Greatest global online bookclub in town

Please do keep the snow, Jacky; I’m not interested in it at all, thank you very much.  The cold I can handle; snow and ice – nyet!

It’s 40° here at 7:50 a.m. = a definite bite in the air.

Stay warm to the cold folks and cool to the warm folks.  This cup of tea is wonderful.

At the Brandywine museum they said Jamie Wyeth still paints and is at the museum and we might spot him, but we didn’t

The University is putting on a halloween brunch for we seniors.  Kids from the nursery school there parade in their costumes and we pass out candy that is provided at the tables.  There usually is a musical program and last year Eiinstein(sp) was there–he sure looked like Einstein anyway. We go to the senior center after the brunch and then it is home to prepare for the over 100 trick or treaters I get.  I have to squeeze in a grocery store visit as this is senior discount day.  There are advantages to being old.

Jacky, I bet  the snow is pretty but please keep it there.  We haven’t had a hard frost yet but it will come.  It will be 70° today.  That will be nice for the kiddies.

This afternoon a strong northwind brought 3 inches of snow all over Oslo.  Our son and two middle grandsons, 14 and 12, gathered up the carpet of leaves that pretty much covered our lawn—just in time.  I’m reading Andrew Wyeth’s biography with a lot of his works pictured and am amazed at how genes pass from generation to the next.  Two of his 5 siblings are artists also, or maybe were—Andrew is 89 and the youngest.  I don’t know if he’s still painting, or even if he’s living, but I’ve never read otherwise.

The book inspired me to dig out my oils and work on a 16 by 20 of white daffodils that I started a long time ago.  I’ve tried watercolors, but can’t.  He only does this or tempera.

Jacky Jones

The titles were Weekend Warriors, the first of the series, and Payback, the next in line.

 

I’ve just finished reading both books – the books are not thick by any means, in fact the pages are fewer than a LOT of mysteries/action.  But excellent stories, IMHO.  Bear in mind that I don’t read to find problems with the writing or the story altho, much as I hate it, I can sure find the typos in the text.  Somebody didn’t do a very good job of proof-reading.  At any rate, both of these were good stories.

Oh good – the first two books are here.  I can hardly wait to get started.

I also liked Housewives.  In fact I liked some of Landviks other books also. I find that when I am listening to a book I usually get used to the reader and it doesn’t bother me.  Some, like the ones with Southern accents and the one that reads the Janet Evanovich ones are great.

I’m glad you found us again, Kathy; we really miss the folks who posted in AOL and don’t post in here or maybe not very often.  I’m glad you’re liking HOUSEWIVES; I liked it quite a lot myself.

I’m sorry about the floaters, Candace; is there nothing to be done?  As for the reader in recorded books, I’ve not found one that doesn’t fit the character but I HAVE found some I like better than others.  In Tony Hillerman’s taped books, I really like the ones he narrates and then there is an Indian man who also narrates.  I do like him. 

I would really rather that the reader not try to make different voices for the characters.  When I KNOW it is one person reading, it rather detracts from the story, IMHO.  And that’s probably just me.

How do the rest of you feel about that – or am I just a grouch today?  Please post about this.

Jo

I’m moving to recorded books because the floaters in my eyes are so aggravating it interferes with the pleasure.  The reader’s voice this time–in my opinion–doesn’t fit the character.  I only had that experience one other time with a female reader.  I was wondering if any of you encounter this very often or am I being too critical.  I’ve only listened to half so far (longer book than road trip) but find myself having to revise my image of the character from the other books to fit this voice.

Candace  

 

I’m reading this book (almost finished) and enjoying it. It’s about 5 women who have a book club and is an interesting character study of these five women. It spans several decades. My neighborhood book group chose this book and the title didn’t especially intrigue me, but it’s much better than I thought. I’m going to recommend When Madeline was Young to the neighborhood group because I was intrigued by Gretchen’s comment, “I wish I hadn’t finished it.”
I have a new computer and thought I had completely lost this group but Jo helped me find my way back. It’s amazing how many important things I store on a computer and how hard it is to start over with a new one. I love the new one, it’s a laptop and I’m using it as my primary.

Miggs/Kathy

by Jane Hamilton is about a young couple who marry, and early in their marriage the wife (Madeline) has a bike accident, is comatose for a period, and when she wakes up she has (forever) the intellect of a 7 year old.  Ultimately her husband divorces her and remarries and he and the second wife “raise” Madeline, who lives with them forever.  The book is the story of their whole families and, of course, Madeline.  Great!

Fact or fiction, I find it very difficult to read these kinds of stories.  My youngest was four when she wandered away from us at the CA State Fair in Sacramento.  That was the worst few hours I’ve ever spent, bar none.  She was walking home, if you can imagine (that was some 60 or so miles away), and a couple picked her up and brought her back to the Fairgrounds.  We should have let one of the boys go back to the car because she found it but the fair folks told us she can’t get out.  Worried as we were, it didn’t dawn on us that she could too – all she had to do was go out the door with other people.  At any rate, she was returned safe and sound and I still get heart palpitations when I think about it.  How lucky we were. 

