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Off-Topic => Off-Topic: Talk about anything you want. => Topic started by: MooseMom on December 13, 2016, 07:24:44 AM

Title: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: MooseMom on December 13, 2016, 07:24:44 AM
Here is another topic for which we used to have a thread, but it was so old that it might be best to start a new one.

I just got a notification from Goodreads that I read 55 books this year, so I thought it might be fun to see which books you all have read in 2016 and to discuss which were your favorites.  Also, it might be fun to discuss what we all are reading right now and which books are next in line!
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: iolaire on December 13, 2016, 07:47:53 AM
The best book I read this year was The Magic Strings of Frankie Presto: A Novel (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25142928-the-magic-strings-of-frankie-presto) - it also was the longest book I read according to goodreads.  It follows a Spanish guitar player throughout his life, mostly in the US, making music with tons of the greats.  I'm not really into music so I don't know all the greats mentioned in the story but it was a vary good story without that knowledge.  Written by Mitch Albom the author of "Tuesdays with Morrie" so it has a spiritual component.


FYI I'm enjoying the Kindle tie into GoodReads.  I think it came mid year but its a good way to track what you read with minimal effort..
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: cattlekid on December 13, 2016, 08:28:21 AM
I slacked on my reading this year.  According to Goodreads, I only read 10 books.  Which is probably true, I try to keep track of everything I read and I read a lot on my Kindle.  I tend to knit and crochet more than I read.  I need to balance that better in 2017, plus spend less time on social media.   ::)

The best book I read this year was https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13642950-the-aviator-s-wife (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13642950-the-aviator-s-wife).  It is a novel based on the life of Anne Morrow Lindbergh.  I did not know much about Charles Lindbergh other than the basics so this was a fascinating look into both of their lives, plus the kidnapping of their child. 

To boost my 2017 reading total, I am working on the Popsugar 2017 reading challenge.  It is a list of 40 prompts that you can find on popsugar.com, plus additional prompts for a more "challenging" challenge.  I have already picked my 40 books and I have shamelessly already started on the first one:  https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/216363.The_Man_in_the_High_Castle (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/216363.The_Man_in_the_High_Castle)  I loved the first season of Man in the High Castle on Amazon Prime and the second season will be released on Friday.  I want to finish the book before I start the second season. 



Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: kristina on December 21, 2016, 07:34:19 AM
The book that impressed me most this year was: Former People, The Final Days of the Russian Aristocracy by Douglas Smith.
It is the story of how the Russian elite, famous for its wealth, its service to the empire, its promotion of the arts and culture, was dispossessed and destroyed along with the rest of tsarist Russia. I could only read this book very slowly and it touched me very much because many "Former People", like my own family were only able to survive by leaving their homeland.
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: MooseMom on December 21, 2016, 07:46:46 AM
Kristina, that must be fascinating reading for you!

I'm currently reading "Imagine Me Gone", a fictional tale that traces a family whose father and eldest son are mentally ill.  It is written with a great deal of wit and is not nearly as depressing as it sounds.

I have requested "A History of Singing" from my local library.  It is a non-fiction work that outlines exactly that, ie, a history of singing.  That sounds fascinating to me.  When and why did humans begin to sing? 
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: cattlekid on December 21, 2016, 09:21:17 AM
I finished Man in the High Castle last Friday.  If you like your books to have closure, this is not the book for you.  Also, if you are in the middle of watching the series on Amazon Prime, you might be frustrated as I was with how the series and the book diverge from each other.

I've started Boys in the Trees which is a memoir from Carly Simon.  I just found out from a friend I trust that it gets dry at the end but she said it's worth reading to find out about the relationship between Carly Simon and James Taylor.  Since I really like both of them as musicians, I'll tough it out.   ;D
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: kristina on December 25, 2016, 11:53:53 AM
Kristina, that must be fascinating reading for you!

I'm currently reading "Imagine Me Gone", a fictional tale that traces a family whose father and eldest son are mentally ill.  It is written with a great deal of wit and is not nearly as depressing as it sounds.

I have requested "A History of Singing" from my local library.  It is a non-fiction work that outlines exactly that, ie, a history of singing.  That sounds fascinating to me.  When and why did humans begin to sing?

