I finally finished Collapse by Jared Diamond. It was very interesting and I took my time with it. I read other books in between of course, but Collapse too me a few months to read.

I also read two Agatha Christie books, Sleeping Murder and They do it With Mirrors. Both were typical Christie books. Neither Miss Marple nor the detectives look beyond a narrow set of characters. And the solution is always something that has never entered the book previously so the reader doesn't have an inkling of "who dunnit". Honestly, sometimes I wonder why I continue to read Christie... and then I think of The Murder of Roger Ackroyd. What a gem of a mystery! And I keep going in the hopes of uncovering another such gem. It hasn't happened yet.

I am in the middle of The Volcano Lover by Susan Sontag. Did not know what to make of this book at first. It's pace was slow and leisurely and at the time I cracked the book open, my own life was zooming at 100 mph. Once I forced myself to slow down and honestly give it a chance, I began to enjoy it immensely. The main character, known to us only as The Chevallier, is an Englishman working as a foreign diplomat and posted to Naples. He is enamored with Mount Vesuvius and everthing that goes on in his life is secondary to the volcano. The book is set in the late 18th century. If you are in need of a slow stroll through a book, a book with description and well-chosen diction, I would suggest this one to you. (Keep in mind, that this opinion has been formed whilst only halfway finished.)

Also read Red Mist, the new Patricia Cornwell book. I had written her off years ago as Scarpetta was too pompous, to egotistical and too unbelievable. But this book landed on my doorstep so I gave it a peek. It was like the Scarpetta of old. It still had its moments of incredularity... Lucy happens to pilot a helicopter which gee whiz... that's just what they need! I am not going to run out and read the books I missed, but Red Mist held it together quite nicely. If you used to be a Scarpetta fan, you may enjoy this one... but get it from the library. It isn't a "keeper".

Now reading (re-reading) The Mammy by Brendan O'Carroll for book club.

PAM

How to to describe this book? Firstly, Lady Franklin's Revenge is likely the most objective biography of Jane Lady Franklin, a fascinating, formidable, and still-controversial Victorian. McGoogan's study really makes her come alive, with her strengths and weaknesses fully realized.

The book is also an absorbing history of the 19th century issues as of Arctic exploration, English colonialism, and of course, the place of educated women in Victorian society. The years in which Sir John Franklin served as Governor of the penal island of Van Dieman's Land (now known as Tasmania, thanks to the efforts of Lady Franklin herself) made for very interesting reading.

McGoogan takes on the Sir John Franklin myth. The well-meaning incompetence of Franklin makes his death seem unavoidable, yet poignant. Many of his problems stemmed from his remarkable, yet ambitious and meddling wife.

After the disappearance of the Franklin Expedition, Jane made it her mission to fund explorers to find proof of his fate, which ultimately resulted in the final mapping of North America. In her later years, Jane Lady Franklin cultivated a cult around her lost husband, aggressively discrediting those few Victorians who knew the disaster had been caused by Franklin's incompetence and his wife's ambition. Jane ended her days a national icon, yet one still fearful the truth would come out.

I am on page 46 and have come across two words I never heard before: one is 'vacuously' and the second is 'lachrymose'. In fear of mispronunciation I discovered a verbal online dictionary this evening.

I have a request in for the YA novel The Hunger Games. It looks intriguing and I have heard it is well written. I want to read it before the movie comes out.

Rosefolly

"Masscult and Midcult - Essays Against the American Grain" - by Dwight Macdonald - American culture/arts critic - 1950s-70s.

He wrote columns for The New Yorker, Fortune, The Partisan Review, and other mags. He was known as an iconoclast -- challenged a lot of the general opinion - by critics, academia, the public - on movies, literature, music, painting, etc. This book jumped right out at me when I saw it at the bookstore last month because I read an old book of his film criticism once -- was "blown away" by his very individual opinions backed up w/ well-thought-out writing.

Example of how far-from-the-general-and-critical-view he could get:
He dared to say that -- "Audrey Hepburn is nothing but a face full of Good Bones". ... Was first time I'd every seen anyone tear down this Icon of the American Cinema. After all the movies I've seen her in now, I would have to agree. She bores me - yet the public and higher critics seem to think she was such a Fine Artiste.

