Katie's Reading Life - 2020 - Part 17

Continuing with my travel theme....




1) Detail from one of the temples.
2) Highly decorated building.
3) Spirit houses, common in SE Asia. They are shrines to the protective spirits of a place,home, etc.
4) I ordered pad thai with prawn and got a bit more than I bargained for! But it was delicious.

I have visited Bangkok three times – the first time in 2008, then again in 2012 and 2017. It is one of my favorite places (thanks to the warm and friendly people, the amazing food, and the fascinating history) and if I ever get another opportunity, I would like to see more of the country, especially Chiang Mai.
________________________________________

Welcome to my thread! I’m Katie and I’ve been with the 75ers since 2011. I live just outside New York City - in addition to reading, I love to explore the city and to travel both near and far. I’m a bit of a foodie, am trying to get more comfortable doing my own cooking, and love wine. My reading tastes are eclectic and run from acknowledged classics to super frothy romances. I can be a bit snarky and sarcastic, and I am not to everyone’s taste, which is totally okay with me :)

In addition to a couple thousand books, I live with my husband (affectionately known as The Wayne), our cat, Leonard,and our new doggo, Nuala.

I don't have any specific reading goals for this year, but I do plan to participate - at least a bit - in several challenges here and in the Category Challenge and Reading Through Time groups.

CURRENTLY READING

(Print) (Audio) (Kindle)

COMPLETED

Books off my shelf: 28
Books off my Kindle: 31

123. The Enchanted April by Elizabeth von Arnim (4 stars)
122. Remarkable Creatures by Tracy Chevalier (3.5 stars)
121. Survivor in Death by J.D. Robb (4 stars)

120. Under the Table by Stephanie Evanovich (audio) (3 stars)
119. Don't I Know You? by Karen Shepard (4 stars)
118. Star of the Sea by Joseph O'Connor (4 stars)
117. The End of the Affair by Graham Greene (audio) (3 stars)
116. Juliet, Naked by Nick Hornby (4.25 stars)
115. Mr. Malcolm's List by Suzanne Allain (3.5 stars)
114. Dumplin' by Julie Murphy (4 stars)
113. Very Nice by Marcy Dermansky (2.5 stars)
112. A Dark Redemption by Stav Sherez (4 stars)
111. To Have and to Hoax by Martha Waters (4 stars)
110. Infinite Home by Kathleen Alcott (4 stars)
109. Sea Glass by Anita Shreve (4.25 stars)
108. Happy is the Bride by Various (2.5 stars)
107. The Last Summer of Reason by Tahar Djaout (4 stars)
106. The Boy in the Field by Margot Livesey (4.25 stars)

DID NOT FINISH (Year to Date):

1. The Little Disturbances of Man by Grace Paley
2. The Murder of Harriet Monckton by Elizabeth Haynes
3. Handsome Boss by Lori Wilde
4. Twice in a Blue Moon by Christina Lauren
5. Curious Toys by Elizabeth Hand
6. Mr. Rosenblum Dreams in English by Natasha Solomons
7. A Duke, the Lady, and a Baby by Vanessa Riley
8. Sweet Talkin' Lover by Tracey Livesay
9. A Paradise Built in Hell by Rebecca Solnit

COMPLETED

105. To Sir Phillip, With Love by Julia Quinn (4 stars)
104. The Witches Are Coming by Lindy West (audio) (3.5 stars)
103. The Outcast by Sadie Jones (4 stars)
102. My Name is Lucy Barton by Elizabeth Strout (audio) (4 stars)
101. The Girls in the Garden by Lisa Jewell (4 stars)
100. All Adults Here by Emma Straub (4.5 stars)
99. 500 Miles from You by Jenny Colgan (audio) (3.5 stars)
98. The Devotion of Suspect X by Keigo Higashino (3.5 stars)
97. Dangerous Books for Girls by Maya Rodale (3.5 stars)
96. Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison (4.25 stars)
95. Coventry by Helen Humphreys (4.5 stars)
94. A Boy and His Dog at the End of the World by C.A. Fletcher (4 stars)
93. The Sherbrooke Bride by Catherine Coulter (3 stars)
92. Between Two Skies by Joanne O'Sullivan (4 stars)
91. I Miss You When I Blink by Mary Laura Philpott (audio) (3.5 stars)

90. The Lantern Men by Elly Griffiths (4 stars)
89. Daring and the Duke by Sarah MacLean (3.5 stars)
88. The Last Days of Dogtown by Anita Diamant (4 stars)
87. The Nickel Boys by Colson Whitehead (audio) (4 stars)
86. The Dilemma by B.A. Paris (3 stars)
85. The Wicked Girls by Alex Marwood (4 stars)
84. Nothing to See Here by Kevin Wilson (audio) (4.5 stars)
83. Moranthology by Caitlin Moran (audio) (4 stars)
82. The Matrimonial Advertisement by Mimi Matthews (3 stars)
81. Turbulence by David Szalay (4 stars)
80. Romancing Mister Bridgerton by Julia Quinn (4 stars)
79. City of Thieves by David Benioff (4.5 stars)
78. Jackaby by William Ritter (audio) (3 stars)
77. Lockdown by Peter May (3.5 stars)
76. Big Summer by Jennifer Weiner (3 stars)

75. Queenie Malone's Paradise Hotel by Ruth Hogan (3.5 stars)
74. With the Fire on High by Elizabeth Acevedo (audio) (4 stars)
73. The Fire This Time by Jesmyn Ward et. al. (4 stars)
72. Wicked and the Wallflower by Sarah MacLean (4 stars)
71. Writers & Lovers by Lily King (4.5 stars)
70. The Mercy Seat by Elizabeth H. Winthrop (5 stars)
69. Lily-Josephine by Kate Saunders (3.5 stars)
68. The Silent Treatment by Abbie Greaves (audio) (4.5 stars)
67. An Unwanted Guest by Shari Lapena (3.5 stars)
66. Speaking of Summer by Kalisha Buckhanon (3.5 stars)
65. Oona Out of Order by Margarita Montimore (3 stars)
64. Let's Explore Diabetes with Owls by David Sedaris (audio) (4 stars)
63. Simon the Fiddler by Paulette Jiles (4 stars)
62. The Fire Next Time by James Baldwin (audio) (4 stars)
61. Brave New World by Aldous Huxley (audio) (2.5 stars)

COMPLETED

60. An Offer from a Gentleman by Julia Quinn (3 stars)
59. Long Bright River by Liz Moore (5 stars)
58. Beach Read by Emily Henry (4 stars)
57. The Secret Guests by Benjamin Black (audio) (3.5 stars)
56. My Dark Vanessa by Kate Elizabeth Russell (4.5 stars)
55. How to Ride a Dragon's Storm by Cressida Cowell (audio) (3.5 stars)
54. The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion (audio) (4.5 stars)
53. The End of October by Lawrence Wright (3.5 stars)
52. French Exit by Patrick deWitt (audio) (3.5 stars)
51. The Patron Saint of Lost Dogs by Nick Trout (3 stars)
50. Fade Away by Harlan Coben (audio) (3 stars)
49. Necessary as Blood by Deborah Crombie (4 stars)
48. The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt by Edmund Morris (4.5 stars)
47. Heidi's Guide to Four Letter Words by Tara Sivec and Andi Arndt (audio) (4 stars)
46. Smile by Roddy Doyle (audio) (4 stars)

45. Mr. Darcy's Diary by Amanda Grange (3.5 stars)
44. The Flatshare by Beth O'Leary (4 stars)
43. A Simple Favor by Darcey Bell (audio) (3 stars)
42. I Hear the Sirens in the Street by Adrian McKinty (4 stars)
41. Pont Neuf by Max Byrd (audio) (2 stars)
40. Beautiful Mistake by Vi Keeland (audio) (3.5 stars)
39. Navigate Your Stars by Jesmyn Ward (4 stars)
38. Danny the Champion of the World by Roald Dahl (5 stars)
37. Quarantine by John Smolens (3.5 stars)
36. Mister Monkey by Francine Prose (audio) (3.5 stars)
35. Born Round by Frank Bruni (audio) (4 stars)
34. Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day by Winifred Watson (4 stars)
33. Close Your Eyes, Hold Hands by Chris Bohjalian (audio) (3 stars)
32. The Cold, Cold Ground by Adrian McKinty (4 stars)
31. Evvie Drake Starts Over by Linda Holmes (audio) (4 stars)

