TLOeffler--My Roots

Okay, this is because I keep forgetting why I have 2 tickers. #1 is for books that I owned prior to 1/1/13. #2 is for books I read that are new since 1/1/13.

ETA: And now it starts.

I begin the year with 738 books labeled TBR, and 9 Currently Reading. So my beginning total is:

747

And we're off!

*belongs to second ticker

January:
1. Where They Stand--Robert Merry
2. What to Do When There's Too Much to Do--Laura Stack
3. The Night Circus--Erin Morgenstern
4. Dave Barry's Only Travel Guide You'll Ever Need--Dave Barry
5. The End of Your Life Book Club--Will Schwalbe
6. The Burgess Boys--Elizabeth Strout
7. T is for Trespass--Sue Grafton
8. Take the Cannoli--Sarah Vowell
9. I Remember Nothing--Nora Ephron
10. *Some Tame Gazelle--Barbara Pym
11. A Dove of the East--Mark Helprin
12. There Are Alligators in Our Sewers--Paul Dickson & Joseph Goulden
13. Man on the Flying Trapeze--Simon Louvish
14. *Never Hug a Nun--Kevin Killeen

February:
1. Necropolis--Catharine Arnold
2. Dangerous Water--Ron Powers
3. Defending Jacob--William Landay
4. Founding Brothers--Joseph Ellis
5. In the Garden of the Beasts--Erik Larson
6. Excellent Women--Barbara Pym
7. Dave Barry Turns 50--Dave Barry
8. The Castle of Otranto--Horace Walpole

March:
1. Persepolis 2--Marjane Satrapi
2. No Graves As Yet--Anne Perry
3. The Great Gatsby--F. Scott Fitzgerald
4. *After Visiting Friends--Michael Hainey
5. More Historical Whodunnits--Mike Ashley
6. Lost in a Good Book--Jasper Fforde

April:
1. *Juliet's Moon--Ann Rinaldi
2. Jury of One--Laura Bradford
3. Forecast of Evil--Laura Bradford
4. *Gulp--Mary Roach

May:
1. A Country of Vast Designs--Robert Merry
2. Out of Oz--Gregory Maguire
3. *The Avalon Ladies Scrapbooking Society--Darien Gee
4. *Jane and Prudence--Barbara Pym
5. *What My Mother Gave Me--Elizabeth Benedict
6. *A Dog Walks into a Nursing Home--Sue Halpern
7. The Man Who Was Thursday--G.K. Chesterton

June:
1. Please Don't Eat the Daisies--Jean Kerr
2. The Country of the Pointed Firs--Sarah Orne Jewett

July:
1. Lincoln Life-Size--Philip B. Kunhardt III
2. The Twenty-Seventh City--Jonathan Franzen
3. The Best-Loved Poems of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis--Caroline Kennedy
4. Shoulder the Sky--Anne Perry
5. Holmes on the Range--Steve Hockensmith
6. The Decline & Fall of Practically Everybody--Will Cuppy
7. Remembering Denny--Calvin Trillin
8. Give Us A Kiss--Daniel Woodrell

August:
1. Mr. Bridge--Evan S. Connell
2. *Nine Years Under--Sheri Booker
3. *The Yonahlossee Riding Camp for Girls--Anton DiSclafani
4. *Overwhelming Odds--Susan O'Leary

September:
1. Bluebeard's Egg--Margaret Atwood
2. The Sweet Potato Queens' First Big-Ass Novel--Jill Conner Browne
3. *Our Iceberg is Melting--John Kotter
4. *No Fond Return of Love--Barbara Pym
5. *The Other Typist--Suzanne Rindell
6. Behind the Scenes-Elizabeth Keckley
7. Quartet in Autumn--Barbara Pym
8. Three Day Road--Joseph Boyden

October:
1. *How the Light Gets In--Louise Penny
2. *The Maid's Version--Daniel Woodrell
3. Winesburg, Ohio--Sherwood Anderson
4. *Empty Mansions--Bill Dedman
5. Dreams Underfoot--Charles de Lint
6. *The Wit & Wisdom of Abraham Lincoln--Anthony Gross
7. *Evita, First Lady--John Barnes

November:
1. Civil War Ghosts of Southwest Missouri-Lisa Livingston-Martin
2. The Sweet Dove Died--Barbara Pym
3. Behind the Scenes at the Museum--Kate Atkinson
4. *The Rockaways--Gilles Peress
5. Victorian Ghost Stories--Michael Cox/R. A. Gilbert

December:
1. A Handful of Dust--Evelyn Waugh
2. Death of a Red Heroine--Qiu Xiaolong
3. *Christmas at the Mysterious Bookshop--Otto Penzler
4. *No Room At The Inn--Edna Ferber
5. *Orphan Trains to Missouri--Michael Patrick
6. *Jim Henson: The Biography--Brian Jay Jones
7. Decline and Fall--Evelyn Waugh

I have to give a shout-out to Kiwiflowa for the link to the page with definitions of Root. You see, my Dad died last month, and I think my voracious reading was something he was extremely proud of. So when I saw some of the definitions of "root," there he was:

1. The essential, fundamental, or primary part or nature of something
2. The place where something begins, where it springs into being
3. A progenitor or ancestor from which a person or family is descended
4. The condition of being settled and of belonging to a particular place or society
5. A person's sense of belonging in a community, place, etc., esp the one in which she was born or brought up
6. And my very favorite: To rummage for something (he was a garage sale junkie extraordinaire!).