"The House Sitter" - Peter Lovesey - English - modern-day murder mystery

A serial killer announces -- through cryptic notes quoting "Rime of the Ancient Mariner" -- that he will kill - a big film director, a world-champion golfer, an international singing star. At the beginning of the book, tho', a non-famous person is murdered -- she's the criminal-profiler -- was working on "psych-ing out" this murderer for the police. This snarls up the plot -- in a good way! -- as you aren't sure if the serial killer caught wind of her investigation -- felt she was getting "too warm", or if the guy she'd just broken up with killed her. ... Or is *he* the serial-killer? Or is it a woman??? I've been pretty glued to this story for the past 4 days now.

Grelobe -

I didn't realize that you live in Genoa, Italy -- just checked your profile! It's such a joy to find people here from other countries. It is fascinating to read their "take" on American and British books.
BTW - I've been to your country a few times and love it! -- Rome, Isles of Ischia / Capri, Pompeii, Verona - I saw an opera in a 2,000-year-old colliseum!, Naples, Milan, had a scary car trip down the Amalfi Drive -- verrrry high above the Mediterranean on a verrry narrow road - but great fun and great views!

Thank you for filling me in on Alexandra Fuller's past -- especially her mother. I didn't know that she thought so highly of her mom...not that she wrote harshly of her in her book. AF seems a sweet-natured person, and I felt that I liked and respected her. BTW - Is her mother still living?

Stoneangel -

I'm envious of you having such a great used-book store nearby! There are quite a few here (New York City), but they are way down in the Greenwich Village part of the City. ... Takes over 45 minutes to get down there. It's fun when I do, though!

Carolyn ky -

After I shut down my computer - after I posted that message last week - about Masterpiece Theatre showing Kate Atkinson mysteries -- I remembered that a few weeks ago there was an odd mystery on PBS where the actors had such heavy accents I could hardly understand what on earth was going on. But - it had scenes w/ a little girl and the lead actor. I realize after reading your reply to me -- bottom of November reading thread -- that you were describing that show to me.

Timallan -

Those Hardy poems sound really unusual. I'm not much of a poetry reader...although I love 19th c. poetry...So maybe Hardy is more for me. (Somehow, I've never come across his poetic work -- only his novels, which I wasn't crazy about.)

Rosefolly -

"Sense and Sensibility" - my favourite Jane Austen -- but the only one I've read more than once is "Emma" ... and I've read that 3 times! ... "S&S" is so painful to me that whenever I think of going back to it, I remember the awful sorrow suffered by the younger sister, and can't bring myself to read it again. But - I would like to read what you have to say about it and what you've learned from the annotations in edition you're reading now.

Rosefolly, I loved The Hunger Games. My bookgroup is doing it this month and I can't wait to discuss it. I'm looking forward to the movie, too.

Now I am deep into Haruki Murakami's After the Quake: Stories. Is there a more original writer active today? Weird, strange, very modern, but still very accessible. Quite a change from what I have been reading.

I also have Mrs. Dalloway by Virginia Wolff. Can't believe I haven't read this before!

I have finished the latest Ian Rankin book and like this new character a lot.

Nicola, Fuller's mother is living in Mozambique in the Zambezia valley with her husband. At the moment they live in an unfinished house , breeding.. I don't recall what kind of fishes

grelobe

Since I've been to Russia several times, I've really been interested in it's history, so Catherine added much to my growing knowledge. Too bad I didn't know before my trips what I've been able to learn since. Too old to go back now.

Lauramarie, I, too, spent a lot of time in Italy. My favorite spot was the Island of Ischia, which I and friends saw before it was "discovered" as a mecca for tourists. We were the only Americans vacationing on the island. I also loved Verona, Asissi,Ravenna,Venice,Florence, and Ortesei-St. Ulrich, in the Italian Alps, where I skied for the first and last time....

I also have Stephen King's 11-22-63 which involves time travel in an attempt to change events to prevent the assassination of JFK. This is the first Stephen King book I've read in 25 years and the premise is intriguing. I also have Alan Hollinghurst's The Stranger's Child which looks promising but I haven't really had time to even look inside of it.

About Agatha Christie... you are all so right! Thank you for commenting! I no longer feel alone in the A.C. world. Honestly, I couldn't figure out what the fuss was all about. Tell me then... why do we continue to publish so many of her "puzzles", to give her so much shelf space when there are probably other mystery writers out there that could better entertain the mystery-loving readers?

woodnymph! Gissing! Cannot wait to hear all about it! And thank you for the recommendation on "That Used to be Us". I have just requested it from my library.

Pam53, looking forward to you opinion of Red Mist.

My book club read The Hunger Games. We had mixed feelings about it. I read it in one sitting but have no desire to read the next two volumes. It was good. But I have no interest in continuing the journey with Katniss. We had one lady in our book club who refused to read the book stating that she would not read a work about "kids killing kids". I thought that was a bit close-minded but to each her own. But the author stirred up kids and got them reading a la Harry Potter so I am pleased and hope that in addition to just reading the book, kids are also seekinig answers and asking questions about that society.

