I just read Ruth Rendell's A New Lease of Death, also published as Sins of the Fathers. I don't read many of hers as they tend to have very seamy topics, incest etc. I went to make notes and found I had already read it in 2007. Whoops, that's the first time I've read a book with no recollection of ever reading it before.

The book was pretty good tho it had little of her usual protagonist, Inspector Wexford. But the plot was about a couple who opposed their son's marriage as the girl's father was hanged for murdering an old lady for her money. That's revealed immediately so no spoiler. The book seems to accept this as a perfectly legitimate view which I thought was awful. There was a lot of class bias too, the curse of Britain. Here comes a spoiler so stop reading if you want to read this book. The solution is that the murderer was not the girl's real father so the marriage could go ahead. This doesn't change the underlying false assumption that someone is to be judged by their 'tainted blood'.

Gave up on The Dream Lover and am now reading My Grandmother Said To Say She's Sorry by Fredrik Backman. I like the basic story line and the delightful characters but I do not like the fantasy world he creates for the child. The reader is supposed to learn all the names of the parts of that world and their attributes. In my opinion it ruins the story.

Ginny re class bias/'the curse of Britain' I was just pondering that very point in connection with the Hillbilly book by Vance. Several times he brings up the subject of the people from his town being looked down on because, among other things, they were poor. He goes on to say that once some of these families found better employment (although many preferred to do no/little work) and therefore got better wages they became members of the 'middle class'. Would it be correct to say that in the USA one moves up or down the Social Ladder depending on the amount one earns?

Wrong or right this idea does not necessarily apply over here. The term 'middle class' has now largely been replaced by 'middle England' a term invented by politicians and used alongside 'hard working'. Although we would like to pretend we are all equal there are still bastions of the older generation who believe 'knowing your place' and the education you received is more important than how much money you earn. So someone from Vance's background would never be able to fit in comfortably even if their neighbours witnessed them fighting and cussing in their porticoed mansion and hurling the Wedgwood at each other's heads, rather than on the front porch of their former cabin.

Just wondering out loud!

Vee, I think you are correct. Class in the US is very much affected by money in the sense that people can more up or down much more easily. There's very little, Well, who were your great-grandparents? Few know or care. Some do but they are the exceptions. Earlier or later, we all came from someplace else.

I don't mean that money is the sole deciding factor. There are certainly others. Most of us can think of rich people with no class or those with little money with lots of class. It's just that in the US it is so much easier to move up or down and acquire or lose class distinctions like correct English, nice manners, a low voice etc.

I just finished a book that was translated from Finnish - The Man Who Died by Antti Tuomainen (not to be confused with The Man Who Died Twice by Richard Osman). I read it at the urging of a friend who thought I would enjoy the dark humor. (She did not read the book herself, but saw a TV series based on it - on Acorn, I believe.) Let me correct the phrase "dark humor;" the book is based on gross, grotesque, and grotesquely violent humor. I'm astonished at how little my friend knows about my taste in books. (We're in the same book club, for heaven's sake!) It's the worst book I've ever read that I actually finished. The book is blessedly short.

I haven't been to this forum for many years (about 13, I think) but I hope it's all right if I just jump in with a question for people here. I have quite an assortment of library books on hand to listen to. I do my reading via recorded books and sometimes have several on a cartridge. I don't know where to begin and hope that somebody can provide some input on any or all of these titles:

Mary Boykin Chesnut, MARY CHESNUT'S CIVIL WAR

George Saunders, A SWIM IN THE POND IN THE RAIN: IN WHICH FOUR RUSSIANS GIVE A MASTER CLASS IN READING, WRITING, AND LIFE

T. Coraghessan Boyle, THE RELIVE BOX AND OTHER STORIES

I'm reading Friends of the Dusk by Phil Rickman, a part of his Merrily Watkins series. Merrily is a female priest in the CofE and has a lot of trouble with some of the older officials whom she refers to in her mind as the purple shirters. She also has a teenage daughter and a love interest. Set on the Welsh border, the description of the scenery is wonderful.

Phoebe, re your book choices. Why not start on the Chesnut diaries and if you get bored with it (especially as you already know the 'ending') go on to one or two of the short stories by Saunders and Boyle. These books, although I have not read them myself, all have good recommendations.