So this one's for you, Daddy!

That's really very moving. You go girl! All for our Dads and Moms.

Terri, I know you'll do your Dad proud. Good luck with the challenge.

Terri, my Dad passed away several years and thanks to him, my shelves have grown, Mom made us choose the books on his shelves that we wanted. Those are some of my most cherished books.

Man, I envy you who had readers for parents. My parents always yelled at me for reading, saying I should be out playing or doing something 'constructive.'

Good luck with your challenge!

Lovely dedication, I owe my love of reading to my Mom and my Grandfather.

Love your story! I get my love of reading from my parents as well. I remember one time while I was in high school, some friends wanted to do something over the weekend. My response was "Can't, going to canvas all the used bookstores that we can reach in two days with my parents" (which in SoCal, was quite a few). My friends responded with "Ew, your parents MAKE you go to old bookstores with them all weekend?" I always responded with "No, they LET me go to old bookstores with them all weekend!!"

Good luck on your challenge! I look forward to seeing what you read.

>9 Belladonna1975: hah, that's super awesome. I'd love to have done things like that. I get my reading love from my mom, but my dad has never been a reader, so that definitely could not be a family thing in my house. He's actually pretty good at just roaming or plunking down in a chair in them without getting antsy, though. :P

Well, you see, my Dad wasn't a reader either. He often told me "I wish I could read like you and your Mother do." But he was proud that I did read a lot, and he was always buying books at garage sales & giving them to me. Another reason why I have to participate in this challenge!

My Dad bought my siblings and I a set of World Book Encyclopedias when the oldest started school and he was so proud of them. Every Saturday and Sunday afternoon (when the Cards weren't playing) he was on the living room floor reading away. He eventually read the whole set, A through Z and then started over. He may not have been a conventional reader but he set a great example.

That is indeed a wonderful example, how awesome!

That is awesome!

That IS a great example! I still have my parents' encyclopedias (Colliers, circa 1960). Once in a while, I like to look up things like "Space Travel."

I think it doesn't take much to make a reader out of a child. An example and some encouragement. I love listening to my granddaughter, who is just learning to read, pick up a book and read it phonetically. She's going to be right up there with her grandmother in no time!

My mom was the reader, my father just read engineering journals, etc.

Most of my free time was spent reading, drawing, or writing down stories inspired by my imaginative dreams.

Same here. Including the 'free time things'.

My father was the one that got me started, I think, I was 5. But then in grade school they had this Great Books reading group, and my Dad and I joined. We'd read the same book and then he lead the discussions. I always felt so proud when I went into the group and my friends would say they wished their parents would read with them.

That's a real lovely story, Cyderry.

I somehow remember that no one was actually an idol for me what regards reading. My family always told me that my mom was a bookworm before she got me, but I've never really saw her or my father read a book actually. Also not grandparents or aunts/uncles. But I know that some of my family do love reading, though noone as ,uch as I... well my litlle cousin seems to step that way currently which makes me very happy. :-)
But my family always supported me in my love of books, I got loads of books from them on every occasion. I liked that. Recently, my mom has more spare time again and started reading again and also my dad sometimes and voluntarily picks up a books or even spends some time in book store. That really gives me a great feeling.

My Mum's books were the one thing I specifically asked to inherit and they include some of my Dad's. I still miss being able to discuss a book we have both read. LT helps to fill some of that gap.
Good luck with your challenge, Terri. I will be watching this space.

hi Terri
*starred* your thread

As the youngest of 5 children in a reading family I learned to read on a very early age, at four I bothered my older brothers and sisters so much that they finally teached me how to read :-)

My mother tells the story of how my babysitters used to try to skip pages in books when reading to me, and I'd always call them on it. I was potty-trained with books, and to this day, can't walk into a library without hitting the ladies room first!

Happy New Year Everyone!

Happy New Year, Terri! My Mom is the reader in the family (my Dad is dyslexic and can only "read" car manuals, woodworking books, etc), and my Moms parents were both readers too. I have quite a few family books from my great- and great-great-grandmothers, which is wonderful, BUT it leads to lots of full shelves. Not really a bad thing, but it does limit the free space I have in the house. (Thank GOD I live alone!)

Good luck this year, I look forward to seeing what kinds of treasures you read from your shelves. :)

Terri, the potty training/ library connection is too funny! Hope the new year has started out well for you.

