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Saturday, September 21, 2019

Quick update - 9.21.19


I'm just going to write a quick update on my week.  It has been a busy one and my fall allergies have started.  Haven't felt completely wonderful, so I'll be brief.
  


I finished the 4th Rachel Prince book, Dying To Cruise, and enjoyed it.  I think the 5th in the series will be out in a few months and I'll watch for that.



I listened to In a Dark, Dark Wood by Ruth Ware on audio - narrated by Imogen Church.  Always a fun listen.  It starts with:

In a dark, dark wood there was a dark, dark house;
And in the dark, dark house there was a dark, dark room;
And in the dark, dark room there was a dark, dark cupboard;
And in the dark, dark cupboard there was.....a skeleton!



Next on my finished list is Shirley Jackson's We Have Always Lived in the Castle.  Another listen narrated by Bernadette Dunne - for our October mystery book group meeting.  What a weird book!  I look forward to the discussion
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Then I did a read/listen of Lisa Unger's The Whispering Hollows, a novella set in The Hollows and featuring Eloise Montgomery who shows up in several of this author's books.  Eloise is a psychic that never wanted to be a psychic, but these three stories tell us of her life over 30 years - the tragic loss of her older daughter and husband in the first, the realization that her 9-year-old granddaughter also has abilities in the second, and a sort of 'changing of the guard' between Eloise and Finley, the granddaughter, in the third.  I liked all The Hollows books, which are not exactly a series but loosely connected.



The last book I finished was Lissa Marie Redmond's third Cold Case Investigation book, A Means to An End.  I read the first two series books earlier this year and liked them very much.  Redmond is a retired Buffalo PD cold case detective and she brings that knowledge and expertise to her third Lauren Riley book.  I get frustrated at times with Lauren, but I do like the tales.  And this was no exception.



Lastly, I attended my afternoon book group on Tuesday and participated in discussing Susan Orlean's The Library Book.  I had also listened to this one and it was read by the author.  She did an OK job, not great, but not too bad.  I enjoyed the book with the info about the fire at the Los Angeles Public Library in 1986 and also the author's extra musings about libraries in general, her memories of libraries, and more history about the Los Angeles Library.  The discussion was good with most people liking the book.  A few thought it was way too dry and a bit fragmented.  One of the library staff also attended the meeting and told us about some new trends in libraries in general and in the Austin Public Library specifically.  That was quite interesting.  Most libraries these days are not exactly like the ones we grew up with.  And that's perfectly OK.

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I think I may start writing some reviews of books upcoming, so watch for that.  They will not be on a 'schedule', just as I finish the book and get them written.  Have a good weekend!    

32 comments:

  1. Hope you feel better soon - seasonal allergies are so annoying!

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    1. They are indeed! Mine will be gone in about February (I have winter issues as well).

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  2. Ahh, the watery eyes, sneezing, lethargy, sinus headaches. My sympathies, Kay.

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  3. Hope you feel better Kay; allergies are awful. You still managed to read nice books.

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    1. I did read nice books, didn't I? And will read some more this week. Ha!

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  4. Ugh, I hope you're back to your old self soon.

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    1. Oh, I'll get used to it. Have to do this every year. I just don't choose to take meds that make me so sleepy. I'll survive. Ha!

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  5. Ah yes, definitely the season for allergies! I'm trying to get a Ruth Ware book from the library, but the wait list is so long!

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    1. Yes, Ruth Ware's books have become very popular of late.

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  6. I hope you are feeling better, Kay. My allergies have been making me miserable for the last couple weeks. I can't shake this sore throat no matter what I do, and the headaches are not pleasant either. I enjoyed the audio of In a Dark, Dark Wood myself. I hope you did as well. I am glad your group liked The Library Book overall. I look forward to reading that one someday. Have a great week, Kay.

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    1. I hope your sore throat will improve, Wendy. I hate having those.

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  7. Oh I hate allergies! I've been on shots for a couple of years now and they've gotten better but I don't think they'll ever go away. The Library Book looks good and In a Dark Dark Wood was one of my favorite listens. I'm planning on reading We Have Always Lived in the Castle soon. Jackson is definitely a weird one.

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    1. I've not ever taken shots for my allergies, but I manage to muddle through each year. There are lots of allergies in our area. Kind of a 'perfect storm' place. Hope you enjoy We Have Always Lived in the Castle.

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  8. I'm not sure about that Ware book on audio. Sounds a little too cute for me. Did you enjoy it?

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    1. Yes, I did enjoy it. It's probably my favorite Ware book and is her first. I've liked all the ones she's written for various reasons, but I like this one best.

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  9. I like Ruth Ware. I liked In a Dark Dark Wood and Turn of the Key a lot. I also read We Have Always Lived in the Castle. My word for it is "strange". I will save my comments for our meeting. :)

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    1. Strange is a good word for the Castle book. I'll enjoy hearing what you thought and what others think.

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  10. Oh no, Kay, sorry to hear you are now dealing with the Fall allergy season! I'm wondering what happened to all the rain we were supposed to get last week. Can you believe it's still so hot here. Crazy. Back to books, you've read a good variety of books. What fun to have listened to the scoop on new stuff with the APL.

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    1. Yes, that new Central Library has gotten a lot of praise from all over the world.

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  11. I agree on THE LIBRARY BOOK. I thought it got long and dull in places. It also seemed to jump around, so that it definitely seemed fragmented to me.

    I hope you start feeling better soon! Allergies are no fun :(

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    1. I think I liked The Library Book a little better because of the library philosophy and history, but that part wasn't quite as interesting for some of our group.

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  12. We have something down here called Gulf Coast Reads, a one-book group for the Gulf Coast of Texas. Our next selection is The Library Book. I wonder what others will think of it.

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    1. I'll be curious. It went over well enough with the group. Some were quite enthusiastic and some were kind of 'meh'.

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  13. I am interested in what the new trends are in libraries in general, and Austin in particular.

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    1. Nan, your comment has made me think I might do a little post about what I can remember of that staff member's talk with us. Will make some notes and maybe ask her today when I volunteer (if she's working) for her recollections. Most of the things have to do with making the library more of a community resource.

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  14. Ugh on the allergies. I really need to make time for the new Ruth Ware.

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    1. Yes, allergies are the worst, but I have them every year. I'm happy that they are not year round for me. And, yes, try the new Ruth Ware. I liked it.

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  15. Gage has had seasonal allergies for a few weeks :( No fun! I didn't realize Unger had books that went together, even loosely. I'll have to look into that.

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    1. You should check them out, Stacy. They begin with the book FRAGILE and go on from there. Set in The Hollows, upstate New York. Spooky things.

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Thanks for stopping by! I am so happy to hear your thoughts and will respond as soon as I can. Happy Reading!