Irene's Reading 2023

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Discussão75 Books Challenge for 2023

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Irene's Reading 2023

1atozgrl
Editado: Jun 10, 2023, 11:46 am

Hello everyone! Welcome to my 2023 thread.

I am new to this group, so we'll see how well I do toward making it to 75 books read in 2023. I don't know if I've ever completed that many books in one year. If I have, it certainly hasn't been since I was in college.

Since I haven't contributed to threads in LT over the years, here's a little about me. My name is Irene. I live in North Carolina. I'm a recently retired librarian, retired in the middle of last year. My work in the library was mostly with systems and websites, not so much directly with books. I joined LT all the way back in 2008, and around 2010-2011, I was making good progress getting my library of books entered into LT. Then work and life got in the way, and I haven't been active on LT for a long time. I also haven't been reading many books, even though the love of books was why I got into librarianship in the first place. The problem is that I want long blocks of time to read books, and I didn't seem to ever have much, between commuting to work and back, fixing dinner when I got home, and being mostly brain-dead after all that. And weekends were taken up by chores that couldn't get done during the week. So I didn't have much time for reading long-form books. The reading I was doing was mostly magazines or online articles, all shorter form materials.

Once I retired, I started to get back into reading more books, now that I had more time available. By the end of the year, I thought I needed to find some way of keeping track of what I've read, so I don't accidentally re-read something I've already read. And, duh! Of course, I already had an account on LT. So I came back, and started adding or updating the books I had read in 2022. Unfortunately, since I hadn't thought of it earlier, I could only estimate the dates I finished reading.

Then while poking around LT some more and looking to see what's new and what I had forgotten, I stumbled across the 75 Books Challenge. I thought it would be an interesting challenge, so I decided to jump in. I'm not sure if I can complete 75 books, since I've only been reading about 1 a week for the last six weeks or so. That would get me to 50-odd books in a year, if I can even keep up this pace, which might get harder once the weather is nicer out. But it's worth a shot. At the very least, this will give me a place to keep track of the books I read this year.

As for the kinds of books I read, in recent years it has been mostly nonfiction, especially history. But I hope to get back into more fiction this year.

Looking forward to meeting more book lovers!

Also participating in:

1. The ROOT challenge
Link to my thread there: https://www.librarything.com/topic/348422#n8067900

2. 2023 Nonfiction Challenge (75 Books Challenge) 75NF
    - Favorite Pastimes in February
    - Empires in March
    - The Sea in April
    - June: Indigenous/Aboriginal Peoples/First Nations

3. Reading Through Time
     Quarterly Challenges (RTTQ)
        - Jan-March 2023: WWI (1914-1918)
        - April-June 2023: Between the Wars (1919-1938)
     Monthly Challenges (RTTM)
        - February 2023: Lions, Tigers, and Bears, Oh My!
        - March 2023: Notorious Women
        - April 2023: April Fool
        - May 2023: The Big City - Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow
        - June 2023: the Fabulous Fifties

Note: hat-tip to kac522 for the challenge codes.

2atozgrl
Editado: Jul 9, 2023, 5:53 pm

Books read in 2023

January
1. The Man Who Loved Books Too Much, by Allison Hoover Bartlett. (3.5) - ROOT
2. The Double Helix, by James D. Watson. (4) - Read to learn more for a class we're taking on DNA.
3. Dewey: the Small-Town Library Cat Who Touched the World, by Vicki Myron. (4) (re-read)

February
4. Dewey's Nine Lives, by Vicki Myron. (3.5) - ROOT; 75NF; RTTM
5. The Chicago Cubs: Story of a Curse by Rich Cohen. (4.5) - ROOT; 75NF
6. Fly the W: 2016 World Champions. (5) - ROOT; 75NF
7. Seabiscuit: an American Legend by Laura Hillenbrand. (5) - ROOT; 75NF; RTTM

March
8. Leave the Gun, Take the Cannoli: the Epic Story of the Making of The Godfather by Mark Seal. (4.5) - 75NF for Feb. (started in Feb., finished in March)
9. First to fly : the story of the Lafayette Escadrille, the American heroes who flew for France in World War I by Charles Bracelen Flood. (3.5) - RTTQ
10. Sergeant York and His People by Sam K. Cowan. (3.5) - ROOT; RTTQ
11. Cleopatra: a Life by Stacy Schiff. (4) - ROOT; 75NF; RTTM

April
12. Intermittent Fasting for Women 40, 50 and Older: Natural Approach to Balancing Hormones, Losing Weight, and Reversing Aging by Kalina Keilah. (3) - Early Reviewers
13. Tyll by Daniel Kehlmann. (4) - RTTM
14. Witness to the Dark by Wolf Holles. (4) - Early Reviewers

May
15. Raising the Hunley : the remarkable history and recovery of the lost Confederate submarine by Brian Hicks, Schuyler Kropf. (4) - ROOT; 75NF
16. Historic Raleigh by Jennifer A. Kulikowski and Kenneth E. Peters. (4) - ROOT; RTTM

June
17. The Deluge: The Great War, America and the Remaking of the Global Order by Adam Tooze. (4.5) - RTTQ
18. Ancient pioneers : the first Americans by George E. Stuart. (4) - ROOT; 75NF
19. Big Lies in a Small Town by Diane Chamberlain. (4) - Book Club

3drneutron
Jan 17, 2023, 9:38 pm

Welcome to the 75ers! We don’t worry too much about the numbers - 50ish is great.

4PaulCranswick
Jan 17, 2023, 9:56 pm

Welcome to the group, Irene.

As Jim pointed out the numbers read is pretty incidental. We have some people reading 6x75, most of us at close to 2x75, many getting to the number and almost as many who don't get to it at all but are more than welcome along for the ride.

Do not feel too shy to pay visits to other threads and introduce yourself - everyone is pretty friendly.

5atozgrl
Jan 17, 2023, 11:13 pm

>3 drneutron: Thanks for the encouragement! I'm looking forward to the challenge.

6atozgrl
Jan 17, 2023, 11:15 pm

>4 PaulCranswick: Thank you, Paul. I will do what I can this year, but mostly want to enjoy the books rather than worry about completing a specific number. I will try to visit the other threads and meet new people. Everyone does seem to be friendly, and we're all book lovers, so we have that in common!

7PaulCranswick
Jan 18, 2023, 12:37 am

>6 atozgrl: Exactly so!

8FAMeulstee
Jan 18, 2023, 4:12 am

Welcome, Irene, happy reading in 2023!

9atozgrl
Editado: Jan 18, 2023, 5:29 pm

>8 FAMeulstee: Thanks for the welcome, Anita!

I see you live in the Netherlands. I visited there during a summer study abroad program when I was in college back in 1978. A group led by a history professor who was a native German took us across central Europe, mostly Germany, but we spent a week in Amsterdam. I remember visiting the Rijksmuseum and some other art museums while we were there. I loved my time there, and would like to go back some day, to see more of the country. I'd love to go in the spring to see the flowers!

10SandDune
Jan 18, 2023, 5:28 pm

Welcome Irene. Pleased to see you.

11SqueakyChu
Editado: Jan 18, 2023, 5:53 pm

Welcome, Irene!

I’m from Maryland, but we have always loved to vacation in North Carolina on Emerald isle. That had sort of become a family tradition over the years. Just when I thought thought we stopped doing that for a few years, my older son rented a house there in October and invited us down…so back we went!

I read about a book a week…just like you. Happy reading!

12atozgrl
Jan 18, 2023, 5:56 pm

>10 SandDune: Thank you. I'm visiting your thread.

13FAMeulstee
Jan 18, 2023, 6:00 pm

>9 atozgrl: You are very welcome, Irene.

If you ever would come over here, I would love to meet. Before COVID I have met some other members of this group, when they visited the Netherlands.

14atozgrl
Jan 18, 2023, 6:01 pm

>11 SqueakyChu: Thanks!

The North Carolina coast is wonderful! Really nice beaches. We like the Atlantic Beach/Beaufort area. I hope you'll be able to keep coming back!

In a previous marriage many years ago, I went to Ocean City one time. That was nice too. I ate crab for the first time there.

15atozgrl
Jan 18, 2023, 6:04 pm

>13 FAMeulstee: Thanks so much for the invitation! I'll keep that in mind. We don't currently have any travel plans, but hope to do some traveling in the future.

16PaulCranswick
Jan 18, 2023, 6:10 pm

If you are ever considering further afield, Irene, I currently reside as the group's Kuala Lumpur correspondent and tour guide!

17atozgrl
Jan 18, 2023, 8:22 pm

>16 PaulCranswick: Wow! Thanks for the invitation! I don't know much about Kuala Lumpur, but I'll definitely have to look into it!

18ArlieS
Jan 20, 2023, 1:44 am

Hi Irene,

I also retired last year, but in January. I hope retirement is treating you very well.

I'm loving it.

19atozgrl
Jan 20, 2023, 5:40 pm

>18 ArlieS: I am, thank you! It's wonderful having more time to do things, especially reading. I also need to do a lot of de-cluttering. And I'm very glad to give up the commute.

Glad to hear you're enjoying your retirement as well!

20PaulCranswick
Jan 20, 2023, 9:15 pm

Wishing you a book-filled weekend, Irene.

21atozgrl
Jan 21, 2023, 6:52 pm

>20 PaulCranswick: Thank you, you too!

22thornton37814
Jan 23, 2023, 8:05 am

Welcome to the group! Best wishes on your reading. I am looking forward to retirement, but I have a few more years.

23atozgrl
Jan 23, 2023, 5:11 pm

>22 thornton37814: Thank you! You'll enjoy retirement when you get there. I hope it's not too many years away for you!

May you also have a fulfilling year of reading!

24atozgrl
Editado: Fev 6, 2023, 8:16 pm

3. Dewey: the Small-Town Library Cat Who Touched the World, by Vicki Myron

This one is a re-read. I originally read the book about 10 years ago, and am re-reading it in preparation for reading the sequel, Dewey's Nine Lives. This year, as a recent retiree, I want to catch up on a lot of books I've got on my shelf but haven't had time to read yet, so I will probably be reading a lot of books that are not particularly new. Dewey's Nine Lives is one of those.

This book tells the touching story of Dewey Readmore Books, the cat who lived at the library in Spencer, Iowa. Dewey was just a kitten when the library staff found him in the book return on a bitterly cold morning in January 1988. They took care of him, and kept him at the library, where he quickly became popular with the library patrons. Unlike most cats, Dewey was very gregarious and interacted with the patrons in a sensitive manner, seeming to know what each one needed. Remarkably, Dewey became famous, not just in his home town, but nationally, and even internationally. It's a sweet story, and irresistible to those of us who love cats and libraries.

****

25PaulCranswick
Jan 28, 2023, 5:54 pm

>24 atozgrl: The cats in my house (2 of them) both hate me with a passion (little do they know that their food and shelter is entirely the result of my largesse!) but I will read Seven Lives and One Great Love : Memoirs of a Cat by Lena Divani soon and will see whether I understand them any better!

Have a great weekend.

26atozgrl
Jan 29, 2023, 10:10 pm

>25 PaulCranswick: Cats are funny! Who knows why they take to one person and dislike someone else. It seems like so many of them want to snuggle up to the person who hates cats or the one who is allergic to them. I miss having a cat, but my husband is allergic, so we don't have any. And I don't like the stray cats in the neighborhood which kill the wild birds I've been feeding. We always kept our cats inside.

I hope you had a great weekend also!

27PaulCranswick
Jan 29, 2023, 10:29 pm

>26 atozgrl: I am asthmatic, Irene, so like your husband I have to keep my distance. There are certain parts of the house that the cats don't inhabit and I am fine with that and, since I occupy the rest of it, so are they!

28atozgrl
Jan 30, 2023, 12:48 pm

>27 PaulCranswick: I'm glad you have a setup that works for all of you!

29figsfromthistle
Fev 2, 2023, 6:16 pm

Welcome to the group. Looks like you have already a good reading start.

30atozgrl
Fev 2, 2023, 6:29 pm

>29 figsfromthistle: Thanks, Anita! I'm certainly trying, although things slowed down a bit over the last two weeks. But I'm enjoying my reading so far this year!

31PaulCranswick
Fev 2, 2023, 6:31 pm

>30 atozgrl: I'm pleased to see you popping up around the threads, Irene, because that will ensure that other of our friends come and look you up.

32atozgrl
Fev 2, 2023, 6:43 pm

>31 PaulCranswick: Thanks, Paul. Yes, I'm trying to get to know some of the other folks around here. Slowly working my way around.

33SilverWolf28
Fev 2, 2023, 8:43 pm

Hi Irene, welcome to the group! I host the social distancing readathon every weekend. You're very welcome to join any time you want. Here's this weekends: https://www.librarything.com/topic/348237

34atozgrl
Editado: Fev 2, 2023, 8:58 pm

Thank you, Silver. Thanks for the invitation! I might be able to join the readathon this weekend. We've got a potluck Saturday night, and I have to fix something to bring, so I'm not sure how much reading I can get done Saturday, but I may add myself to the group. We'll see how it goes.

I did see the post for last week's readathon on someone else's thread, but I didn't get much reading done. I'm a big figure skating fan, so I spent most of last weekend watching the US nationals.

35SilverWolf28
Fev 2, 2023, 9:33 pm

>34 atozgrl: You're welcome!

36atozgrl
Editado: Fev 6, 2023, 8:33 pm

4. Dewey's Nine Lives, by Vicki Myron

The follow-up book to Dewey: the Small-Town Library Cat, Dewey's Nine Lives tells more stories about people whose lives have been touched by a special cat or cats. These stories were shared with the author, Vicki Myron, after her first book came out. There are several mostly moving stories about the people, the cats they knew, and how those cats affected their lives. Dewey shows up in this book a few times, but not as much as I expected.

Overall, I enjoyed this book, although not as much as Dewey. The first book had an overarching story line, while this one contains a set of unrelated stories. While the stories were touching, I preferred the more complete story line in the original book. However, I do recommend this book. And I highly recommend it for those who love cats.

***½

37PaulCranswick
Fev 6, 2023, 9:24 pm

>36 atozgrl: Might be a good one for my youngest daughter. She adores our two cats; I don't mind them despite being mildly allergic, but the two of them cannot abide me for reasons I cannot fathom. We earlier had a cat, Cinders, who was very close to me and, maybe because Cinders didn't like those two either, they see me as part of the problem.

38atozgrl
Fev 7, 2023, 5:25 pm

>37 PaulCranswick: That could be! But cats are inscrutable--it's hard to know sometimes why they like some people and not others.

The book certainly shows a lot of different personalities in the cats that are profiled. Cats are as different from one another as people are.

Your daughter may well enjoy the book if she loves cats. But the book is probably best for an older child, maybe a teenager, since some of the stories about the people are rather tough. Most of the people in the book experienced some pretty hard times.

39atozgrl
Editado: Fev 9, 2023, 9:50 pm

Since others post their Wordle, and since today was a milestone puzzle, I'll post mine today.

