What Are You Reading the Week of 7 December 2013?

Leigh Douglass Brackett (7 December 1915 – 18 March 1978) was an American author, particularly of science fiction. She was also a screenwriter, known for her work on such films as The Big Sleep (1945), Rio Bravo (1959), The Long Goodbye (1973) and The Empire Strikes Back (1980).

Brackett was born in Los Angeles, California and grew up there. On 31 December 1946, at age 31, she married science fiction writer Edmond Hamilton in San Gabriel, California, and moved with him to Kinsman, Ohio. She died of cancer in 1978 in Lancaster, California.

She was first published in her mid-twenties. Her first published science fiction story was "Martian Quest", which appeared in the February 1940 issue of Astounding Science Fiction. Her earliest years as a writer (1940–42) were her most productive in numbers of stories written. Occasional stories have social themes, such as "The Citadel of Lost Ships" (1943), which considers the effects on the native cultures of alien worlds of Earth's expanding trade empire.

Brackett's first novel, No Good from a Corpse, published in 1944, was a hard-boiled mystery novel in the tradition of Raymond Chandler. This led to her first major screenwriting assignment (see below). At the same time, though, Brackett's science fiction stories were becoming more ambitious. Shadow Over Mars (1944) was her first novel-length science fiction story, and though still somewhat rough-edged, marked the beginning of a new style for her writing, strongly influenced by the characterization of the 1940s detective story and film noir.

In 1946, the same year that she married science fiction author Edmond Hamilton, Planet Stories published the novella "Lorelei of the Red Mist". Brackett only finished the first half before turning it over to Ray Bradbury, so that she could leave to work on her first screenplay assignment, an adaptation of The Big Sleep. Her story's main character is a thief called Hugh Starke.

Brackett returned from her break from science-fiction writing, caused by her cinematic endeavors, in 1948. From then on to 1951, she produced a series of science fiction adventure stories that were longer than her previous work. To this period belong such classic representations of her planetary settings as "The Moon that Vanished" and the novel-length Sea-Kings of Mars (1949), later published as The Sword of Rhiannon, a vivid description of Mars before its oceans evaporated.

With "Queen of the Martian Catacombs" (1949), Brackett created a character that she later returned to, Eric John Stark. Stark, an orphan from Earth, is raised by the semi-sentient aboriginals of Mercury, who are later killed by Earthmen. He is saved from the same fate by a Terran official, who adopts Stark and becomes his mentor. When threatened, however, Stark frequently reverts to the primitive N'Chaka, the "man without a tribe" that he was on Mercury. From 1949 to 1951, Stark (whose name echoes that of the hero in "Lorelei") appeared in three tales, all published in Planet Stories: the aforementioned "Queen", "Enchantress of Venus", and finally "Black Amazon of Mars". With this last story, Brackett's period of writing high adventure ended.

Her stories thereafter adopted a more elegiac tone. They no longer celebrated the conflicts of frontier worlds, but lamented the passing away of civilizations. The stories now concentrated more upon mood than on plot. The reflective, retrospective nature of these stories is indicated in the titles: "The Last Days of Shandakor"; "Shannach — the Last"; "Last Call from Sector 9G".

This last story was published in the very last issue (Summer 1955) of Planet Stories, always Brackett's most reliable market for science fiction. With the disappearance of Planet Stories and, later in 1955, of Startling Stories and Thrilling Wonder Stories, the market for Brackett's brand of story dried up, and the first phase of her career as a science fiction author ended. A few other stories trickled out over the next decade, and old stories were revised and published as novels. A new production of this period was one of Brackett's most critically acclaimed science fiction novels, The Long Tomorrow (1955). This novel describes an agrarian, deeply technophobic society that develops after a nuclear war.

But most of her writing after 1955 was for the more lucrative film and television markets. In 1963 and 1964, she briefly returned to her old Martian milieu with a pair of stories; "The Road to Sinharat" can be regarded as an affectionate farewell to the world of "Queen of the Martian Catacombs", while the other – with the intentionally ridiculous title of "Purple Priestess of the Mad Moon" – borders on parody. She and her husband shared Guest of Honor duties at the 22nd World Science Fiction Convention in Oakland, California.

