Saturday, May 30, 2009

Lost in Maze

Today included another of those unexpected findings in the form of an independent bookstore. While walking this afternoon, a store window display caused an impromptu stop. (In case you are curious, Geek Love was the draw.) Booksmith was a fun maze of aisles with an abundance of handwritten signs describing either a staff favorite or just the odd book. I have taken the habit to carrying around a small notebook for such opportunities and I’ve added a few more titles to my reading list.

For just a few moments, I was lost in a sea of shelves with nothing save the smell of hundreds of paperbacks for company. It’s good to be lost sometimes.

Friday, May 29, 2009

Escape

As I have mentioned before, and as we all do, I enjoy wading through books. I will admit that I am also one of those people who are easily swayed to purchase a book when the author is present and is willing to sign a dedication. I was surprised that I would have this opportunity when visiting Alcatraz yesterday.

A former inmate Darwin E. Coon, #1422, was present to discuss his 2002 publication, Alcatraz The True End of Life. When I inquired as to his most poignant memory of his stay on the island, he immediately replied, "29 days in D block". After having toured the facility, I think I had a glimpse of appreciating this sentiment although I’m quite sure I cannot put this statement into perspective. There were a number of people speaking to Mr. Coon at the time though none of them had asked him to sign the book. I decided to take a chance and he was quite amiable to do so.

I’m not yet sure when I will begin this book, but I suspect it may win out on the flight home. I think it would be appropriate to start reading this new acquisition as I am leaving San Francisco (and I'm relatively certain that Thomas Wolfe won't mind).

Monday, May 25, 2009

Visit to the Bookstore

With one day before our meeting, I am finally in possession of The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society. I will have ample time to read tomorrow as my return journey begins at 4:30 a.m. I was fortunate to be able to visit one of my favourite bookstores today, and I do so enjoy spending time perusing the shelves for that little gem that I know I must have. It was a day like today that I first became acquainted with The Cloudspotter’s Guide and (my not yet mastered book), Knots.

I had allocated a few hours to book shopping and treated the store as I do a museum, beginning from the top floor of Business, Language, Reference, down through World History, Architecture, Design, Cooking, Gardening, to culminate in the basement floor of Fiction and Crime. Using significant restraint, my only purchase was our May book though a number of other titles caught my eye.

I am looking forward to our meeting tomorrow and discussing this book down to the letter.

Saturday, May 23, 2009

Bridge May be Icy

Some works are meant to be read aloud: plays, speeches, poetry, and in the case of my father, every street sign en route to a vacation destination. The sound of a voice reading aloud is one of my most adored enjoyments. The rhythms of the syllables dictated by punctuation and inhalations rival a solo concert. At our December meeting, we created our own music by reading in the round. I think today is a day for singing or at the minimum enjoying a street sign or two aloud.

Thursday, May 21, 2009

May A-pear-ant

Yesterday I found myself craving a pear and purchased a bag from the local grocery chain. I was a bit too eager and they are still yet firm. Imagine biting into a carrot that looks like a pear and tastes well, closer to a carrot. Anyway, this and the news of the first deliveries of coop vegetables to some of our book club members have my mind on summer cooking. I do love the traditional cookbook and two my favourites are the Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook (published around 1991) and the Joy of Cooking (1975-ish edition). I also have tendencies to pick up any cookbook older than 1960.

The proliferation of online websites devoted to cooking makes it very easy to concoct a meal with on hand food items. My choice thus far is AllRecipes although there is a plethora of sites from which to select a recipe: Epicurious, Deliaonline, FoodNetwork, for just a sampling. A word of advice when using recipes from the web, keep the computer away from the mixer and the sink and disable the screen saver. For those of you with laptops, it’s a challenge to get batter off a touch pad.

Tuesday, May 19, 2009

Mayfair

In an effort to become a little more educated about British history (and because I had borrowed this book nearly two months ago), I have been determined these last few days to complete The Story of Britain by Rebecca Fraser. After a hearty three hundred pages of reading, I am to the reign of Charles I in 1625. I was a bit too optimistic in thinking I could finish this read before our May book. Fraser takes the history through 2002, which likely means I will soon need to defer if I will come equipped to the Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society next week.