Wordle 600 2/6

🟩⬜🟩🟨🟩
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

SLATE, STAGE

This is unusual. It's only the sixth time I've gotten it in two. Most of the time it takes me four tries to get it. I was playing irregularly until a few months ago, and I still tend to miss a day from time to time, which keeps my streaks from getting very long.

40klobrien2
Fev 10, 2023, 2:23 pm

>39 atozgrl: Excellent Wordling! Have a great weekend!

Karen O

41atozgrl
Fev 13, 2023, 6:49 pm

>40 klobrien2: Thank you! After a rough January, I seem to be doing better with Wordle this month.

42atozgrl
Editado: Fev 13, 2023, 6:53 pm

5. The Chicago Cubs: Story of a Curse by Rich Cohen

Rich Cohen investigates the cause of the famous "curse" that supposedly afflicted the Cubs for decades. Besides the famous curse of the billy goat, he also mentions possibilities going all the way back to Cap Anson, who was instrumental in the segregation of baseball in the late 19th century. Other theories he raises include the famous "Merkle's Boner" incident which allowed the Cubs to defeat the Giants for the 1908 NL pennant, poor management by P.K. Wrigley, and having to play in Wrigley Field. Cohen tries to understand how the team broke the curse in 2016. Interwoven into the various stories of Cubs' history is Cohen's own experiences as a Cubs fan.

I was not expecting as much Cubs history as he covers in this book. He tells the stories of several of the early Cubs, especially from the 1908 team. He also writes about Grover Cleveland Alexander, Hack Wilson, Ernie Banks, Leo Durocher and the 1969 Cubs, Bill Buckner, and the 1984 Cubs, among others.

Honestly, this was a really good read. I think all fans of baseball would enjoy it, though not as much as a Cub fan. But I highly recommend it for anyone who follows the Cubs.

****½

43PaulCranswick
Fev 13, 2023, 7:09 pm

>42 atozgrl: Don't know that much about baseball to be honest, Irene, but I do like sports history in general.

44kac522
Fev 13, 2023, 7:10 pm

>42 atozgrl: Sounds good! I keep this on the radar to read closer to the beginning of the season.

45atozgrl
Fev 13, 2023, 11:06 pm

>43 PaulCranswick: Hi Paul! While it helps to understand baseball, I don't think you'd need to know much to enjoy the stories he tells about the people.

46atozgrl
Fev 13, 2023, 11:07 pm

>44 kac522: Kathy, I think you'll like it!

47atozgrl
Editado: Fev 15, 2023, 6:17 pm

6. Fly the W: 2016 World Champions

Fly the W is a coffee table book from the Chicago Cubs celebrating their 2016 season from spring training through the playoffs and culminating with a World Series victory. There are also pictures from the championship parade and some of the players' postseason activities. It also includes brief essays from Tom Ricketts, Theo Epstein, Crane Kenney, Joe Maddon, Ryne Sandberg, Billy Williams, and Phil Hughes.

There are hundreds of pictures in the book, covering most of the highlights from the 2016 season, with a particular focus on the playoffs. The photos are gorgeous and the book is assembled beautifully. It is a great book for all fans of the Chicago Cubs, and a wonderful way to remember the 2016 championship.

I pulled this one out of my ROOTS pile as part of the "2023 Nonfiction Challenge: Favorite Pastimes in February." I had scanned through it before, but never sat down and read all the essays, etc., or really looked in detail at the photos, so this was a good opportunity to do that. Also a nice look back as spring training starts this week for another season.

*****

48kac522
Fev 15, 2023, 6:30 pm

49atozgrl
Fev 15, 2023, 11:16 pm

>48 kac522: Love it!

50atozgrl
Fev 23, 2023, 11:37 pm

Interesting puzzle today:

Wordle 614 4/6

⬜⬜🟨⬜🟩
⬜🟩⬜⬜🟩
⬜🟩⬜🟨🟩
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

51atozgrl
Editado: Fev 24, 2023, 11:21 pm

7. Seabiscuit: an American Legend by Laura Hillenbrand

Seabiscuit: an American Legend is a beautifully written book. The book tells the stories of the horse, Seabiscuit, and the people most close to him: his owner (Charles Howard), trainer (Tom Smith), and primary jockey (Red Pollard). Hillenbrand gives us a lot of detail about their lives, so that we feel like we know them. Her descriptions of their appearance is as vivid and detailed as you would find in a novel. In fact, the book reads like a novel. And the story of Seabiscuit is extraordinary. Short and unimpressive in appearance, he did not have the look of a champion. But with unexpected speed and heart, he was able to win races the experts did not believe that he could. He became wildly popular with the depression-era audiences, who loved his underdog story.

Hillenbrand masterfully recounts the stories of Seabiscuit's most important races, with an especially dramatic telling of the famous match race with War Admiral. We follow the lives of Seabiscuit, his owner, trainer, and jockey through all their ups and downs. This is truly a tale that if someone wrote it as fiction, no one would believe it.

Laura Hillenbrand completed an extraordinary amount of research in order to provide the rich details of the story. I am thankful that she was able to talk to so many who could provide eyewitness details before they were gone. A truly unforgettable book.

*****

52atozgrl
Fev 24, 2023, 11:24 pm

Today's Wordle:

Wordle 615 3/6

⬜⬜🟨⬜⬜
🟨🟨🟩⬜⬜
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

53PaulCranswick
Fev 24, 2023, 11:48 pm

>51 atozgrl: I remember enjoying that a few years ago when I read it Irene.

In the UK until fairly recently all races were on turf and I used to be quite the follower in my youth. I remember cycling from Coventry to Stratford in my student days and placing a £20 bet on a horse called Long Engagement that was up against an odds-on favourite based on a tip I had received. Long Engagement won at 14-1 and I put the money to good use to buy my first training bike for my abortive plans to rule the roads in cycling!

54atozgrl
Fev 25, 2023, 9:45 am

>53 PaulCranswick: That's an interesting story! Good for you for actually winning a bet and putting the winnings to good use on something that was a real benefit to you!

I've never gotten into wagering on horse races, but I have enjoyed watching the triple crown races on TV. It is interesting to me to read about horses, though I don't have any life experience with them.

55atozgrl
Fev 25, 2023, 6:21 pm

I'll be taking a break from my focus on my ROOTs books. A book I put on hold at the library a couple of months ago has come in, so I'll be reading Leave the Gun, Take the Cannoli: the Epic Story of the Making of The Godfather next.

56cbl_tn
Mar 4, 2023, 8:26 pm

Hi Irene! I am looking forward to retirement and more time for reading, but I'm still quite a few years away.

Our library is in the midst of our second system migration in two years. It's been an interesting two years, to say the least!

57atozgrl
Mar 6, 2023, 5:19 pm

Oh, my, two in two years! I feel for you!

I was involved in several system migrations in my job. I was hired as acquisitions librarian and participated in system selection for our first system. Some years later, I became the system manager, and helped to lead two subsequent migrations, but they were both years apart. I can't imagine having to do that twice in such a short period! I hope it goes well for you! Definitely interesting, probably too much so. Makes me think of that old, reputed Chinese curse, "may you live in interesting times." Here's hoping things soon get a little less interesting for you.

58atozgrl
Mar 6, 2023, 5:24 pm

I may have gotten lucky with today's Wordle. Made a wild guess on the third entry trying to get some additional letters, and surprisingly got it.

Wordle 625 3/6

⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜
⬜⬜⬜🟨🟨
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

SLATE, ROBIN, PINKY

59atozgrl
Editado: Mar 14, 2023, 10:14 pm

8. Leave the Gun, Take the Cannoli: the Epic Story of the Making of The Godfather by Mark Seal

Leave the Gun, Take the Cannoli: The Epic Story of the Making of the Godfather by Mark Seal is a fascinating look at the making of the classic movie. Seal takes us back to the beginning, telling us about Mario Puzo and how he came to write the book, The Godfather. He also gives us vibrant portraits of many of the main protagonists, including Charlie Bluhdorn (head of Gulf+Western), Robert Evans (Paramount head of production), Al Ruddy (producer), and Francis Ford Coppola.

The process of making the movie was an epic tale in itself. Many obstacles arose during the making of the film, from the writing of the script, to the many, many disputes over casting, to opposition by the mob itself. The book details all of these problems and how they were overcome. The actual filming was also difficult, with Coppola and Pacino both doubting their own work. The fights continued into post-production editing and selection of the musical score. Given all the difficulties, it's amazing that the resulting film was an acknowledged masterpiece.

Seal tells the story with a wealth of detail. He has interviewed many of the participants himself. Where people recall the details of various incidents differently, he includes the stories from multiple points of view, allowing the reader to make up their own mind about what or who to believe. This is truly a fascinating description of the making of a major motion picture. Highly recommended for fans of the movies and especially of The Godfather.

****½

60atozgrl
Mar 13, 2023, 6:12 pm

Too many options in today's Wordle.

Wordle 632 4/6

⬜🟩🟩⬜🟩
⬜🟩🟩⬜🟩
⬜🟩🟩🟩🟩
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

61figsfromthistle
Mar 13, 2023, 9:11 pm

Dropping in to wish you a wonderful week!

62atozgrl
Mar 14, 2023, 9:47 pm

>61 figsfromthistle: Thank you! And I hope you also have a terrific week!

63atozgrl
Editado: Mar 15, 2023, 6:04 pm

9. First to fly : the story of the Lafayette Escadrille, the American heroes who flew for France in World War I by Charles Bracelen Flood

First to fly : the story of the Lafayette Escadrille, the American heroes who flew for France in World War I tells the stories of Americans who flew for France in World War I before the United States entered the war. When the war began, there were many Americans who wanted to fight to support France, but they could not legally join the French army since the US was officially neutral. However, a number of them did sign up for the French Foreign Legion and saw combat on the front lines. Eventually, some of them were trained as pilots in the new French flying corps. There was a push by several individuals to create one French aviation unit consisting entirely of American pilots, and the Lafayette Escadrille was the result. This book tells the stories of a number of the American pilots who served in the Lafayette Escadrille.

Many of the Americans whose stories are told led colorful lives. We learn about their lives at the front and what it was like in the air. We see how fragile the airplanes were at that time, only a decade after the first flight. The Americans had to face German pilots who were much better trained and more experienced. The book also gives us a look at life behind the lines, including the story of Alice Weeks, whose son signed up to fight. She moved to Paris to be closer to him, and her place there became a home away from home for many of the Americans in France.

I learned many things in this book that I had never known, such as how the pilots often flew at high altitude in open cockpits, leading to frozen faces, arms and hands, etc. There was also the toll on the French civilians. One Escadrille pilot told the story about attending a party with young French women, and the Countess hosting the party told him about one of the girls (similar to the other young women there): "She's one of fifty in her family, and there's only four men left. Their husbands, their fathers, their brothers are all dead."

The book is really just a collection of the stories of some of the Americans who served in the Escadrille. I had hoped to learn more about how the Escadrille was actually formed, but it is more alluded to rather than the author providing a clear explanation of how it came about. The book also tells us that the first seven men to join the Escadrille were known as the founders. While we hear the stories of quite a few of them, Flood never explicitly lists the founders' names. I also wish the book had an index.

First to Fly provides a valuable service in collecting the stories of the Americans who served in the Lafayette Escadrille and bringing the realities of air warfare in World War I back to life. However, I would have preferred if it had a stronger framework explaining just how the Escadrille was brought into being to hang the stories on. I did note that the book jacket gives Flood's life dates as 1929-2014 and this book was published in 2015, which makes me wonder whether he might have hurried to finish it, since he had apparently become ill. Maybe there might have been more concrete information about how the Lafayette Escadrille came into existence if he had had more time? A Google search indicates that he had "finished" the book, but I still wonder.

Overall, it is a worthwhile book, but I would have given it a higher rating if there was a little more of the historical background included.

***½

64klobrien2
Mar 15, 2023, 1:32 pm

If you’re interested, we’re finally getting the John Huston thing going! I set up a thread for the “John Huston Film Fest”!

https://www.librarything.com/topic/349424#n8094672

Karen O

65atozgrl
Mar 15, 2023, 6:02 pm

>64 klobrien2: Thanks, Karen! I am definitely interested, just unsure whether I can get access to all the titles, or can make the time. I will try to join in if I can!

66atozgrl
Mar 20, 2023, 1:09 pm

After several days where it took me 4 to 5 tries to get the Wordle, I'm back to a better score today. I got a bit lucky this time.

Wordle 639 2/6

⬜🟩⬜⬜🟩
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

67atozgrl
Editado: Mar 20, 2023, 5:17 pm

10. Sergeant York and His People by Sam K. Cowan

Sergeant York and His People, by Sam K. Cowan, tells the story of Sergeant York, but is as much about the place and people he came from as it is about the fight in the Argonne Forest for which York became so famous. The author went to live for awhile among the people of Pall Mall, Tennessee, apparently so that the people there would learn to trust him and talk to him. Cowan was able to get Sergeant York's consent to tell his story and that of his people on the condition that "it be told right."

The book opens with a recounting of the battle in the Argonne Forest which York participated in. But it proceeds with a history of the "Valley of the Three Forks o' the Wolf" where York was from. This history stretches all the way back to the 18th Century, when the area was first occupied by colonial settlers moving west, through the civil war when the relative prosperity of the area was destroyed by war and partisanship, up to York's time. The last two chapters of the book tell us about York's life in Pall Mall and his time in the army, as well as all the honors he received after the battle.

I found the history of this remote part of Tennessee interesting. But if you are looking for more discussion about York's participation in World War I, this is probably not the book want. This book tells more about the people of this part of Tennessee and the kind of man York was, coming from this background. Also be aware that the book was published in 1922, and there is at least one old country phrase quoted in the book that would not be considered PC today.

I was a little surprised by how little discussion there was about World War I in the book, and about the battle that York participated in. However, it's clear that York didn't want to talk much about the battle. And the aim of the book was more to show us the kind of man that York was. Overall, I liked the book for that reason.

***½

68klobrien2
Mar 20, 2023, 5:52 pm

>66 atozgrl: Wordle in 2 is fantastic! Congratulations!

Karen O

69atozgrl
Mar 21, 2023, 12:03 pm

>68 klobrien2: Thank you! Maybe I'm getting better at it. I got today's in 3, and I surprised myself with this one.

Wordle 640 3/6

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SLATE, ROBIN, TOUGH

70msf59
Mar 22, 2023, 8:31 am

Welcome to the 75, Irene. Happy Wednesday. Glad you can join us. We have been conversing on other threads, so I thought I would see if I could track you down. No worries about not reaching #75. I am not sure anyone pays attention anyway. I originally started out in the #50 but this was where all the fun was. It was also before I started listening to audiobooks and then my numbers sky-rocketed.

Glad to see that we have other interests than just our love of books. As you can tell I am a big fan of films and birds. I love that you also have feeders set up. Bummer about the bully mockingbirds. We are just north of their range, here in northern Illinois. I have never seen one here, although they pop up from time to time.

I see you are from North Carolina- one of my favorite states. My brother lives in Hendersonville. Of course, you know Karen lives there too. Anywhere near you?

71atozgrl
Editado: Mar 22, 2023, 6:12 pm

>70 msf59: Welcome to my thread! Thanks for stopping by.

