tangerine, you might try reading "Main Street". I liked it better than "Babbitt."

Another Cather fan here. I loved "O Pioneers" and "My Antonia." I place Cather right up there with the "greats", alongside Wharton, et al. albeit her writing is quite different.

Just finished "Better Off -Two People, One Year, Zero Watts" by Eric Brende. It was a master's degree experiment in which he and his wife tried to live with little or no technology for 18 months. It was interesting from the perspective of "how much technology do we need before we are serving technology instead of it serving us".

Also read "The Know It All" by AJ Jacobs. He's the guy that read the Encyclopaedia Brittanica and lived to tell about it. Again, a one year quest.

Then read "A Great Feast of Light" by John Doyle. It is yet another coming of age in Ireland book but this one focuses on how TV influenced and changed his life. It was not a dark and sad book like Angela's Ashes, but was rather fun to read. It was a Toronto Globe and Mail recommended book that a friend picked up in the airport.

Now reading Doestoyevsky's Crime and Punishment - a re-read. And simultaneously reading The Other Boleyn Girl which is keeping me up at night and pushing ol' Fyodor to the backburner.

PAM

Martin,
You convinced me to look for Coming Up For Air at the library today, but they didn't have it. I'll check next time I'm at the bookstore. The book about Ireland was checked out, so today I am looking through the unread books at home--always a last resort.

I am currently rereading the No.1 Ladies Detective Agency Series which I love better the second time around but I also am reading "Queen of the Turtle Derby" by Julia Reed. It is a memoir of sorts about southern life. It is good but it is not Bailey White. Some funny and intersting stuff about food, hairdos and clothes of southern women, and getting away with murder.
I usually won't read two books at once but I am sleeping in my sister's bed while she is in California...(the dog needs me there) and I lost Morality for Beautiful Girls between the mattress and the headboard and was too tired to get out of bed to get it so I just reached for another book. ( Yes I had to bring a little TBR pile to my sister's room...heaven forbid I should walk across the hall to my room!.

GBG

Finished The Lord of the Flies. Now to re-read it and make a few notes. How very school-like!

Also checked my books at home, and found to my intense annoyance that we don't seem to have a copy of Keep the Aspidistra Flying. I could have sworn....

Oh, well, a quick trip to Waterstones, and we do now. Enjoying it so far.

Well, I finished Imperium and I enjoyed it a lot; I was happy to read that it was the first of a planned trilogy of the life of Cicero. I was puzzled by some of the professional reviews I read, especially those that mocked the style and the voice and found it boring. I didn't find it boring at all, I thought it was fascinating. The most interesting bit of trivia was when I learned that the word candidature comes from toga candida, the white toga worn by candidates for public office.

Found a very interesting book at the used store: Edith Wharton Abroad: Selected Travel Writings 1888-1920. I've read a few of her books, and I love travel writing, so I expect to enjoy this one

Which is good coz Im going through one of these 'nothing reads right' phases, so I've been rereading a few favs hoping something will jumpstart.

Well, it may be heresy, but I didn't really like Charlotte's Web. I didn't take to Wilbur at all, and it all seemed a bit preachy to me.

I then read Linda Fairstein's upcoming, Bad Blood, which I enjoyed enough to try her first.

I am stalled reading The Road from Coorain because the previous owner seemed to think it would be great to have a scented book that smelled like strawberries. I realised I had to stop torturing myself when I started sneezing. I'm going to see if Febreze can shift it before I continue reading.

Now reading The Flame Trees of Thika by Elspeth Huxley, and Bet Me by Jennifer Crusie.

pam3,

I dug out Coming Up for Air by Orwell and shall dive into it as soon as I finish Crime and Punishment and then maybe we can discuss it a bit. I should have it finished around the middle of December. Like you, I diliked Burmese Days and tossed it across the room, then I walked over, picked it up, brushed a few errant dog hairs from the cover, and stuck it back on the shelf for another go at another time. In my opinion, it is certainly not his best effort.

