avatiakh goes for 15 in 2015 part 2

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avatiakh goes for 15 in 2015 part 2

1avatiakh
Editat: ag. 23, 2015, 8:18 pm

My last thread was taking too long to load due to the many images I have been using so time for a new thread. I'll come back and do a progress report once I've put in my categories.

2avatiakh
Editat: ag. 23, 2015, 8:19 pm

3avatiakh
Editat: oct. 10, 2015, 2:41 am


1) Israel: political nonfiction - I plan to read biographies of Israeli politicians

1:Menachem Begin: The Battle for Israel's Soul by Danial Gordis - finished 28 Jul
2: The Prime Ministers : an intimate narrative of Israeli leadership by Yehuda Avner - finished 31 Aug
3: Ally : my journey across the American-Israeli divide by Michael B. Oren - finished 10 Oct

Suggestions:
The Prime Ministers by Yehuda Avner
Menachem Begin: The Battle for Israel's Soul by Danial Gordis
Ben-Gurion: The Burning Ground, 1886-1948 by Shabtai Teveth

4avatiakh
Editat: des. 5, 2015, 7:27 am


2) Arab Spring - Middle East/North African/Islamism - fiction & nonfiction

1: Terror in Black September: The First Eyewitness Account of the Infamous 1970 Hijackings by David Raab - finished Jun 01
2: ISIS: Inside the army of terror by Michael Weiss - finished 08 Jun
3: Zahra's Paradise by Amir & Khalil - finished 08 Jun
4: Woman at point zero by Nawal El Saadawi - finished Jul 21
5: The crackle of thorns : experiences in the Middle East by Sir Alec Kirkbride - finished 16 Aug
6: Nylon Road: A Graphic Memoir of Coming of Age in Iran by Parsua Bashi - finished 01 Oct
7: Mantle of the Prophet: religion and politics in Iran by Roy Mottahedeh - finished 28 Oct
8: The Storyteller of Jerusalem: The Life and Times of Wasif Jawhariyyeh, 1904-1948 by Wasif Jawhariyyeh - finished 05 Dec
Suggestions:
Egypt on the Brink: From Nasser to the Muslim Brotherhood by Tarek Osman
A fort of Nine Towers by Qais Akbar Omar

5avatiakh
Editat: des. 31, 2015, 1:56 pm


3) Latin Roots - fiction & nonfiction from/about Spain, Portugal & Latin America

1: The dangerous summer by Ernest Hemingway - finished Jan
2: Beaumarchais in Seville: an Intermezzo by Hugh Thomas -finished Jan
3: The Tunnel by Ernesto Sabato - finished Jan
4: The Crime of Father Amaro by Jose Maria Eca de Queiros - finished May 05
5: The Gods of Tango by Carolina de Robertis - finished 06 Sep
6: The distant marvels by Chantel Avecedo - finished 25 Dec

Suggestions:
Death in the Afternoon by Ernest Hemingway

6avatiakh
Editat: des. 31, 2015, 1:41 pm


4) Favourite Writers - continuing to read them and hopefully completing the ouevre

1: Frenchman's Creek by Daphne Du Maurier
2: There once lived a mother who loved her children until they moved back in: three novellas about family by Lyudmila Petrushevskaya - finish Mar 30
3: The seven good years by Etgar Keret - finished 27 Aug
4: The rest of us just live here by Patrick Ness - finished 11 Sep
5: A beam of light by Andrea Camilleri - finished 01 Oct
6: The secrets of the Wild Wood by Tonke Dragt - finished 10 Oct
7: A song for Ella Grey by David Almond - finished 07 Dec
8: A boy called Christmas by Matt Haig - finished 09 Dec
9: The door that led to where by Sally Gardner - finished 16 Dec
10:Even dogs in the wild by Ian Rankin - finished 21 Dec

Suggestions:
Bernice Rubens
Michael Chabon
Alan Garner

7avatiakh
Editat: oct. 1, 2015, 3:21 am


5) Shocked that I still haven't read this

1: The history of love by Nicole Krauss - finished Jan
2: Cider with Rosie by Laurie Lee - finished Jan
3: The camp of saints by Jean Raspail - finished Apr 20
4: The Valley of Bones by Anthony Powell (Dance to the Music of Time #7) - finished Jun 19
5: Goodnight, Mr Tom by Michelle Magorian - finished Jul 15

Suggestions:

The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien
Under the Volcano by Malcolm Lowry
In the woods by Tana French
The man who loved children by Christina Stead
Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
The Wind-up Bird Chronicle by Haruki Murakami

