DIL brought fixed Tablet home and "Tom Lake" appeared on my Availability list ! I'm all set for a  "just read one more chapter" night.
Unfortunately, I have an appointment tomorrow morning so will have to discipline myself.

Yes, I do have TCM and will have to remember to check the schedule.

I lost interest in watching the ship channels when I found some bird watching sites and could watch from laying of eggs to fledging (bird begins to fly on its own). Particularly like one that follows eagles and Canada geese.

Off to read!

MarsGal - I plan to look for some cams of the San Diego area, and start following them.  Lots of beautiful and interesting cities in California, but for me, San Diego is just about perfect. I've never lived there, but have visited off and on over the years, since I was a child.  The weather is considered by many, to be perfect, year around.  Never too hot, never too cold.  If you have a favorite cam, please post  it here - I'd love to see it. 

Callie  - I'm curious as to what you think of "Tom Lake", so far?  I'm not going to get to it for a couple of days.  Too much going on today and tomorrow, so it will have to wait. 
Be sure to look at the Guide on your TV listings, for a long view of what's coming up on TCM.  Lots of good stuff playing in the overnight hours, that you can record to watch at a convenient time.   

I just started "Tom Lake" this morning.  Had to stop to tend to other things and haven't gotten back to it. 
     It's a fairly easy read but I haven't quite figured out what the "plot" is, yet or what the title refers to.   The story keeps switching back and forth between the "narrator" telling a story about her youth (Tom Lake hasn't been mentioned as a person nor a place) and conversation between her and her three 20-something daughters, to who she is apparently telling the story.
  A bit confusing because there's no punctuation or chapter switch between the story and the conversation.  I'll get into the rhythm...eventually, I hope. 

I'll check the guide for TCM but will probably watch the movies "in real time" (I'm a "night owl".  ) because I tend to record programs and then never get back to them.

EDIT on Sept. 21....    Since there haven't been any posts since mine, I'll just add to it instead of starting a new one.

TCM didn't list any old musicals for the future - at least in the evenings, which is when I'm most likely to watch. 

I finally looked up the synopsis of "Tom Lake" because I could not figure out when/where/why the conversations between the narrator (Lara - the mom) and the three 20-something daughters were taking place.  The daughters have returned to the cherry farm and the Mom is telling the story of her romance years before she married.  Whew! Now it makes sense - sort of.   However, it's a good story and I will finish it.   

Still mighty quiet here. Here is my list of current reading/listening which I have also posted on the very quiet SeniorLearn site.

Just finished last night: The Lamplighters by  Emma Stonex. Story was okay. Nicely written, but it seemed to really drag out. The ending was predictable.


Continued:
-Another chapter of Persian Fire. I wish the chapters were a little shorter. Good but dense. Keep falling asleep on it.
-Another chapter of the neglected Great Courses audio, The Other 1492: Ferdinand, Isabella, and The Making of an Empire. Chapter six was of particular interest because it included books, authors and printing in the 15th century. Interesting that the chapter was mostly about the role of books in culture.
-Return to Glory by Jack McDevitt. Always a good read, these are some of his short stories, plus and excerpt from his book Hercules Text which I read years ago.

Just started: The Great Courses, Creation Stories of the Ancient World by Joseph Lam. Very good.

I see that I have two other books in my TBR that include lighthouses, Swan Light, by Phoebe Rowe and The Light on Farallon Island by Jen Wheeler. The Farallon Islands, I just read, are a group of small islands off the West Coast around San Francisco. They are closed to the public, being designated a wildlife refuge. I might just continue the theme next. Both these books appear to be debut novels from the authors.

Forgot to mention that I have been, off and on, slogging through the first book of Joe Haldeman's World's series. It is getting political what with other world's wanting more independence from Earth, especially regarding economic endeavors. The main character is being gradually suborned into a political cell. Not my cup of tea but, so far, I am unwilling to give up reading it just yet.

