New Classics Challenge

Hey! How's it going at your end of the world? Me, I've had some problems these last few weeks, and at the risk of becoming one of those little old ladies who'll talk about their ills to anybody who'll listen, I'm going to fill you in on the particulars, then I'll move on to the good stuff, like reading and books. OK? My review of The Poisonwood Bible is down at the end of the post, so if you want to skip all the personal stuff, feel free.

Long story short...I have poor digestion, and the Dr. prescribed Lorazepam for the 'anxiety' that was causing it. I got 'addicted' after only three weeks, have been going thru withdrawal for another three weeks, but have escaped relatively OK.
Meanwhile, I began to suspect there were food sensitivities involved in this whole thing. With some tedious food testing on my own, I have realized that not all of my tummy trouble was anxiety after all; it is definitely food related! There's quite a list I have going too. It's amazing that I can go whole days now without the terrible pressure I experienced while eating those foods!
One last thing. I got a new eyeglasses prescription, but the new script was horrible, so they had to re do them;now I've waited two weeks for them instead of one. Bad reading glasses really cut down quality reading time.

Even with all the tummy/eye dramas going on, I was able to read a book or two. My review, such as it is, of my first book read in The New Classics Book Challenge is below.

My thoughts on The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver? Man Oh Man, It's no wonder it earned a place on the New Classics list. I can only describe it as A GREAT AND TERRIBLE book. I didn't want to stop reading it, but was afraid what new horror I would encounter should I turn the page. Now, maybe horror is the wrong word, a little strong, but there were horrible things happening thru this story. At times I almost believed it was a true story. After all Missionaries back in the day of the 50's/60's had it pretty rough. Come to think of it, a lot of them still do, even 50 years later.
The story is about a family named Price, whose father Nathan is a fanatical preacher who takes his wife and four daughters to Africa in 1959 to preach the Gospel to the natives living there. Let's just say it's not a success, and as Nathan Price sinks lower into his insanity* ( and he was insane; had been since he had been a soldier in WW2,) his family unravels, and scatters to the four winds. It is not a happy story, but a good one.

* That's not to say all Missionaries are insane!!! I've actually known some very sane ones. But, I have known some Nathan Price types along the way, too.( Please don't ask.)

Anyway, I recommend this book. I can't say as I understood much of the ramblings of the mother when it was her turn to 'speak', but suffice it to say she was one hurting woman. I may go back and read this again some day. It was that good.

Below is the 'link' to the New Classics challenge, and under that you will find the list of new classics.