PAM

I just finished Irene Nemirovsky's Suite Francaise and loved it. Most touching of all is what is at the end of the book: her personal notes about the writing and overall plan for the book, correspondence, and notes about her life and circumstances.

If you are unfamiliar with it, Nemirovsky, an established author, planned to write a novel in five sections about France in WWII. She completed two of those sections before she was arrested and sent to Auschwitz, where she died. Her two daughters, who were only five and ten years old when Nemirovsky was arrested, were forced into hiding, but as they were preparing to flee, the youngest child put the leatherbound notebook she had seen her mother write in into her suitcase to keep as a memento. As the years passed, she had opened the book once but assumed it was a diary of sorts and found that it was too emotionally painful to read it. Sixty years later, though, she decided to type out what it contained before she entrusted the book to an organization which documented war memories. Since the handwriting was so small (Nemirovsky's attempt to save ink and paper), the daughter began reading the book with the aid of a magnifying glass and realized it wasn't a diary at all but was instead a manuscript, the manuscript of the first two sections of what is Suite Francaise.

After finishing the book, I don't know what to read next. I have stacks of TBR's, but I'm finding it hard to switch gears and move on to something else.

Color, I've been wanting to read that since I first heard about the background. Thats on my wish list, hopefully this holiday.

Just picked up Keep the Aspidistra Flying from the used, so far so good. Gave up on the Wilder (there is a reason why I don't read memoirs often, esp by Hollywood. This is a good example) Still with the Wharton tho, but its a slow read.

One of the hazards of working in a book shop is customers who are looking for a particular book, but don't have many clues to offer (eg last year just before Christmas a woman said to me 'I want that new book by that American author' and that's the best info she had. Aaarrrggghhh!!)

However, I count as one of my best successes this year when a man wanted a book called 'The French Suitcase'. I sold him Suite Francaise ('Yes! that's it!' he said.)
Check out the link below if you haven't seen the cover.

Here is a link that might be useful: Cover of Suite Francaise

astrokath, That is TOO funny. Yes indeed, there it is... a suitcase. Thanks for sharing!

PAM

It made me laugh, too. Astrokath, you must be quite the detective to be able to find books with such unusual clues.

Ha! Love it! I think most booksellers are amazingly patient. I'm not and would probably say something very snarky to the lady if I was there. How did you handle that?

Does Keep the Aspidistra Flying get less depressing?

Suite Francaise is on the top of my TBR pile. My book club is going to discuss it Tuesday, but I got it late and have had quite a few real life distractions, so I'll be skipping book club this month. However, I'm going to visit my parents later this week and will take it along as my airplane book.

Astrokath, I wish you worked at the B&N here, you might have been able to help me yesterday. I was looking for a book and couldnÂt remember the authorÂs name, and unfortunately wasnÂt sure of the title: Severance. I asked the girl at the info desk to look up the title, but she stated there were no books with that title. Turns out I was right, and she must have just misspelled it when typing it in. Oh well, they lost a sale there.

IÂm currently reading The Book of Lost Things by John Connelly, which IÂm really enjoying. A young boy loses his mother to cancer, and takes refuge in the books they book loved. After a difficult time trying to get used to a new stepmother and infant half-brother, David "falls" into a new world, inhabited by the fabled creatures of his books. The story is a wild mix of Alice In Wonderland and Jasper FfordeÂs Nursery Crime books. I canÂt wait to see how it ends.

Dorieann, I started reading The Book of Lost Things and got to the point where the boy stepped through the "crack," but time was short and I had to turn it back in to the library. I guess it's worth checking out again?

I just re-read "Heidi's Alp", and feel as if I had enjoyed a mini-vacation. I particularly enjoyed reading of the family's adventure in East Germany, behind what was once the Iron Curtain.

I found also the poems preferred by the late Jacqueline Kennedy, published by her daughter, with commentary on her life: a beautiful volume.

"Lord of the Flies" is on the TBR pile.

