
Pepita is a memoir to/about her maternal grandmother, Pepita, and her mother, Victoria. I found it to be well written & though it does skip back and forth throughout the book, that only enhanced it for me. I found the women fascinatingly eccentric and I really liked them. The men were kind of just along for the ride, but then again it is a memoir of the women and the important things in the lives of the men ARE reported in the book. Sackville-West is very careful to let the reader know where she found her information and I liked that about the book as well.
I would probably give this one a 4 out of 5.
Thank you DeadFred for the rec!~!

103jfetting
mrt 28, 2010, 8:07 pm

Belva - I just managed to get caught up with your thread and what a fantastic set of books you've read so far this year! I am awed. And I share your view of Midnight's Children - so not all that.

Somewhere upthread I saw a mention of Anthony Andrews - I too loved him in Brideshead and was thrilled to see him playing Boy in the BBC version of Love in a Cold Climate! He was perfect.

104rainpebble
Bewerkt: mrt 29, 2010, 12:59 am

Oohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh, I didn't even realize that they had made a movie of the book. I will have to find & rent it. I am excited though. My therapist recommended The Hours video to me
So I hit Amazon.com & ordered it. Can not wait for it to arrive.
Well, haven't read much today nor yesterday. Yesterday we took Abby to the Vet and met our family for a 4:00 luncheon. And Friday, Saturday & today has been the annual Timber Tourney for which semi-pro basket ball player come from all over to compete and one sees some really good ball played. Plus there was a House marathon on the U.S.A. channel and that is one of the two show that I watch. I am really pathetic. So tomorrow it is back on to The Three Musketeers, which is so very good.
Thanx for popping by.
belva

105rainpebble
Bewerkt: apr 1, 2010, 8:14 pm

Just completed The Three Musketeers. I quite enjoyed it. An easy & relative quick read for the length of it. I didn't realize that The Count of Monte Cristo & The Three Musketeers were serialized in the papers originally and that that is when Alexandre Dumas came into his "hay-day". Nor did I realize that a lot of The Three Musketeers is fact-based until I got into it. I really like Dumas & his style. He writes a really good villian/villianess. Milady was quite something & her ending was way too kind for the life she led.
I have now begun Journey Into the Past by Stefan Zweig as part of the "Author of the Year Theme Reads". I have fallen in love with his writing. It sounds as if he didn't come into his own until the 70s. But, if you have not, y'all should try him. He is very good.
Happy reading all & later dayz,
belva

106rainpebble
Bewerkt: apr 2, 2010, 2:23 pm

Last night I read Journey Into the Past by Stefan Zweig, a lovely novella about 2 people meeting in peacetime. One is available, the other is not. Then they are separated by business but write & make plans to see each other again one day. Then comes "The Great War" & the gentleman is stuck where he is so it is a very long nine years before they see each other again.
The story is not just about love & loving, but about hope & hopelessness, about drive and ambition, about simple human kindness.
If you've not read Stefan Zweig, please do something really nice for yourself and read a piece of his work. It doesn't have to be this particular one. They are all lovely.
belva

dog-gone touchstones!~!

107rainpebble
Bewerkt: apr 2, 2010, 4:26 pm

Dit bericht is door zijn auteur gewist.

108rainpebble
Bewerkt: apr 2, 2010, 4:32 pm

Dit bericht is door zijn auteur gewist.

109jfetting
apr 3, 2010, 12:34 pm

Journey into the Past sounds wonderful. Is it included in a collection, or can I find it on its own? I'm so glad that the Author Theme Group picked Zweig this year. I'd never read him before, and I've yet to read something I haven't liked from him.

110rainpebble
apr 5, 2010, 7:44 am

Me too, Dr. fetting!~! My copy of Journey into the Past is a single volume but is a very slim one, so it might also be included in some of his collections. Most of his works are quite slim. I have been impressed by & loved all of his works that I have read this year. They picked a great author this time round but then I think that they usually do.
I really like Zweig's work.

111rainpebble
apr 5, 2010, 8:43 am

I am finished with Farewell Spain, (a Beacon/Virago Traveler) by Kate O'Brien and have been so surprised by it. In the reading of it, I have felt so strangely as if I just happened upon Kate's patio; filled with bright sunlight filtering down between the leaves of the trees and pots of brightly colored mums, daisys, and other yellow and orange flowers covering the patio, so bright with flowers that it almost hurt the eyes. Kate is sitting there at the patio table just waiting for us in a white sundress, bare legged and with one sandal dangling off her toe. She invites us to have some cold tea with her and as we sip the tea, she tells us of her little jaunts through Spain. She tells it so casually; inviting interruptions at any time and thusly, we spend our afternoon chatting the day away on her patio. As evening falls, the air begins to chill and we make our excuses and begin to drift away.
What a wonderful way to spend the hot afternoon. Ah, but if it were only true. I said it felt that way, but I really spent it in my bed reading the book instead of on Kate's patio hearing it.
Either way, she gets a 4 our of 5 and I enjoyed it tremendously. It was so casual and laid back, it made the reader feel the same.
I definitely recommend this one.
belva

112DeltaQueen50
apr 5, 2010, 3:11 pm

Belve, what a wonderful description! Any book that makes you feel all that just has to go on my wishlist. Thanks.

