I've just finished "Dispatches from Pluto: Lost and Found in the Mississippi Delta" by Richard Grant. The author is a Londoner, who is also a world traveler. This entertaining book details the adventures faced when he and his Arizonian girlfriend leave NYC and buy a run-down old plantation in the Mississippi Delta. The tiny village is named "Pluto." The "critters" they face include alligators, armadillos, poisonous snakes, fire ants, possums, coyotes, mosquitoes and more. They also go through some "attitude adjustments" in terms of dealing with the redneck culture and rampant racism. I loved the detail in this true life story, and seen through the eyes of a Brit, the unique Delta culture takes on a vibrance. In the end, the couple decide to get married and remain in the rural area, despite battles with weeds, weather, and native eccentrics.

I enjoyed this so much that I will definitely look for other books by this author.

Trying to read "Quiet: The power of Introverts in a World that can't stop talking" by Susan Cain. I was really looking forward to reading it but the reality is: It's boring. It's drudgery, it's not exactly painful, but close enough. My apologies to anyone who enjoyed it... perhaps I need to give it more time. I truly enjoy non-fiction and tend to reach for an NF book more often than not. But this one, well, the introvert in me thinks that I have said enough...

PAM

Finished The Husband's Secret. Interesting premise: a woman finds a letter addressed to her by her husband, "to be opened only in the event of my death" scribbled on the envelope. He is still alive, and of course, she opens it.

This book could have been so much better. On top of squandering a good premise, the end feels like cheating. Those of you who have read it know what I'm talking about.

lavender, you are right about the aftermath of WWII over here. I was born at the end of the 'conflict' so have no early memories of anything other than rationing, which finally ended in 1954 and was stricter than during the war years, electricity cuts/failures and, on the rare visits to bigger towns the general drabness of everywhere. Large areas of cities were covered in bomb-sites well into the '50's as there was so little money for rebuilding. But at this time with the introduction of the National Health Service, the extension of schooling to 15 year olds and other welfare reforms chldren had never been healthier . . . certainly none of us were chubby/fat as so many of today's youngsters are . . . to say nothing of their parents. ;-(

I finished reading The Reckoning by Rennie Airth. This is one of a series of crime novels set in England before and now after WWII. It seems the setting is evoked well (Vee, there is nasty smog - not called that of course - and many bomb sites in London) and the story is well done. It doesn't take a lot of guessing, as we find out things as the protagonists do, but the subject matter is interesting. I won't go into it in case any of you like to read this author, as more would give spoilers.

DH and I have also finished listening to Princes of Ireland by Edward Rutherfurd (aka Dublin). We have also listened to his Paris, and find they are excellent books for our commute every day. We have moved on to Rebels of Ireland, which takes up where the first leaves off.

Kath, those terrible smogs (also known as pea soupers or London Particulars) were not finailly cleared until the 'Clean Air Act' of the mid '50's, when coalfires and immisions from factory chimneys were banned/controlled.

DH can remember them, although he lived about 20 miles from London, when traffic could not move and pedestrians had to hold on to walls and railings to find their way home. His Grandfather a 'railway man' had to put small explosive charges on the lines to warn on-coming engines. Many elderly people lost their lives. I think it was worse even than the Great Stink that covered London a hundred years before. During very hot weather the smell from the Thames (little more than a huge slow-moving open sewer) was SO bad that Parliament had to sit with bed-sheets soaked in carbolic up against the windows. It eventually led to the building of miles of underground sewers and pumping stations being constructed; still in use today.

Forgot to mention that because of The Husband's Secret, I found an interesting website, Bookcaster, that asks: "Who would you cast in the book you're reading?"

How often the actor/actress looks nothing at all like you imagined that character? Well, here is your chance to have your say casting an actress/actor for a role. Boy, I wish this would have been around when they miscast Nicholas Cage as Corelli in Corelli's Mandolin. It almost ruined the book for me.

Even if this has no bearing in who is ultimately cast, it should be fun to cast your votes at:

http://www.thebookcaster.com/

or see which actresses/actors other readers are casting.

I like the novels of Rennie Airth very much.

I hated "The Husband's Secret." And Nicholas Cage did almost ruin "Corelli's Mandolin" for me. I don't get what others see in that actor.