30. Rules for Visiting by Jessica Francis Kane (audio) (4 stars)
29. Elizabeth: Obstinate, Headstrong Girl by Various Authors (2.5 stars)
28. Visions in Death by J.D. Robb (4 stars)
27. The Indignities of Being a Woman by Merrill Markoe & Megan Koester (audio) (4 stars)
26. Ship Breaker by Paolo Bacigalupi (audio) (3.5 stars)
25. The Viscount Who Loved Me by Julia Quinn (3.5 stars)
24. Ordeal by Innocence by Agatha Christie (audio) (3.5 stars)
23. A Boy in Winter by Rachel Seiffert (audio) (4 stars)
22. This is Your Life, Harriet Chance! by Jonathan Evison (audio) (3.5 stars)
21. Island of Wings by Karin Altenberg (3 stars)
20. Riots I Have Known by Ryan Chapman (audio) (3.5 stars)
19. Emma by Jane Austen (audio) (4 stars)
18. Eye Contact by Cammie McGovern (4 stars)
17. Miss Buncle's Book by D.E. Stevenson (3.5 stars)
16. Circe by Madeline Miller (audio) (4 stars)

COMPLETED

15. Dreamland Burning by Jennifer Latham (4 stars)
14. Still Waters by Viveca Sten (3 stars)
13. Corregidora by Gayl Jones (3.5 stars)
12. Lost Lake by Sarah Addison Allen (3.5 stars)
11. Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood (4 stars)
10. Lady Fortescue Steps Out by M.C. Beaton (audio) (3 stars)
9. Love Lettering by Kate Clayborn (4 stars)
8. Nightwoods by Charles Frazier (4 stars)
7. The Circus Fire by Stewart O'Nan (3.5 stars)
6. The Duke and I by Julia Quinn (4.5 stars)
5. A Commonplace Killing by Sian Busby (4 stars)
4. The Beginning of Everything by Robyn Schneider (3.5 stars)
3. Big Girl by Kelsey Miller (audio) (4 stars)
2. Gracelin O'Malley by Ann Moore (4 stars)
1. American Royals by Katherine McGee (3.5 stars)



My Ratings (revised, once again, as I continue the fruitless search for the perfect scale...)

2 stars = below average
3 stars = average
4 stars = above average
5 stars = perfect *for me*

(Anything below 2 stars is unlikely to be finished)

Using this one again as it is so appropriate right now....

WELCOME!

Happy new thread! I see you're reading Star of the Sea....just this morning I listened to a podcast interview with O'Connor and added it to my TBR! I read and loved Shadowplay earlier this year.

And when you get to Chiang Mai, wander down the streets hollering "Dr. Siri! Dr. Siri!" to lure Colin Cotterill out of his lair.

*smooch*

>7 vivians: - Hi Vivian! I've had SotS forever - like pre-2005 I think... Oops. Shadowplay is on my WL.

So far SotS is excellent.

>8 richardderus: - SHould I admit to never having read any Cotterill/Dr. Siri?

>10 katiekrug: No shame in it, and it's easily fixed by checking The Coroner's Lunch out from the library. You'll know by the end of it if the series is for you or not.

It blends the sights and savors of Southeast Asia with a strong and strangely apposite experience of the World as a sentient being with a personality. It expresses itself in some amusing ways to dear old Dr. Siri.

I think I have The Coroner's Lunch lurking on my Kindle....

>12 katiekrug: Perfect! Since it's already there, though, there's no urgency and we all know what that means...bottom of the pile into Eternity. Schedule your return to the Mekong watershed now!

Richard is right - Dr. Siri is a treat! Lots of humor and atmosphere, and an eye-opening look at that part of the world.

Love the photos, Katie. Happy new one.

>12 katiekrug: His other series - starts with Killed at the Whim of the Hat - is good too. Had me laughing out loud.

>1 katiekrug: Speaking of spirit houses, when we were in Bangkok last year our taxi driver was telling us that it was a widely held belief that the reason that the Thaï billionaire owner of Leicester City football club was killed in a dramatic helicopter crash, was because he had neglected to replace a spirit house outside one of his Bangkok properties.

Happy New thread, Katie! Hey, we are both on #17! Yah! Ooh, that Solnit looks interesting. I had not heard of that one.

I love the Dr. Siri series. I think I am eleven books in.

Happy new thread.
>:-)

>13 richardderus: - Plus, all those other series clamoring for attention....

>14 vivians: - Your endorsement is noted, Vivian!

>15 charl08: - Glad you like the photos, Charlotte. It's fun reliving some adventures :)

I didn't know Cotterill had another series...

>16 SandDune: - That is interesting, Rhian. Better safe than sorry....

>17 msf59: - Hiya, Mark! The Solnit is not what I was expecting, but never having read anything by her, the fault is probably mine. I'm reading it in bits and pieces...

Dr. Siri is much loved around here :)

>18 Helenliz: - Thank you, Helen!

Happy new thread, Chef Katie!

>21 kidzdoc: - Thanks, Darryl!

Happy new thread, Katie -- and yes, yes do get to Chang Mai!

Happy new thread, Katie!

>23 RebaRelishesReading: - Hopefully, one day, Reba!

>24 karenmarie: - Thanks, Karen!

I took today off from work and other than going grocery shopping and doing my at-home workout, it's been a day of rest and relaxation, with more on tap. Bliss.

Happy New Thread, Katie!

>26 katiekrug: So glad to hear you're having a perfect lazy day off. :)

Thanks, Roni and Micky!

Happy new one, Katie

Happy new thread, Katie!

Thanks, Shelley and Anita!

Happy new thread, Katie. I'll try to post more than once on this one! I liked that your reminder brought up the dinner we had with all of you in NYC. Around September 11 I sent a reminder to Rhea that we had been on the NYC harbour cruise on that day so memories of that trip came up here as well. Probably in large part because we can't go anywhere now!

Happy new thread, Katie!

>33 Familyhistorian: - Hi Meg! I am definitely thinking of past trips these days. Looking forward to a change of scenery at the end of this month, even if it's not too far afield...

>34 bell7: - Thanks, Mary!

I follow National Geographic Travel on Instagram and they posted a gorgeous photo a stone building on an island in the Hebrides and I Want To Go. Sigh. Someday.

Hi Katie. It's about time I de-lurked.
I like your travel photos...
I follow you around on other threads but generally go fuzz-brained

~ when I'm supposedly here to post ~

I see our libraries share a fair number of titles although my collection is an order of magnitude smaller.

>36 MickyFine: - We're all just totally torturing ourselves, aren't we? Some day.... has become my mantra.

>37 SandyAMcPherson: - Hi Sandy - nice to see you over here!

Hi Katie, I think I have Star of the Sea buried on one of my Kindles - must have a look for it. And yes, I am another one who loves Dr. Siri! My husband had the travel bug this week and was feeling rather blue about being stuck at home. He was ready to jump in the car for a road trip, but I had to say no since I have some upcoming doctor appointments. :(

Happy fairly new thread, Katie.

>1 katiekrug: Most Malaysians have mixed feelings about our Siamese neighbours. I do like visiting Thailand and especially have enjoyed Krabi - we stayed on a resort island there which was to die for. The climate is fabulous and the food wonderful. Bangkok has all the attractions of a major city but many things that detract from its enjoyment too. The traffic is horrendous and the mall workers can be extremely unpleasant to people who they believe are wasting their time by merely "browsing". It is not an easy place to do business as they have an innate and possibly justified mistrust of foreigners and, of course, there is the in your face sex industry which means that certain areas of the city are best to avoid.

It is a teeming, vibrant metropolis and a place people should try and visit and experience at least once in their lifetime. Its river markets and temples and the energising feeling of rushing through the traffic in a tuck-tuck are things a visitor will never forget. It isn't my favourite place in the region as I find my adopted country more peaceful and welcoming and Indonesia (possibly due to my facility with the language) a more satisfying place to visit and/or do business in, but I can understand its attractions too.

I am reasonably sure your true identity is, as yet, unknown to you: you, your Kickassness, are a Dissectionist! An enthusiast of the jigsaw puzzle! Or so the Reader's Catalog email informed me this morning...I, OTOH, am a "quodophile" or piler-up of apt quotes.

>39 DeltaQueen50: - Star of the Sea is very good historical fiction, rich in detail. I think you'll love it, Judy. I'm sorry about your husband's itchy feet - I can relate. I am very much looking forward to our little getaway at the end of the month.

>40 PaulCranswick: - That's interesting, Paul. To each their own, I guess. Of the places I've been in that part of the world, Bangkok tops the list, followed by Ho Chi Minh City, then KL, and then Jakarta. I found the traffic in HCMC and Jakarta far worse than Bangkok. I didn't go to any malls in any of those places, except KL (because they were hard to avoid!), so can't speak to that, but the shopkeepers I encountered in HCMC were probably the nicest (and most patient).

>41 richardderus: - A dissectionist sounds like someone who enjoys cutting things open, a la high school biology (which I did, admittedly, love) :)

>40 PaulCranswick: Indeed Katie and I can certainly see the attraction of Bangkok, I suppose when you say "each to his own" it resounds with me as I will admit to preferring the company of the Malays and Indons to the Thais as they are very much my own and welcomed me into their group whereas the Thais will rarely accept foreigners as sincerely.