I just re-read "Heidi's Alp", and feel as if I had enjoyed a mini-vacation. I particularly enjoyed reading of the family's adventure in East Germany, behind what was once the Iron Curtain.

I found also the poems preferred by the late Jacqueline Kennedy, published by her daughter, with commentary on her life: a beautiful volume.

"Lord of the Flies" is on the TBR pile.

>Severance. I asked the girl at the info desk to look up the title, but she stated there were no books with that title.

I have had that happen to me more than once, so now I write down the title (or keyword, or author) and say 'could you just check this again?'. Often they are right, but there have been enough times when its a matter of mistyping that I get my book.

I finished Triptych by Karin Salughter yesterday while my friend was packing.
We just got back from the airport taking her for her return flight to England-we were all quite sad as we had a lovely visit.....I plan to sit down shortly and start The Book of Fate by Brad Meltzer and have two more library books to read & return in the next few days which will hopefully catch me up with my requested library books.

Pat

One problem we have is that our shop inventory computer list doesn't allow for any difference, so mis-spellings throw it out, but so do wrong titles by customers. If it is a book I haven't heard of, and I am told the title is 'Road to China' and the real title is 'Roads to China' it won't come up.
That said, we always search further on sites for book shops that are more forgiving. I have also had no hit on one of those sites, gone to Amazon and found the ISBN, gone back to the site with that and found the book.
It is one of the things that we pride ourselves on at our shop, that we keep looking (going to radio websites, asking colleagues, even just Googling) until we really think we have exhausted all possibilities.

Cindy, with regard to the woman with her silly request, I just pointed to our New Releases table heaped with books and said 'They are all new books, and probably half of them are by American authors. I'm afraid I can't help you without some more information.'
I wasn't too cross because it makes for a good story *g*

Colormeconfused, itÂs my opinion that when David slips through the crack in the sunken garden, thatÂs when the story actually takes off. Some parts are frightening (definitely not a kidÂs book), and some parts are funny. I especially liked when David comes across the 7 dwarfs.

Cindy, I may have been a bit more careful had I been surer that was actually the title. All I could remember was that it was a synonym of decapitation. ;-D

this is the reason I will use B&N or Amazon websites to shop-there is a ridiculously low minimum needed to earn free shipping, and I can type and finagle through the keywords and titles and authors until I usually find what I am looking for!

cindy,

I cannot answer your Orwell question whether Aspidistra gets "brighter"... that would be a spoiler no matter what I said!

Sorry,
PAM

Ha! Well, that actually gives me an answer! I'll keep plugging along. Thanks PAM.

I do find myself using Amazon and other online stores, if for nothing else to find title/author and synopsis - tho often I do buy if its something I'll probably have trouble finiding at our locals. I have an Amazon visa card, so I get points with my purchase, and they give me gift certs. They know how to keep customers happy!)

I started Coming Up For Air today. It's reminding me of Babbit. I need to switch back to The Book of Lights by Chaim Potok so I can return it to the library. I don't think I would recommend this one. The main character is sullen and indecisive. Maybe I will understand him more as I finish the book.

Sherwood38 mentioned Stephen King's "Lisey's Story" awhile ago.

I saw that Costco had the hardback at a big discount, so I bought it and read it last week.

Although King writes other kinds of fiction (and even his non-fiction, "On Writing") he is best known for horror stories. This novel has some elements of that genre, including parts that are bloody, so if you're squeamish or don't like any fantasy I would not recommend it.

However, the meaningful ideas this book conveyed to me centered around how the powers of love, imagination and creative expression can be used when one is faced with evil. It's more of a suspense mystery than a horror story.

I developed a fondness and concern for the main character, and the skill of the writer carried me through the 500 pages rather quickly.

King credits his sources and thanks the editor, his wife and others in a postscript -- I liked that.

Another reason to check the TBR stack now and again - a book might just jump out at you. I was pruning my stack, getting rid of (read: take in for trade) books that I have tried several times and just didn't get into. I picked up Purity of Blood, the second in the Captain Alatriste series. I bought it last year and for some reason couldn't get into it. I started reading it last night and I am so in. A fun, intelligent swashbuckler with some historic fiction to boot. Not a bad way to spend a holiday Sunday.

