Friday Musings

Thanks, again, for all the good thoughts, comments, and emails. Laddie has had a difficult week and yesterday, the cardiologist said Laddie would have to have a pacemaker. So in a few hours they will do that procedure, and hopefully, things will improve.

This afternoon, if all goes well, I'm abandoning hospital duty for the weekend. We've been planning to go to Natchez and then on to Baton Rouge for Mila's birthday party, and if the procedure goes well, we will leave this afternoon and be back Sunday night. Mila has sent her "presentations" and has party hats and a pinata that she checks on daily. She will be 4 years old...hard to believe how quickly she has grown!

Still not much reading accomplished, but I'm almost through with the fairy tale book and another Campion book, read in snatches through the hospital hours.

Hope everyone has a great Memorial Day weekend!

Monday Morning...

I appreciate all of your good thoughts and wishes! Laddie is feeling better and has had all sorts of tests run, with another one scheduled for this morning.

I've gotten less reading done than I expected for all of the hours at the hospital, but did finish Mystery Mile, one of the Campion series by Margery Allingham that Jill sent me. Talk about about a quirky English sleuth! Can't wait to begin the next one. Have also been reading Mirror, Mirror on the Wall: Women Writers Explore Their Favorite Fairy Tales, but the mystery is taking precedence, so I'm packing Police at the Funeral for Today.

Thanks again for the nice comments and good thoughts for Laddie.

Disappearing Comment Button

For some reason, my last post doesn't have a comment button. I fooled around with everything in the settings section for comments, then discovered that under Post Options of the draft, that "don't allow, hide existing" was checked. Huh?

My father is in the hospital, and I wish I had a laptop. When I got home last night, there was a ton of email, but I was too tired to go through it. Have to get ready to go back to the hospital, and if I had a laptop, I'd be able to catch up with emails and play some games.

On the bright side, however, the 3 books Jill sent me arrived yesterday, and I will have some good reading material to take with me!

Water for Elephants

Gruen, Sara. Water for Elephants. Jacob Jankowski is in his 90's and living in a nursing home when a circus begins setting up locally. Hoping to attend the show on Sunday, Jacob begins replaying the events of his youth during the depression: the death of his parents, having to leave before his final exams to become a veterinarian, and ending up jumping a train--which turns out to be the train for the Benzini Brothers Most Spectacular Show on Earth.

The story alternates between Jacob's life in the nursing home and his memories of his years with the circus, and both stories, both Jacobs are compelling.

Gruen does an excellent job in evoking the world of a traveling circus in the 1930's. The characters are skillfully drawn, the details and the language well-researched (in fact, the material at the end of the book concerning her research and sources is fascinating), and the suspense involving love, friendships, and murder kept me involved throughout. I don't want to say too much about the plot or give anything away, but it is a captivating story.

I read this very quickly as I found it difficult to put down. I'll be looking for Gruen's previous books!

Fiction. Historical fiction/mystery. 2006. 331 pages + additional material.

An Old Argument

The first part of this article reviews a lot of the contentious arguments between book critics and bloggers that we've all heard before, but then moves on to some interesting points.

excerpts from Battle of the book reviews:

"Many believe there's a healthy synergy between the two (critics and bloggers). Maud Newton, who runs one of the more respected literary blogs (maudnewton.com), was puzzled by the idea that the two are somehow competing. "When bloggers disagree with or agree with an article about books in the mainstream press, it drives traffic to the newspaper," she said. The cutbacks at newspaper book reviews are unfortunate, but hardly the fault of bloggers."

and

"And although many newspaper reviews are shrinking, Dennis Loy Johnson — an independent publisher who started Moby Lives, one of the pioneering literary blogs — believes they continue to offer more solid content than most online efforts. "It's a dirty word in 2007, but blogs have not raised the level of intellectual discussion," he said. "Book blogging is for the most part book gossip and fresh commentary, or opinion. It's vital, but it's not true literary criticism."

I love reading reviews from other bloggers, but I certainly don't like the fact that newspapers are cutting their book editors and reviewers. The above quote is often true, most bloggers (certainly not all) are interested in book gossip (Who is reading what and does it sound good?), fresh commentary (Gosh, I read the book and didn't notice that --symbol, character, incident, allusion, etc.-- and it makes sense.), and opinion (Liked it. Hated it). This information is fun and informative and has expanded my reading horizons and pleasure. I don't believe it is anything to be ashamed of.


Yet I still want access to a professional critic's opinion, and newspapers are doing us all a great disservice by eliminating book coverage. There are some excellent sites on line for book information, including some excellent criticism, but newspaper coverage IS broader.

Jubilee Trail

Bristow, Gwen. Jubilee Trail. I thoroughly enjoyed this re-read of one of my favorite books from my adolescence. In 1844, Garnet Cameron graduated from Miss Wayne's Select Academy for Young Ladies in Manhatten. Ready to tackle the world, Garnet finds the confines (and eligible young men) of New York society boring, but is too well-bred and polite to completely understand her own feelings.