... Unfortunately it was not that fascinating a book to read, rather haunting and that explains why I only could read "Former People" very slowly... it was very difficult to digest the information provided, especially since my own genetic family was involved...
... " The history of singing is difficult to define as in the dark ages it was the nuns and the monks who "brought" singing to the youngsters whom they taught and also people used to sing under the Lime tree in the evenings after work. Why the Lime tree? Because every village and town had in its middle a Lime tree as a symbol for people to meet there after work and there they had their gossip and their sing-along...
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: Charlie B53 on December 26, 2016, 04:39:19 AM

The Knights Templar by Stephen Howarth

A moe current view of the history of the Knights, How, When, and Where they came into being.  Their persecution and death's at the orders of King Phillip. 
Haven't gotten far enough yet to know Who survived and what went on afterwards.

Interesting bits of History.
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: kristina on December 26, 2016, 05:41:23 AM

The Knights Templar by Stephen Howarth

A moe current view of the history of the Knights, How, When, and Where they came into being.  Their persecution and death's at the orders of King Phillip. 
Haven't gotten far enough yet to know Who survived and what went on afterwards.

Interesting bits of History.

... That sound a most interesting book to read and I shall look out for it...
Thanks for letting us know and kind regards from Kristina.
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: Rerun on March 09, 2017, 07:13:00 AM
Reasons To Vote For Democrats: A Comprehensive Guide

A short read.  Excellent!!   :thumbup;
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: MooseMom on March 09, 2017, 07:32:43 AM
"Trump and the DSM-5".  Very thought provoking.
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: Michael Murphy on March 09, 2017, 09:20:12 AM
Republicans and the Morons that vote for them.
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: Rerun on March 09, 2017, 09:25:25 AM
 :rofl;   :rofl;  Gotcha!
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: MooseMom on March 09, 2017, 09:54:56 AM
:rofl;   :rofl;  Gotcha!

...by Donald J. Trump
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: Riki on March 09, 2017, 01:26:04 PM
I just finished the first 5 of the Wrinkle in Time books by Madeline L'Engle.. I think there are more, if memory serves me, but I've read 3 of those first 5 books before..

The 5 books are A Wrinkle in Time, which I've never read before, A Wind in the Door, which I don't remember reading, but I could have, A Swiftly Tilting Planet, Many Waters, and An Acceptable Time, all of which I have read before

I'll have to check on her other books, because in high school, I'm sure I had a list of them as long as my arm, since my school library didn't have them all..
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: Michael Murphy on March 09, 2017, 07:52:18 PM
Actually I am currently plow through Shelby Foote 3 massive volume on the civil war, the books are so large I bought a new copy that's a eBook so I can carry them.
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: cattlekid on March 10, 2017, 06:30:34 AM
I know I'm way behind the times, but I am currently working my way through Dan Brown's "The DaVinci Code".  The first 20% seemed repetitive so I must have picked it up at some time in the past and just never finished it.   

BTW, the Carly Simon memoir was as dry as my friend said it was.  Too much name dropping and not a lot else.  Carly, we really don't care to know everyone you slept with over the years.

Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: Riki on March 10, 2017, 06:38:09 PM
BTW, the Carly Simon memoir was as dry as my friend said it was.  Too much name dropping and not a lot else.  Carly, we really don't care to know everyone you slept with over the years.

Check out Janis Ian's autobiography.. or even better, check the audio book version.. every chapter is named for one of her songs, and at the beginning of each chapter, she sings a few lines from that particular song.. the stories she tells are also quite interesting, and she tries to keep it light and humorous, even when the story itself isn't that funny... my favorite story is how she met her wife.. it's quite a funny story
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: Michael Murphy on March 10, 2017, 10:43:58 PM
Cattlekid there is a version of the DaVinci code that includes pictures of all the places in the book.  If it includes mention of a monument or statue the picture is there to see.  Made the book far more interesting for me.
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: kristina on March 19, 2017, 07:20:42 AM
I know I'm way behind the times, but I am currently working my way through Dan Brown's "The DaVinci Code".  The first 20% seemed repetitive so I must have picked it up at some time in the past and just never finished it.   

BTW, the Carly Simon memoir was as dry as my friend said it was.  Too much name dropping and not a lot else.  Carly, we really don't care to know everyone you slept with over the years.

I have also tried to read the "Da Vinci Code", especially since I have been suspecting for a long while, that Lisa Gherardini, the "Mona Lisa" may have suffered from some kidney trouble, because her face shows clearly some serious water-retention ... Anyway, after reading a few pages I found the book completely unbelievable and because of it I brought it back to my library straight away ... and so it comes that I still don't know what the "Da Vinci Code" is all about...
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: Charlie B53 on April 18, 2017, 06:11:00 AM

I forgot the name. I just finished reading of the History of the Templar Knights, how they were formed, how they fought for Christ. It was a sad tale of death and destruction between Religions.