PAM

The first is clothbound from Harvard University Press. These are beautifully bound and illustrated, and each of the two books released so far has a different editor, Patricia Meyer Spacks for Pride and Prejudice and Robert Morrison for Persuasion. I look forward to reading more as they are released, which I hope they will be. Either one would make an excellent Christmas gift to an Austen fan.

The second series are all annotated by David Shapard and published in trade paperback editions by Anchor Books. These lack the color illustrations and visual beauty of the other series, but more than make up for it with the copious annotations. Each left hand page is text of the novel, and each right hand page is composed of annotation and some black and white illustration. I just finished reading The Annotated Sense and Sensibility from this series and it was such an enjoyable experience. I've read the novel so many times, but learned so much more this time. Having the annotations on the opposite page makes them both easy to access and nonintrusive. I read them every one. In this series both Persuasion and Pride and Prejudice are available as well as Sense and Sensibility, with Emma due to be released this spring. I'm hoping he will do the entire six novels, since I am particularly interested in reading his comments on Mansfield Park. It has become second only to Persuasion in my esteem, and I consider it to be an undervalued treasure.

I would not recommend either annotated series for someone new to Austen. It's better in my opinion just to read the stories. But for someone like me who longs to dig deeper, both series are simply wonderful.

Rosefolly

You have done a good job of describing the annotated books, and I will be seeing if my library has any to offer...

Having just realized that it's really quite close to the end of the year and remembering that I had a goal of finishing the massive huge Assassin's Cloak book of diaries, I have put everything else down and am immersing myself in that. It's such fun to read about then-current historical events seen through the writer's eyes. For example, on Dec 11, 1936, King George abdicated with Wallis Simpson. The diary entries that I have read that refer to this are full of concern about how this will affect the royal family and if England will become a republic...

(Speaking of Royalty, did you see that Britain's new Austerity Measures include a pay freeze for the Queen? Welcome to my world, your Majesty. :-) )

Maxmom - Did you go to L'Ermitage Museum?

Woodnymph2 -
How did I forget Venice?! No matter how over-done that place is, it just doesn't disappoint does it?

Isle of Ischia - Have you ever seen a sweet old movie - "Avanti" - w/Jack Lemmon and Juliet Mills (Hayley's sister)? Shot on location there. There's a sumptuous restaurant on the edge of the Mediterranean - marble floor jutting out above the water. It was heavenly eating dinner there w/ my-then boyfriend one summer afternoon. It's in the movie, too. [not me and my then-boyfriend...just the restaurant!]
P.S. - I had the same reaction to skiing, too!

Bookmom41 - When I saw Monique Roffey's name in your post, I nearly jumped out of my chair. She wrote one of the most beautiful literary novels I've read in the past 15 years - "August Frost" charming fantasy story taking place in Shephard's Bush, London. I've been planning on buying the "Bicycle" book...the reader reviews at Amazon were very enthusiastic. Going by your comments I think I'll order it.

Twobigdogs - Like a lot of New York State residents, this past year I sent e-mails to the pols in Albany about the hydro-fracking for natural gas. You might like to get e-mail updates from Anna Aurellio. She has the letters all set up, along w/ names, e-mail addresses to Albany bigwigs. You can find her on google. She really does a good, in-depth job at keeping you informed.

Lemonhead - You are a riot!

As for Agatha Christie -- I love her work. Every 10 years I read a lot of it all over again ... and it beguiles every time.

Lately I've tried to discover what keeps drawing me to her stories over and over; whereas, I never ever feel like re-reading Ruth Rendell or P.D. James ... and they're supposed to be superior to Christie.

The only answer I have - Christie's books have a Magic about them, that the others don't. There's Something in the Atmosphere that bewitches me every time.

grelobe

Rosefolly

I did not start really reading until almost an adolescent. I bypassed books for young people, and the first "grown-up" books I read were Agatha Christie mysteries. I did eventually tire of them, and did not touch them for decades.