Happy New Year, Laura & Regina! It's good to see you both back here this year! I don't quite live alone, Laura, but since my 25 year old son doesn't pay rent, he has no say in how many books I bring home. Well, he SAYS it, but I tell him It's My House and he shakes his head and walks away!

What I love about January is that ALL of my books count as off the shelf! So I've finished my first two:

1. Where They Stand: The American Presidents in the Eyes of Voters and Historians by Robert W. Merry. An interesting book about the various presidential rankings over the years. I enjoyed it!

2. What To Do When There's Too Much To Do by Laura Stack. Personally, I abandon all hope, but Ms. Stack has other ideas that I should probably pay attention to.

Terri, I think all of us who enjoy reading could use the Stack book! Looks like two good reads to start off the year.

3. The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern. Read for my January Book Group meeting. Luckily, I got it for Christmas, so it counts!

4. Dave Barry's Only Travel Guide You'll Ever Need by Dave Barry. Short, but fun!

Ooh, I have that Dave Barry book too and haven't read it yet! Must do that soon. Thanks for the reminder! :)

You are off to a great start Terri 4 in the first 8 days. Well done. Did you enjoy The Night Circus?

It's one of the shorter Dave Barry books, so there's no excuse!

Helen, I did enjoy The Night Circus. I had listened to the audio book early last year, and when they chose it for the book group, I thought I should read it again. I'm glad I did, and I'm glad I now have a copy of it!

5. The End of Your Life Book Club by Will Schwalbe. An excellent book. Luckily, I either own or have already read most of the books they talked about, so I don't have to run out right away and buy a bunch of books!

I'm reading The End of Your Lift Book Club and think it's great too. I've been reading it a chapter at a time so it will last longer!

6. The Burgess Boys by Elizabeth Strout. A LibraryThing Early Reviewer book. Read it when it comes out in March--it's great!

7. T is for Trespass by Sue Grafton. Moving right along...

You are going great guns. I have Amy & Isabelle by Elizabeth Strout waiting in my TBR.

Yeesh - is that "moving right along" a good thing, or a bad thing?

Helen, I have Amy & Isabelle AND Abide With Me both on a shelf where I can see them. Unfortunately, they haven't found their way to the "short stack" yet (which isn't really very short). Someday.....

Well, Laura, it's a good thing, because I'm getting books read. It's a bad thing, because I really don't seem to be doing much of anything else except working and sleeping. I'm blaming the cold weather. I may as well read as many as I can this month anyway, because next week is the library's Cabin Fever Paperback Book Fair, and I've already taken the day off work.

8. Take The Cannoli by Sarah Vowell. Hilarious. I love Sarah Vowell.

Loved that one! My favourite essay was the one where she talks about learning how to drive.

Loved all the family reminiscences in this thread. Thanks for sharing them, all. My mum is a great reader, and my dad reads but not to the same extent. My youngest brother is dyslexic as is my brother-in-law, so the next generation is not really carrying on the tradition. However, my youngest nephew (8 years old), who is severely dyslexic, finds it much easier to read on a Kindle and is now starting to take an interest.

Well, my family is a family of readers, dyslexic or not. Only my father and my husband, one niece (daughter of my sister) and one nephew (son of the other sister) don't read. Even my daughter in law and my son in law are readers. But i must say I'm the book collector in the family.

My first recollection of books: My father taking me every fridayevening to a kind of library. Two elderly women were giving me books they thought i could read. But soon I read every book available. And I finished the two books for the week on friday night lying on my belly in front of the coal stove in the livingroom ( no central heating in those days), so i had to reread them during the week till it was friday again.

That was also my favorite, RP--especially because I have a 25 year old son who lives with me who doesn't drive! He's not a big reader (sad face) but I made him read that one, and he actually laughed at it!

I'm glad to share them, Robert. Reminiscing is what has kept me together! Of the six of us (siblings & me), only two of us are really readers. My brother Tom (the other reader) was having a conversation with my uncle a few weeks ago, and I heard him say "Terri probably reads 25 books a year!" I had to interrupt and say, well, last year I read 175....
And each of my siblings has one of their three children who is an avid reader. My niece and I are in a mother-daughter book discussion group, because her mother doesn't read, and I have no daughters!
But all 3 of my sons read, two avidly, and one a little less, but who is an avid audio-book listener (the one who doesn't drive--he listens while he walks to work!). I blame myself :)

Like you, Connie, I am the book collector of the family. Every time my one of my sister's daughters has a reading assignment at school, she checks "Aunt Terri's Library" first! Only two books a week? Wow. Thank goodness my Mom let us take out as many as we wanted! The only requirement was that we read them. No problem there!

Thanks, everyone, for stopping by and sharing your reading memories!

