My copy of Beverley Nichols' Laughter on the Stairs finally arrived and it's just as delightful as Merry Hall. This one focuses on restoring the house, rather than the gardens, and is full of interesting characters and Nichols' wonderful wit.

I'm also reading The Planets by Dava Sorbel. It's a non-fiction overview of our solar system and covers fact, history, and myth relating to each planet. It reads very easily, and I've learned a thing or two already.

Thanks for the titles - have them on my library list.

I didn't care for planets as much as I liked Sobel's two others. Longitude was amazing, and when we visited Greenwich to see the clocks, I had to go back and read it again. And Galileo's Daughter had me searching for more on the history.

I needed to reread The Good Omen, and did last night. It doesn't matter how often I read this. Its always a delight, a surprise, and the ending always makes me more optimistic about the world.

Still reading Arthur and George. Wish I liked Doyle and his work more, I'd probably be a bit more interested in this book. But its an easy read, so on I go.

It's a dismal, rainy day. Damp, cold and housebound with whiney, clingy kids (sigh). I felt the intense need to "be" somewhere else, so I am escaping with "A Pirate of Exquisite Mind - Explorer, Naturalist, and Buccaneer: The Life of William Dampier".

I read three plays translated by Ted Hughes: the Oresteia by Aeschylus, Alcestis by Euripides, and Phedra by Racine. They were all interesting, easy reads that didn't take more than a few hours.

I then took up two of my older books, both "informal" histories by Herbert Asbury. One was The Great Illusion about Prohibition; the other was The French Quarter about the New Orleans underworld. Asbury was once a popular writer, but was largely forgotten until Martin Scorsese made a movie out of his Gangs of New York. I see from Amazon that several of Asbury's books are back in print.

For now, I've started The Perfect Machine: Building the Palomar Telescope by Ronald Florence. It's been sitting in my TBR case for several years.

I finished Patricia McKillip's new novel Solstice Wood. It is a contemporary fantasy that is a follow up to her earlier book Winter Rose. While there was nothing wrong with it, it didn't engage me the way her novels usually do. It may be me. I have trouble reconciling her particular magic with the real world as I live in it. Contemporary fantasy seems to need either the grittiness of Charles de Lint, or a translocation to another space where I can imagine altered reality. However, my own prejudices do not preclude other readers from enjoying it. If you like her writing, have at it!

Rosefolly

I recently finished A Long Way Down by Nick Hornby. I read about it on RP but don't remember who recommended it. Whoever it was, thank you very much! I loved this book. I was caught laughing out loud in public several times and had to explain to strangers the gist of the book. It wasn't easy to explain laughing at the book's topic!

I am now making my way through How to Read Literature Like a Professor by Thomas C. Foster. It's pretty interesting and I'm picking up a few tips about getting more out of my reading. I wouldn't recommend it highly, but if the title piques your interest, you might like it. I learned of it while having coffee with a friend at Barnes & Noble. She said, "I saw a book called How to Read.... Can you imagine anyone buying that?" I said, "Where is it?"

Paula rosefolly -- I just read Solstice Wood last night. Actually I read half of it and then quit because I was so disappointed in it. It felt like someone else had written it, the writing style was so different.
I've read Charles de Lint's contemporary fantasy and it worked for me, at least his earlier works. McKillip's foray into this area just didn't.

I finally picked up the Jane Austen Book Club, not sure why I waited so long, but maybe because I am such a big fan of the REAL Jane Austen!
I had no idea who the author was not having read any of her other books, but reading along kept telling myself-that sounds familiar, so when she gets to Biba's the famous restaurant I finally went -DUH! I looked at the back flyleaf and saw the author lives just 30 minutes from me.
There were other very familiar places described including when one of the characters mentioned her grandparents living in a big Victorian on Q Street-my DH was born in Sacramento and his grandparents lived in a big Victorian on P Street!

I am now reading Suspect by Michael Robotham.

Pat

Whoever it was who mentioned The Children's Blizzard, thanks for the recommendation. I finally got around to ordering the book from Amazon a couple weeks ago, and just read it last night. And to think that we complained about our subfreezing temperatures here in Virginia this weekend! :) I was surprised to find the author thinking that the fledgling weather service should have been able to predict the storm in enough time to warn the people; the state of meteorology then was so far behind what we know today, that even if the forecast had been sooner, I wonder how many people would really have responded appropriately.

cheryl

I abandoned Headlong - I just didn't care about it. If it was meant to be funny, it didn't amuse me.