Last year during a reading dry spell, I read some of her earlier, less well-known books. I enjoyed reacquainting myself with Christie, and thought it might be fun to try to read her books loosely in chronological order. It has been interesting to see her develop as a writer, before she became a publishing phenomenon who made a staggering fortune. I read a few more of her books from the 1920s this year, and hope to finish this decade of her writing in 2012.
Many of her earliest books are not her standard murder stories, but rather show Christie trying her hand at tales of espionage and sinister cabals bent on world domination. Titles as The Man in the Brown Suit often center around plucky, young heroines drawn into this underworld. The wisecracking Lady Evelyn "Bundle" Brent appears in two books from this period, The Secret of Chimneys and The Seven Dials Mystery. These books are often written with a lighthearted, witty tone, and seem very modern. Unfortunately Christie struggled with this genre, in my opinion, and the books are weakened by too many convenient "close calls". But they're still fun reads.

Another vote for The Hunger Games. I too thought it was the best of the three.

I have Haruki Murakami's IQ84 and can hardly put it down. All the blurbs on the dust jacket are true! I want it to last a long time, and since it is almost a thousand pages, I guess it will!

I also have Jean Auel's latest, Land of the Painted Caves, another brick. I am finding it strangely compelling even though it seems to be written for third graders. (No insult meant to third graders.) The story pulls me in, and it is a bit of a rest for my brain.

For some time now, one of my chief "reading regrets" is that I have not read all of the Bard's plays. My Shakespeare reading is particularly weak in the comedies and the so-called "Roman" plays. So I have now begun a project of reading the Shakespeare plays, concentrating on those which I have never read before.

I inaugurated this project by reading Much Ado About Nothing, which I finished last night. As a comedy, I can't say I found it very amusing, though the relationship between Benedict and Beatrice seemed very contemporary.

Hello Grelobe - Thank you for the Website on 12 Aposteli Ristorante -- On another Website there were indoor photos of it -- it's just as beautiful and atmospheric as I remember it! ... 13 people at Google gave it 5 1/2 stars -- Wow! Guess the food is still wonderful there. Thanks for the horse show info. I love horse shows, too. Do you ever go to that yearly horse race in Siena? (It was shown in the American movie "Under the Tuscan Sun.")

Hello Cece & Timallan:

Well, it looks like good ol' Agatha Christie has at least a few fans at this Website. Of all the comments though, I don't see any about the philosophical remarks her "detectives" drop during the stories -- on Life, Romantic Relationships, Human Character. These always fascinated me. I have the feeling that AC is giving her own opinions at these moments, as her autobiog. contains similar ideas. Her nephew has recently said -- Agatha Christie Newsletter -- that she "was very interested in human relationships -- especially romantic ones". She was v. interested -- seems like to me -- in human nature, the workings of the human mind (because of her nervous collapse?) ... how life plays out for individuals based upon their *character*, not on *personality* as seems the case w/ the way people are viewed nowadays (the "cult of personality"?).

I did get my bookmarks-Christmas cards ready to mail to you all, and I found out that I am getting at least one new book for Christmas.

I am also very excited because a friend is finishing up The Night Circus and is going to loan it to me. I think I will enjoy it very much.

Here I cut and paste a brief history of it; and a race video

"Piazza del Campo" is still used today for the well known Palio horse race which is one of the most famous popular Italian manifestations. It takes place every year on July 2 and August 16. The Palio is run to celebrate the miraculous apparition of the Virgin Mary near the old houses that belonged to Provenzano Salvani. The holy apparition was therefore called "Madonna di Provenzano" in whose honour the very first Palio was run on August 16, 1656. The Palio was run for the first time in 1701 in honour of the "Madonna dell'Assunta" the patroness and Advocate of Siena through all the tragic events since she protected the Sienese militia at the famous battle of Monteaperti on September 4, 1260, against the Florentines.

The Palio is a historical secular tradition strictly connected with the origin of the Contradas of Siena (districts into which the town is divided). The Contradas are spectacular agonistic institutions each having their own government, oratory, coat of arms, appellations, sometimes titles of nobility, emblems and colours, official representatives, festivities, patron Saints, with protectors, delimited territories and population which consist of all those people who were born or live within the topographic limits of the district, according to the proclamation issued by Violante Beatrice of Bavaria on January 7, 1730, at that time, Governess of the town.

Originally, there were about fifty-nine "Contrade"; now only seventeen remain, ten of which take part in the historical pageant and in the race at each Palio (seven by right and three drawn by lots).

Now, I'm finishing up "The Lost Summer of Louisa May Alcott" by Kelly McNees. It's a fictionalized version of what might have occurred if the love affair between Jo and Laurie in "Little Women" has some foundation in fact. In this period novel, there is an interesting linkage to Walt Whitman's "Leaves of Grass" which had just been published around the time that Louisa was claiming her independence as a female author, Whitman having shocked his readers by his poems.