9. I Remember Nothing by Nora Ephron. Her last collection of essays. Fun, interesting, and a little poignant.

>40 tloeffler:: Hee! Well, he was kind of right... you read a *multiple* of 25 books... ;)

And funnily enough, I don't drive either! I'm an extremely nervous driver and would be a menace on the road, so I take transit everywhere instead. My BF does drive, though, in the event that we need to go somewhere that requires a car.

Another non driver here ;-)

> 40. Well, that was 50 years ago and we could not pick our own books. And the max was two books!
And my books are read by my kids, kids in law, brother, friends and colleagues. I'm so happy LT gives me the opportunity to keep track.

I'm a non driver too!

Hi Terri! just checking in to see how it's going over here. Hmm, nine ROOTS, not too shabby at all. You're in inspiration to slaggers like me :0)

Now, see, everyone gives Keith such a hard time because he doesn't drive. And in the space of a day, I find 3 other people who don't drive either! So thank you, rabbitprincess, Robert & Connie for validating my poor son. He is so mistreated....

Oh, Connie, I can't imagine not picking my own books out! Isn't it great to be old enough to not only have all the books you want, but be able to share them with other people! My only problem is getting them all read so I know what to recommend or not!

And here's the first book I've read AND purchased this year:

10. Some Tame Gazelle by Barbara Pym. Some group somewhere is reading her books this year, and since I own quite a few of them, I thought it would be a good way to clear some books off my shelf. Unfortunately, the first was one I didn't own, so I had to buy it. But I'm okay for the next few months!

Terri, I had to laugh at the irony that you had to buy a book in order to get other books off your shelf!

I did the same thing just a couple of days ago. Now I'm waiting for the book to arrive. :)

I know, Regina, the things we do.....

And at least I'm not alone! I've got Laura right there next to me! It's great to be surrounded by people who get you!

Well. I read two more books. Then I bought 6 at the mini-Book Fair at the library. At least I'm still ahead of myself (I think)...

11. A Dove of the East by Mark Helprin.

12. There Are Alligators in Our Sewers by Paul Dickson and Joseph Goulden.

48/49: I've got the same problem. I have series I've started and need books in the middle to keep going with the ones I've already got, or I need the first one to just get started.

You've been doing really well with your challenge, Terri. I started off well, but fell to the lure of some library books. Now that they are done, I am hoping to finish off the month with a bang!

Haven't driven since I was 18. But I also have the luxury of living in Toronto with great public transit (usually).

I just wanted to add to the stories of parents who inspired reading. My dad asked me on my first day of first grade if I was learning to read yet; "yup!" So he drove me 15 miles into town and let me choose a book. Smart girl that I was, I chose the Nutshell Library by Maurice Sendak - 4 in one. Still have them, all the stitching loose, but holding up.

The summer before that, my mum and I spent a lovely month reading The Wind in the Willows, with me lying languidly in absolute bliss across her lap. I still have my old copy, with my name inscribed with her help, and the date, July 1962. All very wobbly, some letters backwards.

>52 ipsoivan: What wonderful memories.

That's really lovely, Ipsoivan

Thanks, connie and vivienne. Very glad to share them.

Ipsoivan, ditto what VivienneR and connie53 said.

It's nice to know we're not alone, Betty!

Thanks, Judy. It's pretty easy to do well in January, when almost everything counts. But, I've been to the library a couple of times, and I did hit a book fair last week, so I'm not expecting much the rest of the year. But I keep trying! I really do want to read the books I own (that's why I bought them!), but it seems that once I have them, I feel like I have all the time in the world to read them. I wish I did!

Maggie, I wish we had great public transit. St. Louis does, but in St. Charles, we have one rickety old bus that circles around the town, and he refuses to even consider it. But he's big, and he has legs like tree trunks, and he can walk pretty much anywhere he needs to go, so if it's okay with him, it's okay with me! I also love your reading inspiration stories. Parents who love reading create children who love reading, and what better gift than that?

I'm so glad all of you share your reading stories here!

13. Man on the Flying Trapeze: The Life and Times of W. C. Fields by Simon Louvish. A terrible biography. But 3 inches off my shelf!

14. Never Hug a Nun by Kevin Killeen. A new book, but a short and fun one, especially if you attended a parochial school in St. Louis (or thereabouts) in the 1960's.

January Recap:

Original TBR: 747

Current TBR: 735 + Currently Reading: 9 =

744

Okay, I'm three down. Going in the right direction, albeit slowly...

You're currently reading 9 books? At the same time? How do you keep them apart. I have enough trouble with 3 books!

Well, "currently reading" does include some books, like a couple of books about the Presidents wives & vice presidents that I only read chapter by chapter as I finish each President. So they're started, but not completed. I always keep a book with short, unrelated pages near the bathroom, and one in the kitchen to read while I eat. And I can't read similar books simultaneously. But I have several on my table that I can read 100 pages, then have to move on to something else. So it's not really as impressive as it sounds...and if it's REALLY good, I finish it and the rest of them wait.

