I just got my copy of the Vermont Reads book - The Hate You Give , by Angie Thomas. I want to read this even though I doubt I'm going to like it much. I want to participate in the events coming up. Has anyone read it? I understand its violent and there is much racism .

Hi, PAM! Nice to hear from you!

The Book Charmer by Karen Hawkins. I am hoping to fall under it's spell because I have withdrawal from my favorite Three Pines series ! There are only two more books in that series and I don't want to binge-read them then be left without another. Louise Penny was scheduled to release All The Devils Are Here in September 2020 but with the pestilence I wonder if that will still happen.

Yoyo - I just looked up The Book Charmer. Looks like it might be a good one. Keep us apprised, please.

Skibby - I enjoyed The Hate You Give earlier and loved it. It’s a take on the importance of the Black Lives Matter movement. It’s a good provocative read and did make me think.

incidentally, the title is also a ref to rapper Tupac’s music: the title’s acronym is “THUG“ which refs Tupac’s saying, THUG Life. A really interesting rabbit hole if you’d like to follow it.

Kathy.....I'm on page 27 and struggling to justify why I should waste my time ( though it stretches before me like Route 66 ) reading this book. I imagine that the story could be interesting but the author is a terrible writer.

This particular sentence made me stumble, fall on one knee, skin it and then stagger upright ......

"Grace was proud her little sister was able to keep the muck of their life from splattering onto her smiles."

I can't.......I.......Just.......Can't.

OMG, Yoyo … you'd better stop before you fall again. I thank you for the warning.

I finished The Silkworm by Robert Galbraith and liked it so much that I downloaded the third of the series. In doing that, I found three e-books I was on the waiting list for that were available, one of them for just three more hours, in spite of the fact that every time I request one that has a wait period the site tells me I will get an email when it is available. Anyway, I feel like it was my lucky day to have three new books plus the RG one just waiting to be read. Isn't it a shame that the weather has turned too cold to weed!

Yoyo - oh dear. Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear. Well, maybe you could read it as a joke. I dare you to continue. Keep us posted.

Just finished to read "Machines Like Me" by Ian McEwan. It's a good novel, but not one of his best. The whole story is barely skerched. Can't say more without spoilering.

Now I am going to read an essay. "On Writers and Writing" by Margaret Atwood. She try to explain the role writers have had in different times and societies. And the changing way to write

After attempting The Name of the Rose I settled down to a very light autobiography Is It Me? of a much loved radio and TV presenter Terry Wogan who during the '80's and 90's seemed to be everywhere on the airwaves. He came from Limerick in the West of Ireland then took up a safe job as a lowly clerk in the Royal Bank of Ireland in Dublin. Started broadcasting with RTE then joined BBC radio then TV.

He used to host the Eurovision Song contests (much enjoyed by Annpan!) the Miss World shows and some terrible but very popular panel shows. Always genial and laid-back as was this book.

I have finally started The Mirror and the Light. I am relieved to see the Cromwell is more easily identified than as just "he" in the earlier books. It makes for a much simpler read. The author must have heeded the critics.

Vee, when we first got Eurovision in Australia it was baffling to hear the way that Wogan did the presenting. He seemed to be making fun of the show. It took a while for it to sink in! Now that we have two earnest young commentators, I miss him!

Annpan, Wogan wrote in his book that the show shouldn't be taken seriously because it was so over-the-top!

10 of the best Wogan comments on Eurovision

I started watching in the late 50s when it was taken almost reverently and scores were written on a blackboard!

I have just finished A Murderous Relation by Deanna Rayborn, another of my series mysteries. They are kind of silly but fun in a male bodice ripper/lascivious female kind of way, but the setting is London in the late 1800s. This one involves the Ripper murders and Prince Eddy.