I probably won't reach 75 this year, since I like a lot of nonfiction and have a lot of it on my shelves that I haven't read yet. Those tend to be longer and slower reads. This year I'm trying to make a dent in the books I own and haven't yet read. I've never gotten into audiobooks, nor much into ebooks, but I may start some ebooks this year.

It sounds like I picked the right group to join! I've certainly noticed that it's active, and I've met a lot of people here. It has been fun!

I'm glad NC is one of your favorite states. I love it here. I actually grew up in central Illinois, but I've been here since the early 80's. From what Karen says, I'm probably about 30 minutes away from where she lives. Small LT world!

Yes, we definitely share the interest in films and birds. I've got a big collection of movie books that I mostly purchased while I was in high school and college, and which I haven't cataloged on LT yet. I do love old movies. I really enjoy watching the birds in our yard too, or at least I did before the mockingbird started harassing them. I think that will settle down fairly soon, since he doesn't seem to be a problem in the summer. Of course, the birds don't need as much seed then. It is frustrating! And I don't remember ever seeing any mockingbirds growing up in Illinois. I guess they might have moved into my old area by now, but as far as I know they weren't there then, or at least not in large numbers.

I think we might have another interest in common. Over on the Nonfiction Challenge: Favorite Pastimes in February thread, I mentioned a book I read about the Chicago Cubs. kac522 jumped in and mentioned that she thought you were a Cubs fan too. If so, we've got that in common as well.

I've been slowly working my way around the threads. There are so many to check out and I haven't gotten to them all yet. I'll look for yours and say hi. Thanks again for dropping in!

72msf59
Mar 22, 2023, 6:48 pm

>71 atozgrl: Heck, yeah! I have been a Cubs fan my whole life. I am sure praying for a turnaround this year. It looks promising. Oh yeah, Kathy is a very dear person too. 😁

73atozgrl
Mar 22, 2023, 11:07 pm

>72 msf59: I had the great good fortune/misfortune to decide I wanted to check out baseball in 1969. Fell in love with the Cubs, and then got my heart broken the same year. I had to wait a long time for a lot of my favorite teams to win anything, but the Cubs were the longest wait. And also the team I loved best. I eventually decided the heartbreak when I was young was maybe the reason why I loved them more than all the other teams. 2016 was magical, and the best payoff! Just unforgettable!

I think they should be better this year. I think they're going to be better than some of the prediction systems say. I guess we'll see. Of course, a lot depends on staying healthy.

Kathy and several others of us had a nice chat on the other thread. I've met a lot of good people here!

74atozgrl
Mar 22, 2023, 11:13 pm

I surprised myself again on today's Wordle.

Wordle 641 3/6

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🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

I wasn't expecting my guess on 3 to be right.

75atozgrl
Mar 23, 2023, 11:27 am

Back to normal today. I was debating between two words for 3 and picked the wrong one.

Wordle 642 4/6

🟩⬜🟩🟨⬜
🟩🟩🟩🟩⬜
🟩🟩🟩🟩⬜
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

76karenmarie
Mar 31, 2023, 2:13 pm

Hi Irene! Nice to meet you this year and a very belated happy new thread.

>1 atozgrl: Ooh, a Librarian. Good. Retired. Better. Quite a few of us never, ever get to 75 books a year. We’re in this group because of the 75 challenge obviously, but for a lot of us it’s the friends we’ve made and continue to make.

I’m also in the ROOT challenge but have been failing abysmally at reading off my own shelves in recent years. *shrug* I still have lots and lots of not-yet-read and books-I-will-re-read books, just am currently down the rabbit hole of contemporary fiction – specifically romances.

>2 atozgrl: Ah, Watson’s book. I don’t have it and haven’t read it. Does the book mention Rosalind Franklin and her crucial knowledge of x-ray crystallography? (I had to look up her name and what her contribution was, but did remember that they were stuck without her knowledge).

I’ve always been fascinated with Marlon Brando, and saw a few YouTube videos about The Godfather and sexy sexy Brando – last night, actually. I’ve read 4 of the 7 books I have about Brando on my shelves.

>26 atozgrl: Sorry your husband’s allergic – my daughter likes to jerk my chain about getting a hairless cat, but do they still have the dander that is usually the issue with allergies? Don’t know. We have 3 kitties, but they’re indoor/outdoor with a cat door built into the house that we open up in the morning and shut at night after herding them back into the house. We do get the occasional kill from our girl Zoe – I always call her Diana or Artemis when she’s brought something in – but it’s the nature of cats to get birds and other critters and we just deal.

>47 atozgrl: msf59 was so thrilled when the Cubs won the World series that year. I found this online, captured it on LT for him and posted it on his thread:



>64 klobrien2: and >65 atozgrl: I’ve only seen Chinatown, which I would like to see again, perhaps with daughter Jenna, and Casino Royale although I didn’t realize he was in it.

77atozgrl
Abr 1, 2023, 10:59 am

>76 karenmarie: Welcome, Karen! Thanks for visiting my thread!

When I got back onto LT early this year, I picked the 75ers because I thought 75 books was a good challenge to stretch me, even if I couldn't actually manage 75 books. And it looks like I made a great choice because of all the people I have met here! What a wonderful group! And I know there are still more I need to meet.

It doesn't look like I will make the 75 books this year. Nonfiction just takes longer to read in general, and that's most of what I've got on my shelves that I haven't read. I am trying to concentrate on my ROOTs this year, as much as possible, since I have so many books I've picked up that I haven't read yet. I also may not get as much reading done this month, since I really need to get out and set up my garden.

I don't blame you for pursuing contemporary fiction. If that's what suits your current mood and interests, then just follow your heart! Reading is good, no matter what you want to take up at the moment. And romance fiction can be lots of relaxing fun. I've had my own periods where that made up a lot of my reading.

Watson does mention Franklin in his book, and not really very favorably, unfortunately. She comes in for some contemporary male chauvinist commentary. However, he adds an epilogue where he acknowledges that his early impressions of her were wrong and praises her achievements. In the main part of the book, he was trying to capture the spirit in which they were working and showing how they were at the time of the events, which does reflect the negative feeling toward a woman in science. The epilogue attempts to correct that a bit, though it's a small part of the book. They clearly could not have achieved the solution for the structure of DNA without the work Franklin had done.

We had adopted a few "wild" cats growing up, so they were indoor/outdoor. Unfortunately, they did bring us the occasional "present." Our first cat was truly a pet and she was completely an indoor cat. Since so many wild birds are being killed off by cats, including pets who don't need the food, I've gotten to the point that I wish folks would keep their pets indoors. There was a cat in our neighborhood that kept stalking our backyard where our feeder is, and I found evidence on several occasions of a bird coming to a bad end. I just really hate to see it, and I hate that the bird populations are declining.

I've heard that the cat allergies are often due to something in their saliva, so I don't know that hairless would help with that. My husband is quite sensitive to pollen, so keeping a cat inside would help with that part of the problem.

Thanks so much for the picture of the Wrigley marquee and the reminder of the championship! That was one of the best moments of my life. It was incredibly fulfilling to see that after having waited for such a long time.

Thanks again for stopping by!

78atozgrl
Abr 1, 2023, 5:34 pm

11. Cleopatra: a Life by Stacy Schiff

I finished this book a couple of days ago, but have been slow getting around to writing up my thoughts.

It is a good retelling of Cleopatra's story. The big problem that historians have when trying to learn about Cleopatra is that all the writings about her that have survived are from the Romans, who were not favorably predisposed to her at minimum, if not actively enemies. Unfortunately, that has created a picture of a woman considered to be treacherous and a scheming seductress. Schiff does her best to tease out the truth about Cleopatra from the information that is still available to us, and presents several possible histories when it is unclear which source is more accurate. I learned quite a bit about Cleopatra that I did not previously know. She was an intelligent ruler who led Egypt itself into a period of peace and prosperity after some years of upheaval. There were no revolts against her in Egypt, and she seems to have been a popular ruler there. She spoke many languages. She is a far more complex and interesting person than traditional history would lead us to believe.

I would recommend Cleopatra: a Life to anyone who wants to know more about Cleopatra and this period in Roman history.

****

79vancouverdeb
Abr 1, 2023, 5:45 pm

Hi Irene! Pleased to make your acquaintance. I've been a member of the 75's for many years, but have not had a thread for several years. I just started a new thread in the 75's a few days ago. Do come by and visit if you wish. I live in Vancouver Canada, which is probably very obvious from my LT handle. I don't expect to read 75 books at all this year, but it is such a friendly group.

80atozgrl
Abr 1, 2023, 6:16 pm

>79 vancouverdeb: Thanks for stopping by! I will definitely visit your thread, but I need to go work on dinner right now. Hope to drop by later. Thanks!

81RebaRelishesReading
Abr 5, 2023, 11:54 am

Thanks for finding and posting on my thread, Irene. Welcome! I'm glad you found the 75'ers. It's a great group of people, some of whom I've met in person while others just on-line, who have formed on important part of my day for several years now. I've starred your thread and look forward to having you be part of my mornings.

82atozgrl
Abr 6, 2023, 5:54 pm

>81 RebaRelishesReading: Welcome! I'm so glad to have you here!

83vancouverdeb
Abr 6, 2023, 10:34 pm

Thanks for stopping by my thread, Irene. I also very much enjoy seeing how others come to their wordle solution. Wishing you a happy Easter, if you celebrate it.

84PaulCranswick
Abr 6, 2023, 11:23 pm

>78 atozgrl: The old adage that history belongs to the victors is so true, Irene.

I have just read a book trying to reset the story of Anne Boleyn's life. Most likely the truth is usually somewhere in the middle.

85karenmarie
Abr 7, 2023, 7:32 am

Hi Irene! Happy Friday to you.

>77 atozgrl: Lots of us never even get halfway to 75, and others of us read 200+, even 300+ regularly. Quite a few of us like to chat – if you ever go to the Groups Tab you will always see the current 75ers group with thousands of messages each week. And PaulCranswick does marvelous statistics for us on his threads – number of posts and books read and etc.

Thanks for the reminder re the garden. I need to get our new landscape company (Bill can’t mow anymore and we always need other things done anyway) to re-clean out my raised bed and put in some good topsoil.

Thanks for your comments re Franklin.

>78 atozgrl: Well, snap. It turns out that I have this book on my shelves, courtesy of Bill’s dad and stepmom. After Dutch died Kay was going through books and I took quite a few. And then after she died, I got more.

86atozgrl
Abr 7, 2023, 3:24 pm

Today's Wordle was standard.

Wordle 657 4/6

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87atozgrl
Abr 7, 2023, 3:41 pm

>83 vancouverdeb: Hi, Deborah! Thanks for the Easter wishes! We do celebrate it.

You can see I did manage to post my Wordle today. I'll try to do better with that.

>84 PaulCranswick: Hello, Paul! It is indeed! I took a book bullet from your review of the book on Anne Boleyn. It sounds interesting.

>85 karenmarie: Hello, Karen, and happy Friday to you as well! I originally found the 75ers on the Groups tab, though I have to say most of the times these days I go directly to the Talk tab. I've seen Paul's statistics reports, and I'm amazed at how much reading everyone does. (Thanks, Paul!) It looks like my decision to join the 75ers group was prescient, as I've already met so many people here. What a great group!

You should read the Cleopatra book when you have a chance and are in the mood. I know you're reading a lot of fiction these days, so it might not be the best time to tackle that one. I enjoyed it, but then I love reading about history, so it suits me well.

88FAMeulstee
Abr 9, 2023, 5:25 am

Happy Easter, Irene!

89karenmarie
Abr 9, 2023, 8:11 am

'Morning, Irene. Happy Easter if you celebrate it, happy Sunday for sure.

>87 atozgrl: Again, I'm so glad you found us.

I'm currently reading only one nonfiction book, stalled because of Life getting in the way, The Federalist. I read Alexander Hamilton by Ron Chernow from 4/22/22 to 7/15/22, actually listening to the audio book, which is 29 CDs, 35.5 hours (got the audio book for $3, yes, $3, at one of the Friends of the Library Book Sales!). It took me that long because since I retired in 2016, my audio book consumption has gone way down I only listen in my car. I was deeply moved by the book, giving it 5*, and decided to read The Federalist. Well, life, and surgery, and etc., have gotten in the way. I've read 45 of 86 essays and report on each one on my thread as I read it with a quote or two that stand out to me. I started that last May and will persevere. I even just took it off the shelf and have put it next to the lamp here on the desk.

90msf59
Abr 9, 2023, 8:14 am

Happy Easter, Irene. I hope you are having a good holiday weekend. It is beautiful in Chicagoland. After a slow start the Cubs are playing well. Could sweep the Rangers today. 🤞

91atozgrl
Abr 10, 2023, 10:46 pm

>88 FAMeulstee: >89 karenmarie: >90 msf59: Belated thanks to all of you for the Easter wishes! We do celebrate, but quietly, as we don't have children or grandchildren to do all the festivities with. I didn't get around to all the threads this weekend, and am late checking my own!

92atozgrl
Abr 10, 2023, 10:51 pm

>89 karenmarie: I've got Alexander Hamilton on my shelves, waiting to be read. I had read a different book about him some years ago, before Chernow's book came out, and always thought he was one of the most fascinating of the founders. And very overlooked as well, until Lin-Manuel Miranda.

You sure got a deal on the audio book! I've got to make it over to the next sale.

Despite the fact that I was an undergrad History major and love reading history, I have not yet tackled The Federalist. Maybe if I try reading it the way you're doing it, I can get through it, rather than trying to get it all in at once.

93atozgrl
Abr 10, 2023, 10:55 pm

>90 msf59: Thanks, Mark! Unfortunately the Cubs didn't get the sweep yesterday, but I see they won tonight. They are definitely playing better lately.

Glad you had such a beautiful day for Easter. I hope the weather stays good for a while.

94karenmarie
Abr 11, 2023, 6:56 am

'Morning, Irene! Happy Monday to you.

>92 atozgrl: If you want to borrow the audio book of Alexander Hamilton, if you're an audio book listener, we can arrange it. i had the massive trade paperback, tried it, abandoned it, then gave it to a fellower LTer after listening to the book instead.

Ah, History. I've got 285 books tagged History and nonfiction, 56 of which I've read. That's what I wanted to major in in college, but only if I could end up a tenured Professor of History somewhere in the Midwest. At least, that's what my 18-year old self thought. Instead, I took a business degree, got a job at the Business School's Computer Center because my Stats prof managed it, then ended up in a career in IT.

95atozgrl
Abr 11, 2023, 6:08 pm

>94 karenmarie: Thanks, Karen! I appreciate the offer, but I haven't gotten into audio books. I just prefer reading a hard copy. Maybe I'll give it a try sometime, but I so enjoy reading a traditional book!

Interesting that you thought you wanted to become a history professor in the Midwest, given that you don't like the humidity. Maybe it was better that you didn't go down that route after all?

After getting my BA, I got my Library Science degree and went to work in libraries. I eventually wound up doing computer work, working on the PCs for a little while, as well as many years managing our online catalog systems. I was mostly a behind-the-scenes librarian in technology rather than working on the public desk.