I finished two more this week:

15. Necropolis: London and Its Dead by Catharine Arnold. What can I say? I love graveyards and reading about death rituals.

16. Dangerous Water: A Biography of the Boy Who Became Mark Twain by Ron Powers. For more detail, go to the Missouri Readers group on Monday or after. But I will say, "not recommended."

17. Defending Jacob by William Landay. Not bad, but not great. And off the shelf now!

18. Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation by Joseph J. Ellis. Exellent book!

19. In the Garden of the Beasts by Erik Larson. Another good one!

Wow, Terri, you are pulling those roots with lightning seed!

Good work, Terri.

Congratulations on your progress!

I read Necropolis last year. Fascinating but definitely not one to keep in the kitchen!

Thanks, Judy, Connie, Gemma! I'm plugging along...
Here is my...

February Recap:

Original TBR: 747

Current TBR: 730 + Currently Reading: 11 =

741

Wow. Two months in a row, and I'm down 6 books! Rock & Roll!

And I finished two more last night!

20. Excellent Women by Barbara Pym. Short but sweet.

21. Dave Barry Turns 50 by Dave Barry. Great fun, especially for a Boomer such as I!

Yeah!!!!!

Book 21 is one of my favourite Dave Barry books! Also, great work on your ROOT reading!

Congratulations, Terri. You are ripping it up in this challenge!

Thanks, Connie!

How in the world can you pick a favourite Dave Barry book??? I can't. Well, okay. Dave Barry's Guide to Guys is pretty darned funny. And when I was pregnant with my youngest son many, many years ago, the only time I laughed was reading his Babies and Other Hazards of Sex. See? I can't do it!

Thanks, Regina! It's crazy what you can do if you can keep yourself off the computer....

22. The Castle of Otranto by Horace Walpole. Short, but a very good read!

23. Persepolis 2: The Story of a Return by Marjane Satrapi.

24. No Graves As Yet by Anne Perry.

25. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald. I read this in high school a "few" years ago, and when my book group chose it, I bought a copy last year & read it again this week. I liked it then, I still like it, and Gatsby will never be anyone other than Robert Redford at his prime.

> 74. So true! Robert Redford **Sigh**

26. After Visiting Friends by Michael Hainey. An LT Early Reviewer book that I just got this year. It goes on the second ticker.

Finished two more in the nick of time last night!

27. More Historical Whodunnits edited by Mike Ashley. Rather thick book of mediocre short murder mysteries taking place in medieval times.

28. Lost in a Good Book by Jasper Fforde. Second in the Thursday Next series.

March Recap:

Original TBR: 747

Current TBR: 728 + Currently Reading 9 =

737

There must be some mistake. Perhaps I'm ill. After 3 months into the year, I'm down 10 books? I must be more awesome than I thought I was...

29. Juliet's Moon by Ann Rinaldi. A great YA story of the Civil War in MO. Acquired in 2013, so it goes in the second bin.

#78 Well, you ARE pretty awesome. Everyone says so.

*chuckle* Probably because they're too afraid to dispute when I tell them how awesome I am!

Speaking of awesome, I have been getting some reading done (as well as getting some book-buying done--time will tell which wins out).

30. Jury of One by Laura Bradford. A short but good little mystery by a local author that I picked up at a signing several years back. Not earth-shattering, but good enough that I picked up the second in the series to read right after:

31. Forecast of Evil, again by Laura Bradford. Another good little mystery.

32. Gulp: Adventures on the Alimentary Canal by Mary Roach. Sorry, I can't resist reading a Mary Roach book the second I get it, so it's for the second list. But great. Especially after meeting the author at a dinner/book-signing at a local cooking school, and being interrupted by a tornado warning that sent us all to the basement for a half hour!

You got to meet Mary Roach? Lucky! And quite an eventful meeting too.

This was the second time, RP. She came to town to promote Bonk a few years back. I wouldn't miss her. She's a delightful and hilarious lady. Maybe her next book will be about alcohol and I can go out for drinks with her...

April Recap:

Original TBR: 747

Current TBR: 731 + Currently Reading 9 =

740

Okay, I accumulated quite a few books this month (Hey! Some of them were free!). But even though I'm up a little from last month, I'm still under where I was at the first of the year.

I'm just so self-disciplined.

>84 tloeffler:; Hahahaha.

>84 tloeffler: - I've been telling myself the same thing....

I'm not even pretending I'm making any real dent in the TBR... Sigh.

My goal of restricting my buying to 25 this year is laughable. I am already at 31. I purchased 4 this week but treated myself after my husbands successful surgery. As you do! I have read 21 off my shelves so have a net gain of 10 already.

Well, here's how I look at it: At least we're reading. And we're probably reading more off our shelves than we would otherwise, just because we have to tell everyone about it. And Reading Off Our Shelves doesn't say anything about not ADDING to the shelves!

It's all in the rhetoric. I can justify almost anything!

It's all in the rhetoric. I can justify almost anything!

