The Library

[bellamarie]

Barb, we took our great grandson to the library today for Storytime hour and I was browsing the shelves while he played with the trainset there with my hubby and guess what was sitting on the shelf... the book you are reading The Ride of Her Life. I decided to check it out so I can see if I like it.  I like the quote you mentioned, sometimes we just need a book to relax and enjoy and not depict and expect so much more than just the journey it takes us on. 

Once we got home driving through the rain and it's so chilly here today, I decided to snuggle up on the couch with my favorite throw blanket and read the afternoon away. 

Ciao~ Bellamarie

[BarbStAubrey]

Hope you enjoy it as much as I am - it never turns boring - she is quite a character but yet with dignity and sense of who she is - interesting how the closer she is to big cities the more people have opinions they openly share judging her and her journey...

[BarbStAubrey]

Well I wondered where she was going to cross the Mississippi - still in Tennessee and there it is... "And now, in the last week in March, at last the weather had warmed up—no rain and sunny skies, as the four companions left Jackson behind and headed down the road toward Memphis."

I recognized all that in Kentucky - we lived in Lexington for 13 years in the 50s into the 60s only we arrived in early '56 a few years after Annie traveled through the area however during that time there were many who walked into  and through Lexington from the Appalachians with their hickory walking stick, jean overalls, and if a man usually a flowing beard - some were walking to Louisville that butted up against the Great Mississippi and so I cannot imagine Annie was considered that unusual except that she traveled a great distance on horseback where as those often seen walking along at a good clip had no animals sharing their expedition.

The only quibble I had is yes, on the Versailles road there were two farms with rock walls however, 90% of all horse farms had either split rail or white three rail fences surrounding the property and separating pastures and paddocks.  When we lived in Lexington for 9 years we lived one street away from Ashland, the Henry Clay estate and later we lived 4 years south of the Versailles road in an area called Stonewall just south of the Harrodsburg Road. 

We went to Louisville every Thanksgiving weekend where the department store had a Christmas shop just for Children as well as Santa and all the holiday decoration - Lexington at the time had only 2 floor department stores that decorated but nothing special for children - also to attend a movie with a large screen it meant a trip to Louisville as well to see the trotters race and of course thoroughbred races.

I used to work at the Girl Scout camp deep in the mountains of eastern Kentucky bringing Paul from the time he was 4 along with my laundry to wash (by hand in a metal tub) and my iron with me going home every other weekend. Katha was at the camp and Peter was at Boy Scout Camp. A dear man from the mountains who helped at the camp gifted me a handmade dulcimer and I learned to play many of the old mountain songs that some go back to the 14th Century originally from Ireland, Scotland and Wales. Peter had just graduated from Grade School and Paul would start the first grade when we moved that summer to Texas.   

Reading how Annie traveled through Kentucky brought back so many memories for me - appears she missed Bardstown, (Stephen Foster's home) as well as the Shaker village,  Shakertown both west of Lexington according the road you take on the way to Elizabethtown - back in the 50s there was a place to cross the river north of Louisville however since Annie travels through the area in winter I can see why she did not want to go north but continue south and the next crossing would have been Memphis into Little Rock.

[ginny]

Wonderful article this morning by 20 Librarians about how to get back to reading: The experts: librarians on 20 easy, enjoyable ways to read more brilliant books. And how about ALL kinds of books are important, it doesn't matter  your genre choice.


https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2024/apr/25/the-experts-librarians-on-20-easy-enjoyable-ways-to-read-more-brilliant-books?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

It contains some interesting theories, like...how many pages should you read before deciding to discard the book?  One theory here is subtract your age from 100 and that's how many pages you should read before giving up on any book.

Here's an interesting statement from it:

“If you take 10 minutes a day to sink into a book, newspaper or read anything, it is very good for your mental health,” says Middleton. “There is lots of medical evidence of that being the case. Reading a book for 10 minutes is better for you than listening to your favourite record.”

Morrish makes a final impassioned plea: “It has been scientifically proven that reading increases your powers of empathy, social skills and ability to relate to other people. It relaxes you, it lowers your cortisol levels and blood pressure. It increases your vocabulary, your knowledge, creativity and imagination. If you read for pleasure, your grades will be better. To read from a book gives you time off the screen, which is hugely beneficial for your mental health.”

Well worth reading, I thought.

[bellamarie]

Ginny, thank you for this article I shared it on my Facebook.

