Author Topic: The Library (Read 1969751 times)

rosemarykaye · « **Reply #17840 on:** January 22, 2017, 08:12:19 AM »

Dana - in the first TV series of Rebus he was played by John Hannah, which many people (me included) thought was disastrous miscasting. Hannah was born in East Kilbride, a town much nearer Glasgow. The subsequent series changed toKen Stott, who is fantastic, and has 'become' Rebus for me. Ken Stott was born and educated in Edinburgh. Edinburgh accents can of course vary immensely - Morningside is old Edinburgh money, very posh (see Maggie Smith in The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie, Gordon Jackson ditto). If you frequent parts of the city such as Muirhouse, Pilton, Granton, Wester Hailes, etc you wold hear very different accents! See Trainspotting (actually set in Leith, but Leith was a lot rougher then than it is now - though parts of it are still ungentrified). The accents in the series do ring true to me

I love Ian Rankin's books, and I also really enjoy the TV adaptations with Ken Stott, but I don't find them straightforward at all! I'm often very confused as to who did what and why! For me, however, the main pleasure is in the background - the details about areas of Edinburgh that the tourists don't see, and the criminal activities (strip clubs, gambling, illegal drinking, and of course drugs) that I otherwise know little about.

Rosemary

DISFrontman · « **Reply #17841 on:** January 22, 2017, 09:02:49 AM »

Quote from: rosemarykaye on January 18, 2017, 01:54:18 PM

I have noticed that many books are getting longer. I put a lot of that down to poor editing - I find that many new books could have been cut by a third or even a half. I think it's especially true with well-known writers - I'm not sure if editors are too scared of them to cut their verbiage, or whether they just think 'it'll sell anyway' so can't be bothered to read it critically. I feel that the later Harry Potter books were far too long and padded, and I have also found that with some of the more recent Louise Penny Three Pines books (in fact I have really gone off the latter).

FWIW, I had a professional editor go through my novel, which was already about 198k words and was expecting her to recommend drastic cuts. Instead, there were areas that she actually encouraged me to add a bit more (which I declined to do, as I was anxious to get the title to market).

In email/text conversations with authors Lynn Austin and Jack Cavanaugh, both recommended that I cut the book in half and release it as two titles. I just could not take their advice because I couldn't bear to ruin the sense of closure that the story had as one unified work.

Quote from: BarbStAubrey on January 18, 2017, 03:47:00 PM

I'm another who prefers hardbacks - I've noticed often the hardback used books are sometimes less than the same book in used paperback - funny - I wonder where folks read that they prefer a paperback - hmm I wonder if it is the weight of the hardback so that slipping a book in your purse to read during breaks or lunch it is less lugging than a paperback.

I would have loved to release RT as a hard cover first, but in the POD world, hardcovers are VERY pricey. My wholesale cost per unit would have been $25 or more--tough to deal with that as a starting point.

PatH · « **Reply #17842 on:** January 22, 2017, 10:28:36 AM »

Jonathan, your misprint made my morning. It's not going to produce the outcome the poet wanted, either.

Dana · « **Reply #17843 on:** January 22, 2017, 11:49:56 AM »

Rosemary--I just watched episode 1 with John Hannah whom I liked, I thought at least he seemed to be coping with all these deaths without too much introspection (maybe hard to do on TV).....I would have like some of his music (with title and groups) as they are such a part of the books. John Hannah sounded Glasgow to me,so I have not lost my ear entirely! I think I am hooked on the series now. And look forward to John Stott. I agree the books are convoluted, which is why I found the adaptation refreshingly straightforward, but don't know if it was realistically based on a book or not ( that's probably because the stories were so confusing that I can't remember any!). However I await the series to become more confusing.....

Did I mention....I read the last Cazalet over Christmas and I thought it was much the same as the others, except she seemed to be rather artificially devoting a little piece to everybody, rounding them up and finishing them off so to speak. I do think the depictions of the women are mostly pretty depressing, one really envies none of their lots.

rosemarykaye · « **Reply #17844 on:** January 22, 2017, 12:25:48 PM »

Hi Dana - yes I agree, the music would be good. Ian Rankin is a great collector of vinyl records.

