rabbitprincess grooves through 2023

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Discussão2023 Category Challenge

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rabbitprincess grooves through 2023

1rabbitprincess
Editado: Jan 1, 2023, 12:16 am

In 2023, my usual categories get a surf-rock makeover thanks to the exciting musical stylings of Los Straitjackets! After many years, I finally got to see them live in 2022 backing Nick Lowe, who opened for Elvis Costello. Great show! Great tunes!

ROOT ticker:


2-for-1 TBR ticker:

2rabbitprincess
Editado: Mar 26, 2023, 10:53 am

General fiction - Out of Limits

1. Ithaca, by Claire North
2. Ratlines, by Stuart Neville
3. The Penelopiad, by Margaret Atwood

3rabbitprincess
Editado: Abr 16, 2023, 9:51 am

General non-fiction - Brains and Eggs

1. Playing Under the Piano: From Downton to Darkest Peru, by Hugh Bonneville
2. Atlas of the Heart: Mapping Meaningful Connection and the Language of Human Experience, by Brené Brown
3. The Wordhord: Daily Life in Old English, by Hana Videen
4. American Sherlock: Murder, Forensics, and the Birth of American CSI, by Kate Winkler Dawson
5. This Is What It Sounds Like: What the Music You Love Says About You, by Susan Rogers and Ogi Ogas
6. Daring Greatly: How the Courage to Be Vulnerable Transforms the Way We Live, Love, Parent, and Lead, by Brené Brown
7. Love and Let Die: James Bond, The Beatles, and the British Psyche, by John Higgs
8. Code Gray: Death, Life and Uncertainty in the ER, by Farzon A. Nahvi

4rabbitprincess
Editado: Abr 30, 2023, 3:19 pm

Historical fiction - All Men Are Liars

1. Kenneth, by Nigel Tranter

Historical non-fiction - Time Bomb

1. Fatal Rivalry: Flodden 1513: Henry VIII, James IV and the battle for Renaissance Britain, by George Goodwin
2. The Rival Queens: Catherine de' Medici, Her Daughter Marguerite de Valois, and the Betrayal that Ignited a Kingdom, by Nancy Goldstone

5rabbitprincess
Editado: Abr 15, 2023, 11:41 am

Mystery - Crime Scene

1. The Widow of Bath, by Margot Bennett
2. Whose Body?, by Dorothy L. Sayers
3. Blood on the Tracks, ed. Martin Edwards
4. The Widening Stain, by W. Bolingbroke Johnson
5. Gideon’s River, by J. J. Marric
6. The Curse of La Fontaine, by M. L. Longworth
7. Burial of Ghosts, by Ann Cleeves
8. Exile, by Denise Mina
9. The Franchise Affair, by Josephine Tey

6rabbitprincess
Editado: Abr 10, 2023, 8:07 pm

French - Rey Criollo
(I know this is Spanish, not French, but it's the closest I've got)

1. Tintin: Objectif Lune, by Hergé
2. Tommy Douglas, by Vincent Lam (translated from English by Alain Roy)
3. Maigret et le corps sans tête, by Georges Simenon

Rereads - Lately I've Let Things Slide
(such as... re-reading)

1. The Gun Seller, by Hugh Laurie
2. Endless Night, by Agatha Christie
3. Emily of New Moon, by L. M. Montgomery

7rabbitprincess
Editado: Mar 26, 2023, 10:54 am

Audio - Kawanga!

1. The Diary of River Song, Series 6 (Big Finish)
2. Doctor Who: The Blood Cell, by James Goss (read by Colin McFarlane)

Plays - Tempest

1. Oedipus the King, by Sophocles (translated by David Grene)

8rabbitprincess
Editado: Mar 31, 2023, 10:18 am

SFF - Space Mosquito

1. All Systems Red, by Martha Wells
2. Legends and Lattes, by Travis Baldree
3. The Diary of River Song, Series 6 (Big Finish audio drama)
4. Doctor Who: Marco Polo, by John Lucarotti
5. Doctor Who: The Ninth Doctor Vol. 1: Weapons of Past Destruction, by Cavan Scott
6. Doctor Who: The Blood Cell, by James Goss (audio, read by Colin McFarlane)
7. Here and Now and Then, by Mike Chen

9rabbitprincess
Editado: Abr 30, 2023, 3:19 pm

Miscellaneous reads - Itchy Chicken

Short stories and essays

1. Last Leaves, by Stephen Leacock
2. Remainders of the Day, by Shaun Bythell

Graphic novels and art books

1. Tintin: Objectif Lune, by Hergé
2. Heartstopper, Vol. 4, by Alice Oseman
3. The Tea Dragon Society, by K. O'Neill
4. The Tea Dragon Festival, by K. O'Neill
5. Monthly Girls’ Nozaki-Kun, Vol. 2, by Izumi Tsubaki (translated by Leighann Harvey)
6. The Tea Dragon Tapestry, by K. O'Neill
7. Doctor Who: The Ninth Doctor Vol. 1: Weapons of Past Destruction, by Cavan Scott
8. A Man and His Cat, Vol. 2, by Umi Sakurai (translated by Taylor Engel)
9. Monthly Girls’ Nozaki-Kun, Vol. 3, by Izumi Tsubaki (translated by Leighann Harvey)

Poetry and other miscellaneous books

1. The Atlas of Unusual Languages, by Zoran Nikolić
2. An Emotional Dictionary: Real Words for How You Feel, from Angst to Zwodder, by Susie Dent

10rabbitprincess
Editado: Abr 15, 2023, 11:42 am

Group reads - You Inspire Me

I'll list the CATs and KITs most likely to fit my reading, but I'll just see what books I read happen to fit the prompts rather than try to read books in an assigned month.

ClassicsCAT
January - Adventure Classics - pamelad
February - Before 1900- TessW
✔ March - Classics Adapted to Movies and TV - JayneCM - Emily of New Moon, by L. M. Montgomery
✔ April - Classic Mysteries - DeltaQueen - Endless Night, by Agatha Christie
May - Children's Classics - LadyoftheLodge
✔ June - Humour - VivienneR - Last Leaves, by Stephen Leacock
July - A Classic You Always Wanted to Read - NinieB
✔ August - Classics in Translation - pamelad - Oedipus the King, by Sophocles (translated by David Grene)
September - Non-fiction Classics - SallyLou
October - Classics by Women - MissWatson
November - The Ancient World - Robertgreaves - The Aeneid, by Virgil
December - Re-read a Classic - kac522

GeoCAT
January -- Central and Eastern Europe (Jackie_K)
✔ February -- A place you would like to visit (mathgirl40) - Kenneth, by Nigel Tranter (set in Scotland)
March -- Australia & New Zealand (pamelad)
April -- South America, Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean (NinieB)
May -- Polar regions, islands, bodies of water (JayneCM)
June -- South Asia and South East Asia (MissBrangwen)
July -- Western Europe (susannah.fraser)
August -- Central and Western Asia (Tess_W)
September -- Africa (whitewavedarling)
October -- Canada and US (DeltaQueen)
✔ November -- East Asia (MissWatson): Doctor Who: Marco Polo, by John Lucarotti
December -- Books you didn't get around to reading in the earlier months (Robertgreaves)

SeriesCAT
✔ January - JayneCM: A series that is new to you: All Systems Red, by Martha Wells (Murderbot Diaries, #1)
✔ February - pamelad: A series in translation: Monthly Girls’ Nozaki-Kun, Vol. 2, by Izumi Tsubaki (translated by Leighann Harvey)
✔ March - LadyoftheLodge: YA/children Objectif Lune, by Hergé (Tintin is filed as juvenile literature in my library system)
✔ April - LibraryCin: A series that you don't need to read in order (or could be read as a one-off): Doctor Who: Marco Polo
✔ May - Helenliz: Trilogies: The Tea Dragon Tapestry, by K. O'Neill
June - whitewavedarling: Series by a favorite author
✔ July - Robertgreaves: Nonfiction series - Tommy Douglas, by Vincent Lam, translated by Alain Roy (Extraordinary Canadians series)
August - DeltaQueen50: A series you have been meaning to get back to
September - NinieB: A series that began more than 50 years ago
October - clue: Asian setting
November - VivienneR: Historical series
December - Tess_W: Set in a country/region where you do not live

MysteryKIT
✔ January—TV/movie detectives—lowelibrary Whose Body?, by Dorothy L. Sayers
✔ February--classic settings—MissBrangwen Blood on the Tracks, ed. Martin Edwards
March--paranormal—majkia
✔ April—tartan noir—VivienneR A Dark Matter, by Douglas Johnstone
May--true unsolved mysteries--mstrust
June—vintage--DeltaQueen50
July—police procedural and private detectives—LibraryCin
August--past and future—antqueen
✔ September--college/university setting--thornton37814 The Widening Stain, by W. Bolingbroke Johnson
October--locked room—majkia
November—senior sleuths/kid sleuths—LadyoftheLodge
December—cozy mystery—lowelibrary

RandomKIT
January - Hidden Gems - The Aeneid, by Virgil (oldest book on my to-read-own shelf on Goodreads)
February - Second or Two - The Maintenance of Headway, by Magnus Mills (second book by this author that I will have read)
✔ March - Water, Water Everywhere - Gideon's River, by J.J. Marric
April - The Seven Ages of (Wo)man - Sword of Honour, by Evelyn Waugh (covers the "soldier" age)
May - Royal names - Disraeli: A Play, by Louis Napoleon Parker (Louis is one of Prince William's middle names)
June
July
August
September
October
November
December