96atozgrl
Abr 11, 2023, 6:16 pm

Woke up this morning with a sore throat, and it now seems to be moving into my lungs a bit. This was supposed to be a yard-work day, and I did manage to get out and do a bit of weeding, but did not do as much outside as originally planned. Had soup and grilled cheese for lunch, and mostly taking it easy since then. Not the way I had expected to spend the day.

Today's Wordle:

Wordle 661 4/6

⬜🟨🟩⬜⬜
⬜⬜🟩🟩⬜
⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

I was having so much trouble thinking of a word after my first two guesses that I had to try something I knew was wrong just in an attempt to get more letters. When that had no matches, it eliminated enough letters that I was able to get it on the next try.

97vancouverdeb
Abr 11, 2023, 9:08 pm

I think I recall that you enjoy Jigsaw puzzles too, on Karen's thread? I'm currently doing this one , Heye Country Fair , 1500 pieces and it is quite challenging so far, but fun https://www.puzzlewarehouse.com/country-fair-1500-pieces-by-heye/

98RebaRelishesReading
Abr 11, 2023, 10:02 pm

>96 atozgrl: Bummer about the sore throat etc. Hope it goes away quickly.

99karenmarie
Abr 12, 2023, 8:40 am

Hi Irene!

>95 atozgrl: I had/have family in Iowa and Nebraska, so just thought it might be a good change. I’d have hated the weather, of course. That’s why my mom and dad moved to SoCal in 1953, to get away from weather. Oh, and family, too…

Interesting how your love of libraries AND tech.

I hope you're feeling better today. This is prime gardening weather, of course.

100atozgrl
Abr 13, 2023, 11:09 pm

>97 vancouverdeb: Yes, indeed I do! That looks like a fun puzzle! I like big ones. I don't like to do anything less than 1000 pieces, so 1500 would be good for me.

101atozgrl
Abr 13, 2023, 11:11 pm

>98 RebaRelishesReading: Thanks, Reba. The sore throat is gone now, but it moved into my lungs and turned into a bad cough. Wednesday was pretty much a lost day. And my head was really stuffed up today. I'm slowly starting to feel better, but it'll be a bit yet before I'm back to normal.

102atozgrl
Abr 13, 2023, 11:18 pm

>99 karenmarie: Hi Karen! Still not feeling great today.

Yes, it is prime gardening weather, and that was how I was planning to spend my week. We wanted to pull more weeds, lay down some mulch, and I was hoping to get veggies out. Of course, none of that happened, because I was feeling to poorly. My husband did get out and do the first edging of the year and the mowing. And worst of all, we had great weather for it this week, with temperatures that were not too hot and low humidity. I hope I didn't miss my best window.

It's late, so I won't be able to get back over and catch up on your thread until sometime tomorrow. Keeping up with the threads is one of those things I dropped this week. I hope everything is still going well with you!

103vancouverdeb
Abr 13, 2023, 11:46 pm

Try a 1500 piece puzzle, once you have your energy back and are feeling better. Oh, no moved to your lungs and now a cough. We are having a new sofa and chairs delivered in couple of weeks, so we are busy trying to declutter out place and find somewhere do get rid of our old couch and loveseat. The city has a take away program, but so far they have not gotten back to us.

104msf59
Abr 14, 2023, 8:40 am

Happy Friday, Irene. Good luck with all that gardening. Our weather is beautiful here and the Cubs had a good week. It is fun watching them again. I also have The African Queen on tap for tonight.

105klobrien2
Abr 14, 2023, 8:55 am

Hope you’re feeling better, Irene! So frustrating to not have the energy and ability to do the things you want to be doing, I’m sure.

Best wishes for better health!

Karen O

106atozgrl
Abr 14, 2023, 12:11 pm

Thanks >103 vancouverdeb:, >104 msf59:, >105 klobrien2: for your good wishes! I am feeling better this morning! We're getting a lot of rain today, and the weekend looks unsettled, but maybe I can get some gardening done next week.

107atozgrl
Abr 14, 2023, 12:18 pm

>104 msf59: Hi Mark! The Cubs definitely look better this year. It looks like they'll get a real test over the next couple of weeks, having to play the Dodgers twice and then the Padres. I hope they continue to play well.

108atozgrl
Abr 14, 2023, 3:07 pm

I have received my first books from Early Reviewers! I had tried for some a couple of times, many years ago, but was never lucky enough to receive any. At that time, I was using LT just to catalog my books, and I hadn't written any reviews yet or gotten involved in any of the groups, which may explain why I hadn't gotten any Early Reviewers. I tried again last month, and put in for 3 books, hoping that I might get one, and I actually landed two!

The first book I received was Intermittent Fasting for Women 40, 50 and Older. It should have taken me only a couple of days to read, but I didn't find much reading time last week. I finally finished it a few days ago, but I didn't want to try to write a review while my head was so fuzzy from whatever bug I came down with this week. I finally got to it today, and the write-up follows below.

109atozgrl
Editado: Abr 14, 2023, 3:18 pm

12. Intermittent Fasting for Women 40, 50 and Older: Natural Approach to Balancing Hormones, Losing Weight, and Reversing Aging by Kalina Keilah

I received a free copy of Intermittent Fasting for Women 40, 50 and Older through LibraryThing’s Early Reviewers program. I wanted to learn more about intermittent fasting and whether it is safe for seniors. The book provides an introduction to the practice of intermittent fasting, its benefits, how to get started, and various fasting plans that one can follow. There was a lot of useful information in the book for anyone who wants to try intermittent fasting. The book includes a chapter of recipes which look healthy and easy to prepare. I also like the Key Points section at the end of each chapter, summarizing the main takeaways for the chapter.

Unfortunately, the book also has some real problems. It is in desperate need of an editor. There are a lot of sentence fragments instead of full sentences, issues with punctuation, and occasional wording where the author’s meaning is unclear or contradictory. The book includes a chapter on supplements for weight loss, and although the information is useful, I wasn’t sure why it was included in this book, as it was never tied into intermittent fasting. The author also makes many references to studies or scientific journal articles that support a point she is making, and while the points she makes sound reasonable, there are no footnotes nor an appendix with notes where anyone who wants to check further can find the documentation supporting her points. There is a section of References at the end of the book where these studies could have been listed. Unfortunately, the References are a list of only seven books, in the strangest bibliographic format I have ever seen. It gives author’s name, date, and title, but no publisher. The strangest thing of all is that the author’s names are given as first name, comma, last initial—not a full last name! Given that some of the titles are not very distinct, that makes trying to track them down unnecessarily difficult. Finally, it is not clear who the publisher of this book is. (Maybe it is self-published?) I prefer a publisher that is a trusted authority.

I would have liked to give the book a better rating, because a lot of the information is useful and helpful for anyone who would like to try intermittent fasting. Unfortunately, there are so many problems here that I can’t give it more. I may have actually been overly generous.

***

110atozgrl
Abr 14, 2023, 6:16 pm

It's been a busy weather day here. We had a heavy rainstorm this morning, accompanied by some thunder. That cleared up, and we got a bit of sun at times during the day. Then this afternoon we got a big thunderstorm with more heavy rain, plus hail. This time it was strong enough that it knocked the power out for a few seconds. That of course was long enough to force everything offline, and the cable box and router had to reboot, so no wifi for a bit. Just now a second storm came through. This time there was not much thunder. And we got the most gorgeous rainbow as the storm was leaving. That was one of the most impressive rainbows that I've seen. No, unfortunately, I did not get a picture.

111figsfromthistle
Abr 14, 2023, 8:15 pm

Dropping in to wish you a wonderful weekend. Good luck with the gardening!

112atozgrl
Abr 14, 2023, 10:37 pm

>111 figsfromthistle: Thank you so much! I hope you have a wonderful weekend as well!

I'm keeping my fingers crossed that I will finally get some of the gardening done next week.

113karenmarie
Abr 15, 2023, 8:31 am

Hi Irene! I hope you’re finally feeling better.

>109 atozgrl: I usually intermittent fast, but it was never officially a plan. I usually eat a bit of something when I take my 9 p.m. meds and don’t usually eat again til 9 a.m., but this morning I was really hungry after getting up 5ish and ate some cheese, grapes, and a piece of bread and unsalted butter about 7ish.

>110 atozgrl: We had the same storms only earlier in the day, plus rain later but no hail.

114klobrien2
Abr 15, 2023, 12:29 pm

>108 atozgrl: Early Reviewers is a fun concept— books for free, all you have to do is read them and then tell about them! You just cross your fingers a little bit in the process.

Hope you’re feeling better! Have a great weekend!

Karen O

115vancouverdeb
Abr 16, 2023, 7:20 pm

>109 atozgrl: Great review of Intermittent Fasting for Women 40, 50 and Older: Natural Approach to Balancing Hormones, Losing Weight, and Reversing Aging . My sister and husband are both intermittent fasters. They are both 58, and they stop eating at around 7 pm or so, whenever they finish eating dinner and then don't eat again until 1pm the next day. Neither one has a weight problem, but they feel it good for their blood sugar levels. My brother and his wife do something similar, eating just two meals at 11 am and 6 pm. It's amazing how many people do intermittent fasting , at least folks around me. Even my mom, who is 81, finishes dinner at around 6:30 pm and does not snack in the evening, but waits til 8 am or so to eat again.

Congrats on your ER wins.

116atozgrl
Abr 17, 2023, 10:28 pm

I had a busy Saturday. We had a planned get-together with friends Saturday night. It was pot luck and we were supposed to bring a chef salad. I had to go to the store and get the ingredients I didn't have on hand, as well as something for dessert, since I was asked at the last minute to bring the dessert. We spent the afternoon getting everything put together. Then we spent the evening at our friend's house chatting with a group of old friends. Fortunately I was feeling well enough by Saturday to go. But I did keep a mask on most of the time when we weren't eating.

Sunday was a down day, and I spent the day cleaning up after Saturday, and did a lot of reading in the afternoon. I didn't really get online except to keep my Wordle streak going.

>113 karenmarie: >114 klobrien2: Thanks for your good wishes. I am doing better, especially today, although I still have a cough and sinus drainage. Unfortunately, Mr. A. is not feeling well now. I don't think he caught my cold, because he hasn't developed the cough. But he has a tendency to get sinus infections, and it looks like he may be coming down with one. He made an appointment to see the doctor tomorrow morning.

117atozgrl
Abr 17, 2023, 10:45 pm

>113 karenmarie: Hi Karen! I've kind of been doing intermittent fasting since I started working from home due to COVID. It's been like you say, not officially a plan. I had heard people talking about it, and since I'm never hungry when I get up, I decided to try eating breakfast later--during my morning work break--and it went well for me. So it started fairly casually for me, usually about a 13-hour timespan between the last thing I ate at night and then breakfast the next morning. And I've kept pretty much the same schedule after retiring. However, if I start doing more planning, I could extend it to 14 hours, which is one of the suggested schedules in the book.

But I was curious what the book would have to say about it, since I hadn't read anything official on the topic. And as an older woman, I seem to be in the target audience. I just wish it had been better written. And she never directly answered the question of whether eating that way is safe for seniors over 65, but I infer that there isn't a problem as long as you are in good health.

>115 vancouverdeb: Thanks, Deborah! I'm on the high end of a good weight for my height, not yet overweight, but the intermittent fasting seems to be helping me control my weight. I would like to bring it down a little more. I've never been into "dieting" as such, and this seems like an approach that would work. Still get my meals, but in a limited amount of time.

Thanks for telling me about your siblings. It's good to know that they are doing this and seeing the benefits. I agree that it should help with blood sugar levels. But I don't think I could last from 7pm to 1pm the next day like your sister!

118atozgrl
Abr 20, 2023, 9:10 pm

13. Tyll by Daniel Kehlmann

I read Tyll for the April 2023 Reading Through Time challenge: April Fool. I knew the book was supposed to be about Till Eulenspiegel, but really didn't know anything else about it. It turned out to be quite different from what I expected.

I had thought the story would be a fairly straightforward telling of the Eulenspiegel saga, but it was not that. It was actually more about the 30 Years War and various important events in that war, with Tyll's story being a link between the other parts. It begins with Tyll and one of his performances to show us what that looked like, then goes back in time to his childhood. So far, this is a fairly normal story. However, it goes on to tell the story from multiple viewpoints, and the stories told do not go in chronological order. It jumps around. Many of the characters who appear in the book are real, historic persons, and we see what part they had to play in the events surrounding the war. Tyll's presence runs throughout the book, but he is not central to all the stories, and barely appears in some sections. It also is a work of magical realism, and this is the first work I have read which falls in this category.

Although I did study the 30 Years War briefly in my European history class in college, I learned a lot more detail about the war in this book. The book brings the horror of war and its effects on ordinary people to life. I found the book to be interesting and readable, but it is so different from other works that I have read that I found it rather difficult to give it a rating. I finally decided on 4 stars, but I'm not entirely sure whether that's exactly right.

****

119atozgrl
Editado: Abr 20, 2023, 9:11 pm

Mensagem removida pelo autor.

120vancouverdeb
Abr 20, 2023, 9:56 pm

I hope you enjoy the spicy roasted Cauliflower from my thread. Since you already eat roasted cauliflower, it won't be too new to you. I agree, it's delicious! Dave and I can eat an entire roasted Cauliflower between the two of us.

You are right, my sister and her husband do fast for a long time, I'd not really though about how many hours it was. She tells me if she gets a bit hungry she drinks water, and she never really felt she needed breakfast, so she does not miss it. Personally that would be too long for me, and I definitely need breakfast to function. I'd like to drop about 15 lbs, and I wish I had the willpower to intermittent fast, but I think I will try to stick with Weight Watchers.

121atozgrl
Abr 20, 2023, 11:03 pm

>120 vancouverdeb: Thanks, Deborah, I'm sure I will enjoy it! The two of us have no trouble putting away a whole cauliflower either; it shrinks enough during roasting that there's less coming out of the oven than went in.

I'm never hungry when I wake up, so I don't miss an early breakfast. But I'd get pretty weak if I waited all the way until 1:00 to eat. I need something before then. Right now, I'm usually eating around 10:00 or 10:30 (unless I need to go out earlier), then lunch after 1:00, and it's working for me.

122FAMeulstee
Abr 21, 2023, 4:30 am

>118 atozgrl: I gave Tyll the same rating three years ago, Irene.
I liked Kehlmann's approach on Tyll Eulenspiegel.
I also learned a lot about the 30 Years War (1618–1648), as our history classes in school mainly focus on the Dutch 80 Year War (1568-1648), wich was partly a part of the 30 Years War.

123karenmarie
Abr 21, 2023, 8:26 am

Hi Irene! Happy Friday to you.

I'm off to check out Deborah's thread for the spicy roasted cauliflower recipe. Bill won't touch cauliflower with a barge pole, but Jenna and I love it.

124atozgrl
Abr 21, 2023, 11:38 pm

>122 FAMeulstee: Hi Anita! It was definitely an interesting book! I remember studying the 30 Years War, but had forgotten most of the details. And Kehlmann made the effects of the war on the common people and the lands so vivid!

I don't think I've ever heard of the Dutch 80 Year War. That sounds bad! I'll have to go look it up.