After a hiatus of nearly a decade, Brackett returned to science fiction in the seventies with the publication of The Ginger Star (1974), The Hounds of Skaith (1974), and The Reavers of Skaith (1976), collected as The Book of Skaith in 1976. This trilogy brought Eric John Stark back for adventures upon the extrasolar planet of Skaith (rather than his old haunts of Mars and Venus).

Shortly after Brackett broke into science fiction writing, she also wrote her first screenplays. Hollywood director Howard Hawks was so impressed by her novel No Good from a Corpse that he had his secretary call in "this guy Brackett" to help William Faulkner write the script for The Big Sleep (1946). The film, starring Humphrey Bogart and written by Brackett, William Faulkner, and Jules Furthman, is considered one of the best movies ever made in the genre. However, after her marriage, Brackett took a long break from screenwriting.

When she returned to screenwriting in the mid-1950s, she wrote for both TV and movies. Howard Hawks hired her to write or co-write several John Wayne pictures, including Rio Bravo (1959), Hatari! (1962), El Dorado (1966) and Rio Lobo (1970). Because of her background with The Big Sleep, Robert Altman hired her to write his deconstruction of Raymond Chandler's stories, The Long Goodbye (1973).

The Empire Strikes Back
Brackett worked on the screenplay for Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back. The movie won the Hugo Award in 1981. This script was a departure for her, since until then, all of her science fiction had been in the form of novels and short stories.

The exact role which Brackett played in writing the script for Empire is the subject of some dispute. What is agreed on by all is that George Lucas asked her to write the screenplay based on his story outline. It is also known that Brackett wrote a finished first draft which was delivered to Lucas shortly before Brackett's death from cancer in 1978. Two drafts of a new screenplay were written by Lucas and, following the delivery of the screenplay for Raiders of the Lost Ark, turned over to Lawrence Kasdan for a new approach. Both Brackett and Kasdan (though not Lucas) were given credit for the final script.

Brackett's screenplay has never been officially or legally published. According to Stephen Haffner, it can be read at one of two locations: the Jack Williamson Special Collections library at Eastern New Mexico University in Portales, New Mexico (but may not be copied or checked out); and the archives at Lucasfilm, Ltd. in California.

Science fiction novels
Shadow Over Mars (1951) – first published 1944; published in the U.S. as The Nemesis from Terra (1961)
The Starmen (1952) – also published as The Galactic Breed (1955, abridged), The Starmen of Llyrdis (1976)
The Sword of Rhiannon (1953) – first published as Sea-Kings of Mars (1949)
The Big Jump (1955)
The Long Tomorrow (1955)
Alpha Centauri or Die! (1963) – fixup of The Ark of Mars (1953) and Teleportress of Alpha C (1954)
The Secret of Sinharat and People of the Talisman (1964)
The Ginger Star (1974) – first published as a two-part serial in Worlds of If, February and April 1974
The Hounds of Skaith (1974)
The Reavers of Skaith (1976)

Science fiction collections
The Coming of the Terrans (1967)
The Halfling and Other Stories (1973)
The Book of Skaith (1976) – omnibus edition of the three Skaith novels
The Best of Leigh Brackett (1977), ed. Edmond Hamilton
Martian Quest: The Early Brackett (2000)
Stark and the Star Kings (2005), with Edmond Hamilton
Sea-Kings of Mars and Otherworldly Stories (2005) – #46 in the Fantasy Masterworks series.
Lorelei of the Red Mist: Planetary Romances (2007)
Shannach–the Last: Farewell to Mars (2011)

Science fiction, as editor
The Best of Planet Stories No. 1 (anthology; 1975)
The Best of Edmond Hamilton (collection; 1977)

Other genres
No Good from a Corpse (crime novel; 1944)
Stranger at Home (crime novel; 1946) – ghost-writer for the actor George Sanders
An Eye for an Eye (crime novel; 1957) – adapted for television as Markham (1959–60; CBS)
The Tiger Among Us (crime novel; 1957; UK 1960 as Fear No Evil), filmed as 13 West Street (1962; dir. Philip Leacock)
Follow the Free Wind (western novel; 1963) – received the Spur Award from Western Writers of America
Rio Bravo (western novel; 1959) – novelization based on the screenplay by Jules Furthman and Leigh Brackett
Silent Partner (crime novel; 1969)
No Good from a Corpse (mystery collection; Dennis McMillan Publications, 1999) – reprints the titular novel and eight shorter crime stories.