Vee, I remember some rationing in America in the 1940's. In fact, I learned to write before school started by tracing over my mother's handwriting in her ration books. I remember gas rationing and how special a gift of nylon stockings was, back in the day.

Mary the US GI's, while over here, certainly knew their way into a girl's heart with presents of nylons!

Vee, overpaid, oversexed, and over here?

Yesterday I read Night by Elie Wiesel. I don't know why I had never read it before; it certainly is a book everyone should read.

Carolyn, out of curiosity, what prompted you to read Night ?

I remember reading and being profoundly affected by it in the 1970's - my college years.

Kathy, my next door neighbor had just read it and asked me if I had. When I said no, she loaned it to me. Note to self: Must return book.

Carolyn, it's good to know that book is still being read today.

Now reading A Darker Domain by Val McDermid, loaned to me by my daughter who knew I would like it. I have read several of VMcD's books, and there was one series I didn't like at all and only read a couple of the books. SYKM shows one more with this new character--Karen Pirie, Cold Case Review team leader in Fife, Scotland.

I finally finished The Relic Master. It was a pretty good story; I'm not sure why I had trouble staying interested in it.

I read a few paragraphs of Shylock is My Name by Howard Jacobson last night. I'll keep at it for a bit, but it seems like it might be very heavy and I really want something light and fun right now.

Donna

Reading The Last Summer of the Camperdowns by Elizabeth Kelly, narrated in the first person by a twelve year old girl, who has just begun her summer holidays. She lives in Cape Cod with her high maintenance parents.

I just re-read Bill Bryson's "A Walk in the Woods". I think it's a minor classic and want to find all of his works. Now, I am trying to get into 'A Burnable Book." Quite a contrast! I'm sure it is worthwhile, but it is chock full of characters of all levels, various and sundry. Not sure I will finish it.

I am reading A Maiden Weeping by Jeri Westerson. Crispin is in Newgate for a murder he, of course, didn't commit; and his apprentice is looking for the real murderer.

reading :

The Weed That Strings The Hangman's Bag by Alan Bradley

The Outermost House by Henry Beston

I'm reading mostly history these days, trying to reacquaint myself with the history of The Peasants' Revolt in England in 1381. I couldn't recall much about what instigated it, but I found out again why I remembered so little: Historians don't know why or how it came about -- it seemed to be spontaneous, but it's unlikely that tens of thousands of peasants, in those days of poor communications, could have come together on short notice. This insurgency had to have been cooking for a while. There are plenty of theories, it seems, including those propounded in the books I've been reading: Born in Blood by John J. Robinson and Wide as the Waters: The Story of the English Bible and the Revolution It Inspired by Benson Bobrick.

ETA: Vee, I thought of you when I read this in the Bobrick book:

The Avon to the Severn runs,/The Severn to the sea,/And Wycliffe's dust shall spread abroad,/Wide as the waters be.

I don't know why I've been reading mostly heavy and rather depressing books this summer! Maybe it's because I haven't been able to read and post very much here at RP lately. I tried Hot Topics, but I soured on that forum rather quickly, I'm sorry to say.

I'm re-reading Enchanting Lily by Anjali Banerjee. I found it charming when I read it the first time, so I bought a copy for my Mom and she also enjoyed it. I found it while going through her books before donating them and decided to read it again. I'll pass it on to my sister when I see her this weekend.

Donna

Frieda, I have only the vaguest memories of learning about those 'revolting peasants' and the well-known verse by the angry monk John Ball

"When Adam delved and Eve span

Who was then the Gentleman?"

Certainly a movement well ahead of its political time.

'I've never heard the 'Avon to the Severn . . ' before. I wonder if it is Victorian?

And not a good idea to riot/disagree with authority in such violent days when those on the losing side almost always finished up head/limbless.

Your mention of John Wycliffe reminds me that I have a copy of God's Secretaries about the compiling of the King James Bible. It is still waiting to be read, I note that it is by Adam Nicolson. I have just read his sister Juliet's book A House Full of Daughters (see above)

On the biblical subject, from our East facing windows, across the River Severn, I can just see the Tyndale Monument, on the edge of the Cotswold escarpment erected in memory of the famous translator of the Bible in Tudor times.