So I picked up The Shipping News by Annie Proulx. And half-way through, I put that down in sheer unadulterated boredom. What a tedious loser the "hero" seems to be. What on earth was all the fuss about?

I'm now reading Sarah Walters' new book The Night Watch. Too early to say if I like it or not, but if her previous books are anything to go by, at least it will be a page-turner! Perhaps I'll get to the end of this one.

Finished up "Dreams of my Russian Summer" by Andrei Makine. Turned out very good, although not the easiest read in the world. Glad I have read it though because I enjoyed it. It's good to be challenged every now and then.

Now on to "Kingston by Starlight" by Christopher John Farley about a female pirate in the 1700's. It's getting better and better by the page....

Janalyn, I actually went back and re-read one of Patricia McKillip's older books so I'd feel better. If she were a brand new author I'd probably have thought the book was okay, not wonderful, but a pleasant read. But I expect something very special from this author. It is very unfair of me to expect perfection every time. Still, I was so disappointed! I tell myself that I have to give an author room to experiment.

Paula

vee, the virtual Gissing collection is here and my oh my it is lovely. By far the best birthday gift I ever almost received. Thank you for the thoughtfulness. My apologies for not thanking you earlier.

I just finished Cross Bones by Kathy Reichs and sadly, in this book, she seems to have jumped on the "DaVinci Code Bandwagon". This book starts in Montreal and ends up in Israel... with an unidentified skeleton whose importance seems to be of biblical proportions. I've read all of her other books but this one just had me spinning. Too many people and not enough depth on any of them, in my opinion. The mystery was great, but the book needed more space to go into the story.

And cece, I think it was you who asked if I would recommend the rest of the Kate Sedley mystery series starring Roger the Chapman. I am able to report that I am halfway through the most recent book (I think it's the most recent), The Lammas Feast, and she has not lost any momentum. As good as ever, if not better.

PAM

Children's Blizzard is one of those books that, while probably well written and researched, I just cannot read.

I am re-reading Birds Without Wings for our current discussion. Still a powerful book - except I'm finding myself not wanting to read passed a certain point, because well I know what happens to all of the characters, and well....I may do a bit of skimming. But I am glad to be rereading - I missed some stuff along the way.

> "Kingston by Starlight" by Christopher John Farley about a female pirate in the 1700's. It's getting better and better by the page....

Oh, I have to get this to someone who recommended this book to me. Lots of fun, have you read it yet?

Here is a link that might be useful: Pirates! An adventure with scientists

I was recently given "Secrets of Pistoulet" by Kolpin. This is reminiscent of "Griffin & Sabine" and can be read in less than one hour. It's a magical, allegorical tale set in the French countryside, sheer delight.

I'm still working away at Fischer's fascinating but scholarly "Albion's Seed" of which I've read half. I keep needing to take breaks from this for something lighter. Now, I'm almost ashamed to confess I'm enjoying Brown's "Angels & Demons." Seems perfect with a cup of English tea on this snowy day....

I love to hear what everybody has been reading; it always gives me some ideas of things to look for.
So far this month I've read Nabokov's Lolita (I'm not sure how I'd put it off for so long but I finally got around to it), and The Secret Adversary by Agatha Christie. I also reread Murder on the Orient Express. I read My Mortal Enemy bu Willa Cather and I've been into my Jane Austin book again, reading Mansfield Park, Emma, and Northanger Abbey. I really am not an Austin fan but I thought if I kept reading she might grow on me. NOT! Right now I'm in the middle of Salman Rushdie's Midnight's Children. I am enjoying it. Also I have checked out from the library The Caravaggio Obsession by Oliver Banks. I'm taking my son to Minneapolis to have surgery at the Shriners' Hospital on Friday so I'm taking along The Man Who Loved Children by Christina Stead. HOpefully that will give me something else to think about besides doctors, etc.

Sending you comforting vibes, and quick healing vibes for your son. Yes, a book or two helps. Consider also taking some headphones with you so you can play your own music. I was appalled when we were in the waiting room when my FIL was in surgery. Three TVs were blasting, and we were not allowed to turn them off...

>I really am not an Austin fan but I thought if I kept reading she might grow on me.

Hey, you tried, good for you!

I loved Midnight's Children, read it long before Rushdie was a household name, and later read it again when he was so controversial. One of my favorite histories from that time period

I can't remember what I mentioned before, but have read Ian Rankin's A Question of Blood, finished Strange Affair by Peter Robinson-both very good-also really enjoyed Linda Ellerbee's Take Big Bites.