http://lostinagoodstory.blogspot.com/2008/07/new-classics-challenge.html

1. The Road, Cormac McCarthy (2006)
2. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, J.K. Rowling (2000)
3. Beloved, Toni Morrison (1987)
4. The Liars' Club, Mary Karr (1995)
5. American Pastoral, Philip Roth (1997)
6. Mystic River, Dennis Lehane (2001)
7. Maus, Art Spiegelman (1986/1991)
8. Selected Stories, Alice Munro (1996)
9. Cold Mountain, Charles Frazier (1997)
10. The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle, Haruki Murakami (1997)
11. Into Thin Air, Jon Krakauer (1997)
12. Blindness, José Saramago (1998)
13. Watchmen, Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons (1986-87)
14. Black Water, Joyce Carol Oates (1992)
15. A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius, Dave Eggers (2000)
16. The Handmaid's Tale, Margaret Atwood (1986)
17. Love in the Time of Cholera, Gabriel García Márquez (1988)
18. Rabbit at Rest, John Updike (1990)
19. On Beauty, Zadie Smith (2005)
20. Bridget Jones's Diary, Helen Fielding (1998)
21. On Writing, Stephen King (2000)
22. The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao, Junot Díaz (2007)
23. The Ghost Road, Pat Barker (1996)
24. Lonesome Dove, Larry McMurtry (1985)
25. The Joy Luck Club, Amy Tan (1989)
26. Neuromancer, William Gibson (1984)
27. Possession, A.S. Byatt (1990)
28. Naked, David Sedaris (1997)
29. Bel Canto, Anne Patchett (2001)
30. Case Histories, Kate Atkinson (2004)
31. The Things They Carried, Tim O'Brien (1990)
32. Parting the Waters, Taylor Branch (1988)
33. The Year of Magical Thinking, Joan Didion (2005)
34. The Lovely Bones, Alice Sebold (2002)
35. The Line of Beauty, Alan Hollinghurst (2004)
36. Angela's Ashes, Frank McCourt (1996)
37. Persepolis, Marjane Satrapi (2003)
38. Birds of America, Lorrie Moore (1998)
39. Interpreter of Maladies, Jhumpa Lahiri (2000)
40. His Dark Materials, Philip Pullman (1995-2000)
41. The House on Mango Street, Sandra Cisneros (1984)
42. LaBrava, Elmore Leonard (1983)
43. Borrowed Time, Paul Monette (1988)
44. Praying for Sheetrock, Melissa Fay Greene (1991)
45. Eva Luna, Isabel Allende (1988)
46. Sandman, Neil Gaiman (1988-1996)
47. World's Fair, E.L. Doctorow (1985)
48. The Poisonwood Bible, Barbara Kingsolver (1998)
49. Clockers, Richard Price (1992)
50. The Corrections, Jonathan Franzen (2001)
51. The Journalist and the Murderer, Janet Malcom (1990)
52. Waiting to Exhale, Terry McMillan (1992)
53. The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay, Michael Chabon (2000)
54. Jimmy Corrigan, Chris Ware (2000)
55. The Glass Castle, Jeannette Walls (2006)
56. The Night Manager, John le Carré (1993)
57. The Bonfire of the Vanities, Tom Wolfe (1987)
58. Drop City, TC Boyle (2003)
59. Krik? Krak! Edwidge Danticat (1995)
60. Nickel & Dimed, Barbara Ehrenreich (2001)
61. Money, Martin Amis (1985)
62. Last Train To Memphis, Peter Guralnick (1994)
63. Pastoralia, George Saunders (2000)
64. Underworld, Don DeLillo (1997)
65. The Giver, Lois Lowry (1993)
66. A Supposedly Fun Thing I’ll Never Do Again, David Foster Wallace (1997)
67. The Kite Runner, Khaled Hosseini (2003)
68. Fun Home, Alison Bechdel (2006)
69. Secret History, Donna Tartt (1992)
70. Cloud Atlas, David Mitchell (2004)
71. The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down, Ann Fadiman (1997)
72. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, Mark Haddon (2003)
73. A Prayer for Owen Meany, John Irving (1989)
74. Friday Night Lights, H.G. Bissinger (1990)
75. Cathedral, Raymond Carver (1983)
76. A Sight for Sore Eyes, Ruth Rendell (1998)
77. The Remains of the Day, Kazuo Ishiguro (1989)
78. Eat, Pray, Love, Elizabeth Gilbert (2006)
79. The Tipping Point, Malcolm Gladwell (2000)
80. Bright Lights, Big City, Jay McInerney (1984)
81. Backlash, Susan Faludi (1991)
82. Atonement, Ian McEwan (2002)
83. The Stone Diaries, Carol Shields (1994)
84. Holes, Louis Sachar (1998)
85. Gilead, Marilynne Robinson (2004)
86. And the Band Played On, Randy Shilts (1987)
87. The Ruins, Scott Smith (2006)
88. High Fidelity, Nick Hornby (1995)
89. Close Range, Annie Proulx (1999)
90. Comfort Me With Apples, Ruth Reichl (2001)
91. Random Family, Adrian Nicole LeBlanc (2003)
92. Presumed Innocent, Scott Turow (1987)
93. A Thousand Acres, Jane Smiley (1991)
94. Fast Food Nation, Eric Schlosser (2001)
95. Kaaterskill Falls, Allegra Goodman (1998)
96. The Da Vinci Code, Dan Brown (2003)
97. Jesus’ Son, Denis Johnson (1992)
98. The Predators' Ball, Connie Bruck (1988)
99. Practical Magic, Alice Hoffman (1995)
100. America (the Book), Jon Stewart/Daily Show (2004)

Don't Fence Me In

Don't Fence Me In is an anecdotal biography of Lewis Grizzard, who was a southern humorist who wrote about everything, 'close to his heart', shall we say...? Some have referred to him as a modern day Mark Twain ( and I for one, absolutely adored him!) He also did stand up comedy, as well as having a short roll on Designing Women. He died on March 20th, 1994.

I've been reading, but not as much as I could. Notice I don't say 'should', because unless you're in school or have research to do, the word 'should' shouldn't have any place in regards to reading time!

Since you last heard from me, I have read/been reading The No.1 Ladies Detective Agency By Alexander McCall Smith ( a re-read) Gone by Lisa Gardener, Lizard by Banana Yoshimoto ( The JLC2 ) and Emma, by Jane Austen ( my current classic.)