I am currently reading too many books at once, lol. I recently finished On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong for book club. I did not enjoy it. The writing is poetic as the author is a poet, but it gets more than a little pretentious in Part III, and it's depressing which is not what I was really in the mood for. There are parts that are amazingly touching and one part in particular that is vile that involves animal cruelty.

I was in the middle of Ballad of the Whiskey Robber by Julian Runinstein, a non fiction book set in 1980's Hungary that is entertaining, when The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern became available from the library (ebook). I'm three chapters in and may have to procrastinate on some work today to keep reading, one of the pitfalls of working from home.

My bedtime reading is one recommended by my daughter, The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet by Becky Chambers which is fun science fiction.

Kingdom Of The Blind - Louise Penny (14th in series )

I read Glass Houses and immediately started and finished Kingdom of the Blind (Louise Penny). When the library closed a few weeks ago and I could no longer get the physical books I thought I would be able to get both electronically. Unfortunately, the library license for the electronic versions apparently expired. I just couldn't wait for the library to open again, so I ordered them used and ended up reading them one right after the other. As long as I was ordering, I found a used copy of Goodbye Piccadilly by Cynthia Harrod-Eagles and also ordered that. I have seen her mentioned here a few times and wanted to try the War at Home series. So far I am enjoying it.

Katmarie, I really liked Cynthia H-E's War at Home books.

Today I started China Bayles' latest tea shop mystery, Lavender Blue Murder.

I have recently read the last of the War at Home series, and enjoyed them very much too.

vee don't give up about The Name of the Rose, the first 100 pages are a little heavy, although historical interesting, then the story speed up. But I can understand you, I tried it more the once to read it, then happened that I had a very seriuos injuring playing rugby and I had to stay bedridden for 45 days, I did the effort to pass the first 100 pages and it was worth it.

Thank you masgar. I think I reached page 70 something and had already skimmed the boring bits. I will try and get back to it!

After two or three recent unsuccessful starts, I think I finally found a book I can stick with. Although not usually a fan of fantasy, I'm finding A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness to be a satisfying read. I'm 160 pages in and still interested. While I'm locked out of the library, I'm trying to read books that have lurking about in my house just screaming to be read.

I finished Blind Man's Bluff by Faye Kellerman and have started The Titanic Secret by Clive Cussler. It's the latest of the Isaac Bell novels. I find a lot of Cussler doesn't appeal to me, but I've enjoyed the ones with Isaac Bell.

Donna

Carolyn I'm confused. I looked up the Tea Shop Mysteries and saw they had Theodosia Browning as the protagonist, not China Bayles. I must be looking at the wrong thing. Please straighten me out.(these look fun if I've got it right)

Well the first few pages of The Crow Road failed to hit the spot.

I've tried to check out some comments on line and find it is described as a Bildungsroman (yes I had to look up the meaning) a 'coming of age' novel.

Most people seemed to love it but perhaps I'm too old for the story of a Scottish boy growing up in the 80's-90's . . . that era passed me by while child rearing then teenager organising. Neither was I interested in his Doc Martin boots and black underpants bought for a funeral. I found far too much conversation of the desultory kind "What do you mean Gran?" " Oh you know what I am talking about." "Do I? I don't think I do."

Oh! and another crow (or maybe the same one) fell down the chimney with a loud swoosh at about 6.30 this morning. After a couple of faint flutters there was no further sound. Perhaps it was an omen.

I can't seem to make any progress with the O'Nan book. Can't seem to pick it up again. It's good, I love it and it's a quick read. What's wrong with me? So I picked up a Kid Lit called Stories That Never Grow Old - Edited by Watty Piper. I had this book as a kid and my sister has it now. I was lucky enough to find it at a shop for 50 cents. Nice picture book. Anyone know it? And if you can tell me what wrong with me about reading now, I'm all ears.

Vee - I'm pro-crow. And I appreciate bildungsroman - a most excellent vocabulary word. I know I keep starting sentences with "and" but give me some slack I'm under a lot of pressure. (not)

Sorry, Skibby. China Bayles is the protagonist in a Susan Wittig Albert series. The author of the tea shop books is Laura Childs. So many books . . . so many murders.

