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“This book is old enough that not only I read it in high school my mother read it in high school. ...”
“Somehow I expected more from a Midwestern epic of Shakespearean proportion. ...”
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Rated 5 stars
Rated 4 stars
sagecoveredhills says
The TNN movie--if I remember correction--didn't identify the religious sect. The same was true for another of the earlier movie versions. Zane Gray had some other stories set in the region and less than flattering opinions of Mormons, yet in some ways, the bishop in the book acted like some of the bishops in the era. I'll look for your review, if you decide to write one.
joe m says
Hi Tamara,Thank you for your response. Yes, I am enjoying the teaching right now, though it's just a lot of work. My reading for pleasure feels 'on-the-fly'. My regular job is as a clinical psychologist working at a hospital. Glad to hear you've had an active summer, and yes, the colder weather will soon be upon us, more quickly than I'd like.There's a book of poetry I recently read that really touched me and I recommend it to everyone called "Song of the Broken String"; maybe a bit hard to track down, but well worth it if you ever come across it. In the 1800s, a linguist (?I think) and his sister-in-law made transcriptions of the folklore narratives of three "/Xan" (a.k.a. "San") bushmen in South Africa, having the premonition that their tribe and their culture would soon be extinguished by the white settlers (and this came to pass merely a few decades down the road). The author of the book took the original transcriptions and formed them further into these beautiful poems. A really beautiful book with a tragic story behind it (and there's an appendix which provides examples of the original transcriptions, so you can compare).Best, Joe
Hi Tamara! It's been a while...just wanted to write and say hi. How's everything going? I hope you are doing well. I am currently working my regular job and in addition teaching a 4-credit undergraduate class (Abnormal Psychology), so things are very hectic...but I still allow myself Shelfari. :) I only have time for brief books right now, and am currently reading a lot of African literature (I loved "Things Fall Apart" too).Whenever I can, I give a look at your always interesting bookshelf...so glad to see you keep it updated regularly. Best, Joe
are you writing a review for Riders of the Purple Sage? I read the book years ago--have a cultural interest in it as I've since lived in the region its set, and also an interest in how the movies were different from the book for what was probably a political reason--anyway, just curious. I'm not a big reader of Zane Grey or westerns, but am interested in the region.
thelibrarian says
I noticed we share quite a few titles, including Population 485. Michael Perry, along with Rick Bass, is one of my favorite authors. Some of the descriptions in Pop485 are overdone, but I'd chalk that up to his background writing poetry. Truck a Love Story is much more "mature" writing and worth reading if you haven't already done so. If you have an opportunity to hear him speak, he's captivating.
annie says
Hi! I just wanted to stop by and invite you to check out my group Totally Awesome Dudes (& Dudettes) Who Love The 80's. We have a lot of fun in the group and would love for you to join us there! Thanks!Anniehttp://www.shelfari.com/groups/26249/about
uplandpoet says
thanks for participating at Better than Starbucks. Feel free to join and make yourself at home.
Hi Tamara,Hope you had a great Mother's Day weekend! It's been a while, so I wanted to write to you and say hello. How are things where cranberries float? :) The weekend was peaceful. I spent Saturday spent writing music in the morning (music is a huge passion of mine; I have a great music notation software program called Sibelius) and then reading. Yesterday, I spent down in CT with my family. Anyway, hope you are doing great! Best, Joe
I'm interested in what you think of the Break Baker's Apprentice... I spent five years in a bakery--working my way through college there and staying on in management for a few years afterwards. Those are good memories.
Hi Tamara,Hope you had a great weekend! I had a friend over visiting me from NYC, so was busy. Wow--that is so cool that you are so well-travelled. My mother was born and raised in the Philippines, and came to the U.S. at age 18. I was there when I was really little, but would like to go back someday. I would love to see Hong Kong and Japan one day as well. Beautiful places, I'm sure. Thank you again for your generous compliments, and as always, will keep an eye on your book comments! Joe
Hi Tamara,Thank you for your kind welcome and response! As I said, your shelf is very impressive and well-rounded (and I like how you take the time to comment on the books)...I know I will gain a lot from reviewing it. My book queue is long right now, but I intend to get caught up on the classics, so I eventually hope to read "Pride and Prejudice" and "Jane Eyre", especially now having read your thoughts.I see below in your notes there is mention of Patagonia...have you been there? I travelled there in January for 10 days, hiking and camping out on my own.It was unforgettable. Best, Joe
I think you're right about Peter finding himself after his conversion and marriage--and then his journey becoming more of a travelogue. I read both of his walk across America books--my grandmother gave them to me probably 30 years ago--in my family I'm the wandering one.Why did you find it funny that I'd read Christy?
I read through some of your reviews last night--found more books that I've read and not posted--along with many interesting titles. I was curious; you seem to be rather selective on giving out 5 stars. When I looked at your ratings, I saw that a high percentage of your 5 stars were for Calvin and Hobbes. I laughed and understood! I miss Calvin. I noticed your review of Peter Jenkins, "Walk Across America." I read that book years ago; I've always been up for journeys (I've hiked both the Appalachian and John Muir Trails), but in reading Jenkins I felt his writing lost spark after his conversion and wondered what that meant. I also saw you had in your list to read Bruce Chatwin's "In Patagonia." I had purchased it about a year ago and before reading it, my neighbors decided to take a trip to Patagonia. I lent it (along with Theroux's "Last Train to Patagonia") and just last week got the books back. I've only read on book by Chatwin and wanted to try some more... Anyway, thanks for having a good shelf to look at.
I haven't brought a book in a month! But I have about 3/4 of my library now posted online. The Korean cookbook has some good recipes--I really like the hot spicy pork (uses strips of pork loin that is grilled after marinated).
clockstein says
I have a TON of cookbooks, and my husband wants me to pare them down. But I just love all of the possibilities inside. Even if I never make a single recipe inside, there's always a chance... :)
Orphan Train was a good book for the most part, 3-1/2 stars. There was too much info about the creator of it and how it was financed and not quite enough stories about the riders, but the stories were fantastic! It looks like you do a lot of cooking! :)
You have over 10% of the books I've posted! To answer your questions: I enjoy most of Buechner's books (didn't like the Treasure Hunt and didn't read any more in that series). Abbey is one of my all time favorites, he was a bit of a jerk and very sarcastic, but loved the land. I'd read Desert Solitude & the Monkey Wrench Gang to get an idea of his styles. A Fool's Progress is one of my favorites. I noticed you had Saloons on the Rocky Mountain Mining Frontier (I think that's the title). Interesting! I know I have a weird collection, but there are many in my collection (like that one) from studying society in mining camps. If you'd like to chat more, come over to my blog--almost all of my book reviews were first posted there--it's www.sagecoveredhills.blogspot.com
Mine's about a little girl who is raised by her grandparents in the Sheboygan area. The narration flips between her, her two aunts, and grandmother and covers from 1920 to 1999. It's really a family history. Would you be interested in exchanging a few chapters (once I have mine typed up) for constructive criticism?
I understand about the schooling! My husband is going for his bachelor's degree in business, and it really does take over your life! I pumped out 25,000 words during the NaNoWriMo, and it's around 150,000 now, but my computer crashed, so all I have left is my paper copy. I have to sit down and type it all in again. I'm looking at that as my reason to do some heavy editing, but it's also an easy reason to procrastinate. :)
I started mine during a NaNoWriMo in 2003! :) What is yours about?