113rainpebble
apr 5, 2010, 4:57 pm

Then you have better put anything by Kate O'Brien on your wishlist.
How are you Delta? Last I saw, you were a bit under the weather. This "last of winter; first of spring" crud is really difficult to get over. Our family has been passing it back and forth for 2 months now. I finally feel as if I just have a very bad cold. The lingering cough..............................oh, run for the depends. Ya know, depends on how hard I cough or laugh.
Soooooooooo good to "see you" DQ. I hope you are reading something wonderful!
big, warm hug,
belva

114DeltaQueen50
apr 5, 2010, 9:43 pm

Belva, my health is good. I am recovering from cooking a huge Easter Dinner on Sunday for the whole family. Good news is that I don't have to cook again for awhile - so many leftovers!

Hopefully we will be getting lots of warm weather soon and that will help to "bake" that cough right out of you.

As for reading I am having a stellar year, looks like you are doing ok in that department as well. Take care of yourself, and hugs back to you.

115rainpebble
apr 7, 2010, 2:06 am

Brat Fararr by Josephine Tey.
I read this for a G/R on the 75 Book Challenge gig.

I enjoyed this read tremendously and it was so nice to have a cozy little mystery for an afternoon delight.
Just as the "hero" to-be (Simon?) is about to come into his inheritance an imposter (Brat?) is thrown into the mix. I knew from the first meeting between Brat & Simon that something was off with Simon but I just could not put my finger on it. He was just a bit too smug. I thought I should feel bad for him as he was losing his inheritance but just could not make myself do that.
I enjoyed the characters in this book though I didn't come to care about some of them. I enjoyed the setting very, very much.
My copy of the book states that Josephine Tey belonged to the "Golden Age of British crime writing"; 1920-1950 and gives her huge kudos for her non-formulaic works; stating that when you picked up a Tey you never knew what to expect; that they were always so very different. Reading Brat Farrar has convinced me to find that out for myself.
Another great G/R from the 75 Book gig!~!
Thanx guys,
belva

116cmbohn
apr 7, 2010, 9:16 pm

I really liked Brat Farrar. Her other book I really enjoyed was The Franchise Affair. The only one I disliked was The Man in the Queue. I don't want to spoil it, but the ending just came out of nowhere.

117rainpebble
apr 10, 2010, 11:24 am

I will be looking for The Franchise Affair. I have heard several say that they enjoyed that one so thank you for the rec. I think I will pass on The Man in the Queue.
Thanx,
belva

118rainpebble
apr 10, 2010, 11:27 am

The Radetzky March by Joseph Roth

While this book was very good I had trouble staying focused on it. I found it to be quite interesting in the European social mores of the time, which was just prior to WWI, but the main characters did not seem fully developed to me.
The book is about 3 generations of of the men in the Trotter family who all lived and served under the Kaiser. The character I found to be the most complete was that of the 2nd Trotter's manservant. He was a wonderful character and I thought we actually got to know him. But the others I didn't think I actually got to know so it was difficult for me to remain emotionally involved in the personal stories.
I would recommend this book to those of you who have a real interest in the historical background of pre WWI Austria, Hungary & Poland. I wasn't disappointed in it as I didn't go into the book with pre-conceived notions of what to expect.

119rainpebble
apr 12, 2010, 3:22 pm

I have finished Taran Wanderer and I think that this one is my favorite of The Prydain Chronicles by Lloyd Alexander. We finish this G/R (from the 75 book gig G/R The Chronicles of Pyrdain hosted by {drneutron}) next month. I have enjoyed them all and that's a stretch as I "usually" do not read fantasy. Trying to step out of the box a little & it appears to be working.
I have also finished last month's portion of Moby Dick by the "dreaded" Herman Melville & I must say that this portion has been my favorite thus far as well. I think I even have to say that this read has been successful thus far. I may be getting over my "dread" of ''Melville". That would be very nice.
I am now reading or going to attempt to read in the remainder of this month: our portion of Moby Dick, The Emperor's Tomb, As I Lay Dying (a March G/R), Norwegian Wood (I wasn't going to do this one, but must have forgotten & ordered the book), Wives and Daughters, Woman in White, Blind Assassin, The Plague, Nancy Mitford: A Memoir, Soldier's Pay, The Dwarf, John Adams, (am very excited about this read), and The Weather in Africa.
I should be able to get some of it done as I am yet down in bed until Thursday with viral pneumonia.
Cheers all,
belva

120lkernagh
apr 12, 2010, 5:34 pm

Viral pneumonia - Yikes!!!! Hope you are feeling better real soon!

121rainpebble
apr 13, 2010, 11:13 am

>#120:
Hello Lori;
I am getting better slowly but surely. At least the bed rest has given me some wonderful reading catch-up time.
thanx & good reads to you,
later dayz,
belva

122rainpebble
Bewerkt: apr 13, 2010, 11:26 am

I read As I Lay Dying yesterday as I lay trying to get over viral pneumonia and I must say that I enjoyed my first William Faulkner more.
As I Lay Dying is the story of a poor family whose mother/wife is dying & the husband has promised her that he would bury her in her hometown with her kinfolk. It is told in the first person in small chapters by everyone in the story. Mother dies early on and the remainder of the story is principally the telling of how the family struggled to fulfill the father's promise to the her.
I didn't have enough time with any one character to really identify with them & thus it made it difficult for me to care about any of them. It was well written as all of Faulkner's works seem to be. I'm glad I read it but I think perhaps I missed quite a bit of his meaning of the words and just read the words of the story. I will have to read this one again one day when my brain is a little less befuddled.
belva

123tymfos
apr 13, 2010, 7:07 pm

Best wishes for a speedy recovery, Belva!