11rabbitprincess
Editado: Abr 20, 2023, 8:23 pm

BingoDOG - Sasquatch



✔ 1. Art or craft related: Monthly Girls’ Nozaki-Kun, Vol. 2, by Izumi Tsubaki (translated by Leighann Harvey)
✔ 2. Popular author's first book: The Master Key, by Masako Togawa
3. Topic you don't usually read about
✔ 4. Book that taught you something: Whose Body?, by Dorothy L. Sayers
5. Bestseller from 20 years ago
✔ 6. STEM topic: Code Gray: Death, Life and Uncertainty in the ER, by Farzon A. Nahvi
7. Author under 30
8. Number or quantity in title
✔ 9. Author is your zodiac sign Ithaca, by Claire North
10. Features inn or hotel
✔ 11. Next in series you've started: Heartstopper, Vol. 4, by Alice Oseman
✔ 12. Features music or musician: This Is What It Sounds Like: What the Music You Love Says About You, by Susan Rogers and Ogi Ogas
13. Read a CAT
✔ 14. Small town or rural setting: Emily of New Moon, by L. M. Montgomery
15. Features a journalist or journalism
✔ 16. Set on plane, train, or ship: Blood on the Tracks, ed. Martin Edwards
✔ 17. Memoir: Playing Under the Piano, by Hugh Bonneville
✔ 18. Features member of cat family: A Man and His Cat, Vol. 2, by Umi Sakurai (translated by Taylor Engel)
✔ 19. More than 1000 copies on LT - Oedipus the King, by Sophocles (6009 members had copies at 2023-02-23)
20. Involves an accident
✔ 21. Book on the cover: Remainders of the Day: A Bookshop Diary, by Shaun Bythell
✔ 22. 4+ rating on LT: Legends and Lattes, by Travis Baldree (rating of 4.24 at 2023-01-06)
23. Switched or stolen identities
24. Local or regional author
25. Plant in title or on cover

12markon
Nov 28, 2022, 6:52 am

>10 rabbitprincess: I'll just see what books I read happen to fit the prompts rather than try to read books in an assigned month.

This is what I do too, although I do note things I might want to read in some categories.

13lowelibrary
Nov 28, 2022, 7:55 pm

Good luck with your 2023 reading.

14NinieB
Nov 28, 2022, 8:04 pm

Great to see you set up and ready to go. I hope you enjoy your reading in 2023!

15Tess_W
Dez 1, 2022, 1:07 pm

Happy reading in 2023!

16MissWatson
Dez 1, 2022, 1:33 pm

Great set-up! Have a great reading year!

17pamelad
Editado: Dez 1, 2022, 4:09 pm

Groovin on a Sunday Afternoon is going through my head now. Soothing, but not exactly surf rock.

Happy reading in 2023!

18rabbitprincess
Dez 1, 2022, 6:04 pm

>13 lowelibrary: >14 NinieB: >15 Tess_W: >16 MissWatson: >17 pamelad: Thanks, all!

>17 pamelad: Great tune! Thanks for sharing it.

19dudes22
Dez 2, 2022, 5:30 am

Looking forward to what you'll be reading in 2023.

20Helenliz
Dez 2, 2022, 6:24 am

Looking forward to following along for another excellent reading year.

21VivienneR
Dez 2, 2022, 1:32 pm

Good to see you are ready for 2023! Already you have added to my music library, books to come!

22MissBrangwen
Dez 2, 2022, 2:13 pm

I'm looking forward to following along again!

23DeltaQueen50
Dez 6, 2022, 5:23 pm

Great to see you all set up and ready for 2023. It's shaping up to be an interesting year with so many of us concentrating on our TBR.

24lkernagh
Dez 19, 2022, 12:57 pm

Hi RP! Stopping by with best wishes for your 2023 reading.

25threadnsong
Dez 26, 2022, 6:35 pm

Congratulations on yet another great theme for the 2023 reading year! Will enjoy catching up with your reading.

26rabbitprincess
Dez 26, 2022, 7:07 pm

>19 dudes22: Thanks, Betty!

>20 Helenliz: Thanks, Helen!

>21 VivienneR: I aim to please on the music front :) Hoping there will be some good books in the mix too.

>22 MissBrangwen: Thanks, Mirjam!

>23 DeltaQueen50: Yes, I’m looking forward to seeing what everyone will find on their shelves!

>24 lkernagh: Thanks, Lori!

>25 threadnsong: I pulled this theme out of my stash and dusted it off. Was glad to find a relevant song (well, relevant-ish) for BingoDog!

27rabbitprincess
Dez 31, 2022, 11:36 pm

>12 markon: I'll probably end up noting titles as well, although I'm trying to wing it as much as possible this year.

28thornton37814
Jan 1, 2023, 4:08 pm

Best wishes on your 2023 reading!

29cbl_tn
Jan 1, 2023, 7:14 pm

Happy New Year! I hope it's a great reading year for you!

30rabbitprincess
Jan 1, 2023, 7:37 pm

>28 thornton37814: >29 cbl_tn: Thanks, Lori and Carrie!

31LibraryCin
Editado: Jan 2, 2023, 2:43 pm

Happy New Year and Happy Reading! Stopping in to make it easier to follow along!

32RidgewayGirl
Jan 2, 2023, 2:47 pm

I do love Nick Lowe. Happy New Year!

33rabbitprincess
Jan 2, 2023, 4:48 pm

>31 LibraryCin: >32 RidgewayGirl: Thanks, Cindy and Kay! Glad to see you. Happy new year!

34hailelib
Jan 2, 2023, 5:52 pm

Stopping in to say hello and Happy New Year.

35rabbitprincess
Jan 2, 2023, 10:25 pm

>34 hailelib: Hi Tricia! Happy New Year to you as well :)

36MissBrangwen
Jan 3, 2023, 9:57 am

Happy New Year and have fun reading!

37mathgirl40
Jan 3, 2023, 11:03 pm

Happy New Year and I wish you another good reading year in 2023!

38rabbitprincess
Jan 4, 2023, 5:37 pm

>36 MissBrangwen: >37 mathgirl40: Thanks, Mirjam and Paulina! Happy new year to you as well! :)

39rabbitprincess
Editado: Jan 6, 2023, 11:29 pm

Starting off the year with two books read.

Kenneth, by Nigel Tranter
Category: All Men Are Liars, You Inspire Me (GeoCAT February, set in a place you’d like to visit: Scotland)
Source: library book sale
Rating: 3/5
Review: https://www.librarything.com/review/116422765

I'd hoped to finish off 2022 with this book, but no such luck. Still, a good book to start 2023 with. Will I actually read more historical fiction this year??

All Systems Red, by Martha Wells
Category: Space Mosquito, You Inspire Me (SeriesCAT January, series that is new to you)
Source: Tor.com ebook of the month club
Rating: 3.5/5
Review: https://www.librarything.com/review/212681638

Finally on the Murderbot train. I liked this and will probably read the next one, but not right away.

40hailelib
Jan 7, 2023, 11:53 am

I enjoyed All Systems Red and keep meaning to read more Murderbot stories. Maybe I'll get there eventually.

41rabbitprincess
Editado: Jan 9, 2023, 5:35 pm

>40 hailelib: They seem like they'd make nice quick reads in between heavier books.

****

Speaking of quick reads, here's one I put down everything to read and consumed in an evening.

Legends and Lattes, by Travis Baldree
Category: Space Mosquito
Source: library
Rating: 5/5
Review: https://www.librarything.com/review/232519189

This was what I needed at the moment, so I loved it for that reason. I also now need cinnamon rolls.

42rabbitprincess
Jan 11, 2023, 9:13 pm

I haven't done any reading today, but I did manage to write a couple of reviews.

The Widow of Bath, by Margot Bennett
Category: Crime Scene
Source: Christmas present
Rating: 2/5
Review: https://www.librarything.com/review/210003464

Not one of my favourite British Library Crime Classics. There seemed to be too many characters at the beginning and I became irreparably muddled. Also, it isn't actually set in Bath; Bath is the last name of the person who's murdered. I feel misled, haha.

Objectif Lune, by Hergé
Category: Rey Criollo, Itchy Chicken, You Inspire Me (SeriesCAT March, a series for YA or children -- Tintin is filed under juvenile literature at my library)
Source: library
Rating: 4/5
Review: https://www.librarything.com/review/232518980

Possibly my favourite Tintin of the three (?) I've read so far. I immediately requested the sequel, On a marché sur la lune.

43charl08
Jan 12, 2023, 2:58 am

>42 rabbitprincess: In one of those weird book duplications, I've not come across Chaucer for ages and yet your review of this BL crime novel is the second I've seen with a link (however tenuous!) To the WoB.

Belatedly wishing you a good year of reading in 2023.

44rabbitprincess
Jan 12, 2023, 4:21 pm

>43 charl08: Funny how those book duplications happen! It's good to see you.

45dreamweaver529
Jan 12, 2023, 10:57 pm

>39 rabbitprincess: I love the The Murderbot Diaries. I have to reread them...again.

Anyway, dropping off a start.

46rabbitprincess
Jan 14, 2023, 10:49 pm

>45 dreamweaver529: Thanks for the star! I hope you enjoy your re-read when you get to it :)

****

My grand reading plans for the past few days were derailed slightly by a cold, although audiobooks are a good way to read while lying on the couch feeling sorry for oneself.

