rosalita ROOTs around in 2021

Last year was my first year participating in the ROOT Challenge. I met my goal of 36 ROOTs read and then some — I finished with 56 books read from my own shelves. Hooray! In a year where almost everything else in life, including my reading, was a disappointment or worse, I feel really good about finally reading some of the books I can't seem to stop acquiring.

So, let's do it all again! I've upped my goal this year to 48, or four per month. I am also, with great trepidation, going to try to track my book acquisitions (yikes!) in hopes of being more aware of the pattern of inflow/outflow. I have no illusions that awareness will change my behavior, however. :-)

Books that I acquire in 2021 will not count as ROOTs, I've decided on the spur of the moment. I may come to regret that decision ...

On with the show!

ROOTs read in 2021

1. Blue Heaven by C. J. Box.
2. The Silent Pool by Patricia Wentworth
3. Banker by Dick Francis.
4. Mother Night by Kurt Vonnegut
5. The Silver Music Box by Mina Baites.
6. The Secret of Terror Castle by Robert Arthur
7. Jackie Robinson and the Integration of Baseball by Scott Simon.

New acquisitions in 2021

January

1. West With Giraffes by Lynda Rutledge (Amazon Prime First Reads)
2. The Shadow Box by Luanne Rice (Amazon Prime First Reads)
3. Fear of Food: A history of why we Worry About What we Eat by Harvey Levenstein (University of Chicago Press monthly free ebook)
4. Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston (free audiobook from Libro.fm)
5. Empire of the Summer Moon by S. C. Gwynne ($2.99 ebook/Kobo)
6. They Thought They Were Free: The Germans, 1933-45 by Milton Mayer (free ebook from University of Chicago Press)
7. The Custom of the Country by Edith Wharton (public domain ebook from Project Gutenberg)
8. Passing by Nella Larsen ($3.99 ebook/Kobo)
9. The Cost of These Dreams: Sports Stories and Other Serious Business by Wright Thompson ($4.99 ebook/Kobo)
10. Echoes by Maeve Binchy ($1.99 ebook/Kobo)
11. Zone One by Colson Whitehead ($1.99 ebook/Kobo)

Hi Julia. Good to see you want to participate again and we did not scare you off. ;-))

Happy ROOTing.

Welcome back! I too monitor my acquisitions and it does virtually nothing to stop me from buying ;) The only reason my TBR to "pay off" went down in 2020 was that I had no access to library book sales. I hope you have a great reading year!

Welcome back from me too! I have found tracking acquisitions really useful, although it's only been in the last couple of years, when I've tried to only acquire a book once I've read 2 (never yet achieved, but getting closer), that I've started to make any kind of dent in Mt TBR. Before that I just horrified myself at the amount of books that were coming in! (but, lovely lovely books!). I hope you have a good reading year!

>4 connie53: >5 rabbitprincess: >6 Jackie_K: Thanks for the warm welcome, all!

I've added the reading challenge that Chèli found and I'm going to try to follow it. I'm not sure I have books to fit all the categories but I've got so many ROOTs that it might be helpful to have some way to focus my choices. I'm not going to be a stickler about it, though, so we'll see at the end of the year how well I do.

>1 rosalita: I am glad that you have no illusions that awareness will change my behavior. I have tracked my acquisitions for at least 7 years and it has never stopped me from acquiring a book. However, it did help me from acquiring a duplicate on several occasions.

You might find that it is helpful.

Happy 2021 Reading!

Wishing you good luck with your ROOTing goals the second time around.

>8 cyderry: I've never really made a serious effort to track acquisitions, Chèli, so I'm interested to see if anything changes once it's all down in black and white.

>9 This-n-That: Thanks!

Tentative January reading plans

2021 Read Your Bookshelf Challenge (January = A book with a color in the title)
All Systems Red by Martha Wells — Book 1 in The Murderbot Diaries series (sci-fi)
Black Patriots and Loyalists: Fighting for emancipation in the war for independence by Alan Gilbert (nonfiction history)
✔︎ The Silver Music Box by Mina Baites (historical fiction)
✔︎ Blue Heaven by C.J. Box (suspense)

TIOLI challenges
Crapalachia by Scott McClanahan (memoir by author whose last name is 9 letters or longer)
✔︎ Jackie Robinson and the Integration of Baseball by Scott Simon (book set in or about a year within 21 years of your birth)
Hope on Earth by Paul R. Ehrlich & Michael Tobias (title that tells us what you are looking for in the new year)
✔︎ The Secret of Terror Castle by Robert Arthur (book featuring juvenile detectives or adventurers)

Shared reads
✔︎ The Silent Pool by Patricia Wentworth (Miss Silver series with lyzard)
✔︎ Banker by Dick Francis (shared read hosted by karenmarie)

That's nine books, all ROOTs, which in a normal year would be about right for a monthly total. Not in 2020, though, so we'll see what the new year holds. I may not read them all, but I find that listing all the possibilities helps me remember my good intentions, even if I later decide not to keep them. :-)

Good luck with your ROOTing, and Happy New Year!

>12 mstrust: Thanks very much, and the same to you on both counts!

>11 rosalita: Great plans! I like having a list as well -- it helps narrow down the options.

Hi Julia!

I'm happy to follow along here - I did not realize that you had a ROOT thread last year!

Happy ROOTing.

>14 rabbitprincess: Yes, that’s my hope — avoid the “paralysis by analysis” problem.

>15 karenmarie: You didn’t miss anything, Karen — I had a ticker in the ticker thread but didn’t have my own thread. I enjoyed this group so much I decided to make myself at home this year. :-)

Happy New Year, Julia. I am so happy to find a thread where I can hound you. :) Good luck reading from your shelves. I also want to do more of that this year.

Julia!!! Lovely to find you. I think I'll set up here too. It looks like my library will only be running a skeleton service for months, so it's the perfect opportunity to tackle some of my own things. Good luck with your total!

>17 BLBera: Does it count as "hounding" if the recipient welcomes it? :-) Thanks for meeting me here, my friend!

>18 susanj67: Thanks, Susan! I still have some library ebooks on hold but the wait times have gotten so long during the pandemic that I can't count on it as a steady source of reading material. Gosh, good thing I had the "wisdom" to stock up for all these years!

You might change your mind, Julia. Anyway, I look forward to following your reading.