No, I don't think I remember that you read the last Cazalet book - it sounds like it is not as bad as some reviews made out. I really need to read it. I agree about the lot of women - I suppose that's what Elizabeth Jane Howard was trying to show. It was a man's world - I especially despise Edward, who just thinks he can get away with anything, but to be honest his father was no better. Howard's last husband Kingsley Amis was a complete b-----d. I've just been looking at a Guardian article in which Hilary Mantel praises Howard's work and remarks that 'In this world, men are not obliged to explain or account for themselves. (they are)..creatures endlessly to be placated...'

Rosemary

bellamarie · « **Reply #17845 on:** January 22, 2017, 01:44:36 PM »

Rosemary you made me laugh out loud saying if you had a walk in closet you would fill it with shelves for books. Now that is a novel idea. hee hee .... novel. 😉📚

Dana · « **Reply #17846 on:** January 22, 2017, 02:55:41 PM »

Hilary Mantel has a point. We could blame it on their mothers though!!

BarbStAubrey · « **Reply #17847 on:** January 25, 2017, 12:32:25 PM »

Robbie Burns Night - January 25

To A Mouse, On Turning Her Up In Her Nest With The Plough

Wee, sleekit, cow'rin, tim'rous beastie,
O, what a panic's in thy breastie!
Thou need na start awa sae hasty,
Wi' bickering brattle!
I wad be laith to rin an' chase thee,
Wi' murd'ring pattle!

I'm truly sorry man's dominion,
Has broken nature's social union,
An' justifies that ill opinion,
Which makes thee startle
At me, thy poor, earth-born companion,
An' fellow-mortal!

I doubt na, whiles, but thou may thieve;
What then? poor beastie, thou maun live!
A daimen icker in a thrave
'S a sma' request;
I'll get a blessin wi' the lave,
An' never miss't!

Thy wee bit housie, too, in ruin!
It's silly wa's the win's are strewin!
An' naething, now, to big a new ane,
O' foggage green!
An' bleak December's winds ensuin,
Baith snell an' keen!

Thou saw the fields laid bare an' waste,
An' weary winter comin fast,
An' cozie here, beneath the blast,
Thou thought to dwell-
Till crash! the cruel coulter past
Out thro' thy cell.

That wee bit heap o' leaves an' stibble,
Has cost thee mony a weary nibble!
Now thou's turn'd out, for a' thy trouble,
But house or hald,
To thole the winter's sleety dribble,
An' cranreuch cauld!

But, Mousie, thou art no thy lane,
In proving foresight may be vain;
The best-laid schemes o' mice an 'men
Gang aft agley,
An'lea'e us nought but grief an' pain,
For promis'd joy!

Still thou art blest, compar'd wi' me
The present only toucheth thee:
But, Och! I backward cast my e'e.
On prospects drear!
An' forward, tho' I canna see,
I guess an' fear!

BarbStAubrey · « **Reply #17848 on:** January 25, 2017, 12:54:41 PM »

Burns Night Supper Recipes

Complete works of Robert Burns

Dana · « **Reply #17849 on:** January 25, 2017, 01:20:00 PM »

Oh super, that's a great wee poem.
We used to do Burn's suppers for many years, haggis, piper and all, everyone had to wear "a touch of tartan" and it was surprising how many kilts turned up.
I got to address the haggis.
Over time many of our friends and neighbours were converted from polite avoidance to actual enjoyment of the haggis (along with the obligatory bashed neeps and chappit tatties, washed down with a wee dram of-course).

"Fare fa' your honest, sonsie face,
Great chieftain o' the puddin' race!
Aboon them a' ye tak your place,
Painch , tripe or thairm:
Weel are ye wordy o' a grace
As lang's my arm."