Heartstopper, Vol. 4, by Alice Oseman
Category: Itchy Chicken
Source: library, via Overdrive
Rating: 5/5
https://www.librarything.com/review/231853315

I'm surprised by how much I love this series. I am not generally a love-story kind of person, and YA was not much of a thing when I was in that demographic, but this series hits the right spot. I'm glad it's here.

The Diary of River Song, Series 6 (Big Finish)
Category: Kawanga!, Space Mosquito
Source: Big Finish
Rating: 3.5/5
Review: https://www.librarything.com/review/172785318

Starting off the year with a Big Finish box set. This one features stories that are on the periphery of First, Second, Third, and Fourth Doctor stories from the TV series. My favourite was the first, "An Unearthly Woman". Makes me think I should pick up more First Doctor Adventures, because I love David Bradley's portrayal of him.

47beebeereads
Jan 16, 2023, 4:17 pm

>1 rabbitprincess: Great thread...looking forward to following you this year.

48thornton37814
Jan 16, 2023, 4:31 pm

>42 rabbitprincess: Yikes on The Widow of Bath. I hope I like it better than you. I received it at Christmas and plan to get to it soon.

49rabbitprincess
Jan 16, 2023, 5:02 pm

>47 beebeereads: Thanks! Happy new reading year ;)

>48 thornton37814: Yes, I also hope you like it better than I did! On the plus side, British Library Crime Classics make very good trade-ins at my local used bookstores.

50beebeereads
Jan 16, 2023, 5:22 pm

>49 rabbitprincess: You can find me Here this year. I was late getting going.

51rabbitprincess
Jan 18, 2023, 6:33 pm

>50 beebeereads: Always glad to see a thread getting started! Don't worry about being late -- a lot of us were ridiculously early ;)

****

This month's theme is "cozy stories involving food and drink".

The Tea Dragon Society, by Kay O’Neill
Category: Itchy Chicken
Source: library
Rating: 5/5
Review: https://www.librarything.com/review/232518791

This was such a cute comic! I loved the different types of tea dragons at the end of the book. I would definitely be an Earl Grey tea dragon, although I don't drink Earl Grey that often. Lady Grey tea is delicious though.

52VivienneR
Jan 19, 2023, 1:08 am

>46 rabbitprincess: Sorry to hear you had a cold but glad you were able to listen to some books!

53Tanya-dogearedcopy
Jan 19, 2023, 1:55 am

>51 rabbitprincess: Ah! I will be the Earl Grey tea dragon! I love the smoky flavor… But I should probably read the book before I lay claim to the title and find out it somehow isn’t a good thing! 😜

54rabbitprincess
Jan 19, 2023, 8:22 am

>52 VivienneR: Even worse... it was Covid! I had tested myself at the beginning of my symptoms and it was negative, but either the test was a false negative or I did it wrong. My other half ended up getting sick later on, so we both tested at that time and we were positive :( I suspect I picked it up at the orthodontist. I'd managed to avoid it for nearly three years! Argh.

>53 Tanya-dogearedcopy: There are lots of tea dragons to choose from! Earl Greys are known for their love of routine and stability, and they prefer to observe from a dignified distance rather than get involved in things, but they can be silly when nobody is watching.

55VivienneR
Editado: Jan 19, 2023, 1:13 pm

>54 rabbitprincess: Oh, too bad! I've heard affects can hang around for a long while. Take care of yourself.

ETA Regarding tea dragons, I wonder where I would fit. I detest tea. :(

56Jackie_K
Editado: Jan 19, 2023, 3:52 pm

I'm sorry to hear that covid finally got you! Take care, and don't overdo things - the fatigue can last for some considerable time.

Edited to add: my favourite teas are rooibos (redbush) and Lapsang Souchong - do either of those have dragons?

57pamelad
Jan 19, 2023, 4:02 pm

Wishing you a quick recovery.

58rabbitprincess
Jan 19, 2023, 5:01 pm

>55 VivienneR: I don't know if there's a coffee dragon series, but if there isn't, there should be one! Or perhaps Legends and Lattes would be more your style ;)
Thanks for the good wishes. I'm lucky in that I work from home and have been able to check in periodically without overdoing it.

>56 Jackie_K: Thanks, Jackie! I'm doing my best not to overdo it :) There is indeed a rooibos dragon and it is so cute! Can't remember if there was a lapsang souchong one though.

>57 pamelad: Thanks, Pam! I am now at the stage where I feel OK most of the time but occasionally have hard coughing spells. I'm drinking a lot of tea.

59lowelibrary
Jan 19, 2023, 6:18 pm

>50 beebeereads: Taking my first BB of the year. This book sounds like something I would enjoy immensely.

60madhatter22
Jan 19, 2023, 9:32 pm

>1 rabbitprincess: I don't know Los Straitjackets, but there are some great titles for categories there!

>39 rabbitprincess: I feel like I should already be on the Murderbot train.

61LibraryCin
Jan 19, 2023, 9:58 pm

>54 rabbitprincess: Oh, I hope you get over it quickly and aren't plagued by lingering issues.

62DeltaQueen50
Jan 19, 2023, 10:39 pm

I hope you and your other half manage to shake off the Covid soon!

63MissWatson
Jan 20, 2023, 6:28 am

Too bad the virus has tripped you up after being so careful all the time! I hope you recover quickly. Lots of hot tea should help with the cough.

64MissBrangwen
Jan 20, 2023, 9:13 am

I hope you are fully recovered soon!

65hailelib
Jan 20, 2023, 12:03 pm

I hope there are no lasting effects from the Covid. Take care of yourself.

66rabbitprincess
Jan 20, 2023, 6:59 pm

>59 lowelibrary: Excellent, I hope you enjoy it!

>60 madhatter22: They do have some excellent titles! And yes, I feel I should have joined Murderbot sooner than I did.

>61 LibraryCin: Thanks, Cindy!

>62 DeltaQueen50: Thanks, Judy! We're both doing better today :)

>63 MissWatson: Thanks, Birgit! I've been drinking so much of my bagged tea! Will have to get back into the loose leaf now that I'm feeling a bit better.

>64 MissBrangwen: Thanks, Mirjam!

>65 hailelib: Thanks, Tricia! I have a short week next week because of a previously arranged vacation day, so that will help me take it easy too.

****

Still coughing a lot and annoying the neighbours, but they should be lucky I don't feel quite well enough to resume singing along with my music :D I was able to put in a full day's worth of work today, mostly catching up on the truly ridiculous amount of work that had come in while I was off (of course! do other people wait for me to get sick or go on holiday and then dump stuff on us?!) and tidying up some loose ends that were missed in the general chaos. But I like tidying up loose ends so it was an OK day.

I'm bailing on a book that I still haven't finished after five renewals:

Tommy Douglas, by Vincent Lam (translated from English by Alain Roy)
Category: Rey Criollo, You Inspire Me (SeriesCAT July, Non-fiction series: this is from the Extraordinary Canadians series)
Source: library
Rating: 2.5/5
Review: https://www.librarything.com/review/225503608

For some reason my library system has only the French translation of this biography, and I don't feel like doing interlibrary loan. The structure of the biography is fine but I found the French translation heavy going. It had some weird translator's notes, too. Oh well! On the plus side this is the earliest my modest French goal of two books per year has been completed.

67JayneCM
Editado: Jan 21, 2023, 5:01 am

>41 rabbitprincess: Yes to the cinnamon rolls! This was a cute read - not sure if it was too overhyped for me and I was expecting too much but it was fun.

>46 rabbitprincess: Love Heartstopper - it is just too sweet. Just waiting for volume 5 now, but I have not watched the series yet.

>51 rabbitprincess: I adored The Tea Dragon Society so much I immediately bought the hardcover box set of all three. Have you seen that there are tea dragon plushies? I must have one!

>54 rabbitprincess: Oh no, I hope you recover quickly and it doesn't make you too sick. It is definitely on the increase again in my small town. The local hospital has had to re-establish a COVID ward.

68rabbitprincess
Jan 21, 2023, 8:58 am

>67 JayneCM: I had not seen there were tea dragon plushies!! I'll have to investigate. There's a card game as well that looks cute.

I was worried about overhyping Legends and Lattes for myself, but I'm re-reading another book I'd previously marked as a favourite and will probably downgrade it a bit (it's very good, just not really my "favourite" anymore), so in my mind that makes me fair and balanced ;)

Thanks for the recovery wishes. I'm much more functional than I was last week, but still coughing periodically.

69rabbitprincess
Jan 21, 2023, 9:34 pm

Forcing myself to take screen breaks pays off when I can chug through this in two days.

Ithaca, by Claire North
Category: Out of Limits
Source: library
Rating: 3/5
Review: https://www.librarything.com/review/232519087

I liked this fairly well, but it felt a bit long and didn't have an author's note or acknowledgements. The other female-centred Greek-myth retellings have had those -- I especially love reading about what inspired the author to choose this particular myth or what sources they pulled from to craft their own story.