Along comes a handsome young man from California who, after several years of crossing the continent as a prairie trader, finds New York society as restricted as Garnet does. As Oliver Hale regales Garnet with stories of California and the Oregon Trail, Garnet's longing for adventure increases, and she falls in love with the man who offers her experiences she could never have otherwise.

Before long the two are married and off for a brief honeymoon in New Orleans before embarking on the Oregon Trail from Independence, Missouri, crossing the prairies, mountains, and desert to California, a journey of 2000 miles. The first stretch, the Santa Fe Trail, was 900 miles and took nearly two months across the prairies. After that, more than half the journey, the Rockies, and the desert were still ahead.

There are some wonderful characters, lots of exciting adventures, great hardships. The historical aspects from this time period when the Texas, New Mexico, and California territories belonged to Mexico are fascinating, and the hardships endured by those who made this journey were so tremendous that my respect for those early pioneers is almost boundless.

The book is a bit old-fashioned, but still a great read.

(some diaries from early pioneers on the trail)


Fiction. Historical romance/adventure. 1950. 564 pages.

~Two Steps Forward and One Step Back~

This is the list of books in the stack I have to finish before ordering any more books or bringing any home from the library. Four completed, one in progress, two yet to be started. I'm having a hard time with The Savage Detectives and am not sure yet whether or not to set it aside. The reviews are excellent, but the book is just not calling me to go on.

Inkheart by Cornelia Funke (F) -- finished

Mirror, Mirror on the Wall: Women Writers Explore Their Favorite Fairy Tales -Kate Bernheimer (editor) (NF)

Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen (F) -- finished

Without a Map: A Memoir by Meredith Hall (NF)

The Savage Detectives by Roberto Bolano (F) -- in progress

Shadow Cities by Robert Neuwirth (NF)

Jubilee Trail (just realized it isn't in the picture) by Gwen Bristow -- finished

All Creatures Great and Small by James Herriot -- finished

I need to review Water for Elephants and Jubilee Trail, but since I've been so busy lately and having computer difficulties, I simply haven't gotten around to that chore.

AlthoughI haven't ordered from Amazon or been to the library, five additional books have shown up - ARC's and Bookmooch are to blame. And Jill is sending me 3 Campion mysteries that I'm so eager to read that I'm pretty sure they will edge themselves ahead of others.

8 Things

Melanie at Tea Leaves and Tea Reads tagged me for this meme. I had been tagged for 7 things at Bayou Quilts, so I just added an additional item.

The rules -
1: Each player starts with 8 random facts/habits about themselves.
2: People who are tagged, write a blog post about their own 8 random things, and post these rules.
3: At the end of your post you need to tag 8 people and include their names.
4: Don't forget to leave them a comment and tell them they're tagged, and to read your blog.


1. I was a gymnast when I was young, and my joints remind me everyday.
2. Licorice is a guilty secret. Love it, but only once in a great while will I indulge in those love black twists.
3. My last pair of toe shoes, battered and worn, are still in a box in my closet.
4. I made a 9 patch quilt for my granddaughter's first birthday. It was something I had always wanted to do, and I'm still proud of that quilt. Mila will be 4 this month, and both she and quilting have delighted me for these past 3 years.
5. Since July of last year, I've only been to Tai Chi a handful of times. I miss it and don't have the discipline to really practice without having class. If I'm going to class, I will practice, but without that incentive, I'm too lazy.
6. In connection to Tai Chi, I may be the only grandmother among you with a saber and a straight sword. Love my weapons!
7. My favorite city is Edinburgh, and I hope to attend the Fringe Festival there once more before I am too old and decrepit to enjoy it!
8. I am not a witty or funny person, but I'm a great appreciator of and audience for those who are. My daughters are both quick-witted and funny like their father, and I sometimes laugh until I'm in tears at their repartee'. I don't even attempt to tell jokes, much less ad lib!

So I'm tagging the following (but please do not feel obligated; as Melanie mentioned, it is just for fun):

Sam at BookChase
iliana at Bookgirl's Nightstand
maggie at Maggie Reads
Jill at My Individual Take on the Subject
Dorothy at Of Books and Bicycles
Susan at Pages Turned
Carl at Stainless Steel Droppings
Chris at Stuff as Dreams Are Made On

Links

Found The Ultimate Guide: Best Places to Get Free Books, which I'll check out better later. The SF-Books had some interesting titles.

300 Women Who Changed the World also had some interesting material.

Or how about 15 Things Kurt Vonnegut Said Better Than Anyone Else Ever Has or Ever Will.

Flannery, again

Found this great article by Flannery O'Connor via Maude Newton.

