A lot has happened since I last posted, (if anybody's reading this I'll be mighty surprised.) but I've been reading thru it all. That is one thing that I have always been sure of; the pleasure of reading. You really can't beat it. It can get you thru darn near anything!

Since I last posted, I have moved to a town near Milford, Ma. I did it partly because of financial reasons, but also to find that small town homey friendly feeling that I missed when living in Framingham.

In May of this year I was diagnosed with Myelodysplasia, a kissin' cousin to Leukemia, and have been up and down with my energy levels.

That's where reading comes in...when all else fails, and you are basically having to be a couch potato...keep a book by your side. Or two. Or three.

I personally try to read a couple or more books at a time...reading maybe a couple of chapters of one, then going back to another one for a while. I don't get mixed up as to who is doing whatsis because I usually have an eclectic assortment of books from which to choose, and I might be reading a suspense and a romance and a biography all at the same time. I don't read books any faster, I don't think, this way, but I do like switching back and forth from time to time. I also keep a paperback in the car for Dr. appointments or traffic jams ( huh...like that's gonna happen out here in the country...LOL.)

My goal is still to read at least 50 books a year, and as 2010 comes to a close, I am reading books #43 and #44...Fireside by Susan Wiggs, and Daddy's Little Girl by Mary Higgins Clark. Neither one of these is new or exciting, but neither am I!

The Bell Jar... all over again

One of my goals in this reading-and-actually-keeping-track-of-books blog has been to improve my reading 'culture.' By that I mean that I have committed myself to including more 'classics' in my 'repertory', so to speak, and I try to read a classic for every two or three non-classic books. I've also included the 'New Classics' in there, and I actually did participate in the "New Classics Challenge" that took place some months ago. I read the three 'required' books, but not on time, and I didn't blog about all of them. Ooops. I just sorta lost touch.
I am currently reading The Bell Jar, by Sylvia Plath. She was a talented poet who committed suicide in 1963, after writing a semi-autobiographical book about a
young woman who was also suicidal.
What spurred me to post after all this time, was that I read recently that her 47 year old son, Nicholas, hanged himself on March 16th.
Depression is such a terrible, wasteful illness to go thru, and most of us have had it at some point in our lives. I know people who have probably been depressed their whole lives, but have lived that way so long, that they think it's normal to feel that way. I personally believe it is 'hereditary', possibly due to living in a dysfunctional family situation, that also is quite possibly 'hereditary'. Please, if you're feeling down, low, blue, depressed, or whatever you call it, please get help, whether from a professional, or a friend who may steer you to a professional. And don't forget God! "Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you. " I Peter 5:7

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.