>44 PaulCranswick: - Just as with reading and no two people having the same experience of a book, I think the same is true for travel.

Tonight, The Wayne and I are going out to dinner. WITH OTHER PEOPLE. This is very exciting, as I've only really seen and talked to one other person besides TW since March - my BFF. But my high school friend, Kate, and her husband invited us to dinner at their golf club (fancy! I better remember to hold my pinky in the air all night...) and I am looking forward to going somewhere new and talking to other people :) We'll be sitting on the terrace because I still don't want to eat indoors, so I hope there are heaters because it's going to be a bit chilly. Now to agonize about what to wear.....

>47 richardderus: - Ha!

>46 katiekrug: Huzzah for other people! We've done a few deck visits with a few friends and family during the summer and early fall and it's really lovely.

Our first dinner out tonight! Not really with "other" people (just two of the boys and one wife) for Gary's bday. But we're eating outside as well, with a 5:30PM start to try to avoid the cold. It feels like such a treat!

Hi Katie!

I hope the dinner out was excellent all around - food, drink, and conversation.

>46 katiekrug: squeee!
We've been out three times with friends for drinks and I was ridiculously excited the first time. Oh me! Real people!! We're going once a fortnight, it's only for a couple of hours, we book our table and it's just lovely.

Hi Micky, Vivian, Karen, and Helen!

It was a lovely dinner and so nice to see and talk with other people. The food and wine was also delicious :)

In other good (and more important) news, my friend Kelli was given the okay on Tuesday to leave Houston and go home, so she and her husband drove up immediately and surprised their girls. Kelli is now able to walk the length of a block in her neighborhood and is making good progress.

>53 katiekrug: fabulous news about Kelli!!

>53 katiekrug: Kelli continues to amaze and astonish. I'm so glad for her kids that their mom is such a tough cookie. I'd've crumbled long before now.

Yay for a dinner out with friends! (Doesn't that sound weird coming from adults?)

>54 lauralkeet: - It was a nice bit of news to get this morning :)

>55 richardderus: - Her girls are very lucky, but so is she to have such good daughters. They are both smart little cookies, and very funny.

I don't think it sounds weird. I was giddy with excitement to go out!

Jim and I have been going out once a week with a friend who lives near Washington Square Park. So far outside only, which can be very nice. Tonight we might be inside (a little uneasy about that, even with the 25% rule). It's nice to be able to talk with friends, isn't it? If I had a balcony, I would try to do some entertaining in the open air, but as it is, we'd have to use climbing ropes up the front of the building. Not recommended.

>57 ffortsa: - Judy, we ended up eating inside last night because the terrace did not have any heaters, and the club is situated on a bit of a hill top and the breeze was sharp. But there were only two other occupied tables in the dining room (one with one of the sons of Yogi Berra!), and the doors in the foyer just past us were open, so there was good air circulation. But, yeah, I was a bit hesitant at first, but I think it was fine. Certainly no worse than going into a grocery store, which I am back to doing...

I hope you have a lovely evening! And yes, stay away from climbing ropes :)

God its so strange to look at the posting dates and see "October"

Judy we're having dinner tomorrow night not tonight. Hoping for warm weather and a nice table with a nice breeze

>59 magicians_nephew: - Time flies when you're having fun stuck at home! ;-)

Juliet, Naked by Nick Hornby

I love Hornby's wry humor and gentle, bittersweet tone. I'm not a music aficionado, but I really enjoyed this tale of a reclusive former rock star, the guy obsessed with him and his work, and the guy's long-time, long-suffering girlfriend. In an easy-going narrative, Hornby ponders questions of fame, meaning, identity, and connection. It's very well done, both entertaining and thought-provoking.

I hope to watch the film this weekend.

4.25 stars

The End of the Affair by Graham Greene

Meh. Too much angst - and not just angst, religious angst! Kill me now. Not even Colin Firth murmuring in my ear about forbidden love could redeem this one for me.

I might watch the film (re-make) this weekend.

3 stars (because the dude can write)

Question for Better Read People Than I: I feel like Graham Greene is an author I would like. This was my first by him and I'm tempted to just give him a pass from now on. Is there something else of his I should give a try before giving up?

>62 katiekrug: I'm interested in the answer to your question bc I disliked that book, too, for the same reasons. And I read it in print so I didn't even have Colin to assuage me.

>62 katiekrug: You'd have to look up the exact details, but GG had two distinct modes of writing -- serious novels centering Catholicism and what he called "entertainments" and others called suspense novels. So, perhaps you'd like one of the latter. Maybe The Quiet American, Brighton Rock, or Our Man in Havana?

(I'm too lazy to look up the entire list of which novels fall into which category)

>63 lauralkeet: - I'm glad I'm not the only one, Laura!

>64 ELiz_M: - Oh, thanks, Liz! That's definitely helpful. I have Brighton Rock on my shelf, so maybe I'll give that one a try.

I read The End of the Affair rated it 3 stars and summarised it as "It was a bit like analysing the affair under glass, it didn't really touch me."

The only other of his I've read was The Quiet American, which rated 4 stars and a really unhelpful review "Difficult to explain why I found this a rivetting read, but I did."

Make of that what you will. It seems to fit the distinction mabe by Liz in >64 ELiz_M:.

>47 richardderus: Perfect outfit! Hope you had a wonderful time at dinner.

>53 katiekrug: GREAT NEWS ABOUT KELLI!!

>62 katiekrug: >63 lauralkeet: >64 ELiz_M: I like some of Graham Greene's novels.
Our Man in Havana was okay but my favourite is Travels with my Aunt.

All a matter of taste of course. I don't remember any other titles. I did look at the list of his work in an online bibliography and saw a couple titles from my first-year English course at Univ. They were not memorable.

>62 katiekrug: Brighton Rock Pinky is a *memorable* character; this is the violent, nihilistic working class morality tale, you've read the whiny rich-white-people version.

Our Man in Havana is hilarious, as long as you go with the conceit of men being led around by their lust for a bad, bad British lassie with tastes her father can't afford. Manipulative much? All of them!

The Comedians is a deeply tragic, anti-American story set in Haiti's **GHASTLY** Duvalier regime. Also one of the few books by a man of his generation that I could not put down until I was done.

>66 Helenliz:, >68 SandyAMcPherson:, >69 richardderus: - Thanks, Helen, Sandy, and Richard. Helpful comments!

>67 RebaRelishesReading: - Thanks, Reba!

Give Our Man in Havana a try before you give up.

In his Catholic guilt mode my fave is Brighton Rock

I'm sorry you didn't enjoy The End of the Affair, Katie. I really liked both Brighton Rock and The Quiet American, but perhaps he is an author that just happens to resonate with me.

Wow, do your threads go quickly! Happy newish one. I love Hornby's sense of humor in his book essays, and I've been meaning to try one of his novels. One of these days.

Travels with my Aunt is the only Graham Greene I’ve read and I really enjoyed that one.

>62 katiekrug: I liked the film, but there was a lot of Mr R Fiennes, so it could just have been that. (Not terribly helpful there).

>62 katiekrug: Greene is one of my favourite authors, Katie, but I have to say that I would place End of the Affair very low in any order of preference. I didn't like The Power and the Glory for much of the reasons you didn't get along with your read.

The Quiet American is an interesting read foreshadowing as it does the Vietnam War
The Comedians set in Papa Doc's Haiti
The Human Factor whereby Greene out Smiley's Le Carre
The Honorary Consul set in the Argentine
Brighton Rock set amongst the razor wielding gangsters of Brighton and
Our Man in Havana which is a thoroughly enjoyable read

would make up my own favourites.

Hi Katie!

>53 katiekrug: Great news about Kelli.

>62 katiekrug: The Quiet American and Travels with My Aunt, both 4* reads for me.

No need for me to comment on GG, I see.

So, I was terribly, terribly, terribly saddened to see the elimination news.

Terribly.

>71 magicians_nephew: - Thanks, Jim!

>72 DeltaQueen50: - I'll give Greene another go before giving up on him, Judy. Thanks for your input!

>73 BLBera: - I also love Hornby's essays about books and reading, Beth. I think you'd like his fiction.

>74 lunacat: - I have that one on my shelf, Jenny. I'll definitely give him another chance (or maybe two)...

>75 charl08: - Mr. Fiennes is primarily why I am interested in watching it, Charlotte :)

>76 PaulCranswick: - Thanks for that input, Paul!

>77 karenmarie: - Thanks re: Kelli, Karen. And good to know about your Greene reads...

>78 ffortsa: - Any different thoughts, Judy?

>79 richardderus: - I was, um, not devastated. Definitely that person's time, IMO.

>81 katiekrug: How very sensible of you! Are you sure you're a Yankees fan?

Happy Kinda Sorta New Thread, Katie.