Before I got to picking up one of the lighthouse novels, I ended up starting The Brighter the Light by Mary Ellen Taylor. I am not sure where it will lead, but it appears to be a mystery and starts out in Nags Head, NC.

I seem to be picking about with my books lately. Almost all of the books I mentioned in the last two posts are still ongoing. I did listen to two of three Sci-Fi novels in a trilogy by Michael Mammey. The third is started, but so far it isn't holding my attention like the other two. I am a few chapters into The Brighter the Light, too. Light reading. The characters are personable and the story is decent. It is a coming back home, finding romance type thing. Not my usual read.

Someone is posting the old Crown and Country series hosted and produced by Prince Edward, so I have been watching some of those along with a bunch of other YouTube history, news and other postings that catch my eye rather than reading so much.

Has anyone run across the Before the Coffee Gets Cold series by Toshikazu Kawaguchi? They all seem to revolve around a café in Tokyo where you can have a cup of coffee and get a chance to go back in time. Sounds intriguing.

MarsGal - sounds like something I'm going to like reading!   I'd do it straight off, if I had the chance.  Now I'm going to start thinking about, "where, and what year"?   Endless possibilities to ponder. 🤔   

I am still picking about and not really settling on any one book. Done with the last of the Michael Mammey Sci-Fie trilogy; it was only so-so. The Brighter the Light is also now history; it was only just okay. Still have not finished the three Great Courses series listed a few posts back. Same with Persian Fire.

I am back to reading more of Joe Haldeman's Worlds. I knew if I hung on long enough it would get interesting.

Dan Simmons (of Hyperion fame) wrote two books, titled Illium and Olympos. I thought, a few years ago, that it was a kind of version of the Trojan War but set on Mt. Olympus on Mars. Well, unless I missed it early on, the book is not set on Mars, or not yet at any rate. Bizarre is what I would term the book so far, really bizarre. I am actually giving it a little more time than I did with Hyperion; I didn't get far into that one, so I owe it to Simmons to slog my way further into Illium before throwing in the towel. Right now, I am at the party with about sixteen beings (godlets?). If it follows The Iliad, there should be a challenge, side-taking and betting. Another huge tome, I will not get through all of it before it goes back to the library, or I renew it. All in all, I think I would rather read Emily Wilson's translation of The Iliad and The Odyssey

Amazing! I picked up Illium this morning, and all of a sudden, it is actually starting to make some sense to me since I read Chapter Five this morning.

The book is following two different lines, pretty much alternating chapters. Group one is following a bunch of post-post-humans on Earth (All the post-human/uplifted have abandoned Earth for who knows where). Their mode of transport (goods and people both) is by way of the fax.

Group two is following a scholar who quantum teleports himself between a scholastic center on Olympos (Mt. Olympus on Mars?) and the time and events surrounding the Trojan War. The head of the center or department is called Muse.

Chapter five, BTW, is set in a good-old fashioned library with real books, which nobody except for one knows how to read.

Has anyone read it? What did you think?

modified post and also posted on SeniorLearn.

After quite a hiatus, I listened to more of Persian Fire. It struck me that Tom Holland and his narrator, Michael Page, seemed somewhat tongue-in-cheek in the narration centering on Athens. Well, that thought livens the book up a bit. Now I think I will have to go back and see if I can pick up on it earlier, or if it is just Athens and its snobbish residents and political manipulations that is getting the treatment. It could just be that Michael Page's manner of narration just makes it seem that way.

A non-fiction book I finished since my last post was Operation Pineapple Express by Lt. Col. Scott Mann (retired). It is about a group of mostly veterans here that, after repeatedly being stonewalled by our government officials and their various offices, took it upon themselves to find ways to get Afghani American trained special forces members who worked along side our forces, interpreters, embassy staff, and American citizens and others at risk of Taliban retribution out of Afghanistan during the last days of our pull-out. They were effective enough that even some within the government requested their help. The squads on the ground at the airport put their military careers at risk to help with these unofficial and unsanctioned actions. Imagine my surprise to discover that one of the vets lives locally and one family he was instrumental in helping is now living near here too. The book relates not just the action on this side, but also the efforts and trauma those rescued went through to get "inside the wire" and to safety.