I have read Mary Boykin Chesnut's Civil War--twice--and think it's amazing but I do love history so am prejudiced. Her husband was in Jefferson Davis' Confederate cabinet so she had a front seat to history. It was first published after her death in an expurgated version called Diary from Dixie. Then in the 1980s? the full version finally appeared. I've also read a biography of this remarkable woman. Her diaries are long. If you don't care for American history, you may not enjoy the book.

I have never heard of the other two books so can't comment.

I've taken your sound advice and started in on the Chesnut book. It will be a while before I finish it as it turns out to be 45 hours long. I can't recall ever listening to a book quite that long, and I've been using recorded books since 1982.

So far, it promises to be fascinating. Many thanks for the thumbs up!

I hope you like it. I have never listened to a book before. Do they use different voices? Also, as you may know, Ken Burns relied heavily on Mrs. Chesnut's diaries in his unforgettable series on PBS, The Civil War. None other than Julie Harris read her parts.

Listening to the sample audiobook is the best way to determine if you like the narrator.

I'm reading another Andrea Penrose, Murder at the Royal Botanic Gardens. It's a series right down my alley--London in the 1800s, smart female who rescued two little street boys and is making gentlemen out of them--some of the time--solves murders, and is about to marry well.

I finished A Hundred Summers by Beatrix Williams today. I could hardly stop reading last night to go to bed at midnight. It's a pure (and unlikely) love story, but I just loved it. Set in Rhode Island among the rich who have gone to the same summer houses every summer for years and years.

A Death in the Parish by the Rev Richard Coles is set in the 1980's and is a continuation of his whodunit series of life in a rural English parish. The rector is at the heart of the story but although the inevitable body is found much more emphasis is placed on the rituals of the C of E (rather High Church) and finding the culprit takes second place.

A quick and enjoyable read was Crossfire by Dick/Felix Francis (probably more Felix than Dick!) As usual the book is set in the horse-racing community and quite a bit of painful knocking about takes place. Luckily all the Francis heroes are tough and resourceful and good always triumphs over evil.

Carolyn, I've read almost all her novels and she is definitely one of my favorites ! Have you read any others ? I discovered Overseas, her first and really enjoyed it as well.

I recently finished re-reading To Die by Inches, The Famine in Fermoy by Edward Garner. It is non-fiction and about the terrible years of The Great Hunger, An Gorta Mor, in the Fermoy region of County Cork where I have ancestors. It's mostly based on local records and newspaper accounts, as well as some private correspondence of the day.

Few realize exactly how terrible the Famine was and its deep scars on Ireland and the millions of Irish descendants throughout the world. This was an enforced famine as Ireland exported food throughout the Famine. It was the landowners property and few Irish, as they were mostly Catholic, were allowed to own land in their own country. Hence their dependence on the inexpensive potato. Their starvation--a million people--and forced emigration--another million--served to subsidize the lifestyle of the British landowners.

Yoyo, yes, I have read Overseas and loved it, too. That is the only other Williams book I've read. but she's on my ever-growing list.

;

Carolyn, put The Secret Life of Violet Grant on that list !

I've started The Hotel Nantucket by Elin Hiderbrand and am very distracted by her overuse of parentheses. Where she should start a new sentence she chooses to tack on a parenthetical phrase or full sentence.

Also, it bothers me that she refers to a woman as " blond". Not to nitpick , but the correct word is " blonde". The form without the 'e' is used to describe a male.

Unless this story is engaging enough to offset the annoying parentheses , I suspect I might end up tossing it aside.

Yoyobon, You are so right about parentheses and the blond/blonde distinction. Meaning does get fuzzy when we dispense with correct usage of English. Amusing and sad at the same time but I recently read a news item about a dispute in Harrogate. It seems the city has decided to eliminate apostrophes in street signs. So St Mary's Walk has now become St Marys Walk. Many are up in arms, and checking just this minute, I see the city has backtracked and will keep apostrophes where they belong.

Must add incidentally that there is actually an Apostrophe Protection Society--in England of course--and yes, of course you can buy a T-shirt. I never wear T-shirts but I am tempted.

I'd wear one if it read : " BAN PARENTHESES ( I hate them!) "

I want to join the Apostrophe Protection group.

Okay......I'm in also. Send me the shirt !

Just google 'apostrophe protection society' and then click on store from the list at the top of the page. They have some very funny "grammar grumble" coffee/tea mugs as well. I have no connection with this site and have never ordered from them--just saw it in the article I mentioned and then looked at the site.

Thanks Ginny, I enjoyed the photos of various examples of abuse of the poor apostrophe.