I'm still hoping to get to Bangkok some day. If I ever get on an airplane again . . .

Looking forward to your comments on that Rebecca Solnit book, which is new to me.

Did you watch Nadal defeat Djokovich? Wow.

Monday rain orisons!

>82 richardderus: - Snerk.

>83 jnwelch: - Hi Joe!I hope we all get to get back on a plane someday... We're thinking our first stop will be Scotland. Maybe Italy. Can't decide. I guess it doesn't matter at the moment :(

The Solnit is okay. Rather dry. I'm reading it veeerrrryyyy slowly.

>84 richardderus: - I didn't watch it. I kind of forgot about the French Open since I'm not attuned to tennis this time of year :-P I'm not much of a Nadal fan, but Djokovich isn't high on my list either...

I really just want to crawl back into bed and enjoy the breeze through the window and the sound of rain from under my covers... *sigh*

>85 katiekrug: *there there, pat pat* he said from under the covers listening to the rain

>86 richardderus: - *glares*

*smooch*

Your turn will come.

Hi Katie!

I wasn't paying attention to the French Open because like you, it's not the right time of year for it. No way was I going to watch Nadal and Djoker, but after reading that an unseeded Polish teen won the Women's in straight sets, I went back and watched some of it. She is very good on clay, don't know about how she is on other surfaces.

>88 richardderus: - I want it NOW!

>89 karenmarie: - I do like that a relative unknown won on the women's side. If I had thought about it, I would have watched but *shrug*

This morning, one of my work tasks is to officially cancel two of our planned overseas meetings for next year. Goodbye New Zealand and Norway... I had been looking forward to checking two countries off my list :( We are holding out hope our annual conference (and Board meetings) can happen in person next year in Dubai, but I'm not holding my breath. This is the longest stretch I've gone without a plane ride, much less an overseas trip, since I started with my organization in 2005. I do not like it.

When i was in London in the 1970's a bunch of us took the "Flying Scotsman" from London to Edinburgh and spent a dizzy whirlwind day seeing the sights before going back.

Did i mention how much i just love old trains?

Scotland is definateky on my to do list.

>91 magicians_nephew: - I loved Edinburgh, Jim, and am dying to go back. The Wayne wants to visit some distilleries, so Scotland is a win-win. My first time visiting, I took the train from London to Aberdeen and loved it. My second visit, a friend and I took the train from Aberdeen to Edinburgh, spent a few days there, and then parted - she flew home to Dallas, and I took the train down to London for a couple of days. Trains are the best (when they're not Amtrak - though I do enjoy the occasional Amtrak journey...). The Wayne's first experience of non-Amtrak train travel was the Eurostar from Paris to London last year, and he was agog.

So I bought a new t-shirt :-D

>93 katiekrug: That is glorious!

>93 katiekrug: Love it!

>93 katiekrug: LOVE IT!!

>91 magicians_nephew:,>92 katiekrug: Enjoyed the conversation about old trains. Hubby is seriously into RR history and we both love riding trains, old and new. Little 2 1/2 year-old grandson is really into old trains too, especially narrow-gauge steam trains, which he can identify right down to their parts. "Those are the drive-wheels, Grandma".

>93 katiekrug: Great shirt, Katie.

Sorry about the cancelled trips. NZ is on my bucket list. (Although I'd settle for anywhere a bit different right now!)

Thanks, Richard, Beth, Reba, and Charlotte! I got it on Amazon :) Too bad it's too cold to wear it at the moment!

>96 RebaRelishesReading: - So cute about your grandson, Reba! My father was big into trains, but it didn't rub off on me or my sister.

>97 charl08: - I would have been happy to go to NZ on my employer's dime, as I doubt I'd go on my own. The Norway trip really hurt - The Wayne was going to come with me, and we were going to take vacation afterwards and toodle around Norway and Sweden for a couple of weeks. Oh, well.

It's another rainy day here. I have to venture out in a bit to get my blood drawn for a routine doctor's appointment next week. After that, I'm going to check out a daycare/boarding facility for Nuala that I hope will work out. And maybe then I'll do some work :)

I've got three books I "owe" comments on, including the audio I finished last night. Today, I'll be starting the audio of Caitlin Moran's new one, More Than a Woman. I adore her - so smart and funny and snarky.

Star of the Sea by Joseph O'Connor

With the main part of the story set on a famine ship sailing from Ireland to New York in 1847, you know this is going to be grim. O'Connor frames the story as the recollections and research of a passenger on that ship, and from the outset, we know someone is going to die and we know who that someone is. There is a lot of background provided on the main characters - an Anglo-Irish nobleman; a criminal known by several names; and a woman who knows them both. Seeing how these three lives have intersected over the years gave depth to the story, and the level of research and excellent writing really makes the era and the setting come alive. Very highly recommended for anyone who loves historical fiction.

4 stars

Don't I Know You? by Karen Shepard

I bought this book years ago at a library sale, and it's been languishing on my shelves ever since. I thought it was just a regular mystery, but while it opens with a murder, it's really more of a character study of three people with varying degrees of connection to the victim and the crime. And these three characters' stories are told essentially in three different threads, though they occasionally intersect and influence one another. In the end, we learn who murdered the woman, but it's revealed so casually, we know it's not really the point. Very well done.

4 stars

They both sound really satisfying, Katie. The Shepard especially appeals to me, and the library has it! Yay!

That really blows about Norway. So sorry!

>102 richardderus: - I hope you like it!

Regarding the GG advisories, I pretty much agree with them, Katie. The End of the Affair is Greene at his most guilt-ridden. I do like Brighton Rock, maybe because I read it in college and had some really good lecture/discussion sessions on it. And Our Man in Havana is a definite hoot. I think we saw the movie after we read the book last year.

>93 katiekrug: LIKE!

I also loved Juliet, Naked, Katie but did not see the film. I will watch for your thoughts. He has a new novel out that seems to be getting some pretty good buzz. I love his work.

I loved Star of the Sea but can't remember much about it beyond the boat - perhaps time to reread.
Hope you get to Sweden/ Norway. I loved Stockholm - their library alone was amazing, and taking the ferry everywhere was fun.

>104 ffortsa: - Thanks, Judy! I think I will give Brighton Rock a try.

>105 msf59: - Hiya, Mark!I also love Hornby's stuff. I'm going to try to watch the movie this weekend, I think.

>106 charl08: - There was a lot of back story of the characters interspersed with the chapters of the ship's voyage.

I hope we get to Norway/Sweden, too! The Wayne's grandfather emigrated from Sweden in the 1930s and was a fisherman here in New Jersey. TW has always had an affinity for all things Swedish, though he never knew his grandfather.

Gym done (jump squats are the devil), paperwork dropped off at Pups@Play for Miss Nuala, now time to do some work (after LT)... It's finally stopped raining and is beautifully sunny in that October sort of way where the light is very clear. So pretty.

I'm currently reading an entry in the "In Death" series (#20, I think), and have started the audio of Caitlin Moran's latest, which had me laughing out loud in the car yesterday.

Hello there. I am *sponging*in* this glorious, fleeting moment of cool sunny breeziness. *happy sigh*

Good readings!

>108 katiekrug: burpees!! hahaha!!
I think they're fab - about an hour after the class has finished and I'm cosy warm at home.

>109 richardderus: - I'm enjoying the sun out the window while I toil away.... But I am in a much better mood than I have been the last two days. Coincidence? I think not.

>110 Helenliz: - I hate burpees more than jump squats. I had to tell our trainer that if he made me do burpees again, I was going to fire him ;-)

Katie, do you do overhead ball slams? I love them. Today our trainer suggested we imagine the ball hitting Trump's face which gave me even more energy than usual.

Under the Table by Stephanie Evanovich

This was uber meh, like the other books I've read by this author. I only keep reading them (listening) because they are non-taxing and perfect on audio when I'm distracted. But really, I need to learn my lesson and not waste my time.

3 stars

>112 lauralkeet: - Yes! I love anything with the medicine balls. I'm always surprised what a workout it gives! I'll have to try the Trump trick next time :D

Anybody else seeing (and hating) the new Talk design? I know I'll get used to it and it will be fine (and I'm thrilled it's supposed to be more mobile-friendly), but it was jarring to open up to it with no warning!

I'm seeing it and agree it's jarring to have it change so suddenly but I like the new look. :)

I like it, but it certainly was startling the first time I saw it! I'm anxious to see how it looks on my tiny iPhone SE (original) — Talk is generally unusable on that tiny screen, so if this fixes that, I'll be happy.

The type size on the topics list page seems abnormally large to me but never mind, I forgot that I was zoomed in on that page because the type size previously seemed so small! :-D

>116 MickyFine:, >117 rosalita: - It's already growing on me, and it does look better on my phone. Part of my initial problem was that some of the graphics weren't coming through (like the arrow on the colored strip of each message that brings you to the start of the thread...). The preview capability isn't working for me, though :(

Hmm, the message preview is working for me, I think — let me test it.