It actually hurt me that different Religions could not agree and killed each other both claiming theirs to be the True Way.

The end of the Templar Order was brought about ny jealousy for King Phillip wanted the lands, moneys, and power of the Templars for his own.
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: Charlie B53 on April 18, 2017, 07:04:09 AM

I haven't read it yet.  I just ordered the Book "Heaven Is Real".  This touching story of a mid-West Pastors very young Son's experiences in Heaven while undergoing emergency surgery. Lifetime channel made movie based on this story.  Very touching.

I truly Believe it to be written 'A Child shall Lead Them".

I don't doubt this to be that Child.

I have read many Religions seeking to find Truth.  I can not say that I have a personal relationship with God, or Jesus, yet.  I try. But I fear I am yet blinded by this World.  Someday. Hopefully.
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: Rerun on April 18, 2017, 08:43:29 AM
Heaven is For Real will cement your faith.  It is a good book.  Then you might read "The Good Book"......   :pray;

I am "Listening" to "The Chamberlain Key" by Timothy P Smith -  The Key to knowing God is real.

The Chamberlain Key presents empirical evidence that the oldest extant Hebrew Biblical texts are vastly more multifaceted and extraordinary than previously acknowledged. The sections of the ancient texts which Biblical Hebrew experts agree are the most pristine are in fact encrypted with stunningly detailed intelligent messages; messages that are thematically consistent with the open text of both the Old and New Testament. But what is most startling, and unequivocally apparent, is that these encrypted messages could only have been coded into the ancient text by a supernatural intelligence communicating from a dimension outside of linear time.
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: Charlie B53 on April 18, 2017, 06:05:53 PM

I looked up 'The Chamberlain Key'.  I have read of these 'hidden' messages before so I am VERY interested to learn more.  I ordered the book.
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: kristina on April 19, 2017, 08:38:45 AM
The Honoured Society (Subtitle: My Journey to the Heart of the Mafia) by Petra Reski.
Petra Reski (born 1958, in Kamen) is a German journalist and author renowned for her anti-Mafia publications
In 1979, having been fascinated by Coppola’s masterpiece “The Godfather” twenty–year-old  Petra Reski drove from her home in Germany to the Mafia-stronghold of Sicily; she wanted to see for herself the reality behind the glamorized fiction. In 2007 six Mafiosi were shot dead outside a Pizzeria in the North German town of Duisburg. In nearly thirty years, the influence and violence of organized crime had only spread, but by then so had Reski’s reputation: she had become recognized as one of the world’s foremost experts on Italy’s notorious criminal gangs. Vividly told and often deeply shocking, “The Honoured Society” is the true story of one woman’s personal journey to the dark heart of the Mafia. Through her brave and often spine-chilling first-hand account of meeting crooked priests and heroic victims, tearful wives and murderous husbands, Petra Reski not only exposes just how far Italy’s Mafias permeate everyday life across Europe, but she also shows the human stories and the human costs of the Mafia’s ongoing organized crime.
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: Riki on April 23, 2017, 07:07:33 PM
I'm rereading The Hunger Games series.. I know the movies so well that I forget what happened in the books.. I finished the first book, The Hunger Games, and I'm just about to start the second, Catching Fire..
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: kitkatz on May 14, 2017, 08:55:30 PM
I just finished Bill O'Reilly's Killing Jesus.  The history of the time period was very interesting.  I actually learned quite a bit form it.
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: Jean on May 15, 2017, 12:36:15 AM
 Oddly enough, since I am a girl, I enjoy the blood, thunder, etc type of books that most men would enjoy. Just finished "The Shack" As i read it I thought it was so familiar that I had already read it, but then I knew I had not. There are not too many books wherein one of the main characters refers to God as Papa.and her name is Nan but I am certain that one book I read which was about a young man who was in a God-awful accident and while unconscious, a close to him female friend also named Nan and also who referred to God as Papa. Wierd. Lots of people think "The shack is very controversial, I dont. I just think it is a way to make things more clear to the non-believers. And now, back to another Jack Reacher Novel. Oh how oh how could they make shrimpy Tom Cruise as 6 ft 4, 250 pound Jack. Baffles my mind.
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: kristina on May 15, 2017, 03:00:48 PM
The Murder Of Marilyn Monroe. Case Closed by Jay Margolis and Richard Buskin.
This in-depth evidence-based exposé of Marilyn Monroe's death, if true,
amounts to one of the most horrendous stories of the 20th century
and it raises many serious questions about the character of those who wield enormous political power.
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: Riki on May 16, 2017, 04:51:11 AM
I just finished Heiress of Collinwood by Lara Parker.  It's the 4th book in her series based on the television show, Dark Shadows, that was on in the late 1960s-early 1970s.  Her books continue the story where the show left off when it ended.  Lara Parker actually played Angelique in the show, the witch who cursed Barnabas Collins to live out eternity as a vampire when he rejected her
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: kristina on July 05, 2017, 11:09:56 AM
Robert Mazur: The Infiltrator : Undercover in the World of Drug Barons and Dirty Banks.
The true story of how one man risked his life to bring down the bad guys.
Bob Musella was a mob-connected "big shot" whose friends included the great and the good of the international underworld - corrupt bankers, tax cheats and drug barons... Together they partied in expensive hotels, drank the world's finest champagnes, drove Rolls-Royce convertibles and flew in private jets...
But : in reality Bob Musella was Robert Mazur, a U.S federal agent fronting an undercover operation inside global dirty banks and drug-trafficking empires stretching back to Pablo Escobar.
Full of near misses and harrowing escapes, The Infiltrator is the true story of how, in one of the most dramatic stings in history, Robert Mazur helped to bring them all down.
This is a thrilling book to get into & investigate during "you know what" and this book also succeeds in making 4 hours almost feel like half an hour ...  8)
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: Riki on July 07, 2017, 08:02:01 PM
I bought the first 3 books of the Vampire Chronicles (Interview with the Vampire, The Vampire Lestat, and Queen of the Damned) and I will start reading them when I feel my eye has healed, since I had cataract surgery on it a couple of weeks ago.
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: iolaire on July 08, 2017, 07:34:23 AM
Full of near misses and harrowing escapes, The Infiltrator is the true story of how, in one of the most dramatic stings in history, Robert Mazur helped to bring them all down.
Thanks ordered it from the library.
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: cattlekid on July 08, 2017, 02:41:21 PM
I am attempting to read the first Game of Thrones book.  It is long.  It is detailed.  There are a lot of names.  I have never seen the television show. 

