Books

Ladies and Gentlemen: we're keeping it real out here in Beth land.

This was not my best blogging week. But it wasn’t my best anything week really. Life just seems to busy these days. I’m hoping it settles down soon. Although I’ve not had time to read more than a few pages in print this week, I did finish Kate Atkinson’s Life after Life on audio yesterday. I think I need to discuss this with someone. Takers? I am busy getting ready for my little baby to turn ONE next weekend, but I am still in disbelief that it has actually been a year since he was born. But then again, he is walking every where these days… …which has led to much more baby-proofing. We even had to start putting shoes on our Florida baby (remember when it took us months to even put him in pants?). But we do get a few moments of calm. Every once in awhile. And now I am off to paint some more honey pots. Have a wonderful Sunday, readers.

My non-bookish week included: court for a traffic ticket, shelling out $200 for new tires, test anxiety, head lice, orthodontist and doctor’s appointments, and the stomach flu. Enough said. My bookish week was a bit better, though. I finished another Agatha Raisin mystery and The Original 1982 by Lori Carson in print, and Level 2 by Lenore Applehans on audio. I will probably spend most of today reading, as I’m still feeling pretty puny after my stomach bug, and so will play hooky from church. My current reads are: In print: ~ The Last Camellia by Sarah Jio ~ The Office of Mercy by Ariel Djanikian ~ Countdown by Deborah Wiles (just starting this one) ~ There Once Lived a Girl Who Seduced Her Sister’s Husband, and He Hanged Himself: Love Stories by Ludmilla Petrushevskaya (just starting this one) On audio: ~ The Turncoat by Donna Thorland ~ Farewell, Dorothy Parker by Ellen Meister I certainly hope your week was better than mine! What are you reading today? If you are reading this anywhere other than Books and Movies or a feed reader, then this content has been stolen. Please read the original Books and Movies and help stop content thieves. Books and Movies is an Amazon affiliate. Purchasing through Amazon links from Books and Movies will pay me a small percentage in commission. © CarrieK for BOOKS AND MOVIES, 2013. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us Post tags: sunday salon Feed enhanced by Better Feed from Ozh

I was trying to think of a clever hook for the pictures I am about to post when I began thinking about why I was posting them in the first place--other than John urging me that is. What occurred to me was that readers, and certainly my readers, like this kind of thing. Then I began thinking of all the affinities beyond books that we readers seem to share. And although each of these items is not universal to all readers, or even to all readers of My Porch, I think if we were all in a room together these are the things we would end up talking about. Lists Libraries (natch) Hot beverages (tea, the coffee family, cocoa) Baking Book shops (see Libraries) Travel (actual or vicarious) Helene Hanff Twitter (a very book-friendly place) Pets (Lucy, Deacon, Sherpa, Odie, Jasper, Ritchey, Hops, etc.) CSAs, Farmers Markets, and fresh vegetables in general Typewriters Knitting (not something I am interested in, but I know you are legion) Gardens Ah yes, gardens, the reason for this post, phtots of John's efforts in the garden paying off... While I am at it, here are some photos from our recent road trip to Ithaca to go to a book sale. Proof of the Canadian invasion of the border states. If it weren't for Tim Hortons, I would say that it is time to build that wall. One of the great things about a road trip to central New York from DC is that you can avoid the I-95 corridor entirely. Thirty minutes or so on I-270 and then you can jump onto U.S. 15 all the way trhough Pennsylvania, which is in surpisingly good repair, scenic, and low on traffic. With lumberjacks like this... On the way home we stopped by Whitmore Farm which is owned and farmed by friends of ours. I don't know which of the next three photos came first. ;-) Can't forget about little Lucy.

5 DETECTIVE NOVELS was a mostly reprint magazine from the Thrilling Group that ran for 17 issues during the late Forties and early Fifties. This issue has a nice cover and a good line-up of authors. The five novellas, all reprints from POPULAR DETECTIVE and THRILLING MYSTERY, are by T.T. Flynn (one of my favorite authors), Paul Ernst, Joseph J. Millard (Ernst and Millard were top-notch pulpsters), John Hawkins (don't know anything about him), and Frank Johnson, a Standard Publications house-name who was often Norman Daniels but there's really no telling who wrote this one. Backing up the novellas are two apparently original short stories by Arthur J. Burks and Amelia Reynolds Long, best known as one of the first female science fiction writers before she turned to mystery fiction. I probably would have read this one if I'd come across it.