124suslyn
apr 14, 2010, 12:27 pm

Okay -- I don't have the strength to catch up, but I can keep current! :)

125rainpebble
apr 15, 2010, 4:52 pm

I GOT TO GET OUT OF BED TODAY!~! WHOO HOO!~! Now back to the land of the living. I hear laundry, dishes, floors all calling out to me and the house is a mess!~! But I am just going to do a little every day until I am caught up with all of it.
The pneumonia is gone & I just have the remaining congestion & chest & head cold. Yea!~! Back to normality as known in the world of belva. (which is just nearly "nermal")
Greetings & hugs to all!~!

126tymfos
apr 15, 2010, 8:46 pm

So glad that you are feeling better! But be careful, a little at a time . . .

127suslyn
apr 16, 2010, 6:11 am

Glad to hear you plan to pace yourself. Wouldn't do to work yourself back into that bed! Blessings.

128rainpebble
apr 16, 2010, 1:40 pm

Thank you both for stopping by and the good advice. I am trying to do just that.
Hope you all are reading something swell. I am so enjoying Wives and Daughters but just reading it bits at a time. It is very good & I enjoy how Gaskell writes. This one is a very cozy, comfy read. Just right for me at this time.

129rainpebble
apr 17, 2010, 5:11 pm

Am watching Julie and Julia for the third time this week.................just really loving this movie. And have my TIVO all set to record the later showing so I can watch any time my little heart desires!~!

Still reading Wives and Daughters. I guess I am still a little weak because I keep falling asleep and believe me; the book is not a bit boring. Only Mr. Preston is boring & the new Mrs. Gibson; both so selfish and self-serving & thinking they cover it up so well. NOT!~!
I have a feeling that at some point we will be finding out something dastardly regarding the new Mrs. Gibson, Mr. Preston & perhaps Cynthia, whom I happen to like a lot.
Well, back to my movie. Cheers all.
hugs,
belva

130elliepotten
apr 22, 2010, 11:44 am

Awww Belva, I'm sorry to hear you've been ill! See, this is why I shouldn't be away from LT for so long. Farewell Spain sounds lovely, so it's going straight onto my wish list - even though I have finally been strictly BANNED from getting anything new for a little while... well, it was bound to happen eventually, and it's a good incentive to get reading some of my current heap, pronto!

131rainpebble
mei 9, 2010, 6:53 pm

Absolutely loved one of the G/Rs I swore I wasn't going to read. Norwegian Wood by Haruki Murakami is one of the best books I have read all year. It is beautifully written; heartrendingly sad; and just a lovely, lovely story. This was my first Murakami, but will definitely not be my last. He is a master with the written word.
On the other hand, although I am less than 100 pages into it, A Separate Country by Robert Hicks is just not doing a thing for me so I just may drop that one.
I am so very far behind that I might as well just read the books that I am appreciating & book mooch the others out of here.
belva

132rainpebble
mei 10, 2010, 11:14 am

Regarding A Separate Country, I spoke too soon. I am so glad that I decided to extend the "pearl rule" a few pages on this one. The real story doesn't begin for quite a few pages in. I think I was at 80 some & was thinking of putting it down. But then it gets into the memoirs & diaries of the dead couple & it begins to get really good & you begin to know the characters. So any others of you reading that one, give it a bit of a chance. I am well into the 200 pages now and am quite enjoying it.
Hope all you moms out there had a great day yesterday. My children & grands planned a very nice day for myself & both grandmothers. It was wonderful. We were missing only the middle daughter, who lives in Texas, the oldest grandson & the youngest granddaughter. Even the 4 month old great granddaughter was there.
They did a great job.
Have a good one all.
belva

133elliepotten
mei 14, 2010, 11:30 am

Darn all these wonderful group reads! I signed up for 'Atwood in April' and The Count of Monte Cristo (partway through that one) and Norwegian Wood, but then what happens? In April I was in a total reading slump and resorted to trashy magazines and DVDs instead, and now I'm feverishly trying to catch up and get through an ER/MG or two and have missed Norwegian Wood as well, even though I bought the book specially! *sigh* Ah well, we can't read everything at once can we? :-)

134suslyn
mei 16, 2010, 6:12 am

I've read lots of good things about Norwegian Wood -- glad it was a winner for you.

135rainpebble
mei 20, 2010, 12:56 pm

I finally got the book, All Other Nights from the library but have 3 to go before I can begin so I will just peek in on that G/R as I can. It sounds really good although some of the reviewers panned it. I am looking forward to reading it.
Haven't had time to even start John Adams; I am very far behind in my G/Rs. I guess that's what I get for trying to do all of them this year. I have yet to finish Moby Dick, which is huge for me as I have tried many times & never finished it, but I will this time. I am probably 5/8 through the book. I also have yet to read (& this is just to catch up) Soldier's Pay, an Atwood, Woman in White, The Dwarf, The Emperor's Tomb & like I said John Adams, which I am hot to read.
I am also trying to read through Angela Thirkell this year so I have 2 of those awaiting me from the library & must not get them back late.
Well, happy reading one & all.
belva

136rainpebble
mei 20, 2010, 4:56 pm

Baby picture of great grand on profile page.