70Tanya-dogearedcopy
Jan 21, 2023, 10:20 pm

>51 rabbitprincess: I picked up The Tea Dragon Society (The Tea Dragon series #1; by Katie O'Neill) today and loved it! I'm going to go find some Earl Grey tea and send it and the book in to a friend who is an actual Tea Sommelier! :-)

71lkernagh
Jan 22, 2023, 10:30 pm

Well darn on getting Covid ;-( Glad to read you are improving while continuing to not overdo things. Love the Tea Dragon Society (and tea) conversation. I love most teas, so long as they are herbal or decaf.

72rabbitprincess
Jan 23, 2023, 4:37 pm

>70 Tanya-dogearedcopy: That sounds like a great gift for your friend! Very cool that they're a tea sommelier!

>71 lkernagh: Thanks, Lori! My go-to is black tea, the English breakfast or pekoe sort of blend. In the evenings I have started drinking decaf black tea, and I keep a stash of lemon ginger tea on hand in case of upset stomach.

73rabbitprincess
Editado: Fev 15, 2023, 5:46 pm

Had a day off today, felt ruthless and DNF'd a couple of books.

The Atlas of Unusual Languages, by Zoran Nikolić
Category: Itchy Chicken
Source: library
Rating: 1.5/5
Review: https://www.librarything.com/review/232519270

I feel ungenerous giving such a low rating, but what I say about 1.5-star books in my personal review scale (on my profile page) does apply. A promising concept but not a great reading experience.

Last Leaves, by Stephen Leacock
Category: Itchy Chicken, You Inspire Me (June ClassicsCAT, humour, although I personally wasn't amused)
Source: Rockcliffe Park book sale
Rating: 1.5/5
Review: https://www.librarything.com/review/123120930

0.5 stars is for the essay "Living with Murder", which riffs amusingly on detective fiction. Otherwise, it would be a 1-star book, because the other essays were too long, sexist, or both. One more book off the shelves and out of the house.

74mathgirl40
Jan 28, 2023, 8:13 am

Wow, two 1.5-star ratings in a row! I do hope your reading experience improves with the next book. In any case, it must feel good to get those books moving and out of the house.

75rabbitprincess
Jan 28, 2023, 8:31 am

>74 mathgirl40: I've had two 5-star reads and a 4.5-star read this month, so I really can't complain :) It is unfortunate that both 1.5s happened in a row though. My next book is much better. I'm currently reading Hugh Bonneville's memoir, Playing Under the Piano.

76VivienneR
Jan 28, 2023, 7:23 pm

>73 rabbitprincess: Disappointing to hear Stephen Leacock only got 1.5 stars! I've enjoyed a lot of his stories although I haven't read them for many, many years.

Congratulations on getting them out of the house. That almost makes up for the low ratings.

77rabbitprincess
Jan 28, 2023, 7:34 pm

>76 VivienneR: I've liked his fiction and parodies of literature, but his essays really don't do it for me.

****

After a couple of less-than-great-for-me reads, I read a book that I knew I would like.

Playing Under the Piano, by Hugh Bonneville
Category: Brains and Eggs
Source: library
Rating: 4/5
Review: https://www.librarything.com/review/232891763

I have not watched a full episode of Downton Abbey; everything I know about it is from memes. But I've seen Hugh Bonneville in other things and thought his memoir looked interesting. And it was! The only reason I didn't read it in one sitting was that I was too tired to stay up late and finish it.

78clue
Jan 29, 2023, 12:18 pm

I am so glad to know about this! I've ordered it and will have to watch all of his movies once I've read it. The first I remember him from is Notting Hill. Oddly that movie has come up in conversation several times lately, funny how that happens.

79rabbitprincess
Jan 30, 2023, 8:23 pm

>78 clue: Excellent, hope you like it! He has some good stories from Notting Hill in this book.

****

Another solid book.

The Gun Seller, by Hugh Laurie
Category: Lately I’ve Let Things Slide
Source: apparently this was a gift
Rating: 4/5
Review: https://www.librarything.com/work/43232/reviews/70475505

I'm counting this as a re-read even though I last read it in 2007 and for all I remembered, it might as well have been a completely new read. It was a great deal of fun but I've tempered my original rating a bit; it's 4 stars instead of 5.

80Tess_W
Jan 31, 2023, 12:43 am

81rabbitprincess
Jan 31, 2023, 6:45 pm

>80 Tess_W: Hahahaha love it!!

82rabbitprincess
Jan 31, 2023, 8:30 pm

January recap

Starting off 2023 with 14 books read.

Kenneth, by Nigel Tranter
All Systems Red, by Martha Wells
Legends and Lattes, by Travis Baldree
The Widow of Bath, by Margot Bennett
Objectif Lune, by Hergé
Heartstopper, Vol. 4, by Alice Oseman (Overdrive)
The Diary of River Song, Series 6 (Big Finish audio drama)
The Tea Dragon Society, by Kay O’Neill
Tommy Douglas, by Vincent Lam (translated from English by Alain Roy)
Ithaca, by Claire North
The Atlas of Unusual Languages, by Zoran Nikolić
Last Leaves, by Stephen Leacock
Playing Under the Piano: From Downton to Darkest Peru, by Hugh Bonneville
The Gun Seller, by Hugh Laurie

I’m spoiled for choice this month for favourite book, with two 5-star books and a 4.5-star book. I’ll give the edge to The Tea Dragon Society, by Kay O’Neill, because I want to own my own copy.

It was a month of extremes, apparently, because I also had two 1.5-star books. Least favourite goes to Last Leaves, by Stephen Leacock, which I actively disliked. Leacock’s essays don’t do it for me.

Currently reading

Critical Thinking: An Introduction to the Basic Skills, by William Hughes
Foundations of Safety Science: A Century of Understanding Accidents and Disasters, by Sidney Dekker
Wandering Ghosts, by F. Marion Crawford — Have I bailed yet? No.
The Challenger Launch Decision: Risky Technology, Culture, and Deviance at NASA, by Diane Vaughan — Almost got back into this, but then I got Covid and didn’t have the attention span.
Fatal Rivalry, Flodden 1513: Henry VIII, James IV and the battle for Renaissance Britain, by George Goodwin — Interesting so far.
Maigret et le corps sans tête, by Georges Simenon — I haven’t started this yet but have reasonable hopes! It’s a great title.
Canadian Pacific Ships: The History of a Company and its Ships, by Ian Collard — Just started this, and it’s a slim book crammed with facts.

February plans

I have a little bit of everything on the pile this month. A bunch of graphic novels from the library, some mysteries and historical fiction from my own shelves, some SFF, some non-fiction, some French books. A book for every mood.

83VictoriaPL
Jan 31, 2023, 10:24 pm

Just catching up on your thread.
Hope that you are feeling much improved.

84rabbitprincess
Jan 31, 2023, 10:48 pm

>83 VictoriaPL: Hi Victoria! Thanks for stopping by. I feel pretty much back to my usual self, although I do find I'm coughing a lot when I talk too much or laugh too hard, which is annoying.

85rabbitprincess
Fev 5, 2023, 11:34 am

Whose Body?, by Dorothy L. Sayers
Category: Crime Scene, You Inspire Me (January MysteryKIT - TV detectives)
Source: Faded Page
Rating: 3/5
Review: https://www.librarything.com/review/234266399

Everything already on my Currently Reading shelf got nudged aside for me to read this. I have a lot of heavy non-fiction on the go and needed a light mystery. This did the job. I'm not reading the Wimseys in any particular order; this one was the pick of a Golden Age crime fiction club on Litsy and I decided to read along for once. It was not bad but not my favourite Wimsey (I consider Murder Must Advertise to be my favourite).

86pamelad
Fev 5, 2023, 4:35 pm

>85 rabbitprincess: Murder Must Advertise is my favourite Sayer too. But they're all good except for Busman's Honeymoon.

87charl08
Fev 5, 2023, 4:51 pm

>85 rabbitprincess: Gaudy Night for me. But MMA is great too.

88MissBrangwen
Editado: Fev 8, 2023, 11:01 am

>73 rabbitprincess: I read Sunshine Sketches of a Little Town by Stephen Leacock for my Canadian Lit course at uni, but I do not remember much about it.

>77 rabbitprincess: Oh, I immediately added this to my audible wishlist! I was looking for autobiographies and memoirs read by their authors, and this one sounds perfect. I watched the first season of Downton Abbey and totally loved it, it is one of those series I mean to get back to.

>84 rabbitprincess: I had the same problem and thought it would never go away, but then it just did!

>85 rabbitprincess: >86 pamelad: I want to try Dorothy L. Sayers one day and took note of Murder Must Advertise. It is good to have a starting point!

89Helenliz
Fev 8, 2023, 11:34 am

I have a fondness for The Nine Tailors but that's as I am a bell ringer and it's one of the best books with ringing as a plot point. Murder Must Advertise runs it a very close second though. All Harriet free zones, you notice. >;-)

90rabbitprincess
Fev 8, 2023, 10:12 pm

>86 pamelad: I'll manage my expectations for that one! The other ones I've read are Clouds of Witness and Gaudy Night.

>87 charl08: I also really liked Gaudy Night but gave away my copy because it was huge and I didn't think I'd want to read it again. Of course now that I've been to Oxford, I might have to hunt up another copy.

>88 MissBrangwen: Oh I am going to have to spend a Libro.fm credit on the audio! Thanks for mentioning that you were wishlisting it. It would be excellent in audio.

Glad the coughing went away on its own! I think I'm at about that point. Other half is still a bit short of breath if he climbs the stairs to our apartment, but he sounded a bit better with it today, so I hope he'll be back to his usual self soon. (He had Covid worse than I did, so I'm not surprised he's still feeling it a bit.)