Hopefully, Gissing next on my plate....

Remember the 1920's were not a friendly time for people of color in the US as racial discrimination was rampant in every facet of life. To "pass" as a white person would mean turning your back on your own race, but it also allowed you access to another world -- the world of the privileged white person. However, it was not without its own set of risks. To pass as a white person meant basing your whole life on a life, a foundation of balanced playing cards that could easily topple with one wrong word or action. It's hard to imagine the stress that this would involve...

And then, to add to the racial stress the usual worries of marriage and other relationships, fidelity, and trust -- well, it makes for an explosive story.

Irene Redfield has been happily married (mostly) to her husband Brian and they have a family of two young boys. (The Redfields are African American and are living as such.) An old childhood friend of Irene's re-enters who life after years of absence and this relationship leads to unrest for the Redfields for a variety of reasons.

The old friend, Clare Kendry, has been successfully "passing" for years, and has an unsuspecting white husband who is very racist. Things could get ugly very quickly should the truth be told at some point. Irene reluctantly allows Clare to rekindle their friendship but in doing so, enables Clare to worm her way into her life on all levels -- she even worries about Clare stealing her husband. But how to fix this situation?

As the story progresses and Irene becomes more and more threatened and desperate to save her wobbly marriage, a shocking solution bubbles up and there is an ending which surprised the heck out of me. (I love surprise endings like this!) And this was not a "wrapped up in a bow" ending as it leads you to ponder what exactly did happen in the end?

This was a book that did not pull me in at first, but after reading for a while, I got intrigued with all the various layers of the plot. (It was also helped by the fact that I had wrenched my knee badly the night before and was stuck on the sofa all afternoon avoiding crutches.) As I think about this, I did not enjoy the actual reading of the book that much until I finished It and thought about it. It's a story that makes you question what happened for a long time afterwards -- and that, for me, is a good read.

"A labour of love which will sit as happily in the bathroom as on the reference shelf; a fine and delightful book...". The Observer.

:-)

As it turns out, the novel is a fiction-based-on-reality book about Lord Hamilton (ambassador to Naples), his wife and Lord Horatio Nelson. Theirs was a complicated love triangle and was lived side-by-side with the goings-on of Neopolitan court and Napoleon. Some of the sentences and paragraphs were exquisitely written.

I have no idea what to read next in terms of fiction. All I can think about right now are Christmas cookies.

PAM

Carolyn, yes, I hear you! Nothing worse than traveling, for example, while at the turning point of a plot, when a fellow passenger wants to chatter away!

Sigh. :-)

Also reading SuperFreakonomics. Freakonomics was interesting so I thought I would try the second one. This was also decided for me as the book belongs to my dad and since he will be here for Christmas, I can return it to him. (That's one book off of the towering TBR piles, stacks, boxes and shelves.)

wood, Hope you like New Grub Street! On a list from one to ten, I give it an eleven.

My stylist is also a chit-chatter. I am not. He reads one or two books a YEAR and is proud of it. He is a movie guy. Since I have been going to him for years, we can banter back and forth about which is better...books vs movies. But since he hasn't read any of the books and I haven't seen any of the movies, it is an arguement betwixt idiots. Stubborn ones at that.

PAM

Read the third edition of the Barchester Chronicles by Anthony Trollope... This one called "Doctor Thorne" and it was a good read, but I am not really sure why all these books are called a series. The links between the first two and the third one are tangential at best. Perhaps # 4, 5 and 6 hang together more. Oh well. Those are for next year, perhaps. Time to take a break from Mr. Trollope, good as he is.

Reading the diary of The Worst Journey in the World by Apsley Cherry-Garrard, part of an Antarctic expedition at the beginning of the twentieth century. I was intrigued reading diary entries from Edward Wilson, also on that trip, when I was reading The Assassin's Cloak so picked this up... Very good so far.

And then an ILL came in from the library (yeah for ILL!), this one called The Scrapbook of Frankie Pratt by Caroline Preston (2011). A really gorgeously built book of pieces of ephemera (such as event programs, old photos, magazine cuttings etc.) which all together tell the story of young Frankie Pratt, a young woman in the US in the 1920's. By looking at the various bits and pieces, you learn of Frankie's life, how she gets accepted to Vassar and the various twists and turns it takes that occur after that. Thoroughly enjoyed this one.

I was reading the New Zealand classic called Once Were Warriors by Alan Duff, but it was way too bleak and hopeless for this time of year. It's good - very stream of conscious and from the PoVs of a young Maori family struggling to get by in their NZ version of the projects - and I will pick it up at another time. Just not now.