Yep, that worked. Is it giving you an error message, Katie, or just silently failing?

>119 rosalita: - Just failing. I click "Preview" and nothing happens.

>120 katiekrug: Well, that's annoying! Maybe post over in the Talk thread about the changes if you haven't already. I'm sure you're not the only one having the problem.

Personally I'm just glad to see the shrimp-vomit color gone and am rapidly growing to like the rest.

>121 rosalita: - Done!

>122 richardderus: - Yeah, I am liking it so far. Especially the colors...

It's certainly different, I'll give it that much.
Not sure the grey for read and blue fo runread posts in a thread is quite distinctive enough, but we'll get used to it.
My usual instinct is to run screaming for the hills at the first sight of change, but this hasn't freaked me as much as it might.

>115 katiekrug: I agree 100% - I've never really read "talk" on the phone and I can imagine it would work better there though. But quite a shock when I didn't realize a change was coming.

Jarring, yes, but it will grow on me. It looks MUCH better on my phone than the old look. I avoided using Talk on my phone but will likely use it more now.

>115 katiekrug:, >122 richardderus: I like the new colours much better (easier on my eye).

What isn't working (for me, on a Mac using Safari) is the spoiler tags. They don't hide the spoiler. Where do we look for chatter on that sort of bug?

I also don't like how HUGE the images import when I'm copying an image address from my LT library catalogue to a talk thread. I know it just takes an additional height=150 annotation, but the link used to import a smaller size without that.

>120 katiekrug: - Where is a *preview* option? I don't see it. Was there one before? If so, I guess I just never noticed.

>124 Helenliz: - Wow, the colours (blue and gray) to my eyes look like just one colour. I honestly don't see a distinction at all. Ha, I am trying now to remember what it was before. I do remember it was easy to see new and unread, but suddenly, I am drawing a blank as to what the colours were. I have to wonder, what is the reason for the change? I am old school, in the old *if it ain't broke...* camp

Much much much preferring the new look as I basically only do LT on my phone. I’m sure there will be some glitches but for me it’s a thumbs up.

It was a bit of a shock when it first popped up though!

Hi Helen, Reba, Laura, Sandy, Shelley, and Jenny!

I am sure we will all get used to the new design. It's really not that different. And of course, there are some bugs to work out, but there are essentially only two LT people working on it, so I think patience is the key word.

I still can't preview a post, but I'll live :)

I think you're right Katie. Changes on websites are always a bit jarring at first, but it doesn't seem to take long to get used to them. I like the blue bars.

>131 BLBera: - Hi Beth!

I've been following along on the Talk thread about the changes. A lot of people seem to have issue with the color scheme. The differentiation works for me and is, to my eye, very obvious. I wonder if people have their monitors set differently. I feel bad seeing people saying they HATE it and it's DREADFUL and all sorts of similar words that seem really harsh to me. It won't be to everyone's taste, nothing ever is. *shrug*

Survivor in Death by J.D. Robb

This was a strong entry in a series that I really enjoy. A little girl is the only survivor of a home invasion. Eve and Roarke take her into protective custody. All the secondary characters make appearances, and despite the grim subject matter, Robb manages to infuse both humor and warmth into the story.

4 stars

Hi Katie! I am adjusting to the new look pretty well, although I am way behind on your thread so everything is the unread" color!! LOL. I don't like burpies at all. ; )

Hmmm, my ability to highlight text, copy and paste, seems to have gone away. I expect it's just another bug to be worked out related to the design change.

>134 Berly: - Hi Kim! I have yet to find a person who enjoys burpies... Can't imagine why ;-)

>132 katiekrug: If you ever want to see collective hysteria in action, just visit LibraryThing feedback threads after some sort of UI change! I don't know how Tim and Chris cope with such drama — I would be very bad at that.

>135 katiekrug: Hi Katie.
I'm liking the new look fairly well, but like Kim, I'm way behind on threads in the 75er group.

The Devs seem to be working really hard and alterations are rolling out in response to people's comments on the New Features in Talk page.

>137 rosalita: - I simultaneously love and do not love how invested people are in this, Julia. A passionate community of readers has to be a good thing, but some of the commentary seems over the top to me.

Did you ever finish the Solnit book we both happened to pick up around the same time? My report to follow...

>138 SandyAMcPherson: - Hi Sandy - I think most of us are always at least somewhat behind! We do like to chat :) I really admire Tim and Chris' commitment to giving us all the best possible experience and their patience with the roll-out.

I have read about 2/3 of Rebecca Solnit's A Paradise Built in Hell, and I think I am going to call it quits. It's an interesting topic, but I found the writing rather dry, and much of it became repetitive. I had hoped that the sections on 9/11 and Hurricane Katrina might grab be more since they happened in my adulthood, but that didn't happen (though the 9/11 section was probably the most interesting). Anyway, that's #9 on my DNF list. As always, YMMV.

>140 katiekrug: Sorry to hear that, Katie. I haven't even had a chance to pick it up yet — I'm currently reading Erik Larson's The Splendid and the Vile as my nonfiction book and the new Tana French, The Searcher as my fiction read.

>141 rosalita: - Ah, okay. My bad! I hope it lands better with you!

VERY IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT
(mostly for Micky and Judy and Meg and Mamie (miss you!) and other fans of the series I have forgotten...)

Netflix has announced the release date for 'Bridgerton' - December 25. Merry Christmas to all!!!

>143 katiekrug: WOOHOO!!! Must squeeze in the last three books tout suite!

>142 katiekrug: Oh, no worries. I had hoped to be able to read along with you, but as usual in these uncertain times my plans were overtaken by events (I think I worked the correct number of platitudes into that sentence). :-)

>144 MickyFine: - Me too! Though I don't think it gets as far as F/G/H's stories. Maybe season 2 :)

>145 rosalita: - LOL, Julia. Totally understand.

>140 katiekrug: Interestingly, my ability to copy/paste AND to get a reply box have disappeared. The buggies are no doubt on it.

>147 richardderus: I never use Reply, but just did for this message, and it seems to be working. I still can't "preview" or copy/paste... It'll come back, I'm sure. Maybe the universe is telling me to actually do some work?

We leave in a little over a week for our getaway on a lake near Cooperstown, NY. So you know what that means! Obsessing over what books to bring! We are trying for a mix of doing/seeing stuff and just relaxing, so I hope to get a decent amount of reading in. Best laid plans, though, and all that...

As of now, my list is:
No Mark Upon Her by Deborah Crombie (next up in the series for me)
When He Was Wicked by Julia Quinn (next up in my series re-read)
Luster by Raven Leilani (this months' WNYC "Get Lit" book club pick)
Hieroglyphics by Jill McCorkle (an ER book)
Naughty Brits by Sarah MacLean et. al. (an anthology of romance novellas)

>148 katiekrug: Well, it worked for me this time...still can't copy/paste, though. Hm.

>149 katiekrug: How lovely to be getting away at this gorgeous time of year! And, in case you're taking lovely fall for granted, Alberta's been warned to expect 10" of snow over the weekend!

>150 richardderus: - We are very much looking forward to escaping the house for a bit!

Last year, I was in Calgary at the end of September and we got 5" of snow. The locals said that was a bit early, even for them :)

I've switched from Firefox to Chrome, and can now preview messages!

>149 katiekrug: really curious to hear what you think of Luster. It's on my list despite lots of mixed reviews. Life sure is complicated for 20-somethings these days - I guess I'd rather read about it than live it!

>153 vivians: - LOL - same, Vivian! I'm not dying to read it, but will give it a shot...

>113 katiekrug: Stephanie Evanovich has never written a book I liked. So I stopped reading her. Uber Meh
is a good way to describe it.

if you liked it well and good
But as for me I never could

>115 katiekrug: hating the new Talk design

>117 rosalita: yes I have pretty bad eyesight and i routinely zoom in on web pages. Zooming out on LT helped - a little

>155 magicians_nephew: - Hi Jim! I'm a little surprised you've picked up any SE books - she only writes contemporary romances, as far as I know. Are you thinking of her better known aunt, Janet Evanovich, who writes the Stephanie Plum series, among other things? I also haven't loved what I've read of hers, either...

The new Talk design has grown on me. I'm good with it now and will be really happy when they fix the "Preview" feature in Firefox...

I wonder if preview works in Chrome now...yep! It does.

>157 richardderus: - Yep, Chrome was working for me this morning... Firefox is still a no-go :(

I'm like the new design quite a bit. And I don't often venture over into the group where such things are discussed because it bothers me how crass people can be over there sometimes. Seriously, do they really think Tim et al. are not working their butts off to make things better/easier? Hissy fits about changes are so silly.

Bow to the Chrome gods - changing to Chrome tends to fix most issues, as it seems to me, so I just set up camp there and stay.