I’ve not read all of the China Bayles books yet but in the one I ‘m reading now she and her friend are preparing to open a tearoom — just to confuse things further. This is the eighth book in the series with many more to follow so I don’t know if the tearoom survives.

We had a long power outage yesterday. I decided to read a little more of The Mirror and the Light. It is slow going for me as I am watching a lot of TV for news and current statements re the virus situation.

It seemed appropriate to read it by candlelight but too difficult. I lit a lot of candles but still was straining to see. We are too used to strong light, I suppose. People must have been accustomed to the flickering and guttering. I gave up!

Annpan, re candlelight As you know I am a killjoy when these 'bonnets, corsets and tight breeches' series are on the TV. My husband always notices the lighting. Recently in Belgravia where the costumes seem accurate and they do try and correctly illuminate the characters in an indoor scene, for eg around the fire. Then a servant comes in with a candle stick and the whole room suddenly lights-up. Or John will remark on the strange patch of light on top of someone's head; coming from . .. ? And we all enjoy the shots taken in the so-called pouring rain when in the background bright sunshine can be seen.

To the Jane Austen fans here. Have any of you read Miss Austen by Gill Hornby? it had excellent views in the 'book pages' of the quality papers here. The Miss Austen of the title is Jane's older sister Cassandra. looking back on her younger life.

I might try and borrow it from the library when they re-open . . . and if they get a copy.

Kathy_t, I loved A Discovery of Witches and the entire All Souls trilogy. There's an excellent TV series of the books, too. The first season premiered last year, the second season has been filmed but is not out yet. I hope you enjoy the books as much as I did.

I just finished Year One by Nora Roberts, it's the first book in a trilogy that starts with a pandemic that wipes out 80% of the population and returns magic to the world. It was very reminiscent of The Stand in places -- how could it not be? The second and third books deal with the rise of "the One" who will put the world back into balance. This is not her usual romantic fare, some of it is violent and gross, but I waited three years to have all three books in hand to read at once, so I will soldier on.

I can't recall if I mentioned finishing Such A Fun Age by Kiley Reid. Underlying the story there is brilliant commentary about race and class and privilege and perception and social media -- I highly recommend it. Definitely great material for book group discussions.

I'm 300 pages into A Discovery of Witches (It's a bit of a commitment.) and while I'm sticking with it, I'm also doing a little eye-rolling - mostly because of the main vampire's tendency to have participated in so many historical moments over the centuries. He's a regular Forrest Gump. Funny, I don't roll my eyes at the fact that he's a vampire, but I do because of his name-dropping.

Kathy, I loved those books too, but you're right, Matthew knows all the right people :)

I have started one everyone else has read--Olive Kitteridge. Now, if I could only remember who loaned it to me.

Carolyn I just heard a BBC interview with Elizabeth Strout and how she had grown up in Maine where there were plenty of cranky old women like Olive. I've never read any of her books. Is she 'worth' reading? Although judging by the number of stars on Amazon I suppose I should take that as a 'yes'.

I haven't read any E Strout's books, either.

I am reading A Minute to Midnight by David Baldacci. The main character is an FBI agent named Atlee Pine. When Atlee was six years old her twin sister was kidnapped and Atlee had her skull fractured by the kidnapper. Now that she's an adult she's trying to go back and solve the case.

Donna

I started Olive Kitteridge but could never get into it. I guess I don't like cranky old women. So I guess I'd better avoid becoming one!

Olive sort of resonates with me. DH and I became a little old couple, and he used to say to people, "Isn't she the cutest little old lady you've ever seen?" I just couldn't get him to leave out the old part. Anyway, one line in Olive said something about life being like an extended and varied meal with the end being a long, sweet dessert. It was like that for us.