Thanks, richard!

I might look into some of these books...

Thanks, Richard. I never read any of Leigh Brackett's sci-fi. Have you? I wrongly assumed she was a man. There were far fewer women sci-fi writers back then, as far as I know.

I'm reading The 5th Wave and Montalbano's First Case.

Another starter for me is The Alphabet of Light and Dark by Danielle Wood.

Thanks again, Richard. How do you find these interesting writers?
I've finished some good and bad books in the past 2 weeks. 1Q84 turned out to be rather infuriating. How did they let this guy ruin an innovative and fascinating story with all those annoying repetitions? Did he not have an editor? I also finished the wonderful The Hearts of Horses, one of my best reads of 2013. Molly Gloss discusses gender expectations and history around WWI and the beginning of the dust bowl in a little midwest farming community along with a really perfect description of cancer and it's treatment at that time. What a gem of a book. Another great book I finished was Hyperbole and a Half whose author, Allie Bosh was mentioned as one of the 50 most influential creative people in the world. The book is great, her blog is probably great, but for a funny woman who seems to be in an ongoing battle with depression, such an honor could be devastating. Let's hope it doesn't get to her. Her dog descriptions and stories are perfect and hilarious. The descriptions of her depression are also perfect. Amazing to have both in a little graphic book. Another good read was Schroder by Amity Gaige. I thought her treatment of this very self conscious sociopath was right on _target, I wonder if you would agree, Richard.
I've been reading a little bit through Kirkus Reviews Best Fiction Books of 2013: https://www.kirkusreviews.com/issue/best-of-2013/section/fiction/? and don't think The Woman Upstairs by Claire Messud should have been included, though it does show someone entranced by art. I never trust a book that ends with an epiphany. Now I'm listening to A Tale for the Time Being by Ruth Ozeki , and it sure looks like it belongs there. It's the diary of a teenage Japanese girl found by an
American novelist living in Canada. It's so well written and the characters are so intriguing and believable, I don't think it can go wrong.
Speaking of epiphanies, for my RL book club I'm about halfway through listening to Beautiful Ruins by Jess Walter which is about so many things: characters from the movie Cleopatra when it's being filmed in Italy (the Italian parts are the best ), a soulless modern day Hollywood movie producer and his heart worn assistant, and an epiphany junky.
I'm also about to start, on Nook, The Ladies Paradise. I've tried Emile Zola before and failed, but I loved the PBS production of The Paradise so much I thought I'd give him another try.
And on paper I'm about to start The Daylight Gate by Jeanette Winterson which is about the 1612 British witch trials, Shakespeare, and, of course, lesbians.

Thank you for yet another great start to the week! I really look forward to your bios. I'd like to echo Citizenjoyce's question: How do you find these interesting writers? Inquiring minds want to know!

Right now I'm about 150 pages into Krakatoa: The Day the World Exploded: August 27, 1883 by Simon Winchester. I'm finding it quite interesting.

Interesting author, Richard!

I am reading The Obscene Bird of Night, listening to Tinkers at bedtime, and listening to The Cuckoo's Calling.

I'm still working on Takedown Twenty by Janet Evanovich

A Christmas Carol as part of a group read. In much of what I have read so far the dialog is almost word for word with the 1951 movie adaption, starring Alastair Sim, one of my all-time favorite movies...

Spoiler Alert:
http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ayW4c9aZXyw

I really enjoyed learning about Leigh Brackett years ago, when I found out she was the screenwriter behind The Big Sleep and Rio Bravo. Wildly different movies, both very good, and by the same...WOMAN?!? *gasp* (Hey, it was the 1970s and I was raised by a mother who held Traditional Values.)

Her SF is largely unknown to me. I read the Skaith books, but that was almost all that was available in the 1970s. I'm going to do more reading now that I've rediscovered her.

BIG KINDLE/NOOK NEWS for 20th-century classic American book fanciers! All three of these titles are $1.99 for download today:

Dust Tracks on a Road--witty, upbeat (!) autobiography by Zora Neale Hurston
Saratoga Trunk--Edna Ferber's novel that the Ingrid Bergman movie was based on
A Tree Grows in Brooklyn--well, not much to say about this, is there.