125atozgrl
Abr 21, 2023, 11:42 pm

>123 karenmarie: A very belated happy Friday to you too! I didn't get around to LT and the threads until late today. I was really out of it this morning, still feeling the after-effects of the cold I've been dealing with. Then spent the afternoon watching the Cubs game. I did manage to get out for a short time to re-treat the weeds. Hoping we'll finally get our mulch out next week.

Definitely check out the cauliflower recipe. It sounds like a good one.

126FAMeulstee
Abr 22, 2023, 3:11 am

>124 atozgrl: Maybe you know it as the Dutch Revolt.

127Berly
Abr 22, 2023, 9:39 am

Hi there! I've seen your name popping up in the 75ers group and I'd thought I'd come over. I hope you continue to have fun here and don't worry or stress about the actual book numbers. It's too bad the Intermittent Fasting book wasn't a better read. I've done it a few times before and would love to read more about it. Maybe I should just start doing it again and not wait for the book! LOL. Glad you made it to your friends dinner and I hope you feel 100% ASAP. Now I have to go check out the cauliflower recipe...Oh, and BTW I'm Kim. : )

128atozgrl
Abr 22, 2023, 12:32 pm

>126 FAMeulstee: No, unfortunately, I'm not familiar with the Dutch Revolt either. I guess the 30 Years War affected so much of Europe that it gets covered in history overview courses, while the Dutch one does not. Obviously, I still have more European history to learn!

129atozgrl
Abr 22, 2023, 12:39 pm

>127 Berly: Hi Kim! Welcome, and thanks for stopping by! It's great to meet you and have you here. I'll go check out your thread.

Yes, I was disappointed in the Intermittent Fasting book. It did have good information, but when there are so many grammatical errors and a lack of supporting documentation, it's not clear how much of the information is trustworthy. Much of it sounded right, but it's hard to be sure.

I am getting better every day, though still not back to normal. Thursday was a rough day because I kept coughing and didn't sleep well Wednesday night. It was one of those nights where when I lay down flat, I would start coughing. I wound up having to use extra pillows, which messed up my back. My back is OK again now, but even though I'm better, I still have a cough and sinus drainage. But it is a little better every day.

130atozgrl
Abr 22, 2023, 12:42 pm

Just like Tuesday, today's Wordle was one of those where I had most of the letters by the second or third try, and then had multiple words that would fit, so it was just guessing the right one.

Wordle 672 5/6

⬜⬜⬜⬜🟩
⬜🟩🟩⬜🟩
⬜🟩🟩⬜🟩
⬜🟩🟩⬜🟩
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

131drneutron
Abr 23, 2023, 7:36 pm

>130 atozgrl: Same with me - turned into a guessing game I barely squeaked out.

132karenmarie
Abr 24, 2023, 7:22 am

Hi Irene, and happy Monday to you.

I hope the cold is gone. It's prime gardening weather here in NC, of course.

133klobrien2
Abr 24, 2023, 10:49 am

Hope you’re feeling better, Irene! Have a great week!

Karen O

134vancouverdeb
Abr 25, 2023, 1:32 am

I hope you are soon feeling better, Irene. Wishing you a good week ahead.

135klobrien2
Abr 27, 2023, 9:45 am

Hey, my Wordle-ing friend, hope you are feeling better! I got Wordle in 4 today.

Karen O

136atozgrl
Abr 27, 2023, 4:29 pm

Apologies, everyone! I've been delinquent this week getting to my own thread.

>132 karenmarie: >133 klobrien2: >134 vancouverdeb: Thank you all for your good wishes! The cold is finally much better this week. Because of that, and because the weather has been good this week (until today), Mr. A. and I have been working in the yard. We spent most of Tuesday and yesterday morning pulling weeds, laying down a weed barrier, and putting out mulch. Fortunately, the weather is cooler this week, so it was a good time to do it. We had hoped to have done this two weeks ago, but I had the cold and Mr. A. had a sinus infection, so we were both down until now. As a result, I haven't gotten a lot of reading done this week, and have only sporadically been on LT.

Today it's raining, but I had a mid-day doctor's appointment, so didn't get much accomplished this morning. Finally got back to reading this afternoon.

137atozgrl
Abr 27, 2023, 4:51 pm

Today's Wordle:

Wordle 677 3/6

⬜🟨⬜⬜⬜
⬜🟩⬜🟩⬜
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩
SLATE, ROBIN, LOGIC

I have only recently started looking at Wordlebot, and I still don't check its analysis every day. But I thought today's analysis was weird.

WordleBot
SLATESkill 99 Luck 30
ROBINSkill 79 Luck 62 Wordlebot: "ROBIN was a good guess, but DILLY would have been more efficient." Why? Sometimes Wordlebot tells me ROBIN was a great choice for my second guess when I'm trying to get more letters. And today, how in heaven's name could DILLY possibly be more efficient? I got both vowels in the correct spot with my guess.
LOGICSkill 68 Luck 89 Wordlebot: "You got it! With five words still to choose from, this was a bit of a lucky guess." Lucky? Really? It seemed like the logical guess to me.

Wordlebot says its solution was SLATE, DILLY, LOGIC. I never would have thought of DILLY for my second guess, but if I had, it's highly doubtful that I would ever have thought of logic on my third guess.


Sometimes Wordlebot has some good suggestions, but today it seemed totally off base.

138PaulCranswick
Abr 28, 2023, 9:08 pm

>137 atozgrl: Fascinating, Irene! I didn't realize that there was some form of diagnosis of which words would be logical choices in wordle.

139PaulCranswick
Abr 28, 2023, 9:08 pm

Have a wonderful weekend.

140vancouverdeb
Abr 29, 2023, 12:18 am

>137 atozgrl: I love Wordlebot, Irene . I check it everyday after I play Wordlebot . I don’t always understand the logic behind it either, but it is FUN !

141atozgrl
Maio 1, 2023, 5:21 pm

>139 PaulCranswick: Hi Paul! I'm too late to wish you a good weekend, so I'll send you wishes for a great week!

142atozgrl
Maio 1, 2023, 5:25 pm

>140 vancouverdeb: Wordlebot's suggestions are interesting! Sometimes it seems to me that the only way it could know that a particular word would be more "efficient" than the one I used was if it already knew the solution. Or alternatively, if it knows all the possible words. Given that I'm not a computer and can't know that, saying one particular word is more "efficient" is not particularly helpful.

But sometimes its suggestions seem reasonable to me. I don't always check what it says, but it is interesting to see what it has to say.

143atozgrl
Maio 1, 2023, 5:27 pm

Speaking of Wordle, here's today's puzzle.

Wordle 681 3/6

⬜⬜🟨⬜🟩
⬜🟩🟩⬜🟩
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩
SLATE, CANOE, RANGE

144atozgrl
Maio 1, 2023, 5:31 pm

>138 PaulCranswick: Hi Paul! I didn't realize this either until I recently started clicking on the Wordlebot analysis link on the statistics popup when you solve the puzzle. It is interesting to see what it has to say about your play. Sometimes I learn something useful.

145atozgrl
Maio 2, 2023, 11:25 pm

Another day spent mostly outside, doing more weeding and putting down mulch. We've got to take advantage of the great weather, while temps are in the 60's and 70's, before the big heat returns. Parts of the garden have been neglected in recent years, meaning more weeding this spring.

Today's Wordle was pretty standard.
Wordle 682 4/6

🟩🟨⬜⬜⬜
🟩⬜🟨⬜⬜
🟩🟩⬜🟨🟩
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩
SLATE, SOUND, SURLY, SULKY. I actually thought of SULKY first, but continued to think about other possibilities and decided SURLY was a more likely word. Not today.

146karenmarie
Maio 3, 2023, 7:34 am

Hi Irene!

I’m glad that you’re finally over your cold, sorry about your husband's sinus infection.

>137 atozgrl: I like WordleBot but don't check it every day. I do keep it as an open tab on my browser, though. I got Wordle in 3 today.


147klobrien2
Maio 3, 2023, 10:39 am

Stopping by to say “hi!” and to wish you a great Wednesday!

Karen O

148atozgrl
Maio 3, 2023, 5:56 pm

>146 karenmarie: Thanks, Karen. We're both doing much better now.

I got Wordle in 3 today as well. A good day today for both of us!

149atozgrl
Maio 3, 2023, 5:57 pm

>147 klobrien2: Thanks, Karen. I hope you have a great Wednesday as well!

150atozgrl
Maio 4, 2023, 11:59 am

Today's Wordle was tough. My first two words didn't get me anywhere. I was just glad to solve it today.

Wordle 684 5/6

⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜
⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜
⬜🟩⬜⬜⬜
⬜🟩🟩🟩🟩
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩
SLATE, ROBIN, MUNCH, YUPPY, GUPPY

151atozgrl
Maio 4, 2023, 2:39 pm

I finished Witness to the Dark a week ago, and I finally have the review written up. This book was the second one that I received through LT's Early Reviewers program.

In this book, Wolf Holles recounts the story of his childhood in Europe, beginning from the time his family left Germany for the Netherlands in 1933. He describes a happy life in the Netherlands, continuation of that life with worry and fear after Germany invaded, and the subsequent regulations that they had to abide by. Persecution really began in 1941, and eventually the Nazis began rounding up Jews for deportation. Holles’ family was taken in 1942 to a transit camp in the Netherlands, and they were eventually sent to Bergen-Belsen concentration camp in January 1944. Holles describes what life was like in the camps and how it got worse over time. Prisoners became more apathetic as they lost hope. Late in the war, many illnesses spread throughout the camps. Near the end, the Nazis wanted to move prisoners away from the front, so many of the prisoners at Bergen-Belsen were put on a train to Theresienstadt. But with all the bombing the Allies were doing, the train had to be re-routed many times, and never arrived. After 12 days, the prisoners were finally liberated by the Russians. It still took many months for the Holles family to make it back to the Netherlands and for all of the surviving members of the family to be reunited.

Wolf Holles tells the story in a straightforward manner. The writing is easy to read although the story being told is not. He makes it clear what his life was like, through the good early years followed by the difficulties under occupation, to the horrors of life in a concentration camp. I had never heard of the lost train before, and the story is an important addition to the tales told by holocaust survivors.

A couple of quotes that stood out to me:

"Anyone who has been incarcerated in a Nazi death camp or under some other ruthless dictatorship knows. He knows of the evil slumbering in human beings. Hand a whip to this or that person and tell him he is in command of another person and see, just watch how this man will change in a short period of time. He will turn into a cruel, vicious brute; he will feel superior and will wield his power ruthlessly."

He ends on a more positive note:
"Against all odds, I survived the Holocaust and, in time, recovered and could provide a good life for me and my family. Nevertheless, I’ll be aware of the evil that lurks.
The following thought gives me great comfort: I am the living proof that evil does not triumph."

Given current events, it is more important than ever that we never forget what happened then, so that it can never happen again. Highly recommended.

****

152vancouverdeb
Maio 4, 2023, 6:22 pm

Thanks again for the all the help with my April book mosaic. Nice review of your ER win, Witness to the Dark . If you need any help with putting book cover images onto your thread, you'll find the information on how to that in how to do fancy things in your thread. If I can do, it has to be pretty easy! I have not yet posted my Wordle results on my thread, but it took me 4 tries. Not a word I really expected, though common enough, I guess.

153msf59
Maio 4, 2023, 6:47 pm

Sweet Thursday, Irene. Thanks for sharing your memory about seeing GWTW for the first time. I love it. Witness to the Dark sounds like a good one.

154atozgrl
Maio 5, 2023, 2:53 pm

>152 vancouverdeb: I'm glad I was able to help! I'll check out the instructions about doing fancy things when I get a chance. I probably won't be able to get to it this month, unfortunately. I'll let you know if I have questions.

155atozgrl
Maio 5, 2023, 2:54 pm

I did better with Wordle today.

Wordle 685 3/6

⬜🟨⬜⬜🟨
🟨🟩⬜🟩⬜
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩
SLATE, LEMON, BELOW

156atozgrl
Maio 5, 2023, 3:05 pm

>153 msf59: Thanks, Mark! It's a memory that sticks out to me, so that one is easy to recall.

Witness to the Dark is good. It's told in plain language and is an easy read, except that what he describes is not easy to hear. It just shows what depths people can descend to when they are overcome by hate. It's so important that we don't ever forget.

Feeder report: the mockingbird has finally stopped harassing the other birds, so there's been a lot of action at the feeders recently. I'm seeing lots of birds, including goldfinches, house finches, cardinals as always, titmice, chickadees, mourning doves, chipping sparrows, and the red-bellied woodpeckers are finally back on the feeder. But we had excitement today: we saw a rose-breasted grosbeak! I think we may have also seen a female, but they're a lot harder to identify. We see them some years, and I've only ever seen them here in May, as they're passing through.

157atozgrl
Maio 5, 2023, 5:00 pm

Cubs win! Turned out to be a good day to see their game, after a bad week. I doubt I would have been able to catch the last few games anyway, but the Nationals are blacked out here, so they weren't available in any case. It looks like that was probably a good thing--I don't think I would have enjoyed watching those games.

158vancouverdeb
Maio 5, 2023, 5:08 pm

Your bird feeder sounds very busy , Irene . I’ve never seen a mockingbird in real life . Nice wording . Took me 5 .

159atozgrl
Editado: Maio 5, 2023, 5:47 pm

15. Raising the Hunley : the remarkable history and recovery of the lost Confederate submarine by Brian Hicks and Schuyler Kropf.

I finished my read for the April Nonfiction challenge, Raising the Hunley. This book tells the story of the Confederate submarine, the Hunley. The story has three parts: The first part gives the history of the Hunley and its predecessor subs that were sunk before they could be used. It tells what went into the building and testing of the sub, the loss of two crews in testing, and the successful sinking of a Union ship by the Hunley.

The second part of the book covers the mystery of what happened to the Hunley after it sank the Union ship, and the many efforts made to find the missing ship. The third part of the books tells of the struggle to recover the ship after it was found and the subsequent dig by archaeologists into the sub to recover the men and artifacts entombed within.

This book is very interesting, even compelling. There is a lot to learn about the submarine, how it was built, and the battle it engaged in. The section on the search for the missing sub is more interesting than you might think, because it was such a mystery. The writers also make the recovery of the sub and the excavation of the artifacts exciting. I enjoyed the book very much.

****

160kac522
Maio 5, 2023, 9:00 pm

161atozgrl
Editado: Maio 8, 2023, 4:31 pm

Today's Wordle:

Wordle 688 3/6

⬜🟨🟨⬜⬜
🟨🟨⬜🟩⬜
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩
SLATE, LABOR, AGLOW

This was one I was able to work out without having to resort to hints. I was surprised to get it in 3.

162vancouverdeb
Maio 8, 2023, 5:37 pm

I've not yet posted my wordle, but it took my five tries! Nice work, Irene.