>89 Helenliz: Understandable that The Nine Tailors would be your favourite! Also ha at preferring Harriet-free books. I don't remember enough of her from the other Wimseys I've read to form an opinion.

91christina_reads
Fev 9, 2023, 10:19 am

Just to add my contrarian opinion, I loved Busman's Honeymoon -- it may be my favorite of the bunch! I'm a Harriet fan (and in general a romance fan), so I enjoyed the focus on her and Peter's relationship. I also think it's one of the most satisfying mysteries in the series -- there are actually clues for the reader to follow, as well as multiple plausible suspects. Having said all that, Murder Must Advertise is another favorite, though Harriet is barely in it (and never mentioned by name).

92rabbitprincess
Fev 10, 2023, 9:04 pm

>91 christina_reads: I'll end up reading Busman's Honeymoon eventually, I'm sure! Multiple plausible suspects are a plus, especially in books from the Golden Age.

****

A few good books this week.

Atlas of the Heart: Mapping Meaningful Connection and the Language of Human Experience, by Brené Brown
Category: Brains and Eggs
Source: library
Rating: 4.5/5
Review: https://www.librarything.com/review/233406665

I picked this up from the library on the recommendation of a colleague who found it really interesting, and I did too. I tend to run away or make tea or do other things to get out of the room where Feelings are happening, but I do like the idea of having lots of different words to describe how you're feeling and being able to pick just the right one. I might buy my own copy.

Remainders of the Day: A Bookshop Diary, by Shaun Bythell
Category: Itchy Chicken
Source : library
Rating: 4/5
Review: https://www.librarything.com/review/233405693

If you've read a Shaun Bythell diary, you know what to expect, and this delivered. I read it in a day despite its daunting size in hardcover.

The Tea Dragon Festival, by K. O’Neill
Category: Itchy Chicken
Source: library
Rating: 4/5
Review: https://www.librarything.com/review/233541663

A cozy little book I read in less than an hour, with a cup of tea of course! Looking forward to the third and last book in the series, and to checking out O'Neill's other books.

93rabbitprincess
Fev 14, 2023, 7:43 pm

Agatha Christie: A Very Elusive Woman, by Lucy Worsley
Category: Brains and Eggs
Source: library
Rating: 4.5/5
Review: https://www.librarything.com/review/233920707

Every time I read an Agatha Christie biography (especially an excellently put together biography like this one), I always want to read her books again. If you're not up to date on her catalogue, this biography does contain spoilers for a few of Christie's books: The Mysterious Affair at Styles, The Murder of Roger Ackroyd, the stage version of And Then There Were None, The Hollow, and Endless Night. So read those first! I've pulled Endless Night off the shelves for another read.

Blood on the Tracks, ed. Martin Edwards
Category: Crime Scene, You Inspire Me (February MysteryKIT — classic settings)
Source: bought somewhere in Scotland in 2018
Rating: 3/5
Review: https://www.librarything.com/review/160724155

This keeps touchstoning to the Bob Dylan album first, which makes me laugh. This is a good collection, although if you're not a fan of impossible crimes, this may not be the collection for you. I liked the introductions to each story by Martin Edwards.

94japaul22
Fev 14, 2023, 8:05 pm

I loved Lucy Worsley's Jane Austen bio - I'll put this Agatha Christie one on my list. I think I've read all of those mysteries.

95rabbitprincess
Fev 14, 2023, 10:42 pm

>94 japaul22: The Jane Austen bio is on my to-read list! I gave it to my mum as a Christmas present when it came out, with the full intention of borrowing it myself :D

96charl08
Fev 15, 2023, 7:33 am

>93 rabbitprincess: I just started to listen to the serialization of this book on the radio. Fascinating about her young life, I had no idea about the family's financial troubles.

97rabbitprincess
Fev 15, 2023, 5:23 pm

>96 charl08: I learned so much about her from this book! That's neat that there's a radio serialization. I'd heard there was a TV adaptation as well.

98clue
Fev 15, 2023, 8:20 pm

>93 rabbitprincess:, >94 japaul22: I didn't even know Worsley had written these bios! I've enjoyed watching her various programs on TV for years.

99lsh63
Fev 16, 2023, 7:01 am

Hi RP, I hope you are feeling better! I'm very interested in the Agatha Christie in >93 rabbitprincess: .

100rabbitprincess
Fev 18, 2023, 8:58 am

>98 clue: She has a lot of great programs! And she's a woman after my own heart, never passing up the opportunity to wear a neat hat.

>99 lsh63: I'm feeling much better, thanks! The Agatha Christie is great. Hope you like it!

****

I've felt more distracted by computer games this week, but I did manage to pull off a couple of books.

On a marché sur la Lune, by Hergé
Category: Rey Criollo, Itchy Chicken
Source: library
Rating: 4/5
Review: https://www.librarything.com/review/233920858

This might be my favourite Tintin yet. Exciting space adventure with plenty of humour. One small element is a reference to Le Sceptre d'Ottokar, a previous comic, not in a spoiler way but in a way that makes me want to read that one to understand the bit more completely.

Between the Stops: The View of My Life from the Top of the Number 12 Bus, by Sandi Toksvig
Category: Brains and Eggs
Source: Christmas gift
Rating: 5/5
Review: https://www.librarything.com/review/204014324

Loved this and devoured it despite it being a painful trade paperback. I bought the audiobook 3 chapters in, which should tell you how much I was enjoying it.

101MissBrangwen
Fev 22, 2023, 2:44 am

>93 rabbitprincess: Two great books! Thanks for the info about the spoilers. I will keep it in mind. I always enjoy Martin Edwards' introductions, too, and learn so much from them.

>100 rabbitprincess: And another BB from you! I have not heard of Sandi Toksvig, but this sounds great and I added it to my audible wishlist.

102RidgewayGirl
Fev 22, 2023, 12:44 pm

>101 MissBrangwen: Sandi Toksvig is a treasure who has hosted many a radio program (The News Quiz for BBCRadio4) and tv show (The Great British Bake-Off, also BBC).

>100 rabbitprincess: I'll ask, although you might have answered this elsewhere--why do you call trade paperbacks painful?

103rabbitprincess
Fev 22, 2023, 9:26 pm

>101 MissBrangwen: Excellent! Hope you like all the BBs ;)

>102 RidgewayGirl: I find trade paperbacks hard to hold comfortably. The spine isn't as flexible as a hardcover, so holding it with both hands makes my wrists sore, and I can't hold it with only one hand like a mass market paperback (with a thumb holding the pages open) without making that hand/thumb sore.

104charl08
Fev 23, 2023, 12:56 pm

>103 rabbitprincess: Ouch.
Talking of painful reading experiences.
I was trying to read a large hardback in bed (when I should have just accepted I needed to sleep, I think). I managed to hit myself in the face with it as I fell asleep. Not good.

105RidgewayGirl
Fev 23, 2023, 1:04 pm

>103 rabbitprincess: That's interesting. I hate mass market paperbacks because the print is often too small to read comfortably when my eyes are tired and I just dislike how they feel. I guess there's a reason to print books in different formats.

>104 charl08: That happens to my husband all the time. He's so tired by the time we go to bed that his books just whack him in the face after a few minutes.

106Tess_W
Fev 23, 2023, 6:09 pm

>104 charl08:
>105 RidgewayGirl:

I have given myself a black eye before with an 800 page hardback falling on my face in bed!

107rabbitprincess
Fev 23, 2023, 8:21 pm

>104 charl08: >105 RidgewayGirl: >106 Tess_W: Ouch! Come to think of it, I think I've dropped a library book on my face a couple of times.

>105 RidgewayGirl: That's fair. The ones that have small print *and* little space between lines are especially hard to read.

****

I have a four-day weekend starting now. Woo! So now I'm finally getting around to writing a review of a book I finished earlier this week.

Oedipus the King, by Sophocles (translated by David Grene)
Category: Tempest, You Inspire Me (August ClassicsCAT - Classics in translation)
Source: library
Rating: 3/5
Review: https://www.librarything.com/review/233405861

This has been on my to-read list since 2008, so 15 years. It's a story I've known for a long time but never read in its original form. Things definitely escalate quickly!

108mathgirl40
Editado: Fev 23, 2023, 11:24 pm

>100 rabbitprincess: I loved both Destination Moon and Explorers on the Moon. I'd reread them a few years ago, and your review is motivating me to do another reread, in French this time.

Enjoy your four-day weekend!

109MissBrangwen
Fev 24, 2023, 12:05 am

>107 rabbitprincess: Yay, enjoy the long weekend!

110Helenliz
Fev 24, 2023, 3:46 am

I think that's interesting. I tend to lie on one side to read in bed, so want a book I can hold open with one hand, off the edge of the bed. In which case I often find hardbacks too heavy on my wrist and prefer the smaller paperback format.
I sometimes wake myself up having dropped a book, but at least in my case it lands on the floor, not my nose!

111rabbitprincess
Fev 24, 2023, 5:31 pm

>108 mathgirl40: Hurray! I'm going to have to read some Astérix in French to go with my Tintin reading.

>109 MissBrangwen: So far so good! I went to a museum today with a friend, then we did a little bit of shopping on the way home. I'm really tired now! That was a lot of walking.