My friends who have seen the television show think I'm nuts.  But I'm in a reading challenge where one book in 2017 has to be over 800 pages so here I am.  I am about 55% complete. 

All I can say is Winter is Coming.  I seem to be feeling the most kinship with the House of Stark.  Not sure if that is a good thing or not.

Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: kitkatz on July 09, 2017, 04:57:55 PM
Currently reading Book One of the Heritage Trilogy- Semper Mars by Ian Douglas
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: kristina on July 14, 2017, 08:54:02 AM
Full of near misses and harrowing escapes, The Infiltrator is the true story of how, in one of the most dramatic stings in history, Robert Mazur helped to bring them all down.
Thanks ordered it from the library.

Good luck iolaire, with reading The Infiltrator by Robert Mazur. I could read it only very slowly and some of the information was rather difficult to "digest"...

I am currently reading Inside Hitler's Bunker by Joachim Fest. By 1945 Hitler had developed a vast concrete Bunker of interconnected chambers thirty-three feet beneath the surface of Berlin. In the last months of the war, while desperate battles raged in the ruins above, the Bunker was to become the setting for the most dramatic final act in modern history: the collapse of the Third Reich. In this compelling new reconstruction, one of Europe's greatest historian of Nazism, Joachim Fest describes in vivid detail the claustrophobic atmosphere of those bitter last days, when druggend and enfeebled, Hitler veered wildly between hysterical despair and lunatic optimism. Using newly available material and drawing on years of meticulous research, Joachim Fest shows us how the Nazi regime finally disintegrated amidst acts of betrayal, recrimination and suicide. He also reveals how these desperate last scenes offer fresh insight into the true nature of Hitler and his entourage.
An interesting book to read about this dark part of 20th century history and also very shocking & revealing to learn about a "bunch" of completely insignificant, banal, stupid and pathetic people, who were absolutely obsessed with the prospect of power   ...  It is also pretty obvious, that a newly discovered power of "political" cinema-propaganda & influence plus misuse of news-reels etc., detailed worked-out political newspaper-propaganda etc. unfortunately came to their aid and, at the time worked right into their hands...
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: kristina on July 14, 2017, 01:23:14 PM
P.S. One of the most loathsome moments, when reading Inside Hitler's Bunker by Joachim Fest occurs, when one learns, that Hitler very early gave orders to destroy the whole of Germany, all towns, cities, cottages, all factories, buildings and - most of all -  all of the German people. Hitler considered the German people unworthy of living, because they did not come up to scratch and did not obey as he thought they should.
The leading question is now, whether or not these orders were actually carried out, because in April 1945 most of Germany and its people were very much destroyed.
The reader also becomes very much aware, that Hitler, as an Austrian, from the very start hated the German people and their culture, their classical music, their classical composers, Nobel Price writers etc. 
And it would almost appear that he and his cronies came along with only one purpose in mind : to destroy it all...
A most interesting book to read and very thought provoking...
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: Cupcake on August 27, 2017, 04:33:56 PM
I loved A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles, so I had to read his earlier book Rules of Civility. Both are beautifully written. I also loved Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders, but my sister said it was 'dumb'. It was just a little out there for her.
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: BoltWiz1973 on September 28, 2017, 08:12:13 PM
(https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/b/bb/Star_Wars_Aftermath_Life_Debt_cover_%282016%29.jpg)
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: iolaire on October 13, 2017, 03:58:55 PM