8avatiakh
Editat: des. 31, 2015, 1:39 pm


6) The young ones - YA and children's fiction & nonfiction

1: The Berlin Boxing Club by Robert Sharenow - finished Feb 09
2: The Coldest girl in Coldtown by Holly Black - finished Feb 20
3: The Vanishing Moment by Margaret Wild - finisihed Feb 20
4: Hostage three by Nick Lake - finished March 12
5: Pretty Monsters by Kelly Link - finished Mar 29
6: Heartsinger by Karlijn Stoffels - finished Apr 02
7: The Crossover by Kwame Alexander - finished Apr 03
8: King Matt the First by Janusz Korczak - finished Apr 03
9: Shadow on the mountain by Margi Preus - finished Apr 09
10: Kaytek the wizard by Janusz Korczak - finished Apr 11
11: Fairest by Marissa Meyer - finished Apr 14
12: Love by the Morning Star by Laura L. Sullivan - finished May 10
13: Under the Egg by Laura Marx Fitzgerald - finished May 11
14: How I alienated my grandmother by Suzanne Main - finished May 19
15: I love I hate I miss my sister by Amélie Sarn - finished May 22
16: The Last of the spirits by Chris Priestley - finished Jun 02
17: The Handkerchief Map by Kiri English-Hawke - finished 06 Jun
18: Half Wild by Sally Green - finished Jun 08
19: I lived on Butterfly Hill by Marjorie Agosin - finished 13 Jun
20: Falling by Anne Provoost finished 16 Jun
21: The Thought of High Windows by Lynne Kositsky - finished Jun 19
22: A stone in my hand by Cathryn Clinton - finished Jun 19
23: Wanting Mor by Rukhsana Khan - finished Jun 20
24: Life in Outer Space by Melissa Keil - finished 24 Jun
25: Boy in the tower by Polly Ho-Yen - finished Jun 25
26: Never fall down by Patricia McCromick - finished 25 Jun
27: Grasshopper Jungle by Andrew Smith - finished 18 Jul
28: Buffalo Soldier by Tanya Landman - finished 19 Jul
29: Boo: a novel by Neil Smith - finished 27 Jul
30: Daniel Half Human and the good Nazi by David Chotjewitz - finished Aug 04
31: Hide and Seek by Ida Vos - finished Aug 09
32: The mystery of the clockwork sparrow by Katherine Woodfine - finished 12 Aug
33: Honey by Sarah Weeks - finished 22 Aug
34: The story of Owen: Dragon Slayer of Trondheim by E.K. Johnstone - finished 23 Aug
35: The cage by Ruth Minsky Sender - finished 29 Aug
36: Dancing on the bridge of Avignon by Ida Vos - finished 12 Sep
37: One by Sarah Crossan - finished 12 Sep
38: Displaced Person by Lee Harding - finished 19 Sep
39: The wonderful O by James Thurber - finished 29 Sep
40: Witch Week by Sibéal Pounder - finished 29 Sep
41: Tug of War by Joan Lindgard - finished 04 Oct
42: The big Lie by Julie Mayhew - finished 05 Oct
43: Longbow Girl by Linda Davies - finished Oct 19
44) Girl on a Plane by Miriam Moss - finished Oct 19
45: The Walls Around Us by Nova Ren Suma - finished Oct 20
46: Katy by Jacqueline Wilson - finished Oct 22
47: The Scorpion Rules by Erin Bow - finished Oct 22
48: The Crossing of Ingo by Helen Dunmore - finished Oct 30
49: The kingdom and the cave by Joan Nathan- finished 04 Nov
50: The wolf wilder by Katherine Rundell - finished 06 Nov
51: How to be happy: a memoir of love, sex and teenage confusion by David Burton - finished 08 Nov
52: a thousand nights by E. K. Johnston - finished 16 Nov
53: Zeroes by Scott Westerfeld et al - finished 27 Nov
54: The horses didn't come home by Pamela Rushby - finished 06 Dec
55: Whispering in the wind by Alan Marshall - finished 21 Dec
56: Challenger Deep by Neal Shusterman - finished 30 Dec

9avatiakh
Editat: oct. 4, 2015, 6:33 pm


7) Challenging - shared reads, theme reads, group reads, CATs etc, shortlists, long lists etc etc

1: Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro - BAC (British Author Challenge) - finished Jan
2: Moon Tiger by Penelope Lively - BAC (British Author Challenge) - finished Jan
3: The Scar by China Miéville - BAC - finished Mar 28
4: In the heart of the seas by S.Y. Agnon - (Reading Globally translated Nobel Winners) - finished 31 Jul
5: The man who loved children by Christina Stead (ANZAC May) - finished 31 Aug
6: Yellow blue Tibia by Adam Roberts - (shared read) - finished 24 Sep
7: Oreo by Fran Ross (TIOLI shared read) - finished 30 Sep
8: The Search Warrant by Patrick Modiano - (Reading Globally translated Nobel Winners) - finished 03Oct

Suggestions:
The Children's Book by A.S. Byatt
Fingersmith by Sarah Waters - (Orange Jul)

10avatiakh
Editat: nov. 2, 2015, 1:10 am


8) Fact - nonfiction general, hopefully some travel literature

1: Occidentalism: The West in the Eyes of Its Enemies by Ian Buruma
2: Jerusalem: a biography by Simon Sebag Montifiore - finished January
3: Garlic, Mint & Sweet Basil: Essays on Marseilles, The Mediterranean, and Noir Fiction by Jean-Claude Izzo - finished Mar 04
4: Catch the Jew by by Tuvia Tenenbom - finished Apr 03
5: Reasons to stay alive by Matt Haig - finished Apr 06
6: Look me in the eye by John Elder Robison - finished Apr 13
7: Financing the Flames: How Tax-Exempt and Public Money Fuel a Culture of Confrontation and Terror in Israel by Edwin Black - finished Apr 22
8: Barack Obama's Rules for Revolution: The Alinsky Model by David Horowitz - finished Apr 24
9: Being mortal: Medicine and What Matters in the End by Atul Gawande - finished Apr 27
10: Murder in Amsterdam: The Death of Theo van Gogh and the Limits of Tolerance by Ian Buruma - finished 29 Oct

Suggestions:
The Innocents Abroad by Mark Twain
Childhood under siege: how big business targets children by Joel Bakan
We die alone by David Howarth
Philip Gibbs