>110 Helenliz: I like ebooks for that reading angle, because I can put the iPad on the pillow beside me and make the text big enough that I can read it while burrowing into the pillow. It does make my glasses go a bit askew though, so sometimes the only book that *really* works in that configuration is an audiobook.

112rabbitprincess
Fev 26, 2023, 9:53 am

My long weekend seems to involve a lot of non-fiction.

The Wordhord: Daily Life in Old English, by Hana Videen
Category: Brains and Eggs
Source: library
Rating: 3.5/5
Review: https://www.librarything.com/review/234323385

This is probably better read in small chunks than all at once in order to meet a library deadline. Still, very interesting, and a lot of fun to read the words out loud; each chapter has a handy list with pronunciation guides.

American Sherlock: Murder, Forensics, and the Birth of American CSI, by Kate Winkler Dawson
Category: Brains and Eggs
Source: library
Rating: 3.5/5
Review: https://www.librarything.com/review/233406854

This book would pair nicely with 18 Tiny Deaths, by Bruce Goldfarb, which is also about the early days of forensic science in the United States.

113RidgewayGirl
Fev 26, 2023, 1:48 pm

>112 rabbitprincess: I just picked up an older book on my tbr about forensics and csi work with the colorful title of Never Suck a Dead Man's Hand.

114rabbitprincess
Editado: Mar 21, 2023, 8:54 pm

>113 RidgewayGirl: That's quite the title!

****

Finishing up the month with two more reviews.

The Widening Stain, by W. Bolingbroke Johnson
Category: Crime Scene, You Inspire Me (September MysteryKIT - college/university setting)
Source: Christmas gift
Rating: 3.5/5
Review: https://www.librarything.com/review/210003602

I put this on the pile because christina_reads read it earlier this year. A good solid American Mystery Classic. Great cover, too.

A Dark Matter, by Doug Johnstone
Category: Crime Scene, You Inspire Me (April MysteryKIT: Tartan noir)
Source: library
Rating: 4/5
Review: https://www.librarything.com/review/233405433

This book landed on my radar because it was nominated for the McIlvanney Prize, one of the awards I follow. It was a good start to a series and I'd continue reading it if I could get a hold of the next installment.

115rabbitprincess
Fev 28, 2023, 8:47 pm

February recap

Keeping a consistent pace with 14 books read in February.

Whose Body?, by Dorothy L. Sayers (Faded Page)
Atlas of the Heart: Mapping Meaningful Connection and the Language of Human Experience, by Brené Brown
Remainders of the Day: A Bookshop Diary, by Shaun Bythell
The Tea Dragon Festival, by K. O’Neill
Agatha Christie: A Very Elusive Woman, by Lucy Worsley
Blood on the Tracks: Railway Mysteries, ed. Martin Edwards
On a marché sur la Lune, by Hergé
Between the Stops: The View of My Life from the Top of the Number 12 Bus, by Sandi Toksvig
Hench, by Natalie Zina Walschots
Oedipus the King, by Sophocles (translated by David Grene)
The Wordhord: Daily Life in Old English, by Hana Videen
American Sherlock: Murder, Forensics, and the Birth of American CSI, by Kate Winkler Dawson
The Widening Stain, by W. Bolingbroke Johnson
A Dark Matter, by Doug Johnstone

Favourite book this month was Between the Stops. I was reading it in print and three chapters in I ran off to buy the audiobook, which is probably a sign that I liked it.

Nothing below 3 stars this month, so I’ll say the least good 3-star read was Whose Body. I was hoping to like it better.

Currently reading

Critical Thinking: An Introduction to the Basic Skills, by William Hughes
Foundations of Safety Science: A Century of Understanding Accidents and Disasters, by Sidney Dekker
Wandering Ghosts, by F. Marion Crawford — Have I bailed yet? No.
The Challenger Launch Decision: Risky Technology, Culture, and Deviance at NASA, by Diane Vaughan — Going to get stuck back into this once I finish posting this recap.
Fatal Rivalry, Flodden 1513: Henry VIII, James IV and the battle for Renaissance Britain, by George Goodwin — I've renewed this twice and it's been a bit of a slog (or other books have taken priority).
Maigret et le corps sans tête, by Georges Simenon — Started this and it's OK so far.
Kent Monkman: Being Legendary at the Royal Ontario Museum, by Kent Monkman — this exhibit is still on until mid-April, so I may try to get to Toronto to see it!

March plans

Strangely, I have a lot of music-related non-fiction on the pile. If I can balance it with rereads and manga, I’ll have a good month.

116rabbitprincess
Mar 1, 2023, 7:54 pm

Stumbled across this set of photos of the Northern Lights in the UK and they are gorgeous: https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/gallery/2023/feb/27/northern-lights-see...
The second one is my desktop background. Love the purple.

117lowelibrary
Mar 1, 2023, 8:24 pm

>116 rabbitprincess: Beautiful, thank you for sharing.

118Jackie_K
Mar 2, 2023, 4:10 pm

>116 rabbitprincess: Must admit I slept through the whole thing, which was a bit annoying! (although I suspect there's too much street lighting round here to be able to see them well). A friend who lives in Nairn went to the beach there to watch them, and her photos were stunning.

119beebeereads
Mar 2, 2023, 5:40 pm

>116 rabbitprincess: Thanks for sharing--beautiful!

120threadnsong
Mar 5, 2023, 8:47 pm

Oh my goodness, rabbitprincess! I'm finally getting caught up with your thread year and what a lot of reading you've done. And COVID - so sorry you got it and it sounds like you're making progress?

I read a book that was quite well written called Bringing Columbia Home. The authors peak a lot to the Challenger disaster and the culture at NASA that contributed to both disasters.

Hope your reading continues with more 4 and 5 stars and less 1 stars. Those sounded like doozies!!

121rabbitprincess
Mar 7, 2023, 8:36 pm

>117 lowelibrary: >119 beebeereads: Glad to share it! I sometimes roam the Guardian's photo galleries for neat desktop backgrounds, and this one fit the bill.

>118 Jackie_K: I'd probably have slept through them as well! Glad your friend was able to get some great pics.

>120 threadnsong: Oh yes I'm basically back to normal now, as far as I can tell :) I really want to get properly stuck into the Diane Vaughan book, but because it was lent to me by a colleague, it often gets set aside for library books.

****

Ratlines, by Stuart Neville
Category: Out of Limits
Source: Pickwick Books
Rating: 2.5/5
Review: https://www.librarything.com/review/188404259

I've read a few books by Neville now and my favourite is probably The Traveller and Other Stories. He does an excellent job with short fiction and novellas and has a good sense of pace. This book rattles along, but I skipped entire chapters to avoid torture scenes, and I wasn't overly enthusiastic about the plot, although I did like the author's note explaining what was based in historical fact.

Monthly Girls’ Nozaki-Kun, Vol. 2, by Izumi Tsubaki (translated by Leighann Harvey)
Category: Itchy Chicken
Source: library
Rating: 3/5
Review: https://www.librarything.com/review/233920446

I started a bunch of manga series last year and decided to pick them up again this year. This is a series I think I need to read one after the other, because I'd forgotten a few characters. But it was a nice quick read.

122mathgirl40
Mar 7, 2023, 10:42 pm

>115 rabbitprincess: Coincidentally, my husband and I watched the TV adaptation of Maigret et le corps sans tête last night. I enjoyed it, but I am rather partial to Bruno Cremer as Maigret. It'll be a while before I get to reading it, though, as I'm still working through the early Maigret books, and there are so many!

123rabbitprincess
Mar 8, 2023, 6:52 pm

>122 mathgirl40: My library's Hoopla has a lot of the Bruno Cremer Maigrets. I should give that one a spin when I finish this book. It's taking me a while, but I think that's more on me than the book.

****

This Is What It Sounds Like: What the Music You Love Says About You, by Susan Rogers and Ogi Ogas
Category: Brains and Eggs
Source: library
Rating: 4/5
Review: https://www.librarything.com/review/235095498

I really liked reading about different elements of music that you can think about in order to identify what makes you tick as a music fan. The book comes with a playlist of songs that are discussed, and I strongly recommend listening to them as they arise in the text.

124threadnsong
Mar 12, 2023, 10:44 pm

>123 rabbitprincess: This sounds fascinating! I have often wondered how I was drawn in my teen/early adult years to the music of Queen, Rush, and ELP, and yet I now play and study Irish music.

125rabbitprincess
Mar 17, 2023, 5:43 pm

>124 threadnsong: There probably is some sort of underlying connection between those sets of music that draws you in! If you do read this book and figure out the connection, I'd love to know more!

****

I'm reading lots of things at once and finding it hard to settle. Also had a very busy week. Hoping to kick back and relax this weekend.

The Tea Dragon Tapestry, by K. O’Neill
Category: Itchy Chicken
Source: library
Rating: 4.5/5
Review: https://www.librarything.com/review/235419305

This is such a delightful series, and bonus, it's only three books. Well worth a read.

Daring Greatly: How the Courage to Be Vulnerable Transforms the Way We Live, Love, Parent, and Lead, by Brené Brown
Category: Brains and Eggs
Source: library, via Overdrive
Rating: 4/5
Review: https://www.librarything.com/review/236688875

This was an impulse borrow after one of my friends mentioned that he'd read it. I liked it and will probably get my own copy, because it seems like the kind of book I'll want to read multiple times.

126rabbitprincess
Mar 19, 2023, 4:56 pm

A batch of reviews for this weekend, including a review I forgot earlier in the week.