1. Blue Heaven by C. J. Box.

My first ROOT of the year. I have read the first couple of books in Box's Joe Pickett series, but this is a standalone suspense/thriller about some rogue L.A. cops who retire to Idaho with their ill-begotten gains and proceed to wreak havoc on the rural community. It's very well-written, but I've apparently gone soft in my old age as I no longer like reading books that put kids in jeopardy, especially from the opening pages through to the end of the book. But I liked that there was no neatly wrapped up happy ending for everyone. No one comes out unscathed in this one, not even the good guys, but it still felt like a satisfying wrap-up.

Wow, first ROOT down! Good job.

>19 rosalita: Julia, yes, our hoarding stockpiling looks like plain common sense now! I unwrapped a trio of thrillers the other day that I must have bought before Kindle, when the fear was real :-)

>21 rosalita: Yay! One down! I have this as an ebook, which has given me an idea...I haven't read this year's Joe Pickett yet so this one could be a good substitute.

>22 connie53: Thanks, Connie!

>23 susanj67: I should get back to the Joe Pickett series sometime, but my library doesn't have all of the early books and I don't want to read out of order. An old story.

Congrats on finishing your first book, Julia. I want to get back to the Pickett series. I think the last one I read was kind of bloody so I paused them for a bit. I only read the first two or three.

Isn't it annoying when libraries only own part of a series. There should be a law.

It's really unfair, Beth, to get readers hooked on a series and then just stop buying the books. I suppose if there was a law requiring them to continue buying series once they've started, libraries might stop taking a chance on new series books at all. It's a conundrum, for sure.

Well here you are, missy.
I'll be following you here (I hope that's okay since I'm not a member of this group!).

Of course it's okay! I'm glad you found me, Amber. :-)

>28 rosalita: Me, too! I've missed keeping up with you and it's always such a treat when you deign to visit threads. *ahem*

Hi Amber! How are you doing?

>27 scaifea: What she said. I actually did a good job of reading my own books last year since the library system was closed. I also did an excellent job of acquiring books. Ahem. But mostly on Kindle, so at least they don't take up any space in the house.

>29 scaifea: Ah, I visit your thread every ding-dang day, Amber. I just don't usually have anything interesting to add so I keep shtum. ;-)

>31 Crazymamie: Mamie! Ebooks not taking up physical space is a definite plus, but the "being invisible so I forget I have them" bit is a definite minus. I've finally got them all in my LT catalog now, so it should be a little easier to bring them to the surface when I'm looking for my next read. That's the theory, anyway. :-)

>30 connie53: Connie!! Do you have a thread over here, too? *scurries off to check*

>32 rosalita: Ha! I do that, too, really; I'm on all my friends' threads everyday, but if I don't have anything worthwhile to say, I usually just lurk. Especially this time of year, when it's hard to justify cluttering up the threads even more with my nonsense.

2. The Silent Pool by Patricia Wentworth.

A retired stage actress visits Miss Silver in disguise (seen right through by our sharp-eyed governess-cum-detective, of course). Adriana Ford thinks someone in her ragtag extended family may be trying to kill her for her money — there's been a fall on the stairs, a possibly poisoned soup, and a suspicious medicine tablet. After spilling all this to Miss Silver, the actress decides she's being overly dramatic and declines Miss Silver's help. But after the first body shows up, she puts in a call to our Maudie to come sort things out.

I'd gotten used to Miss Silver not showing up until perhaps the middle of a book or even later, so it was a surprise to see her right there in the first sentence this time. That fact, combined with a rather lengthy bit of exposition in the first chapter that brings readers up to speed on Miss Silver's backstory, makes me think this book was seen as a chance to hook some new readers into the Tribe of Maudie. If you're one of those people who don't feel the need to start a series at the beginning, this could be a good one to begin with. But surely you wouldn't do that, would you?

Anyway, the story is a good one. There's a satisfying surfeit of suspects and some pleasant characters to root for, though this book further confirms my theory that Wentworth had much more fun writing terrible people than she did nice ones. Her villains are always just so delightfully villainous!

I'm feeling a little melancholy as we approach the end of the series (this is Book 25 of 32), but I'm pleased that each outing remains remarkably strong even this far along in the series.

Nice try hiding from me, Julia!

*plops down on floor and refuses to move*

>35 katiekrug: Howdy, Katie! While you're down there, could you hand me that paper clip I dropped last week?

>36 rosalita: - Heh.

Remember Clippy, the annoying animated paper clip that Microsoft had to "help" you write letters back in the day?

Hi Julia! Long time no see :)
Happy New Year and (obvs) Happy Reading!

>37 katiekrug: We still invoke Clippy quite regularly at work in all sorts of situations — "it looks like you're trying to get a student to reply to even one of your emails. Would you like help with that?"

>38 LovingLit: Megan! How lovely to see you here. It's getting to be like Old Home Week around these parts. Lovely!

>39 rosalita: - Love it!

>40 katiekrug: You have to do the Clippy voice or it doesn't count. :-)

>41 rosalita: - It... it... had a voice? That's the stuff of nightmares!

This is my favorite Clippy meme:

>42 katiekrug: Katie, he was voiced by ... Gilbert Gottfried!! https://thoughtcatalog.com/ed-herro/2013/07/that-time-i-was-clippy-the-paperclip...

O.M.G.

>39 rosalita: *snork!* I love it!

>42 katiekrug: *SNORK!!!*

>42 katiekrug: I love it!

I find I forget what I have on my e-reader. I really need to catalog the books, but there are like 600! (Can you hear the whine)?

>42 katiekrug: LOVE!

I'd forgotten about Clippy, but do I get points for learning to type with Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing?

You've reminded me about the Miss Silver series, Julia. I did start it...

Hello and thanks for the giggles!

>48 MissWatson: Welcome to my thread! As you've seen, frequent detours into non-book subjects are a feature, not a bug, around these parts. :-)

Well, it's done. I've made my first two acquisitions of 2021, as shown in >3 rosalita:. This month's Amazon Prime First Reads program allowed users to choose two books instead of one. Not sure if I appreciate that or not! :-)

>50 rosalita: - I picked up the giraffe book, too!

>51 katiekrug: I haven't downloaded a First Reads book in forever, since I decided to only download ones that actually sounded interesting. I was shocked that there were two this month that I was interested in. What was your second pick — or did you limit yourself to just one?