Barb, once again your life stories about growing up and where you have lived amazes me. Think about writing that book.  I have traveled through Kentucky, Tennessee, Georgia, and into Florida.  I felt like we were never going to get out of the state of Georgia.  I can't begin to imagine traveling it on horseback in the 50s.  Haven't begun the book but love hearing your thoughts. 

Ciao~  Bellamarie

[Tomereader1]

Oh, Ginny.  That was wonderful.  I feel that reading increases all those skills and abilities.  No one would have had to "scientifically prove" any of that for me!  Thank you for posting this.

[Frybabe]

As I looked at a list of books Marilyne over on Seniors and Friends posted in the Library Shelf discussion, Edna Ferber caught my eye. I do not believe I have ever read her books. This one, when I looked into it, caught my eye - Cimarron. I looked into it and found this synopsis.  https://masshumanities.org/ph_rediscovering-middlebrow-edna-ferbers-cimarron/ Has anyone read it? Also, in the article, the writer calls Ferber a "middlebrow" writer. ?? I don't recall that term applied to writers. Do you? I'd like to see a list of "middlebrow" writers. Is the article writer referring to the readers or to the economic situation of the characters in these books (as in middle class society)? Anyone care to comment? I might just find me a copy of the book.

[BarbStAubrey]

Middlebrow is not kind as I understand the word...

Googled it and these are some descriptions ---

"relating to or intended for people who are interested in art, literature, etc., that is not very serious and that is easy to understand."

"The term middlebrow describes middlebrow art, which is easily accessible art, usually popular literature, and middlebrow people who use the arts to acquire the social capital of "culture and class" and thus a good reputation. First used in the British satire magazine Punch in 1925, the term middlebrow is the intellectual, intermediary brow between the highbrow and the lowbrow forms of culture..."

From Virginia Woolf, "As a social critic, Woolf criticizes middlebrows as petty purveyors of highbrow culture for their own shallow benefit. Rather than select and read books for their intrinsic cultural value, middlebrow people select and read books they are told are the best books to read: "We highbrows read what we like and do what we like and praise what we like." Middlebrows are concerned with appearances, with how their social activities make them appear to the community, unlike the highbrows, the avant-garde men and women who act according to their commitment to the beauty and forms of art, and to values and integrity. Likewise, a lowbrow person is devoted to a singular interest, a person "of thoroughbred vitality who rides his body in pursuit of a living at a gallop across life"; and, therefore, the lowbrow are equally worthy of reverence, as they, too, are living for what they intrinsically know as valuable."

Middlebrow or not years back, in the '40s and '50s into the '60s and early '70s at least one of Edna Ferber's books was studied in High School English Lit. along with Shakespeare, Voltaire, von Strassburg (13th century poet, Tristram and Isolde) and Chaucer.  Cimarron was one of the books or So Big - not so much Show Boat or Giant - she was before her time writing in characters that in the US were separate because of 'race, color or creed' - many of us enjoy a movie using a Shakespeare play as much as we enjoyed movies that the script was from a book including the writings of Feber and so if the definition of Middlebrow includes that an author's work became a box office ticket selling movie then we have to include a few authors considered Highbrow.

Frankly cannot believe in this day and age anyone much less a critic would stoop to using this terminology but then I'm finding humans are always a surprise...

[Frybabe]

Thanks Barb, very interesting. BTW, My online library has only two of Ferber's books, Giant and So Big. Cimarron is in my to buy wish list.

[BarbStAubrey]

OK a new one... what in the world is "Comixology store" on Amazon kindle??? Evidently a new release from Kazuo Ishiguro is available on Comixology

Oh yes, frybabe there is an old movie of Cimarron - most of the story takes place in the wild cat fields of mostly Oklahoma - so far can only find the Glenn Ford 1960s version - lots of clips but cannot find a free version of the movie = this later version highlights the passion between Glenn Ford and Maria Schell there is a 1930s version black and white.
 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Bcaz-Gp688

[BarbStAubrey]

Ok going through a bout of sleeping at strange hours again - anyhow got to finding out where Annie crossed the Mississippi and knew the journey would take a different approach since towns would be further and further apart and so took a break and became fascinated coming across Secrets of Italian Self Care which prompted me to flip back and forth between it and Fiona Ferris' How to Live Well and in an hour finished Art Before Breakfast: A Zillion Ways to be More Creative No Matter How Busy You Are - Not that I'm interested in sketching just now but lots of tips how to squeeze in time to in small bits actively pursue a new interest - never thought of breaking it down to ways to do something in a minute while waiting for the kettle to boil for morning coffee or actually do something while enjoying your morning coffee.