137DeltaQueen50
mei 20, 2010, 5:01 pm

Belva, your great-grandaughter is beautiful. Talk about a rose-bud mouth.

138suslyn
mei 21, 2010, 2:41 pm

Thx for the heads up on the pic. I'll check it out. I've posted some in my profile album too, but not of great grandkids!

139rainpebble
mei 22, 2010, 9:47 am

Thanks for popping by ladies. I was getting hungry for some personal contact. Babies are very good at helping out with that.
Isn't she lovely? And just the best little baby. Well, not so little now............19 lbs at 4 months.
She belly laughs, has turned herself over from tummy to back since day 2 of age. Her ob gyn saw her do it and was amazed. She has found her hands and feet & holds them up & just looks at them in amazement; then will try to shove one of them (either) in her little rose-bud mouth.
Suslyn, I will be checking yours out.
hugs to you both, have missed you. Will have to come & visit.
belva

140rainpebble
Bewerkt: mei 24, 2010, 5:37 pm

Yesterday with great joy & quite gleefully I completed Angela Thirkell's High Rising. I am finding that I absolutely & whole heartedly enjoy her writing. There is a lot of humor in her books, a teense mystery, usually a mild love focus and a lot of living. Her books are always a comfy, cozy place for me to go. And I would have to rate every one I have read thus far at least a 4, if not a 5.
Last evening I began for my R/L B/C My Abandonment by Peter Rock. This is my first by him & it is very good thus far. (not very far into it, but it has me hooked)
I hope all of you are reading some really good stuff.
hugs all round,
belva

141rainpebble
mei 25, 2010, 9:44 pm

I finished My Abandonment by Peter Rock this afternoon while sitting in the dentist's office waiting for my husband. Again, another excellent book. This one is about the homeless, but not the typically thought of homeless; about a father & daughter & the system & personal fulfillment. I really liked it.
So moving on to my next read, (apparently my brain needs & requires a break from G/Rs), I grabbed Willa Cather's The Professor's House off my bookshelf and am finding it rather on the order of an Elizabeth von Arnim thus far, which is a good thing as I adore von Arnim. Has anyone else read this one? I am hoping it continues to be as good as it's beginning.
hugs,
belva

142elliepotten
jun 4, 2010, 10:58 am

Beautiful baby Belva! And a properly pouty little mouth indeed, what a cherub!

I just wanted to drop by to see how my dear Belva is doing - I'm glad to see you're following your hopes for the year and reading some hefty literary books over here. As for me, I started out well but as the weather hots up my brain has a tendency to melt into mush a bit. Never mind - every book read is another book to add to my Bookshop Girl knowledge, whether it's a beautifully illustrated children's book or a lofty classic or the latest popular fiction, right? People expect you to know everything in this job, I'm working on it!

Drop by and see me sometime, I do miss you after sharing so much in '09. My links are over on my profile, as always - the 75-Book group has taken off this year so that's my main thread at the moment... Happy reading the meantime!

143rainpebble
jun 7, 2010, 6:25 pm

Hello my dear miss ellie;
Thank you for popping over & for the baby comment. We think she is a keeper.

The first 3 months or so of the year I did fairly well, but I have really dropped off. R/L has rather gotten in the way, but it's all good. I am still pleased with my reading choices but I do miss having a regular thread & have decided that I will finish off this year with the G/R program I set up for myself but next year I will at least have a chatty thread. I have found that I miss everyone so very much. However the books have been terrific; only 1 or 2 stinkers in the bunch.
I hope you are well & you get a great deal of access to books at the shop so if you don't read a lot at home, I think it quite understandable.
Hope to chat again soon.
big hug,
belva

144rainpebble
jun 7, 2010, 6:28 pm

Just having finished another Angela Thirkell, Trooper to the Southern Cross; I have now begun John Adams and it is already showing itself to be a page turner. I have really enjoyed the memoir/diary/bio books I have been reading the past two year. I never used to read non-fiction & now I think I read at least as much of that as I do of fiction.
Good reading all.

145tymfos
jun 8, 2010, 3:56 pm

Wow, Belva, I was just looking at John Adams at the library yesterday and contemplating whether I should read it. Glad you are enjoying it!

I, too, find that my non-fiction reading has greatly increased in recent years.

146petermc
jun 8, 2010, 5:57 pm

#144 Belva - "I never used to read non-fiction & now I think I read at least as much of that as I do of fiction."

As someone who reads NF almost exclusively, I'm thrilled to read this :)

As for John Adams, I have this book in my collection and look forward to reading it. I'm also eying the new biography on Henry Clay called Henry Clay: The Essential American by David S. Heidler and Jeanne T. Heidler.

147jfetting
jun 8, 2010, 7:27 pm

Oy, Belva, I just went and looked through your new categories. You are ambitious this year! Also, I'm reading Some Prefer Nettles right now, too. It is making me want to never get married ever.

148rainpebble
Bewerkt: jun 12, 2010, 3:22 am

Vey!
Dudette, that is a bummer. (or not) At 38 years of marriage, occasionally I still ask myself that ?; "What was I thinking with that day?", but only occasionally.