I have finished the first five books of the Morland Dynasty and have ordered the next five. You all are turning my book budget inside out.

While awaiting the shipments, I read Straight into Darkness by Faye Kellerman. It is a departure from her mystery series; it's set in Munich between the World Wars and is a story of a somewhat venal policeman searching for a serial killer of young women while dealing with corrupt officials and Hitler's rising star. It is quite different from her other books and an interesting story, although I didn't like the style. I'm not sure if it is because she was trying to write stiltedly in a manner she perceives as of the period or what. I have liked her other books and not noticed the writing particularly.

I am periodically working my way through the short stories in Runaway by Alice Munro.

I also just finished reading the play Saint Joan by Shaw. It was a very concise account of the story. I felt it was lacking a little but good in general. It's probably better performed over just reading it.

Just finished "Kingston by Starlight" - very enjoyable pirate story (my first!). Well written and very lyrical although there were a few bits and bobs which jarred with the time period. Overall, very good story though...

Then read "The Venetian's Wife" by Nick Bantock (he who wrote the Griffin and Sabine trilogy - fabulous illustrations) and now on to a book about the sexual discrimination faced by a leading female neurosurgeon when she first on faculty at a university. Should be interesting to say the least.

Carolyn - I read that Kellerman book and found it quite disturbing-but-I felt it was the actual subject matter of the book. The rise of Hitler and the generally accepted treatment of the Jewish people of Munich and all the corruption and violence was appalling.
I think the Kellermans have done a lot of research of those times and have family members that were not only victims of the Holocaust but also some survivors.

I recently finished and enjoyed Suspect by Michael Robotham his 1st novel and I will be looking for his next one called Lost,I also finished Into The Web by Thomas Cook.

I just started The Rottweiler by Ruth Rendell.

Pat

I finished The Perfect Machine: Building the Palomar Telescope by Ronald Florence. I've long been fascinated by it, and I found the history of the technical, funding, and organizational problems interesting. I came away with a great deal of admiration for the many people who worked on it.

Then I read Triumph of the West by J.M. Roberts. It's the companion book to a BBC television series that was broadcast in the mid-1980s. The author's thesis is that European civilization so influenced the rest of the world that nowadays all cultural and political discourse takes place in Western terms, even in the criticism of it. There was lot in it that was familiar to me, especially the highlights of European history. I wonder what the author thinks now after twenty years with resurgance of militant Islam and the fall of the Soviet Union.

I've just started Malcolm Bradbury's book Dangerous Pilgrimages: Transatlantic Mythologies and the Novel which examines the cultural flows between Europe and the US as expressed in novels and their authors' lives. I have a feeling that I'll have a lot more ideas for further reading after I finish it.

I've had a busy reading month:
Children of My Heart (Ces enfants de ma vie) by Gabrielle Roy - a charming collection of stories about a young teacher on the Canadian prairies in the 20s & 30s
Told by an Idiot by Rose Macauley
Jude by Kate Morgenroth, a young adult book with plenty of plot twists, recommended by my DD to get me out of a reading slump
End in Tears by Ruth Rendell
Expecting Adam by Martha Beck, not what I was expecting (no pun intended) but enjoyed it nevertheless, unexpectedly funny
Queen of the Headaches by Sharon Butala, a collection of short stories mainly set on the Canadian prairies
Jane Austen, A Life by Carol Shields
Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe by Fannie Flagg - loved it, and highly recommended it
She's Come Undone by Wally Lamb - a painful and disturbing book to read in parts, and I disliked the heroine at the outset, but found it to be an excellent novel.

I read She's Come Undone for a book group, back in the days when I'd finish a book I hated just coz I felt obligated. Like you I had an instant dislike of the herione, but unlike you I really couldn't say it was a good book at leats not for me.

I didn't realise Sheilds wrote about Austen, need to check that out.

I have two books on my reading table: David Mitchell's Cloud Atlas and Nicholas Krause 'A Man Walked into a Door' (her first book before History of Love) Not sure which one I'll take up first, but seeing there are only a few more days left of the month, I guess I should decide soon...

mumby, I loved Expecting Adam. Like you said, it wasn't at all what I was expecting, either, and I really enjoyed her sense of humor.

Cindy, we read Cloud Atlas for discussion in November (see link below). I didn't think I'd like it at all, and it wound up being on my Top Ten list for 2005.

