My Porch

Shelf Esteem No. 9

2012-01-29T11:37:00.000-05:00

Cozy Factor: The warm wood and the well-worn look of the books certainly give it some cozy, but it is hard to tell without seeing the rest of the room. I have hunch it may be a loft space so it may not have the coziness of a library but I bet the shelves add to the overall cozy of the room. I think the wood floors could use a rug.

The Shelves: I think they are beautifully made and are a nice warm color. They look like they adjustable which is kind attractive to me. Stacking books horizontally (as I do in some cases) might be difficult given the fact that the vertical members only up half way.

The Books: Lots of philosophy, lit crit, and poetry on the shelves. Very few discernible novels. The books stacked on the floor look like stuff that she picked up while aimlessly browsing the tables at her local Barnes and Noble. Three by Anthony Bourdain, an picture book of ironically bad hair cuts, the book Rats which I have read and has some fascinating information among the filler.

Is this person a reader? Well she appears to be reading right now...assuming this is her library, I would say that she is a reader, but her reading has changed. My guess is she was philosophy major and perhaps even got a Master's degree before going to law school. Now that she is safely on the partner tract at work she is only now starting to read again after a decade's hiatus. All the new books arranged in the foreground suggest that her current reading tastes are not as lofty as they once were.

The book I would read if I had to pick one: Mongo: Adventures in Trash in which author Ted Botha explores the world of trash in NYC and those who collect and reuse objects discarded by others.

My OCD also applies to kayak rentals

2012-01-27T17:16:00.001-05:00

Often when we are on vacation John suggests renting something: bikes, scooters, kayaks, canoes, etc. and it makes me crazy. Why? With the exception of scooters (riding in traffic on a tin can with a lawn mower motor, no thanks), these are things I actually like to do. So why do I resist? Because while he is thinking of the result (having fun) all I can think of are logistics.

I just started to make a list of the logistical details that overwhelm me and any desire I may have to have fun, and I am embarassed at how petty and inconsequential they are. Yet they often keep us from doing things. How has John put up with this for almost 10 years? There is also an inherited trait that keeps me from asking simple questions that could clear up some hesitation--it stems from a desire to not bother people and to not look like I don't know what I am doing. How foolish is that? And then, to cap all of this off is my need to get places. I have a hard time enjoying journeys. Why can't everyone understand that getting to point B is the point of everything. You can see how taking scenic drives are sometime lost on me. No John we can't stop at that scenic overlook because we have somewhere to be...even when we don't.

All of this means, that in every facet of my life, my initial reaction to EVERYTHING is "no". I am getting better at keeping this "no" to myself. This is especially important since often times the "no" turns to "yes" in a matter of seconds or minutes. And if I don't immediately articulate the "no" it gives me a chance a second or two later to not be a stick-in-the-mud. I am getting to the point where I almost seem spontaneous (almost) when we travel. One of the ways I deal with it is to plan all the bits that are controllable to allow more space in between for spontaneity and things that are out of my control. But perhaps even more importantly is that I try not to worry about long strings of details that need to be dealt with in order to do something. Instead, I have gotten much better at just taking things one detail at a time. It's not to say I don't still visualize the whole arc of things that need to happen for a successful result. That, after all, can be a very good trait. But it does mean that I don't obsess that every one of those things is going to go wrong and therefore we shouldn't even bother trying.

Although I know John would agree that I have gotten much better about these things, I am guessing that he probably thinks I have some work to do.

Day Three
I took John back to Lanikai beach which is easily the nicest beach on O'ahu, and because of its location in a residential neighborhood is not subject to tour buses. The sand is fine and soft, the water is always perfect (except on the occasions when Portuguese men o'war are present), and the view is unbeatable. It is on the windward side of the island so it gets more cloud and rain than the Honolulu side of the island, but when the weather is nice Lanikai is the best.

And, WE RENTED A KAYAK. There is a wonderful company called Hawaii Beach Time that not only rents kayaks, but they also rent chairs, umbrellas, coolers, and other beach equipment and they deliver to (and pick-up at) any beach on O'ahu. It was brilliant.

We had a two-person kayak and paddled our way out this bird sanctuary off the coast. It was amazing. The water was gorgeous and the island was beautiful. I would do that again in a heartbeat.

This is a little grainy since it was taken on an iPad.
The island on the left is the bird sanctuary we kayaked out to.
Absolutely gorgeous.

After we were done at Lanikai we went back Honolulu via Makapuu and stopped more than once at scenic overlooks. In one case I even turned the car around to take a look at one. Progress.

Makapuu Beach Park

It was a spectacular final day on O'ahu capped off with an incredible meal at Town, a farm-to-table restaurant in the Kaimuki neighborhood.

Among other things Town had amazing bread and the best foccacia I have ever had.
And who knew that butter IN a pool of olive oil would be so delicious?
Photo credit: Pursuing Wabi

Book Review: Midnight's Children by Salman Rushdie

2012-01-27T12:30:00.002-05:00

At last.

Midnight's Children has been in my TBR pile for about a hundred years. Back as far as 1999 I owned a mass market edition that I tried to start but I didn't really make it past the first page. In one of my many moves since then I got rid of that unread copy thinking I probably wouldn't go near it again. But then sometime in the last year or so I found a cheap used trade paperback edition and thought that I really should give it another try. And I did, and maybe got to page three. I almost got rid of the book for a second time, but something made me keep it around and then I made the really bold move of putting it into my TBR Dare pile.

I have said it before and I will say it again, CB James' annual TBR Dare is one of the most brilliant book-blogger creations around. I know there are other "reading from my TBR pile" kind of memes, and challenges, and personal goals all over the blogosphere but I think he has found the perfect balance. One, it only runs for 3 months. No one has to face the daunting prospect of a whole year. Two, it starts at midnight on December 31st so one gets to capitalize on the whole new year, start fresh, get it done, resolution angle. Three, there are no prohibitions against buying or otherwise acquiring books during that period. One can shop shop shop (to use a Rushdian construction) and still participate. And four, it really is quite effective for focusing one's attention on books (good and bad) that deserve to be brought to the floor for an up or down vote rather than languishing in committee. (No idea why that metaphor popped into my head. I guess I have been in DC too long.)

And so here I am, having finally picked up and finished Midnight's Children. You know how sometimes long ignored (or dreaded) books finally just pop into your head and say "now is the time to read me"? One can try a book over and over and not get into it, and then one day, you just know that the time has come. And so it was with Salbass...er...Salman Rushdie (hat tip to Seinfeld).

This is no easy read at times. Not only is the book chock-a-block with Indian names, place names, and cultural references that aren't exactly a part of my lexicon or frame of reference (think of all the names in War and Peace), but then add to it Rushdie's writing style and large curry-scented gobs of magical realism.

Between the walls the children green the walls are green the Widow's arm comes snaking down the snake is green the children scream the fingernails are black they scratch the Widow's arm is hunting see the children run and scream the Widow's hand curls round them green and black. [sic--the whole damn, run-on sentence--sic, sic, sic]

Granted this passage is a fever-induced-dream sequence, but it isn't so far off from some parts of the narrative that one doesn't know its a dream for about a page and a half. That makes for some tough going. But working through the narrative it is hard not to find the novel fascinating, and compelling and quite enjoyable.