I am amused by the chatty hairdresser complaints. There is a used bookstore in a neighboring town, just around the corner from my doctor's office. The lady who runs the store is so starved for human interaction, that she follows customers around the store talking their ears off. She makes it impossible to browse (which is of course the best part of used book stores), and also shares too much information about her personal life. I put up with this on several visits to the store, and finally came to the conclusion that I can't go back there.

Funny how many comments there were about hairdressers. I like mine very much and have gone to him for a long time, so we do chat a lot but sometimes when I am into a really good book . . .

Rosefolly

Veer - Yes, I've read that Agatha Christie non-fict. -- "Come Tell Me How You Live" -- about her exciting life in the Middle East. A fascinating "back-in-time" kind of book -- enjoyed it just as much as her mysteries.

Lemonhead - Your post reminds of a movie -- shown on TV one night quite a few years ago. For some reason it's popped up in my thoughts lately (because of "The Help" movie?). "I Passed for White" is a 1950s American black & white movie -- starred James Franciscas (tall, blond, blue-eyed actor). About a lovely very fair-skinned young woman who marries an upper-middle class man (JFranciscus) -- she doesn't tell him that she's part-African. They have a happy life for a few years, and then -- they have a baby. It looks Caucasian. But one day, their African-Amer. maid looks in on the baby during its nap... and sees Something "not right" (or should that be "not White") about its face. All hell breaks loose. It's a very sad movie ... but mesmerizing.

BTW: J. Franciscus was a participant in the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s ... long before it became "fashionable" to do so. So also was Charlton Heston.
____________

Am nearly finished w/ the Beverley Nichols book - "The Gift of a Home." A very sweet read, w/ a lot of good gardening advice. Soooo ...

Went to the wonderful Posman's Book Store -- Grand Central Terminal -- one of the best book shops I've ever been to -- every single time I walk into that store there are at least several books on their open tables that jump right out at me. ...

This time one of them was "Get Me Out of Here" - which I bought, along w/ "13 Steps Down" by Ruth Rendell. It's by an English author I've never heard of -- but he's supposed to be literary novelist of note in Britain -- Henry Sutton. The novel covers the present life of a guy in London who's single and has a "start-up" company in global investments. It is 2008 -- and "he's trying to keep a toehold" in the world of high finance. But as he fumes over the shallowness of 21st c. life, he's addicted to its luxuries -- designer wardrobe -- including high fashion eyeglass frames, fine wines, "bespoke suits." (BTW - What are "bespoke suits"? -- I've seen that phrase several times lately.) So far, it's fun reading, even though the guy's complaining for several pages at the start made me weary and wonder if I should return the book. But it picked up after that ... now I'm caught up in it.

I finished 1Q84, somewhat to my regret. I really enjoyed this book and didn't want it to end. This 1000-pager was published in Japan in three volumes and I can see why. The last book lost a bit of momentum, and also was translated by a different person than the first two. Still, very enjoyable. Murakami is not everyone's cuppa and if you hate magical elements in a book you will throw this one across the room (and probably put a hole in the wall). I read it on a Kindle as my wrists won't let me hold such a book anymore.

I want to live in the bespoke world. My fashion sense was developed by growing up in the 60's and coming into the adult world in the 70's. Even though the fashion world was breaking old notions then, there was still the concept of a set of beautifully-made clothes that you could wear for years, so classic they would not become dated. Actually I can sew and I almost have the skills to do something like this for myself. Almost, but not quite, and not quite is really just not good enough. I've been taking sewing classes for years at a nearby school with a Fashion Design department. And since I live in jeans and sweatshirts all winter as I prune roses, spray fruit trees, and spread compost, I really have no occasion to ever wear those clothes. Sigh. (I do own a classic camel colored coat. True camel's hair is fragile and wears out very fast so I prefer wool.)

Rosefolly

I think that once upon a time, long, long ago, people generally had a lot less clothes, even well-off people. The clothes they did have were more carefully chosen. When my mother was in her twenties (1950's) she had two or three dresses at any given time, which she carefully spot cleaned, mended, and altered for proper fit as needed. Blouses were hand washed, as were slips and undergarments, and then ironed. Now of course, a stained garment is simply discarded, and her closet is crammed with cheap things that may or may not fit. Everything is tossed in the washing machine and then in the dryer, nary an iron in sight.

I don't think I want to go back to ironing (although I don't mind doing it occasionally) but I do wish I had fewer, nicer clothes.

I am very excited because Erin Morganstern's The Night Circus is waiting for me at the library. I have heard a lot of good things about this book.