Good luck to your honest, jolly face,
Great chieftain of the pudding race!
Above them all you take your place
Paunch, tripes, intestines:
Well are you worthy of a grace
As long as my arm.

There are 7 more verses.

BarbStAubrey · « **Reply #17850 on:** January 25, 2017, 01:50:32 PM »

How much fun Dana - no time to make any of the traditional recipes but the link above had a few simple versions that all I need is maybe one or at the most two ingredients - Burns is difficult to read but there are some sites now that convert some of his writing into today's English - need to read something of his today.

rosemarykaye · « **Reply #17851 on:** January 25, 2017, 01:59:55 PM »

Although I live in Edinburgh, I'm afraid daughter and I don't really 'do' Burns Night. Although it is certainly celebrated by many people here, I sometimes get the impression that it's most popular with exiled Scots, whether in London, New York or Hong Kong!

I have just finished something completely different - A Winter Book by Tove Jansson. Jansson was the creator of the Moomintrolls, but this book is not for children. It is a collection of writings and stories, mostly about her childhood but also about her old age. Tove grew up in a Bohemian Finnish family, her father was a famous sculptor and her mother an equally famous illustrator. They lived in Helsinki in the winter but, like many Scandinavian families, they moved every summer to a small cabin on the coast. The early stories are all seen from a child's eye view, and are totally unsentimental, at times almost like fantasy. It is a fascinating little book, I recommend it.

Rosemary

BarbStAubrey · « **Reply #17852 on:** January 25, 2017, 02:22:07 PM »

Austin is doing its part celebrating Scotland tonight - at the Performing Arts Center we have National Theatre of Scotland presents Let the Right One In - it is a brutal and tender vampire myth about a bullied boy which appeals to the nerd age range who will most likely attend and are a huge portion of the population here.

Jonathan · « **Reply #17853 on:** January 25, 2017, 02:47:02 PM »

I especially like the last verse of Address To A Haggis:

'Ye powers wha mak mankind your care,/ And dish them out their bill of fare,/ Auld Scotland wants nae skinking (watery) ware/ That jaups in luggies;/ (splashes in bowls) But, if ye wish her gratefu' prayer/ Gie her a Haggis!

'...a grace as lang's my arm'

Thanks, Barb, for reminding us of the occasion. I have my Robbbie Burns handy. Let's start with a prayer: Holy Willie's. Tam o'Shanter is fun. To A Louse, to go with To A Mouse. Who isn't roused by Scots Wha Hae? And of course, Death and Doctor Hornbook. Must listen again to: A Man's A Man For A' That. I wonder what the ladies of Cranford would say to it.

And now for Auld Lang Syne. After which the pipes will play Amazing Grace.

Jonathan · « **Reply #17854 on:** January 25, 2017, 02:54:16 PM »

The address to the Address in my anthology states: 'At the present day, however,...haggis is rarely to be met with in town life except in particular convivial occasions.'

rosemarykaye · « **Reply #17855 on:** January 25, 2017, 03:55:18 PM »

Haha - haggis can be found in every supermarket and butcher's shop this week! There is also the vegetarian version, which seems quite popular. I used to do the whole haggis, neeps and tatties thing when my children were younger - but the mere thought of hacking up a turnip now gives me a fit of the vapours. The one Burns-type dish that i do enjoy is cranachan, which is raspberries, toasted oatmeal, cream and (I think) whisky.

Rosemary

Dana · « **Reply #17856 on:** January 25, 2017, 04:33:37 PM »

I think you are right, Rosemary, about Burn's night being most popular with exiles and foreigners! I certainly never attended one when I lived in Scotland and my husband who is English is the one who started the tradition off when we came to America. I think we went to some in Canada and for a while we got our haggis in Canada, the market in Ottawa had a great butcher's shop that made them.

PatH · « **Reply #17857 on:** January 25, 2017, 09:15:22 PM »

As a non-Scot, I had always believed my Scottish friend when he said the "wee dram" was necessary to give you the courage to eat the haggis. But looking at the recipes for making it from scratch, It looks pretty tasty.

bellamarie · « **Reply #17858 on:** January 25, 2017, 10:59:24 PM »

The cranachan sounds yummy!