A woman after my own heart... :)

I figured I wasn't alone, Jean. I suspect we're all here to pretend that we're going to make a huge dent in the books we own but haven't read...

But I did polish off two chunksters this week!

33. A Country of Vast Designs by Robert W. Merry. A very good biography of President James Polk.

34. Out of Oz by Gregory Maguire. A fitting finale to the Wicked Years series. Excellent!

I figured I wasn't alone, Jean. I suspect we're all here to pretend that we're going to make a huge dent in the books we own but haven't read...

You are so right. I pretend, I confess.

Oh, my. I have been way too neglectful of this thread. In more ways than one...

I've read four more books that I own, but unfortunately, not that I owned before 2013. Something must be done about this.

35. The Avalon Ladies Scrapbooking Society by Darien Gee. Not my usual cup of tea, but still very good.

36. Jane and Prudence by Barbara Pym. Short and sweet.

37. What My Mother Gave Me by Elizabeth Benedict. Thirty-one women wrote essays on the greatest gift they received from their mother. Very thought-provoking.

38. A Dog Walks into a Nursing Home: Lessons in the Good Life from an Unlikely Teacher by Sue Halpern. Definitely recommended. Side note: The dog doesn't die.

hi Terri
I have neglected LT, and not doing well... 6 ROOTs read and 6 added... ;-)
You are doing much better!

#94 Anita, don't say that! I've read 5 owned books this year and was feeling pretty good about it! It is a huge improvement over my 2012 total of 3. Of course, you're correct that Terri is doing much better. But she is awesome, remember? (#78) ;-)

Hi, Terri! You really ARE doing great at this.

Reminds me of a line from "The Book of Mormon" musical: "Remember what you told me--You are awesome!"

I refuse to think of it as "neglect," Anita. You're just setting proper priorities. When reading becomes a chore, I'm done with it!

I'm getting to the part of the year where my ROOTS reading is slowing down, and I'm reading more of my newer books. Not to mention my Friends of the Library Book Fair is this weekend, and I collected quite a few work-type books when the secretary came into a class I was taking and said "We have all these quality books we're going to pitch, so take what you want!" I can't even resist free WORK books.

I did knock out one chunkster this week though:

39. Saving Fish From Drowning by Amy Tan. I polished that baby off in three nights!

I finished one more book that counted for May:

40. The Man Who Was Thursday by G. K. Chesterton.

May Recap:

Original TBR: 747

Current TBR: 753 + Currently Reading: 9 =

762

SO unfair that the Book Fair started on the last day of the month. And this doesn't include the books I got today, or the ones I expect to get tomorrow...

FAIL.

Finished my first June book today:

41. Please Don't Eat the Daisies by Jean Kerr. Dated, but awesomely hilarious!

I loved that one too when I read it eons ago Terri. And WOW, you are really cranking them out!~!
I hope you are high and dry; you and Brenda both.
I am really looking forward to Joplin and hoping that I can find an affordable flight.
hugs,

I've read G. K. Chesterton's Father Brown stories and I've always been intrigued by the title for The Man Who Was Thursday.

Yeah, so much for cranking them out. Today is the 24th, and I just finished my second ROOT for the month. Rough month at work and starting school left no time for fun reading. Hoping it settles down a bit in July!

I just picked up a collection of the Father Brown stories, Robert. And I believe the title is what attracted me to The Man Who Was Thursday also! (I don't think I'm giving anything away by saying there is a secret group of men, each code-named after a day of the week)

42. The Country of the Pointed Firs by Sarah Orne Jewett. A book of short stories, set in New England and written in the late 1800's. It was okay. The dialect was hard for me to follow, though.

I know the feeling Terri. I have had a very poor reading month too...

I know I won't be finishing anything else today, so I'll just post my June stats (such as they are). Since the second day of the Book Fair was 6/1/13, and I've read next to nothing off my own shelves this month, it's dismal, but there it is...

June Recap:

Original TBR: 747

Current TBR: 760 + Currently Reading: 9 =

769

Maybe July....

Keep it up, Terri!!

Terri I'm not sure how you manage to read 9 books at once. My brain would never cope. I have a novel and a book of short stories on the go at present and that's enough. :)

Three books at the same time is the max for me!

Well, keep in mind that one book is on the kitchen table to read when I'm eating. It's generally a humor book that doesn't have a plot line to follow. And three of the books are companion pieces to my president reading, so I only read one chapter of each of those with each president. There is a poetry book that is my "bathroom" book. One book I started, but then my son borrowed it for the summer. I try to keep a president book, a short story book, and one or two others, depending on how engaged I feel like I have to be with them. Some books demand that I only read about 100 pages at a time, so I have to intersperse others with them.
So it's not as bad as it sounds. Really.

Two off the shelf!

43. Lincoln Life-Size by Philip B. Kunhardt, III et.al. A large picture book that will go off the shelf and onto the coffee table!