Happy Friday, Katie. Good luck picking out your vacation reads. Always fun. Hopefully the next week flies by.

Hooray for time away! Enjoy, Katie. I hope to get to Hieroglyphics soon.

>159 scaifea: Amber, are you aware of the recent-ish Ravelry redesign? The LT reaction pales in comparison. It was the first redesign since the site was launched more than a decade ago, and people lost. their. sh*t. There were some legitimate concerns, and the Rav team could learn from LT in terms of how to engage their members in the redesign, but the reaction was still really over the top, IMO. Among a group of knitters, for Pete's sake!
----

I'm liking the new LT design.

Hi Katie, happy Friday!

Friday. Yes lawd. Dank, splodgy, sticky but a week closer to knowing if things will be bad or apocalyptic.

>159 scaifea: - Hi Amber. I have settled in with the re-design and really like it. I tend to like a lot of clean space as opposed to oceans of text, so it appeals to my aesthetic :)

I have unstarred the Talk thread about the changes because I kept wanting to tell people to simmer down!

I use Chrome on my personal laptop, but some of the stuff for work runs better with Firefox (which I find odd). And I'm just too lazy to toggle between them during the day, but if the PReview function still isn't working in Firefox, I may just do that.

>160 msf59: - Hiya, Mark! I'm sure the days will fly by because I have so much to do at work before I go!

>161 BLBera: - Thanks, Beth! I look forward to comparing notes on the McCorkle.

>162 lauralkeet: - Knitters are a wild bunch, I hear, Laura. Almost as bad as readers ;-)

Happy Friday back at you!

>164 richardderus: - Crawl-back-into-bed weather, isn't it? Do it for me, ok? I'm up, coffee'd, gym'd, and now settling into work.

I studiously ignored the dueling town halls last night (mostly because it was HH night - heh). There may have been so over-indulgence...

Today's workout was mini circuits. I actually loved it. The Wayne was less than enthused. Heh. He doesn't like anything that doesn't involve lifting and/or carrying heavy stuff. I kicked some butt, despite being ever-so-slightly hungover... Win!

>165 katiekrug: I am all tucked up, lemon-ginger tisane and blueberry coffeecake with bourbon streusel at my side. Your HH was undoubtedly worth more than that stupid stunt.

*smooch*

>167 richardderus: - Welp, that sounds like utter bliss. Enjoy! x

I love this ad so much.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7g7M30edrOc&feature=emb_logo

SO.MUCH.

My "Preview" function is back!

>169 katiekrug: Great message.

>162 lauralkeet: I don't visit Ravelry super often, but I subscribe to their biog so I've been following the re-design through the posts there and oh my goodness, you are so right! It sounded like people were apoplectic about many things, some legitimate concerns and others just (to me) silly. I actually like the new Ravelry design, and I like the new LT design, especially as they've continued to tweak things. Maybe I'm just generally undiscerning?

:-)

>162 lauralkeet: Laura: I've been on the site since the redo and I like it just fine, but I don't visit the discussion threads over there at all, thank goodness. Wow. People.

*waves at Katie*

>172 rosalita: nah Julia, you're just smart!

>173 scaifea: Amber, the discussion groups I follow were absolutely silent about it. The onslaught came to me via Instagram, because I follow a couple of hashtags there: #ravelry and #knittersofinstagram. That's supposed to give me a smattering of posts with those tags, and most of the time it's just cute knits and designs. But for a while there it was a bit much.

---

Sorry to hijack your thread, Katie.

*waves to Julia, Amber, and Laura*

No apology necessary, Laura!

Whoops, I lost track of whose thread we were actually on — rude!

So Katie, your posts about the upcoming Bridgerton TV/streaming series (can we still call that TV if it's not on an actual broadcast/cable channel? Modern life is so confusing) have inspired me to pick the book series back up. I read the first and like it but somehow lost track of it and never returned. So I'm going to look for #2 at the library, but I'm wondering if you know how far book-wise the TV/streaming series goes? How many should I read before watching?

>176 rosalita: - Not rude - it's easy to do!

Re: Bridgerton (I don't know what to call it other than series, which is the same as the books, so *throws up hands in frustration*) - my understanding is (and it may be flawed) that they are smushing together some storylines, plus adding new characters, so it won't be super easy to draw straight lines to the books. However, I think I saw that the actors for the younger siblings are pretty young, so you can probably safely ignore the last two. So that's only 5 you have to read if you aren't re-reading the first! From other things I've read (I may be a tad obsessive), I think the first season is going to focus on Daphne and Simon (first book), but the Featheringtons seem to feature throughout just as they do in the books, so um, never mind, I don't want to get spoilery.

I think if you read through 5, you'd be all set for sure. And the first five are much stronger than the last 3, so win-win!

>177 katiekrug: Now that's news I can use! Thanks, Katie. Off to the library's website to see what they have ...

>169 katiekrug: I got "video unavailable." :(

>178 rosalita: - Happy to help!

>179 BLBera: - That's weird. Try this: https://twitter.com/ProjectLincoln/status/1317195767036186625

You shouldn't need a Twitter account to see it.

Chilly this morning, and I love it! Was wishing I had worn gloves when I took the dog out :)

Low key weekend here. The Wayne has 3 days off (Monday is Twitter's all-staff monthly Wellness Day) and is planning some kind of major garden project. I'll be cleaning, doing laundry, etc. I need to do a clothes purge, because since I work from home, I really don't need as many "work" clothes as I have. Also, some of them are too big now (yay!). I'd also like to get a nice walk in, and maybe some time with my current puzzle, which is almost done. So, super exciting day ahead - ha!

>181 katiekrug: since I work from home, I really don't need as many "work" clothes as I have.

You mean like pants? 😀

We just got back from an outdoor workout run by our gym. It was pretty chilly at first but really nice once we got moving.

>181 katiekrug: Happy Purgeday! Nothing feels better than freeing up space by eliminating stuff you really can't use anymore.

>180 katiekrug: Thanks Katie! That is amazing. The clothes are a definite plus working from home. Yoga pants!

>182 lauralkeet: - Yep, like "real" pants! And I have lots of work-appropriate tops that haven't seen the light of day in many months....

Yay for outdoor workouts!

>183 richardderus: - So true. I didn't make as big a dent as I wanted, but at least I got started.

>184 BLBera: - I need to invest in more yoga pants, I think :)

The Wayne is making boeuf bourguignon for dinner, and he started by making his own bone broth. It's been simmering for hours and oh, my. The house smells so good. Poor Nuala is being driven mad by the yummy smells...

Omg that's going to be delicious! Note to self to make that dish soon,

>186 katiekrug: That's just the best smell in the world. Well, that and sauteeing onions. Or roasting garlic. Or the first sip of coffee as it approaches your nose. Or...well...where can I logically stop?

(oh, and +1 on the yoga pants!)

Oh, man, that sounds good!

Have you followed Dan Beasley-Harling on Twitter? His online cooking class just did soda breads...stilton-walnut sounded good (though I mentally replace walnuts with pecans in everything).

And has chocolate week passed before the Krug oculars?

>187 lauralkeet: - It was really good, Laura! He's made it before - this time it didn't thicken up as much as I like, but the flavor was on point.

>188 richardderus: - Towels right out of the dryer. Or freshly mown grass. Or warm rain....

>189 drneutron: - It was!

>190 richardderus: - No, I will look him up.

And we watched Friday evening. I was sad about who left as I liked that person, but it was not their week.

>191 katiekrug: Good!

And yes, that wasn't the one I wanted to go, but WATER?!?!?

>192 richardderus: - That was so weird!

>193 katiekrug: I kept shouting at the screen: WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!? And then the cut-open layer shot...I could see the problem caused by that weird decision spang in the middle of the layer and *could*not*believe* the baker did not see it too!!

>194 richardderus: - I am pretty sure I physically recoiled when they cut into it and showed *that*.

I know, right?! Ew!

>196 richardderus: - Exactly.

Yesterday was frustrating. The place we were planning to board Nuala when we go away next week called to say that a dog in daycare there came down with kennel cough, so they aren't accepting any boarders for the next two weeks. So mad scramble to find somewhere else. There are a ton of places, but most require a meet-and-greet and trying to find time in my or The Wayne's schedule to get that done ahead of time is proving challenging. TW finally found one and will take her today, so hopefully all goes well with that...

I also felt kind of blah all day but a good night's sleep seems to have solved that problem (thanks to Nuala who didn't demand to go out at 3am as she had been doing...)

So today is a new day! With a dentist appointment in the middle of it :)

>198 katiekrug: well that's annoying Katie. The boarding places we've used (admittedly, not many) have all required proof of kennel cough vaccine. Grr. I hope the new place works out for you.

>199 lauralkeet: - Yeah, all these require proof of vaccination, too, but apparently it isn't 100% effective and this year's strain has evaded the vaccine rather well.