Some of you may recall, as part of the Edward Thomas project on here a couple of years ago, a lovely post that included some pictures of a beautiful, hand-illustrated and bound edition of Edward Thomas's poem Adlestrop, done by ninety-year old Harold Page, Fran H-B's father. Fran has been a daily visitor here for years, comments regularly, and we meet up occasionally, and indeed Team Edward Thomas saw that work for real as Fran brought it with her when we took tea with author Matthew Hollis as part of the project.On arriving in Sussex for a few days walking the South Downs with Fran last Monday, before I headed into London, she broke the news that Harold, now ninety-two, had been taken into hospital the day before. All was stable and family support was in place, and Fran had very much wanted my visit to go ahead. We talked a great deal about her Dad during my stay, and I was almost brought to tears by the sight of the most beautiful book, hand-written and bound by Harold which displayed some of his work as a gift for members of the family. As an artist, with architect's training, Harold had quickly excelled at the art of calligraphy which he took up as a hobby in his seventies, rapidly gathering in diplomas which should have taken many years to achieve. I had never met Harold, but I learned from Fran that he was a quiet, gentle unassuming man, immensely modest about his talent and utterly thrilled when he saw that blog post and imagined others seeing and enjoying his work. It was with much sadness that I received Fran's e mail to say that Harold had died suddenly but peacefully on Friday afternoon, and I just wanted to send Fran, her Mum and her family, our love and thoughts and to wish them gentle days ahead.  Harold Page has left the most incredible legacy in his art work and we can but hope for an exhibition, or even a book eventually, I can promise you it would something to behold.

Don’t confuse Jill McCorkle’s “Life After Life” (Algonquin, 352 pp., $24.95) with a book with the same title by Kate Atkinson that also came out this spring. McCorkle’s first novel in 17 years is of an entirely different stripe. It is a chronicle of life in a North Carolina assisted living facility. Wait, don’t roll your eyes! This beautifully constructed... Don’t confuse Jill McCorkle’s “Life After Life” (Algonquin, 352 pp., $24.95) with a book with the same title by Kate Atkinson that also came out this spring. McCorkle’s first novel in 17 years is of an entirely different stripe. It is a chronicle of life in a North Carolina assisted living facility. Wait, don’t roll your eyes! This beautifully constructed collection of charming, moving, alternately funny and poignant vignettes is delightful. The colorful cast includes Marge, a judge’s widow and member of the town of Fulton’s socially elite; widowed teacher Sadie who has taught several generations of Fulton children; Rachel, a Boston widow who retired to Pine Haven because it was where her now-deceased lover lived; and Stanley, a widower and retired lawyer who has faked dementia to get into Pine Haven in order to relieve his son of his perceived need to care for him. One of the most sympathetic characters is Abby, a friendless 12-year-old from an unhappy home for whom Pine Haven becomes a place of solace and refuge when her beloved dog disappears. Chapters alternate between characters, with periodic entries from the journals of Joanna, Pine Haven’s hospice volunteer. Another outside perspective is provided by CJ, a young single mother who operates the facility’s hair and nail salon. McCorkle draws inescapable parallels between the young trying to find themselves and the elderly still trying to find themselves. She intricately merges her characters into a compelling symphony of humor, heartbreak and introspection. Fran Wood retired as books editor for The Star-Ledger in 2012.

Title: Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking Author: Susan Cain ISBN: 9780307352156 Pages: 368 Release Date: January 29, 2013 Publisher: Broadway Genre: Non-Fiction Source: Personal Copy Rating: 4.5 out of 5 Summary: In her book Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking, Susan Cain examines our culture, which values extroverts over introverts, and discusses the costs of turning our backs on the introverts. Review: The line between extroversion and introversion is one that’s been discussed extensively in many different respects. There are various definitions of each and different ways to determine into which category you fit. There are extroverted introverts and introverted extroverts; the lines blur, and the label you’d give those around you might not be the one that they themselves would claim. It’s an interesting subject, especially considering American society undervalues introverts, instead putting an emphasis on group work and social situations. This is where Cain’s book, Quiet, comes in. Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a Word That Can’t Stop Talking is a fascinating look at introversion. She doesn’t in any way claim that introverts are better than their extrovert peers, merely that they should be valued and accommodated in equal measure to extroverts. She goes through various examples and situations, emerging each time with the same conclusion: to put it simply, there’s nothing wrong with being an introvert, and society should stop trying to push introverts to be extroverts. Cain also studies how we’ve come to think of outgoing, gregarious people as more beautiful and successful in Quiet. How did this happen, and what are the results? Additionally, Cain tries to help introverts by showing them how to take advantage of their singular abilities and strengths. In a world that tells us over and over again that being “shy” is a bad thing, and it’s wrong to prefer a glass of wine and a book over going out to socialize, Cain’s study provides validation to the many introverts struggling to make their way in a world that’s constantly trying to change them. Whether you’re an introvert or an extrovert, Quiet is a book you can consider. It’s nearly impossible for extroverts to understand the craving for solitude, or the preference to stay in on New Year’s Eve rather than attending a loud party, but this book is a great first step to seeing that there’s nothing wrong with that. Or, if you’re an introvert, this book will provide you with a lot to think about, as well as some validation that there is absolutely nothing wrong with being who you are! Affiliate Links: Buy this book from Powell’s Books Buy this book from Amazon.com Buy this book from your local Indiebound bookstore