The basis of the plot is that our main character Saleem Sinai is a Muslim from Bombay who was born at the exact moment (midnight, August 15, 1947) that India achieved it's independence. And like the other thousand or so children born in India in that first hour of independence he has a special power, he can read minds and telepathically communicate with others. It is through this telepathy that he discovers at age 10 that there are about 400 other surviving Midnight Children that have other powers. I won't tell you any of the other powers because that is part of the fun of discovery in the book.

Exactly as old as his newly formed country, the events of Saleem's life are not only intrinsically entwined in events of the struggling, newly independent India, but there might also be some cause and effect between his actions and the trajectory of the national chaos. I have a strong desire to learn more about the history of India and Pakistan after reading this book. (Not to mention and overweening desire for a good curry.)

There is plenty of food for thought in this book--a perfect novel for a group read. So many things that bear discussion. It is easy to see why it is on the Modern Library list of the Top 100 Novels of the 20th century it is an epic tale told in a fascinating (though challenging) way.

How does this happen?
Rushdie and his now ex-wife Padma Lakshmi.

Book Review: The Flight From the Enchanter by Iris Murdoch

2012-01-26T18:59:00.001-05:00

For all of its faults, I have the Modern Library's list of the Top 100 Novels of the 20th century to thank for turning me onto the work of Iris Murdoch. Since 1999 I have read 15, well now 16, of her novels. Some I definitely like better than others but all of them are eminently worth reading. I am particularly fond of her early work. The first Murdoch I read was her first novel Under the Net. I don't remember much about it, but I do remember feeling an instant affinity for the book and Murdoch's writing. Published in 1956, her second novel The Flight From the Enchanter brought back the same feeling of discovery and excitement that I felt when I read Under the Net thirteen years ago.

I have often said that Murdoch's novels are like soap operas for literati. While grounded in unexceptional circumstances and familiar settings, her novels tend to have casts of characters that think long and hard about art, and politics, and morals, and god, and love and principles and then somewhat implausibly act on their convictions. They are full of high melodrama covered in a cloak of philosophical musings. Her characters rarely have affairs on the basis of mere lust. But they do have affairs, lots of them--especially in the later novels. But I am making observations, not judgements. I love this world of high stakes sexual politics. When I read her books I am always left thinking that the civil service and academia in Britain is nothing if not a steaming cauldron of sexual antics.

I realize I haven't said much specific about this particular Murdoch novel. Well to quote the back of the book it is "elegant, sparkling and unputdownable..." I couldn't agree more. Set in 1950s London, Enchanter follows a group of people, Rosa Keepe in particular, who adore and abhor the enigmatic Mischa Fox. As I read the book I tried hard to think of a contemporary example in real life, TV, film, or literature of a group of acquaintences who would choose someone "to be their god". I think that the hero worship Murdoch writes about in Enchanter may not be relatable taken as a whole--as a life-organizing force, but I do think we all have moments of lunacy and bad judement based on such worship.

Dumbing it Downton

2012-01-25T22:01:00.001-05:00

God knows I love a costume drama. And, although I thought there were some flaws in the plot, I also enjoyed the first series of Downton Abbey. But now that I am caught up on the second series I must say, I think it's really kind of lame. I won't catalogue the things that made me roll my eyes like I did when I watched the terrible film version of Possession because that film was acres worse than Downton. Besides the often clumsy plotting, blocking, and writing, the thing that most annoys me is that it seems like the writers got out the big bag of WWI-era English costume drama tricks and decided to use a little bit of everything. Even that would be okay if they actually broke some new ground. But they don't.

You can rent a pretty house and dress up a lot of pretty actors but if your script is lame the result will not be quite so pretty.

Strolling Down Memory Lane in Honolulu

2012-01-24T17:29:00.000-05:00

When I moved to DC the first time I was in my early 20s, had a degree in History and no real idea what I wanted to do with my life. I eventually decided that a graduate degree in Historic Preservation was what I wanted. Historic Preservation is an academic field that rarely stands alone--at least that was the case in 1994--some programs are in planning departments, some in architecture, some in history, econmics, geography, and American Studies. For reasons which are no longer clear to me, I decided I wanted an HP program within an American Studies department. Even more confusing to me now is why I chose to apply to the programs I did. I can, however, honestly say that I applied to the University of Hawai'i at Manoa based on what the HP program offered. I was not one of those people who fantasized about living in Hawai'i or other sunny clime so it wasn't the allure of the islands that prompted me to move, sight unseen, to the remotest populated islands in the world.

Being someone who has a healthy appreciation for a cloudy day, cool weather, and seasons, it isn't surprising that I found myself frustrated from time to time with life in Hawai'i. Being so far from all my friends and family and missing my East Coast lifestyle I never considered staying longer than the two years it took to get my degree. I also realized halfway through my American Studies degree that I really should have been getting a degree in planning (which I did about six years later at Cornell).

Depsite my many frustrations with living in Hawai'i (and all the twentysomething angst I experienced while I lived there) there is something wonderful about it that has stuck with me over the past 15 years. The thing I remember most fondly are the trade winds that are almost always blowing across the islands. They make for the most amazing evening breezes that give me such a groove I can't really explain it.

Much of the built environment in Honolulu is actually quite ugly, lots of cinder block buildings and a hodge podge of ramshackle old cottages and not very attractive high rises all mixed together. Yet I look at that urban landscape now and I find myself really loving it. I think it has to do with the layers of history that haven't been wiped away like they have in most other U.S. cities.

The food is interesting and diverse, and although it can feel isolated and provincial (sometimes very provincial) there really can be a wonderful sense of Aloha. I hoped on this trip that John would see Honolulu through my slightly rose-colored glasses. In the past he has liked other, more picture-postcard parts of Hawai'i, but I wanted him to like Honolulu and the rest of O'ahu. Thankfully he did.

Day Two
We started the day early by heading off to Leonard's to get the best damn malasadas in the world. A malasada is a Portuguese raised sugar donut with no hole and they are so, so, so delicious. They are slightly eggier and chewier than a typical raised sugar donut. They are pretty much made to order and most people like them when they are still warm, but I must say I like them on the cool side. John disagrees with me on this but that was okay because it meant that I got to finish them off later in the day without having to share. It also meant that we went back on Day Three for more.

I wish I had one (or six) of these right now.

From Leonard's we drove through the University then deeper into the Manoa Valley to see Lyon Arboretum. I had a roommate when I lived in Honolulu who was always going there but I never went once in two years, my only interest then was the beach. But since John is a gardener I figured we should give it a go. We were really lucky because the Monoa Valley gets lots of rain (hence the lush plants) but it was perfectly sunny while were there.

After the arboretum we went downtown to have lunch with two of my former colleagues. Downtown Honolulu is not Waikiki, they are actually a mile or two apart. The former is workaday Honolulu and the latter is where a whole lot of tourists spend all of their time. Honolulu has the oldest Chinatown in the U.S. and has lots of great hole-in-the-wall Asian restaurants.

That is me with the bad posture.

Vietnamese Pho. Or what's left of it.

Live abalone.

And finally, after our trip downtown we stopped off at Ala Moana Beach Park which is kind of halfway between downtown and Waikiki--and across the street from a huge shopping mall.

Would you believe there is a Neiman Marcus about 200 yards from this?

While all the tourists hang out on the crowded beaches of Waikiki there is all of this beach at Ala Moana.
Granted, Ala Moana has a reef that keeps the beach from getting any waves and keeps the water shallow,
but it is still a great place to plop on the sand and splash around in the water.
The buildings in the midground are in Waikiki with Diamond Head in the background.

