The Library

[Steph]

The Library Our library cafe is open 24/7, the welcome mat is always out. Do come in from daily chores and spend some time with us. We look forward to hearing from you, about you and the books you are enjoying (or not). Let the book talk begin here!

*Suggestion Box for Future Discussions
*SeniorLearn's Archives 
 

Ah, somebody had word for the day while writing his story.

[Frybabe]

Maybe he got carried away with his Thesaurus without checking the context in which various words are used.

[pedln]

Just browsing my Facebook page today and Gwen Ifill had a list of what she and her friends are reading this summer

I've never heard of this author, Ward Just, mentioned by Doyle McManus.  Has anyone read any of his?

"Exiles in the Garden" by Ward Just
(Mariner Books)
I've been a Ward Just fan ever since his wonderful 1972 short story, "The Congressman who Loved Flaubert." A former Washington Post reporter, Just captures the inner lives of the Washington elite better than anyone since Henry James. He's written 17 novels, not all about Washington. Political junkies should start with this one, Echo House, In the City of Fear, or any of his short story collections.

And Ella, someone was reading Those Angry DAys --

This is another work by an author who has illuminated life in Britain and the United States before and during World War 2. Her latest focuses on the raging debate here at home between interventionists and isolationists before the United States entered the war.
- Dan Balz, The Washington Post

Washington Week's Summer Read List

An interesting list.   

[MaryPage]

Oh, Barbara, we disagree!  How can that be?
But I think we have always been able to tell class from speech here in this country.  It has just never been something we have discussed.  But it has been there all of my long life, and I can remember noticing it and feeling distressed for the children who spoke poorly waaaaaay back when I was but a child myself!  I am not speaking of local accents, but of grammar.
Did ANYone in here ever read Riddley Walker by Russell Hoban?  You may have skipped it back in the nineteen eighties because it is listed as Sci Fi.  Most intellectuals read it, however, and I cannot recommend it strongly enough.
Reading it is a tough go, and I ended up reading it out loud to myself, and then it was a much easier go.  Most folk do wind up doing that!  I would not have missed it for the world!

[JoanP]

Thanks for the list, Pedln.  A good one - overall you can tell it's a "Washington list" - though there are exceptions.  I see "Old Filth" on the list - another one our Book Club Online enjoyed.

I wonder if anyone here has read John Kennedy Toole's Confederacy of Dunces - or Ward Just's Exiles in the Garden, both reviewed in this list - and if so, what you thought of them?

 It's almost September, we're on our way with The Good Earth...hopefully you will join us as we take a close look on the first women to win Nobel Prize and whose work is still having an impact today.  We're gathering here -  The Good Earth by Pearl Buck - and would love to have you join us. We intend to read and discuss the book - and more -  attempt to know the woman and her contributions that continue today.

Not only are we preparing for the September discussion, but it's time to start consideration of an October selection.  Nominations are welcome in the Suggestion Box.

MaryP - I just read the Goodreads' reviews of Riddley Walker - that might be just the thing for our October group read!  Would you like to post what you posted here in the Suggestion Box?

[CallieOK]

A newspaper clipping that's been on my "social comment" bulleting board for so long that it's faded and I have no idea what paper it came from.  I did a bit of web searching and found it attributed to Ann Landers, among others.  I suspect I clipped it from an Ann Landers column years and years ago:

"What Is Class?
Class never runs scared.  It is sure-footed and confident in the knowledge that you can meet life head on and handle whatever comes along.
Jacob had it.  Esau didn't.  Symbolically, we can look to Jacob's wrestling match with the angel.  Those who have class have wrestled with their own personal "angel" and won a victory that marks them thereafter.
Class never makes excuses.  It takes its lumps and learns from past mistakes.
Class is considerate of others.  It knows that good manners are nothing more than a series of petty sacrifices.