I had made a goal for myself a couple of posts back that I was going to plan to read a classic, a re-read, and a regular book - one at a time, of course. It seems to be working out pretty well, but I spend a lot of time on each classic, because, let's face it, those classics take some thought process, what with 'funny' speech patterns, outdated behavior, and symbolism. I spend so much time on each classic in fact, that I think I'm short-changing my desire to read more purely-for-fun-books.
Since I am not in any sort of a hurry, I really don't need to be so 'strict' with myself. Now, I am not being strict in the I 'should' read those books, but if I don't set some kind of personal goals for myself, I may not read any classics, or any old favorites very often. I want there to be a method to my reading!

I think I'm gonna broaden my goals...say, read two or 3 'fun' books, then a classic, then a re-read.( although my re-read books are all fun; that's why I want to read them again!) Yeah, that sounds good. Happy Reading!

Ashes in the Wind

I can think of a better name for it; The NEVER ending Story...! Honestly, folks, this novel by Kathleen E. Woodiwiss has everything you'd want in a book....Murder! Thievery! Ripped bodices! Sex! Crazy Evil Stepmothers! Disguises! Love! Kidnappings! History! Evil Relatives! But, but, just...not quite so much of it.

My husband gave me this book for Christmas one year, many years ago. I had always planned on reading it again, and then when I recently began reading some of the book blogs, I saw that quite a few of you adore this kind of romance story. I remembered about Ashes in the Wind, one of the very few historical romance/bodice rippers I have ever, or will ever read, and decided It was time to read it again. And read it I did. Uh, sorta.

I didn't remember it being so long and tedious to read. First there's the enmity between the Southern spitfire of a heroine and the handsome, cool Yankee doctor that I had to get through. Ok, sure, Alaina (heroine) has her righteous reasons for hating the Yankees; loss of family and ancestral home..etc. In addition, she has to dress and act like a boy after being mistakenly accused of being a spy, so she's not happy about that. Although Cole (hero)is very good to her/him (he thinks Alaina is 'Al' through about 1/2 of the book ) she never gives up her 'war' until about the last 3 chapters of the book. And of course by then they're madly in love with each other.

Then there are all the related stories going on (see above list.) Man, that book just plum wore me out, and since I'd already read it, I used that as the excuse to skim over long, involved paragraphs. The story was a good one, but it needed to be about 200 pages shorter, as well as sticking to a limited amount of sub-plots. They just seemed to get added on as the story neared the end; it was as if the author didn't want to quit writing this one.

A little bit about the author here. Kathleen E. Woodiwiss (1939-2007) was quite a pioneer in the historical romance genre; she pretty much started it with The Flame and the Flower, published in 1972. Although I am not fond of this particular genre of books, I have much admiration for the lady who believed in it enough to write books that so many do love.

That Summer Place

I have a confession to make about That Summer Place, a collection of 3 stories by Jill Barnett, Susan Wiggs, and Debbie Macomber. I bought it as a book to keep in my car, which I do with a lot of the 'anthology' paperbacks I buy. The 3-story content of these books is perfect for that purpose. The stories are rarely stories that have deep meanings, or great educational lessons within them. They read quickly, and are usually fun and snappy, with happy endings. They're paperbacks, so if something drastic happens to them, it's not a tragedy.* I can throw them in the back seat and not worry about their fate. When I'm finished with them, some I keep, some I pass on.
Until That Summer Place, which never even made it to the car! I just finished reading it, and it was one of those books I wanted to stick with from beginning to end. No waiting for the next visit to the doctor, or a quick read by the side of the road as I wait for the heavy traffic to abate. Nope. I pretty much read it straight thru. At home, in my house.

This was no regular collection of totally unrelated short stories by three different authors. Each story was related to the 'main character' of the book, which was Rainshadow Lodge. Rainshadow Lodge was a big old house on Spruce Island, a fictional island off Washington state.
The first story-Old Things-by Jill Barnett, is a sweet romance where old lovers re-connect At Rainshadow Lodge, this time for good. The second, Private Paradise, is written by Debbie Macomber and is a story also set at Rainshadow Lodge. It is a romance stemming from mixed-up vacation plans. Finally we have Island Time, a really snappy, cute little story by Susan Wiggs, that combines a free spirit with a somewhat stodgy type, thanks to the wonderful relaxed atmosphere on Spruce Island. All three stories were good, but I liked the first one best.