Do you want to see 1,212 pictures of Hawai'i?

2012-01-24T01:49:00.001-05:00

Probably not, but that is how many pictures we (well, John) took while we were in Hawai'i for 8 days. You can imagine that a pretty smallish precentage of those are keepers. Often when we I get around to posting vacation pictures I get a little overwhelmed by the vast quantity of photos to choose from. So much so that I usually end up dumping lots of pictures without much in the way of explanation. But this time I really want to slow myself down so I can take some time to write about our experience in Hawai'i. As I have mentioned before, the first of my Master's degrees (American Studies/Historic Preservation) is from the University of Hawai'i at Manoa. And because I lived in Honolulu from August 1995 to September 1997 I have a certain affinity for the place that visitors may not appreciate. I know that that is the case with John. This was our first trip to Hawai'i together, but he has been there about six other times, once on O'ahu (Honolulu) and the other trips on Maui, Lana'i, and the Big Island of Hawai'i. For many who visit O'ahu they see the crazy hustle bustle of Waikiki and all the traffic on the island and don't appreciate all there is to see on the island.

Knowing that John was less than excited to spend four of our eight days in Hawai'i on the island of O'ahu I told him ahead of time to think of it not as going to Hawai'i, but rather as going to see my old stomping grounds. Somewhere I spent two years of my life. And it worked. Thankfully the stars aligned and I was able to show him the full beauty and variety of O'ahu and we had a wonderful time there. (We also had a great time on Kaua'i which was a new island for him, but that is another story.)

Day One
On our first full day on O'ahu we had a very full schedule. We started with a morning drive across the pali (cliff) on the old Pali Highway stopping at the Pali Lookout on the way to the windward side of the island.

Our first stop was Lanikai, my favorite beach on O'ahu. We didn't stay too long but we did come back later in the week (will have more pictures later). One of the great things about Hawai'i is that there is no such thing as a private beach. Every inch of shore line in Hawai'i is public up to the high tide mark and regular public access to the beach is required in even the toniest of neighborhoods.

Then we headed past Kailua and Kaneohe on our way to the North Shore.

The Byodo-in Temple built in 1968 using no nails.
A lovely place nestled up against the pali.

Leaf graffiti at the temple.

Chinaman's Hat seen through the trees.

A fruit stand near Kuhuku.

The legendary Sunset Beach on the North Shore which has winter swells that keep all but the most experienced surfers out of the water. Otherwise broken bones and death await the idiots.

Surf was definitely up that day.

Waiting for a lull to paddle out to the distant surf.

Surfer, Ron Paul...it must have to do with pot laws.

This gives some idea of how inviting the water looked that day.
Doesn't the color of that water remind you of a wonderful, giant jacuzzi?

Double click on this one to make it bigger. Those are two young boys
and their boogie boards being launched in the air.

If the angry surf doesn't keep you from going in the red flag should.

And then back to Waikiki for drinks and pupus.

The evening view from our hotel room lanai.

Also the view from our hotel room. Waikiki is a very dense, urban place.
Definitely hard to find peace and quiet, but it has other charms.

I was going to say this was our first sunset from our hotel room, but it was actually our second.

Book Review: Love's Shadow by Ada Leverson

2012-01-23T23:58:00.000-05:00

It has been so long since I posted an actual book review that I feel like I don't remember how to do it. Plus, I finished reading Love's Shadow twenty-two days ago...it's a good thing my "reviews" don't cleave to any particular format or quality standard. That way I can't go wrong. Right?

This is the first of the brightly colored Bloomsbury Group reissues that I can say that I loved. I quite liked Miss Hargreaves but had my reservations. I was confused and semi-annoyed by The Brontes Went to Woolworths. And I was a little bored with Henrietta's War. So it was with some trepidation that I picked up this hot pink volume. But I needn't have worried, Love's Shadow is a fantastically fun book and a good read.

According to the back of the book Oscar Wilde once called Ada Leverson "the wittiest woman in the world". I am not sure I would go that far, but Leverson certainly is witty and gives Wilde himself a run for his money when it comes to droll one-liners and word-play. The story is loosely centered on Edith and Bruce Ottley but almost as much attention is to devoted to others in, and adjacent to, their social circle. Civil servant Bruce and his unshakable faith in his own theatrical talent provided some of the funniest bits of the book. His decision to make loads of money writing a hit play despite having no discernible writing talent, prior experience, or plot ideas made me picture him as a sort of Hugh Laurie as Bertie Wooster kind of character.

Having finished this about three weeks ago, I certainly don't remember the details of the plot, but I am not sure it matters too much. The genius and fun of Love's Shadow is in the journey rather than the destination. In fact, now that I think about it, the other Bloomsbury Group books I mention above are similar. Perhaps if I had let myself enjoy the ride more, and surrendered to their slightly kooky premises, I might have found them more satisfying. That might be worth exploring in future re-reads. In any event, Love's Shadow was a perfect way to ring in the new year and make quick progress on my sixty-odd book TBR Dare pile for the first three months of 2012.

One does not need 2,800 pages for 12 days

2012-01-21T06:03:00.000-05:00

Me not buying books at Talk Story on the island of Kaua'i.
(More on that later.)

It will be no surprise to any of you, either because of my previous idiocy, or because of your own habits, but I tend to pack way too much to read when I travel. Believe me, I never actually think I am going to read so much in two weeks that I need 2,800 pages of reading, but I do worry that I won't have the variety of reading material to satisfy the unknown reading whims that may crop up while away from home. I mean what would happen if I were to get bored with the book I am reading and I still have four or five hours of flying time? That would be awful.

So for 8 days in Hawaii and 4 days in San Francisco I decided I needed:

The Flight From the Enchanter by Iris Murdoch (read all 286 pages)
Midnight's Children by Salman Rushdie (read 359 of 521 pages)
Little Dorrit by Charles Dickens (read 5 of 860 pages)
All the King's Men by Robert Penn Warren (read 0 of 609 pages)
Then She Found Me by Elinor Lipman (read 0 of 307 pages)
According to Mark by Penelope Lively (read 0 of 217 pages)

It is true that the complexity of the Rushdie slowed me down considerably. If I had moved on to the Lipman and the Lively after the Murdoch, I would no doubt have read more. Still, the next time I contemplate carrying around 2,800 pages in my carry-on bag (over 6 legs of flying) I need to remind myself of the following:

1. Unless I am travelling to a non-English speaking country, I don't need to pack my entire library.

2. If the longest single flying leg is only five hours, I really don't need six books to ward off possible boredom with any one tome. Two books of different style or content would be enough variety for that long of a flight. I can always fall back on listening to music, looking at trashy magazines, watching movies, sleeping, eating, and talking to John.

3. It might actually be fun to have read something I found at one of the five great bookstores I visited while we travelled.

4. John and I are usually active enough that I don't have hours and hours and hours of reading time. Even on the two week trips to Maine I don't usually have as much reading time as I think I am going to.

5. If worse came to worse and I ran out of things to read I could alwasy download something on my iPad. But really hate reading in that format, so I will never not take actual books on a trip.

Many travel and reading related posts coming in the days ahead. I can't believe it is January 21st and I am only now making my first blog post of the year.

Shelf Esteem No. 8

2011-12-31T17:30:00.001-05:00

Don't worry, I haven't run out of fabulous images of overstuffed bookshelves and cozy home libraries. I realize that posting such an anemic "library" might make some of you think that I am scraping the bottom of the barrel for Shelf Esteem content. Not so.