BarbStAubrey · « **Reply #17859 on:** January 26, 2017, 04:24:37 PM »

In the 1498 book, Ship of Fools, the first work of fiction to reference the discovery of the new world, on the title page of the book, an engraving that depicts a “book fool”. That character is described as a vain book collector, the story is a satire touching on madness among scholars and collectors.

bellamarie · « **Reply #17860 on:** January 27, 2017, 11:48:03 AM »

I loved Mary Tyler Moore, she was a young woman in the 60's and 70's that I think most young women admired. It amazes me how she actually stood for change and equal rights in the workplace for women in her show telling Ed Asner her boss she should make as much as the man she was replacing. That was a bold statement for the times. I watched the CBS Special tribute to Mary Tyler Moore last night and remembered how much fun and how funny she was. May she rest in peace.

Here is a listing of more to come:
http://www.usatoday.com/story/life/tv/2017/01/26/mary-tyler-moore-tv-specials-marathons-memorial/97082584/

BarbStAubrey · « **Reply #17861 on:** January 27, 2017, 02:57:45 PM »

great article if you are a fan of Murakami - wrote Kafka on the Shore and Norwegian Wood

http://lithub.com/the-murakami-effect/#

mabel1015j · « **Reply #17862 on:** January 31, 2017, 11:50:29 PM »

Rosemary - our friend Hats asked in "suggestions for book discussion" a question about the look of nature in Scotland. Maybe you can answer her question.

Jean

Tomereader1 · « **Reply #17863 on:** February 01, 2017, 12:48:17 PM »

http://www.atlasobscura.com/places/library-of-congress-card-catalog?utm_source=Atlas+Obscura+Daily+Newsletter&utm_campaign=e1c57e1980-Newsletter_2_1_17&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_f36db9c480-e1c57e1980-64293981&ct=t(Newsletter_2_1_17)&mc_cid=e1c57e1980&mc_eid=c759c2d005

Got this off AtlasObscura, and thought you might enjoy seeing and reading about it!

mabel1015j · « **Reply #17864 on:** February 01, 2017, 02:10:14 PM »

How interesting! Henriette Avram gets added to my list of "women firsts". Of course, she could have been in my list of "women creators" or "women scientists". I'm beginning to have almost as many saved "women" bookmarks as I have items on my TBR lists. How wonderful!!!

Jean

bellamarie · « **Reply #17865 on:** February 02, 2017, 03:32:20 PM »

Tom, that's an interesting article. I can only imagine how long it would take to computerize all those cards. One summer I reorganized our private school's library separating the outdated books to send to poverty schools in the south. Then another summer I cataloged all the computer educational programs for K-8th grades at the same school I began the technology lab at. Each CD had to be looked at on the computer, logged, and a description of every part on it and subject it applied to. I then had to create a hard copy booklet for the principal so she knew what we had. Oh was that a task I would never want to do again.

ANNIE · « **Reply #17866 on:** February 02, 2017, 10:52:04 PM »

Mabel, have you read "The Other Einstein". It's a winner for surprizes. I hope you will try it. Another woman scientist of long ago!

mabel1015j · « **Reply #17867 on:** February 03, 2017, 01:47:31 PM »

Thanks Annie, I'll look for that......Jean

bellamarie · « **Reply #17868 on:** February 06, 2017, 03:58:48 PM »

We are finishing up with our discussion on Crandford. It's to be completed by Feb. 10th. Is there a future book decided on or will be taking a break?

Frybabe · « **Reply #17869 on:** February 09, 2017, 06:28:19 AM »

I just got my laugh for the day already. A news item this morning states that a deer crashed into a local Giants Food Store last night. A couple of guys go a hold of it, covered its head with a jacket to keep it from panicking and steered it back outside. After leaving it along the side of the building facing a field, the doe headed off towards a StarBUCKS!

bellamarie · « **Reply #17870 on:** February 24, 2017, 10:16:01 AM »

Ollie, Ollie Oxen Free.... everyone can come out now! What are you all reading?