I finally finished Dead Wake by Erik Larson this morning. Although it was not a page-turner for me, I enjoyed it overall. I would call it "popularized" (though apparently accurate) history, full of passengers' personal stories, descriptions of their clothing and onboard activities, etc. And in the midst of it all, I learned a lot about the sinking of the Lusitania. I was rather taken aback by the descriptions of President Woodrow Wilson's behavior - not that Larson was judgmental, but the picture he painted was far from flattering.

Frieda, I think you might enjoy the book I'm trying to read now, as it is set in the same times as the book you mentioned -- 1300's-- and has Wycliffe in it. "A Burnable Book" is basically about Chaucer and his contemporaries, Gower, John of Gaunt, Richard II, etc. The author is quite a historian.

I'm not surprised, Frieda, that you are no longer posting at Hot Topics. It can be challenging, but there are some interesting and decent folks who post there, from various countries.

Woodnymph, I also recently read "A Burnable Book"! I enjoyed it a lot.

Donna

Donna, did you have a bit of trouble keeping all the various characters straight in your head? Also, there are really 2 narratives in this book. I went ahead and read the entire backstory on the darker pages to facilitate my understanding of the overall narrative. Now, I'm backtracking a little....

Yes, there were a lot of people to keep track of! Especially since sometimes they were referred to by their names and other times by their titles.

Donna, I have decided to stay with this, as I am learning so much history. The narrative is incredibly complex. I stayed up half the night and really am "hooked" now.

I finished The Last Summer of the Camperdowns by Elizabeth Kelly. In the summer of 1972 in Cape Cod, a twelve year old girl stumbles upon a crime. She is not sure of what she has witnessed, and maybe because of that (though we never know for sure) she does not tell anyone. Much later she realizes that "once you postpone doing what's right, you become a big part of what's wrong."

This novel has more dialogue that I remember reading in years. Her parents are high maintenance people with a lot on their plates (her father is running for Congress). IMO, the novel lacks substance. Still I liked it because I liked the girl's voice and her father.

I've been absent for a while, not because I'm not reading but because I've been in a reading slump. I just haven't been able to find new to me books to hold my interest so I've been re-reading old favorites.

The only new book I've read this month is Born Naked by Farley Mowat. It's the account of his early years up to and including the time his family lived in Saskachewan (sp ?) Canada. I loved his The Dog Who Wouldn't Be so when I saw this recommended on Goodreads I picked it up at the library. While I found it interesting I did not love it like the person who recommended it did.

I've just finished another Mignon F. Ballard, Miss Dimple Picks a Peck of Trouble. The Miss Dimple books are set in Georgia during WWII and are definite cozies. I noticed one thing in this book that sounded too modern for the time period, but now I can't remember what it was--dag nab it!

Loving and Giving by Molly Keane (who used to write under the pen-name of G J Farrell) is a funny/sad look at the dying days of a way-of-life of an Irish Big House, its slightly mad owners and the various servants and hangers-on that lived there.

MK has a cast of heroines, mostly large and ponderous upper class females more at home with their dogs and horses and at race meetings than in polite drawing rooms. In this books Nicandra (named after one of Daddy's winners) spends her life trying to please everyone and lands up with no-one and nothing, except a decaying, servantless home.

MK's work could be an antidote to the make-believe world of Downton Abbey and its ilk.

Western Australia has been having the coldest winter for many years so I have been reading light cozies to counter-act the blues! I also had a problem with a new laptop and an old dongle so was off -line for weeks...not to mention a recurring sore throat. Oh, misery me!

I read the series by Dorothy Howell featuring Haley Randolph, an amusing handbag fan. When I passed the books on to my daughter we both lamented that we didn't own any designer bags, similar to reading the mystery books with wonderful recipes and getting hungry! I looked around and found her a DKNY bag in a charity shop, not cheap but it is genuine according to the guidelines Haley mentioned!

Score!!

I'm reading a Stuart Woods novel. I can't even remember the title. I used to enjoy his books but the last half dozen or so have seemed like he's not even trying to come up with a story any more. Maybe he has a staff that is writing for him now.

Donna

I finally finished "A Burnable Book" by Bruce Holsinger. I must say this is a "tour de force" in terms of the ground it covers re details of Mediaeval life in London. I don't recall being so involved in intricacies of plot since reading Kostova's "The Historian" (which I loved).