11avatiakh
Editat: des. 31, 2015, 1:29 pm


9) Comfort reads - lighter reading and continuing series

1: A walk among the tombstones by Lawrence Block (Matthew Scudder #10) - finished Jan
2: The Samaritan's Secret by Matt Rees (Omar Yussef #3) - finished Jan
3: Piece of my heart by Peter Robinson (DCI Bank #16) - finished Feb 04
4: Personal by Lee Child (Jack Reacher #19) - finished Feb 12
5: Foxglove Summer by Ben Aaronovitch (Peter Grant #5) - finished 27 Feb
6: The Devil's Star by Jo Nesbø (Harry Hole #5) - finished Apr 21
7: Cockroaches by Jo Nesbø (Harry Hole #2) - finished Apr 26
8: The Redeemer by Jo Nesbø (Harry Hole #6) - finished May 03
9: The Snowman by Jo Nesbø (Harry Hole #7) - finished May 07
10: Game of Mirrors by Andrea Camilleri (Commissario Montalbano #18) - finished May 13
11: Phantom by Jo Nesbø (Harry Hole #9) - finished May 25
12: Police by Jo Nesbø (Harry Hole #10) - finished May 27
13: Headhunters by Jo Nesbø - finished Jun 01
14: Stealing People by Robert Wilson (Charlie Boxer #3) - finished 29 Jun
15: The Soldier's Art by Anthony Powell (Dance to the Music of Time #8) - finished 19 Jul
16: The Military Philosophers by Anthony Powell (Dance to the Music of Time #9) - finished 27 Jul
17: Make Me by Lee Child (Jack Reacher #20) - finished 20 Sep
18: Happy Birthday, Turk! by Jakob Arjouni - finished 18 Oct
19: Books do furnish a room by Anthony Powell - finished 02 Nov
20: Career of Evil by Robert Galbraith - finished 19 Nov
21: Temporary Kings by Anthony Powell - finished 09 Dec
22: Hearing secret harmonies by Anthony Powell - finished 25 Dec

Suggestions:
Robert Goddard
Pepe Carvalho series

12avatiakh
Editat: ag. 23, 2015, 11:11 pm


10) Down Under - New Zealand & Australian fiction

1: Let the River Stand by Vincent O'Sullivan (NZ) - finished Jan
2: The Rosie Effect by Graeme Simsion (Aus) - finished Feb 15
3: Magpie Hall by Rachael King (NZ) - finished Feb 16
4: The house of strife by Maurice Shadbolt - finished Mar 07
5: Wake by Elizabeth Knox - finished Mar 17
6: The Chimes by Anna Smaill - finished Mar 26
7: Breath by Tim Winton - finished Mar 31
8: An unreal house filled with real storms by Elizabeth Knox - finished May 17
9: Once were warriors by Alan Duff - finished May 23

Suggestions:
James McNeish
Maurice Shadbolt
Derek Hansen
Garry Disher
Wake by Elizabeth Knox

13avatiakh
Editat: des. 31, 2015, 1:56 pm


11) Shiny New - new writers and/or new books

1: The Martian by Andy Weir - finished Apr 07
2: Dear Thief by Samantha Harvey - finished Apr 09
3: The Fishermen by Chigozie Obioma - finished May 01
4: Sacred by Eliette Abécassis - finished 16 Jun
5: The Book of Aron by Jim Shephard - finished Jun 24
6: How to Fight Islamist Terror from the Missionary Position by Tabish Khair - finished 30 Jun
7: Uprooted by Naomi Novik - finished 04 Jul
8: My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante - finished 10 Jul
9: The girl on the train by Paula Hawkins - finished Jul 14
10: Konstantin by Tom Bullough - finished Aug 04
11: Touch by Claire North - finished Aug 10
12: The watchmaker of Filigree Street by Natasha Pulley - finished 24 Aug
13: The Girl in the Spider's web by David Lagercrantz - finished 16 Sep
14: Dear committee members by Julie Schumacher - finished 27 Sep
15: Malice: a mystery by Keigo Higashino - finished 09 Oct
16: Submission by Michel Houellebecq - finished Oct 20
17: Arcadia by Iain Pears - finished 02 Nov
18: The Ambassador by Yehuda Avner & Matt Rees - finished Nov 10
19: Way down dark by James Smythe - finished 23 Nov
20: Ancillary Justice by Ann Leckie - finished 02 Dec
21: Asylum City by Liad Shoham - finished 04 Dec
22: Illuminae by Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff - finished 13 Dec
23: The reader on the 6.27 by Jean-Paul Didierlaurent - finished 31 Dec

Suggestions:
Elena Ferrante
Siri Hustvedt
Kate Forsyth

14avatiakh
Editat: set. 24, 2015, 8:59 pm


12) Spotlight: New Zealand YA - so many titles to catch up on

1: The beginner's guide to living by Lia Hills - finished Mar 06
2: A Winter’s Day in 1939 by Melinda Szymanik - finished 12 Jul
3: The Eternal City by Paula Morris - finished 20 Jul
4: I am Rebecca by Fleur Beale - I am not Esther #2 - finished 05 Sep
5: Being Magdalene by Fleur Beale - I am not Esther #3- finished 07 Sep
6: Battlesaurus: Rampage at Waterloo by Brian Falkner - finished 10 Sep
7: The Bakehouse by Joy Cowley - finished 13 Sep
8: Heart of Danger by Fleur Beale (Juno #3) - finished 22 Sep
9: Into the wilderness by Mandy Hager (Blood of the Lamb #2) - finished 25 Sep

suggestions:
Fleur Beale
I am Rebecca (2014) - sequel to I am not Esther
Heart of Danger (2011) - last in the Juno trilogy
The boy in the olive grove (2012)
Speed Freak (2013)

Mandy Hager
Dear Vincent (2013)
Singing home the Whale (2014)
Into the wilderness (2010) & Resurrection (2011) - #2, #3 of Blood of the Lamb trilogy
The nature of Ash (2012)