I'm still on a Beverley Nichols jag. I just finished the third book in his "Merry Hall" trilogy, Sunlight on the Lawn which was just as charming as the two that went before. Now I need to read something completely different before diving into one of his earlier trilogies that begins with Down the Garden Path. It's very hard to pace myself, I've had the same reaction to BN that I did to Bill Bryson when I first discovered him -- an uncontrollable desire to read everything all at once.

Here is a link that might be useful: November Discussion - Cloud Atlas

Thanks sheri. Funny, I tried to read it when it came out and it just didn't take. But I think I'm ready for it now. I'll check out that discussion

BTW, is there a thread somewhere which lists all of the books this group has discussed? If so, are there links to these discussions, or do they disappear after a while?

I've just finished a highly unusual and moving novel: "The Dogs of Babel" by Carolyn Parkhurst. Remarkable, IMO, for a first effort. It is alternately sad, funny, and disturbing. Ultimately unforgettable, about a widower trying to solve the mystery of his young wife's sudden death via a dog. The book has been compared to "The Lovely Bones," which I did not care for. Has anyone else read "Dogs of Babel" and what did you think?

I read The Dogs of Babel when it first came out and it was very disturbing. Generally I avoid anything that relates to cruelty to animals, especially dogs, but it was not obvious from the reviews that the book would take such a turn. You are right, it was unforgettable, but I wish I could forget it. It was very sad.

I finished all my books for this month, including The Turtle Warrior by Mary Ellis. A very good but incredibly sad book, all the way through. The Two Minute Rule by Robert Crais is excellent, his best since L.A. Requiem in my opinion.

Unfortunately I lent my Lost book by Michael Robotham to a friend, and it seems now it really is lost. And I'd been so happy to find it...

So I'm now reading Solomon Vs. Lord by Paul Levine.

I finished the biography I was reading about the life of William Dampier. It was entertaining and informative, though I sometimes felt in their enthusiasm for Dampier, the authors sometimes overinterpreted their research and were too eager to give him credit for being the first Englishman to accomplish this or that. It didn't detract from the fact that Dampier did lead an extraordinary life worth examining. It has inspired me to consider reading Defoe's "Robinson Crusoe" at some point this year.

Now I'm reading a biography about the life of Alfred Russel Wallace titled "The Heretic in Darwin's Court". I've been looking for some detailed bios on Wallace ever since reading Quammen's book, "The Song of the Dodo" back in the 90s. Fortunately, several have finally been published in recent years.

I'm reading Margaret Atwood's new one "The Penelopiad" - almost finished in fact, its a very quick read, and a wonderful one. I love twists on old stories and this is a twist on one of the most famous old ones, the Iliad. She has Penelope tell her own story. Atwood is back to her old style when I first fell in love with her, its a delight to read.

Once you know the story tho, that back cover is absolutely haunting.

Despite being extremely busy with my schoolwork in addition to my normal making-a-living work, I have been enthralled by The Far Pavilions by MM Kaye. It is wonderful to read a book and know that it will be with me forever. I was fortunate enough to purchase the novel along with the associated picture book for a very fair price, and I have been reading and looking at the pictures every chance I get. Several of those pictures will probably end up framed and sitting on my desk.

This book was recommended in a thread here at RP - once again, thank you so much!

I have just finished a great book, which I can highly recommend to all historical fiction fans, called A Catch of Consequence by Diana Norman.

Have moved on to the forthcoming book by David Mitchell (of Cloud Atlas fame) called Black Swan Green. It is the memoir of a young boy the year he turned thirteen, and so far is very engrossing, although totally different to CA.

Kath the next Diana Norman book to read that folllows on from A Catch of Consequence is Taking Liberties, where her Yankie heroine Makepeace Burke reappears.
If you check D.N out at Amazon it will tell you these are her first books (and also that Plymouth is the capital of Cornwall!). Both WRONG. Plymouth is a city in Devon and D.N has written many books; all worth reading.

I finished Dangerous Pilgrimages. It was very interesting with a lot of discussion of American and European trans-Atlantic authors. Bradbury mentioned a couple authors that I have on my TBR shelves so I picked out one to read. It was the USA trilogy by John dos Passos in the Library of America edition. I'm almost done with the first novel, 42nd Parallel, and I've found it an enjoyable read. I was put off at first with the sections composed of phrases from the newspapers of the day and the stream-of-consciousness "Camera Eye" parts, but I got used to them quickly, and the narrative portions about the daily lives of people at the early part of the century are quite interesting.

I'm reading my first Sebastian Faulks: "Charlotte Gray" about WW II in France and England. I'm liking it very much and even have rented the film. Is this part of a trilogy? Which of his books should I look for next?