>52 rosalita: - I rarely get them because they rarely appeal, but I have a thing for giraffes (and one of the challenges I'm doing calls for an "exotic animal"). I just got the one.

>53 katiekrug: Interesting.

*files 'likes giraffes' in the Katie folder*

Well, I mean, they are no hippopotamuses, but they are pretty cool.

Yes, I would think hippos would be much cooler, since they can wallow in the water...

Also, they are adorable.

*whispers* Well, I mean hippopotamus literally means "river horse" so yeah, they're pretty awesome.
*sneaks back out*

>58 scaifea: - *yells out the door*

I KNEW THAT!

*somewhat more quietly*
My first-ever report for school - 2nd grade, I believe - was about the lovely hippopotamus. I have loved them ever since.

You all are cracking me up. That is all.

>60 Crazymamie: You're welcome. :-)

And, unrelatedly: Another one! As shown in >3 rosalita:, I have now acquired a copy of the University of Chicago Press's free monthly ebook for January, Fear of Food: A History of Why We Worry About What We Eat. The best thing I can say is that at least all of these were free.

Starred you Julia. I'm not sure I'm brave enough for this group: I've bought so much more since the library access was cut back last year.

Obvs I would never start a series anywhere but by reading the first book (!) but have added >34 rosalita: to the list. Just in case...

>50 rosalita:, >51 katiekrug: I also picked the giraffe book! I didn't get another one, because that was the only one that appealed.

Interesting hippo fact: Pablo Escobar imported hippos for his private menagerie and they escaped after everything went to h*ck for him. There are now around 100 roaming Colombia.

>62 charl08: Welcome, Charlotte! This group is a delightful judgment-free zone, much like the 75ers, so there's nothing to be frightened of. It's really helped me remember all those ebooks that are so conveniently "out of sight, out of mind" after I buy them. :-)

>63 susanj67: We are some real giraffe lovers around here, Susan!

>63 susanj67: Me, four, with the giraffe book.

Morning, Julia!

>63 susanj67: Me, four, with the giraffe book.

Morning, Julia!

*Back to add that all this talk of hippos keeps reminding me of the book I read where hippos had been introduced to the American bayous (apparently this was an actual scheme that was considered in the early 20th century). Anyway, in the book they ride the hippos.

>65 Crazymamie: - That hippo book is on my Kindle. Must read it soon!

Hi Julia!

>32 rosalita: Ebooks not taking up physical space is a definite plus, but the "being invisible so I forget I have them" bit is a definite minus. I've finally got them all in my LT catalog now, so it should be a little easier to bring them to the surface when I'm looking for my next read. That's the theory, anyway. :-) This reminds me that I should get all my Kindle books into my LT catalog, too.

>42 katiekrug: 👍

>65 Crazymamie: Another take on the Great Hippopotamus Experiment: American Hippopotamus by Jon Mooallem. Just sayin’.

edited to spell hippo..whatever... correct and get the touchstone to work. Drat. The touchstone isn't working. And, on the 13th the touchstone is finally working.

>67 karenmarie: Making a note of that, Karen - thanks!

Hello, Julia!

Another (free) acquisition, duly listed up in >3 rosalita:: Audiobook edition of Zora Neale Hurston's Their Eyes Were Watching God, offered as a freebie from libro.fm courtesy of Bookperk. I read this a couple of years ago and liked it very much, but the one thing I struggled with was "hearing" the written dialect in my head as the characters would have spoken it. I'm hoping the audiobook does a good job of bringing that to life, which will make an already rich story even richer.

>69 rosalita: Is Ruby Dee the narrator? I listened to it narrated by her, and it was full of fabulous. She just brought it to life.

>70 Crazymamie: I hadn't looked at who the narrator was (I try not to look free books in the mouth) but in checking the app, it is indeed Ruby Dee. I'm even more excited now that I know it has the Mamie Seal of Approval.

*grin*

> I'll watch for your comments on the audiobook, Julia. I imagine that Their Eyes Were Watching God would be fabulous to listen to.

>73 BLBera: I think so, too, Beth. Of course, I never leave the house these days so I'm not sure when I'll ever get a chance to listen to it. :-)

I don't know, guys. I feel like I haven't fully grasped the point of this ROOT challenge, as I have bought yet another book. I should have finished my current book by now but as you can imagine my reading time this week has been somewhat taken up by current events. Sigh.

Anyway, as dutifully detailed in >3 rosalita:, I have purchased Empire of the Summer Moon. This history of the Comanche Indian tribe has been on my wishlist for a long time and having the ebook go on sale meant I had to buy it. HAD TO, I say.

That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

>75 rosalita: lol.
I feel like I haven't fully grasped the point of this ROOT challenge, as I have bought yet another book
Learning is a journey, not a destination.

>75 rosalita: I guess you could justify it by saying this is a reading challenge. The buying more is a completely separate challenge :)

>76 LovingLit: Wise words there from Megan :-)

Don't worry, Julia - but maybe consider including 2021 purchases in the challenge? I started trying to read the books I bought last year in the month I bought them, and it really helped (at first, anyway).

>77 Jackie_K: Haha Jackie, my thoughts exactly! :D

>76 LovingLit: You are so wise, Megan!

>77 Jackie_K: I like the way you think, Jackie! Separate challenges does make it seem less ridiculous, and isn't really a stretch at all when you think about it.

>78 susanj67: I am seriously considering that advice, Susan. I certainly don't think there's anything wrong with including current-year purchases in the challenge, but I foolishly thought making it harder on myself would be more interesting. Silly, silly Julia. :-)

>79 rabbitprincess: Jackie's a smart one!

3. Banker by Dick Francis.

An old favorite, being re-read now as part of an LT shared read of Dick Francis' horsey mysteries. This one spotlights junior merchant banker Tim Ekaterin, who convinces his firm to lend millions of pounds to buy a champion racehorse to be put out to stud. When potential disaster looms, Ekaterin has to turn detective to solve the mystery and save his firm and the stallion's owner from financial disaster.

One of the reasons I've always enjoyed Dick Francis is the glimpse he gives into another world — in this case that of merchant banking. (I think the equivalent US term is investment banking, though there may be subtle differences between the two that I'm unaware of.) And on the horse side, we get a look at how a stud farm works — or in other words where all those lovely racehorses featured in other Francis books come from.