Anna MacKenzie
Cattra's Legacy (2013)
Donnel's promise (2014) - sequel

David Hair's Aotearoa series #3,4,5
The Last Tohunga (2011)
Justice & Utu (2012)
Ghosts of Parihaka (2013)

A Winter’s Day in 1939 by Melinda Szymanik (2013)
Felix and the Red Rats by James Norcliffe (2013)
Bugs by Whiti Hereaka (2013)
Speed of Light by Joy Cowley (2014)
1914 Riding into war by Susan Brocker (2014)

'why we need fairy tales' article by Mandy Hagar: http://booknotes-unbound.org.nz/mandy-hager-need-fairy-tales/

15avatiakh
Editat: nov. 12, 2015, 3:15 pm


13) Food Writing - cookbooks and food writing in general

1: Hot Pink Spice Sagas: an Indian culinary travelogue with recipes by Peta Mathias & Julie Le Clerc - finished Mar 03
2: The Depot: the biography of a restaurant by Al Brown - finished Mar 04
3: The Flavor of Jerusalem b Joan Nathan - finished Nov 07
4: New Zealand Cafe cookbook by Anna King Shahab - finished Nov 13

Suggestions:
MFK Fischer
Ruth Reichl
Anthony Bourdain
Laurie Colwin
Barbara Abdeni Massaad
Taste of Beirut by Jouman Accad

16avatiakh
Editat: des. 13, 2015, 3:10 am


14) Images - photography, graphic novels, illustrated and picturebooks

1: The Plot: The Secret Story of The Protocols of the Elders of Zion by Will Eisner
2: Saga vol 1 by Brian K. Vaughan illustrated by Fiona Staples - finished Feb 28
3: El Deafo by Cece Bell - finished 03 Mar
4: Sam Zabel and the Magic Pen by Dylan Horrocks - finished 11 Mar
5: Through the woods by Emily Carroll - finished Mar 20
6: Henni by Miss Lasko-Gross - finished Mar 28
7: Beautiful Darkness by Fabien Vehlmann - finished Mar 28
8: Chico & Rita by Javier Mariscal - finished Mar 29
9: Blankets by Craig Thompson - finished Apr 03
10: Scalped: Indian Country Vol 1 by Jason Aaron - Apr 03
11: To the heart of the storm by Will Eisner - finished Apr 04
12: Saga Vol 2 by Brian K. Vaughan - finished Apr 15
13: Saga Vol 3 by Brian K. Vaughan - finished May 01
14: A bag of marbles by Joseph Joffo - finished May 01
15: My First Kafka: runaways, rodents & giant bugs retold by Matthue Roth, illus Rohan Daniel Eason - finished May 10
16: Unterzakhn by Leela Corman - finished May 14
17: El Iluminado: a graphic novel by Ilan Stavans - finished May 17
18: Saga, Volume 4 by Brain K. Vaughan - finished May 22
19: enormous smallness: A Story of E. E. Cummings by Matthew Burgess - finished Jun 14
20: Baddawi by Leila Abdelrazaq - finished 26 Jun
21: Mike's Place: a true story of love, blues, and terror in Tel Aviv by Jack Baxter - finished 26 Jun
22: Old Winkle and the Seagulls by Elizabeth and Gerald Rose - finished 27 Jun
23: The Spider and the Doves: The Story of the Hijra by Farah Morley - finished 30 Jun
24: I remember Beirut by Zeina Abirached - finished Jun 30
25: Pablo Neruda: poet of the people by Monica Brown - finished Jul 05
26: The cute girl network by MK Reed - finished Jul 06
27: Shackleton's Journey by William Grill - finished Jul 07
28: Bandette Volume 1: Presto! by Paul Tobin - finished Jul 08
29: A River by Marc Martin - finished Jul 08
30: Primates: The Fearless Science of Jane Goodall, Dian Fossey, and Biruté Galdikas by Jim Ottaviani - finished Jul 09
31: Delilah Dirk and the turkish lieutenant by Tony Cliff - finished 14 Aug
32: Nimona by Noelle Stevenson - finished 16 Aug
33: Bandette : Stealers keepers! vol 2 by Paul Tobin - finished 18 Aug
34: The Scraps Book: Notes from a Colorful Life by Lois Ehlert - finished 18 Aug
35: Marzi: a memoir by Marzena Sowa - finished 19 Aug
36: This one summer by Mariko & Jillian Tamaki - finished 23 Aug
37: From Foe to Friend & other stories illustrated by Shay Charka, written by SY Agnon - finished 24 Aug
38: Message to Adolf, part 2 by Osamu Tezuka - finished 24 Aug
39: The Divine by Boaz Lavie - finished Sep 18
40: Honor Girl: A Graphic Memoir by Maggie Thrash - finished Oct 25
41: Cairo: a graphic novel by W. Willow Wilson - finished 02 Nov
42: Trotsky: a graphic biography by Rick Geary - finished 08 Nov
43: displaced visions:: Emigre Photographers of the 20th Century by Nissan N. Perez - finished 11 Nov
44: Israel: 50 years as seen by Magnum photographers - finished 11 Nov
45: The Palestinians: photographs of a land, its people from 1839 to the present day by Elias Sanbar - finished 11 Nov
46: Ms Marvel by G. Willow Wilson - finished 14 Nov
47: Can't we talk about something pleasant? by Roz Chast - finished 14 Nov
48: An ANZAC Tale by Ruth Starke - finished 14 Nov
49: The Pillbox by David Hughes - finished 15 Nov
50: The Arab of the Future by Riaf Sattouf - finished 17 Nov
51: The Dharma punks by Ant Sang - finished 21 Nov
52: Ruins by Peter Kuper - finished 12 Dec