Cozy factor: Despite having many of the trappings of cozy, the overall effect is not very cozy.

The Shelves: They are quite odd. They don't seem to be one thing or the other. The unit looks built-in, yet it is of a size that makes one wonder why they bothered. It seems like a lot of effort, money, and thought went into making this, but the overall effect is rather cheap looking and not very pleasantly scaled. Plus it seems like overkill for the small amount of storage it provides.

The Books: I will let you decide. Three picture books on golf. Michener, Le Carre, McMurtry, Iriving, Crichton, Grisham, Dan Brown...

Is this person a reader? Yes, but really...in this case who cares?

The book I would read if I had to pick one: I think I would try one of the Le Carre. I think I would enjoy these despite having some problems getting into one of his books in the past.

What gives Thomas? Why are you wasting our time with this one? Simple, the John Currin painting above the shelves. I love the surreal (or perhaps it is super- or hyper-real) quality of his work. I mentioned it once before when I commented on the Persephone cover of Mariana by Monica Dickens. His works sell in the $500,000 range. Can you imagine having an art budget that big? We saw a major exhibit of his work a few years ago, but I forget where. His work is fascinating. And it has been so long since I did a Sunday Painting. So here are few more for your perusal.

Bits and Bobs (now with extra sand)

2011-12-31T07:42:00.000-05:00

Reading on the beach in Hawaii
When I lived in Hawaii in the mid-1990s my beach reading of choice was the The New Yorker. Not only did it keep me in touch with what was happening in the real world (the world wide web was nascent to say the least), but it is the perfect format for beach reading. All of the articles are printed on contiguous pages so there is no flipping to the back of the magazine to continue an article. It sounds like a small thing, but it really makes it so much easier to read on a beach with all the sand and sunscreen that can muck up the pages. We are headed to Hawaii this winter (haven't been back there since 2001) and I need to come up with my reading pile. Since the trip is during the TBR Dare I could only pick from the pile I wrote about earlier which thankfully wasn't a problem. I made sure I included enough used paperbacks in that pile so that I wouldn't mind if the books got a little trashed on the beach. I think I am going to take along According to Mark by Penelope Lively, one of the two Elinor Lipman novels in my pile, Under the Volcano by Malcolm Lowry and either Armadale by Wilkie Collins or Dickens' Little Dorritt. That will definitely cover me for quantity and I hope also for variety. After all there is about 10 hours of flying time each direction as well.

Apologies to Salman Rushdie
In my post a few days ago about my TBR Dare pile for the first three months of 2012 I made a snarky comment about Salman Rushdie. For some reason I have had it in my head that Rushdie's writing is not for me and that getting through Midnight's Children was going to be like taking bitter medicine. Why did I think this? On what information did I base this prejudice? Thursday night before bed, feeling up to a challenge--and starting my TBR Dare early--I picked up Midnight's Children. I soon found myself interested enough to force myself to stay awake until I read the first chapter. The next morning I couldn't wait to get to the bus stop so I could resume my reading. And now I am 46 pages in and I can't believe what an enjoyable and interesting read it is turning out to be. This is a perfect example of why the TBR Dare is so great. I don't think I would have picked this up anytime soon, and now I am reading something really great. Now, hopefully it was Naipaul not Rushdie who made those ridiculous comments about woman writers...

If you have nothing to read on
the subway, sleeping seems like
a better option than just staring.
Photo from Asleep on the Subway

People staring into space
I couldn't help noticing yesterday morning how many people just sit on the Metro and stare into space. Granted, many are listening to iPods which no doubt helps to pass the time. But how can someone take a precious half hour of the day (or more) and not read or knit or write out a grocery list or sleep. I do sometimes just to stare into space, but not very often, and many of these people look like habitual stare-ers. Maybe they are plotting their entrance into the Republican primaries.

Reading Dickens is the dickens
The effervescent Amanda at the Fig and Thistle is hosting a Dickens challenge during January as a lead up to the old man's 200th birthday on February 7th. My experience with Dickens hasn't been all that fantastic. I had to read Hard Times in college and I kind of enjoyed it. But I have also gotten stuck (repeatedly) in both the Tale of Two Cities and Bleak House. Loved the TV version of the latter, but honestly how many times can I be expected to read about Jarndyce and Jarndyce before allowing my eyes to glaze over. Prior to finding out about Amanda's challenge, I thought it might be time to give Dickens another try and put Little Dorrit in my TBR Dare pile. I think I am going to shoot for having it read by February 7th so I can post a review that day. No doubt my review will be crucial to the global success or failure of Dickens' work.

Will Henry Green get the green light?
Stu over at Winstonsdad's Blog is hosting Henry Green Week beginning January 23rd. I don't know anything about Green and hadn't really thought about participating until Simon at Stuck-in-a-Book mentioned it. What finally tipped me over the edge was Simon saying: "... c'mon, if you all did it for Anita Brookner, you can definitely do it for Henry Green." And I thought, "He's right, I should give it a go..." Well I did. I checked one out from the library and we didn't get along. At all. There might be some Henry Green in my future, but not in time for the 23rd.

Howards End Stream of Consciousness (with Zombies?)

2011-12-29T22:15:00.000-05:00

It annoys me that Susan Hill used the popularity of this novel--or more likely the Merchant-Ivory film--to sell her second-rate collection of uninsightful, egotistical, blog-like musings on the contents of her giant brain. I know there are two unequal but clearly divided camps about Hill's Howards End is on the Landing and I forgive you if you fall into the much larger "liked it" camp.

This may be a picture of the
West Bank Parking Ramp
at the U of MN.

Having gotten that off of my chest, I will now embark upon an uninsightful, egotistical, blog-like musing on my second reading of Howards End. I first read Forster's Tour de France (sic) in the spring of my sophomore year in college. I was working as a parking garage cashier at the University of Minnesota (in Minnesota we call multilevel parking garages "parking ramps"--a phrase my east coast grad school roommate at Cornell beat out of me). It was a great job. I got to sit in a heated booth each evening where I would study, read, talk on the phone, write letters (yes, we wrote letters in 1989), and plan (in great detail) my first trip to England. Occasionally there would be a rush of cars needing to pay as they exited, but still lots and lots of free time. It occurs to me now that I may have cheated the University of Minnesota and the taxpayers of my natal state out of a chunk of change. Not for studying on the job--that was allowed--but because I regularly filled in my time sheet incorrectly (and inadvertantly). You see my hours were supposed to be from about 4:00 pm to 10:00 pm each weekday but the other cashier--a full-time, non-student employee--told me each night around 9:00 pm that I could go. Although he was my onsite supervisor (he looked a bit like a short, tubby version of the then unknown Unabomber) my hours were set by the central parking office. So when I filled out my time card I always put down six hours instead of five because those were the hours I was scheduled to work. I can honestly say that it never occurred to me that rather than reflect the schedule, my time card should reflect actual hours worked. Oops.

Anyhoo, after re-reading Howards End I realize how appropriate it was that I first read it while I worked in the aforementioned parking structure. I was the modern day equivalent of Leonard Bast, striving to better myself and overcome socio-economic destiny through the moral uplift of great literature. It worked far better in my case, if for no other reason than I didn't die after being assaulted by Emma Thompson, err I mean Margaret Schlegel's stepson.

Class barriers really suck and Forster (to my mind) always does wonderfully trying to break them down. Which of his books doesn't include themes of breaking free of societal conventions?