Just read "A Beautiful Work In Progress" by Mirna Valerio. Her story of how she became the "Fat Girl Running" author/public figure by becoming an Ultra Marathon runner and walker.  It's always inspiring to read about people who do huge multiple marathon runs. Even more so to read her story from the perspective of a fat person, she is still large and always will be but she is an athlete who is accepting of her body and an inspiration to others.
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: cattlekid on October 13, 2017, 04:53:54 PM
I am currently reading The Post-Birthday World by Lionel Shriver.  It's a fiction story about a woman who maybe is having an affair with a friend of her husband, a famous snooker player in Britain.  I say maybe, because I am 20% of the way through the book and it is written where every other chapter gives an alternative view of the situation, but all chapters are written in the point of view of the woman.  So in half the chapters, she's in the middle of the torrid affair, and in the other half of the chapters, it's like the affair never happened.  It's slightly annoying to constantly shift gears but it's a compelling story and I'm very curious to know how it all comes to an end.
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: smartcookie on October 16, 2017, 07:16:22 AM
I am reading The Story Teller by Jodi Piccoult.  I love her books!  This one revolves around World War II and is very intriguing so far.
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: Riki on October 22, 2017, 05:21:26 PM
Umm.. Accounting Principles... *L*  I have a test tomorrow... *G*
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: Paul on November 16, 2017, 07:14:19 AM
Currently reading "Pier Review". It is supposed to be an account of a trip round the coast of Britain and a review of every British seaside pier still standing. It is well written but they are doing it in a sort of "post modernist, piers are really naff so we are only doing this for book for a laugh" style which somewhat ruins it.
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: MooseMom on November 16, 2017, 01:49:05 PM
Ahab's Wife.

I currently count 15 books on my shelves that I have yet to start.  So much good reading for the snowy days ahead! 
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: cassandra on November 16, 2017, 10:23:40 PM
Now reading A mindfulness guide to the Frazzled by Ruby Wax.
I'm half way and sofar is teaching me lots of things about the brain and it's functions (including research publications etc) and what Mindfulness and meditation can do for the brain/body.


Well written and quite a lot about her own life and bipolar disorder too.
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: MooseMom on November 17, 2017, 09:06:49 AM
I've always liked Ruby Wax.  I didn't know until just recently that she is bi-polar.  I'll have to check out her book.  I do have a book of hers dating back to the 1980s!
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: kristina on December 17, 2017, 01:27:11 PM
Alison Hewitt : Stalked
A terrifying true story. Alison Hewitt was in the midst of training as a GP (General Practitioner) when she met Al Amin Dhalla through an exclusive  dating agency. He was a seemingly respectable Asian businessman from Canada, so attentive and caring, it was easy to ignore the warning signs ... until he started, step by step, to take over her life and the life of her mother, the life of her mother's new husband and the life of her brothers. Six months after they first met, Al Amin's web of lies started to unravel and Alison became aware that he had a very sinister side and a criminal record for violence. When she tried to end the relationship, the unthinkable happened and she found herself the victim of an escalating campaign of terror. Even when Al Amin was found with knives and guns, the police had no power to detain him. Nobody could have imagined the events that were to follow, as Alison was left fearing for her life. When Al Amin tried to burn down her mother's house, the family was finally being put under police protection. There was a court case and Al Amin was put into prison from where he continued to plan further destruction.
An interesting, gripping book to read during "you know what" ... and ... at the end of the book one learns that Alison Hewitt is now working as a medical doctor and she is now in a new relationship ... and .... her new man's name happens to be Al as well...  not quite sure, what to think  ...