I'm reading Norwegian Wood by Haruki Murakami. I made sure to listen to The Beatles song before I started reading and it really set the mood for the first few chapters.

Thank you, again, Richard for a splendid start to our reading week!

I finished and reviewed the awesome ER book Yoga for Runners by Christine Felstead. If either one of these things interest you, I could not recommend this book any more highly. The yoga component too, even if you are not a runner, is a solid base on injury prevention and core wellness. I never knew how to address certain areas of the body, and now I do.

I am now having a blast with short stories in the the wild, wacky and wonderful world of Granta's the Best of Young Spanish Novelists. Makes me realize I gotta get back south of the North American border sometime very soon!

I finished The Teacher of Cheops, historical fiction set in the Ancient Egypt. The plot engages, the characters are at least 2 dimensional, and the historical accuracy is high. Sometimes the writing is a little stilted as the author works to include historical facts. Definitely an enjoyable read.

Hmmm, Leigh Brackett. Interesting. Early this past week I had a fellow in my store asking if I had any Leigh Brackett books. I had two old paperbacks, reasonably priced, which he snapped up, intimating to his friend that these would be going for a lot more online, as they were collectors items. Beat up old paperbacks? Probably not in my experience. I didn't bother looking them up to find out. At any rate, if he was happy, I was happy. Maybe he'll come back some time to search around my sci fi section for more "finds". Coincidentally, we were in San Francisco over the Thanksgiving weekend, and, while visiting one of our favorite small bookstores I came upon a Brackett hardcover in the dollar rack, which I snapped up, intimating to my wife that it might be going for a lot more online, as it was a collectors item. (Just kidding about that last part; I put it on the shelf in my bookstore for about 9 dollars, which is more than one dollar, but rather short of collectors item status.)

Oh, and I'm still reading and enjoying The Tenor Saxophonist's Story by Czech writer Josef Škvorecký.

She's an interesting case, Jerry, not unknown and yet not widely celebrated even in SFnal circles. Her husband seems to me to have vanished, as I can't recall hearing boo-turkey from anyone about an Edmond Hamilton anything in years.

I've spent the evening reading Maus. I am always surprised by the level of intensity you can reach in a graphic novel. I think I will scan through Fangirl tomorrow which I may or may not read. I am certainly not the _target market for this book but I am intrigued by the incredible response around this novel and I might read it just to satisfy my curiosity. Most importantly I will read China Blues by Ki Longfellow who is one of my favourite authors and I am looking forward to that.

Finished the fascinating Tinkers. Hardings version of dying works for me. Will be listening to Black Water Rising by Attica Locke. Setting aside The Obscene Bird of Night to do some other reading. Current RL book club selection for December is Billy Watson's Croker Sack by Franklin Burroughs.

I just finished Takedown Twenty and about to start The Gods of Guilt by Michael Connelly

Kindle, Nook, Kobo bargainhunters! Amazon and others are selling Native Son, Richard Wright's amazing novel, is $1.99 today!

Same deal on Pirsig's Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, but I can't be arsed to find a link.

I'm having a great time reading Dennis Lehane's The Given Day. He is a wonderful storyteller. I hate to put it down and I don't want to finish it.

I'm trying to get into The Light Between Oceans but it hasn't grabbed me so far. Someone tell me it's worth it!

I finished up Fables Vol. 8: Wolves by Bill Willingham. This is such a fun series. This one focused on Bigby Wolf and Snow White and was a lot of fun.

Next up I started The Drops of God Vol. 3 by Tadashi Agi. I think this might be the last of this series for me. It's moving awfully slow and becoming repetitive without advancing the story much.

Today I plan to start the third of Jussi Adler-Olsen's Department Q series. The US title is A Conspiracy of Faith but I've got the UK edition with the title Redemption.

Finished The Fallen Angel by Daniel Silva and Blind Justice by Anne Perry. No surprises but all good. Reading Drowned Man by David Whellams, a mystery well built but perhaps long.

#21 I enjoyed The Light Between The Oceans , maybe the fact that I am familiar with the locations made it interesting for me. I also noted that Good Reads give it a very high rating.