Suggestions:
The Sandman series by Neil Gaiman

17avatiakh
Editat: oct. 14, 2015, 12:58 am


15) Spies - both fiction and nonfiction

1: Spies against Armageddon by Dan Raviv - finished 17 Aug
2: The cut-out by Jack Heath - finished 01 Sep
3: Triple by Ken Follett - finished 03 Sep
4) The spy who loved: The Secrets and Lives of Christine Granville by Clare Mulley - finished 26 Sep
5) Forbidden Love in St Petersburg by Mishka Ben-David - finished 14 Oct

Suggestions:
Alan Furst
Eric Ambler
Mossad by Ronald Payne
The Lawn Road Flats: spies, writers and artists by David Burke
A Spy Among Friends by Ben Macintyre
The Informer by Liam O'Flaherty

18avatiakh
Editat: des. 13, 2015, 3:11 am


Dropbox - extra category for books that don't fit

1: Gone to Soldiers by Marge Piercy - finished Jan
2: Troubles by J.G. Farrell - finished Jan
3: Out of Tune edited by Jonathan Maberry - Early Reviewer bk - - finished Jan
4: Eat him if you like by Jean Teule - finished Jan
5: Stoner by John Williams - finished Jan
6: Little Exiles by Robert Dinsdale - finished Feb 02
7: Childhood by Jona Oberski - finished 03 Oct
8: Momo by Emile Ajar - finished 07 Oct
9: The Walled City by Esther David - finished 10 Dec

19-Eva-
ag. 24, 2015, 10:59 pm

Happy new thread!

20DeltaQueen50
ag. 24, 2015, 11:10 pm

Happy new thread Kerry, I've been enjoying following your reading this year.

21avatiakh
ag. 25, 2015, 12:14 am

Thanks for visiting. I have a few more books to add but first a recap:

Categories:
1) Israel: political nonfiction - 1/5
I'm currently reading The Prime Ministers and might leave it at that as I'm finding it a little repetitive to read only modern Israeli politics, still a lot of the history is starting to stick.

2) Arab Spring - Middle East/North African/Islamism - fiction & nonfiction - 5/5
I haven't read the books I initially thought of when putting this category up, still that's the way of it.

3) Latin Roots - fiction & nonfiction from/about Spain, Portugal & Latin America - 4/5
I didn't really have a reading plan for this. Will finish with The Gods of Tango, a historical fiction I'm currently reading.

4) Favourite Writers - 2/5
I've not really tried hard here, have been reading a lot of newer fiction and added some favourite writers to other categories. I'm sure I can read 3 more by the end of the year.

5) Shocked that I still haven't read this - 4/5
Finally got to some outstanding reads on my tbr pile. Will be finishing off with The man who loved children which I've been reading for a long while, fairly reluctant to pick it up it's a bit of a drag.

6) The young ones - YA and children's fiction - 32/10
No problems with this category, I'm constantly reading YA and children's books.

7) Challenging - shared reads, theme reads, group reads, CATs etc, shortlists, long lists etc etc - 4/5
Another category that I could have added books to but put elsewhere. Will probably finish with Yellow Blue Tibia as a shared read (with Judy / DeltaQueen50) which I've just begun to read.

8) Fact - nonfiction general, hopefully some travel literature - 9/10
I've been reading a lot of nonfiction but not of the travel variety. Easily meet this target.

9) Comfort reads - lighter reading and continuing series - 16/10
Another easy category, I had a run on Jo Nesbo earlier in the year.

10) Down Under - New Zealand & Australian fiction - 9/10
Another category that I'm doing ok in

11) Shiny New - new writers and/or new books - 11/10
doing ok here too.

12) Spotlight: New Zealand YA - so many titles to catch up on - 3/10
Not doing so well on this but have plans to concentrate on this category in September

13) Food Writing - cookbooks and food writing in general - 0/5
While I've browsed through a bunch of cookbooks and leafed through some coffee table style books I haven't really achieved anything here as yet. I might just make this a 'cook at least one recipe from' type of challenge, there's still time.

14) Images - photography, graphic novels, illustrated and picturebooks - 35/10
Easily exceeded expectations here

15) Spies - both fiction and nonfiction - 1/5
I'm currently reading the nonfiction The spy who loved by Clare Mulley and fiction thriller Triple by Ken Follet.
Another category I'm aiming to read a few more in.

Dropbox - extra category for books that don't fit - 7/5
No expectations for here, just a place to put what doesn't fit elsewhere

22avatiakh
ag. 25, 2015, 12:16 am

August Reading by pictures:

Fiction
__

Non fiction
_

YA & children's
_____

Graphic Novels
______

Picturebooks
___
_____

23avatiakh
ag. 25, 2015, 12:18 am


Honey by Sarah Weeks (2015)
children's.
This was a joyous little read that I found hard to fault. Fun but dealing with tough issues. Melody is trying to find out who her father is calling 'honey' on the telephone late at night. Her mother died when she was born, and her father has never talked about her. There's also a slightly mixed up dog, Mo, who's new to town.

Added to category #6: The young ones - YA and children's fiction


This one summer by Mariko & Jillian Tamaki (2014)
YA graphic novel
Depicts a summer holiday of a tween girl and her parents. The parents' relationship is strained, Rose and her younger friend, Windy, are on the cusp of adolescence so observing the local teenagers is a new interest as well as watching horror movies. But most of all it's summer, the beach and the water are the biggest attractions.
The illustrations are just beautiful. Jillian and Mariko are cousins and this GN won them a Caldecott Honour Award. I'm going to have a look at Skim which they also collaborated on.