The good news is that Nuala has been tentatively accepted at the new place. She is there now for a daycare session, and as long as she doesn't misbehave, we are all set.

Our last dog went to her final reward in 1995 and I've been thinking we'd look for a new fur child once we've moved into the house but you're reminding me that parenthood brings challenges. Hope all goes well with Nuala today and while you're away.

Very glad Nuala's care is closer to getting sorted. One less stress!

>201 RebaRelishesReading: - But it's totally worth it, Reba!

>202 richardderus: - Yes, indeed. We'll go pick her up after my 4:00 videoconference and see how she did :)

Successful visit to the dentist - no cavities, and compliments on my oral hygiene :) I was really impressed with all their covid precautions, including cool new tools to minimize aerosols exposure. My favorite was the vacuum thingy positioned just above my face that sucked up any "mist."

>156 katiekrug: you're right - I meant Janet - waded through the first two Stephanie Plums and felt as if i had been beaten to death with low comedy that went on and on. I went off and off

>152 katiekrug: Preview is now working in Firefox, Katie. Not sure if I like the new look on my phone. I couldn't see the date of the last post on the ton of threads that I have to catch up on. Not happy with that and I was fine with the smaller text so that I could see more.

Thanks for the Bridgerton announcement. I actually signed up for Netflix. Now I just have schedule in some TV watching time - well, at least in December.

Scotland sounds like a lovely place to visit. If TW wants distilleries a good place to check out is Islay.

>198 katiekrug: I'm glad you seem to have found an alternative for Nuala. It also reminds me that we need to be planning some care for Carson at Thanksgiving. Since we can't visit family, we reserved a cabin on a lake in northern Idaho for three nights. Carson will need to stay here. :-)

I hope you do get some good reading time in when you are visiting near Cooperstown. We are vaguely watching the World Series, cheering for the Dodgers only because I hate Florida (I grew up there but I hate the way the state has "evolved" politically).

Oh gosh, last-minute plan changes like Nuala's boarding issue tend to throw me for a huge loop. I'm glad it seems you've found a working alternative without too much hassle!

>205 richardderus: - I think that's all of us!

>206 magicians_nephew: - I also read one or two and was not impressed. *fist bump*

>207 Familyhistorian: - Hi Meg! Yep, it's been fixed for a few days now. I like the new design and find it much easier to read on my phone. I don't pay much attention to the posting dates, so it's all good by me :)

You should plan a Christmas Day binge of Bridgerton! My best friend and I are going to binge it on New Years Eve, since we'll have nothing better to do (not that we ever do anything for New Years anyway....)

And yes, Islay is on his list!

>208 EBT1002: - Hi Ellen - no World Series for us, which is good for my sleep :) I only watch if I can really root for a team or really root against one. I couldn't care less either way about the Rays or Dodgers...

Good luck finding a place for Carson. We board Leonard at the vet...

>209 scaifea: - Credit where credit is due, Amber, TW stepped up and found the new place and dealt with them. Which is only fair, since I usually do *all* that stuff, and for this vacation, I found the house, booked the museum tickets, made arrangements for the cat, set the mail hold, etc..... :D

I started The Enchanted April yesterday, and so far it's delightful. I need to type up some comments on Remarkable Creatures to keep up to date...

Is The Enchanted April the book the film of the same name was based on? I just loved that film.

Elizabeth von Arnim was a true prose mistress. Her sentences beguile, her imagery ensorcels. Unhappy marriages do, on occasion, prove to be worth the trouble.

Have a lovely, if foggy, Wednesday.

>212 RebaRelishesReading: - It is! I haven't seen the film but plan to watch it once I've finished the book.

>213 richardderus: - This is my first by her, though I have a few more on the shelves...

I could do with some sun!

>211 katiekrug: I enjoyed that one as well. I've got another of hers to read later this year, In the Mountains for the very superficial reason that it was the most appealing of a not very long list of books published in 1920 by a female author.

>215 Helenliz: - I think I remember you crowdsourcing some suggestions for that prompt! I hope you like ItM as much as you did TEA.

Remarkable Creatures by Tracy Chevalier

Ima be honest,* I didn't love this one. I know a lot of people do, but it dragged too much in parts for me to really enjoy it. That said, the bones of the story (see what I did there?) are fascinating, and I like that some of these women's lives are being reclaimed by those that value them. I think, perhaps, Remarkable Creatures suffered in comparison to some others of Chevalier that I remember really loving and being engaged with.

3.5 stars

* My best friend is a high school history teacher, and today, she opened an essay by one of her students that started with "Ima be honest," and hearing this, I cackled out loud. Kids today *shaking my middle-aged head*

Love the history essay opener story. Wishing you a better next read, Katie.

>217 katiekrug: - I'm one who DID love this book but maybe that was because I listened to the audiobook version and the 2 readers were outstanding. So much so that, if there is ever a film version made I would hope they'd cast the 2 narrators in the lead roles. (don't ask me now who the readers were as I can't remember though I'm sure a google search would help me, but I just know I was mesmerized). Good narrators can truly make or break any book, in my humble opinion.

Ok, December 25th has been circled in red and I am planning on how I can slip away from the family and treat myself to some Bridgertons. :)

You must be just about off on your get-away so have fun, relax and enjoy your time away. Ima be honest - I am jealous!!

>218 MickyFine: - Thanks, Micky!

>219 jessibud2: - Shelley, I totally agree about a good audiobook narrator!

>220 DeltaQueen50: - LOL, Judy! Maybe the day after Christmas?

We leave on Sunday, so getting close!

>221 katiekrug: I take it Nuala passed the doggy day care test. I can tell you're not counting, not counting at all...

Not much going on here. I have a routine doctor's appointment this morning and then work, work, work. Tonight, I'll flip between the Giants game and the debate, or as I like to call it: Dumpster Fire 1 vs Dumpster Fire 2 ;-)

On the bright side, it's Order Dinner Out Day so my hardest decision will be deciding what I want!

>222 Helenliz: - She did pass! So we will drop her off Sunday before we leave. I told TW he would have to take her inside, because I'd be too consumed with guilt about leaving her...

Stellar visit with the doctor. She praised my weight loss, was thrilled with my blood work, my BP was "perfect," and I got my flu shot.

I rewarded myself on the way home with a pumpkin spice donut :)

>225 katiekrug: Huzzah for an excellent check up! Enjoy that treat, you awesome lady!

>225 katiekrug: Brava! And proof positive that all that torture with the PT is worth the time, effort, and money.

I had another apple cider donut fiasco this morning. I'm packing it in for the year. 2020 is taking that away from me, too. I hate this bloody year.

>226 MickyFine: - Thanks, Micky! The donut was delicious - perfect blend of sweet and spicy :)

>227 richardderus: - Nooooooooo about the apple cider donut! This does not bode well for my experience next week. I did notice that the honeycrisp apples I bought this week at the supermarket were not nearly as good as usual. Hmmmm....

Thanks re: the doctor visit. It's so nice to not dread going in! The PT is tortuous in the moment, but I love it.

I'm thinking about my reading "plans" for next year, because work? What's work?

I want to do the Goodreads "Around the Year in 52 Books" challenge again. I love the prompts they come up with. I don't read them in order, and I don't post in their discussions - I just steal the list of prompts and use them (as an aside, I recently finished this year's 52 prompts!).

And I think I might try a 50 State challenge - to read at least one book set primarily in each of the states. I've done a tag search and it looks like I have at least one book tagged for each state in my possession, so it should also help me read off my shelves/Kindle.

Anyone else thinking about next year yet?

The *instant* I make my interest in a plan known, my subconscious (or id, I can't always tell the difference) begins the sabotage operation.

I have to sneak up on goals.

>229 katiekrug: I've thought about it a teensy bit. I'm definitely planning a Jane Austen re-read because it's been a few years since I've read all of her novels and I think they're due for a revisit. I also might try and be more serious about BookRiot's Read Harder challenge next year. I dabbled in it this year but with the pandemic I shifted into reading in my comfort zone because even that reading wasn't always working for me.

>225 katiekrug: Congratulations! It's always nice to please one's doctor, isn't it?

>228 katiekrug: The other day Daughter #2 brought me some HoneyCrisp they had picked during their annual visit to the orchard a couple of weeks ago -- they were perfect :)

ATY 2020 Challenge - Completed!