His detailed blow-by-blow account of this expedition (part of the British race for the South Pole which they got pipped at the post) is fascinating. The temperatures were frequently fifty and sixty below with gale force winds and blizzards. They were there in the Antarctic winter (which meant that they lived in darkness 24/day) and complications were endless: their tent got blown away, Cherry-Garrard (the author) needed glasses to see but couldn't wear them due to the cold so was more or less blind and slowed the others down, they were running out of fuel, their sleeping bags froze around them as they slept... and on top of this, they weren't sure if they were going to get to go home after all this...!

It's a truly amazing true story told with the immediacy of someone who was there and despite all the hardship, maintained his good attitude (at least in the writing of the diary)...

Frostbite was a constant companion: with frostbite come blisters (apparently) and with blisters, they have fluid between the outer skin and the inner one. This fluid would *freeze* and the team would have to light their small stove and thaw their blisters out before they could pop them... Yikes.

"It is extraordinary how often angels and fools do the same thing in this life, and I have never been able to settle which we were on this journey. Endurance was tested on this journey under unique circumstances, and always these two men with all the burden of responsibility which did not fall upon myself, displayed that quality which is perhaps the only one which may be said with certainty to make for success, self-control..."

I finished reading Phoenix Rising, which was not quite so charmingly innocent as I first thought. And last night I read Lawrence Block's novel Hit and Run, very readable. However the main character is a professional hit man. I found it somewhat morally disturbing to be rooting for the survival of a sympathetic murderer.

Perhaps I ought to be reading something worthier, but the last two literary novels I checked out from the library I ended up returning unread.

Rosefolly

lemonhead: ". . .pipped at the post." That's a new one on me!

Just finished a quick read of a wide selection of Christmas-related writings (both prose and poetry) which I had picked up a while ago from Barnes and Noble. The usual suspects were in there, but also a few that I was not familiar with, so that was nice. We are up for a white Christmas here in TX, so we'll see.

And then, picked up another ILL (hooray for that programme) called Encyclopedia of an Ordinary Life by Amy Krouse Rosenthal which is a *truly* hilarious look at her life so far but set up as an encyclopedia is set up: alphabetical subjects and such.. Beginning with "A" and "Amy", she briefly covers various topics ranging from favorite childhood TV programs to some of the things that she and her friends were confused about when they were kids (such as the fact that one of them thought they could see atoms, when actually, they were looking at dust...) Really funny in a Seinfeld kind of way - this is definitely going to make it onto the Top Ten of the year.

Along with this is the more serious (but still light-hearted in many ways) Into the Beautiful North by Luis Alberto Urrea. (I think I saw this title on someone's top ten list for this year?)... Hoping to get my teeth into this over the weekend...

Come on, a bit of snow.*

* Caveats: don't stay too long, don't get too deep, and must be all gone with three days. :-)

I am reading Paul Murray Kendall's controversial biography Richard the Third, published way back in 1956. I believe this book raised some eyebrows with its sympathetic treatment of one of history's notorious bad guys. The actual evidence offered by Kendall is thin at best. Nonetheless I am enjoying the book as an absorbing account of the rise and fall of the House of York.

I'm almost halfway into The Night Circus by Erin Morganstern and quite enjoying it. For a first time novelist, Morganstern is quite impressive.

I am also about the same distance into Duane Swierczynski's Hell and Gone and don't quite know what to make of it. The first book, Fun and Games, reminded me of the film "Die Hard", with an unkillable hero and lots of almost cartoonish violence. This one, however, has had torture scenes and is set in a very strange, underground prison for about 6. It will be interesting to see how it plays out.

Carolyn, we have that Morland hardback in the shop and I am planning to consign it for a quick read. I should go to Cynthia's webpage to check the veracity of the 'this is the last one' rumour.

Now reading One Pair of Hands by Monica Dickens. Kind of reminds me of Diary of a Provincial Lady in its style so far. I am only on page 20.

Did not yet finish End of Country about the gas drilling in the Marcellus Shale in my state of Pennsylvania. Someone here on RP told me how to get more info in NY state and I thank you for the information. I must get this book read. Dad was here on Christmas and instead of saying "WHEN" you finish EoC, he now is saying "IF" you finish EoC. Ouch.

Lemon, Encyclopedia of an Ordinary Life sounds fun. Can you tell me where and when it is set?

PAM

Encyclopedia of an Ordinary Life is a fun and fast read. It's set nowadays (i.e. the author was 36 when the book was published) and references loads of cultural refs... I loved it.