Just to add a little color. Most of my garden pictures are on my other blog, but since I don't have much to say right now, I'm adding this clematis, potato vine pic.

Inkheart

Funke, Cornelia. Inkheart. Meggie and her father both love books, but Mo has a secret that Meggie doesn't know about: Mo can read characters right out a book, and unfortunately, the reverse is also true. Sometimes real people can be read into a book. After an incident that occurred when Meggie was three years old, Mo ceased reading aloud for fear of the consequences.
The consequences, however, catch up to him anyway...and therein lies the tale.

I enjoyed this YA fantasy which is filled with magic and the love of books. Meggie, Mo, Elinor, and Dustfinger -- each has a lot at stake as they tangle with the wicked Capricorn and his gang.

The novel ends with the promise of another tale, and Funke has completed Inkspell, but the third book in the trilogy has not yet arrived.

Cornelia Funke has a website that kids might enjoy and this site has pictures from the upcoming movie of Inkheart and pictures of the characters here, but you have to scroll down some.

Fiction. YA fantasy. 2003. 534 pages.

All Creatures Great and Small

Herriot, James. All Creatures Great and Small. Yorkshire veterinarian James Herriot (James Alfred Wight) began his career in the Yorkshire Dales in the 1930's; he fell in love with the area and remained there until his death. His stories of his adventures with both animals and farmers are delightfully funny. Herriot's ability to laugh at himself only adds to the charm of this series of books based on his experiences.

A book that will leave you smiling and wishing you could have met James, Siegfried, Tristan, and other people and animals from the surrounding area of Darrowby. An all time favorite, re-reading it was a pleasure.

Memoir. 1972. 437 pages.

links

An interesting review of The Road. He certainly has some good points...and I liked the book even if I questioned the Pulitzer.

And this article on the loss of book review sections in newspapers as opposed to the cuts in public funding to libraries....

These articles and more were found at Confessions of an Idiosyncratic Mind which, in turn, came by way of LitMinds.Org.

Would You Like Your Own Daemon?

I found this on Stephanie's Confessions of a Book-a-holic. What fun! You, too, can create your daemon! Thanks, Stephanie!

Finished All Creatures Great and Small yesterday--and it was as good as the first time.
Last night, I put aside the quilt I'm binding and started Inkheart and think I've fallen in love! Thanks to all of you for your high recommendations on this one.

What Next?

I'm still reading (and thoroughly enjoying) All Creatures Great and Small; it is a great relief to find this book as charming and humorous as it was when I first read it.

Next stack:
Inkheart by Cornelia Funke (F)
Mirror, Mirror on the Wall: Women Writers Explore Their Favorite Fairy Tales -Kate Bernheimer (editor) (NF)
Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen (F)
Without a Map: A Memoir by Meredith Hall (NF)
The Savage Detectives by Roberto Bolano (F)
Shadow Cities by Robert Neuwirth (NF)
Jubilee Trail (just realized it isn't in the picture) by Gwen Bristow

I just can't decide which one...or two...

Mistakes Were Made

Tavris, Carol, and Elliot Aronson. Mistakes Were Made (but not by me): Why We Justify Foolish Beliefs, Bad Decisions, and Hurtful Acts. I thought I knew all about self-justification, but no, my understanding didn't begin to account for the 90% of that iceberg, submerged and out of sight.

The introduction is titled Knaves, fools, Villains, and Hypocrites: How Do They Live with Themselves? The answer is-- the same way we do. They justify their actions.

When we make a mistake or do something foolish or hurtful, we experience cognitive dissonance. Since we think of ourselves as basically good people, when our behavior threatens our self-concept, we are almost compelled to justify our actions in order to reduce the dissonance. For most of us, our transgressions are relatively small, but what about those who have proceeded to much larger and more serious errors? How did they get there, if they really are decent people? Tavris and Aronson state it very simply: one step at a time. One lie can lead to another, and bigger, lie. One act of dishonesty can lead to another. If we justify the first, it is easier to justify the second. The individuals in the Milgram study began with small shocks and proceeded upwards. From ten volts to 450 volts. This study has always fascinated me, but Tavris and Aronson conclude that not only do we move toward bad/corrupt/cruel/foolish behavior one step at a time, but we also tend to blame our victims...they deserved it, they were stupid, they were stubborn. Because those individuals who were administering the "shocks" were decent people, they had to justify their willingness to "inflict" pain.

This is a fascinating book, and the authors take the reader through example after example, study after study. Why would a prosecuting attorney refuse to change his opinion after DNA proved that the accused was not guilty? Why can't psychologists, doctors, police, politicians, husbands, wives, teachers, students, bosses, employees... admit they made mistakes? What procedures and strategies are at work? The authors reveal the process, revealing how easy it is to compound and magnify our errors because we are so busy justifying our decisions.