I finished The Daylight Gate, and it's such an ugly book I can't recommend it. It covers witch trials of 1612 and goes into such details about torture and imprisonment that I'll never be able to get them out of my mind. Modern day witchcraft is fun, in the 17th century not so much. I think I was unprepared for it because of Terry Pratchett. I think it was in Good Omens that I first heard of Agnes Nutter, Witch and that setting was much more enjoyable. In Winterson's favor, the history was well illuminated, but too well for the squeamish.
I also finished Wrapped in the Flag, Claire Conner's autobiography about growing up in a John Birch Society household filled with hate and paranoia. Good ol' Daddy Koch makes a mentionable appearance (he must be so proud of his Tea Party sons) as, in a strange and oblique way does May Kay Letourneau. I think those Birchers would have felt right at home with the witch trials.
Now I've started Ellen Galford's The Dyke and the Dybbuk and am getting some much needed humor to take away the taste of Winterson's book.

#21 - NarratorLady - I really enjoyed The Light Between Oceans and so did most of the people I work with. Don't give up on it too soon.

Montalbano's First Case (can't get the touchstone to work) was an enjoyable mystery, and I enjoyed the re-read of The Secret Garden. Now I'm reading the YA alien invasion novel The 5th Wave.

Thanks hazeljune and Iudita. I'll stick with it.

I'm now getting ready to start Soul Mountain by Gao Xingjian. I have high hopes.

I've also just finished Krakatoa: The Day the World Exploded: August 27, 1883 by Simon Winchester, which was pretty fascinating. I have to admit, though, I'd have liked a bit of a better grasp of plate tectonics and subduction, though; especially since I live in earthquake country, not 100 miles from The San Andreas.

>19 richardderus: bless you. Got it. Now I won't have to carry the book (a near door stopper around).

>29 bookwoman247: You live a great deal closer to the SA than that. According to the latest map I've seen there's an offshoot that rises up parallel to the 15 from Miramar and then just below the Fallbrook moves west to the ocean. Of course, I'm also interesting in the host of small ones which snake under all of downtown SD, right where I work on the 29th floor. Makes me feel all sorts of warm and fuzzy every day.

#14
Let us know what you think about Tenor Saxophonist Story. I have several of Joseph Skvorecky's detective books on my shelf to read. I heard about him while listening to a series on World Mystery that I downloaded from the BBC.

>31 whymaggiemay:: Ah, yes. I know there are tributaries of the SA fault everywhere. Honestly, I don't worry too much about it. Brush fires worry me more, and I'd never be able to deal with tornadoes, hurricanes, blizzards, ice storms, etc.. I've felt some pretty hefty earthquakes. They all get your hdart pounding a little bit, but only one - the last big one in Mexicali ever really gave me a good scare! Thank you, San Andreas, LOL!

After reading Krakatoa, that might change! I may not be able to keep those images out of my head, even though there aren't any volcanoes anywhere near! Oh, I know there's an extinct one in SD. Yikes! LOL! And we certainly do live in a place that could easily be overtaken by a big enough tsunami. Oh dear! Perhaps I should dissuade anyone of a nervous disposition from reading Winchester's book! LOL! Seriously, it really was pretty fascinating, though.

I finished Quentin Bell's Bloomsbury Recalled and will read Flannery O'Connor's A Prayer Journal today.

Finished the marvelous Billy Watson's Croker Sack. Next up is an Early Reviewer selection, Andrew's Brain by E.L. Doctorow.

#35
I felt the same way about Glass Castle. I still think it was made up. Even poor counties in West Virginia have social workers, school teachers, etc. who would have to report this kind of thing. I'm not convinced it was all true. I think it was embellished in much the same way as the James Frey books.

Cozy mystery fans! One of the big cozy blogs has a list of Christmas-themed mysteries for you!

Finished Bellman & Black. I wasn't blown away by it like I was with The Thirteenth Tale, but I still enjoyed it, especially since I'm not generally a fan of historical fiction in any context. VERY slow build up in terms of story and plot, but it was a good novel to savor. At any rate, I'm glad I enjoyed it because I bought it as a Christmas gift for someone, and now I can truthfully tell them that I've read it and enjoyed it. :)

My goal for this week: FINISH THE PASSAGE. I've only been working on it for six months or so.