And as always with Francis, the characters are perhaps even more compelling than the mystery. Oliver Knowles, the stud farm owner, and his teenage daughter, Ginnie, are sympathetic characters who are easy to root for. And the range of secondary characters are unique enough to have fully formed personas for the reader, even if we don't spend a lot of time with them. Tim himself is the usual Francis prototype protagonist: Stoic, practical, mostly unemotional in that stereotypical "stiff upper lip" British way. And true to form for Francis, our hero is put into great physical danger and does not come out unscathed.

Just as in real life, Francis never guarantees a happy ending, though most readers will find it more than satisfactory. Even knowing who the villain was, I never get bored re-reading this book because the characters and the world-building are first-rate. Many thanks to Karen for choosing this as our first read of the year.

Well, I came by to wish you a happy 2021, and did not expect to learn delightful facts about hippos and that Clippy had a voice. What fun!

And happy 2021! Best of luck meeting your ROOT challenge :)

>82 bell7: This is a full-service thread, Mary! I hope we didn't scare you off and you'll come back soon.

What I'm Reading Outside of Books

This is an older op-ed from The New York Times (published way back in 2019) that resurfaced in a recent newsletter, but it's more relevant than ever, I think:

Why You Should Start Binge Reading Right Now by Ben Dolnick

John Gardner, the literary critic, wrote that the job of the novelist is to create a “vivid and continuous dream” for the reader, but I’d somehow developed a case of readerly sleep apnea. I’d gotten into the habit of consuming novels so fitfully that I was all but sealed off from their pleasures. It was as if I’d been watching movies in a special buffering-only mode, or listening to music through the world’s balkiest Bluetooth headphones.

>80 rosalita: I bought a book the other day too. But only because the coffee shop had a 'back in 15 minutes' sign on the counter, and I had nothing else to do but browse while I waited! Plus it was half price.
It was The end of the end of the Earth, essays by Jonathan Franzen.

>85 LovingLit: Hmm, I've not had good luck with Franzen but perhaps he's better in small doses. Did you like it? I should pop over to your thread and find out!

>84 rosalita: Great piece. Thanks for sharing it! I love binge reading, especially on a long weekend :)

I always *want* to binge read, but it rarely happens. I should re-double my efforts!

Hi Julia!

>81 rosalita: Excellent review, Julia! I just finished the book yesterday and am trying to decide whether to write a full review.

>87 rabbitprincess: >88 katiekrug: I thought he made a lot of good points, but how am I supposed to get lost in a book when the world is on fire and half of Congress is itching to overthrow our democracy?!

>89 karenmarie: You are too kind, Karen! I was surprised I hadn't already written a review for this one, so I'm glad to have the chance to do it now.

>84 rosalita: Yes!

>91 BLBera: Hi, Beth! Is that "Yes!" for the content of the article or for the fact that I'm posting links again?

:-)

Set Your VCRs!
(er, DVRs)

For those among us who have access to PBS, the public television broadcaster in the US, two upcoming programs will focus on Agatha Christie. Here's the blurb from The Washington Post's Book Club newsletter:

“Inside the Mind of Agatha Christie” on Jan. 17 and “Agatha Christie’s England” on Jan. 24. (Check local listings.) Both programs, narrated by Samantha Bond (Lady Rosamund Painswick on “Downton Abbey”), include footage from films, TV shows and Christie’s home movies, along with shots of the various towns and mansions that inspired her, such as Abney Hall. (Don’t touch the candlestick in the library.) Interviews with family members and academics offer insight into Christie’s life, which was, apparently, more dark than cozy.

I am on the library holds list for The Mystery of Mrs. Christie which is a newly published speculative fiction novel about Dame Agatha's mysterious 11-day disappearance in 1926, so these programs should be nice appetizers for whenever I finally am able to read that one.

>92 rosalita: Yes! I am not Beth, but that is my answer.

>93 rosalita: Those both sound interesting - thanks, Julia!

>94 Crazymamie: You are not Beth, but your opinion is just as valuable, Mamie — thank you!

After I posted that, it occurred to me that the PBS shows may be imports from the BBC, so folks from Over There may have already seen them. I confess I did not do any research before posting. Bad Julia!

Both.

What I'm Reading Outside of Books

A little roundup of links for your weekend reading pleasure:

• T Book Club — The New York Times Style Magazine has a new book club. The inaugural book last month was James Baldwin's Go Tell It on the Mountain, and this month it's The Custom of the Country by Edith Wharton, which I have to confess I have never heard of. The magazine describes it as "a tragicomedy of manners" that "examines social ambition at its most unrelenting." The novel is in the public domain, so you can snag a free copy at Project Gutenberg or pretty much any ebook platform like Kindle, Nook or Kobo. I'm going to try to squeeze this one in before the Jan. 28 discussion (you don't need to be a NYT subscriber to register and attend). (via The New York Times)


• You Learn Something New Every Day — It's been a few years since I first stumbled on this blog written by an American now living in the UK. This recent post really resonated with me. I'm going to try to take this as my inspiration to be more observant and appreciative of learning new things in 2021. I only hope the things I learn this year are more enjoyable than the things I learned last year! (via Postcards From Across the Pond)


• Why Aren't We Wearing Better Masks? — Many Americans are still wearing homemade cloth masks instead of more effective N95 types. I appreciate the authors' frankness about how confusing the whole masks topic is, as well as their main takeaway: "We need the CDC and the FDA to step up and provide simple, clear, actionable, and specific information that would allow the public to know which masks are reliable and where they can get them, as well as how to upgrade and better wear their existing options." Maybe after Jan. 20 ... (via The Atlantic)


• Free ebook from University of Chicago Press — The University of Chicago Press offers a free ebook each month, but this is a special offering of a book that is especially relevant right now in the US: They Thought They Were Free: The Germans, 1933-45 is "a timely reminder of how otherwise unremarkable and in many ways reasonable people can be seduced by demagogues and populists." Gulp. (via email from University of Chicago Press)

Thanks for the link to the Agatha Christie documentary! I'll have to watch that one :)

Hi Julia, I searched you out and found you! Hope you don't mind. I noticed that you recently rated Mother Night and was curious if it was a first read or a reread. I loved it, myself. I've got the DVR all set to record my local PBS channel for many hours (4 shows) this evening. All Creatures Great and Small is interesting although I miss Christopher Timothy from the original. I have the new Mrs Christie book checked out from the library but decided to watch the PBS show first.

>98 rabbitprincess: I watched it last night and thought it was okay, if a bit superficial. I really wanted a closer look at those notebooks!