Added to category #14: Images - photography, graphic novels, illustrated and picturebooks


The story of Owen: Dragon Slayer of Trondheim by E.K. Johnstone (2014)
YA fiction
I really enjoyed this one. Lots of dragons, a modern setting with an alternate world history and a highschool student cum apprentice dragon slayer. The story is told by fellow student, Siobhan, who becomes his bard and good friend.
Johnstone has imagined a really interesting alternate Canada, one seething with carbon emission seeking dragons that are a destructive menace to mankind and need to be slain by old fashioned dragon slayers, the best are descended from Vikings. Dragon slayers are the new celebrity.
I've already asked my library to order in book 2, Prairie Fire.

Added to category #6: The young ones - YA and children's fiction

24avatiakh
ag. 25, 2015, 12:20 am


The watchmaker of Filigree Street by Natasha Pulley (2015)
fiction
I felt this one run away from me a little towards the end, a little confusion on my part, a bit too much chaos in the plot possibly. Overall I loved the setup, the characters were really interesting, I loved Katsu, the clockwork octopus. The story revolves around Thaniel and his friendship with Mori, a Japanese watchmaker who is suspected of being a bombmaker for the Irish. The world is Victorian London, with a touch of Imperial Japan. Mori has mysterious abilities, his clockwork creations are futuristic.
'When a coincidence or accident alters the course of a life, we call it chance, destiny, a twist of fate. But if you could anticipate these random forces and use them to your own ends, what would you set in motion? And what sort of person might you become?' - http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/02/books/review/the-watchmaker-of-filigree-street...

Added to category #11: Shiny New - new writers and/or new books


From Foe to Friend & other stories illustrated by Shay Charka, written by SY Agnon (2015)
graphic novel
Three stories by Agnon have been adapted to the graphic novel form by Israeli cartoonist Shay Charka. The stories are typical Agnon and the illustrations are sympathetic and will appeal to both children and adults.


Added to category #14: Images - photography, graphic novels, illustrated and picturebooks


Message to Adolf, part 2 by Osamu Tezuka (2012)
graphic novel/manga

I raced through this second volume, the story line is so compelling, jumping between WW2 Germany and Japan. It is manga so not to everyone's taste. Very pleased to have come across this, though I really need to take a break from graphic novels.

Added to category #14: Images - photography, graphic novels, illustrated and picturebooks

25rabbitprincess
ag. 25, 2015, 4:44 pm

Happy new thread!

26mamzel
ag. 31, 2015, 4:10 pm

Happy new thread! I tried to get into The Story of Owen figuring that it was right up my dragon alley but the time wasn't right and I set it aside. I have to get back to it. My library also has its sequel, Prairie Fire.

27avatiakh
Editat: ag. 31, 2015, 5:26 pm

>26 mamzel: Yeah, I have that problem with books all the time. It just hit the right spot for me at the time, I'd finished the first Temeraire book and I'd seen a positive review of another of her books.

>25 rabbitprincess: Thank you

28avatiakh
ag. 31, 2015, 5:20 pm


The Seven Good Years: a memoir by Etgar Keret (2015)
nonfiction
Israeli writer Etgar Keret gives us a glimpse of his life in Tel Aviv during the seven year period between the birth of his son and the death of his father. Each chapter is quite short as is his style. He decided to publish only in English not in Hebrew as this book is more for his International audience rather than the home crowd, after reading I'm not quite sure why. Anyway this has a lovely focus on being part of a family as a brother, a son, a father and a husband. Recommended.
The guardian review is worth a look: http://www.theguardian.com/books/2015/jul/19/etgar-keret-seven-good-years-review...

As an aside, when I looked for online reviews yesterday as I was reading it and found a nasty one on an anti-Israel website, one that I normally wouldn't bother with.
Extract: 'There is a friendly readability to the writing style, and I tried to approach the book with an open mind, but I disliked the politics, and, to a lesser extent, the personality of the narrator. The book is a bit of a work of Zionist propaganda. In addition, it is clear to me that Etgar Keret looks inward, but doesn’t look outward enough.... There is something in Keret’s personality that is lazy and entitled— entitled in a literal sense, as if he is an aristocrat from pre-revolutionary France. In that era, aristocrats were not subject to normal laws. It was written into the legal code. A nobleman could gallop through a peasant’s freshly planted, delicate field, and ruin it, if the nobleman was engaged in a fox hunt and the fox ran through the field. This was the law....Have modern-day Israelis become aristocrats, as a result of their over-the-top, privileged legal status? Are they simply in love with themselves, because they have more rights than other people in their vicinity? Keret describes how, by his late thirties, he was almost handicapped due to overeating and inactivity. His poor health seems to be the result of sloppiness, and a peculiar lack of shame about his body. He acts like his physical condition is funny and cute— wonderful, even. That attitude is definitely not charming. ' - Mondoweiss website

Added to category #4: Favourite Writers

29avatiakh
ag. 31, 2015, 5:22 pm

some picturebooks

The Stone Lion by Margaret Wild (2014)
picturebook

A stone lion that sits on a plinth outside the city's library comes to life on the night of a blizzard in order to save the lives of a homeless girl and her baby brother. A timeless story, Ritva Voutila's stunning illustrations evoke the depression era.
The book came to my notice last week when reading through the winners of 2015 Australia's Children's Book Council Awards, it received an Honour Award in the picturebook category. The YA winner, The Protected by Claire Zorn has also been added to my 'to read' pile.




The day the crayons came home by Drew Daywalt & illustrator Oliver Jeffers (2015)
picturebook
A followup to The day the crayons quit, not as good but still very good enough.