I have come to the conclusion of all 12 volumes of A Dance to the Music of Time and have rated the entire series 5 stars. What a fabulous reading experience. And reading one volume per month over the years was a perfect way to approach it.

Now I'm reading Alice Munro's The View from Castle Rock.

Almost finished with The Book Thief. I have about 25% left (reading it on kindle) and I have to say that the second half is going very slowly for me. I am interested in seeing the movie adaptation of it and how it differs. I've heard it is faithful to the book.

I'm reading Haruki Murakami's Norwegian Wood.

I am dipping a wonderful collection of short stories by Ruth Prawer Jhabvala, Out Of India.

I'm loving The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey, which is turning out to be one of the best of a favorite author.

I loved Robert Antoni's AS FLIES TO WHATLESS BOYS! Four stars!! My review of this excellent tropical escape from snow is here, or on the book's page! Akashic Books does it right.

I'm just sttarting The Syringa Tree: A Novel by Pamela Gien . It is a novel about a young white girl coming-of-age at the beginning of apartheid. There's already been mention of that cheeky Mandela. How dare he expect to be called Mister Mandela! How dare he wear his tribal skins to court!

FINALLY finished the Passage! I really enjoyed it, but six months is too long to spend with a single book, even for me.

Started Mrs. Poe this afternoon on my lunch break, will probably start Parasite tonight.

#42
You will have to let us know what you think of Norwegian Wood. I found it interesting, but not one of Murakami's best. I think because there were parts of the book that I didn't understand, as the student revolution of 1968 was history to me and not to Murakami.

About to begin reading Matilda by Roald Dahl, which I saw on Broadway a few weeks ago and was blown away by. Probably the 2nd or 3rd best show I've ever seen on Broadway. I haven't read Dahl since I was a kid and am looking forward to it.

Tudor by Leanda de Lisle
I'm reading a library copy of this book. She goes further back, beginning with Owen Tudor and Katherine de Valois.

#49 framboise
I loved Mathilda as a kid, it was simply magical. I should give it a reread one of these days to see if the magic's still there. Can't wait to read it with my daughter once she's old enough. I'm very curious to know what you think of it.

The title alone makes it worth $1.99: Marie Antoinette's Head

Here's the blurb, to prove I'm not crazy and it IS a book worthy of reading:

Winner of the Adele Mellen Prize for Distinguished Scholarship

Marie Antoinette has remained atop the popular cultural landscape for centuries for the daring in style and fashion that she brought to 18th century France. For the better part of the queen’s reign, one man was entrusted with the sole responsibility of ensuring that her coiffure was at its most ostentatious best. Who was this minister of fashion who wielded such tremendous influence over the queen’s affairs? Marie Antoinette’s Head: The Royal Hairdresser, The Queen, and the Revolution charts the rise of Leonard Autie from humble origins as a country barber in the south of France to the inventor of the Pouf and premier hairdresser to Queen Marie-Antoinette.

By unearthing a variety of sources from the 18th and 19th centuries, including memoirs (including Léonard’s own), court documents, and archived periodicals the author, French History professor and expert Will Bashor, tells Autie’s mostly unknown story. Bashor chronicles Leonard’s story, the role he played in the life of his most famous client, and the chaotic and history-making world in which he rose to prominence. Besides his proximity to the queen, Leonard also had a most fascinating life filled with sex (he was the only man in a female dominated court), seduction, intrigue, espionage, theft, exile, treason, and possibly, execution. The French press reported that Léonard was convicted of treason and executed in Paris in 1793.

However, it was also recorded that Léonard, after receiving a pension from the new King Louis XVIII, died in Paris in March 1820. Granted, Leonard was known as the magician of Marie-Antoinette’s court, but how was it possible that he managed to die twice?

>52 richardderus: Oh dear, another on my TBR list. It does sound interesting!

>52 richardderus: My daughter is fascinated by Marie Antoinette, and snapped this one up. Thanks.

I am really enjoying Hemingway's Chair by Michael Palin, it is full of hootish characters!!

#51 Vonini: I am really enjoying Matilda. I am up to page 70 and it seems that the Broadway musical has stayed very faithful to the original story, with some minor changes so far. An easy and fun read.

#52
Didn't they make a movie of that guy's live and title it Shampoo? I think it even starred Warren Beatty?