* Before I get any paperback lovers mad at me, I do have many paperbacks in my collection that I would never take out of the house for any reason, some of which I've had 40+ years. A special book is a special book, no matter what shell it has wrapped around it.

Cliffs Notes

I mentioned in an earlier post that I was going to start reading 'classics' more, and I started out with The Great Gatsby. When I was finished, I wasn't quite sure what I had missed, but I was left with a sort of, yeah,.. so? kind of feeling. I thought I'd missed something magnanimous because after all, The Great Gatsby has been a classic for decades, but I wasn't getting it, somehow. I decided to go out and find a copy of Cliffs Notes to help me see what I had missed.

Cliffs Notes are wonderful. For this particular book I realized my problem was that I had just read it too quickly. I was trying to read it like a regular novel, one where there are characters and a story, and not a lot of symbolism, and you don't think much about it afterwards, if ever. This is not The Great Gatsby type of novel.
I sat down with my Cliffs Notes and the book and 're-read' it; not totally word for word, but looking for the symbols I missed the first time around. I have come away with a much better understanding of The Great Gatsby as a result, and will certainly use Cliffs Notes in the future as I read more classics.

The challenge is finding a book!

I was looking forward to going to the bookstore and the library today to look at/ check out/buy one of my JLC 2 books. I did get to the bookstore, but didn't see any thing that 'spoke' to me. I was going partially by the list Bellazza had left on her blog from the last challenge, and I was curious about several of the books. I found some of the authors, but pretty much struck out at the store. Never fear(!) I thought...you can go see what the library has!
Unfortunately it was not to be. I forgot that in the Summer the libraries around here are closed on Sundays. I've lived here for 5 years, and I still forgot. Of course, I also still forget to pull the lever to open the gas tank on my car after 4 years ( and many, many tanks of gas, but I digress...)
Hmmm, well, tomorrow's another day. I'm really in no rush. And meanwhile, I have plenty to read.

In The Company of Cheerful Ladies

That's not only the name of the sixth book In The #1 Ladies Detective series by Alexander McCall Smith, nope, nope, nope. It's also how I feel when I've been reading some of the book blogs out there. Or should I say out here in blog land?
I've mentioned that until now, my own personal reading challenge was to read 50 books a year. I managed to pull that off two years in a row, but now I've decided to turn it up a notch. Since I began reading book blogs, my interest in other challenges out there has been awakened. I am so excited to be participating in the Japanese Literature Challenge 2, put out by Dolce Bellazza. See the 'logo' for it over there above my book blogs list? I feel so official.
That challenge isn't all I'm about. This time around my personal 50 book challenge. I'm making a 'rule' that every third book has to be either a (what I consider to be)a 'classic' book written before 1960, by such authors as Steinbeck, Salinger, Austen, Bronte, Faulkner...etc.,* OR a pre-read book in my keeper bookcases. I have sooo many books that I fondly remember, and want to read again. I know some people like to read a book ONE time, but I love to re-visit old friends!
* Did you know B&N bookstores have a big classics shelf unit with trim, attractive volumes? Of course you did. I'll go leaf thru a few next on my visit.

Mr. Perfect

Personally? I'm still looking for the guy, but Jaine Bright found hers in the form of a cop named Sam Donovan between the pages (and sheets) of Mr. Perfect. After much murder, mayhem and heavy sex, the book ends happily, with Sam and Jaine planning their nuptials.

I decided to read this book after I read a post on Shannon's blog, What Women Read.

On a side note, here, will someone puhleeze tell me why soooo many romance novels I read begin with extreme enmity between the hero and heroine? Oh, I understand there has to be some conflict, some where, but why do the two main characters always whip themselves into crazy, silly frenzies of ire, all the while burning with serious lust for that person?

As for the story...
On their usual Friday night get together, four women friends create a list for their ideas of Mr. Perfect. Sounds harmless, right? Well, one of the women shows it to someone outside the group, and that person shows it to this one, and before you know it 'The List' is national news! There are mixed reviews about the list, but one person in particular takes it extremely personal and decides the four women must die. Mix this in with the sub plots of the four womens' love lives, and you have plenty to hold your interest throughout the pages.

All 'silliness' aside, the basic plot was very good with believable characters, a believable plot, and lots of suspense..how can you go wrong with that?