The shuffle feature on an iPod can really surprise. I am now listening to the bell peal of St. Mary Redcliffe in Bristol. Of course this begs the question why I have an album of The Church Bells of England on my iPod. But if you have to ask that question, you aren't quite the Cardigan Mafioso/a I thought you were. And now the iPod is on to John Legend. The other day I asked my John who he thought should write and record a song about our dog Lucy called "Honeybear" (my mother's appellation for the lovable Lucy). I gave him the choice of Ben Folds, John Legend, or Diana Krall. And then I don't think I gave him a chance to answer as I talked about how good John Legend's version would be.

As I have mentioned countless times before, my introduction to the world of Forster was the Merchant-Ivory version of A Room With a View--which has been universally acknowledged* as the best film ever made. I shudder to think how old I might have been when I discovered Forster if it wasn't for that film. And besides telling interesting stories, Forster has a knack for describing the human condition.

Paul Cadmus' homage to Forster.

Was Mrs. Wilcox one of the unsatisfactory people -- there are many of them -- who dangle intimacy and then withdraw it? They evoke our interests and affections, and keep the life of the spirit dawdling around them. Then they withdraw. When physical passion is involved, there is a definite name for such behaviour--flirting--and if carried far enough it is punishable by law. But no law--not public opinion even--punishes those who coquette with friendship, though the dull ache that they inflict, the sense of misdirected effort and exhaustion, may be as intolerable.

I have known many people like that. Therapy has led me to wonder if my sometimes insufferable behavior (hopefully mostly in my past) might not be the reason for some people to behave this way towards me. But I have a feeling it isn't all my fault. It is hard for me to think that the Vanessa Redgrave version of Mrs. Wilcox would be that way, but the scene in the film (and book) where she leaves Margaret behind at the train station and goes off with Mr. Wilcox and Evie has always depressed me. I know that feeling so well. Lots of excitement to do something fun with a friend only to have circumstances intervene and the friend ditch you for something else...always stings a bit, even if the reason for said ditchment (pronounced ala francaise) is legitimate.

Forster Monument behind
St. Nicholas Church
in Stevenage, England.

I thoroughly enjoyed re-reading this book 23 years after I first read it. I pondered what I might have thought and felt when I read it the first time (I don't remember). And I really enjoyed thinking about how it differed from the film version. Unlike most other film adaptations, the Merchant-Ivory film stands up to the book. The film is certainly faithful to the spirit of the book and the instances where it differs in letter were really quite brilliant changes that not only make the film work well, but also reinforce Forster's intent. I wonder if he would agree. I once opined somewhere in the blogosphere that I would love to meet Forster and show him all "his" films.

If you haven't read Forster, you should. If you are chicken, try Where Angels Fear to Tread, if you feel a little more committed try A Room With A View, if you long for something a little queer try Maurice, and if you really want the full force of Forsters literary brilliance go for Howards End. (I know some esteemed blogger tried hard to like Forster and finally managed with Howards End--no names...) Or if you are hopelessly unable to pick up a Forster novel watch the Merchant-Ivory versions (and only the Merchant-Ivory versions) of A Room With A View, Howards End, and Maurice (in that order). And if you don't like the books or the films...can't. talk. now. mind. melting...

This is what came up when I did a Google image search for "west bank parking ramp university of minnesota"
It is an image from a story in the Minnesota Daily about a Zombie Pub Crawl.
Could this be Helen Schlegel (Helena Bonham-Carter) the Zombie?

In the Library Perfume

2011-12-29T12:29:00.001-05:00

Christopher Brosius is a genius.

Back in November we heard a story on NPR about Christopher Brosius, a perfumier in Brooklyn with a shop called CB I Hate Perfume, who makes a scent called "In the Library". According to Brosius in that interview "In the Library" smells just like a library. Being the perceptive gent he is, John took mental note, and lo and behold "In the Library" was under the tree this Christmas.

Let me say I quite like "In the Library", but I wasn't so sure it smelled much like a library. Based on the radio interview I was expecting something quite literal. When I first smelled it I thought it was rather powdery. After I wore it for a while, not only did I find that I liked it in general, but it does kind of remind one of a library. I can't quite explain it, but there is something about it that is libraryish. Albeit one with lots of Moroccan leather bindings.

When ordering "In the Library" John noticed they had one called "A Room With A View". Again being the perceptive gent that he is John got me a small vial of "A Room With A View" as well. Redolent of violets and the Tuscan earth, it takes its cue from the scene in the book where George Emerson first kisses Lucy Honeychurch in a field of violets outside of Florence. The violets are absent in the film version but if you have seen the wonderful Merchant Ivory film, you know exactly which scene I refer to. And let me tell you the scent version of "A Room With A View" is a revelation. Yes it smells like violets, but it also has an earthy and grassy quality that makes it so much nicer and more complex than any violet perfume you have ever smelled before.

Alan Cumming

John also got me "The 2nd Alan Cumming" which was created for the perfumier's friend actor Alan Cumming. Proceeds from this one go to charity. It is masculine, just a touch funky, and really, really good.

Also in the package was a spray that supposedly keeps the bugs away. Being winter I can't test that out right now, but it sure smells good. It reminds me of the early days of Aveda when they were doing a lot of personal aromas (or as they called them PureFumes).

CB I Hate Perfume has many other scents that sound absolutely fascinating. And based on what I have smelled so far they must be good. How about one called "At the Beach 1966" which has Coppertone as one of its base notes?!

The thing that is so wonderful about Brosius' work is that his scents tell a story, but the result is beautiful and beguiling rather than gimicky. In a world full of really bad, synthetic smelling scents, CB I Hate Perfume is like an olfactory oasis.

Making the TBR Double Dare a little harder

2011-12-26T16:23:00.001-05:00

No doubt many of you read about the TBR Double Dare over at Ready When You Are, C.B. And I am sure more than a few of you participated last year or plan to participate this year. I had a great time last year and plan to take the dare again this year. Essentially you can only read books in your "to be read" (TBR) pile/shelf/stack/room between midnight December 31st and April 1st. For those of us with a TBR pile in the mid-three digits, this doesn't seem like much of a difficulty--although it is amazing how boring one's TBR pile can become when one can't look elsewhere for reading material.

Anyhoo, last year I made it a little harder for myself by limiting myself the to the books that I had in my nightstand. And despite the fact that I cracked with less than a week to go last year, I thought it was a really great exercise. I finally picked up and read some books that had been languishing for quite some time and some of them turned out to be real gems.

This year I decided to similarly limit myself to a small fraction of my TBR pile. Unlike last year, however, I don't have any books in my nightstand this year. So I decided to go spelunking in my library to come up with a TBR pile that would last me for three months. This makes for a much more interesting stack of books for the dare this time round. I chose a wide variety of books to cover every possible mood, but I did also include some volumes that might be more like work than pleasure just to stay true to the spirit of the dare.

So do you think 60 will be a big enough pile for 3 months? More than enough I am sure, but did I choose the right 60? Will I make it all the way to April 1st this year?

The My Porch TBR Double Dare Universe
These are the books I am limiting myself to between now and April 1st.

The Publisher Pile
I made sure I had a good range of Viragos, Persephones, and NYRB Classics. All have been the subject of special blogger run reading weeks or months in which I have taken part. The Persephones are kind of the candy of this crowd with the NYRB Classics being the vegetables--delicious and satisfying, but ultimately still vegetables. The Viragos are somewhere in between.