163RebaRelishesReading
Maio 8, 2023, 6:58 pm

>161 atozgrl: I ended up heading to a word list -- it just wouldn't come :(

164atozgrl
Maio 8, 2023, 11:21 pm

>162 vancouverdeb: >163 RebaRelishesReading: I was kind of proud of myself for figuring that one out. But after the first two guesses A could only be in first or last position, and I thought a word ending in OA was unlikely so I just started writing down some possible letter placements and found just that one word. It was a guess, but turned out to be correct.

165atozgrl
Maio 9, 2023, 5:31 pm

Back to the struggle with Wordle today.

Wordle 689 5/6

⬜⬜🟨⬜⬜
⬜🟩⬜⬜⬜
⬜🟩⬜⬜🟩
⬜🟩⬜⬜🟩
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩
SLATE, ROBIN, POLKA (looking for letter placement and maybe more letters), DOGMA, COCOA

166msf59
Maio 9, 2023, 6:34 pm

Congrats on seeing a rose-breasted grosbeak at your feeders, Irene. Always a special sighting. I get them at my feeders from time to time too. The females do not have the striking color but I like their distinctive look. Here is a male, that I took a photo of while in Texas:

167msf59
Maio 9, 2023, 6:35 pm

I am hoping the Cubs win the next two from the Cardinals. I am looking for more consistency from this team. They definitely have the talent.

168karenmarie
Maio 10, 2023, 9:49 am

Hi Irene!

Raising the Hunley is intriguing. I've added it to my wish list.

169drneutron
Editado: Maio 10, 2023, 10:09 am

Had a chance to visit the Hunley museum in Charleston about a decade ago. It was a good one - got me with Raising the Hunley!

170atozgrl
Maio 11, 2023, 10:02 pm

Catching up. Yesterday I didn't get any reading done or make it back to LT. We were doing more weeding and mulching in our backyard garden beds, and also trimming the tree to try and keep the squirrels off the bird feeder. Then I went grocery shopping since the local store has a senior discount on Wednesdays. I was able to get some reading done this afternoon.

171atozgrl
Maio 11, 2023, 10:08 pm

>166 msf59: Hi Mark! Thanks for the beautiful picture of the rose-breasted grosbeak! I'm glad you got to see one in Texas.

>167 msf59: I wish the Cubs could have beaten the Cardinals at least two of the games, but they did get the last one. In general they've been playing a better quality game this year, in the games I've seen, than the team has in several years. But they've been having issues with the bullpen. You would think they could have beaten Miami in at least one of those one-run games they lost.

172atozgrl
Editado: Maio 11, 2023, 10:32 pm

>168 karenmarie: >169 drneutron: Raising the Hunley was really interesting. It's a book my husband picked up a few years ago, and I finally got around to reading it. It was more interesting to me than I expected! I hope both of you enjoy it as much as I did.

We got to see the Hunley at the museum on a trip to Charleston several years back. We enjoyed seeing it, and it also helped me visualize the story at the end of the book when the archaeologists were excavating the sub after they had recovered it.

We have a second book about the Hunley, which I bought for Mr. A. as a gift. It's called In the Waves: My Quest to Solve the Mystery of a Civil War Submarine by Rachel Lance and it's about the search to solve the last mystery, namely why the sub sank. I haven't read that one yet, and now I need to make time to read it this year, as a sort of sequel to Raising the Hunley.

ETA: I also meant to say that the author is at Duke University (or at least she was when the book was published).

173atozgrl
Maio 11, 2023, 10:27 pm

I did better with today's Wordle.

Wordle 691 3/6

⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜
🟨🟨🟨⬜⬜
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩
SLATE, ROBIN, BROOM

174vancouverdeb
Maio 12, 2023, 1:20 am

I hope you enjoy The Midnight News, Irene. I managed to convince three of my real life friends to borrow it from the library, so I'm quite happy about that. I really loved the story. Heading out tomorrow to take my mom for dinner - Mother's Day, and my husband, sister and niece will also come along. Should be nice . Just the Spaghetti Factory, but I don't think I've been there in 25 years ? It was my mom's choice. I'm looking forward to it.

175PaulCranswick
Maio 14, 2023, 9:09 pm

Hope you have had a great weekend, Irene.

176atozgrl
Maio 14, 2023, 10:04 pm

>175 PaulCranswick: Thanks, Paul. We've had a good but quiet weekend. I hope you had a great weekend also!

177atozgrl
Maio 15, 2023, 1:18 pm

I've been busy with other things the last few days, so mostly not getting much reading done or keeping up with the threads on LT. I'm trying to catch up today.

An old friend of Mr. A is coming to the area this week for a visit, and we expect to see her on Friday, so we will need to do a lot of housecleaning this week. I'll try to get some reading in, but not sure how much I'll be able to manage. I'm currently reading The Deluge: the Great War, America and the Remaking of the Global Order which is pretty dense and slow going, though I also find it interesting. It's adding more fuel to my decreasing respect for President Wilson.

I got lucky with Wordle today.
Wordle 695 2/6

⬜⬜🟨⬜🟩
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩
SLATE, CANOE - CANOE is the word I usually try if I have the E in place and an A somewhere in the word. I was surprised that it was actually the answer today.

178klobrien2
Maio 16, 2023, 10:45 am

>177 atozgrl: Glad you’ll be able to get back to book-ish things!

Great Wordle-ing! Sometimes one’s usual words are just the ticket! I had a three today ( irate, waste, latte

Karen O

179atozgrl
Maio 16, 2023, 5:42 pm

Wordle for me today:

Wordle 696 2/6

⬜🟨🟨🟩🟩
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩
SLATE, LATTE Even though I had most of the letters on the first try, I still struggled a bit before solving it. Obviously I'm not a coffee drinker.

180msf59
Maio 16, 2023, 6:48 pm

Hi, Irene. Thanks for dropping by and giving me your feeder reports. Some nice visitors have started showing up, after a lull. Several white-crowned sparrows have been hanging around for more than a week. I had a female rose-breasted grosbeak stop by the other day. No male yet and I had a ruby-throated hummingbird and a Baltimore Oriole stop by yesterday. First time I have seen both of them at my feeders this season. The orioles really love the grape jelly.

181vancouverdeb
Maio 16, 2023, 7:44 pm

Housecleaning and such, who wants to do that.

>177 atozgrl: I got lucky with Wordle the same day, but my progession was

crane, canoe Enjoy some good reading in the days ahead.

182atozgrl
Maio 16, 2023, 10:25 pm

>180 msf59: I have not yet seen any hummingbirds this year, though they must surely be around. The feeder is out, but no sightings yet. I'm glad you're getting such nice visitors!

183atozgrl
Maio 17, 2023, 5:04 pm

Unbelievable. I've never gotten Wordle in two 2 days in a row, much less 3. It probably means I'm going to fail completely tomorrow.

5/17/23
Wordle 697 2/6
⬜🟩🟩⬜⬜
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩
SLATE, PLANK

184bell7
Maio 17, 2023, 9:23 pm

Oh wow, and here I was proud of my three! (Yesterday was pretty hard for me haha)

185FAMeulstee
Maio 18, 2023, 5:39 am

>183 atozgrl: Wow, congratulations with three in a row, Irene.

I can't compare. I never picked up Wordle again, after missing out on vacation in March.

186klobrien2
Maio 18, 2023, 10:20 am

>183 atozgrl: Congratulations on your fine Wordle-ing! May your streak continue, but don’t be discombobulated if it doesn’t. Now, there’s a word!

Karen O

187atozgrl
Maio 18, 2023, 9:10 pm

And just as I thought, today's Wordle was a problem. It was a guessing game.

Wordle 698 6/6

🟩⬜⬜⬜⬜
🟩🟨⬜🟨⬜
🟩⬜🟩⬜🟩
🟩⬜🟩🟩🟩
🟩⬜🟩🟩🟩
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩
SLATE, SOUND, SPOON, SCORN, SWORN, SHORN

188atozgrl
Maio 18, 2023, 9:19 pm

>184 bell7: >185 FAMeulstee: >186 klobrien2: Thanks! Anita, I think my streak is also about to end. We'll be travelling next week to visit my husband's family, and we'll be staying with his elderly mother, who does not have wifi, so I will likely not have much internet access for awhile. I wish Wordle would track streaks by games played rather than making you play every day to keep a streak going.

Karen, I probably will feel discombobulated by the time we get back--and that is quite a word! :-)

189atozgrl
Maio 19, 2023, 4:35 pm

Back to normal Wordling today.

Wordle 699 4/6

⬜⬜⬜⬜🟨
🟨⬜⬜🟨⬜
⬜🟨⬜🟩🟨
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

190atozgrl
Maio 20, 2023, 12:21 pm

Today's Wordle:

Wordle 700 3/6

🟨🟩🟩⬜⬜
⬜🟩🟩🟩⬜
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩
SLATE, CLASP, FLASK

191atozgrl
Maio 20, 2023, 12:29 pm

It's been a busy week this week. We had to clean up the house as much as possible before an old friend of my husband's dropped by for a visit yesterday evening. I had a huge stack of papers and catalogs to sort out first, then to the dusting and vacuuming, etc., etc. Mr. A. was also trying to get yardwork done before we leave town to visit his family in Mississippi. We'll be leaving tomorrow, and trying to get as much packing done as possible today. Also tonight, Mr. A's jazz band has a gig, so there's that too. It hasn't been a good week for getting much reading done.

We'll be staying with Mr. A's elderly mother in Mississippi, and she does not have internet, so I will probably be offline for most of the next two weeks. I've gotten my Wordle streak up to 113; so much for that. We're going to help with yard work while we're there. Mr. A's sister lives around the corner, and she and her husband do so much for their mother, but they are in their 70's and not in the best of health any more, so we will try to help with things they haven't been able to do. I also hope to get some reading in while we're there.

192atozgrl
Jun 1, 2023, 11:26 pm

We are finally back after spending 10 days at my MIL's place. Most days we were doing yard work for her that she can no longer do for herself, and Mr. A's sister and BIL are also not physically able to do as much at the present time. We were out working almost every morning. I was mostly weeding, while Mr. A. was using the power tools and tackling bigger projects. Bending over to do the weeding wasn't great for my back, but Mr. A. had it worse--his arms got covered with poison ivy rash. I was the one who got it last year, but it was his turn this time.

Fortunately, the weather was fantastic. Late May in Mississippi is usually hot and humid, but the temperatures were pleasant and the humidity was low, so we really lucked out this time. Mr. A's sister fed us dinner every day, and I put on a couple of pounds.

We finished our drive home yesterday and spent today unpacking. We were pretty tired, but I also had to go get groceries. I also refilled the bird feeders which had been picked clean in our absence. Maybe we'll have more energy tomorrow.

193atozgrl
Jun 1, 2023, 11:37 pm

While in Mississippi, I was able to read Historic Raleigh for the May: The Big City challenge. As a book of historic photographs, it was a good one to pick up when I had a moment to read, but knew that I wouldn't be able to read for an extended time. Review to come when I have time to spare for it. I also got a lot of reading done in The Deluge: The Great War, America and the Remaking of the Global Order, but I've still got more to go to finish that one.

194atozgrl
Jun 2, 2023, 10:41 pm

16. Historic Raleigh by Jennifer A. Kulikowski and Kenneth E. Peters

I read Historic Raleigh for the May 2023: The Big City - Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow Reading Through Time challenge. The book is part of the Images of America series. It provides a history of Raleigh through pictures. Obviously, Raleigh's history predates photographs, so the earliest pictures are reproductions of artwork including drawings and portraits. There are also photographs of early houses and other buildings that are still standing. The most interesting photos were from the 1800's and early 1900's. Old postcards are also included. The photos are accompanied by descriptions which give a basic history of Raleigh. What I like is being able to see buildings that no longer exist, and to compare what parts of the city used to look like with how it is now.

****

195atozgrl
Jun 3, 2023, 10:12 am

Wordle 714 4/6

⬜⬜🟨⬜⬜
⬜⬜⬜⬜🟨
⬜🟨🟨⬜⬜
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩
SLATE, ROBIN, KNACK, NANNY

For some reason, the Wordlebot analysis is no longer available unless you pay a subscription. I had only started checking it a couple of months ago, and now I can't see the results any more. Oh well.

Also, Wordle doesn't seem to be tracking the two games I was able to play on my phone during our trip. It's still showing my streak to be 113 whereas I had gotten it up to 115 before I had to stop playing. And one of those I got in two!

196karenmarie
Jun 4, 2023, 8:55 am

Hi Irene, and welcome back a couple of days late.

>192 atozgrl: Sounds like a productive trip. Sorry Mr. A. got poison ivy, glad the weather was mild.

>194 atozgrl: Sounds fascinating, especially since I’m only about 45 minutes away from our state capitol.

197klobrien2
Jun 4, 2023, 2:14 pm

>195 atozgrl: Sorry about your Wordle woes (that’s kind of fun to say!). So, you usually don’t play on your phone? Could you be seen (by Wordle) as a different user there? At least, you have the majority of your streak still recorded.

Welcome home!

Karen O

198vancouverdeb
Jun 5, 2023, 1:25 am

I subscribe to the NYT and even my streak came to an end, according to Wordle , a few days ago. Fortunately my wordle stats are otherwise correct. From what I have read here on LT , quite a few people had there stats disappear/ get messed with a few days ago. It is frustrating!My mistake I think was that Wordle asked me to sign in on Wordle a few days ago, and I didn't bother to do that, being to lazy to walk downstairs and find my password book. So, poof went my " streak " according to Wordle.

199atozgrl
Jun 5, 2023, 12:46 pm

Interesting word today.

Wordle 716 5/6

⬜⬜⬜⬜🟨
⬜⬜⬜🟨🟨
🟨🟨🟨⬜⬜
⬜🟨🟨🟨⬜
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩
SLATE, ROBIN, NEIGH, FIEND, ENNUI

200atozgrl
Jun 5, 2023, 12:48 pm

Hi Karen, it's good to see you! I need to get back over to your thread, but the number of posts since I went out of town is a bit intimidating. I'll make it over eventually, later today I hope.

I found the pictures in Historic Raleigh really interesting, and I think you will to, if you pick up a copy. It's certainly of interest for those of us who live in the area.

201atozgrl
Jun 5, 2023, 12:59 pm

>197 klobrien2: Hi, Karen! Thanks for visiting!

I usually do not play Wordle on my phone. Way back in the early days, I played a couple of times on my phone and I was not logged in. I got one word on my second try, back when I was using TRAIN as my starting word, and that was the first time I'd done that. Since I usually played on the computer, I decided I didn't want to lose credit for a quick solve, and went back to playing on the PC after that.

I have played a couple of times on the phone more recently, and I am logged in, so I don't know why it didn't recognize me this time. I felt like 113 was an odd number to end a streak, so I did play on the phone twice to try to keep the streak going a little longer, while I had WIFI access. I knew the streak was bound to end when I lost any access to WIFI and got too busy with all the work we needed to do at my MIL's house. I actually thought it did recognize me when I played those last two games, because I thought I saw that the streak number went up, so I was surprised to see it went back down to 113 once I returned home. Odd.

202atozgrl
Jun 5, 2023, 1:08 pm

Hi Deborah, glad you stopped by! Thanks for letting me know about the possible Wordle glitch that messed with stats for more folks. Maybe it's not just me and my travels that screwed it up. I'm glad to hear of a possible explanation. We'll just start where we are now and get a new streak going.