Sidewalk Flowers by Jon Arno Lawson & Sydney Smith (2015)
picturebook
Utterly charming wordless picturebook for all ages. A girl in a red coat (illustrations mostly in b&w) goes for a walk with her father, picks flowers growing in cracks on pavement etc and then leaves them in surprising places such as in a friendly dog's collar. Delightful. The concept was dreamed up by Lawson, a poet, and Smith, the illustrator.
A more indepth review with lots of images is here at brainpickings: http://www.brainpickings.org/2015/03/17/sidewalk-flowers/




A book is a book by Jenny Bornholdt (2013)
illustrated book
This one is hard to place, it's really an ode to books rather than a children's book. Bornholdt is a New Zealand poet and illustrator, Sarah Wilkins is an expat NZer based in Paris. There seems to be too many words, they don't always scan that well and the illustrations seem more suited to a magazine editorial which is why together, I don't feel it is so much a book for children but rather a 'gift book' for a booklover, the compact size is also a factor.
'A book is to read.
A book belongs in a library, on a bookshelf, in a bookshop, in your house.
A story belongs wherever a story belongs.
If it’s Sunday and raining, a book is the perfect thing. Even a small book, because boredom can be very big.
You can read a book while you walk, but you have to be careful not to bump into things.'

I also liked this which goes so against the digital read -
'If you love a book you can lend it
to your friend and they might lend
it to another friend and then they
might lend it to a different friend
and it can go on like that to infinity'

30avatiakh
Editat: gen. 20, 2022, 6:52 pm


The Cage by Ruth Minsky Sender (1986)
YA nonfiction
Sender writes of her experiences as a girl during the Holocaust. Her mother is taken in one of the roundups and she becomes responsible for her younger brothers in the Lodz ghetto at the age of sixteen. Eventually she ends up in Auschwitz and then is moved on to other work camps. Through it all she never stops writing poems, and this actually saves her life, when she gets an infection in her hand, the doctor convinces the commandant that the poems raise the morale of the other inmates, and Sender is sent to a hospital for treatment. After the war she is reunited with two of her three older siblings (her mother had sent them into Russia at the start of the war). Reading this makes one aware once again of the horrors that the Jewish people faced during the war years. Her mother's mantra, 'as long as there is life, there is hope', a saying that sustains Sender throughout as she loses friends and family.

I noticed that illustrator Anita Lobel, wife of children's writer Arnold Lobel has written a memoir of her life during WW2 in hiding in Poland, No pretty pictures : a child of war. She was only 5 yrs old and was hidden along with her baby brother by the family's nanny in a convent.

Added to category #4: The young ones - YA and children's fiction & nonfiction

31avatiakh
ag. 31, 2015, 5:25 pm


The man who loved children by Christina Stead (1940)
fiction
I started reading this back in May for the ANZAC challenge but quickly found it a bit of a slog with no one to like. So I read a bit here and there, determined to eventually finish it as I've been interested to read the book for a few years. Decided to pull the stops out and whizzed through 220pgs in the last two days.
Set in 1930s USA, this is the story of the Pollit family, a couple who should never have married each other, now saddled with too many children and not enough income. Henny is from a well -to-do family and they live in a big old house provided by her father in Washington. Sam, a biologist, is a child-man, enthusiastic about everything, loves his children but has no idea about responsibility. Louie is Sam's daughter from his first marriage, she is the backbone of the book, a child of 14 but forced to do many of the tasks of the mother or housekeeper, and mercilessly teased by the father (he thinks it's being playful but I'd note it almost as an abuse). The children are almost bringing themselves up on their own. The descent into full poverty occurs at the halfway point of the story, they are forced to move to Annapolis to a run down property by a river. Tensions rise between husband and wife as the children run around (mostly) happily in rags delighting in the open spaces.
I found it an interesting read, the father is childlike in his gaiety and experimenting schemes, while the mother is so stressed out making ends meet, though the financial problems are from her own spendthrift ways.
This has to have one of the ugliest covers of all time. I started reading an e-book on my iPad but switched to this book version towards the end.

Added to category #4: Challenging - shared reads, theme reads, group reads, CATs etc, shortlists, long lists etc etc
(was going to add to - #5 - shocked I still haven't read this but changed my mind)

Considered a lost classic, Jane Smiley wrote about it here: http://www.theguardian.com/books/2006/jun/10/featuresreviews.guardianreview29
'One of the few novels that come close to attaining the grandeur of tragedy is The Man Who Loved Children, and the tragedy it most recalls, perhaps, is Medea. It is also a thoroughly modern novel and a fascinating social document. Christina Stead's father was a Fabian socialist, and she was born in Australia. She lived for many years in the United States, was married to a prominent Marxist writer, and was up-to-date in her understanding of all the myriad subjects and ideas that come up in the course of this long and dense work of fiction. Most important, though, is that she actually does give her ordinary government bureaucrat and his unhappy wife that sense of unstoppable and fated intensity that literature usually reserves for kings and queens.'


The Prime Ministers: An Intimate Narrative of Israeli Leadership by Yehuda Avner (2010)
political memoir
I ended up listening to the audiobook and it was an enthralling experience. UK-born Avner served under 4 of Israel's prime ministers and was also Israel's Ambassador to Britain, Ireland and Australia.
wikipedia: 'He has also been speechwriter and secretory to Levi Eshkol and Golda Meir before becoming adviser to Yitzhak Rabin, Menachem Begin and Shimon Peres.He had also worked with Rabin when he was serving as an ambassador to the United States. Impressed by Avner's writing skills, Begin called him "his Shakespeare." During his service he made notes and recorded several important events and conversations'

I saw it described as the "ultimate insider’s account" - it sure is. I've read a lot of Israeli political stuff but this is the best so far. I'm lining up Michael Oren's Ally: My Journey Across the American-Israeli Divide for my next nonfiction audio, but first I'll listen to something lighter.