149jdthloue
jun 10, 2010, 1:45 pm

Finally found you, belva.....and, while I admire your Organized Reading Schedule..i fear I would never be so clever.....I just pick-em off the shelves, here..and i have plenty (of choices and shelves). Too, I am crappy at Group Reads...and tend toward laziness... I can only say OY...and Wow!...keep up the good work!

150rainpebble
jun 20, 2010, 8:30 am

Don't let yourself be too impressed jdthioue. I have fallen so far behind in the past couple of months. Just too much nanny-day-care & mother care to keep up. But I do what I can. I am hoping to catch up this summer if we ever get weather warm enough to put the pool up. Then I can sit under the trees all day & read while the grandkids play in the pool.
Thanx for popping by. Hope you are reading some good stuff.
Still on John Adams & while it is very good it seems to be taking forever as my days are so full now that school is out & I am only reading at bedtime. Arghhhhhhhhhhhhhh!~! Only about 9 or 10 more years of this. Then, in my early 70s...................freedom!~!~!
hugs,
belva

151rainpebble
jul 2, 2010, 12:11 am

Completed John Adams which I really liked.
Then I went on to read Lady Audley's Secret; loved that one. Am now back to a Thirkell and a Stegner; The Demon in the House and Where the Bluebird Sings to the Lemonade Springs respectively & loving both of them.
All are G/Rs excepting the Thirkell and I am slowly going through her works along with the group reads because I simply fell in love with her writing when I read her first work. Loving reading her.
I also have about 12 or so G/Rs that I am muddling through. I don't think I have ever attempted to read as many books at once as I am this year. Nor do I think I ever will again. I am not having a problem falling right back into the next book where I left off, but just not enjoying them so much this way. I think I will have to be a little choosier on my G/Rs next year. L.T. just has too many of them & too many complex G/Rs for me to do them all in one year.
But onward we go. The hubby is having an all day medical test tomorrow so in my bag is the Thirkell, the Stegner and The Once and Future King by T.H. White; another G/R from the 75 book gig hosted by my good buddy msf59, Mark. I know this one will be a winner as all of his picks are.
Hey.............Have any of you seen (speaking of Mark's picks) the ads for Pillars of the Earth coming out in segments on the STARZ network? I didn't even know they were doing a movie of it and I think it is showing fairly soon. I can't wait. Hope it is even half as good as the book.
Well, enuff is enuff. And we have to be up at 2:30 to make it to the hospital for hubby's test. Have to be there at 5:30 and it is an hour & 1/2 drive to get there. But they said they probably wouldn't start the procedure until 7:30 or 8:00. You prayers out there; please say a prayer for him & his doc. His name is Roger. Thanx.
hugs & g'nite,
belva

152jfetting
jul 2, 2010, 7:11 am

Good luck with the tests and such - your husband is in my prayers (wait - is your husband Roger or is the doc Roger?).

The Once and Future King is one of my favorite books in the world. If anything can take your mind off the hubby while you are sitting in the hospital, this book can. I'll probably be lurking over in the group read (not that I need to reread it yet again) so I'll look for your comments.

153msf59
jul 2, 2010, 6:44 pm

Hi Belva- Hope everything went well with your husband and the "tests". Please keep me posted. Really miss seeing you around the threads! Have a great holiday weekend and enjoy that Group Read! I'm nearly a 100 pages in and falling in love all over again!

154rainpebble
jul 5, 2010, 3:08 am

># 152:
jfetting;
LOL!~! Hubby's name is Roger.

>#153:
Mark;
Am sooooo loving The Once and Future King. But not getting too much reading in at the moment.

Spending most of my time monitoring Roger. The results of all the last week's test are:
His lower hear chamber (the back part) is getting no blood. This last test was to find out why. He only has one artery getting blood to his heart. The other three are completely blocked. Two of them in multiple places. He is still having the symptoms. Upper arm pain and chest pain. They sent him home with his blood pressure meds doubled and with nitro patches. Also when the pains begin, he uses a nitro pill. Five minutes later is the pain has not dissapated, he takes another. Five minutes later the same thing. If that doesn't work I have to rush him to the E.R. because he will then be having a heart attack. They are trying really hard to keep him from having that heart attack because this came on so fast that his heart muscle has no damage at all thus far & they want to keep it that way. The foremost cardiac surgeon in the N.W. will be doing his 3-way bi-pass as soon as they can get an Operating Room at St. Pete's in Olympia freed up. We are probably looking at Wednesday but won't know until tomorrow or the next day for sure.
He (without saying a word to me) gave up chewing, Diet Pepsi & is drinking water & gave up his cigars. I know we will be making a lot of changes down the road, but we are both prepared for that.
His spirits are wonderful. He has accepted this and is prepared to go through it. (He watched his mother go through 2 open heart surgeries.) He is happy and pleased to be waiting it out at home. They debated keeping him in the hospital until the surgery but the insurance put the kabash on that. He is to do NOTHING & lift nothing heavier than a coffee cup, but he doesn't drink coffee. hee hee.
So that is my husband & best friend.