The Story of Britain includes seven pages of family trees and an astonishing 136 books of recommended readings. (Yes, I counted these suggested titles and I suspect that Bill has read at least 80% of these.)

Not to recycle the message, but I think I’m too late to remind you about Curby.

Sunday, May 17, 2009

May day

May is an unexpected opportunity for new beginnings of sorts. Graduations, end of school terms, (the possibility of) the end of a session, and job changes (well, at least one of us) give us a natural end for something new or different ahead. It is the month of the Garden Guzzle and the time summer seems to be ever so near to us. We begin to firm our travel plans, we enjoy the extra hours of daylight and we spend more time outdoors.

May seems a month of possibilities. Perhaps I’ve come to this conclusion because I’ve listened to a few more commencement addresses than normal or that I have been reading light-hearted chick books (excluding Ms Stein). This optimism might even stem from my indulgence of downloading bubble-gum pop in preparation for summer car journeys or just dancing around the house.

Reaching the end of one book propels us to the pick up the next one.

Friday, May 15, 2009

The (dis)Orient Express

A meandering morning path fueled with caffeine from the DrinkHaus can sometimes inspire a post, but of course, Kate already knows this. GBC Paige and I were discussing “disoriented versus disorientated” and it became a mission this morning to learn which usage was correct. This was partly inspired from listening to the interview with Gillian Tett discussing Fool’s Gold last night on “Fresh Air” and the English tendency to disorientate.

Immediately upon arriving home, I sought my Oxford English Dictionary only to remind myself that I received the French version from the separation of assets. (Cue Tammy Wynette.) Quand même, the English portion of this dictionary gives us “disorient = disorientate” with the entry just below that stating that the verb tense in French would be “désorienter.” So then, on to the magical world of the Google search engine. The results seem to indicate that the use of “disoriented” is a North American phenomenon while Dictionary.com gives us three meanings suggesting a standard usage. The Urban Dictionary still poses yet another view.


So now, I am leaning toward "disorientated" and wonder if I can manage using it with a straight face in Nashville.

Wednesday, May 13, 2009

Where there is smoke...

I made another trek to the Edmondson Pike Library today (Look Homeward, Angel by Thomas Wolfe) and this afternoon I have been thinking about summer readings. When I was a young adult, I received a reading list from our high school librarian and with further revelation of my geek nature, I set out to read all the books…in alphabetical order by author. I think I still have this list.

This may not be news to many of you avid library users however I was able to find a 2009 Tennessee Summer Reading Program for Adults list. I’m not sure that it aims high enough to encourage reading as watching a DVD qualifies as completing one of the blocks, but it was an interesting discovery. As a state, we’re also part of the Collaborative Summer Library Program (CSLP) encouraging families (neighbors?) to read together. My last finding relates to the Early Bird Book Club which is “offered occasionally” by our very own nugget of a library. The sign up period ends May 15, so act fast as supplies are limited.

Monday, May 11, 2009

May Delay

Selfishly I’m glad that we have another week to get ready for our next meet, although we will miss our Colorado contingent (aka HeLen). The book seems to have garnered interest from some of our group already so I’m sure the conversation will be lively, and I’m looking forward to delving into the reading. We always enjoy our field trips over the river and hopefully this month will give us at least one more cool (dry?) night to enjoy Carol’s porch.

Perhaps adjusting our schedule one week every now and then will keep us on our toes and our memories sharp. To Bill’s point, for a helpful reminder for your Curby, the third Tuesday each month is also the Nashville Magic Circle’s meeting night, not to be confused with the Magic Circle Mime Co. who performed with the Symphony last December. The former Magic group is invitation through nomination only; the latter, well...I’m speechless.