The Modern Library Top 100 Pile
I have been making my way through the Modern Library's Top 100 novels of the 20th century pile for about 15 years now. So far I have polished off 62 of them but I am getting down to authors I don't necessarily relish. I am looking forward to the Bennett, and am ambivalent about the Graves and the Lowry, but the rest are pure medicine except for the Rushdie which I fear will be worse tasting than medicine. The ultimate coup would be to finish all of these by April 1st. (Hmm, a dare within a dare...sounds tempting)

The Neglected Hardcover Pile
I have a fair number of older hardcovers that I have picked up over the years while combing used bookstores but I seem to forget their un-read status much more than I do with paperbacks. So here I rescue a pile of them from their slumber. Some favorite authors here like Shute, Lewis, Drabble, Hemingway, and Sarton, as well as some newbies to me. Most in this pile would also fit in the The Take The Next Step Pile.

The Take The Next Step Pile
These are all authors I have read and enjoyed. In most cases I took the earliest of their books that I have on my shelves. Armadale is the Collins that most people seem to love most so I had to pick that one. And the Trollope is the next one in the Palliser Series.

The "Out damn spot" Pile
Nothing to do with Shakespeare, but these are books that I may end up loving but for some reason never seem to be in the mood to read. Thus, like a bad stain, they never seem to go away. I have only ever read one Dickens (Hard Times) so I thought it was time to really give him a whirl. The opening of the Mitford has always rubbed me the wrong way. A little too irreverent about killing Germans. I assume once I get past that I will end up liking it. Plus a "hilarious" one by Baindbridge about a young Hitler. That will require some suspension of disbelief. The Picano is a queer one that I have never been able to break into. The MFK Fisher is so short but I have tried repeatedly with no success.

The Cure For Reader's Block Pile
These are all titles that I know to be good reads, or easy to read, or in some way enjoyable to serve as buffers for the more serious stuff elsewhere in the pile.

Finished, abandoned, postponed, and started

2011-12-26T10:24:00.003-05:00

Photo credit: Senate House Library
University of London

A House in the Country by Jocelyn Playfair - Finished
I finished reading this some time ago, but was a little underwhelmed and couldn't really muster the energy to review it. Parts of it were enjoyable, but overall I was bored and a little annoyed. I didn't really care for the structure of the narrative and I had a hard time caring about any of the characters.

The Vicar of Bullhampton by Anthony Trollope - Finished
You may recall my angst over finishing up the final four books in my nightstand by the end of the year. Many of you pointed out that life is too short and that I should set them aside and move on. Normally that is advice I would accept, but I really felt compelled to make an effort to finish them up. I am glad I made that effort because this Trollope was definitely worth finishing. I think I was in a bit of a slow patch in the book when I wrote that blog post, but soon after it picked up and I enjoyed the rest of it. I definitely like Trollope's vicars more than I like his MPs.

The Summer Book by Tove Jansson - Abandoned
I loved Jansson's book of short stories Travelling Light. I thought they were beautiful and atmospheric. But they also had some bite to them. The Summer Book is a collection of linked autobiographical fictionalized scenes about summer. I can understand how they would be interesting and compelling and beautiful. In fact, I kept pushing on for that very reason. Intellectually I could tell that The Summer Book was all of those things. But emotionally I just didn't care. The chapters didn't have enough arc to them and I found the main character Sophie (the young Jansson?) to be a bit of a brat--and not even a clever one. Half way through, I decided I was getting nothing out this book and put it down. Probably forever.

Fairy Tales by Oscar Wilde - Abandoned

This collection of fairy tales is imaginative and brilliantly written, but I just don't think I have room in my reading life to spend any more time on it. If I had a kid I think it would be fun to read them outloud, but I wasn't getting much out of them. Time to let this one go.

The Lifted Veil by George Eliot - Postponed

I started reading this thin novella about a million times but could never seem to focus on it. I had this trouble with another Eliot novella which I did eventually finish and find worthwhile. So this one gets set aside for now.

Howards End - E. M. Forester - Started

In the end I took the advice from some of you who suggested that I read an old favorite. I first read Howards End in college and since then I have seen the Merchant Ivory film about 5,000 times. It has been fascinating to pick this one up again after so much time and so much exposure to the film version. It is a bit like reading it for the first time. And it is still totally brillant.

Yuletide Felicitations

2011-12-25T09:44:00.000-05:00

One of the best Christmas shows of all time--Margot sends Christmas back to the store because the tree is an inch or two too short.

the whole episdoe is great, but my favorite seasonal greeting comes at the 3'55" mark...

Guest Post: Christmas at My Porch

2011-12-21T13:54:00.002-05:00

John often has great suggestions for things that I could blog about. Sometimes I take his advice. Sometimes I don't. When I don't, it is either because I am being stubborn or I am too lazy. John's work life is pretty demanding so he doesn't have as much free time as I do, but there was a time before we moved into our house when he briefly had a blog of his own. He started A Small Garden Obsession when we had about a foot of snow on the ground in December of 2009. At the time his only gardening space was a 12' x 16' terrace which he turned into a really magnificent container garden. Anyhoo, the snow melted, we went off to Thailand, then we bought a house and John had a lot less time to think about keeping up a blog.

Recently John took a bunch of photographs and gave me all kinds of ideas for blog posts. So this post and the one following, while they don't strictly count as guest posts, are inspired by his eye (and his love of Lucy).

Lucy loves a fire.

Me with bedhead.
After my post about beverages you may be wondering what is in the mug.
Hot cocoa, with a big "handcrafted" Williams-Sonoma marshmallow.

Lucy wants to wish you all Happy Holidays!

Guest Post: The 2011 Lucy Invitational

2011-12-21T13:54:00.000-05:00

John and I both love to watch Lucy and her best friend Lucy play in our backyard. And he is aware that many of my readers love them some Lucy photos so he knew that he could indulge in a little proud puppy papa moment on My Porch.

The Contenders

Lucy's best friend Lucy

Lucy

The Tug-o-war Warm-up

The Stare-down

The Race

The Post-race Cool-down

My Top 11 Reads of 2011

2011-12-20T16:14:00.001-05:00

Sadly, I am confident that none of the three books I think I might still finish by the end of the year will make it onto my best of list for 2011. This of course means that I am at liberty to unveil My Top 10 Reads of 2011 with 11 days left to go.

I did more re-reading in 2011 than I typically do and many of those might have made the cut, but I decided not to include them in the running. If I had you might have been likely to see two Brookners, another Cather (The Professor's House), As For Me and My House by Sinclair Ross and The Ark by Margot Benary Isbert.

Honorable mentions: My Life in France by Julia Child, Shadows on the Rock by Willa Cather, The Group by Mary McCarthy, Travelling Light by Tove Jansson, and They Were Sisters and Because of the Lockwoods by Dorothy Whipple.

The New House by Lettice Cooper
I loved the narrative structure of this novel that takes place in one day. I also love a book that has a good personal breakthrough/transformation.

Miss Buncle's Book by D.E. Stevenson
This was hands down the book most made me want to jump up and down out of sheer reading pleasure.

A Simple Heart by Gustave Flaubert
The Dead by James Joyce
Two from the Art of the Novella challenge in August. I can't exactly put my finger on why these two stand out but I found both of them beautiful and moving in their own ways.

A Kind of Intimacy by Jenn Ashworth
One of the best unreliable narrators of all time. That girl is a mess!