Now then my mother. While we were at the hospital in Olympia and he was having the heart cath, my mother fell and it was almost 6 hours before she was found and of all people to find her; my sister-in-law. So a call to 911, an ambulance ride to the hospital, a transport to another hospital 50 miles away; a broken hip & surgery scheduled. My daughter sat with her at the local hospital while Roger and I were on our way home and then she spent the night with her dad monitoring him & I turned around and followed the ambulance back out to Providence Hospital in Centralia. My much beloved sister-in-law went with me and we stayed the night with mother. Then in the morning the surgeon came in about 9:00 and wanted to take one more X-Ray before he started the surgery. The only X-Ray was the one that came with her from the Morton hospital. Long story a bit shorter.............no broken hip. Yea!~! But they wanted to keep her for a couple of days anyway. She was dehydrated & undernourished. So finally I came home to hubby & hearth. Daughter went home to her hubby & children. And we are all now doing what we are supposed to be doing now.
Mother is home and I think my older single brother is going to move in with mother. It will be good. His health is not the greatest but at least they can call 911 for each other. LOL!~! And that takes a lot of pressure off me.
My daughter, prior to going to the hospital was with her husband and his entire family at his grandfather's bedside awaiting his imminent death. He passed quietly and comfortable at 3:17, but while Sarah was here with her dad. Thank goodness she has an understanding husband who loves his inlaws also and has the utmost respect for his father-in-law (my husband).
Well, I am sure the Hull-Pendergrass saga has held your rapt attention for 2 minutes. Will keep you posted after his surgery.
Now, all of you, BACK TO YOUR BOOKS. I want full reports.
hugs & luvs,
belva

155bell7
jul 5, 2010, 10:50 am

Belva - Sorry your family's been going through so much lately. You're all in my prayers.

Regarding books, I have been reading mostly children's/young adult books lately because between two jobs I am now working full-time hours and I just don't have time for quite as much reading. One of my jobs is a half hour away, so I've been making up for lost reading time by listening to audiobooks, which works out fairly well. Currently I'm reading Beka Cooper: Terrier by Tamora Pierce and listening to Grim Tuesday, which I plan to finish soon while I pack for a move in a few weeks. I hope you're enjoying all your group reads. I haven't participated in many this year, but will try to remember to refrain from packing The Scarlet Pimpernel so I can join in for that one in a week or so.

Have a good day!

156msf59
jul 5, 2010, 10:12 pm

Belva- Thanks so much for the update! Hope things start getting better! Sending big hugs your way, my friend!
Glad you are enjoying the G.R.! It's terrific, right?

157DeltaQueen50
jul 6, 2010, 12:08 am

Oh Belva, so sorry to hear about your troubles. Bigs hugs from me as well. You are one amazing lady, we could all take a lesson from you. You have an amazing spirit.

158tjblue
jul 6, 2010, 2:37 pm

Belva-- I'm sending prayers your way!!! Hope your hubby and your mom have speedy recoveries!!! Hope the sun shines down on you today!!! ---Tammy

159cmbohn
jul 6, 2010, 10:03 pm

Wow, Belva, when it rains it pours! What a mess your family has been through! I hope your husband is better soon and the surgery does the trick.

160tymfos
jul 7, 2010, 12:11 am

Belva, I'm just catching up, and so sorry to hear of all your family's troubles. What's that saying about troubles coming in threes? Praying for speedy recoveries for your hubby and mom! And my sympathies to your son-in-law's family on the death of his grandfather.

161Eat_Read_Knit
jul 7, 2010, 5:43 am

Belva, what a difficult time for your whole family. Hugs and prayers from me, too.

162AHS-Wolfy
jul 7, 2010, 10:33 am

I'd like to add my well wishes also. That's a lot to bear all at once so don't forget to take care of yourself as well.

163ivyd
jul 7, 2010, 12:54 pm

And I, too, send my best wishes and prayers to you and your family. My husband has had 2 open heart surgeries -- it's a scary and difficult time, but the medical professionals truly perform miracles.

164arubabookwoman
jul 8, 2010, 1:41 am

Belva--I'm so sorry to hear of all your recent troubles, and I am in awe of your upbeat attitude. You and yours are in my thoughts, and I'm wishing your husband and mother speedy and complete recoveries.

165suslyn
jul 13, 2010, 5:01 pm

Praying for quick mending and protection for your family!

166rainpebble
jul 26, 2010, 1:43 am

My niece put up a picture of my family (sibs, etc) on the computer. I don't know how to do any of that stuff yet. Anyway, it is about 25 years old but gives you some kind of an idea of what rainpebble/belva looks/looked like. I am on the far left.

167tjblue
jul 26, 2010, 1:56 pm

Hi Belva, thanks for sharing the picture!

168rainpebble
jul 30, 2010, 12:30 am

>#167:
You are most welcome Tammy.
______________________________________

It is not quite August but I am already deep into ALL VIRAGO/ALL AUGUST and loving it. I chose for my first one Frost in May by Antonia White, which was the first Virago published in 1933. This one was a re-read for me and is a wonderful story. I have begun her next one, The Lost Traveler which I am not enjoying quite as much.
I love August for the reading of the Viragos, not for the Dog-Days of Summer. Too old and fat to enjoy that heat. LOL!~!
hugs all round,
belva

169tymfos
jul 30, 2010, 8:24 pm

Just stopping by to say hi, Belva! Enjoy your August reading!