>99 Copperskye: I'm so glad you found me, Joanne! I have had Mother Night on my Kobo for years but hadn't read it yet. But Iowa Public Radio has started up an on-air book club, and the January selection is the Vonnegut book so I had extra motivation to read it now. And I'm glad I did! I'm still digesting it but hoo-boy, what a story. "The banality of evil," indeed. And hard not to draw conclusions to today, with so many people committing terrible acts absolutely convinced of their own righteousness in doing so.

>100 rosalita: I was thinking about it in relation to our current times, too, Julia. Such a good book. Good for IPR for choosing it!

>97 rosalita: Well, I made a bunch of masks in the summer, so I have a big supply. I am sticking with them for now. I don't get that close to people anyway...

I have a stack of Vonneguts but I don't know that I have Mother Night. My son was a big fan.

>182 I haven't read nearly enough Vonnegut, but this was a very good one! And pretty short, though it packs an emotional punch.

>100 rosalita: Agatha Christie's Secret Notebooks might be the ticket for you then! I greatly enjoyed this and the follow-up, Agatha Christie's Murder in the Making.

>104 rabbitprincess: Ooh, thanks for the recommendation! That's going straight onto the wishlist.

4. Mother Night by Kurt Vonnegut.

We are what we pretend to be, so we must be careful about what we pretend to be.

Howard W. Campbell Jr., the narrator of Vonnegut’s brilliant 1966 novel, pretends to be a Nazi — or as he puts it at the outset of his so-called confessions, “I am an American by birth, a Nazi by reputation, and a nationless person by inclination.” In Campbell’s version of his life story, he became a writer and broadcaster of Nazi propaganda out of expediency — his father-in-law was the chief of police in Berlin; Campbell and his German wife wanted to remain in Germany even after the war began in 1939; joining the Nazi cause was the easiest way to do that. His broadcasts were notoriously vile, filled with hatred and venom toward Jewish people and anyone else who did not conform to the Aryan ideal.

And that for me was the most upsetting thing about this story — that someone could spew such hatred, knowing it would have the most terrible consequences for its targets, without actually feeling strongly one way or the other about the truth of what he said and wrote. The hateful propaganda was a writing exercise, a way for Campbell to keep his creative juices flowing for when the war would end and he could resume his playwriting career. To freely disperse such hate without believing in it — is that not more horrific than the mad ravings of the true believer?

I’ve seen a number of references to this book recently as a sort of foretelling of the current political situation in the United States. As I began reading I expected to find that Campbell represented the people who stormed the US Capitol and tried to overthrow the government, but after reading it I’ve changed my mind. Campbell is the spitting image of every politician, from the very top down to state and local levels, who cynically perpetuated lies and conspiracy theories that they knew to be false, in order to rile up that mob and incite the insurrection. In the end, which is worse?

That's the question that's going to keep me up nights.

I had hoped, as a (propaganda) broadcaster, to be merely ludicrous, but this is a hard world to be ludicrous in, with so many human beings so reluctant to laugh, so incapable of thought, so eager to believe and snarl and hate

>106 rosalita: - I read this when Vonnegut was an AAC choice back in 2014. I rated it 4 stars and apparently found it pretty funny. I have a feeling my reaction would be different now.

Nice review, Julia!

4. The Silver Music Box by Mina Baites.

Johann Blumenthal is a German jeweler, a talented silversmith who counts both Gentiles and his fellow Jews among his regular customers. Filled with love for a homeland that doesn’t always love him back, he enlists in the German Army to fight in World War I. Before he leaves, he crafts an exquisite silver music box for his young son, Paul, to remember him by. When Johann doesn’t return from the front, Paul and his mother, Lotte, are left to pick up the pieces with the help of Uncle Max, also a talented jeweler.

Fast-forward to the 1930s. Paul, now a young adult, is still captivated by his father’s music box. He’s also captivated by Clara, a doctor’s daughter who longs to be teacher, an occupation closed to those of her religion. So she determines to convert to Christianity in order to fulfill her dreams. Paul does the same in order to be with the love of his life, and for a while all is well. Of course, we know that things don’t stay that way. As life in Germany gets increasingly more difficult and dangerous for Jews, the Blumenthals looks for ways to protect themselves from the coming storm. Each of them — Lotte, Uncle Max, Aunt Martha, and Paul and Clara — seek different paths to safety.

I wasn’t in the best head space to read historical fiction about the run-up to the Holocaust, to be honest, but I was invested enough in the characters and story to keep reading, and I’m glad I did. The narrative takes a big leap in time from 1939 to 1963, content to fill in the tragic details in the form of a later descendant of the family searching for her roots. This lightened the tension, which I appreciated. It’s a good story, perhaps a bit simplistically told, but captures well the growing fear of the German Jewish community as the Nazis grow in strength and power during the lead up to World War II.

There is apparently a sequel, but I don't think I'll seek it out anytime soon.

>107 katiekrug: Thanks, Katie! I think I would have had a different reaction if I'd read it at a different point in my life, for sure. I mean, Vonnegut's satirical writing is always amusing, but it wasn't enough to overcome the "Oh my god, this is us" aspect for me.

And now that I am virtuously caught up with my reviews, I can confess that I have acquired two more books, as listed up in >3 rosalita:. The first, They Thought They Were Free was a special offering from University of Chicago Press; the Edith Wharton was acquired in order to participate in the upcoming discussion by the New York Times Style Magazine's T Book Club, as mentioned in >97 rosalita:.

So, seven acquisitions and five ROOTs. The ratio is still a little off ...

Ratio, shmatio....

>110 rosalita: From where I'm standing it's an impressive ratio!

I wasn’t in the best head space to read historical fiction about the run-up to the Holocaust, to be honest, but I was invested enough in the characters and story to keep reading... This is me exactly with The Book Thief right now. I'm not entirely comfortable with the setting just now, but I'm pushing on with it because the characters and the writing are so good.

Great reviews, Julia!

>111 katiekrug: >112 charl08: Two of my favorite enablers!

>113 scaifea: Thanks, Amber. Yeah, I don't know what I was thinking, to be honest. Definitely looking for something light and fluffy to read soon!

>106 rosalita: A direct hit, Julia! Excellent review - I added my thumb.

>111 katiekrug: What she said.

Thank you kindly, Miss Mamie!