My big question is after starting or finishing books that describe the wonders of Italian Dolce Vita - sweet life - or French Joie de Vivre - Joy of life - as it relates to home, family, cooking, slowing down, dressing, gardening etc. with my German background thought I would find something that expresses the good things experienced by the Germans - Well was I wrong - about the best you can find is lots of German Cookbooks but other than a book written back in 1855 Elizabeth and Her German Garden notta...!

But what really shocked me is that there are books galore about German life however EVERY ONE has something to do with WWII - getting past it - those few who did something brave - being caught up in it and how they survived - German guilt - German shame - it is as if nothing else has happened and all German family life or home life stopped before WWI and for sure completed the stop during WWII - The Nuremberg Trails were over in October of 1946 and so 78 years later Germany is frozen in time - no sweet life or joy of life only guilt and shame and memories of horrors and fear with escape stories to hold on to... Can you imagine a kid growing up in the last say 40 years with that over their head - I'm even wondering if any new music or art originated in Germany for the last 70 years - do German families get together for fun anymore and if so why is there nothing about that side of life shared - is it Germany who is reluctant to share or is it the rest of us that does not want to read much less think of Germans enjoying themselves or having a backyard garden or a summer family gathering under the trees or a vacation in the mountains or on a river or near a lake - most disconcerting...   

[Frybabe]

Barb, I forgot to answer your question about comixology. I believe it covers comics, manga, graphic novels, and such. The "ology" at the end makes is sound like the study of such, but is most likely the invention of some advertising or marketing group to do, what else, make it easier for fans to find their favorite "reading" material and encourage more sales. Oh, and here it is: ComiXology.com a website launched to provide comics, etc. fans a place to discover up and coming releases, stores selling such, and read columns, news and podcasts launched in 2007. I think they even had an app that would let people read their comics on their   mobile phones. Not unsurprisingly, Amazon, always sniffing around for ways to expand their wealth and reduce competition, bought them out. My browser summary claims that the founders, for a while, continued with the company. However, just recently, Amazon fully "absorbed" the company and fired its founders and staff. It recently discontinued their Comixology app and blended comics bought through Comixlogy into the Kindle platform. There are a lot of comics fans out there that believe Amazon ruined the platform, and they are very unhappy (aka: livid) about it.

[BarbStAubrey]

thanks frybabe - another new to me way of connecting on the internet - I just never thought of the author, Kazuo Ishiguro as a comic or graphic novelist, however, who knows, today nothing can be off the mark.

What a day and a half - thunderstorms beyond belief - of course lost electricity for a few hours - rain and rain so that it appears it washed much of the backyard soil down the side of the house to the storm ditch that runs across the front of all our properties... Joanne did you also have these storms roll through your area?

[bellamarie]

Happy May!!!  So far, this month has been days of rain and storms.  Thinking maybe it got mixed up with April somehow.  Last night my dog barked all night at the storms and this moring the air conditioning guys were here bright & early to install a whole new unit.  We have been lucky to get by the past few years with them adding freon but knew after 17 years it was time for a new one.  So, it's going to take a lot of coffee to keep me going today.   

I finished The House Maid and boy was it a book that had me rooting for the torture of a character who tortured others secretly.  Well worth the read.  Didn't see the ending coming. I hear this is a series: #New York Times and USA Today bestseller psychological thriller Books collection set By Freida McFadden - The Housemaid, The Housemaid's Secret, The Locked Door & The Inmate  Not sure I am ready for the next one, but I will read the rest of them at another time.

Tomereader, when I posted that article link on my Facebook all the comments were about audio vs holding a book to read.  I'm not sure any of them actually read the full article.  lol

[BarbStAubrey]

Bellamarie you also had the rain! Had no idea it was in the north - thought it was coming from both west of us as well as up from the Gulf -

AC is a must with all this damp from all this rain - so glad your getting a new one to help rid your home of all the moisture from this heavy spring rain. an Kudos -  I do not think I could read a thriller at this time with all that is happening in our world... I'm even having a difficult time staying with the Baseball game if it is a tight game.

I'm thinking this is a time to watch an online Wizard of Oz where the iconic song ...Over the Rainbow starts Somewhere jumping an entire octave as if a musical rainbow... Well no rainbow with these storms. With the sky so gray and heavy I think I'll just let the clocks all blink for the rest of the day since more thunder storms are predicted which means we can bet on loosing electricity yet again.