170rainpebble
jul 31, 2010, 4:49 am

So glad you did Terri. I started early and am indeed enjoying my August reading.....when I am not nursing Roger. Whoa, this taking care of a serious heart patient takes it's toll. But at least he is a wonderful patient. No complaining, and never cranky. I am not that good even on my best days. LOL!~!
Will be so ready for January 1st.......to start my own thread again. I have missed all of you this year.
hugs and thanx again for popping over.
belva

171msf59
jul 31, 2010, 7:01 am

Belva- Just stopping in to say hi ! Hope all is going well with Roger! You take care, my friend and have a nice weekend!

172rainpebble
jul 31, 2010, 6:17 pm

Thank you Mark.
We are making it over some rough patches and a few bumps in the road, but we are not conquered. He is very patient and just says it will be better tomorrow. Dr. seems pleased with his recovery so we are just going along day by day and trying to make each one a little better than the one before.
You have a great weekend too Mark and thank you so much for popping over.
hugs,
belva

173calm
aug 1, 2010, 5:46 am

Hi Belva - it's good to see you round the threads. Pleased things are going better with you husband's health, fingers crossed that he keeps improving.

happy reading

calm

174rainpebble
aug 3, 2010, 2:10 am

Thank you calm.
Nice of you to pop over. I miss all of you. And regarding hubby's health; we are making baby steps to recovery. I was amazed the other day when he shared with me that he had thought he would come home, rest a few days and just get up and go on with his life. I don't think he was listening when they handed out the after-care concerns. LOL!~!
later dayz,
belva

175tymfos
aug 3, 2010, 6:23 pm

I don't think he was listening when they handed out the after-care concerns. LOL!~!

Belva, I think we all can have "selective hearing" when dealing with the less desirable facts in life. Sorry that your husband's progress is slower than he'd wished, but I'm glad that the doctor seems pleased with his recovery -- I'm sure the doc has a more realistic timetable in mind regarding his progress. "Baby steps" can get you there, as long as they go in the right direction!

Hang in there, and happy reading!

176crazy4reading
aug 23, 2010, 3:27 pm

Belva,

Sorry to hear about your family troubles. I am glad to hear that your husband is recovering. I hope everything settles down for you in the coming months and I will keep you and your family in my thoughts and prayers.

Monica

177rainpebble
aug 25, 2010, 9:54 pm

Thank you Monica. I appreciate that.

178msf59
aug 25, 2010, 10:17 pm

Hi Belva- Hope all is well, my friend! We miss you!

179rainpebble
aug 30, 2010, 2:07 am

Hey Mark;
My bestest buddy. All is well. Roger has finally turned the corner and is making real progress so I am not so freaked out. But we are doing well. Hope the same with you and yours.
Please remind me of your next group read. It seems it was something I wanted in on.
hugs,

180msf59
aug 30, 2010, 6:52 pm

Belva- Thanks for the update! I'm glad things are beginning to improve. Yes, I'm hosting a Group Read of Blindness, which I all-ready posted on the 75 Book Challenge. It begins on the 15th. hope you can join us!

181tymfos
aug 31, 2010, 6:55 pm

Belva, so glad to read that your husband is making good progress! Best wishes to you.

182rainpebble
sep 9, 2010, 3:18 pm

Thank you both. I appreciate you good wishes.

Thanx Mark. I have the book, but cannot seem to find it. If I find it in time (and I just bought more bookcases and alpha sorted them by author before putting them away) I will join you, but otherwise, it will have to wait for another day my friend.

hugs to both,
belva

183rainpebble
sep 9, 2010, 3:24 pm

My husband's illness this spring and summer with his following surgery and recovery period really threw a monkey wrench into my reading program for the year. So I am going to restructure my plan for the remainder of the year and not put any pressure on myself.
My reading schedule will be changing dramatically. But that's okay. He is gaining his health back at a really good rate now and there are other years for the heavy stuff.
So, I will catch you all later.
Good reads.
belva

184cmbohn
sep 9, 2010, 3:30 pm

I think you're wise. Real life and people you love should always come first. We've been having our own set of crises at my house, but reading is my escape, so I'm still reading a lot. But I don't always have time to be online, so my LT time has declined. (believe it or not! I seem to be on here a lot!)

Just focus on having fun for the rest of the challenge! And if it doesn't work at all, there's always next year.

185tjblue
sep 9, 2010, 9:49 pm

Sending good vibes your way Belva. Hope things keep getting better for you guys!

186msf59
sep 11, 2010, 7:32 am

Belva- Thanks for giving us an update! I hope the rest of the year gets better! I'm sending you a big ole hug!!

187suslyn
sep 11, 2010, 5:52 pm

Blessings to you and yours,
Susan

188rainpebble
sep 15, 2010, 1:51 am

Thank you to all of you. I appreciate the thoughts and sentiments.

189rainpebble
nov 2, 2010, 2:28 pm

Having just finished several Viragos, including the two most recent ones; A Woman of My Age & A Nice Change, both by Nina Bawden, (the first I was so not taken with, the second I enjoyed), I have decided to move on to The Witch's House by Charlotte Armstrong. I have not read her before nor do I often do mysteries so I am hoping to have found a new author (I have read some really good things about her from other authors) and that I will enjoy a little mystery.
Hope all of you are reading 'Good Reads'.
hugs,

190suslyn
nov 7, 2010, 2:23 am

I hope it turns out good!! I haven't read her either.