I think you're doing pretty well, Julia. Great comments. Mother Night is calling to me. Although maybe I should read the Vonneguts already on my shelves first...

>117 BLBera: Thanks, Beth. I was glad to already have Mother Night on my Kobo, or I would never have gotten it in time to read for the book club and probably would have just skipped it. I knew buying scads of ebooks on sale and squirreling them away would come in handy someday!

>105 rosalita: What I really like about the Secret Notebooks is that each chapter begins with a list of the Agatha books discussed in that chapter, so you can make sure you've read them all or are prepared for spoilers :)

>119 rabbitprincess: Oh, I like that. I've read all of the Marples and am working my way through Poirot chronologically, but I've read none of her standalone works yet. Knowing which bits are safe to read will be helpful.

Hi Julia!

>93 rosalita: I’ve just put The Mystery of Mrs. Christie onto my wish list.

>106 rosalita: I have 8 by Vonnegut on my shelves – 5 read and 3 unread, but not Mother Night. Onto the wish list it goes!

I've finally found a good use for my other LT account. It was originally set up to keep track of my Bookmooch books when I had to pay $25 for a lifetime membership. Then I was going to catalog our audiovisual media, and now it's for books. Tags are username and mmyy on the wish list. I'm going to go back and take a few of my spreadsheet wish-listed books and then delete the spreadsheet.

>110 rosalita: My ratio took a major hit when I accepted a donation for the Friends of the Library (which is not accepting donations right now, but I’m the President and have space to store books) and took 34 for myself. In my defense 8 of them are mass market paperback upgrades, so a net of 26. Sigh. With no book sales last year or in sight so far this year, it’s probably one of the few lots-of-books-fixes I’ll get this year.

>121 karenmarie: Hi, Karen! I bought several Vonneguts years ago when there was an e-sale, but I've been laggard at actually reading them. I've only read Slaughterhouse Five and now Mother Night. (On a superficial note, it was a little thrill to see "Iowa City, Iowa" at the end of his author's note and remember that he wrote MN and others while teaching here at the Iowa Writers Workshop.)

It sounds like you sacrificed your ratio for a very good cause!

Mother Night wasn't one on my shelves, either, but I checked my college library, and they had a copy. The stacks are closed right now, but they will pull books for people (or allow faculty to wander in the stacks), so I went and picked it up. Now, we'll see when I actually get to it.

I've read Slaughterhouse Five, Cat's Cradle, a memoir and a collection of short stories. I have several others on my shelves. One of these days...

I loved Cat's Cradle (I'm not a big fiction reader at all and was surprised at how gripped I was by it!) (possibly helped that it was pretty short!), and also read a short story of his, 2BR02B, which I also enjoyed. One day I'll get to some of his others.

>123 BLBera: That's great that you can request books from your library for pickup. I'll look forward to your thoughts when you read it.

>124 Jackie_K: I just checked my catalog and Cat's Cradle isn't one I have, so I need to look for that one. In additional to S5 and MN, I've got Jailbird and Breakfast of Champions waiting for me.

What I'm Reading Outside of Books

• Turn Up the Volume on Audiobooks — This article from a news organization geared toward older adults says audiobook sales are rising, probably because of the pandemic. For me "sheltering in place" has virtually eliminated all the time I usually listened to audiobooks and podcasts, as I no longer have a daily commute. I just can't keep my mind from wandering if I try to listen at home. (via Next Avenue)


• If Famous Literary Characters Were Given Very Good Doggos — Poe's narrator captivated not by a raven but a dog? King Lear tamed by a pupperino? It could happen! (via McSweeneys)


• He Just Wanted to Play Catch. They Got Relief From Troubled Times — What happens when a wife posts on social media asking for volunteers to play catch with her husband? For an afternoon, at least, social distancing brings people together. (via The New York Times)

That McSweeneys article is pretty fun, thanks!
>124 Jackie_K: I read 2BRO2B too and really liked it. I believe it's the only thing I've read from him so far. It almost makes me cringe to admit that.

>126 rosalita: -

1) I am struggling to get through audios now, too. I'm trying to get back to doing jigsaw puzzles, as that's my best opportunity for listening time...

2) I love this so much.

3) What a great story! And fun fact: when I met The Wayne, he lived in a condo across from Cole Park and we occasionally played (readL tried to maintain a 3-stroke volley; we're terrible) tennis on the courts mentioned. Never played catch, though :)

I'll check my shelves for Cat's Cradle, Julia, and if I have a copy, I'll send it to you. I used it in my dystopian fiction class and probably won't use it again, so I am happy to give it a new home, if I haven't already... It will be heavily annotated.

>127 mstrust: I had never heard of 2BR02B until you and Jackie mentioned it. I see it's a short story — might be harder to find in ebook form but I'll keep an eye out. Glad you liked the McSweeney's article — sometimes their humor is a little too esoteric for me, but this one hit the spot.

>128 katiekrug: If I was still knitting that would be a good time to listen, but ...

>129 BLBera: You are too kind, Beth! If you don't have it, I'm sure I'll find a copy sometime. Fortunately, I am not on my last books yet ...

*nods* Yep, I'm having more trouble both finding time to listen to audiobooks and finding the focus to pay attention to them. I keep meaning to get a puzzle to work on, but then keep forgetting...

>131 scaifea: I wonder if I'll ever get back to "normal" reading habits, if I even remember what those were anymore. The longer it goes on, the more I start thinking maybe this is the new normal for me.

>130 rosalita: I got 2BR02B free on Project Gutenberg.

>133 Jackie_K: O ho!

>132 rosalita: Right? The longer this goes on, the more I wonder about all sorts of new normals (some bad, some good). Lately I've been thinking that now we're so used to wearing masks (well, *some* of us, I guess), wouldn't it be great if we adopted the idea, post-vaccine, of wearing masks when we have a cold but still have to go out? Wouldn't it be nice to keep that mentality of looking out for others going? Pipe dream, likely.

I've found two silver linings in this mess. One is that apparently a lot of people have started washing their hands who weren't doing it before. It took a pandemic for that habit to kick in. Two, I really love that restaurants have moved tables further apart and they aren't putting people right up against each other. I know, a lot of states still don't allow indoor dining, but they do in my state and I like the spacing a lot.