203karenmarie
Jun 7, 2023, 8:23 am

Hi Irene!

>201 atozgrl: I've been known to write "Line in the sand... moving forward." or "skippety-skip-skip" to get caught up on threads. Deep dive reading of threads is not required...

204atozgrl
Jun 7, 2023, 6:24 pm

>203 karenmarie: Thanks, Karen! I'm doing that with some threads, but yours is so interesting that I hate to miss anything. Maybe I'll finally make it over later tonight.

205Berly
Jun 7, 2023, 6:39 pm



Well, speaking of being behind on threads...that's me! Popping in to say Hi! and start from here. Sorry about the Wordle glitch.

206atozgrl
Jun 7, 2023, 10:22 pm

>205 Berly: Thanks for visiting! So glad to see you here!

207atozgrl
Jun 7, 2023, 10:27 pm

I guess I'd better post today's Wordle.

Wordle 718 3/6

⬜⬜🟨🟨🟨
🟨🟨🟨⬜🟨
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩
SLATE, TERRA, HATER

208atozgrl
Jun 8, 2023, 10:30 pm

As far as the weather goes, we've apparently got Hobson's Choice: either really comfortable but smoky, or good air but hot and humid. It's nice and cool outside tonight, but I don't dare leave the porch door or windows open to let in the cool air due to the smoke. It's less here today, but it was still code orange. We're supposed to get winds from the south and west this weekend which will clear the smoke out, but that means that summer returns with the heat and humidity. I'm not sure I like the change.

I finally finished The Deluge: The Great War, America and the Remaking of the Global Order. Since I love history, I found it very interesting, but it wasn't a quick read. It may take me a bit to write a review.

Wordle 719 4/6

⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜
🟨⬜🟨⬜⬜
🟨🟨🟨⬜⬜
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩
SLATE, ROBIN, BURGH, CRUMB

209msf59
Jun 9, 2023, 8:38 am

Happy Friday, Irene. Just checking in. Our weather has been gorgeous but we NEED some rain. How are those feeders? Mine have been eerily quiet. Birds must be nesting.

Hey, I saw a pair of Northern Mockingbirds yesterday. First time in my state and in my county. They may be nesting at the Arboretum. Hooray! I have been on the hunt for them for several years.

Have a great weekend.

210atozgrl
Jun 9, 2023, 6:33 pm

>209 msf59: I never saw any mockingbirds while growing up in central Illinois. I don't know if they were around anywhere but I never saw them, or if they only migrated in later. Interesting that they're all the way up in northern Illinois now. Glad you were able to see them! As you know, the ones around here mostly annoy me, because they are so mean to the other birds trying to eat at my feeders in the winter.

Speaking of our feeders, we've had lots of activity lately. Goldfinches, cardinals, blue birds, titmice, Carolina wrens, Carolina chickadees, mourning doves, brown thrashers, downies, red-bellied woodpeckers, and the occasional nuthatch, and maybe more I'm forgetting. I hadn't seen any hummingbirds before our trip, so I took the feeder down, and I need to put it back out but haven't gotten to that yet. We usually have hummingbirds by now, so I don't know where they've been. My husband cut the tree branches back a little further, and we haven't seen the squirrels back on the feeder yet. Keeping our fingers crossed!

I hope you also have a great weekend, with both good bird viewing and book reading!

211atozgrl
Jun 10, 2023, 10:16 am

My usual first two words gave me this one today.

Wordle 721 3/6

⬜⬜🟩⬜⬜
⬜⬜⬜🟩🟩
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩
SLATE, ROBIN, AGAIN

212klobrien2
Jun 10, 2023, 10:21 am

>211 atozgrl: Good solving! Took me 5 today.

Karen O

213vancouverdeb
Jun 10, 2023, 10:16 pm

We can get PBS passports in Canada as well, Irene. I checked and yes, the same donation amount. A friend of mine here in Canada does have PBS passport, but I've subscribed. We have been fortunate with the smoke here to so. Just a bit of a haze for a couple of days and it is fine at the moment. We have had some rain over the past two years and that has helped.

214atozgrl
Jun 10, 2023, 11:30 pm

>213 vancouverdeb: I'm glad you're not having much smoke. I hope that continues for you. I didn't really notice anything here today, although we were still under a code yellow warning today. And it was still nice; the heat and humidity haven't hit yet. Wish it could stay like this!

Yay for PBS!

215atozgrl
Jun 12, 2023, 4:48 pm

It's a standard Wordle day today.

Wordle 723 4/6

⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜
🟨🟨⬜⬜🟨
⬜🟩🟩🟩🟩
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩
SLATE, ROBIN, PRONG, WRONG

216SqueakyChu
Editado: Jun 12, 2023, 11:44 pm

>14 atozgrl: I finally got back to your thread! Emerald Isle will always be our favorite beach along the Carolina coast since we have been there so many times. When our kids were very young, we went a few times to the Outer Banks. We like the Crystal Coast better because it's quieter.

Ocean City, Maryland, is too busy for us so we avoid it! :D

As you know, I've been enjoying my new bird cam, a gift from my daughter. It's really lots of fun. The only annoying thing is that house sparrows have now discovered the feeder, and they keep chasing all the other birds I like better away.

Like you, I recently have been sticking to longer, slower-reading nonfiction books. I'm in the middle of reading Spare, Prince Harry's new autobiography. I like it very much, and I think Harry is a pretty cool guy. I like that he left UK to live a life not so much in a fishbowl. I'm also in the middle of Sapiens which has had mixed reviews, but I find it a fascinating and quick review of all of human history! :D

Thanks for visiting my thread!

217atozgrl
Jun 13, 2023, 6:27 pm

Hello, Madeline, so glad to see you here!

We also really like the Crystal Coast. You're right, it usually is quieter. Easier to get to as well.

I have really been enjoying the bird cam pictures you've posted. Sorry the house sparrows have turned into pests. We've been lucky that we haven't had them in our backyard. We used to see Starlings, but it's been a few years since I saw any. Knock on wood--I don't care for them so I hope they don't come back.

I thought about picking up Spare but haven't done so yet. Since you are enjoying it, I may go get a copy when I have a chance. I have a lot of sympathy for him and Meghan, and I don't blame them for wanting to escape the tabloid press. I don't quite understand why so many in Britain are not supportive, given what happened to his mother and how upset the people were then. They should understand that he doesn't want the same thing to happen to his own family.

Thanks for visiting, I hope you have a great week!

218atozgrl
Jun 13, 2023, 6:35 pm

Today's Wordle went better.

Wordle 724 3/6

⬜🟩⬜⬜⬜
⬜⬜⬜⬜🟨
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩
SLATE, ROBIN, PLUNK

219PaulCranswick
Jun 13, 2023, 6:41 pm

>217 atozgrl: We agree on most things, Irene, but not on Prince Harry. I am not a Royalist in any way shape or form but there is something decidedly ludicrous about someone who wants to retire from public life and avoid the media and then goes on Oprah and trashes his family.

220SqueakyChu
Editado: Jun 13, 2023, 7:02 pm

>217 atozgrl: I think that the people who don’t support Prince Harry are those who unconditionally support the monarchy. There is nothing about a monarchy that seems fair to me. I’m up to the part in Spare where Prince Harry just met Meghan. I actually liked the first two thirds of the book better, but let’s see how it goes.

221PaulCranswick
Jun 13, 2023, 7:09 pm

>220 SqueakyChu: I don't support Prince Harry, Madeline and I am not a monarchist - I am in fact a republican (not in the American political sense of course). I think British attitudes to the royal family are complicated and Harry & Megan are generally regarded in the UK as spoiled self-entitled brats. We don't fall for the victim making they try to get America to buy.

222SqueakyChu
Editado: Jun 13, 2023, 7:22 pm

>221 PaulCranswick: I still haven’t formed a full opinion about Prince Harry from his book yet. Some of the reviews I’ve scanned panned his book for the same reason…simply his being spoiled. After I finish the book, Paul, I’ll try to get my thoughts about him expressed in my review of his book.

223PaulCranswick
Jun 13, 2023, 8:48 pm

>222 SqueakyChu: I look forward to seeing your review, Madeline.
I will certainly accept that the couple do generate a lot of interest! One thing that is being seized upon by his detractors in the States is his admitted use of recreational but banned drugs and whether he lied on his entry forms. As I don't view recreational drug use as a very serious offence (although I don't do it myself) I think that is a storm in a teacup although why he would so want to share such things is a bit of a mystery too.

224SqueakyChu
Editado: Jun 13, 2023, 11:32 pm

>223 PaulCranswick: He talked a lot in his book (of what I've read so far) about his use of various recreational but banned drugs. I think that's why I'm starting to change my opinion about him. We'll have to see how I feel about this after I finish the book! :D Perhaps he was being a bit too honest in this autobiography? Or maybe he just felt entitled to do what he wanted because of who he is?

225karenmarie
Jun 14, 2023, 8:51 am

Hi Irene!

Gonna stay out of the Harry & Meghan discussion and wish you a happy Wednesday.

Looks like good gardening weather here in central NC.

226RebaRelishesReading
Jun 14, 2023, 2:17 pm

>217 atozgrl: When I was a kid we used to have starlings in the yard and they attacked our poor dogs all of the time. I don't like them either.

227atozgrl
Jun 14, 2023, 6:32 pm

>225 karenmarie: Hello, Karen! Yes, it's warm but not humid today. Mr. A. took advantage of the nice weather to trim the bushes this morning. I needed to refill bird baths so the birds had something to drink.

228atozgrl
Jun 14, 2023, 6:36 pm

>219 PaulCranswick: >224 SqueakyChu: Sorry to have stirred up a hornet's nest! I don't think about the royals too much, unlike others I know. Mr. A. is strongly of the opinion the monarchy has outlived its usefulness.

I don't have strong feelings about Harry & Meghan, but I do have sympathy for them. I also thought they had a right to share their view of what happened to them (on Oprah or wherever) when it seemed that the tabloid press would not give them a fair shake. Other than that, I don't really care all that much.

229atozgrl
Jun 14, 2023, 6:38 pm

Today's Wordle was a bit guessy, guessy.

Wordle 725 5/6

⬜⬜⬜⬜🟩
🟨⬜⬜🟨⬜
⬜⬜🟩🟨🟩
⬜🟩🟩⬜🟩
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩
SLATE, ROBIN, QUIRE, PRIDE, CRIME

230SqueakyChu
Jun 14, 2023, 8:50 pm

>228 atozgrl: It’s not really a hornet’s nest, and it’s definitely okay for Paul and I to have different opinions. I actually try to avoid hearing about the royals as much as I can. I refused to watch or listen to anything about the king’s coronation. Most of the stuff in the news today, I try to avoid hearing, come to think of it. In the book I’m reading, the “rules” of royalty only make me upset and crazy. I agree with Mr. A.

231atozgrl
Jun 14, 2023, 11:03 pm

>230 SqueakyChu: I will be very interested to see what you think of the book when you finish it! It sounds like your opinion may be changing as you read. From the discussions on TV when his book came out, it did seem like he might have been overly sharing--the frostbite issue did seem to be a bit much.

232SqueakyChu
Jun 14, 2023, 11:46 pm

>231 atozgrl: Yeah! That frostbite!! Why, indeed, did he decide to share that?! :)

233atozgrl
Jun 14, 2023, 11:47 pm

>232 SqueakyChu: I wondered that exact same thing!

234SqueakyChu
Jun 14, 2023, 11:48 pm

235atozgrl
Jun 15, 2023, 12:12 pm

Back to standard today.

Wordle 726 4/6

⬜⬜🟨⬜🟩
⬜🟩⬜⬜🟩
🟨🟩⬜⬜🟩
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩
SLATE, CANOE, BARGE, MAYBE

236atozgrl
Editado: Jun 15, 2023, 4:20 pm

18. Ancient pioneers : the first Americans by George E. Stuart

I read Ancient pioneers : the first Americans for the June Nonfiction Challenge: Indigenous/Aboriginal Peoples/First Nations. This book gives a history of the native peoples of the Americas from their arrival around 12,000-15,000 years ago up to the arrival of Europeans. The history given is an overview of the various cultures in the Americas, from Alaska through South America, based on the archaeological evidence. Stuart points out the misnaming of many of the people groups by Europeans. The book contains numerous photographs, most in color, showing aerial photographs of archaeological sites, paintings, and artifacts interspersed throughout the text. Much of the ancient artwork is spectacular. It's a good place to start for learning about the history of the native peoples in the Americas.

****

237msf59
Jun 16, 2023, 7:54 am

Happy Friday, Irene. I love your feeder report up there. What a great variety. Yep, I am jealous. I am mostly getting housefinch and house sparrows. I did get a cowbird and red-bellied woodpecker yesterday. Hummers have been eerily absent.

Have a good weekend.

238karenmarie
Jun 16, 2023, 8:23 am

Hi Irene!

>227 atozgrl: I need to clean out and fill my bird bath, too. A bird parent’s work is never done, is it? I also need to fill the sunflower seed feeder again and top off the wild bird seed feeder.

>235 atozgrl: I was considering getting this book but it’s 20 years old. I went down a rabbit hole, though, because I remember never receiving an appropriate-to-this-book/message ER book I won in 2019. Sigh. I accidentally marked it received, so am going to have my sister get it for me as a birthday present. If she gets me something else on the list, I’ll buy it myself. I have too many ER books not reviewed.

Separate but related, even though it’s not an easy read, I recommend A Key Into the Language of America by Roger Williams, written in 1643.

239atozgrl
Jun 16, 2023, 11:39 am

>237 msf59: Yes, we do get a good variety of birds here. I have even seen a blue jay out there a few times lately. And crows as well as squirrels like to scavenge the ground below the feeders for whatever has fallen out. When we first moved in and I first put out feeders, we used to get nuthatches a lot, and we don't so much any more, so I miss them. We had a cedar tree that they loved, but it fell over eventually (I think the builders damaged its roots), and we haven't seen the nuthatches as often since then. I've seen them some this spring, but not as often as we used to. However, I am very envious of Karen that she gets the indigo buntings all the time, because we don't have them here.

I hope you also have a good weekend, and that you start getting more birds at your feeders!

240atozgrl
Editado: Jun 16, 2023, 11:48 am

>238 karenmarie: No, the bird parent's work is never done, is it? I'm getting low on seed and I'm out of suet so I need to make a run over to the bird store in Cary.

I'm not sure where or when I picked up Ancient pioneers : the first Americans. The challenge this month was a good prompt to finally read it, and it was interesting to see an overview of the spread of humans in the Americas before the arrival of Europeans. But you are right, it is 20 years old now, and I know there have been a lot more archaeological discoveries since then. But the illustrations are great! I hope you get a copy of the book you are missing.

Thanks for the book recommendation! I was not aware of that one. I'll have to check it out.

Have a great weekend!

241atozgrl
Jun 16, 2023, 11:49 am

It was a good Wordle day today.

Wordle 727 2/6

🟩⬜🟨🟨⬜
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩
SLATE, STRAP

242klobrien2
Jun 17, 2023, 11:31 am

>241 atozgrl: Wow! Great job on the Wordle-ing!