Alison Hewitt family awarded £130,000 for stalker failings - BBC News
www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-sussex-28207651

Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: cattlekid on December 18, 2017, 07:29:51 PM
I am almost finished with Big Little Lies.  Have not seen the TV series and am desperate to find out how it ends!!
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: kristina on December 20, 2017, 04:22:09 AM
Tales From Shakespeare by Charles & Mary Lamb, illustrated by N.M. Price. (This edition was published in 1905)
A wonderful book in which everything written by Shakespeare is explained within compact little essays.
This book has been written by two dedicated Shakespeare-scholars and is great fun to read.

P.S. The first edition of this book was published in 1807 and in it has been mentioned that "diligent care has been taken to select such words as might least interrupt the effect of the beautiful English tongue in which Shakespeare wrote: therefore, words introduced into our language since his time have been as far as possible avoided."
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: kristina on February 10, 2018, 06:16:56 AM
Currently reading "Pier Review". It is supposed to be an account of a trip round the coast of Britain and a review of every British seaside pier still standing. It is well written but they are doing it in a sort of "post modernist, piers are really naff so we are only doing this for book for a laugh" style which somewhat ruins it.

It is a great pity that the authors of this book were "doing" the book in a sort of "post modernist, piers are really naff, so we are only doing this book for a laugh" style, because many of these old piers, especially the Victorian ones are true works of art, especially with the decorative ironwork around them and it is very important to protect and keep them, especially, as these days no Council could afford to have such decorative piers created anymore ...
... I have been wondering, why the National Trust has not been involved in the protection of vulnerable piers, or have they and I have missed to read about it?
Many thanks Paul for pointing out this book and kind regards from Kristina. :grouphug;
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: Paul on February 17, 2018, 08:06:57 AM
many of these old piers, especially the Victorian ones are true works of art, especially with the decorative ironwork around them and it is very important to protect and keep them, especially, as these days no Council could afford to have such decorative piers created anymore

Here Here. I second that.

I have been wondering, why the National Trust has not been involved in the protection of vulnerable piers

As I read that through I thought "What a really good idea." Then a few seconds later I thought I thought "What a really bad idea." The National Trust would no doubt charge £20 to walk down the pier, £3 for an ice cream, £5 for tea and a scone in the coffee shop, close the arcade and turn it into an over priced gift shop, and allow you to look round the theatre as a historic building, but never allow shows to be performed in it. That is assuming they don't just lease it to some big business as a corporate headquarters and keep the public out, as they do with too many of their properties nowadays.
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: MooseMom on February 17, 2018, 08:15:03 AM
I'm currently reading "Bear Town" about a shrinking village in Sweden that prizes its youth hockey team above all else.  And then there is a crime....
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: kristina on February 17, 2018, 08:18:13 AM
many of these old piers, especially the Victorian ones are true works of art, especially with the decorative ironwork around them and it is very important to protect and keep them, especially, as these days no Council could afford to have such decorative piers created anymore

Here Here. I second that.

I have been wondering, why the National Trust has not been involved in the protection of vulnerable piers

As I read that through I thought "What a really good idea." Then a few seconds later I thought I thought "What a really bad idea." The National Trust would no doubt charge £20 to walk down the pier, £3 for an ice cream, £5 for tea and a scone in the coffee shop, close the arcade and turn it into an over priced gift shop, and allow you to look round the theatre as a historic building, but never allow shows to be performed in it. That is assuming they don't just lease it to some big business as a corporate headquarters and keep the public out, as they do with too many of their properties nowadays.


