We have a rainy day on tap for today. The Carolina wren was hanging out on the porch a lot yesterday, singing away. I saw him in front of the house at one point, but I don’t think he ever went in. So I have no idea if they’re just hanging out here or planning on nesting. I checked the blog posts that I wrote at this time last year and they didn’t start nesting until the end of April.
Fingers crossed
No sign of the bear today. Boy, was he magnificent!
Daydreaming Imogen. Doesn’t she have gorgeous lashes and eyelids?
For the second time in a week, I made the decision to stop reading a book. I do this very rarely, but in both cases, I had no choice. The first book just didn’t click with me and I knew it within about 20 pages. The second was a mystery about a book forger which had very good reviews. It was not well written – it was clunky, overwritten, with similes and metaphors that were labored. Frankly, it needed a strong editor.
This morning, I got up and was determined to read it first thing, when I’m most receptive to words on a page. I still found myself rolling my eyes repeatedly, putting it down, trying again, and then…even though I was 100 pages in, I couldn’t take it anymore.
Fini.
A lot of people have told me I should write a book. Let me tell you, writing well is much harder than most people realize. When you read something by Louise Penny, say, or Amor Towles or Pat Conroy (just pulling some names out of the hat) you are carried along by the words on the page, guided through the story by the author – effortlessly. But that does not come easily. Not at all. I so appreciate a good fiction writer, and I fully acknowledge that I do not have that skillset. I also appreciate the work of a good editor. Every author needs the eye of an editor and all of the good ones freely acknowledge that.
I’m not sure what I’ll start next. At the moment, I’m reading Otto Penzler’s short book about his rare book collection. Otto is the owner of The Mysterious Bookshop in NYC. He is lifelong collector of rare books, specializing in detective fiction and mysteries. His collection was so vast that he had to build a house to contain it. In 2018, he auctioned off much of the collection. A friend suggested that he highlight his favorite acquisitions and tell the stories behind those books. The book is Mysterious Obsession; Memoirs of a Compulsive Collector. I’d wanted it for quite a while and I finally purchased it when I was living in Brooklyn last autumn.
I’ve also reserved a few books from our local network of libraries and I’m sort of stalling today as I wait to see if one of them comes in.
Stay safe.
Happy Tuesday.
I used to feel very guilty if I started a book and didn’t finish it. Like I didn’t complete my homework, I guess. In the last few years I have decided life is too short to read a book I’m not enjoying. So I let them go without guilt.
About the bear….I wish you had gotten a picture. We have had some bear sightings in our area and I’d love to see one….through the window from my house. We have discussed putting up a trail camera in our back yard to see what we might be missing at night. It could be interesting.
Raining again today and in the 40s. I’m so over it.
Take care
I wish I had managed to get a picture, too!
My friends have a trail camera and they love it, Marilyn.
Stay safe.
Hello,
I too, like Marilyn use to feel duty bound to finish a book I started. Not, anymore. You only have so much time, so spend it well with books you enjoy.
How wonderful to see a bear! Lucky you.
Take Care,
Kaye
Exactly. It’s not worth it to keep reading something that you don’t like or connect to.
Stay safe, Kaye.
Me, too, about finishing a book I’m not enjoying. Currently I’m reading the newest Serrailler by Susan Hill, A Change of Circumstance, and enjoying it just like I have done with her others. Next up: Rules of Civility. I think I will enjoy that one as well. I go through times of feast and famine with my e-library books. Sometimes the ones I want are not even in their catalogue. Haven’t had a lot of success in requesting books they don’t have, but I keep trying.
That’s one of the books I reserved. The Susan Hill. I see that they’re “In transit” – which means that they’re in a van somewhere, but this is a big area so they may not reach me right away.
Stay safe, Shanna.
I LOVED Rules of Civility! In fact, much more than a Gentleman From Moscow. I have been on the waiting list for Lincoln Highway for about 5 mos, & I finally got the email that it is in! The way I feel about putting a book aside is…I am not quitting, it just isn’t the right time for me to read it. That actually does happen for me, & many times the next time I try, it is a success. However, I just put Brideshead Revisited down again…attempt #4 in the past 6 years. I just cannot get into it. I do read an extra 10 or 15 more pgs each time, so maybe in another 4 or 5 yrs I will actually complete it by default!!