44. The Twenty-Seventh City by Jonathan Franzen. Yuck. But done!

You are doing very well Terri. I have one on Lincoln that I will most likely read this winter as it is a chunkster and I try to steer clear of them in the summer. Just too much going on to give them the time they (& I) deserve.
Hope all is well with you.
hugs,

Thanks, Belva! I have several that I will read on Lincoln, one "real" biography, Team of Rivals, and several books about Elizabeth Keckley. I'll probably end up spending the rest of the year on him before moving on to Andrew Johnson. I have three weeks before my next class starts so I'm hoping to get some good reading in then. Meanwhile:

45. The Best-Loved Poems of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis by Caroline Kennedy. A collection of poems assembled by Caroline.

46. Shoulder the Sky by Anne Perry. Book two of her WWI series.

Okay! Finished my first class and several books off the shelf!

47. Holmes on the Range by Steve Hockensmith. First in the series and very good fun!

48. The Decline and Fall of Practically Everybody by Will Cuppy. Also good fun!

49. Remembering Denny by Calvin Trillin. Not your usual Trillin, and not as good as most.

50. Give Us A Kiss by Daniel Woodrell. One of my very favorite authors' earlier works. Not quite as "noir" as some of his later stuff, but a one-sitting read!

July Recap:

Original TBR: 747

Current TBR: 760 + Currently Reading: 8 =

768

Hot dog! One down! Of course, yesterday was my Thingaversary, so I believe I have to buy myself 8 books...and I have a 3 week hiatus from school, including one week off work, so maybe I'll catch up!

Happy Thingaversary! :) Be sure to let us know what you buy to celebrate!

Happy Thingaversary!

This thread has inspired me to start a ROOT project centered around my father's and grandfather's books. Thank you!

Happy Thingaversary Terri and indeed you must treat yourself to some new books!

HAPPY THINGAVERSARY Terri. I will celebrate my 6th on the 30th so I am on the prowl for 6 lovelies for me-own-self. :-) It seems like I have been here much longer but no, when I checked my profile page it says 2007.
And 41 ROOTs on the year? You are cooking with gas girlfriend!

Thanks for the Thingaversary wishes, all! I did buy two books this week, but they were both textbooks and I refuse to let them count. I'm off work this week, so I may just do my splurging while I'm off and relaxed!

51. Mr. Bridge by Evan S. Connell. Read for the MO Readers group read this month. Excellent book!

52. Nine Years Under by Sheri Booker. An LT Early Reviewer from this year, so only counts for Counter #2.

53. The Yonahlossee Riding Camp for Girls by Anton DiSclafani. Another newer book for Counter #2. Good read!

54. Overwhelming Odds by Susan O'Leary. Written by the mother of fabulous motivational speaker John O'Leary, who was burned over 90% of his body at 9 years old. The book is good, but not as good as hearing him tell the story himself!

August Recap:

Original TBR: 747

Current TBR: 761 + Currently Reading: 11 =

772

This month shouldn't count because it was my birthday and I got a lot of books as gifts. Plus for whatever reason, I read 12 books this month, but only 4 were mine, and only one was an older book.

:-(

55. Bluebeard's Egg by Margaret Atwood. First book of the month, and off the shelf!

56. The Sweet Potato Queens' First Big-Ass Novel by Jill Conner Browne. Not nearly as good as her other books. It's like she took her real-life stories and plugged them into a novel, but without as much fun. Read her other stuff--it's hilarious.

I have a couple of Sweet Potato books in the TBR pile to get to some day.

Oh, Betty, they just make me laugh out loud! If you ever need something like that, pull them out!

57. Our Iceberg is Melting by John Kotter & Holger Rathgeber. A newer book that I grabbed out of the discard pile at work. A short, cute story that follows Kotter's eight steps to change.

Two more books too current to count for the first ticker:

58. No Fond Return of Love by Barbara Pym.

59. The Other Typist by Suzanne Rindell. Excellent psychological mystery!

60. Behind the Scenes or, Thirty Years a Slave and Four Years in the White House by Elizabeth Keckley. Elizabeth Keckley was a slave for 30 years. Once she bought her freedom, she opened a dressmaking business, and eventually became Mary Todd Lincoln's dressmaker. This is her autobiography. We hear conversations between the President and his wife, conversations they both held with Elizabeth, the people she met, and what life was like in the White House during the Civil War. Just a different perspective, but a very interesting one. Keckley ends the book with copies of correspondence between her and Mrs. Lincoln after the President's death.

61. Quartet in Autumn by Barbara Pym. Someone suggested at the first of the year to read Pym's books in order this year, and I'm a bit behind, but this one's done!

62. Three Day Road by Joseph Boyden. I actually finished this in September, but I've been out of town for work & haven't had time for anything fun. :(

September Recap:

Original TBR: 747

Current TBR: 756 + Currently Reading: 12 =

778

Where did all of the new books come from?????