Saturday, May 9, 2009

Germantown Book Club (GBC)

So before I read the May book, I’m trying to squeeze in one other light read: A Year in High Heels by Camilla Morton. A mix of history, advice, humor, and style, the book has me hooked. One of the more amusing bits was the recommendation to start a book club with a couple requirements: regular meetings (check) and that all attendees must read the book. I disagreed with the author’s sentiment on this point, and truthfully, I’m glad we don’t have this mandate for our conversations. (I think it much more essential that we have our reading water.)

I think our GBC is not a typical book club arrangement and that’s why I find it so endearing. With such an eclectic group of people, our conversations are always varied, stimulating and funny. We have fantastic meals; we agree to disagree; we celebrate personal, political and social victories; and we share our sadness in a supportive environment. Somehow we manage this in a way that doesn’t come off like an Oprah episode. Could it be the reading water?

There are a number of options for Book Clubs in Nashville if anyone is interested in branching out beyond our neighborhood group. A quick Google search revealed nine other options including “I Read Dead People”. As one would guess, none of them mentioned reading water.

Thursday, May 7, 2009

The Odd Post

Today I realized that I have only posted on odd days and indeed, every odd day thus far this month. Being the curious type which would join a GBC, I decided to go on a search for “odd days”. Instead of a literary connection however, my math tendencies took me in another direction. As you might already know, 5/7/2009 is one of only six odd days this century. The first such noted odd day is 01/03/1905 and my limited research led me to a contest to celebrate the date sponsored by Ron Gordon with, of course, a $579 prize. My theories on the other four: 07/09/1911, 09/11/1913, 11/13/1915 and 03/05/2007. I think this means that most of us have only had two odd days in our lives. Can that be right?

Anyway, hope your odd day was a good one.

Tuesday, May 5, 2009

Cinco de Mayo

I’m nearly one-third through Flights of Angels by Ellen Gilchrist. While I have been enjoying the series of short stories, the book seems to have had mixed reviews. I have admired the range of subjects for the narratives, most recently about the actors who work in a clinic as “doctors” to diagnose whether people are really ill or merely in need of a good massage.

I mistakenly misread the cover and thought this series won the National Book Award. As it turns out, the 1984 prize was awarded for Fiction for Victory over Japan: A Book of Stories. (I give a nod to the publisher for a clever marketing strategy.)

In the near future, I need to start thinking about our May book. And of course, I’m curious about the cover.

Sunday, May 3, 2009

The Need for Read

So like other members of the Book Club, I tend to read multiple books and lately have been reading books by or about women. This has happened by chance as my most recent selections have been random picks from the Edmondson Pike library. The last few months have included Gertrude Stein’s Three Lives, a literary classic which happened to be located next to Wallace Stegner’s The Spectator Bird, which I read since Angle of Repose was checked out. I rationalized that this might help me in the book club discussion if I knew the author’s style; I was wrong. The works of my “S” authors were completely contrasting but I did draw a parallel between completing Stein’s work and last year’s half-marathon: memorable beginning, a painful period midway with doubts I could finish, and rejoicing at the end.

I picked up my last two books like I occasionally select my wine…by the covers. I would classify both reads as "summer" genre with preference given to Belle Weather by Celia Rivenbark over Frog Prince by Jane Porter. Belle Weather made me laugh aloud which I particularly appreciated during this last month. Rivenbark has also authored We’re Just Like You, Only Prettier, which reminded me of something that Bill might say.

Friday, May 1, 2009

May Flowers

May brings us to The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows. Here’s what I know thus far about the book:

  • The book is an epistolary novel which means I had to consult the OED
  • According to very reliable Germantown Book Club sources, as of April 23rd, this book had 133 library holds for its six copies and one electronic version
  • The authors are an aunt/niece duo
  • The Trade paperback is available May 5th
  • It has an official website
  • Nine people have rated the YouTube interview with Annie Barrows
  • It is approximately 27 miles between Guernsey and Jersey (the old one)
  • If I had a Kindle I could download the book and begin reading it by the time I complete this post
I look forward to the book, although my research has indicated a potato peel pie is not that appealing.