Class bespeaks an aristocracy that has nothing to do with ancestors or money.  The most affluent blue-blood can be totally without class while the descendant of a Welsh miner may ooze class from every pore.

Class never tries to build itself up by tearing others down.  Class is already up and need not strive to look better by making others look worse.
Class can "walk with kings and keep its virtue and talk with crowds and keep the common touch."  Everyone is comfortable with the person who has class because he is comfortable with himself.

If you have class, you don't need much of anything else.  If you don't have it, no matter what else you have - it doesn't make much difference."

[MaryPage]

Callie, that is SO true!
Joan, I don't know about a group reading.  Riddley Walker fascinated me, but it is not a book you can say you "like."  I learned a lot that has stuck with me from that book, and the difficulty of reading and understanding the way-in-the-future English was of deep interest to me.  But honestly, I would not personally recommend it for a group reading.  That would amount to forcing a difficult book on folks who perhaps want to be a bit more relaxed with their reading.

[mabel1015j]

But is everyone's "class" the same behavior? In my family no one was ever just late getting to a family event, or anywhere else without a very good reason - an emergency.  I spent a lot of time fuming when I was first dating and living with my husband because his family's sense of time had nothing to do with "being on time."  I don't know why or where that came from, but I spent many long waits at the Phila bus station, waiting for him to pick me up. I finally learned to tell him that I was coming in a half hour earlier then I expected to get there. He has come around very nicely, he's hardly ever just casually late any more. 

We've had a couple discussions here on local linguistics, accents and phrases. I just watched a fun video from Youtube Edu by a linguist from Carnegie Mellon talking about Pittsburghese. If you have ever lived in central to western Pa, you've heard it. "My hair needs washed," commonly pronounced "worshed". My DIL is from the Wmsport area and says "booling" for "bowling" and all other owl words are pronounced ool. "Yinz" contraction of "you uns,"  similar to "y'all" from the south. She ends with an interesting question provided by a person on a website that was discussing Pittsburghese - does having an "accent" (and we all do, or did when we were growing up) mean you are not as smart as the people who have evened out their local speech to be similar to tv commentators? If not, why do we assume that people who speak differently from us, or the commentators, are lower class, or not as smart, or uneducated? And isn't it interesting that we don't know we have an accent until we leave our homogeneous area? Huuummmm. My children love the "sing-song" effect that my biological family talks in, they are all from Shippensburg, Pa, south central Pa, and have a combination of Scotch-Irish/Penna Dutch/W Va twang words and tone. I've lost a lot of that, but every once in awhile they will call me on it.

Here is the link, if you'd like to see/hear the 47 minute lecture

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H8ihyTbi2Kw&list=PLBCD362F95A724D1E

Jean

[marjifay]

JoanP asked about the author Ward Just and about the book Confederacy of Dunces.

I have not read EXILES IN THE GARDEN, but did read Just's A DANGEROUS FRIEND several years ago and liked it. Set in Vietnam in 1965 when the first Americans there were from the CIA, disguised as a "charity" organization building bridges, starting clinics -- things the people didn't need.  It takes a while to get into this book as it brings you into the atmosphere of the place.  But it gets very good as you begin to see what these "dangerous friends" are really doing.  I've always meant to read more of Ward Just's work, but haven't got around to it.  

I really thoroughly disliked O'Toole's CONFEDERACY OF DUNCES and could not finish it.  Hated how he treated his mother.  I guess it is supposed to be funny, but I could not see any humor in it and would not recommend it.

Marj

[Tomereader1]

Nor could I find any "humor" in Confederacy of Dunces and I also did not finish it.  Read as much as I could stand, and put it away.  I wanted to give it a chance because one of our book group members read it and loved it. (?) But, no, I would certainly not recommend it.