From marital disagreements to war crimes, almost without exception individuals try to justify their behavior to ease cognitive dissonance. The latter part of the book concentrates on acknowledging mistakes rather than excusing them, being aware of the process and consequences of self-justification, keeping an open mind, and not "jumping to convictions."

There is way too much in this little book for me to cover, but I recommend it to anyone who enjoys psychological and sociological studies. Sometimes floored, sometimes angry, sometimes sad, sometimes amused, but always interested, I can only hope that I will be able to apply some of what I learned in my own life. This book was an Advanced Reader Copy, and my thanks, again, to Anna Suknov for sending it.

Nonfiction. Social psychology. 2007. 236 pages.

An Assortment of Goodies

Have you ever wanted a literary umbrella?


Well Luminary Graphics can provide you with one of several different
versions! Or great bookmarks, or bookbags, mugs, playing cards, or journals.

I love the Magritte bookmark!











Here is a review of new YA fantasy novel that sounds interesting. It is the final volume in the series, but the review gives background on all of them. Also, here at January Magazine there is a link to the Guardian article Defining the Decades and in the post Margaret Atwood and the Defining Books of Our Era, you can scroll down to see the complete list.

On Choosing Books

Want to read an entertaining book review? Hop on over to Naked Without Books and scroll down to her review on Outsider.

Chris asked how I choose my books, and I gave a partial answer in the comment section of my last post:

I have several long lists of titles, subjects, and authors (gathered from all kinds of sources including blogs!) that I work from, I also choose a great many from the new book shelves at the library and browse through the stacks as well.

In the case of the Honor Harrington books, I found Off Armageddon Reef on the new book shelves at the library and enjoyed it so much that I wanted to read others by Weber. One book often leads to another--by the same author, on the same topic, or on something mentioned in the book.

It is an interesting question, however, and one we've all discussed at different times. I'm also intriqued by titles. I remember one book from quite a few years ago that I chose for the title alone: Malice Domestic which comes from a speech by Macbeth:

Duncan is in his grave.
After life's fitful fever he sleeps well.
Treason has done his worst; nor steel nor poison,
Malice domestic, foreign levy, nothing
Can touch him further.

I remember absolutely nothing about that little mystery except the title. Any title that originates from a line of poetry or has some allusive text (that I recognize) will cause me to pull it out for further examination. Certain words attract me for some reason; titles with the words snow, or winter, or bones in them make me pause. Beautiful phrases catch my attention.

Covers. A beautiful cover will draw my interest. A cover that doesn't appeal to me will cause me to ignore the book, often to my own detriment.

Not one of these methods is a reliable indicator of how much I'll like the book, but each method has a definite way of catching my interest. If another blogger mentions it and it sounds interesting, it goes on the LIST. If I read about it in the paper or on LitMinds or KR or Arts & Letters Daily; if I hear it reviewed on NPR; if a friend mentions it...

I know Chris (Stuff as Dreams Are Made On) has a penchant for science fiction and fantasy, but his blog title is a Shakespearean reference. So...how do you choose your books, Chris, within your favorite genres and in general?

And how do you choose your books? If you decide to answer on your blog, would you please leave me a link in the comment section so I can read it, too?

2 for 1: On Basilisk Station & The Honor of the Queen

Weber, David. On Basilisk Station. The first book in the Honor Harrington series proved to be a lot of fun. Based on the Horatio Hornblower series, a daring young woman is given command of a space ship that has been refitted with experimental weapons that she knows will not be practical. When the experiment ultimately fails, she and her crew are sent to one of the most unpopular posts available, Basilisk Station. Faced with an almost impossible task, Honor puts everything she has into making the situation work.

What to call the specific sub-genre? Another reviewer called it a cross between "space opera and military science fiction." That works well for me. A highly entertaining read, if you like this sort of thing. I enjoyed it enough to read the second in the series.

fiction. Science Fiction. 1993. 419 pages.

The Honor of the Queen. Two years have passed, since Honor's success at Basilisk Station. Another assignment (with much more prestige), and lots more space battles and high adventure. An interesting feature in this one is a religion that decided to eschew technology, and an even more fundamentalist off-shoot of that. This intertwined religious/Luddite theme is developed in Weber's new series that begins with Off Armageddon Reef.

The characters in these novels are somewhat stereotypical, but the emphasis is on the fast-paced action. Honor is really, really good-- strong, confident, smart, fair, innovative, decisive: A paragon of the space commander. It is good fun and highly entertaining to see the Heroic Woman take charge and kick ass.

fiction. Science Fiction. 1993. 422 pages.

I Feel Like a Celebrity!

Oh, wow, my interview on Litminds is up! I'm really honored to have been interviewed and to share the company of bloggers like Sam Houston at BookChase and Stefanie at So Many Books! Litminds is a great place to visit to find out what is going on in the world of books, authors, and book bloggers. A great community - drop by and register!