Have you been putting books by male authors and books by female authors on the same shelf again?

How do you get 778? Not by summing up 756 and 12, I hope!

@ Robert: :-))

LOL Robert! I only wish that was how it happened....thanks for the chuckle!

Although I believe Connie has answered the question: I can't add! Although so much better to find that I'm lower than I thought instead of higher! Thanks, Connie!

REVISED September Recap:

Original TBR: 747

Current TBR: 756 + Currently Reading: 12 =

768

Not great, but better than it was!

63. How the Light Gets In by Louise Penny. This is one that I bought (HEY! I had a gift card!) and read almost immediately. Excellent book in an excellent series!

Glad to be of help,

64. Dreams Underfoot by Charles de Lint. A great book of stories, I guess under the category of "magical realism" (although I really hate categories). Excellent, though, and off the shelf!

65. Winesburg, Ohio by Sherwood Anderson. Another book of connected short stories, written in 1919, but still entertaining. Off the Shelf!

66. The Maid's Version by Daniel Woodrell. I love Daniel Woodrell's writing, and I pretty much finished this book as soon as it was given to me. Never made it onto the shelf....

67. Empty Mansions by Bill Dedman and Paul Clark Newell Jr.. An LT Early Reviewers book, so not officially off the shelf.

68. The Wit and Wisdom of Abraham Lincoln edited by Anthony Gross. A collection of stories and quotes from Abe.

69. Evita, First Lady: A Biography of Eva Peron by John Barnes. A very good biography of the former first lady of Argentina and subject of the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical "Evita."

October Recap:

Original TBR: 747

Current TBR: 755 + Currently Reading: 9 =

764

Moving down! Oh, and my last book was #50!!! Goal Reached!

Let's see what I can do in the last 2 months.....

Welcome to our happy band of goal achievers!

Yes!! Well done, Terrie!

Congratulations. Well done.

Hurray, congratulations!!

Congratulations!

Nice job Terri, congratulations. Great idea to have two tickers.

Thanks for all the congratulations! Of course, I haven't finished anything this month...

70. Civil War Ghosts of Southwest Missouri by Lisa Livingston-Martin. A short history of the Civil War in Missouri. Nothing new, and very little about ghosts. :(

Congrats, Terri! Way to go!

71. The Sweet Dove Died by Barbara Pym. Continuing to read Pym books in order. This is the last one that I own, so the rest won't count for off the shelf.....

72. Behind the Scenes at the Museum by Kate Atkinson. I've read all of her other books, I guess it was time to read her first. Off the Shelf!

73. The Rockaways by Gilles Peress. This was a Concord Free Press book, which I read as soon as I received it. It consists of photographs and essays about Hurricane Sandy in 2012. Concord Free Press offers free books to readers in return for the promise to make a charitable contribution and to pass the book along to someone else so they can keep it going.

So if anyone is interested, I will send it off to the first person who asks--PM me your address!

74. Victorian Ghost Stories edited by Michael Cox and R. A. Gilbert. A collection of ghost stories 1852-1908. Off the shelf!

November Recap:

Original TBR: 747

Current TBR: 754 + Currently Reading: 10 =

764

Well, down from last month, but almost 20 over where I was at the beginning of the year. No way I'll get it down before the end of the year, because I'm heading out tomorrow for my annual trip to Changing Hands bookstore in Joplin MO, and there is no hope that I will come back without a surfeit of additional books.

Ah, well. I think I probably be better this year than last, and I will have plenty of books to start the challenge next year!

75. A Handful of Dust by Evelyn Waugh. First one for the month...

76. Death of a Red Heroine by Qiu Xiaolong.

77. Orphan Trains to Missouri by Michael D. Patrick.

78. Christmas at the Mysterious Bookshop by Otto Penzler.

79. No Room At The Inn by Edna Ferber.

80. Jim Henson: The Biography by Brian Jay Jones. This was an Early Reviewer book, so it only counts for the second ticker. But I recommend it anyway!

I am also proud to state that I have read 150 books this year and MORE THAN HALF were books that I owned. So there.

Yay! Nice work :)

WOW, great job, Terri!!!

#159 by tloeffler> w00t!

Nice job! Congratulations!

But Wait! Apparently I'm not finished yet!

81. Decline and Fall by Evelyn Waugh. Probably one of the best stories I've read in a while. I laughed and laughed!

Very well done, Terri!!

That's on my wishlist. Perhaps I should move it up.

Thank you, Connie! I couldn't have done it without all the support from all of you! Well, maybe I could have, but it wouldn't have been nearly as much fun.

Yes, you should, Robert. It's that good.

And now (*drum roll*)--the final recap!

December Recap:

Original TBR: 747

Current TBR: 766 + Currently Reading: 13 =

779

Not pretty. But at least I'm prepared in case there's a world-wide book shortage.....

Happy New Year, Everyone!

Happy New Year to you too, Terri