Doctor Who: Marco Polo, by John Lucarotti
Category: Space Mosquito, You Inspire Me (April SeriesCAT, a series you don’t need to read in order; November GeoCAT, East Asia)
Source: bought somewhere in Wales, 2017
Rating: 3/5
Review: https://www.librarything.com/review/145800048

I read this while going through my backlog of Doctor Who Magazine -- the issue I read most recently discussed this story in its "The Fact of Fiction" feature. This was a solid novelization, although the TV episodes are lost, so it's hard to compare.

An Emotional Dictionary: Real Words for How You Feel, from Angst to Zwodder, by Susie Dent
Category: Itchy Chicken
Source: library
Rating: 3/5
Review: https://www.librarything.com/review/235677953

This was an OK read, but a bit much for cover-to-cover reading. More of a flip-through.

Doctor Who: The Ninth Doctor Vol. 1: Weapons of Past Destruction, by Cavan Scott
Category: Itchy Chicken
Source: Humble Bundle
Rating: 4/5
Review: https://www.librarything.com/review/162694790

From the First Doctor to the Ninth Doctor. This was a great comic; I read it in about half an hour.

127VivienneR
Mar 19, 2023, 9:04 pm

I'm just catching up on your news, books read, reviews, etc. The Aurora Borealis photos are fabulous! I've seen the lights many times, often spectacular, but never with such condensed colour. I think I am too far south to see them now although I've spent a lot of time out on the back step gazing skyward.

>123 rabbitprincess: Taking a BB on that one!

>125 rabbitprincess: That cover is gorgeous!

128rabbitprincess
Mar 22, 2023, 8:50 pm

>127 VivienneR: I hope you like the music book! And yes, the art of the Tea Dragon is simply gorgeous.

****

This week I decided to push through and finish off a couple of very long-standing books.

Maigret et le corps sans tête, by Georges Simenon
Category: Rey Criollo
Source: Rockcliffe Park book sale
Rating: 2/5
Review: https://www.librarything.com/review/174965707

This took me a long time to read and I probably ought to have abandoned it when I first felt annoyed with it.

Fatal Rivalry: Flodden 1513: Henry VIII, James IV and the battle for Renaissance Britain, by George Goodwin
Category: Time Bomb
Source: library
Rating: 2.5/5
Review: https://www.librarything.com/review/232215226

I wanted to like this, but I was just too tired for it... for months. I renewed it three times and still didn't finish it.

Endless Night, by Agatha Christie
Category: Lately I’ve Let Things Slide, You Inspire Me (April ClassicsCAT — Classic mysteries)
Source: pilfered from my grandparents’ collection
Rating: 4/5
Review: https://www.librarything.com/work/30040/reviews/70475853

After getting through those meh-to-me books, I picked up a reliable re-read. Managed to read the whole thing in an hour or two.

129MissBrangwen
Mar 23, 2023, 5:05 am

>128 rabbitprincess: For me, Agatha Christie is always a safe bet to get my reading mojo back.

130Helenliz
Mar 23, 2023, 8:07 am

>128 rabbitprincess: I know that Fatal Colours didn't work for you, but I am tempted. And the library has a copy.

131rabbitprincess
Mar 23, 2023, 6:58 pm

>129 MissBrangwen: Agreed!

>130 Helenliz: Go for it! I hope it works out for you :)

132rabbitprincess
Mar 26, 2023, 10:58 am

A quiet weekend, perfect for reviews.

The Penelopiad, by Margaret Atwood
Category: Out of Limits
Source: library
Rating: 3.5/5
Review: https://www.librarything.com/review/234756701

Finally managed to read this after reading Claire North's Ithaca. I liked The Penelopiad slightly better, because Penelope herself tells the story, rather than Hera, and the telling is much more economical.

Doctor Who: The Blood Cell, by James Goss (audio, read by Colin McFarlane)
Category: Space Mosquito, Kawanga!
Source: Big Finish
Rating: 3/5
Review: https://www.librarything.com/review/176620471

Back in 2019, Big Finish had a huge clearance sale of Doctor Who audiobook CDs. I was on a course that day and happened to see the Facebook post while scrolling through on lunch break, and ordered an embarrassing number of 12th Doctor adventures right then and there. This is the first of the lot I've listened to. It was all right, but I prefer full-cast dramatizations for Doctor Who novels these days.

133Tess_W
Mar 31, 2023, 4:26 am

>132 rabbitprincess: The Atwood book is on my TBR and I hope to get to it this year!

134rabbitprincess
Mar 31, 2023, 10:18 am

>133 Tess_W: Excellent! I hope you like it!

****

A day off today, so good time to catch up on the last of my March reviews.

Here and Now and Then, by Mike Chen
Category: Space Mosquito
Source: library
Rating: 5/5
Review: https://www.librarything.com/review/233920616

I loooooove time travel in my sci-fi. So I loved this book to pieces. An excellent debut. It was recommended to me as a read-alike for Back to the Future, and I think that's a valid comparison, although there's definitely some Doctor Who mixed in as well.

A Man and His Cat, Vol. 2, by Umi Sakurai (translated by Taylor Engel)
Category: Itchy Chicken
Source: library
Rating: 4/5
Review: https://www.librarything.com/review/233920527

If you need a cute, undemanding graphic novel and like cats, this might fit the bill. For me it's a good pick-me-up.

135rabbitprincess
Abr 1, 2023, 11:01 am

March recap

Comic books and manga helped me get to 15 books read in March.

Ratlines, by Stuart Neville
Monthly Girls’ Nozaki-Kun, Vol. 2, by Izumi Tsubaki (translated by Leighann Harvey)
This Is What It Sounds Like: What the Music You Love Says About You, by Susan Rogers and Ogi Ogas
Doctor Who: Marco Polo, by John Lucarotti
The Tea Dragon Tapestry, by K. O’Neill
Daring Greatly: How the Courage to Be Vulnerable Transforms the Way We Live, Love, Parent, and Lead, by Brené Brown
An Emotional Dictionary: Real Words for How You Feel, from Angst to Zwodder, by Susie Dent
Doctor Who: The Ninth Doctor Vol. 1: Weapons of Past Destruction, by Cavan Scott
Maigret et le corps sans tête, by Georges Simenon
Fatal Rivalry: Flodden 1513: Henry VIII, James IV and the battle for Renaissance Britain, by George Goodwin
Endless Night, by Agatha Christie (reread)
The Penelopiad, by Margaret Atwood
Doctor Who: The Blood Cell, by James Goss
Here and Now and Then, by Mike Chen
A Man and His Cat, Vol. 2, by Umi Sakurai (translated by Taylor Engel)

Favourite book this month was Here and Now and Then. I LOVE time travel novels and this was an excellent debut.

My least favourite book was Fatal Rivalry. I couldn’t get into it even with renewing it three times.

Currently reading

Critical Thinking: An Introduction to the Basic Skills, by William Hughes
Foundations of Safety Science: A Century of Understanding Accidents and Disasters, by Sidney Dekker
The Challenger Launch Decision: Risky Technology, Culture, and Deviance at NASA, by Diane Vaughan
Black Country Music: Listening for Revolutions, by Francesca T. Royster — I started this and had to drop it temporarily for library books with fixed deadlines, but it’s very good so far.
Emily of New Moon, by L. M. Montgomery — a re-read, also very good so far. I was always more of an Emily than an Anne person when it came to LMM.
My Sister Lives on the Mantelpiece, by Annabel Pitcher — an audiobook read by David Tennant, which is of course the main reason I am listening. It’s a great title, though, too.
Gideon’s River, by J. J. Marric — put this on the shelf for the March RandomKIT (water, water everywhere).

April plans

I’m visiting my parents for Easter, so I will be raiding their bookshelves for crime novels. The library’s given me an interesting selection of non-fiction that I hope to get through with a minimum of strategic renewing.

136threadnsong
Abr 2, 2023, 9:33 pm

Looks like you've got some great plans ahead and a good assessment of March! I read a book on the Columbia disaster and I am interested to see your review of a similar book on the Challenger disaster.

And I noticed in your review of Doctor Who: Marco Polo that the TV episodes are missing? Did I understand that correctly? And also, which Doctor was it?

137rabbitprincess
Abr 5, 2023, 11:09 am

>136 threadnsong: Marco Polo is a First Doctor (William Hartnell) story. In the early days of Doctor Who (the Hartnell and Troughton years), the tapes on which the BBC recorded this and other shows were in short supply, so the BBC would erase the contents to reuse the tapes. At the time of course they didn’t know that Doctor Who would become the institution that it is!

Some episodes of other stories have survived by virtue of being on tapes that were sent to other countries in the Commonwealth for rebroadcast. And most of the early shows do exist as audio recordings, many made by fans hooking up a tape recorder to their TV, so for a few of those the BBC has created animated versions (e.g. Power of the Daleks). Can’t remember if Marco Polo audios exist though.

138rabbitprincess
Abr 8, 2023, 9:29 am

I’m at my parents’ this week, mainly to help them go through stuff. We took a bunch of books to a used bookstore we frequent, and I came home with another 7 books:

Flight Into Danger, by Arthur Hailey
Doctor Who: Shining Darkness, by Mark Michalowski
Translations, by Brian Friel
Dancing at Lughnasa, by Brian Friel
The Back of the Turtle, by Thomas King
Be My Enemy, by Christopher Brookmyre
Destination Disaster, by Paul Eddy

I have read Translations before (in 2013, according to LT), but I want to read it again.