Hidden Passions

Do you watch any of the 'Soaps'? I used to occasionally watch one called Passions, which was a goofy show that involved witches, demons, amd magic, along with the usual murder, romance, and general 'soapiness.' It has since moved to some channel I don't get,but I don't care. I guess you could say I never had much passion for Passions! I have watched Days of our Lives for 40 years, however....

So any way, apparently someone at NBC got this idea to have one of the characters from the show write a memoir of the town of Harmony, the setting for the show. This was Tabitha Lenox, a main character who was also a witch. No, not your usual 'witch' you might find on a soap, but a real witch. The book HIDDEN PASSIONS was a cute idea- I must have thought so because I bought a hardcover copy. It was an OK read, and I'll read it again, perhaps, but I no longer watch the show, and a lot of the characters that were on the show/in the book are no longer present. I may eventually just pass it along to GOT BOOKS? An organization that collects used/unwanted books, as well as having dumpsters so you can drop off your unwanted books.

But really, today I wanted to talk about my passion for books. I see a lot of group challenges going on around the blogs. Some of you are joining 3,4 or more challenges, which run for all sorts of time frames. I have my own challenge going, and I've had it for two years. My goal was to read 50 books in a year. That's all; a mere fifty books. The first year, 2007, I accomplished my goal. Here are my results.
I warn you, this was the year of the Robert B. Parker Spenser series, and I chose to re-read most of the whole bunch!

Books read in 2007

Wideacre by Phillipa Gregory
God Save The Child by RBP
Mortal Stakes by RBP
Promised Land by RBP
The Judas Goat by RBP
Looking for Rachel Wallace by RBP
Early Autumn by RBP
Accidents Waiting to Happen by Simon Wood
Inferno by Karen Harper
The Survivors by Dinah McCall Small Vices by RBP
Most Likely to Die by Lisa Jackson,Beverly Barton, and Wendy Corsi Staub
A Savage Place by RBP
The Favorite Child by Philippa Gregory
Ceremony by RBP
Sailing to Capri by Elizabeth Adler
Meridon by Phillipa Gregory
My Darling Caroline by Adele Ashworth
The Widening Gyre by RBP
Valediction by RBP
A Catskill Eagle by RBP
Taming a Sea Horse by RBP
Pale Kings and Princes by RBP
On What Grounds by Cleo Coyle
The Dollhouse Murders by Betty Ren Wright
Sins and Needles by Monica Ferris
Crimson Joy by RBP
Playmates by RBP
Stardust by RBP
A Respectable Trade by Phillipa Gregory
Pastime by RBP
Through The Grinder by Cleo Coyle
Double Deuce by RBP
Paper Doll by RBP
Walking Shadow by RBP
Thin Air by RBP
Chance by RBP
I Heard That Song Before by Mary Higgins Clark
Kissing Christmas Goodbye by M.C. Beaton
Small Vices by RBP
Hugger Mugger by RBP
The Rapture by Tim LaHaye
Potshot by RBP
Back Story by RBP
Let me Call You Sweetheart by RBP
Bad Business by RBP
The Body in the Belfry by Katherine Hall Page
Star Flight by Phyllis A. Whitney
School Daze by RBP
Hundred Dollar Baby by RBP
Duplicity Dogged The Dachsund by Blaize Clement
Thin Air by RBP

A Common Life

Ahhh, my reading blog begins. I have been fascinated by reading other book blogs, now I want to join the fun. I do live a rather common life, and living vicariously through the adventures of the heroes and heroines I read about spice it up quite a bit, if only in my imagination.
Man, that was a long sentence.

The name of my blog refers to Jubilee Trail, written by Gwen Bristow, Copyright 1950. That was 2 years before I was born, folks. It is one of the best books I have read in my 56 years. And believe me, I've read a LOT of books in 56 years. Don't worry, I don't plan to blog about them all! lol.

My post titles will (try to) be the name of a book I have read and liked. I may not review the book here, but I will tell you the name of the author. This title refers to The book A COMMON LIFE, book six in the Mitford series by Jan Karon. Some day, when I've read alllll the other books in the world, I plan to re-read this series. It is wholesome, sometimes funny, sometimes sad, and sometimes makes you wish you lived there. It's just delightful! (and I don't use that word often.)If you like the sound of that, then I suggest you begin with AT HOME IN MITFORD, the first book in the series.

As I've mentioned, I am not a pro at this business. I hardly know my way around a computer, let alone how to fancy up a blog enough to attract readers, who prolly have waaay more interesting stuff to read than my blog. But then again, so do I. In fact, I think I'll go read some now...