Now I am reading Fair Trade by Sharon Lee and Steve Miller. It is another of their Liaden Universe stories. I am a bit behind. A new book came out in July which I will need to pick up at some point.

Other than that, my reading has been mostly short story anthologies, another lesson or two from the two Great Courses series I started, and a few non-descript books that I discarded quite early in my reading.

It's been some time since I've posted . . . mainly  because I haven't read an actual book in a long long time.   Only online newspapers, and opinion articles from various columnists and publications.  I've continued to read  reviews on recent books, but nothing that's made me anxious to start anything new.

Mars - I remember back in September, when you posted the Flash Fiction website?  That's about as close as I can come to a book, recent months!   

I belong to a couple of literature and poetry groups on Facebook, and  very much enjoy the short discussions or comments on old favorites from the past. (Steinbeck, Hemingway, Frost, etc.)  I like to take a look everyday at those sites, and see what members have to say.

Callie - I finally finished Tom Lake, but it didn't make much of an impression on me.  I have to make a connection with at least one of the characters in a story in order to enjoy it, and there was no-one in TL that I could relate to.  I was disappointed, because I liked The Dutch House very much,  so had high hopes for TL.  My younger daughter now has it, and I'm hoping she'll enjoy it more than I did.

Heavy wet fog out there this morning. Cold, dark and gloomy. Reminds me of a poem by Sara Teasdale.

   Gray Fog
   •   
   •   A fog drifts in, the heavy laden
   •   Cold white ghost of the sea.
   •   One by one the hills go out,
   •   The road and the pepper-tree.
   •   
   •   I watch the fog float in at the window
   •   With the whole world gone blind,
   •   Everything, even my longing, drowses,
   •   Even the thoughts in my mind.
   •   
   •   I put my head on my hands before me,
   •   There is nothing left to be done or said,
   •   There is nothing to hope for, I am tired,
   •   And heavy as the dead.

Thanks for the poem, Marilyne. The name Sara Teasdale sounds familiar to me, but I'll be darn if I know from where. Looking her up, I see that a number of musician/composers have used her poems in their work. She was either mentioned, or poems were featured in several written works, including Ray Bradbury's science fiction short story "There Will Come Soft Rains" (same as her poem). I don't recognize the poem names but I did recognize, Bradbury, of course and a few of the musician/composers like Amy Beach. To my ears this is rather cringe-worthy and unintelligible, but I include it anyway. It is listed among Beach's work as a Secular Choral piece. IMHO, this is not one of Beach's better works. Thank goodness it is very short.

Mars - I agree, "cringe-worthy" describes it well.  I couldn't understand a single word of Sara T's poem.   I don't care for that type of musical presentation anyway, (same person, four frames).   Interesting that her poems have been used in the works of well known musicians and novelists.   
She is one of my favorite poets, so I'm surprised I know so little about her. I plan to do some research.   As in, "Gray Fog", she often writes about or mentions the sea/ocean. Here is another short one.

Tides

LOVE in my heart was a fresh tide flowing
 Where the starlike sea gulls soar;
The sun was keen and the foam was blowing
 High on the rocky shore.

But now in the dusk the tide is turning,
 Lower the sea gulls soar,
And the waves that rose in resistless yearning
 Are broken forevermore.

Sara Teasdale

Joanne, I think you were the one that was reading the Slough House series too.  I just finished Mick Herron's The Silent Hours. I thought at first it was completely separate from but set in the same arena as the Slough House. I was wrong. While not a part of that series, some of the characters do show up and play key roles in this new book, only they are either using code names or no names are mentioned. Added to that the book flips back and forth between present day and Berlin after the wall came down. It only slowly dawned on me who these people were. So this turns out to be backstory for at least two of the Slough House characters. Great follow up to the original series. BTW, has anyone seen the TV series? It is (was?) on a channel I do not get.