Hope you can find it and enjoy it.

Another book that has been lurking (far too long) on my TBR shelves is also being tackled: Remember,Remember: Everything you've ever been wanted to know about British History with all the boring bits taken out by Judy Parkinson, and actually, it's true. The book covers history of Britain from back to Vikings and Romans to the end of WWII; each historical tidbit is bite-sized (<250 words), and covers everything from kings and queens to William Caxton, the Crimean War and the Plague and Fire of London. It's actually really fascinating reading and is helping to fill all the enormous gaps I have in English history. It's more a taste of history than in-depth, but I just take notes on the bits that intrigue me and then I can look for further reading.

I wonder if there is something similar for the US history?

I've been browsing off and on through The Cadfael Companion: the World of Brother Cadfael by Robin Whiteman. It's an A-Z compendium of the people, places and properties mentioned in the Cadfael books. It's interesting to browse through it, but definitely not something to read cover to cover.

The other nonfiction book I'm reading is Turn Right at Machu Picchu by Mark Adams. It's the story of how he decided to retrace the path of explorer Hiram Bingham III, the man credited with discovering Machu Picchu. I'm not very far into the book but so far, it's quite interesting.

For fiction reading, I am part way through The Sleeping Partner by Madeleine Robins. I put it down for a while since I had so much going on earlier this month and have just picked it back up again.

Please will you let me know what you think of it at the end?

pam53: my apologies on the Cornwell book. I am sorry that my recommendation made you waste the time it took to read it.

Rouan: I am now looking for the Machu Picchu book as well. It sounds like something that may work for my book club.

Finished Monica Dickens' One Pair of Hands. Loved it. It was the perfect book for a cold rainy day when the temperature hovered just two degrees above snowing. It was a warm toasty cup of tea.

Now bowing to Dad's pressure and my curiosity and giving undivided attention to End of Country... which I truly want to read but the holidays fired my brain and I needed a ficion break.

PAM

I am behind with my TBR pile of many books recommended here and read only Swedish books for a while. My husband is reading a biography of Beethoven and tells me the interesting bits so I probably won't read the 974 pages myself. The book comes with several cd's so we are having a music study group a deux.

I finished "The Grass is Singing". That was intense. I've started Anthill and The Shadow Year. I am on a roll. Got 18-days before the next semester.

Kath, are you reading this book now? If so, what do you think? I'm only 12% into it (the way progress is measured on a Kindle). Please warn me if horror is coming.

And this is after just completing the audio version of A Discovery of Witches. I've never had any interest in vampires, demons, witches, or wizards (except for Gandalf, of course) and I really liked that book, too. It seemed a little long in places but I didn't want it to end where it did.

There are already so many books to be read in my house so if my interests are widening I'm not sure that is a good thing -- but right now I'm enjoying the change.

I found it poignant how hard Richard III worked to cultivate and favor the very people who meant him the most harm. Fundamentally, Richard seemed to have an inability to maneuver and pirouette through the politics of court life. Kendall finds countless examples of traitors whose were left off easy by Richard, only to redouble their efforts to conspire against the King.

Kendall raises many interesting points, but often lacks the objectivity needed in the biography of such a complex subject. In an afterword regarding whether Richard was responsible for the murder of the "Princes in the Tower", Kendall argues that the boys may have met death at the behest of other figures at court, most likely the Duke of Buckingham. Though ultimately unsolvable (mostly due to the Tudor historians who apparently destroyed countless records portraying Richard in a positive light), I still feel that he had the most to gain from the murder of his nephews.

I will! I'm about a third of the way through it and am finding it quite interesting. the author focuses on Hiram Bingham for a while and then continues with his own expedition. I don't always like something that switches back and forth, but this works for me. I am learning more about the surrounding areas and the historical background which is very interesting. Some day I'd like to visit Machu Picchu (but honesty compels me to admit I don't want to travel the way the author did! LOL)

timallan and Carolyn,
I second the motion to read The Daughter of Time; she made a believer of me too.

I've been on a Murakami binge after reading 1Q84. I devoured two short story collections and now I'm halfway through Kafka on the Shore with A Wild Sheep Chase lined up next. Murakami is one of those authors I have not read but have "saved" until the right time as I always knew I would enjoy his work. I guess now is the right time.

I totally agree with Siobhan's "no better and no worse" assessment of Richard III. He was born into a violent family, at a violent time. It certainly sounds as if it was a "dog eat dog" culture in the circles of the rich and powerful. Ultimately, it probably made little difference to the lower orders which family dynasty had grasped power.