191rainpebble
dec 8, 2010, 9:02 pm

Oh Suslyn, I really liked it. It was simply a relaxing, cozy read and very enjoyable. I will be looking for more by Charlotte Armstrong.

192rainpebble
dec 8, 2010, 9:05 pm

Too much R/L going on in my world for much reading. Family illnesses, family needing help moving, day-caring the grands and great grand, caring for mother..............you all know the grind, I am sure.

I did, however, just finish, (and didn't want it to ever end), The Willow Cabin by Pamela Frankau. This is fairly nearly the 'perfect' book for me. I loved the entire book. I loved the characters, the building/development of them, the inter-action of them, the plot and storyline, the very air about the my head as I was reading this one.

"Then on my tongue the taste is sour
Of all I ever did."

"What will they give me when journey's done?
Your own room to be quiet in, Son!"

Andrew, I can never thank you enough for sending this particular book to this poor old woman. It has replaced so many others in my mind and heart. Oh, that all of you should feel about a book the way that I feel and felt as reading The Willow Cabin. It is definitely a 10/(5) for me.

Tonight I will begin my next Virago for the Virago week that bigpinkmarshmallow is co-hosting on a blog and also for my R/L B/C next week. It is Charms for the Easy Life by Kaye Gibbons. I would really like to just ponder and revel upon The Willow Cabin for a few days but Tuesday is B/C and the Virago group weekly read is only for one week so no time to linger.

193tymfos
dec 9, 2010, 3:01 pm

Isn't it marvelous, magical, to find that perfect book that reaches into your soul and transports you away from the hubbub of real life? That rare book that you really don't want to see end?

194rainpebble
dec 10, 2010, 3:53 am

Yes; truly one of God's little gift in our lives.

195rainpebble
dec 14, 2010, 3:46 am

I finished Charms for the Easy Life by Kay Gibbons and must say it is a keeper. We will have our R/L Book Club discussion on it tomorrow evening. I found it to be a wonderful book.
Then I was going to read Aleta Day and changed my mind after reading the backs of several books and decided to go with my first reading of Barbara Comyns by reading Sisters by a River. I am almost finished with it and have loved every page. I can't believe the luck I am having. I haven't hit a dud in ever so long. The characters in this last one are truly characters and to think that the book is non-fiction. WOW!~! Pretty bizarre! I can't wait to read more by her.
The sentence that I can't get out of my head from this one........it's a real ear-worm.......... is: "Next to Mary in our family was a child I shall never mention in this book, because I know they would hate to appear in it." The sentence goes on, but that's where it ended for me. For if this book were about my family and we seven sibling's growing years, I would have been that child she spoke of.

196rainpebble
dec 27, 2010, 8:11 pm

Books, books, books, and more books for Christmas. Happy, happy, joy, joy.................
From my husband: Mastering the Art of French Cooking by the esteemable Julia Child and the one and only biography of Julia also. Also from the hubby: Fearless Girls, Wise Women & Beloved Sisters by Kathleen Ragan, a new author for me, and A Darcy Christmas, (A Holiday Tribute to Jane Austin) by Amanda Grange, another new author to me.
From my Virago Secret Santa I received Cold Comfort Farm by Stella Gibbons, which I have been wanting for eons, and a VMC of The Solitary Summer by Elizabeth von Arnim, one of my very favorite authors. I think I am only missing one of hers now. Whoo Hoo!~! Marensr is a ROCK STAR!~!
I hope everyone enjoyed their Christmas as much as we did. We had our Christmas dinner on Christmas Eve afternoon with my hubby's family and then spent the remainder of the evening quietly at home with two granddaughters who came to spend the rest of Christmas vacation with us. (Our son, Dad, joined us late Christmas morn. On Christmas morn, we got up late, opened our stockings (everyone got one this year....we must have all been very good for Santa to treat us so), and sat with the girls just quietly having our coffee and tea. By 11:30 my daughter and her family had arrived bearing not gifts, but brunch. It was ever so wonderful. We had little piggy sausages, an egg, sausage & chilies casserole and a blueberry french toast casserole with blueberry sauce. She also brought fruit and Orange Juice. Nummy.
Then the gift opening; not a lot this year, but it was very nice. Then to the table for games; all sorts. What fun!~! We had football on for those who wanted to watch but most of us, adults and kids alike, were at the table playing games until well after dark. I do believe that a new tradition has been struck at the hull-pendergrass home. It was a lovely Christmas beyond words.
hugs all round,
belva

197rainpebble
dec 30, 2010, 6:54 pm

The Shutter of Snow by Emily Holmes Coleman;
My thoughts and reflections:

It felt as if it had been two years. Snow and ice a constant out beyond the windows and doors; when I came and still yet now as I am leaving. So I think it has been more like 2 months. Was there ever really a baby? They tell me I am mad, but all of these others are mad and I am Jesus Christ. They will know one day. One of them is just a skeleton. And one of them is just a loooooooooong face. They are all so peculiar. I don't remember the baby but I think there was one. Where is my baby? And why won't my husband let me touch him and hug him and kiss him? He doesn't seem comfortable with me. I want to go home. They tell me I cannot yet; that I must be good for a time. But they don't know the Power I have. They put me in the tubs but I can get out of the wrap and slide my head down under the cover and into the warm water. That frightens them and they cut me out of the tub so fast because they fear me drowning. They are weaklings and I am Jesus Christ.