>135 scaifea: Working in the international office of a state university, I'm used to seeing our Asian students in masks most of the winter, but I confess I always thought it was a bit of overkill here in Iowa. Now, of course, I see the wisdom and think I could definitely get behind making it an enduring habit when I'm under the weather. We can only hope once the political angle has faded that others will feel the same.

>136 mstrust: Yes, the initial data on how few people were washing their hands was rather alarming, wasn't it? That's one habit I really hope sticks. I'd also love it if restaurants maintained their looser table spacing, but I fear that the incentive to recoup lost revenue will prompt them to start packing people in like sardines as soon as the immediate danger is passed.

I hope festivals and other venues will continue to offer online programming at the level they've had to in the pandemic, to keep things accessible to people who would otherwise not be able to attend in person. It was lovely to be able to attend crime festivals in Toronto and Stirling this year through the internet.

>138 rabbitprincess: Oh, yes! As someone with mobility issues, I have loved being able to attend events I could never have attended in person, even if they were nearby. That, and curbside pickup from restaurants, are two things I hope are here to stay.

Harrrr-UMPH.

That is all.

I've found your thread, Julia, and starred you. I note ROOT successes on my monthly reading round-up - I count books that have been in my catalogue/on my shelves for more than two years, so this year I will count books that I acquired in 2019 or before. I never commit to print the numbers of books I have acquired - they just slide quietly into my catalogue.

>140 lyzard: Aw, I hope you forgive me for "holding out" on you, Liz. I'm just not one to toot my own horn on other people's threads — I've been far too irritated at others who do that to start indulging it in myself. But I'm glad you're here, if that counts for anything...

>141 CDVicarage: Welcome, Kerry! I think you are very wise not to publicly count your acquisitions — I am feeling mild regret myself but I'll see it through for this year, at least.

>139 rosalita: Me three. Lots of festivals that I just can't afford to go to them all - but would happily watch at home. I'm hoping the online book group continues too. I looked and looked for an evening group in my town that would meet in a neutral space that was open (library and most cafes close by 6 or 7). Online makes it so much easier. I am a bit worried that as soon as live comes back people are going to forget that for an extra bit of effort they can actually include people outside (in my case) central London.

>142 rosalita:

Well, okay then... :D

>143 charl08: Yes, I hope having gotten over the rather large hurdle of figuring out how to make online events work, the decision to keep having them will seem like a win-win.

>144 lyzard: Whew!

6. The Secret of Terror Castle by Robert Arthur.

The first case for the Three Investigators — aka Jupiter Jones, Pete Crenshaw and Bob Andrews, teenage boys living in Southern California. Mastermind Jupiter has recently won a contest that earned him 30 days of access to a Rolls Royce and chauffeur, convenient since none of the boys are old enough to drive yet.

Somehow Jupiter finagles Alfred Hitchcock into hiring them to find a haunted house for him where he can film his next picture. Even more conveniently, there's a likely location nearby, the former home of a silent film star whose career was ruined when talking movies revealed he spoke in a high-pitched lisp. No one has been able to stay for more than an hour inside the house since the disgraced movie star's mysterious disappearance, as spooky sounds of a phantom organ and uncontrollable feelings of terror cause them to flee. The boys need to make sure it's really haunted and plan their own visit to the "Terror Castle." Is it really haunted, and if so by what — or whom?

I loved these books growing up, ranking them just below Trixie Belden and ahead of Nancy Drew. This debut was first published in 1964, so the series and I are the same age. Reading it as an adult, there is nothing scary or spooky about the story, but I still loved the Three Investigators' Rube Goldberg-esque "office" arrangements in the junkyard of Jupiter's Uncle Titus. There are lots of those little details that really spoke to children growing up in an era without CGI or fancy special effects to create realistic paranormal atmospheres. We did it with our own brains, kids!

I probably gave this one a half-star extra just for nostalgia, as the ending was easy to figure out at my advanced age. But now that I've located a source for the whole series, I will keep reading and hope the magic never dims so much that they are no longer appealing.

>146 rosalita:

That turned out to be impossible to get hold of at short notice, so I wasn't able to join you after all. :(

I don't think I ever read this one but my goodness, yes, all the details came flooding back: the junkyard hidey-hole and the limousine and the weird Hitchcock tie-in!

I don't thank you for putting these back into my head; though I am able to say to myself, "Maybe after Nancy Drew?" :D

(Mind you, chatting to Lori I just reminded myself of the Hunt brothers books, did you ever read them?)

>146 rosalita: I never read these, Julia, but I loved Trixie Belden. You tempt me to look for one.

>147 lyzard: Aw, that's too bad, Liz. As soon as I started reading I remembered how much I loved all the little clever bits about the junkyard headquarters. It was perfectly designed to appeal to kids, with the clever repurposing of adult castoffs into a clubhouse anyone could be envious of.

>148 BLBera: I hope you're able to find them, Beth. I bet Scout would love them when she's a little bit older.

>146 rosalita: Ooh, this sounds like something I would have loved. When I was about ten my siblings and I set up the "Secret Shed Club" (we had a sign on the door: we hadn't really thought the secrecy thing through). My dad then had to point out the shed was for the tumble dryer &c, and us kids had to go elsewhere. But an office would have been above even a shed...

>150 charl08: I love your Secret Shed Club, Charlotte! Headquarters for the Three Investigators is in an old trailer (what I think you would call a caravan) that had been junked as damaged. The boys gradually arranged piles of junk around it to hide it from the Uncle Titus and then created secret entrances (Green Gate One, Tunnel Two) to get to it. All those little details were like catnip to a kid like me.

>149 rosalita: Noted, Julia.

The type composing room at the New York Herald, circa 1902.

What I'm Reading Outside of Books

• Richard Flanagan: 'I Still Feel It Shameful to Not Finish a Book, Even a Bad One' — Come for the provocative headline; stay for the gratuitous bashing of the US. Something for everyone! (via The Guardian)


• How to Decide What to Read Next — "Here’s a secret that will make your decisions easier about what to read next: If you don’t like the book you’re reading, you can quit. You don’t have to finish every book that you start" Someone should tell Richard Flanagan. (via Read It Forward)


• The Legend of Eisenhower's Skinny 'S' — I went down a Twitter rabbit hole over the weekend when one of the graphic designers I follow there made reference to a rumor that back in the 1950s the New York Times had created a special typeface so they could fit 'Eisenhower Says' in a single-column headline. After a lot of (very enjoyable) interwebz searching, I found this article. If you are a type nerd like me, you can thank me later. If you're not a type nerd like me, you probably didn't even get this far.(via The Atlantic)

>153 rosalita: -

Flanagan: His description of the US is one of those clever turns-of-phrase that dazzle but when you poke at it, you realize it's completely meaningless and non-sensical.