I'm presently reading a light fiction called The Secret Sister by Brenda Novak. We have a new used book store that just recently opened with the cutest name Never More and has the Black Raven as the logo on the window. I stopped in to browse and got such great bargains. He was selling hard cover books for only a quarter. He said people rarely want hard cover. The paperback books were a dollar or more. I guess it makes sense with everyone reading on the go, you can carry a paperback easier in your purse, pocket or backpack. My friend has gotten into the audio so when she exercises at her workout place she can enjoy the book as she works off calories. Gosh I guess I am a bit old fashion, I like curling up on my couch with blanket, tea and dog with a good book to relax with. We sure have turned into an on the go society.

Frybabe, that was a cute joke...StarBucks!!

PatH · « **Reply #17871 on:** February 24, 2017, 01:49:03 PM »

While we're between book discussions, I thought it might be fun to fill in the gap by reading a science fiction/fantasy short story or two, just for fun. I've put up one; here's the link:

http://seniorlearn.org/forum/index.php?topic=5050.msg305084#msg305084

BarbStAubrey · « **Reply #17872 on:** February 25, 2017, 06:19:30 PM »

To sit alone in the lamplight with a book spread out before you and
hold intimate converse with men of unseen generations -
such is pleasure beyond compare.

bellamarie · « **Reply #17873 on:** February 26, 2017, 03:27:54 PM »

Barb StAubrey, how are you doing? I heard you were having some issues with your eyes. It is good to see you post. My prayers are with you for a speedy recovery.

BarbStAubrey · « **Reply #17874 on:** February 26, 2017, 03:44:39 PM »

thanks Bellamarie - no speed this time - we shall see what we shall see - drops not doing the job - maybe more surgery or laser surgery - allergies are bad this year so we would have to wait till there is a better chance for recovery. Some days are better than others - but I miss everyone so I come in when I really should stay off the computer - ah so - thank goodness for my Cd collection.

bellamarie · « **Reply #17875 on:** February 26, 2017, 04:56:20 PM »

Barb, I was having some eye issues a few months back and had to limit my reading and computer time. Take good care of yourself and we look forward to your return when your eyes are healthy and able. I for one miss you. Enjoy your CDs.

rosemarykaye · « **Reply #17876 on:** February 26, 2017, 05:46:04 PM »

Yes - get better soon Barb!

I had very scratchy eyes a few weeks ago. At the same time, one of my cats had an eye problem and the vet had given her drops. I was idly reading the instructions for these, and thinking 'of course I mustn't use animal medicine on myself' when I noticed the warning: 'do not use with soft contact lenses'.......

I bet the vet charged a lot more than the pharmacy would have too.

Rosemary

ginny · « **Reply #17877 on:** February 27, 2017, 09:07:31 AM »

hahaha, Rosemary, that's priceless!

One time I sliced my hand open and did not want stitches, which of course I should have had done, and my Vet, seeing it, said, next time come here and I'll use that..(oh heck , what do they call it? It seals without stitches, it's like glue?) Anyway, I thought of that when you said that. I had a dog once who got the exact same med that I had been given for a UTI. hahaha

Barbara, so sorry to hear about your eyes, the glare on your monitor can be adjusted too, or the monitor replaced to help the strain.

CallieOK · « **Reply #17878 on:** March 01, 2017, 10:59:26 AM »

Smiling at the animal/human medication stories.

A vet once recommended I give Pepto Bismol to our dog who had tummy problems. (It was not well received!!!)

bellamarie · « **Reply #17879 on:** March 01, 2017, 01:11:38 PM »

You have to be very careful in dispensing human meds to animals due to their weight and other possibilities of allergic reactions. My son gave his Chesapeake Bay retriever tylenol for his arthritic legs once and the vet highly scolded him.

News:

Author Topic: The Library (Read 1969751 times)