The Fortnight in September by R.C. Sherriff
I found this one not only sweet and poignant, but I also found myself identifying with the main character.

The Skin Chairs by Barbara Comyns
I was on the fence about putting this on in the top 11 instead of Whipple's Because of the Lockwoods. I think there are similarities in both content and quality, but since this was my first Comyns, I decided to give the berth to the newcomer.

The Magnificent Spinster by Mary Sarton
Second year in a row that a Sarton novel makes it onto my year's best list. I think Rachel at Book Snob might agree on this one.

A Month in the Country by J.L. Carr
Beautiful, touching, transcendent.

The Glass Room by Simon Mawer
Such an amazing tale of and really great writing. If I had to choose one novel on the list that approaches being "art" I think I would choose this one.

The Hopkins Manuscript by R.C. Sherriff
Such a wonderfully cozy, kooky, sad/spooky tale of the moon slamming into Earth. Loved it.

Shelf Esteem No. 7

2011-12-18T09:01:00.000-05:00

Cozy Factor: Zero.

The Books: Lots and lots to choose from here. Wide range of bios from painters (NC Wyeth), writers (Waugh, Wilde, Fitgerald, Sackville-West), composers (Ned Rorem), actors (Gielgud and Olivier) and political types (JFK). And plenty of fiction too: Amis (pere et fils), Brookner (x 2!) Byatt, Cheever, Le Carre, McMurtry, Mitford, Trollope, Updike, Vidal Edmund White, Anne Tyler...

Plenty of art books, and as I look closer more biography than I initially thought.

And two Persephones. Can you spot them?*

The Shelves: If you live in DC and know anything about local architecture you know that these shelves were designed by Hugh Newell Jacobson. I kind of like them, but I am not sure how I would feel about trying to arrange books in them. The relatively short span of the each shelve allows for the use of thin pieces of wood which I think frames the books nicely. And there is something pleasing to me about how the uniformity and steady rhythm of the shelves bring order to the chaos of the size and color of the books.

I actually have two versions of this very same picture. The one you see above was culled from a magazine at some point. The other is in the book Books Do Furnish a Room by Leslie Geddes-Brown. It was kind of fun to look for the changes in the placement of the books between the two pictures. There were some additions and some rearranging, it was like going on a treasure hunt. A picture of this library/dining room taken from another angle is also the cover image of the Geddes-Brown book.

Is this person a reader? Most defnitely. The variety of book type and author is in perfect balance with clear areas of the library owner's interests.

The book I would read if I had to pick one: It was hard to choose this time because there were many that looked good to me, but I would go with The Letters of Nancy Mitford and Evelyn Waugh.

*(Top row, right side, second section from the left)

Craving an Addiction

2011-12-16T12:39:00.000-05:00

Photo credit: Deep Roots at Home

I know this is going to sound stupid (as it did to John), but sometimes I wish I was addicted to some sort of beverage. It seems that for so many people a beverage is the ultimate day brightener. The British have their endless cups of tea that not only seem to be little mini-celebrations of life, but also make everything, from shrapnel wounds to work stress, all better. Then there is the fact that America wouldn't function without its morning cup of joe - not to mention the now almost ubiquitous afternoon frappelatteccino.

Do you remember this picture of my library?
Well, I faked it. I would never drink espresso.
The brown liquid in the cup is soy sauce.

And then we move into the world of alcohol. I watch a lot of TV, and boy do people on TV drink a lot of alcohol on a regular basis. Don't get me wrong I am not looking to become alcoholic, but where would the Real Housewives be without their gigantic glasses of wine? What would those irascible scamps on the Real World do if they weren't getting shit-faced at every turn? And what about the endless mugs of beer on Cheers?

OC Housewives about to become louder and more obnoxious than usual.

As much as I hate beer, it always looked so good on Cheers.

I don't even understand soda (pop, soft drinks, etc.). You see, my problem is that I don't like any beverage just for the sake of the beverage. Apart from slaking thirst (strictly water), for me liquid is only meant to go with something else.

Make mine a Diet Coke.

Tea goes with copious amounts of scones or other baked goods and even then is somewhat superfluous to me.

In my book coffee goes with nothing. I love the smell of it, but you couldn't pay me to drink a cup.

Soda strictly goes with pizza, burgers, or other similar high-fat, handheld food.

Red wine is amazing with good food - and I do quite enjoy it in that context, but it is rare that I will have a glass just to have a glass. In fact I try and make sure that I finish my wine by the time I finish my last bit of food. White wine pretty much goes with nothing on my palate. I will say I have had some extremely good whites with extremely good food, paired by extremely good sommeliers, but how often does that happen?

Cocktails (and I tend to prefer some sort of giant, girl-cocktail with an umbrella) are sometimes okay on their own, but I still am usually looking for something to munch on. Brown spirits are pretty much just for cooking.

Beer, ale, lager, hard cider, etc. have no place in my life. The smell alone is enough to make me wretch.

Years ago I heard a story on public radio about people whose palates didn't tolerate grapefruit (I think it tastes like poison) also tend not to like alcohol. I think this may be me with above the exceptions.

In many ways I should be glad that I don't have any of these cravings. I clearly don't require caffeine to function. And just think of all the money and calories I save by not craving alcohol. But there is part of me that wishes I had some sort of liquid pacifier that made me happier, or calmer, or more relaxed. I'm not depressed or anything (or am I? maybe that is why I am finding no joy in reading or blogging lately). It just feels like after 42 years of keeping tight control over everything it would be kind of nice to have some magic panacea that just allowed me to turn off or turn on, or whatever it is that beverages do for other people. Maybe I just feel left out...maybe its time for a little tap water...

Really?

2011-12-16T08:14:00.000-05:00

Believe it or not, the graphic above is the number 1,000 in Wingdings 2. I was playing around with fonts to use with the number 1,000 when I stumbled on the Wingdings 2. But why was I looking at the number 1,000 in different fonts? I was all set to do a post this morning with the title "Ending the Year with a Whimper", but when I went to create the post, I noticed that my last post was actually my 1,000th So huzzah for My Porch. I am grateful for the platform to blather on and even more grateful that so many of you decide to comment on my blather and in some cases even listen to my blather in person. Perhaps counterintuitively, the cyber world, rather than cut me off from the real world, has actually helped expand my social opportunities with flesh and blood humans.

So why was I going to do a post on ending the year with a whimper? Because I am finding little inspiration in the four books I currently have going. Because I haven't had any inspiration for a clever blog post in ages. And because I haven't had time to keep up with all of your blogs. I should note that some of this reading/writing/online ennui stems from the fact that December tends to slow me down on all of these fronts--too many other happy distractions like Christmas trees and socializing. But, the fun in my real life doesn't distract from the boredom in my reading life. I have half a mind to chuck all four books into the "not going to finish" pile, but I am too far along in each of them to do that. Plus, I kind of want to finish them all off so I can start the new year with a clean slate.

Shelf Esteem No. 6

2011-12-09T12:30:00.000-05:00

Cozy Factor: With the warm colors and soft light, I would say pretty darn cozy, although the dining chairs might need a cushion.

The Books: In addition to a shelf of auction catalogs and a shelf of cookbooks and food writing, this person has quite a few book of the month type books and with an emphasis on best selling non-fiction.