Just stopping by to see how you’re doing. Have a happy weekend!

Karen O

243atozgrl
Jun 17, 2023, 11:10 pm

Quiet day today. Reading, and I watched The Misfits tonight. I'll try to write something up for the John Huston Film Fest tomorrow.

244klobrien2
Jun 18, 2023, 11:34 am

>243 atozgrl: Looking forward to hearing what you think about Misfits!

Karen O

245LizzieD
Jun 18, 2023, 12:17 pm

Hi, Irene. I wish you another day of doing exactly what you want.

246atozgrl
Jun 18, 2023, 3:15 pm

>244 klobrien2: My comments are over on the Film Fest thread. But you keep going--I'm not going to be able to keep up!

247atozgrl
Jun 18, 2023, 3:17 pm

>245 LizzieD: Thank you, Peggy, and I wish the same for you! I hope you and your mom are having a good day.

248atozgrl
Jun 18, 2023, 3:18 pm

Wordle 729 4/6

🟩🟨⬜⬜⬜
🟩⬜⬜🟩🟩
🟩⬜⬜🟩🟩
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩
SLATE, SILLY, SURLY, SHYLY

249atozgrl
Editado: Jul 18, 2023, 11:46 pm

19. Big Lies in a Small Town by Diane Chamberlain

I recently joined the book club at the senior center. Unfortunately, I missed the first meeting this session, which would have been my first meeting, because we were out of town in May. Now it looks like I'll be missing the next one as well, because Mr. A. has been anxious to get out of town, and this coming week fits his band schedules. But I decided to go ahead and read this month's book club book anyway, since I already had it out from the library, the story looked interesting, and it has a NC setting.

This book tells the story of a young woman, Morgan Christopher, who has taken the blame for a crime she did not commit. She is paroled from prison by the daughter of a famous artist, who has specified in his will that she (Morgan) must restore an old, damaged post office mural. We also learn the story of the artist who came to Edenton, NC to paint the original mural. Throughout most of the book, the chapters alternate between the current day story of the woman restoring the mural (told in first person) and the story of the original artist (told in third person) set in 1939-1940. The mural is a mystery because the images in it don't make sense. Can Morgan restore the mural in time for a gallery opening, and can she unravel the mystery behind the painting?

I really enjoyed this story and the characters in it. The mystery of what happened to turn a fairly standard mural into something containing bizarre imagery, and why it was damaged, was compelling. It was also interesting to see the differences in culture between the Northeast and the South in 1940 that were explored in the book, and how the young woman who painted the mural coped with them. I did see most of the plot twists coming, so I wasn't surprised by most of the revelations, but the book was very enjoyable nonetheless.

***½

250karenmarie
Jun 20, 2023, 6:45 am

Hi Irene! I hope you have a wonderful day.

>249 atozgrl: Where will Mr. A and you go to scratch his itch to get out of town?

251atozgrl
Jun 20, 2023, 5:27 pm

Wordle 731 4/6

🟨⬜⬜🟨⬜
⬜🟨⬜🟩🟩
⬜⬜🟩🟩🟩
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩
SLATE, MOIST, GHOST, FROST

252atozgrl
Editado: Jun 22, 2023, 10:29 pm

>250 karenmarie: Thanks, Karen! We're planning to head to the mountains and spend some time in Tennessee and then around Bryson City, NC. We expect to do some hiking, hopefully for me not too strenuous, and some sightseeing. I would rather not go so close to our last (non-vacation) trip, but this was better for his schedule. I hope the weather holds out!

253vancouverdeb
Jun 20, 2023, 7:47 pm

Wishing you a wonderful day, Irene, I just finished watching Endeavor on PBS / Masterpiece and I am not sure what will catch my fancy yet. I hope you enjoy your time away. I hope the weather holds out for you too!

254atozgrl
Jun 21, 2023, 11:02 pm

>253 vancouverdeb: Thank you, Deborah! Hoping we'll have a good trip. Wishing you a good week!

255atozgrl
Jun 21, 2023, 11:51 pm

Wordle 732 4/6

⬜⬜🟩⬜🟩
⬜🟩🟩⬜🟩
⬜🟩🟩🟨🟩
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩
SLATE, FRAME, BRACE, CRANE

256atozgrl
Jun 22, 2023, 2:40 pm

Today's Wordle was just a guessy, guessy mess. I knew all the words I wanted to try after the second line, but the question was which order to try them in. Of course I didn't pick the right one until last.

Wordle 733 6/6

🟨⬜🟨🟩🟩
⬜🟩🟩🟩🟩
⬜🟩🟩🟩🟩
⬜🟩🟩🟩🟩
⬜🟩🟩🟩🟩
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩
SLATE, PASTE, WASTE, BASTE, CASTE, TASTE

257atozgrl
Jun 22, 2023, 10:38 pm

We're getting ready for another trip, and I probably won't have Internet access for much of the time we're gone. I'll fall behind on the threads again, after finally getting caught up from the last trip.

I hope everyone has a great week!

258atozgrl
Jun 23, 2023, 8:36 am

Wordle 734 3/6

⬜⬜⬜🟨🟨
🟨⬜🟨⬜⬜
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩
SLATE, TREND, COVET

259RebaRelishesReading
Jun 23, 2023, 1:41 pm

>257 atozgrl: Hope you have a great trip!

260vancouverdeb
Jul 2, 2023, 12:48 am

Just stopping by to keep your thread " warm' in your absence. I hope you are really enjoying your trip!

261atozgrl
Jul 4, 2023, 4:35 pm

We're back home, and after some time for recovery, I'm back on LT. I did some catching up on other people's threads yesterday. But now I need to get my own caught up.

On our trip, we first went to Tennessee and went whitewater rafting on the Pigeon River. Then we went to Oak Ridge and spent one day going to the museums there. We also took a day to go visit the Alvin York State Historic Park. The skies opened up with an extremely heavy downpour just as we arrived at the park, but we were able to do the home tour in spite of the rain. Later, the rain quit and we visited the mill across the street. Unfortunately, the rain made it too wet to do the waterfall hike we had also planned to do.

We drove through the Great Smoky Mountains National Park on our way back to NC, then spent the rest of our time in Bryson City, doing a lot of activities in the area. On our last day, we drove up the the Blue Ridge Parkway to Mt. Mitchell. We stopped to see a waterfall and also took a hike to a viewing point en route. Temperatures were still very pleasant in the mountains, while we heard that it had gotten very hot back at home, and we seemed to just miss all the showers in the area. We arrived home very late that night.

Since this trip was mostly a go-and-do trip, I got very little reading in. We've done some unpacking, although I still have some to finish, and I got in a small grocery trip to get some necessary items before the usual big trip on Wednesday. We've still got lots of laundry to do.

We had a bit of a distraction from trip recovery. Our desktop computer has been showing its age, getting slower and slower, so we decided to get a replacement. Before our trip, we had been cleaning out files we no longer need and backing up everything else. We also picked up the new computer, but didn't have time to set it up before leaving town. Mr. A. is the primary user of that computer, and he was anxious to go ahead and get it working, so we spent this morning getting it set up. The biggest roadblock we ran into was trying to get our existing monitor to work with the new computer. We had to switch from a DVI to an HDMI connection. I never had to deal with monitor setup at work, so I wasn't much help with that, but Mr. A. finally found the correct setting in the manual. Software installation has proceeded rather smoothly since then. Keeping fingers crossed we don't run into any other big problems.

And I think that's it for the summary of our recent activities!

262atozgrl
Jul 4, 2023, 4:37 pm

>259 RebaRelishesReading: Thanks, Reba, we did!

>260 vancouverdeb: Thanks, Deborah, for keeping my thread warm. I appreciate it!

263kac522
Jul 4, 2023, 5:37 pm

>261 atozgrl: I had the same computer set-up issue last year with our new desktop--glad to know I'm not the only one! At first I was stumped, but then I figured out I needed to get the right sort of cable to connect the older monitor to the new desktop. Just a run to the electronics store and all was good.

264vancouverdeb
Jul 4, 2023, 7:45 pm

Sounds like a lovely trip Irene! As much as we enjoy holidays, it's always a lot of work once one is home. I am embarrassed to tell you that we are still running Windows 7, I think it is. When we upgraded quite a few years ago, my son, ( a developer/ systems analyst ) felt that learning Windows 10 would be too much for we old codgers, so we went with his advice. When we upgrade again, perhaps he will feel he a bit of time of to help us , if we have trouble with the upgrade. He and his wife have two kids, aged 5 and 2, so they have been busy.

265atozgrl
Jul 5, 2023, 6:23 pm

>263 kac522: Thanks, Kathy! In our case, we had the right cable, but couldn't figure out how to get the monitor to switch from trying to retrieve the video from the DVI connection and use the HDMI instead. Mr A. was in the monitor's menus, but not the right place. Fortunately, he had found the manual, and finally located the correct instructions in the manual. But it took longer than it should have to figure it out.

I'm glad you got yours working! It's always a challenge when replacing computers.

266atozgrl
Jul 5, 2023, 6:27 pm

>264 vancouverdeb: Thanks, Deborah, we did have a good time. But still need to get to the laundry. :-)

Windows 10 is a change from Windows 7, but fortunately I got used to it at work before I retired. Mr. A's new computer is Windows 11, and we're noticing some distinct changes from Windows 10. The laptop I got when I retired last year is still running Windows 10, though supposedly I can upgrade to Windows 11 whenever I'm ready. Maybe I can get used to Windows 11 on the desktop before I try the upgrade.

The next time you upgrade your computer, you'll probably have to go to Windows 10 or 11 or higher. I hope your son will be available to help! I'm not surprised he's very busy with two young children!

267atozgrl
Editado: Jul 6, 2023, 10:48 pm

Well, boo! Today I found out that the closest Barnes & Noble to me (the closest book store period, except for one used book store) has moved to a new location. The new location is actually better for me, closer and more easily accessible. They opened at the new location yesterday. All this is good. But they apparently had been having a sale at the old location for months! How come I had not heard anything about that? :-(

The old location is not close, and is a pain to get to, so I only went when I had a specific thing I was looking for. I sure wish I had known they were having a big sale. Sigh.

268karenmarie
Jul 7, 2023, 8:13 am

'Morning, Irene!

Sorry about B&N's moving sale.

I hope you're doing well and staying cool in the summer nastiness that is central NC.

269ArlieS
Editado: Jul 7, 2023, 4:03 pm

>261 atozgrl: I have had no end of trouble with HDMI, particularly DVI-era monitors that sometimes didn't properly implement the HDMI standard. I'm glad you managed to get things to work.

>266 atozgrl: Ugh at never ending software "upgrades". I'm inclined to switch to linux to at least partially avoid them. (It's often possible to stick with older software, particularly if you are willing to build it yourself from the source code.)

270PaulCranswick
Jul 7, 2023, 7:36 pm

>267 atozgrl: I would be really miffed too had I missed out on a grand book sale, Irene. Never mind though if the new location is more convenient. Are they downsizing or upscaling?

Have a lovely weekend.

271msf59
Jul 8, 2023, 8:01 am

Happy Saturday, Irene. Your recent trip sounds lovely. I love that area too. My brother lives in Hendersonville, so we have explored that area a little bit. I would love to drive the entire Blue Ridge Parkway. The only drawback to that region, is the amount of people. Lots of people. I hope you are settled back in at home.

272atozgrl
Jul 8, 2023, 12:26 pm

>268 karenmarie: Thanks, Karen! I've been having a mostly slow week, taking it easy after all the activity last week. I have only been going outside when necessary, for various errands and to refill the bird feeders, in order to avoid the heat and humidity as much as possible. And I remain grateful for the unusually pleasant June that we had this year.

I hope you are also staying cool!

273atozgrl
Jul 8, 2023, 12:35 pm

>269 ArlieS: Thanks, Arlie. With the monitor, it was just a matter of figuring out what we needed to do and where on the monitor menu the appropriate settings were. It took a while!

Agreed with the unending software upgrades. I worked with Linux a little bit at work, but that was 20 years ago. And we didn't have as much time to experiment with it as we had hoped back then. I'm not sure I want to get that much into the weeds with computers at this point in my life.

Now we're trying to see if we can get our Acronis backup software to work with the new computer. Unfortunately, there's some driver associated with the program we have that conflicts with some new security thing in Windows 11. Mr. A. did finally get it installed without the offending driver, but has not been able to save a scheduled backup to back up the computer automatically at a set time. Not sure if the problem is with the missing driver or some other incompatibility with Windows 11. It seems like there's always something--it just can't ever go smoothly with the upgrade.

274atozgrl
Jul 8, 2023, 12:44 pm

>270 PaulCranswick: Hello, Paul, thanks for visiting! I think B&N may have done both. From what I know of the shopping center they moved to, the store should be smaller than their older one. Someone in the story I saw about the relocation called it "cozy." I also got the impression from the story that it may be more upscale, but I won't really know until I go see it for myself. I am very glad that they moved to a place where the traffic should be easier to deal with.

Wishing you and your family a lovely weekend as well!

275atozgrl
Jul 8, 2023, 12:49 pm

>271 msf59: Hello, Mark, good to see you here! I think we've gotten the entire parkway over time, but never in one trip! It takes a long time if you stop at most of the overlooks. It can also be very busy on the parkway. We actually saw less traffic there this time than we have in the past. Maybe they were all in the Smoky Mountains National Park last Saturday. The day we drove through the park the traffic there was horrendous!

We're getting settled, and working on laundry today. We should finally have the suitcases put away by this evening. We've been delayed somewhat by working on getting everything set up on the new computer. That always takes time.

Have a great weekend! Go Cubs!

276LizzieD
Editado: Jul 9, 2023, 5:32 pm

Hi, Irene. Nothing going on here except the Amazon delivery of my jelly beans! I met the van on our street when I was headed home from a fast food run and was gobsmacked when I got here and found no jelly beans. I was headed across the street to see if I had given our address instead of Mama's when the van drove up again. Jelly Joy!

We cooled off for a bit after a nice rain, but it's steamy again. I can't wait for that cool front tomorrow.

Meanwhile, I'm sorry that you missed the B&N moving sale. You're lucky to have a used bookstore available.

Enjoy the rest of your day.

277atozgrl
Jul 9, 2023, 5:42 pm

>276 LizzieD: Hi, Peggy, good to see you! I'm glad you got your jelly beans!

That storm came through here too this afternoon. I am also looking forward to a cooler day tomorrow.

I checked out that used book store that's relatively close to me, but it had copies of lots of best sellers, and nothing that I was looking for. I was disappointed that it didn't have more unique titles. I understand that there's supposed to be a really good used book store in Greensboro. Someday I'll have to make a trip over there.

Wishing you a great Sunday!

278atozgrl
Jul 9, 2023, 5:44 pm

I have been remiss posting my Wordle results since my return from our trip. Here is today's:

Wordle 750 3/6

⬜⬜⬜🟨🟨
🟨🟨🟨🟨⬜
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩
SLATE, TREND, ENTER
Este tópico foi continuado por Irene's (atozgrl) Reading 2023 - Part 2.