Next Read: Good advice. Also, I love your little commentary and asides on your intros to these articles!

Eisenhower's Skinny S: Bookmarking this to read later (fingers crossed!).

>154 katiekrug: That perfectly describes what irked me about Flanagan's answer. At least I have the satisfaction of having read The Narrow Road to the Deep North from the library and not having paid actual American money for it.

And thanks for your kind words on my links notes. I always appreciate when someone posting a link to something takes the time to explain why they think it's worth clicking.

>153 rosalita:

I never don't finish a book; aren't you astonished? :D

The Secret Of Terror Castle secured, thank you!

>156 lyzard: Nothing you do surprises me, Liz! And hooray for Terror Castle — enjoy!

>153 rosalita: Thanks for the Eisenhower S, I love stuff like that. And your comments on the links!

>158 MissWatson: I'm glad you enjoyed the link, Birgit! I love quirky little stories like that.

Last night was the New York Times Style Magazine's virtual book club meeting, for which we read (in my case, am reading as I didn't finish it) The Custom of the Country by Edith Wharton. The conversation was led by novelist Claire Messud, who did a fine job in conjunction with the magazine's features director, Thessaly La Force. I'm enjoying the book, and even though there were some spoilers in the conversation (which I expected) I'm still looking forward to finishing it. The video is up on YouTube, if you're interested in watching it.

Unfortunately, at the end of the event they announced their next book choice for the T Book Club, which led me to yet another acquisition: Passing by Nella Larsen. I am completely unfamiliar with this early 20th century black author, so I'm really looking forward to learning more. The author who will be leading the discussion on March 9 is Brit Bennett, whose book The Mothers I read and enjoyed last year.

The other book I acquired was The Cost of These Dreams by Wright Thompson, an incredible writer who recently published a book, Pappyland about the history of bourbon. The book I acquired (noticed how I keep avoiding the word bought?) is a collection of his sports essays that have appeared in a variety of publications, from Esquire to ESPN The Magazine. I've had this one on my wishlist forever waiting for it to go on sale, and it finally did.

Hi Julia!

>153 rosalita: Ooh, clickbait. The second article is good and reaffirms my willingness to abandon books I don't want to finish. I still count the pages though.

>160 rosalita:

I have been trying to hunt down some Nella Larsen for this month's TIOLIs but she is mostly held by academic libraries and is therefore still off-limits. :(

>161 karenmarie: Hi, Karen! The older I get the less guilty I feel for tossing a book aside unfinished. Too many books, too little time left!

>162 lyzard: I saw some ebook versions on Kobo for less than a dollar — maybe on Kindle, too? I opted for the slightly more expensive Penguin Classics version to get the introduction (which of course I won’t read until after I read the book because I’ve learned my lesson).

I read Passing years ago, but it's one of those I thought I should read again. It sounds like a good one to pick up for February. I might join the book club meeting.

Love the wording for "acquiring" books. You could go even further and say, "This books was acquired," totally leaving you out of the acquisition. :)

Have a great weekend.

Good morning, Julia!

I might join you in reading Passing this month, as I have it on my shelf and keep meaning to get to it.

>164 BLBera: I'd love to have you join me in the book club read, Beth. And I like the idea of using the passive voice to further distance myself from taking responsibility!

>165 katiekrug: Do join us with Passing, Katie. I mean, you've already got the book, so you might as well. ;-)

7. Jackie Robinson and the Integration of Baseball by Scott Simon.

In 1947, Jackie Robinson became the first black player in the major leagues since before the Jim Crow era. Given the state of race relations in America, the ensuing condemnation, boos, and death threats were sad but unsurprising. There's a lot more to Jackie Robinson's life than just his baseball career, but this short book takes a more narrow focus and thus can feel somewhat incomplete to someone looking for a more well-rounded biography. It's beautifully written, however, by the longtime National Public Radio reporter and host Scott Simon, and could be a good introduction, especially for younger readers, into the history we should all be aware of.

Two more books — surely the last acquisitions of January! — have found their way into my home. Echoes is an ebook purchase to replace the paperback I foolishly gave away a few years ago. Zone One is a book that's been on my interest list since it was published.

Happy Sunday, Julia! I loved the article about the skinny 's' - thanks so much for your comments and for posting the link.

>160 rosalita: I just started reading Passing yesterday! It was one of the books in the Penguin Vitae series that I purchased. I was looking for something new as I had finished up Mrs.Caliban and Mexican Gothic, so I picked up that one, and now here you are talking about it. I love when things like that happen!

I don't know much about baseball, but I do know that Jackie Robinson played for the Brooklyn Dodgers thanks to Doris Kearns Goodwin's lovely memoir Wait Till Next Year - have you read that one?

>163 rosalita:

I'm sort of stuck in a holding pattern where I baulk at buying books held by my academic library because that's going to REOPEN ANY DAY NOW, right?

There is a Kindle copy of passing available for not too much so I might try and squeeze it it; however The Source is looming again (finally) and that will dictate the rest of the month's reading.

>169 Crazymamie: I'm so glad you liked the skinny 'S' article, Mamie — I almost didn't post it because I thought I might be the only nerd who finds that stuff interesting, so it's been lovely to find that there are several of us around these parts. :-) And you are reading Passing, too! What wonderful serendipity. Perhaps you'll join the Times book club video discussion in early March.

>170 lyzard: Oh, I totally understand that feeling — "but I could get it for FREE from the library". I really hope your library will open soon — doesn't the spring term start next month? Maybe then they will throw open the doors!

>171 rosalita:

It's been open for staff and students for several months but there seems to be no thought of allowing the public in again. :(

>172 lyzard: How rude! Maybe you can make friends with a staff member ... hang out in the parking lot with a fancy coffee or something?

>173 rosalita: This is a good plan. A solid plan.

Morning, Julia! I love that kind of stuff about fonts and typeface, just saying.

>174 Crazymamie: It is morning, isn't it. Despite my best efforts ... sigh.

Duly noted on the type nerdery. Kindred spirits are we.

Morning, Julia!

I, too, am a type nerd.

>176 scaifea: "Only the best people!"