I like Rules of Civility a lot, but A Gentleman from Moscow I LOVED.
xo
glad you saw the bear from a safe place indoors! :o stay safe in every way!
i agree about not reading further a book that is not enjoyable. time is too precious!
also, who needs more frustration? no one.
also agree with what you said about writing … not so easy. i’ve worked, off and on, over the years on a few children’s book ideas, finally put them away in a file. i now have three new ideas to pursue and am excited about them! :)
i am on day seven of no chocolate :o don’t know how long that will last, but am trying to cut back on sweets in general and chocolate in particular.
hope you are all having a nice day, one as pretty as it is here.
kathy
Sounds like you’re happy and busy! Not much longer at your job, right?
Stay safe, Kathy.
busy, for sure.
happier for having some decisions and progress made and knowingi will soon get more time to be withmyfamily, write, knit ….
unfortunately, junk from my last job (how badly i was treated) goes on, but it won’t last forever.
yes … may 06 is my last day at the store. will miss some people, but not so much the work and being on my feet for eight hours. :)
happy wednesday to you and don.
kathy
xoxo
I also almost always finished a book I started. Not so much these days. As I’m older I appreciate the clock ticking down and want to enjoy all that I read in some way. So if there is eye rolling or my mind goes somewhere else then its not a book for me.
Exactly. I’m the same way. I want to read books that are worthwhile.
Stay safe, Linda.
There are too many good books to read that I don’t feel guilty putting aside a bad one.
Have you read Hail Mary? The author also wrote The Martian. I’d give The Martian 4 stars but Hail Mary is off the charts. I loved it. Hail Mary is the name of the space ship that is sent to outer space to save mankind. It’s not my usual read but I loved the characters and story line.
Enjoyed you bear story. The other day I spotted a roadrunner in our yard. They have become a rare siting so I was very excited. I didn’t reach for my phone just enjoyed the moment. I’ve seen it again and got a few pictures. Of course, you don’t want to run into a bear. Have you ever seen them around your place before now?
Have a good week….and , if you have time, I’d love to hear your thought on Hail Mary.
I haven’t read that book, and it sounds like something I’d like. What is the author’s name, Patty?
Yes, we’ve always had bears in this area. Some years we don’t see them. But we came up on one in our woods last year – too close for comfort!
Stay safe.
I usually feel terribly guilty if I don’t finish a book. There have probably been less than a handful that I haven’t finished, but some authors and I just don’t click.
I actually didn’t realize that Blythe dolls could close their eyes….don’t think I’ve ever seen that before. Imogen looks very peaceful.
I went to a nursery earlier and bought some hydrangeas. I just couldn’t help myself. It’s still cold here….but, I’ll stockpile plants in my garage if I have to, til it’s time to plant. Going to get down to 27 tonight…brrrr.
Enjoy your day! ;)
Oh, Donna, I think my garage is going to be a Nursery by the time we are able to get the plants outside. Below freezing the next 2 nites again. This is really getting old!!
Blythe dolls can do a lot of things!
Going down to 33 here tonight and 31 tomorrow. It’s ridiculous!
Stay safe, Donnamae.
We are all too old to read books we really don’t like. (That said, I always feel guilty if I don’t!) I’ll try hard to hang in for a bit because sometimes it’s a bumpy start — or confusing after the other things I’ve read. Sometimes I just need a break from it. Right now I’m reading “Appetite for Life” — a 500 page bio of Julia Child that is beautifully written and researched and fascinating. But I’m also reading (re-reading) “Death on the Nile” after having seen the movie and seeing the liberties Branagh took (or not). I’m OK with that because I did enjoy the movie but it’s always interesting to see the departures! I call them the 24-hour Aggies because a good Aggie doesn’t take long to read and it’s always fun enough you don’t want to stop!
I did stop both, though, to watch “Anatomy of a Scandal” on Netflix. Highly recommended. I was pretty much riveted. This summer I’ll do Edward Rutherfurd’s New York. I’ve read his others — this clocks in at about 900 pages (and it’s a “tall, wide” paperback!
Tomorrow is book club (“It’s Hard Being You”) and I’m looking forward to going for the first time in several months. I told the host I will likely sit in a corner away from a lot of the activity unless they are masking up. I will at any rate! (Imogen’s cute!)
Have fun at book club, Jeanie. It will be nice to see everyone, I’m sure.
Stay safe!