1. A book with a title that doesn't contain the letters A, T or Y
Miss Buncle's Book
2. A book by an author whose last name is one syllable
The Duke and I (Julia Quinn)
3. A book that you are prompted to read because of something you read in 2019
Dreamland Burning (Tulsa race riots - Red at the Bone)
4. A book set in a place or time that you wouldn't want to live
A Commonplace Killing (grim post-WWII London)
5. The first book in a series that you have not started
Still Waters

6. A book with a mode of transportation on the cover
This is Your Life, Harriet Chance! (ship)
7. A book set in the southern hemisphere
The Rosie Project (Australia)
8. A book with a two-word title where the first word is "The"
The Dilemma
9. A book that can be read in a day
Riots I Have Known

10. A book that is between 400-600 pages
American Royals
11. A book originally published in a year that is a prime number
A Simple Favor (2017)
12. A book that is a collaboration between 2 or more people
The Indignities of Being a Woman
13. A prompt from a previous Around the Year in 52 Books challenge
The Circus Fire (A book by a favorite author - 2017)
14. A book by an author on the Abe List of 100 Essential Female Writers
Emma

15. A book set in a global city
Lady Fortescue Steps Out (London)
16. A book set in a rural or sparsely populated area
Nightwoods
17. A book with a neurodiverse character
Eye Contact
18. A book by an author you've only read once before
The Cold, Cold Ground

19. A fantasy book
How to Ride a Dragon's Storm
20. The 20th book on your TBR, in a series, by an author, on a list, etc.
Beautiful Mistake (20th in alpha order by title in "To Listen" collection)
21. A book related to Maximilian Hell, the noted astronomer and Jesuit Priest who was born in 1720
A Paradise Built in Hell
22. A book with the major theme of survival
The End of October

23. A book featuring an LGBTQIA+ character or by an LGBTQIA+ author
Born Round (Frank Bruni)
24. A book with an emotion in the title
Happy is the Bride
25. A book related to the arts
Beach Read (writing)
26. A book from the 2019 Goodreads Choice Awards
The Flatshare
27. A history or historical fiction
Island of Wings

28. A book by an Australian, Canadian or New Zealand author
Oryx and Crake
29. An underrated book, a hidden gem or a lesser known book
Corregidora
30. A book from the New York Times '100 Notable Books' list for any year
Mister Monkey (2016)
31. A book inspired by a leading news story
Ship Breaker (climate change)

32. A book related to the 2020 Olympic Summer Games in Japan
The Devotion of Suspect X (Japanese author)
33. A book about a non-traditional family
Lily-Josephine
34. A book from a genre or sub genre that starts with a letter in your name
The Viscount Who Loved Me (Romance)
35. A book with a geometric pattern or element on the cover
Infinite Home

36. A book from your TBR/wishlist that you don't recognize, recall putting there, or put there on a whim
Rules for Visiting
37. Two books that are related to each other as a pair of binary opposites: Book #1
A Boy in Winter
38. Two books that are related to each other as a pair of binary opposites: Book #2
Big Summer
39. A book by an author whose real name(s) you're not quite sure how to pronounce
The Last Summer of Reason (Tahar Djaout)

40. A book with a place name in the title
Lost Lake
41. A mystery
Ordeal by Innocence
42. A book that was nominated for one of the ‘10 Most Coveted Literary Prizes in the World’
The Nickel Boys (Pulitzer)
43. A book related to one of the four horsemen of the apocalypse
Gracelin O'Malley (famine)
44. A book related to witches
Circe

45. A book by the same author who wrote one of your best reads in 2019 or 2018
Navigate Your Stars (Jesmyn Ward)
46. A book about an event or era in history taken from the Billy Joel song "We Didn't Start the Fire"
The Fire Next Time
47. A classic book you've always meant to read
Brave New World
48. A book published in 2020
Long Bright River

49. A book that fits a prompt from the list of suggestions that didn't win
Elizabeth: Obstinate, Headstrong Girl (fan fiction)
50. A book with a silhouette on the cover
Let's Explore Diabetes with Owls
51. A book with an "-ing" word in the title
Love Lettering
52. A book related to time
Oona Out of Order

>230 richardderus: - I totally get that. That's why I always try to put "plans" in quotation marks :)

>231 MickyFine: - Can't go wrong with Jane. I've done the Read Harder challenge in the past (I'm a sucker for challenge prompts :) ), but I was uninspired by this year's...

>232 RebaRelishesReading: - Sounds like it's an East Coast apple fail, Reba!

>233 katiekrug: WOW

I am totally impressed! That's quite an achievement, considering you had to sneak it past your joyously anarchic id-ly self!

Nice going on the ATY.

>235 richardderus: and >236 Helenliz: - Thanks! Most of the prompts got met by stuff I was reading anyway. There were maybe 10 or so I had to be rather intentional about...

>233 katiekrug: Congrats on finishing your challenge, Katie! And it was a long one, too.

>233 katiekrug: Congrats from me, too.
I would be totally snowed under with that challenge. Wow!

Congrats on the great check up and finishing the reading challenge, Katie.

My take on Remarkable Creatures was similar to yours. It did drag a bit but its good to know that other books by her are better. I should seek one out.

No surprise that Islay is on TW's list. It is noted for whisky. I've never actually tasted the whisky although I've been to Islay a couple of times. One branch of my family came from there and one of my direct ancestors got in trouble for having an illegal still, so there is that. Oh, and if you land at Islay's airport, part of the land the runways are on is land that generations of my family farmed (and had illicit stills on too,, probably).

Katie, did you see the Entertainment Weekly first-look photos for The Bridgertons? I'm even more excited now.

>238 BLBera: and >239 SandyAMcPherson: - Thanks, Beth and Sandy!

>240 Familyhistorian: - Hi Meg! Thanks re: the congrats. And I love knowing about your connection to Islay. When we do get there, I will feel like I have a personal connection :)

I think you would like other books by Chevalier. I remember really enjoying Falling Angels, which is set in London around the turn of the 20th century and there is a lot about the suffrage movement (IIRC).

>241 MickyFine: - Hi Micky! I hadn't seen them in EW, but I saw them all on Instagram when the release date was announced. So gorgeous... Can't wait!

I like that Shonda Rhimes is producing this but someone else created and is showrunning it. She's such a machine, but even she needs to relax once a decade.

Fun trip this Sunday! Looks like it'll be nicer than it is here today. (Not that that's too tough.)

>243 richardderus: - I looked at the forecast for next week up there, and it's going to be chilly and rainy through Tuesday, and then just chilly. With maybe some snow flurries overnight!!

Rain>fog, dankness
plus chilly! not this low-grade not-quite fever
blech

>245 richardderus: - Agreed. And snow is The Best :)

Just found out my brother-in-law has tested positive for covid. His wife (TW's sister) and their 4-year old will be tested tomorrow, and my mother-in-law, who lives with them, is looking for a place to get tested. She is considered vulnerable due to her age and a medical condition, so I'm quite worried. And I have to tell TW when he gets home from errands :(

Good juju gladly accepted.

Oh Katie. Sorry to hear this news. Sending hugs and supportive thoughts.

I am so sorry to hear the news, Katie. I was just going to wish you a Happy Weekend but I am sure these family health issues will be weighing on your mind. You will be in our thoughts, my friend.

>248 MickyFine: and>249 msf59: - Thanks, Micky and Mark. My BIL is a former Marine and in good health, so hopefully he bounces back quickly. Right now, he has a fever and chills and body aches but "nothing too terrible" according to my SIL.

This is a fucking nightmare! I'm so sorry, Katie and Wayne. Never, ever would I wish this rotten disease on anyone (except every GOP voter).

That's sucky news Katie. I hope your BIL recovers quickly and that the others test negative.

>252 lauralkeet: As Laura said Katie, I hope everyone in the family emerges from this situation safely and that your BIL recovers with no lingering difficulties. Sending best wishes.

Sending best wishes for the recovery and for telling TW.

Oh, dang. I'm sorry, Katie. Adding to the pile my good wishes for a quick recovery and negative results for the others.

Good juju given! Hoping for a quick recovery and lack of spreading.

Sorry to hear about your BIL, Katie. Sending good karma your way.

Oh No! I am hoping your MIL (and the rest of the family) test negative and your BIL recovers quickly, with no lasting damage!

Thanks, everyone. We are just waiting now.

I think I will start a new thread while I have some time. We are leaving tomorrow for "vacation," and I'm not sure how much LT time I'll have.

>180 katiekrug: Thanks for re-posting that Lincoln Project ad. I couldn't view the first either. That issue may actually be the most important one in the election. His "leading" with that kind of behavior has harmed us in so many, many ways.

Hi, Katie!

Clothing: I'm virtually attending this week a conference that I'd normally have to get dressed up for (and I don't mean cosplay). Instead I'm in a t-shirt and shorts or sweatpants. The pandemic does have a silver lining or two.

The Great British Baking Show: My wife and daughter are so loud while watching it, with interspersed yells. I've urged quiet and dignity, to no avail. Is there something I should know about this season?

Remarkable Creatures: I'm one of those who loved it. Almost as much as Girl with a Pearl Earring. Sorry it didn't work better for you.

Oh man, you're already on a new thread. Well, I'll go there, but in case I forget, congratulation on the ATY. Lots of books I liked in there.