Vee, the book is a series of short stories. Olive appears in all of them, sometimes very briefly, but you get to know her gradually in different aspects. I'm not much of a short story person, but this is such a different way to write a book and it's growing on me--not enough that I'm planning to read the new one, though.

****SPOILER ALERT****SPOILER ALERT****SPOILER ALERT****
Just to catch you up with where I am in A Discovery of Witches (because I'm sure you're dying to know), Matthew, the not-to-be-topped vampire, just used a helicopter to swoop in and save his favorite witch from seemingly certain death in a dark oubliette in a long-unused castle. He's still quite the guy.

Vee, I read Olive Kitteridge about ten years ago because so many readers were raving about it here at RP and elsewhere. It's not my favored type of book. It's character-driven fiction without a discernible (to me) plot. But I thought Strout did a good-enough job sketching her mostly miserable or 'disappointed-with-life' characters in the little Maine town to keep me reading to the end.

Olive herself I remember as sour, sarcastic, and cynical -- very recognizable in a lot of real-life 'characters' all of us readers have probably known at some point in our own lives. She's definitely not someone whose company I would seek, but in Strout's vignettes I caught glimmers in Olive's personality that gave me clues as to why some people 'tick' the way they do. So I consider that aspect worthwhile. However, like Carolyn, I think one book about Olive is quite enough for me. I won't be reading Olive, Again.

I've started Bill Bryson's newest, The Body. It goes without saying he's great at this sort of writing. He finds all the oddest and most interesting tidbits of information and throws in colorful stories about the scientists and medical professionals and laypeople who have added to our knowledge of how our (sometimes very odd) bodies work. I've learned a few things and I'm enjoying it.

I haven't finished Olive, but I put it on hold and have read The Benefit of Hindsight, the latest Simon Serrailler by Susan Hill. I really like this series, but poor Simon is never happy.

I know this is now MAY but during April I had a very mixed month of reading.

I raided S-in-Law's boxes of books (being stored by us while they moved from London to Manchester. Now they are in their new house while much of the furniture is 'locked down' with us) Unfortunately many of his books are of the Hunter S Thompson variety which don't appeal to me at all.

I had higher hopes of the English books and tried Pat Barker's Union Street. A big mistake, set in a northern poverty stricken community where the men are idle abusive drunks. The women suffer rape and back-street abortions and take part in 'cat-fights' . . . all so dismal and unpleasant I gave up. Yet reviewers gave it 5 stars and claimed they 'enjoyed' the gritty realism!

A more noble attempt was to read another classic novel. This time it was Thomas Hardy's The Woodlanders. Way too much flowery writing and classical allusions, but the actual story when I was able to dig it out of all the verbiage was quite entertaining. The usual well bought up young woman, although 'promised' to an honest yeoman falls for the dodgy charms of the new doctor. A big mistake as he is having his wicked way with a village wench and the Lady of the Manor . . .

I feel this would have made an interesting TV documentary on wood-workers of the nineteenth century as there was lots of details about the lives of the 'humble' artisans and their knowledge of tree-felling and everything to do with forestry and timber production. Or maybe a TV series on lusty swains and not-so-innocent village maidens . . .

Carolyn, I agree that Simon Serrailler is a soul in torment! But good, well written stories none the less.

"Soul in torment" is the perfect description, Vee. It must fit Ms. Hill, too, because other of her books I've read are dark, except for Howard's End Is on the Landing, which I thoroughly enjoyed. DD and I saw Woman in Black on stage in London, and at one point she gave a little scream and grabbed my arm

England, England by Julian Barnes

Finished Olive and glad to be done with her. The copy I read had the first chapter of Olive Again, so I see it is more of the same.

Wanted to report that i did finish reading the Zadie Smith book i was reading in April and now moving on to her anthology titled 'On Beauty' but still stuck on reviewingEarly Transcendentals: Calculus for tuition students. I guess this is a reminder that some things change while others dont.