Merry Christmas Eve to everyone!  

I've been a bit slow with my reading this past week. I'd like to finish up several books that got side-lined.

I am determined to finish Persian Fire sometime this month. The Tuscarora War is in my audio cue for this month too. But, of course, I had to start listening to another sci-fi called Fear the Sky. It is a borrow so I need to concentrate on that one. R.C. Bray, one of my favorites, narrates. Likewise I need to finish Pandora's Jar, also a library borrow.

Bookwise, I am reading another book of sci-fi short stories, and just started back to the long-languishing The Anarchy by William Dalrymple.

Did you know that Jacqueline Kennedy co-authored with her younger sister "One Special Summer", a book about their summer trip through Europe in 1951?

I didn't know that, Bubble. Looking it up, I found some photos of the book pages. Delightful, colorful, fun. https://journeyjottings.com/blog/2014/07/one-special-summer/

Pandora's Jar is back at the library. I thought the author/narrator brought up a lot of interesting thoughts about how women were treated in the mythological stories. As narrator, she conveyed a rather strident, indignant attitude. She did well narrating her own work (not all authors can pull off reading their own works), but at times the indignant, almost angry, attitude sometimes got a little much. It did not stop me from listening though. Natalie Haynes did a great job of researching the various versions by other authors contemporary with or before Homer.  The ancients not always dumped the blame on these women. Attitudes towards women show up in later interpretations of the stories. Well worth the read/listen.

Marsgal, saw this on Random House site, and thought you might like to peruse it.

https://links.eml.randomhousebooks.com/e/evib?_t=923db5ced76341da95addaffe2072c88&_m=2829a358f66e416e96a119b218a9d1b8&_e=PE-oWgxgjaTUL9ADkku5-m_fasbi-z44Le2l50z_gi4MFzdaMmPQXbsVjZ9VDsKOzbJuJ-5lQj1E2se9dbMOvQ%3D%3D

Thanks for the link, Tomereader. I was almost certain that I read one of Alison Weir's (one only), that being her book on Mary Queen of Scots, but the original release doesn't seem back far enough. So, my best guess is that I have simply been aware of Alison Weir for a long time, but had lost interest in medieval history by that point. Now I have become interested in British history again, but with emphasis on the time period including Roman Britain up to the conquest of Wales by Edward I. Nevertheless, I have put several of her books on my library wish list, and the three in her England's Medieval Queens series on my books to buy wish list.

Has anyone read Salman Rushdie? Victory City sounds intriguing, but the excerpt I read puts me in mind of The Life of Pi, which to me strange and mystical and a bit hard to make much sense of.

My Dad's favorite silent movie was All Quiet on the Western Front. I never forgot the time he let me stay up late to watch it with him when I was little. I finally got to read the book about 10 years ago. Since I don't have NetFlix, I have not seen the remake that was recently released.

I just this morning discovered that a favorite book has been made into a series (also on a channel I don't get) and took an instant dislike to it. I have had Beacon 23 on my re-read pile as with several of Hugh Howey's other books for a while now.

All Quiet on the Western Front
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KPKeYhkBt5A - Did you check Youtube or Amazon?

All Quiet On the Western Front,  has been made into three separate/different movies over the years:   
The first was in 1930, and starred Lew Ayres.  Apparently it follows the book really well, and is an excellent movie.

The second version was in 1979, starring Richard Thomas and Earnest Borgnine.  It was very popular at the time, and I remember seeing it and being very impressed.  It is considered one of the greats, and is now played often on TCM, when they do a series on War movies.   