Mary I looked up Faulks on the Fantastic Fiction web site and it appears his books are stand-alones? I really like that web site it is full of great info on books and authors-and I thank whoever it was that first told us about it!

Pat

Thanks, Pat. That is an excellent website!

Mary, you might enjoy Girl at the Lion d'Or by Faulks, set in 1930's France.
The quality of his writing is mixed. I tried to read his latest book Human Traces earlier this month and couldn't get up to page 100. Very disappointing.

Vee, the day I finished A Catch of Consequence I ordered Taking Liberties at work and also picked up a second hand copy of The Vizard Mask *g*

A little further into Black Swan Green I have encountered a character from Cloud Atlas, which was a bit of a surprise since the books are so totally different.

I'm a bit under the weather this weekend, perfect excuse to read another book. Just finished The Spectator Bird by Wallace Stegner. I loved his Angle of Repose when I was in college, but never thought to look for another till someone mentioned this National Book Award winner. Very very good.

And since March is here in a few days, I'd better start on Cloud Atlas real fast.

Cindy, why is it so important that you read Cloud Atlas real fast? Do you set yourself a certain number of books per month?
Btw I just noticed on another thread you asked about places to visit in Ottawa. The last time I was there, it was so long ago the place was full of loggers, trappers and huskies so my information would be very out-of-date. Dynomutt lives there and might be able to give you some hints . . . probably the Museum of Logging and Trapping!

Hi veer! Sorry for the lack of explanation - the RP discussion selection for March is Cloud Atlas, and March is only a few days away (but really, I often don't have the book finished in time and its often just fine. Just being silly)

And the number of books I read in a month depends on the time of year. Right now things at school are moving along splendidly. After Spring Break in March, all hell breaks lose - I'll be in the middle of transition conferences for kids going to Kindergarten, as well as evaluation for preschoolers coming in next year. So its a whirl wind till the end of school. And then I once again have lots of time.

>the place was full of loggers, trappers and huskies

Hee, sort of like visitors from 1950 said Arizona was nothing but cowboys - and the sterotype stuck! :) Actually it is filled with excellent high quality museums, plus some little places to explore (tho we are really going to do that in Quebec City) Thanks for the suggestion - I know some people did mention a few ideas, and think dynomutt was one.

Um - I am in too many reading forums. Cloud Atlas is the selection elseforum for March, not here. Not sure we've selected anything yet.

cindy, we had German neighbours in Ottawa who had moved from Arizona (Tucson I think) who said they preferred a climate of three months a year feeling too hot, to nine months a year being too cold.
Cloud Atlas was discussed here not so long ago; quite a split between those who enjoyed it and those who found it quite beyond them.

Mu mum was visiting from England on her way to Mexico so had a break in reading (but not from Scrabble playing!). Now back on task with reading a very interesting (and well written book) called "Iron and Silk" by Mark Saltzman, about his time spent in a small Chinese town as a teacher of English. I am finding it really interesting and very readable....

Also reading a book about a neurosurgery doctor who faced tremendous sexual discrimination back when she was the first female surgeon on faculty at Stanford. Interesting, but not riveting, hence the other book going at the same time.

veer, thats funny, because its no longer 3 hot months. Because of non stop suburbs development and mile after mile of freeway, we have 'heat islands' that trap the heat in, keeping it from cooling down at night. So its more like 6 months.....But yeah, I guess I'd prefer it over being cold for that length of time but ask me again in July....Tho your neighbors moved to one of my fav desert cities. Tucson really is a lovely place. Went to college there and lived there for 10 years. Would move back in a heartbeat.

I did notice that discussion, thanks. I'll come back to it after this one is finished. Kinda interesting - I also noticed you guys discussed Never Let Me Go. I hated the book - and in the discussion on the other forum, I was definitely in the majority. So I read the discussion here - wow, totally the opposite! Interesting to read other folks take on it. Still don't like it tho.

Finished The Night Watch. Pretty good. Several people are putting it forward as a possible Booker contender, but for me it hasn't got that WOW feeling that I like. But then I haven't got the Booker winner right since Life of Pi, so what do I know?

So I've bought a signed first edition of The Night Watch - just in case...

Now moving onto the fifth Dark Tower novel, The Wolves of the Calla by Stephen King. Been waiting for it to come out in paperback. Enjoying it so far.

I'm just a few pages into Middlesex. I've wanted to read this book for sometime after seeing so much about it here on RP. Next up will be Revenge of the Middle Aged Woman for my March book club discussion.