[marjifay]

Thanks for that summer reading list from PBS, Pedln.  Very interesting list.  I have a couple on my TBR list (Collision 2012; Obama vs. Ramsey and the Future of Elections in America by Dan Balz; The Wise Men; Six Friends and the World They Made by Walter Isaacson; and The Guns at Last Light; The War in Western Europe 1944-1945 by Rick Atkinson.  And now (sigh...) it gave me a bunch more to add to the list.

Marj

[marjifay]

JoanP asked about the author Ward Just and about the book Confederacy of Dunces.

I have not read EXILES IN THE GARDEN, but did read Just's A DANGEROUS FRIEND several years ago and liked it. Set in Vietnam in 1965 when the first Americans were there from the CIA, disguised as a "charity" organization building bridges, starting clinics -- things the people didn't need.  It takes a while to get into this book as it brings you into the atmosphere of the place.  But it gets very good as you begin to see what these "dangerous friends" are really doing.  I've always meant to read more of Ward Just's work, but haven't got around to it.  

I really thoroughly disliked O'Toole's CONFEDERACY OF DUNCES and could not finish it.  Hated how he treated his mother.  I guess it is supposed to be funny, but I could not see any humor in it and would not recommend it.

Marj

[salan]

I read and thoroughly disliked The Confederacy of Dunces.  I don't like black or dark humor.  My ftf book club read it and over half didn't care for it.
Sally

[JoanP]

We hear you...Marjifay.  Is there anything in particular you might like in October?

[BarbStAubrey]

also read A DANGEROUS FRIEND a few years ago... OK - tired of books about war and politics - something fun would be a welcome change

[marjifay]

I will think about one, JoanP.  I have a bunch I want to read, but I'd have to find one to recommend that people here might like to read.

Right now, a book I may recommend is one I've just started: Jerome K. Jerome's THREE MEN IN A BOAT, TO SAY NOTHING OF THE DOG  (361 pp, 1889)   Per book description, "Originally intended as a serious travel guide, then streamlined into an amusing account of a farcial boating excursion on the Thames River.  Jerome's controversally "vulgar" take on British history and recreation.  A mix of social satire and Victorian wit.  Despite telling a story where everything goes wrong, this funny travelogue offers a vivid portrait of Victorian England the reader will not soon forget."

I wanted to read Jerome's book before reading Connie Willis' TO SAY NOTHING OF THE DOG, a time travel romp thru Victorian England where the characters meet the characters in Jerome's book.  Jerome's book had me laughing from the first page.  Several young friends are talking about how bad they feel, from a medical point of view.  The narrator says, "With me, it was my liver that was out of order.  I knew it was my liver that was out of order because I had just been reading a patent liver-pill circular, in which were detailed various symptoms by which a man could tell when his liver was out of order.  I had them all."

Marj

[salan]

I read Three Men in  A Boat, and did not care for it at all.
Sally

[marjifay]

Okay, then how about THE WARMTH OF OTHER SUNS; THE STORY OF AMERICA'S GREAT MIGRATION by Isabel Wilkerson.  I'm surprised that this has not yet been discussed in SrLearn.    Per NPR review, "The richness of the narrative is surpassed only by the unforgettable characters Isabel used to tell the story of the great migration of African Americans from the South to the North in the 20th century. What a chapter in American history."

Marj

[Steph]

Loved Confederacy of Dunces many many years ago.. To Say Nothing of the Dog is also very very funny, but the next in that series isnt.. Doomsday Book.. I cannot get into it. Very violent. and I like Connie Willis.
I am not particularly a political animal, so find little interest in books on our government. We do not seem to be able to change it and Congress spends most of their time making sure they have perks that noone else does.Sad but true.

[marjifay]

Gosh, Steph, I guess you and I would not have many books to share.  I like to read political books.  But I love mysteries and like to read your recommendations on ones you've read.

I thought Willis' DOOMSDAY BOOK was great.  It really brought the medieval characters to life IMO.  And I thought the parts set in the present at the university with their wry, subtle humor offset the horror of the Middle Ages section.  After reading it, I've meant to read YEAR OF WONDERS; A NOVEL OF THE PLAGUE by Geraldine Brooks.  (I really liked Brooks' CALEB'S CROSSING.)