139rabbitprincess
Abr 8, 2023, 9:48 am

An update on what I’ve been reading:

Gideon’s River, by J. J. Marric
Category: Crime Scene
Source: BMV
Rating: 1.5/5
Review: https://www.librarything.com/review/112440860

I liked the main plot, which involved boats. I hated the subplot, which involved a teenage girl being abducted. I hated it enough to consider recycling the book instead of donating it to a used bookstore, hence the low rating.

The Curse of La Fontaine, by M. L. Longworth
Category: Crime Scene
Source: borrowed from parents
Rating: 3/5
Review: https://www.librarything.com/review/237900844

Every time I visit my parents, I treat myself to a Verlaque and Bonnet (my mum bought the entire series when we watched the adaptation on Britbox). This one was all right but not one of my favourites.

Burial of Ghosts, by Ann Cleeves
Category: Crime Scene
Source: library, via Overdrive
Rating: 3.5/5
Review: https://www.librarything.com/review/236954261

On balance I liked this stand-alone by Ann Cleeves better than The Sleeping and the Dead. This was a bit more of an experiment for Cleeves, with first-person narration and a more thriller feel, and so it feels more interesting.

140Tanya-dogearedcopy
Editado: Abr 8, 2023, 10:14 am

>138 rabbitprincess: Ooh! I love Brian Friel! I’ve been fortunate to see both plays you got this past week; Translations at the Abbey Theatre in Dublin, Ireland (stunning performance) and; Dancing at Lughnasa in Baltimore, Maryland (not so good; but I was spoiled after Ireland).

I also saw The Faith Healer on Broadway (Ralph Fiennes, Cherry Jones and an older actor who was a tertiary character in the original Star Wars movies…). It was so bad. I ended up so angry that I had spent all that time, money & effort to see it, that I’ve nursed a grudge against Mr. Fiennes and Ms Jones ever since! I would probably hold a grudge against the other actor too but I can never remember his name, so he’s safe from my thoughts & ire. Yes, it has been decades and I know I’m being unreasonable, but there it is!

Anyway, you just reminded me that I have a collection of Friel’s plays around here somewhere. I think I’ll go dig it up!

141rabbitprincess
Abr 8, 2023, 12:23 pm

>140 Tanya-dogearedcopy: Nice! The National Theatre in London is doing Dancing at Lughnasa with Siobhan McSweeney, aka Sister Michael from Derry Girls, which is what prompted me to pick up that one.

142rabbitprincess
Abr 10, 2023, 8:14 pm

Home from my parents' today, and managed to finish a couple more books.

Exile, by Denise Mina
Category: Crime Scene
Source: borrowed from parents
Rating: 3.5/5
Review: https://www.librarything.com/review/237901050

This is the second book in the Garnethill trilogy, which is definitely not sunshine and rainbows. Mina is a great writer, though, and even in these earliest of books shows her keen eye and knack for a compelling female protagonist.

Emily of New Moon, by L. M. Montgomery
Category: Lately I’ve Let Things Slide, You Inspire Me (March ClassicsCAT -- this Canadian classic was adapted for television in the 1990s)
Source: pilfered from parents
Rating: 4.5/5
Review: https://www.librarything.com/work/3689979/reviews/70475933

I'm an Emily girl rather than an Anne girl, and I enjoyed this re-read. I've already put the second book in the trilogy on my shelves to re-read next.

143RidgewayGirl
Abr 10, 2023, 9:47 pm

We took a bunch of books to a used bookstore we frequent, and I came home with another 7 books...

Ah, something we can all relate to.

144MissBrangwen
Abr 11, 2023, 3:04 am

>142 rabbitprincess: Denise Mina is an author I'd like to try soon! My husband is currently reading Still Midnight and loves it.

145rabbitprincess
Abr 11, 2023, 10:10 pm

>143 RidgewayGirl: My dad thinks that we were actually able to turn in more books than we came away with, but not by much.

>144 MissBrangwen: Hurray! Denise Mina is kind of a hidden gem for me. I like her Paddy Meehan trilogy, which starts with Field of Blood. It was adapted into a miniseries featuring David Morrissey and Peter Capaldi, which may at least partly explain why I like the book so much.

146rabbitprincess
Abr 15, 2023, 11:59 am

Love and Let Die: James Bond, The Beatles, and the British Psyche, by John Higgs
Category: Brains and Eggs
Source: library
Rating: 5/5
Review: https://www.librarything.com/review/237327043

The only other person to rate this book so far gave it 1 star, so possibly a polarizing book? But I really liked this. It’s a neat way to look at both the Beatles and Bond.

The Franchise Affair, by Josephine Tey
Category: Crime Scene
Source: Faded Page
Rating: 3/5
Review: https://www.librarything.com/review/237871857

As a mystery, this is fine, but not really "an Alan Grant mystery".

147rabbitprincess
Abr 16, 2023, 9:53 am

Code Gray: Death, Life and Uncertainty in the ER, by Farzon A. Nahvi
Category: Brains and Eggs
Source: library
Rating: 4/5
Review: https://www.librarything.com/review/237374603

I see a medical memoir at the library, I request it. This one was nice and short, no words wasted.

148Jackie_K
Abr 16, 2023, 10:58 am

>147 rabbitprincess: I went through a medical memoir phase (at least of buying them - still the usual disconnect between books bought and books read!), but at the moment I don't fancy them so much. I don't want to read about work-related stuff, I get enough of that at work! :D (I will of course read them if the Jar of Fate decrees it...).

149charl08
Abr 16, 2023, 11:43 am

>145 rabbitprincess: More in than you left with sounds like an achievement to me.

150rabbitprincess
Abr 16, 2023, 12:39 pm

>148 Jackie_K: Fair enough! I think requesting them from the library gives me enough space between them to avoid getting burned out on them.

>149 charl08: Yes indeed! My parents have donated books at a variety of bookstores over the years and they've learned a thing or two about what the various stores like.

151threadnsong
Abr 16, 2023, 9:21 pm

>137 rabbitprincess: Thanks for explaining that bit. I know there were Doctors in the 60's but did not know that the tapes had been erased. Cuz, well, why wouldn't they be reused! And I remember putting my cassette recorder up to the TV set for quite a few movies I really loved back in the day. So glad the BBC has made some of them into animated movies.

>146 rabbitprincess: This looks interesting! They are definitely two sides of British popular culture, and I never would have thought of grouping them together.

152rabbitprincess
Abr 19, 2023, 5:17 pm

>151 threadnsong: Before the animated movies, some audio-only (or audio-mostly) stories were made into a sort of audio book with linking narration by a Doctor Who actor. I think the animated movies are probably better.

And yes isn't it an interesting combo? Some of the connections are a little bit tenuous, but clearly the author's put a lot of work into the argument as a whole.

****

Natsume’s Book of Friends, Vol. 2, by Yuki Midorikawa (translated by Lillian Olsen)
Category: Itchy Chicken
Source: library
Rating: 4/5
Review: https://www.librarything.com/review/233920325

Manga are a great way to boost my reading numbers. I liked this second volume in the series better than the first because I knew what to expect. I have Vol. 3 ready to go!

153rabbitprincess
Abr 23, 2023, 9:54 am

The Master Key, by Masako Togawa (translated by Simon Grove)
Category: Crime Scene
Source: borrowed from friend
Rating: 3.5/5
Review: https://www.librarything.com/review/235671695

The debut novel of an author who has been billed as the P.D. James of Japan. However, Masako Togawa's work is somewhat shorter than a James novel. Recommended if you like your crime novels short and sweet, with no words wasted.

Black Country Music: Listening for Revolutions, by Francesca T. Royster
Category: Brains and Eggs
Source: library
Rating: 3.5/5
Review: https://www.librarything.com/review/235678142

As the title suggests, this is an examination of Black country music: how it developed and what it sounds like today, and what it means to its fans. This was a bit heavy going because it's on the academic side, but it has a lot of memoir from the author. I was glad to have it for a while from the library.

154rabbitprincess
Abr 29, 2023, 12:07 pm

A much-delayed review.

Monthly Girls’ Nozaki-Kun, Vol. 3, by Izumi Tsubaki (translated by Leighann Harvey)
Category: Itchy Chicken
Source: library
Rating: 2/5
Review: https://www.librarything.com/review/236701744

Not as good as the first two volumes, mainly because of the attitudes held by characters about group dates.

155pamelad
Editado: Abr 30, 2023, 12:49 am

>153 rabbitprincess: short and sweet, with no words wasted Absolutely! Adding The Master Key to the wish list.

Found it on KoboPlus.

156rabbitprincess
Abr 30, 2023, 8:55 am

>155 pamelad: Excellent! I hope you like it.

157charl08
Abr 30, 2023, 1:27 pm

>153 rabbitprincess: I did like this one (The Master Key): felt like a bit of a window into a Japanese time and place I know nothing about.

158rabbitprincess
Editado: Abr 30, 2023, 10:09 pm

>157 charl08: Agreed, it was really interesting! I have another Togawa on my shelves that I hope to get to in May.

159rabbitprincess
Abr 30, 2023, 10:13 pm

I've hopped over to Part 2, so join me at the continuation link below :)
Este tópico foi continuado por rabbitprincess grooves through 2023, part 2.