The third and last version, was made in 2022, and was released in theaters about a year ago.  That's the one that people are talking about now.  It won four Oscar's at the Academy Awards last year.  It's playing on Netflix  now, and I intend to watch it ASAP.  I had forgotten about it over this past year. (It is not available on any other channel).
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1016150/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0_tt_8_nm_0_q_all%2520quiet
   

Oh, I will have to see the Richard Thomas/Earnest Borgnine one. Thomas was a good choice for the lead. I completely forgot about that one, don't recall seeing it. Yes, Lew Ayres was the one I watched with Dad. Silent film, B/W. The book I have is American copyrighted and published in 1929, February 1930 reprint, translated by A. W. Wheen.  By the time I found this edition, the book had been reprinted a total of 18 times between June of 1929 and February 1930. Thanks to Wikipedia, I have discovered a newer translation which, according to Wikipedia's article, is a more accurate translation of the original. It appears the original translation  left out a few things or lightened the impact of certain passages for American readers. Okay, I have to get that one and probably the Remarque's sequel, The Road Back.

My post this morning on SeniorLearn since the book may be of interest to some of you. Hints of romance, with lots of suspense, and I like the poetry.

The listen that has my attention this week is Adam Hamdy's The Other Side of Night. It doesn't get great reviews, but it doesn't seem too bad to me. Sadly, I read a few of the reviews after I started reading it which kind of spoiled the suspense a bit. I'm glad I didn't read the review spoiler before I started. Otherwise, I might not had started it. It is basically a murder mystery/suspense/psychological thriller, but is slowly morphing into something more. I like this clip of the author's comments about the poems in the book. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RRCOFIpslTY

Mars - The Other Side of Night, sounds good. I'd like to check it out at the library right away, but feel like I should first read the books I received as Christmas presents.  Can't remember the titles at the moment, but will look and post them later. 

Friday night, we plan to watch All Quiet on the Western Front, now playing on Netflix.  This is the newest version I mentioned a few days ago, that won the Academy Award last year.   Looking forward to seeing it. 

Let me know what you think of the new version, Marilyne. I don't get Netflix.

Well---I finished The Other Side of Night. What an interesting twist to the ending. Some science fiction involved. It now has me looking into theories of time. I have read some on the recursive theory of time, but not this new one (B-theory of time). The epilogue to the story is, maybe, a little long but still interesting.

So, I am to back listening to Persian Fire and Far Pavilions which is am slowly working my way through. I've put aside Vanished Kingdoms by Norman Davies for now.



 

Not much reading going on the last few days because I have been busy snow shoveling, housework and finding more things to throw out or pack.

What I am reading, and almost done with, is Marion Zimmer Bradley's The Door Through Space for the thrid or fourth time. I read The Colors of Space for the third time several weeks ago.

The sun has come up. It is only 17^oF but I need to go retrieve the trash can and shovel snow, again. I hope the roads are fairly well cleaned off because I need to go gas up the car tomorrow.

Still no books to comment on here. I'm hoping to get to Walgreens this week, to try on different lenses for reading.  I can see the TV just fine, so have been watching  movies, or reading articles online about subjects that interest me. 

Yesterday I watched a movie on TCM from 1969, called  The Rain People.  I had never seen it  or even heard of it that I can remember.   It was one of the earliest movies, directed by Francis Ford Coppola.  It starred James Caan, Robert Duval, and Shirley Knight.  A number of years later when Coppola directed The Godfather, he chose both Caan and Duval for leading roles.
I  liked  Rain People,  and recommend it,  but definitely not for those who like cheerful, upbeat movies with a happy ending.  Go to the Hallmark Channel for those, but go to TCM if you prefer "the dark side".  I found myself still thinking about it  last night when I went to bed, and woke up this morning with it still on my mind.     

Have done neither reading nor movie watching this last week, just some YouTube, but not even that much. I don't know if I mentioned it, but I switched to streaming and internet and dropped regular cable TV. My goal, since I rarely watched regular TV, was cost cutting, not "cord-cutting". I've succeeded in that, at least. Even though I am now renting the modem instead of using my own, and of course, Xfinity's Zumo box. I am spending less. I really, really hated spending the money on the various sports and other fees that I had to with regular cable. I do not watch sports (well, except for the soccer finals last year).