However, could this be a British thing ? We have our grammatical issues in the US but I don't think this is one of them. The most common abuse I find is the confusion over "there/their/they're " .

You can buy a mug with that too, Yoyobon! And I do think apostrophes are a problem in the US too. It's just that a lot of people don't seem to care. Good for the people of Harrogate for standing up for the English language.

I agree apostrophes are misused a lot! Some people seem to think every word that ends with an S should have an apostrophe before it.

What were they doing in their high school English classes ?

Came across this gem in The Hotel Nantucket :

" She hasn't looked at her phone even once; she is not unproud of that."

Note: even my computer flagged that as incorrect !

Wouldn’t ”not unproud” be the same as proud?

Sort of like " I don't want no cookies" being like " I want cookies" ?

That is the kind of word that P.G. Wodehouse made up for humorous effect!

A character would feel "gruntled" rather than "disgruntled"about something.

I like the word " gruntled" and actually use it from time to time.

Reminds me of the Michael Scott ( of The Office ) line :

" I'm not superstitious, but I am a little stitious."

A few minutes ago, I came across the word ”ruly” as in ” unruly”. I have never heard of the word ”ruly” but evidently it is an actual word.

I'm reading an oldie from one of those Best Of lists, Wolf in the Shadows by Marcia Muller. I had read a couple of the Sharon McCone books a long time ago; this one was published in 1993. It's good, but she still isn't my cup of tea. I'll give it three stars on Goodreads.

Carolyn, I was not keen on Muller as the only book in my local library was Edwin of the Iron Shoes which I thought was medieval! I did eventually read some but have forgotten to look for her recent books.

Carolyn, how can a book from 1993 be classified as an 'oldie'? Heaven only knows what category works by Dickens or even Shakespeare might be put; to say nothing of a few less than young members of RP!

Age is only a number not a statement of physical fitness or mental acuity.

Unfortunately people tend to judge you by that number.

I never write my age on any form unless absolutely necessary ......otherwise I put " over 50"

Good idea, Yoyo. I had some remodeling done a few years ago, i.e., having a window seat made and bringing the laundry room up from the basement, and periodically the company will call me to see if I have any more work for them. I've said no until I'm tired of it, so this week I told the young man I'm 88 years old and won't be doing anything else to the house. That's a slight fib because my birthday isn't until July, but he said I didn't sound that old. Wonder how "old" sounds?

Vee, I don't think the Muller book was classified as an oldie. I think it was from a list of "best of" or some such. I should have checked it out before requesting it.

Ageism is really a problem and extremely annoying. Worst is all the spam phone calls purporting to be from children/grandchildren in jail or some other catastrophe and needing money. I just hang up without a word the minute they say Grandma and I know they're not mine. But I do have a friend, a lovely lady, who fell for it and lost thousands. What a shame.

Ginny, I was surprised to read that people are actually calling with that trick. I have heard of text messages but speaking is a bit risky as surely the voice could sound different? Or even using a language foreign to the recipient? I get cold called in an Asian language sometimes.

Annpan, Most sound ordinary but I have had the occasional Grandma call with a foreign accent. I did get a chuckle when my son was recently visiting and he answered the phone. Someone said 'Grandpa?' and my son was quite surprised as he's not near that age. Of course I knew immediately what it was and when the crook called back I told my son to tell him nothing, just hang up.

I'm reading The Weird Sisters by Eleanor Brown.

A nod to Shakespeare for that title and some of the content.

Regarding those grandma calls, I read to ask who was calling. When the response is "Your grandson," the reply is "Which one?"

Best to just hang up. So much private info online now that someone can figure out family names from an obituary and elsewhere.

We still have a landline but it rings rarely. My son fixed my mobile phone the other day so it only rings if the number calling is in my contacts list, which is wonderful. If it's important (like the hospital calling me about an appointment) they will leave a voice mail message. Scammers don't bother with that.

I just finished The Edge by David Baldacci. The story interested me enough to read all 600+ pages, but there was a lot of violence and too much repeating the things the main character was doing because of his Army Ranger training.

Donna

I enjoy Marie Benedict's historical fiction very much and planned to read The Other Einstein next.

Joanna Trollope used to be called Queen of the Aga Sagas. I have just finished her Marrying the Mistress in which family loyalties are stretched when the father of the family admits to having had an affair with a much younger work colleague. Angst and anguish all round but JT is good on emotions . . . unlike many middle-class folk in this up-tight country!