Marj

[PatH]

Marj, after reading Doomsday Book, you will find Year of Wonders a bit of a letdown.  It's good, but a bit improbable in places, and less compelling than the Willis--not as good as People of the Book, which we read here.

I thought Three Men in a Boat was pretty funny when I read it some years ago.

[pedln]

Marjifay, thanks for the info on Ward Just. I definitely want to read one of his, will put them on the TBR list.

There seems to be a lot of talk in the book world about Collision 2012.  I like political "novels," but I don't think there are enough hours left to me to indulge in a book focused on two recent presidential candidates. Especially after having just lived through the campaign.

Steph, I'm looking forward to your favorite author's latest, The English Girl -- someday.

JoanP, I don't think I've ever read a Geraldine Brooks. Was going to add Year of Wonders to the list, but see that it's not her best book.  Those limited hours again.   

[BarbStAubrey]

I also thought Three Men in a Boat was a lighthearted read -  an author I have always wanted to tackle - a Booker Mann winner also, a lighthearted read with more sophistication - that drawing room wit the English do so well - The Old Devils - a novel by Kingsley Amis.

Now that the time is history is past and we can read without thinking the worst of young people the trip across the US seen through the eyes of "Jack" Kérouac would be interesting, On The Road is now included in most Great Book lists.

And still another - I do not remember we ever tackling Gore Vidal. His Creation sounds interesting - he is considered a master of historical fiction. The storyline of Creation follows a fictional Persian diplomat who meets major philosophers of the time, from Socrates to Zoroaster and Buddha and Lao Tsu and Confucius. Sounds like something we could chew on.

We also talked one time of reading one of the Utopian authors - like Sir Thomas More Utopia or Henry Neville's The Isle of Pines .

ah like Marj says- so many book and so little time.

[marjifay]

I like your book recommendations, Barb.

I read Kerouac's On the Road long ago, but don't think I'd re-read.

Now, Gore Vidal's Creation is a book I've owned for some time, but have yet to read.  Think I'll pull it down from my shelf and do just that.

Same with More's Utopia - never read altho' I own it.  Not familiar with Henry Neville's Isle of Pines.

Marj

[marjifay]

Barb wrote, "an author I have always wanted to tackle - a Booker Mann winner also, a lighthearted read with more sophistication - that drawing room wit the English do so well - The Old Devils - a novel by Kingsley Amis."

A book of Kingsley Amis I've always meant to read is LUCKY JIM.   One of Dick Cavett's (my favorite talk show host) favorite novels, especially the part on the hangover.  Per Amazon review, "Regarded by many as the finest, and funniest, comic novel of the twentieth century."

Marj

[Frybabe]

Elmore Leonard, who authored a number of books that turned into movies, passed away yesterday.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2398117/Elmore-Leonard-Crime-novelist-wrote-Get-Shorty-3-10-Yuma-dies-87.html

[Steph]

I enjoyed him in some of the books, but could not read him all the time..Elmore Leonard that is.
I loved On The Road, but then it was my era and my cousin was a confirmed hippie. Painted her room including the ceiling black and pulled the mattress onto the floor, etc. piled clothes on floor as well. My Mother was at her wits end.
I have the Doomsday book since I do like Connie Willis, just cannot do doom and gloom yet. Slow learner on this grief stuff.

[PatH]

Better hold off on the Willis then.  It's very good, and somewhat uplifting, but as you would expect from a story that partially takes place during the time of the Black Death, there's plenty of doom too.

[Steph]

Yes, I have it home in my TBR pile for sometime in the future. I have several in that category.. Some of Elmore Leonards stuff is truly funny. I know some are not, but I have enjoyed quite a few of them.
I am patiently ( not really) waiting for the new Gabe Allon to come out in paper.. sigh.