It was a job to keep track of all the characters, but well worth it in the end-- a story within a story within a story, etc. The personnage of Chaucer truly came to life, as did the Black Prince, John Gower, and the mauds and bauds of dark alleys. Recommended for those who love English history -- very little in it is fiction.

Yes, Woodnymph, there were some very good plot turns in that one! I really enjoyed it.

Donna

Donna, thanks for encouraging me to finish it. Now, I'm reading a light bit of fluff, one of the mysteries set in a Charleston tea-room by Laura Childs. I enjoy the way the author lampoons the high society in our city....

I finished the Stuart Woods book last night and started (barely) The Swans of Fifth Avenue by Melanie Benjamin.

I think I'm done with Stuart Woods. As I mentioned above, it's like he doesn't even really try to come up with a story anymore - just rehashes the same plot in a different location with different names. That and his somewhat snarky "note to readers" at the end of every book have soured me on him.

Donna

I am currently re-reading Bettyville: A Memoir by George Hodgman. (I know that re-read does not require a hyphen, but I feel compelled to put it there anyway.) This is my community's One Read book for 2016. George's story is that of a single gay man who returned home from New York to care for his aged mother in her final years. Much of it is a reminiscence of George's struggle as a closeted gay boy growing up in a very small rural Missouri town, where acceptance seemed out of the question.

Kathy, one time a coworker submitted a missing expense report to me and copied her boss on the email. She said "I resent the expense report". He said if she didn't like doing his reports he'd do them himself...he read it as "resent" as in "don't like" rather than "re-sent." So sometimes unnecessary hyphens are a good thing. :)

Donna

Thanks for your support, Donna. I figure, if we don't change the language, who will?

I am in the midst of The Curse of the House of Foskett by M.R.C. Kasaskian, but I am not sure exactly why. It is the second of a series of mystery novels with a Sherlock Holmes-like detective (only distinctly nastier). In place of Watson is his female ward, tenderhearted but bright. I found the first book clever but unpleasant, and started this one to see if it would be better. So far it is not. The hook that keeps stringing me along is the ward's tragic love affair from days past, recounted in her diary but concealed from the outside world. As far as I can see, it is the only redeeming grace.

I am reading A Death in Summer by Benjamin Black, pseudonym of John Banville. It is the third in his Irish series featuring Dr. Quirke, pathologist in Dublin and friend of Detective Inspector Hackett.

Well, I gave up on The Swans of Fifth Avenue. It seemed to be about Truman Capote and a group of rich society women who were his followers. After three or four chapters of lots of words but no story I could follow, I gave up.

I have a James Patterson and another novel by Anjali Banarjee digitally checked out so I'll start one of those next.

Donna

Donna, you just gave me my first laugh of the day, with re-sent, resent, etc.

I have problems deciphering "tearing up" which can have several meanings, either crying, ripping or racing around. One has to study the context for enlightenment!

Occasionally I'm lent books by friends but the other day I was given a shiny new copy of Vinegar Girl by Anne Tyler. It is part of a new collection printed by the Hogarth Press; several 'modern takes' on the works of Shakespeare written by well-known authors. This one is a later day 'Taming of the Shrew'.

Katherine, living, needless to say in Baltimore, lacking in both charm and dress sense is 'persuaded' to marry her Father's foreign science research assistant, so he will not face deportation. Much funnier and engaging than it sounds and by the end 'Kate' is a much nicer person!

It's been a while since I have tackled a book over 500 pages. In fact, I try to avoid it, but I have put aside my reservations to read The Whole World Over by Julia Glass (558 pages). This is the 2nd book she wrote, after Three Junes, which I read long time ago and liked very much.

I have just started When the Music's Over, an Inspector Banks mystery by Peter Robinson. I like his books a lot, and I have watched adaptations on my PBS station, is currently re-running some of them. Now I see Banks as Stephen Tompkinson from the series. It was funny at first to see Caroline Catz as D.I. Morton, such a different role from Doc Martin.

I'm currently reading The Life We Bury by Allen Eskens and am finding it very compelling. I can't remember where I first heard of this book, but it might have been here on RP. If so - thank you to whoever mentioned it.