Hello Paul, what you mention about the National Trust is unfortunately very true and the National Trust has changed a lot over the years and these days it is almost unrecognizable from the National Trust we grew up with.  This is very sad, but there again that is unfortunately the way many Charitable Trusts have developed  ...
Nevertheless, I do hope, these piers are getting under some Protection Order, as they are really unique, very artistic and could not be replaced ...
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: MooseMom on February 17, 2018, 09:23:06 AM
We were members of the National Trust for so many years, and I am sad to hear that they have been a bit derelict in their duty to preserve historic properties while keeping entrance fees down so that everyone can enjoy them.

When I first moved to the UK, we visited many sites, and it made me feel so much less homesick.  How could I be homesick when I could view such wonderful places in my adopted nation?
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: Paul on February 17, 2018, 09:28:56 AM
I do hope, these piers are getting under some Protection Order

They are not, many are crumbling into the sea, getting knocked down by the council, or worse. There is one on the Isle of Wight that has been converted into a sewage farm, a great thing to have on one of their three main tourist beaches! I'm told that one of the Brighton piers has been converted into a tower block!!??! But the one that really annoys me the most is the one the Great Yarmouth Council paid to have knocked down several years ago. Not only was it several hundred years old, but it had been used by the town's local hero (and one of my two historic heroes) Admiral Lord Nelson. If being several hundred years old, and being used by one of Britain's greatest naval heroes is not a good enough reason to keep it, I doubt if any pier is safe!

(Sorry for the rant, piers are a special area of interest/love for me, as far as I am concerned we should bring back the death penalty for anyone who vandalises one, and when someone actually demolishes a pier it should be death by slow torture.)
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: MooseMom on February 17, 2018, 09:37:02 AM
Paul, why do you think this is being allowed to happen?  Is there a general apathy among the local populations?  Have there been any pushes for private infusions of cash, or are these piers just too expensive to rescue?  It is hard to imagine English coastal towns without a pier!
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: Paul on February 17, 2018, 11:50:22 AM
Paul, why do you think this is being allowed to happen?
Many councils feel they have better things to spend their money on. Plus holidays in Britain (other than in London) are a lot less popular than they used to be, so many begrudge spending money on the tourist industry.
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: MooseMom on February 17, 2018, 03:52:04 PM
That's too bad, Paul.  Holidaying in Britain can be such a joy, particularly self-catering holidays.
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: irvinsen5 on May 17, 2018, 07:06:44 PM
I'm currently reading The Good Samaritan by John Marrs https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/35451741-the-good-samaritan (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/35451741-the-good-samaritan)
The main character, Laura is despicable I could punch her, but I couldn't put the book down. It's good.
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: MooseMom on May 17, 2018, 09:53:05 PM
I'm reading "A Train in Winter" about a group of women in the French Resistance who were captured and eventually sent to Birkenau.  Some of them have survived to tell their story.  We all know of the horror of the Holocaust, but to follow a specific group of women from the time they joined the Resistance to the time they were released because the Allies freed them (though not all of them survived) is particularly harrowing.  One detail that I never knew about and found truly horrifying was that at one point at Birkenau, the Nazis ran out of Zyklon B pellets that provided the gas that killed the prisoners before their bodies were put into the ovens.  The Nazis knew their days were numbered, so to accelerate the process of killing and burning the bodies, they'd just throw live babies into the ovens.

So the next time you hear the words of a Holocaust denier, think about THAT

Sweet dreams, everyone!
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: kristina on October 09, 2018, 05:33:56 AM
Frank Arnau : Three Thousand Years  of DECEPTION in Art and Antiques.
              Translated from the German by J. Maxwell Brownjohn.
First published in the UK by Jonathan Cape Thirty Bedford Square London in 1961.
    To give an idea about the context of the book, here is the introduction:
 
                         According to the enlarged edition of his
             œuvre catalogue, Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot 1796 -1875
                             painted over 2,000 paintings.
              Of these , more than 5,000 are in the United States.

                         
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: iolaire on March 30, 2020, 05:08:38 AM
If you want to have worlds libraries at your fingertips you should look at this
https://archive.org/details/nationalemergencylibrary

Basically its book scans offered to everyone due to the "emergency" they are ePub and PDF formatted.  For example if you search Lupus you get a lot of books on SLE type Lupus topics, as well some foreign kids books with the title Lupus unrealted to the auto immune condition.
Title: Re: Which book are you currently reading?
Post by: kitkatz on April 02, 2020, 05:34:11 PM
If anyone wants to see some prepper booklets, I have some I can email you.  Just PM me. I am not a prepper I got these PDFs from a place I bought emergency things.
I am currently reading Arcady by Micheal Williams.


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