I bought for 25 cents Tyler's "Back When we Were Grownups". Last night, I tried to get into it but could not. I just don't find Tyler's characters that riveting or sympathetic. Am I the only reader with this view?

No, and this one in particular. She really lost her touch (for me) several years back. I still dearly treasure Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant, Breathing Lessons, and Accidental Tourist. I've read the newer ones, and they were all rather 'eh'. Whats funny is that I always try the new ones that come out, hoping for another hint of the former magic. So far, no good.

I'm reading She Got Up Off the Couch ..., Haven Kimmel's sequel to A Girl Named Zippy. Thank you, lemonhead, for the recommendation. I really liked Zippy and was delighted to find more by this author, and this one holds up well so far.

I'm waiting for several library books to come in and feeling positively guilty about the TBR stack. Nonetheless, I have a Christmas book wish list a mile long.

Cindy, did you try Tyler's Digging to America? I also drifted away from her after Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant and The Accidental Tourist, but I did like Digging ..., I felt it ended hopefully.

Just finished two "dog" books-Dog Is My Co-Pilot and Christmas Dogs, both compilations of stories..Co-Pilot is very good. I haven't been able to settle in to a book in a couple of weeks. I have Persian Girls by Nahid Rachlin and Alice Munro's The View From Castle Rock, as well as Molly O'Neill's Mostly True. I hope one of them catches my fancy. I have wondered about Suite Francais but was afraid it would be heartbreakingly sad?

Just finished "Bait and Switch" by Barbara Ehrienreich (sp?) about how difficult it can be to find a job when you have done everything "right" - got a degree, middle-aged etc but then get laid off. Interesting book esp as I am about to be laid off at the end of this week. (Scary, but more reading time!)

Now on to "The Jewel in the Crown" by Paul Scott. It's as slow as molasses and I have nearly put it down a couple of times because the writing is so dense, but really got into it last night and now love it. It's written from multiple POVs so it was confusing at first, but now I am 2/3 of the way through, it's fitting together. It's not an easy read, but it's good. Which one comes next? Isn't it a quartet?

Thanks.

lemonhead, thanks for the heads up re the Ehrenreich book. I really liked her "Nickled and Dimed: on not Getting by in America."

I am so glad someone suggested "Lord of the Flies," for our upcoming discussion. It's well worth the re-read, IMO, and it probably never would have occurred to me to go back to it, having read it in college. Golding is brilliant; last night I could hardly put it down.

i hv just started reading virginia henley's a year and a day..

Last night I stayed up late reading The Thirteenth Tale. I loved it. Now I can go read the discussion thread, which I have carefully been avoiding.

Last month I also read a book I really loved, Iain M. Banks's Inversions. These reading experiences only come along once every so many books. I can't think when I last had two in two months!

Lemonhead, The next book in the Raj Quartet would be The Day of the Scorpion, followed by The Towers of Silence, and A Division of Spoils. There's a 5th post independence, but I don't remember the title. Something like Staying Behind.

I'm currently reading a book I wouldn't ordinarily read during a holiday season, but it's for a book group. It's called Remember Me: A Lively Tour of the New American Way of Death. I started the book last night and so far I'm keeping up. This won't be at the top of my best reads of the year list, but I'll finish it and hope the book discussion is interesting.

I'm also reading a memoir by Madhur Jaffrey called Climbing the Mango Trees: A Memoir of Childhood in India. The setting is in Delhi and an added bonus is a collection of favorite recipes from Jaffrey's childhood.

lemonhead,
I'd like to hear what you think of Bait and Switch. I liked the first one better. It seemed she didn't try as hard to get a job. She mostly complained about the people she met, but maybe it was a whole different ball game.

Skimmed the last half of Talk Talk by T.C.Boyle. A young deaf women, the victim of identity theft, attempts to locate the perpetrator. Read like a movie and lost steam about 1/3 way through.