But I don’t read stories like that.  Ever.

I’m waiting for the first two books in Fern Michaels’ Sisterhood’s series.  I read book #4 and they are good.  Six or seven women have banded together to seek revenge not given to them by the courts.  I think I have mentioned this in other postings; sorry to be redundant.  I also wanted to change the subject!!!!!!!!!!

But for a good tale, try Weekend Warriors, the first book of the series.

Jo

It indead is about a child drowning in a pond while the narrator was caring for her. It did bring back memories of a neighbor child drowning.  She was the same age as Jenny, our blog master.  There was no criminal investagation on this drowning though.  I thought the book a good one. Hamilton also wrote a book with Ruth in the title and I didn’t care for that one as much.

I am glad you can get your joint fixed Jacky.  Isn’t it wonderful that many things that ail us can be fixed.  I know many complain about all the medications some have to take but they do keep us going in a fairly comfortable fashion.

I found yesterday that I can get my rt. pointer finder middle joint replaced with a new carbon replacement.  The Dr suggested I wait til after the holidays as there is a 6 week pt period.  I frost bit my fingers and thumbs when I was 7, and have had no trouble until these last years.

Jacky

 

Does “Map of the World” begin with a child’s death in a pond?  I know this author writes very well, but this subject was almost too real, but I did finish it.  When our oldest kids were small we lived on the farm with a large cattle trough for  water, and although they had been warned to stay away from it, it always made me uneasy if I couldn’t see them in the back yard. 

What is Madelyn Young about, Gretchen?

Jacky

I loved this book. If anyone has ever lived in a small town, you can certainly identify with it.
Judith, I agree, with you. I heartily recommend it. Georgianna

I’m going to the car wash.

Thanks for that suggestion.  I read her Map Of the World and thought it very good.  I will use my coupon that I won on her new book.  It will be worth it I know.  My library doesn’t have it yet.  I just bought my tickets for my December trip to Wi and that will be a good one to take along and I can re-gift it to my daughter.  (The WI daughter doesn’t read this board).  The other two do.

by Jane Hamilton!  Just finished it (hardcover) and believe it to be among the finest pieces of fiction I’ve ever read.  I recommend it without qualification.  Bought it because of a review in the NY Times Book Section.  It is beautifully written, very creative, and I wish I hadn’t finished it.

Fannie Flagg did not write the Ya-Ya Books.  They were written by Rebecca Wells, and I thought they were GREAT, but then the locale of the stories was set in Louisiana, and that is my home.

JOY

I enjoyed Green Tomatoes very much, although I saw the movie, didn’t read the book, but I have a book of Andrew Wyeth’s works.  He does a lot of windows, and you can almost feel the breeze blowing the curtains. 

 In it is Christina’s World, which he thought, “Boy, this is one flat tire.”  Now he gets at least a letter a week from all over the world, usually wanting to know what she’s doing.  Actually there isn’t a difinite story.  He painted the house and brown grass first, and finally got enough courage to say to her, “Would you mind if I made a drawing of you sitting outside?”  and drew her crippled arms and hands. 

He got his wife to pose for her figure…”I put this pink tone on her shoulder—and it almost blew me across the room.” 

I would love to see an exhibit of his work.  We did see a Norman Rockwell one in AZ, and a Edward Munch one in San Diago, and the Scream.  Or a copy of it.

  

Jacky Jones

I saw that she had a new book out and I plan to read it.  I have enjoyed her other books also.  Didn’t she write fried green tomatoes and another one that I forgot.  Was it something about the YaYa sisters?

I just got back from an all day trip to the Brandywine River Museum in Chads Ford, PA.  The trees are still colorfull and the museum was great. i enjoyed looking at the Wyeth paintings and learned much about that talanted Wyeth family.  The grounds and buildings on the site are beautiful.  We also viewed the studio where NC Wyeth worked.  Jamie Wyeth still works and paints there.  I don’t know a lot about art but I do enjoy their work.  Jo, you are close enough that you would probably enjoy visiting the place. 

Sounds interesting; Flagg always does such intriguing stories.

Yesterday I got Flannie Flagg’s new book “Can’t Wait to Get to Heaven”.  I sat down last evening about 6 p.m. and started reading.  I finished the book at 10:15.  I have enjoyed all of her books and this one is no exception.  It is so good.  Wonderful characters and a slice of life in a small town.

The very first two sentences grab the reader:

“After Elner Shimfissle accidentally poked that wasps’ nest up in her fig tree, the last thing she remembered was thinking “Uh-oh.”  Then, the next thing she knew, she was lying flat on her back in some hospital emergency room, wondering how in the world she had gotten there.”

 Elner is around 89 years old as near as anyone can figure.  She isn’t sure because she was born at home and her younger sister, Ida, hid the family Bible so no one would know how old Ida was.

I heartily recommend this book.

Judith

Brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!