The Chief (bio of Randolph Hearst)
Titan (bio of Rockefeller)
Churchill bio
Thatcher bio
Driven Patriot (bio of James Forrestal - Truman's Secretary of Defense)
The Bell Curve (the controversial book that suggested that there is a correlation between genes and intelligence--with racial overtones)
Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them by Al Franken (does this balance out all the conservative stuff or was it a gift from a lefty friend?)
George Stephanopolous' memoir
Two books on American financier Bernard Baruch
The Triumph of Politics by David Stockman - Stockman was Reagan's budget guy and progenitor of supply-side economics. Interestingly, Stockman was just quoted in Rolling Stone in November saying: "The Republican Party has totally abdicated its job in our democracy, which is to act as the guardian of fiscal discipline and responsibility. They're on an anti-tax jihad -- one that benefits the prosperous classes."
Undaunted Courage
Guns, Germs and Steel

Man, these titles are so typical of the non-creative books that line shelves in DC. Woodward, Iacocca, Trump, Adam Smith... The only fiction I can make out is Tom Wolfe's A Man in Full (also seen in SE#5) The Firm, and The Da Vinci Code.

The Shelves: I like the way the backs are painted in a darker color but I am not sure I like the proportions and profile of the mill work. I particularly don't like how the TV is built in. Not because it is a TV in a library but because I think building in any appliance is foolish and the proportions of the trip work look terrible.

Is this person a reader? Pretty sure it is a married couple...Yes they are readers, but I don't think I would find them very interesting.

The book I would read if I had to choose one: Probably the Thatcher bio. It would get me ready for the Meryl Streep portrayal out next year. Plus I wouldn't mind reading more about that period of British history.

Is the book Possession as badly written as the first five minutes of the film?

2011-12-06T21:20:00.002-05:00

3 minutes in: "You're that American that's over here." Brilliant.

4 minutes in: Rich American professor ponders why the poor Irish professor even bothers showing up for auctions at Sotheby's.

6 minutes in: He couldn't look obvious stealing the letter from the library if he tried.

7 minutes in: I guess when they are not buying rare manuscripts at Sotheby's scholars spend all there money paying for spacious London flats.

8 minutes in: even his solicitor landlord is a scholar. How lucky.

11: "How many jars of gooseberry jam did his wife Ellen make in 1850? This is not a job for a grown up."

14: "what is it you chaps are always saying: 'how's it hanging'?" More of that crazy linguistic gulf between the US and UK.

15: "or if you prefer the American vernacular she's a real ball breaker."

16: Lincoln University must be paying Gwenyth well, such nice clothes.

17: I really don't like Paltrow especially when she plays British.

17: all the instant, snarky, we are going to end up in bed banter. Is the book this lame?

19: By all means sit in my office and do your research.

20: And he is already going to spend the night. That happened quicker than I expected.

21: Show her the stolen letter and then you areg surprised that she thinks you did the wrong thing--oh, because you are an American...and why did you have to steal the letter to study it?

22: and then she doesn't even want to read the letter all the way through. She must really need to use the bathroom.

23: "He's an American...he's probably off trafficking drugs..."

25: an invitation for another night in Lincoln. And at he big house this time. Lucky guy.

28: middle of the night tearing apart dolls that apparently have been sitting there uncovered for 150 years.

29: why not bring the letters back to the room that actually has a working light.

I think I need stop watching. I think Glee is on...

Bits and Bobs (Supersize version with hidden giveaway)

2011-12-04T12:29:00.002-05:00

Sinterklaas Came Early
Our good friends Ron and Barry who live in The Hague just sent John copy of this wonderful Virago hardcover book. It even has me a bit interested. I kind of twisted John's arm into opening the package before Christmas hopeful Ron and Barry (I mean Sinterklaas) won't mind.

Sinterklaas is part of the rather wacky (to be kind) Christmas tradition in the Netherlands. Pehaps it is time the Dutch updated their holiday files in favor of something less offensive than the following picture which I almost don't even want to post here but it illustrates my point only too well. No, I take it back, I don't want to post the picture here, but if you want to see what I am talking about you can check out this link.

Lost in Lost in Austen
I know there may be die-hard Austenites out there who thought this series was lame, but I really enjoyed watching Lost in Austen. I hadn't even heard about it until I stumbled across it on Netflix. I found it quite diverting. Like Thursday Next meets Miss Hargreaves meets Jane Austen.

One of these things is not like the other...

The other The Queen
It is hard to see QEII portrayed on film since Helen Mirren created her miraculous version of the reigning British sovereign in the brilliant film The Queen. Who will ever do a better job? No one. However, I just watched a miniseries called The Queen which intersperses dramatizations with documentary interviews and footage that is really pretty darn fascinating. There is so much about 1970s Britain that I didn't know much about. For instance Princess Anne was almost kidnapped and her body guard was shot three times in the melee (but survived). Much of the republican antipathy toward the monarchy shown in this docu-drama reminded me of Nevil Shute's fantastic book In the Wet which imagines a Britain where the Queen's life is in such danger that the Canadians and Australians create a two-jet fleet that allows the Queen to fly around the Commonwealth in safety until the turmoil in the UK settles down.

All of these actresses are supposed to be the Queen.
Which one do you think looks the least like her?

And speaking of Britain
When we were in New York over Thanksgiving I spent some time at the infamous Strand Bookstore where I normally never buy anything because it is so crowded and hot and overflowing that I can never calm down enough to browse. But I did find these doorstop books on Britain in the 1940s and 1950s. I have seen them around the blogosphere and coveted them, but I managed to pick these up for $12.50 each (instead of $47). Yay for me. They also gave me a free Strand Bookstore tote bag for spending more than $50. I have more totes than I know what to do with. It is nothing special but I will ship it anywhere in the world by randomly picking among the people who leave a substantive comment related to anything in this post as well as stating a desire to win said bag. This means no "that's cool" or "count me in" or any other throw away comments--let's have some real interaction here...

Copyright or Copywrong?
When trolling around the interwebs today I came across a book review blog that I found fairly annoying--where books are consumed rather than read just to produce un-insightful, and boring book reviews that the blogger seems to think will land her a spot at the Algonquin round table. I know that the book review posts I do rarely qualify as actual book reviews--but at least they have a part of me in them. And there is no hint that my blog is a just a machine for churning out ARC-induced advertorials. (Although to this blogger's credit she does give honest reviews for ARCs.)

Anyhoo, perhaps it was the fact that I already didn't like her, but even her copyright notice annoyed me. Here is part of it:

This copyrighted material may not be reproduced without express permission from the author. She's happy to grant permission, so don't be a jerk about it.

Do you think this means that one can't take large chunks or entire posts without getting permission? Or do you think it means that one can't even quote her written work without permission? I would guess it is the former rather than the latter but something about her makes me think she may have meant the latter. And doesn't fair use law allow one to quote copyrighted material (with attribution of course) without getting such permission? Does it matter if the person doing the quoting has a commercial site? Wouldn't newspapers fall into this category? Should I just shut up and look up this stuff myself? Should I wait for Teresa to tell me? Something tells me that she not only knows the answers but will share them with us in a succinct, jargon-free way...what say you Teresa or any of you who write/edit for a living?

And speaking of copyrights statements, should I have one on My Porch? Years ago I had some goon lift an entire post of mine as his answer to a question posed on the website Ask.com. Made me want to find him and rough him up.

Do you have a copyright statement? Do you use a service like MyFreeCopyright?

Something furry is watching...

What fur from yonder window comes?

One can never have too many pictures of Lucy.