[marjifay]

Who is Gabe Allon, Steph?

Marj

[Frybabe]

Back from my weekly volunteer work at the library. The library is featuring the current "One Book" which is The Cellist of Sarajevo , a book that has long been in on my Wish List. I'm delighted, but will wait until I get through the two I have now and the one on request.

We were checking our DVD selection this afternoon to see if we have what we should. It seems that the main branch "lost" about half (about 90) of their collection of BluRay discs, cases and all. Sounds like someone made off with them. Speculation is that they were stolen to sell at flea markets. That is really sad, especially with funding to libraries still cut back. A pox on the perpetrators.

[Steph]

Daniel Silva writes of Gabriel Allon, who is a spy for Israel..
Our library has an alarm system. You cannot get out the door without having the magnetized detector deactivated.. Really seems to help on the DVD's.

[FlaJean]

Our library has a system where the clerk rubs the item across a demagnetize bar, but half the time she doesn't do it properly (or it doesn't work) and the buzzer goes off when you walk out the door.  It happens so often that no one seems to pay attention.

[Frybabe]

Steph, I've not been in the main library, but I am told that they do have metal detectors present. Whether they work or not is another matter. What little we know of the situation leads us to speculate that it was an "inside" job. Our little branch does not have such a system, but we don't have a large collection of anything either, especially not with blueray. Of course it could have been someone or several someones taking one or two over a period of time, but you would have thought that the staff would have noticed the leakage before half the inventory disappeared.

[ginny]

We had a wonderful response to our previous poll and we're finding out a lot about how we feel about a book, love it. Here's the last poll:

Question:    How important to you is it that a book has won an award?


Very important: I like to be au courant with the trends.    - 0 (0%)
Somewhat important: I am curious about what's being talked about    - 6 (26.1%)
Neutral: I might try it if it seems something I'd like    - 7 (30.4%)
Not important: I don't care about prizes    - 10 (43.5%)

Other    - 0 (0%)

Total Voters: 22

Isn't that interesting? There is an excellent discussion going on in the Mystery discussion about how important it is for you as a reader to LIKE the characters. We're going to put up a new poll here in a minute and ask that very thing. If OTHER is your answer, please elaborate on it here. We've learned that we can't change a poll once it begins, so hopefully we can hear a lot of reasons not on the poll.


The new poll is now up, and everybody only gets ONE vote!

[BarbStAubrey]

oh please spelling gurus - I am not even sure I am saying it properly - pryor - you know someone who hovers with evil intent - like a vampire but we use it to describe anyone who suck the good out of you regardless money or morals or anything - the words slips in and out and I cannot grab it much less spell it - any idea of what i am trying to say... like - he is a pryer waiting for her to slip below minimum -

[Steph]

Hmm, whether you canlike a character or not? That does take thought.
Our library has some valuable books up in the genealogy department and the library is in the same building with the community college. So... they try very hard to keep the system functioning. The big hangup.. When they deaccession fiction they donate it to Friends for our semi annual book sale.They never remember to take out the sticker.. So if we put the books into our little are where yu can buy a b ook on trust, you are going to set off the alarms. So easy to fix, but since most of the people working part time are students, guesswhat never happens. Sigh.

[marcie]

oh please spelling gurus - I am not even sure I am saying it properly - pryor - you know someone who hovers with evil intent - like a vampire but we use it to describe anyone who suck the good out of you regardless money or morals or anything - the words slips in and out and I cannot grab it much less spell it - any idea of what i am trying to say... like - he is a pryer waiting for her to slip below minimum -

parasite?

[BarbStAubrey]

that is a good one that is close but this is more like a poria - I wonder if it is close to the world used for PyroTech I think the word is more like sounding out periya

[Winchesterlady]

that is a good one that is close but this is more like a poria - I wonder if it is close to the world used for PyroTech I think the word is more like sounding out periya

Pariah?