Haston, Meg. How to Rock Break-Ups and Make-Ups25 September 2012, Poppy Kacey is back in the band Gravity and hopeful that Zander might like her now that Molly has broken up with him, but Molly doesn't want anyone else dating him! Zander's friend Stevie arrives from Seattle, and she is so fabulous that Kacey is worried, and also really peeved that Stevie's father is dating her mother and making her go all googly-eyed. There's a dance being planned that Kacey gets Gravity a gig at, a school trip to the Shedd Aquarium, and also a big class election that Paige is running in. At the aquarium, Kacey gets Stevie in trouble for writing graffitti on the glass (Kacey and her friends did it), but when things get serious between their parents, the girls try to work together to break them up.Kace4y breaks into her mother's e mail and offers (as her mother) to interview rock star Levi if he will play at Kacey's school dance because Paige is dying of an awful disease. The star falls for this, so her mother has to miss a hot air balloon trip with Stevie's father, which makes him angry. In the end, Paige forgives Kacey for humiliating her in front of all of Chicago (and Paige wins the election); Kacey dates Zander; her mom dates Stevie's dad; everyone lives Happily Ever After.Strengths: Quick, fluffy read for girls who like Lisi Harrison's Clique series. There is also a television series based on the first book. Weaknesses: Didn't personally like, because it was somewhat ridiculous. The fashions alone were absurd (page 70 "In a sleek black moto jacket, low-slung army-green cargos rolled up at the ankle, and round-toed rose-gold snakeskin pumps... her moto jacket lifted, revealing a momentary flash of belly ring." Seriously? Who sends a seventh grader to school looking like this?), and the whole idea of a school election or kids' band playing at a school dance makes me wonder what planet the middle school was on. That said, I would no doubt have adored this when I was in seventh grade! DeVillers, Julia and Roy, Jennifer. Triple Trouble.1 January 2013, Aladdin Emma and Payton are back for their fifth adventure. Read and enjoyed; again, would have loved in middle school. I got a little confused that the triplets that play a large role in the book were NOT on the cover. As for realism-- we have two sets of triplets in our school right now! Definitely a fun series for girls who like realistic fiction.From the Publisher:Emma and Payton are home from Hollywood, but the drama continues: Not only is the Homecoming Dance coming up fast, but there’s someone new in school! Three someones, actually: triplets. Oliver, Dexter, and Asher look exactly the same, dress exactly the same, and—worse—have exactly the same superior attitude.When the triplets mention they’re participating in a regional Twins & SuperTwins Festival that has a Tweens Division and twin-related contests, Payton and Emma are instantly interested. Emma’s been suffering from competition withdrawal ever since Jazmine James managed to get her disqualified from the upcoming science fair, so she’s got her game face on. And once Payton convinces Mrs. Burkle that the festival is perfect for a VOGScast field trip, the whole gang takes a road trip and the games really get going. But attempts to take down the triplets threaten to land everyone in hot water. Can Emma and Payton switch their way out of trouble, or are they stuck in a multiples mess?

GUEST JEANNIE LIN How does a high school science teacher end up writing award-winning historical romances? Join us on Monday, May 20, with Patricia Rice and her guest, Jeannie Lin, and find out! Jeannie has garnered coveted starred reviews from Publishers Weekly and Library Journal, and in 2011 The Dragon and the Pearl was listed as one of Library Journal's Best Romances of 2011. Jeannie will be giving away one of her books to a commenter chosen at random. See you Monday! OUR 7TH ANNIVERSARY! My, how time flies when you're having fun! On Wednesday, May 22, we'll be celebrating our 7th anniversary as a group blog. The Wenches know how to celebrate in style: we'll be throwing a grand Anniversary Dessert Party for all our readers, featuring delicious historical treats of the virtual variety (which means they'll be calorie-free!) You're all invited to the party, where we'll be serving historical desserts without limit! It's our way of thanking you for seven years of loyal readership and fascinating discussions!