Just finished Hold Autumn in Your Hand by George Sessions Perry. This was a random grab from some inherited books in the den that have been screaming to be read! Very enjoyable. I also finished listening to Sycamore Row by John Grisham as an audio book- this had the same Jake Brigance character from A Time to Kill (I never read that one... but I did see the movie..and really enjoyed it) - Sycamore Row was a great book to listen to.. however, I am not so sure it would be a quick read. Right Now I am listening to an Audible Book - The Red Door - an Inspector Rutledge mystery (my 1st). (I keep restarting it.. hard to work, drive and listen to this for some reason.. although I do like it so far). My next read is still up in the air.... I got a Library Member Giveaway - this week so I think I will start it.. Queer's Progress by Steven Meyers.

#58
I have a copy of Red Door so will be waiting to here what you have to say about it. A friend of mine is a mystery reader and she recommended it, so naturally I bought the book.

I spent a great deal of the day on Tuesday sitting in airports and on planes. It's the first chance in almost a month that I've had to do any reading for pleasure. It was almost worth the trouble of having my flights rearranged and being sent to a different airport than I originally intended. (Norfolk instead of Newport News.) Any way, I made good headway into Exposing the Third Reich: Colonel Truman Smith in Hitler's Germany. It's a decently written biography of a professional soldier (and his wife) who ended up as the US military attache in Berlin from 1935-38. He then became the US Army's expert on the German army during the war. It makes a nice companion piece to Lynne Olson's book, Those Angry Days.

I finished reading In the Sanctuary of Outcasts: A Memoir on Monday. This one was a big surprise. While I didn't much care for the author as a person the book he wrote was a fine one. The author was a convicted thief who spent his time in prison in the last leper colony in the U. S., at Carville, Louisana. And yes, that is the town named for the family to which James Carville, Bill Clinton aide and spokesperson, belongs. In the one year that the author spends in the prison he comes to know the patients and learns much about himself and why he ended up where he did through his contact with them. This is a much more believable memoir than is Glass Castle or any of that ilk. (Why is it that the believeable books aren't mega-hits with mega-readership?) My major problem with this book is that there isn't enough about the disease and it treatment, and too much about the self-centered star of the show - the author. But then perhaps that is the kind of person who writes a memoir?

>57 benitastrnad: Heh. Much as I disliked Nixon and what he stood for, I don't think he was quite the same level of disgraced as Marie Antoinette, and he was a whole lot uglier and less stylish.

I finished reading a bit of local history in Philadelphia's Lost Waterfront, a fascinating history of Philadelphia's waterfront from the mid1600's to 2011. It is generally organized geographically from Spring Garden to Washington. Good for anyone interested in Philadelphia history.

I started listening to Her Royal Spyness by Rhys Bowen. It's fluff, but fun so far. The audio is great - voices seem very appropriate.

I also started reading Falling Upwards but that one is going to take awhile.

Okay y'all. I know some are tired of me yippin' about Kindle specials, but there's one now that cannot go unnoticed: John Fowles's eco-creativity meditation The Tree is $1.99 today for Kindle, Nook, Kobo!

It's a wonderful book. His central point, that the natural world inspires beautiful art that creates a longing for the natural world that inspires beautiful are ad infinitum, is made in Fowles' trademark pungent sentences that linger on your mind's breath like garlic does on your tongue.

What's $1.99 to anyone who is employed and not destitute? Try it!

>65 richardderus: You are such an enabler. Done.

Finished the brilliant Early Reviewer selection, Andrew's Brain by E.L. Doctorow, and will be starting another Early Reviewer selection, the Bones of Paris by Laurie R. King.

>66 whymaggiemay: Hee hee hee my evil plot has worked!

New thread is up!

Hello again, everyone! So, I haven't read anything during this week - starting on Friday, December 6th and lasting for this entire week - I've been struck with a severe case of 'puzzlemania'! :) Crosswords, Sudoku, but primarily Jigsaw puzzles - all are fair game for me! :) So far, I've completed six jigsaw puzzles, the majority of which are 1000 pieces, although I've also done a couple of 250-piece puzzles as well! :)

I hope to get back to reading soon, but certainly after this 'puzzle fever' breaks! See you next week - :)