Eric Larson's newest, Thunderstruck is actually two stories in one, very tenuously linked I might add. He tells the story of Marconi and the development of overseas wireless technology alongside the shipboard capture of the infamous murderer, Dr. Crippen. Enjoyed the Crippen crime much more than the Marconi chapters but overall an interesting glimpse of Edwardian life.

Pam3 -

I thought "Bait and Switch" was ok, but not as good as "Nickel and Dimed". I thought she complained far too much, and didn't try hard enough to get a job. Maybe her resume caused problems for her with her job background being as it is. Not sure.

As I said, I read it and I am just about to be laid off at the end of this week. I knew it would be moderately depressing, but at the end of it, I thought she didn't really try to get a job apart from posting her CV on monster.com etc. A lot of getting a job seems to be who you know and who knows you and I suppose, since she was doing this undercover, she couldn't use her contacts and that made it harder.

I enjoyed her other book a lot more. It galvanized me in a way that this one didn't.

What did you think?

liz

On Sunday I finished The Innocent Man, John Grisham's non-fiction account of two men who were wrongly convicted of murder in Oklahoma. One of the men spent years on death row before being released. It is not a happy book, to say the least, but it is very well researched and for the most part well written.

The book was a stark reminder to me of why I always wanted to study and work in criminal law and also of why I dropped out of law school because I realized I could not emotionally deal with criminal law.

One personally interesting aspect to me was that I was on a business trip to Oklahoma City and had been upgraded to a first class seat (one of several times that the very nice former airline TWA upgraded me for no apparent reason except that first class was where I was meant to be!). Anyway, I was seated directly behind Barry Scheck, the lawyer who was involved in the O. J. Simpson case (a bad thing) and who runs the Innocence Project (a good thing). When I stood up to leave the plane I saw that he had two large notebooks, each with a man's name on it. A couple of days later he was on the Today show because he had just helped to free two men who had been wrongly convicted of murder and their names were the names I had seen on the notebooks. They are the same two men John Grisham has written about in this book, although I didn't realize it when I first started reading.

Finished Keep the Aspidistra Flying - now I can recommend it along with Coming up for Air with a clear conscience!

I prefer COFA, but I was impressed with KTAF - though I wanted to give Gordon Comstock a good slapping on occasions...! It's one I'd very much like to discuss. Anyone else up for it at some stage?

>though I wanted to give Gordon Comstock a good slapping on occasions

Hee, Im only half way through and he has had many virtual good slappings from me as well. It is getting better, tho I find myself dabbling in other reads as well. Wouldn't mind discussing this. Actually it might be interesting to discuss it with Down and Out in Paris and London.

Hi Liz,
I completely agree with what you said about Bait and Switch. She went to a lot of networking functions, but not on many interviews. If she had changed her job objective sooner, I think she would have had interviews. I also really enjoyed Nickle and Dimed. Possibly because I have more experience in low-wage jobs!
Anyway, job hunting is grueling. I (finally) graduated from college in May and thought I would have a job within two weeks. Well, that two weeks turned into four months. I finally found one through volunteer work I had been doing.
Good luck to you, and I hope your job hunt is short and successful. The "behavioral based" interviews were new to me and left me feeling beat up by the crazy questions.

I finished Haven Kimmel's She Got Up Off the Couch ... last night and loved it! She has an incredible knack for writing as the child/pre-teen she was, without any adult filter. The narrator's voice is just perfect, naive, wise, silly and sad. I liked this one even better than A Girl Named Zippy. Thanks again, Lemonhead.

Finished "Lord of the Flies." Found it so bleak that I need a happier alternative, so am re-reading Eliz. Goudge's memoir "The Joy of the Snow." Slow going, because of her writing style.

Am eagerly awaiting the library to call re "The Road."

I'm working a lot now and don't have time to read much. Still reading Flags of our Faethers before I drop off at bedtime.
but I'm listening to Inkheart which is surprisingly interesting, at least so far, the second cd.