Added to category #1: Israel: political nonfiction

32-Eva-
ag. 31, 2015, 11:43 pm

>28 avatiakh:
I loved that book! As for the "review" on Mondoweiss - it would have been a review if they had reviewed the book and not the entire people of Israel based on a short story writer's memoir. :)

33avatiakh
Editat: set. 12, 2015, 5:53 pm


The cut-out by Jack Heath (2015)
YA
A fast paced boy spy thriller that would appeal to a reluctant boy reader. It has the feel of the recent Ukraine/Russia conflict, starting with Faro sneaking out to participate in a huge demonstration. So it's actually set in two tiny fictitious states between the Ukraine and Russia.
A young Australian writer, Heath wrote this during a NaNoWriMo month. He had his first book published while a teenager and seems to specialise in writing for reluctant readers.

I was reading his bio and noted that as part of his research he read only books written by women for a year in 2011. He recently revisited his thoughts on that...'Four years on, I still read mostly books by women. They tend to be better—hear me out—because women (and people of colour, and LGBT people) face more barriers to publication and to success. A book which is 80% awesome might get published, reviewed and stocked in bookstores if a white, heterosexual man wrote it. But if it was a woman behind the keyboard, the book has to be at least 95% awesome to reach the same level of success. '
http://bookedout.com.au/find-a-speaker/author/jack-heath/

Added to category #15: Spies - both fiction and nonfiction


Triple by Ken Follett (1979)
fiction
Reasonable spy thriller based on true story of how Israel managed to get a supply of uranium back in 1968. I hadn't heard of this book but came across mention of it in my recent read of Spies against Armageddon. One of the other novels that was discussed was Mishka Ben-David's Duet in Beirut which I have already read.

Added to category #15: Spies - both fiction and nonfiction

34avatiakh
Editat: set. 2, 2015, 11:05 pm

>32 -Eva-: Indeed. I was quite taken aback, though I'm familiar with the site, I just couldn't believe the review, so much hate.
I picked up a book by Ronit Matalon from the library today, I haven't read her before, The sound of our steps.

35-Eva-
set. 4, 2015, 11:19 pm

>34 avatiakh:
I had a copy of her The One Facing Us, but it seems to be missing now. Hmm, if you love The Sound of Our Steps, I'll have to do an excavation for it. :)

36VioletBramble
set. 8, 2015, 8:02 pm

I've had The Man Who Loved Children on the shelf for years. That I know it's going to be a depressing slog is what keeps me from picking it up to read.
I will look for The Iridescence of Birds. It looks lovely.

37avatiakh
set. 12, 2015, 5:10 pm

>35 -Eva-: Hoping to get to the Matalon before its due date, I have a huge pile of library books to get through. Next year I'm going to have to focus on my tbr mountain.

>36 VioletBramble: For all the 'depressing slog' it ends up being an interesting read. My problem was not focusing on it and constantly reading other books. I'm always doing this to chunksters from my own tbr pile, I let less interesting library books have priority as they have due dates.

38avatiakh
set. 12, 2015, 5:46 pm


On Market Street by Arnold & Anita Lobel (1981)
alphabet book
This is one of several collaborations between the husband & wife team, though being an alphabet book I guess Arnold had much less work to do. Anita Lobel was inspired by 17th century French trade engravings and the book came together after she did a similarly themed 1977 poster for Children's Book Week.
You can view the book through a sampler on HarperCollins website here: http://www.harpercollins.com/web-sampler/9780688803094
_

39avatiakh
set. 12, 2015, 5:49 pm


I am Rebecca by Fleur Beale (2014)
YA
Back in 1998 Beale wrote her classic YA I am not Esther about a girl sent to live with her cousins in a religious sect, Children of the Faith. Now all these years later she has revisited the story with two sequels to the original story. Rebecca is the young cousin to Esther (Kirby) and along with her twin sister at fourteen are old enough to be betrothed and then at sixteen married. This is Rebecca's story and is a stand alone read, I picked up enough in my reading to remember the gist of the first book which I'd read back when it was first published. Couldn't put this one down and will be reading the final book asap.
The final book in the trilogy Being Magdalene was published earlier this month and is set four years later and about the younger sisters in the family.
Several years ago I went to a talk that Fleur Beale gave just around the time her nonfiction book about Gloriavale, Sins of the father : the long shadow of a religious cult : a New Zealand story was being published. She'd researched the cult when writing her Esther book and had become involved with some of the young people who had left it. It sounded like she had no more energy left to explore this issue but I'm so glad she has gone back to write more fiction set in this world of strict religion. Gloriavale has been on the tv rather a lot this year, though I must admit to not having followed it at all.

Added to category #12: Spotlight: New Zealand YA - so many titles to catch up on


The Gods of Tango by Carolina De Robertis (2015)
historical fiction
A great look at the early years of tango and the life in Buenos Aires in the early 20th century. 17 yr old Leda arrives in BA, an immigrant bride, only to find that her husband has been killed just a few weeks before her arrival. To survive on her own and not return to her restrictive life back in rural Italy means making some very bold decisions.
Ok, I could have done without some of the sex scenes but overall this story of the tango was compelling, passionate and worth the journey.

Added to category #3: Latin Roots - fiction & nonfiction from/about Spain, Portugal & Latin America


Being Magdalene by Fleur Beale (2015)
YA
This is the concluding book in the I am not Esther trilogy and I was surprised at how much I enjoyed this. Beale gives us another look at surviving a religious sect, this time the last third of the book is about the life after leaving. Want to say more but won't as it would spoil the read.
My only niggle was some of the slang used by one of the brothers just didn't ring true for me.

Added to category #12: Spotlight: New Zealand YA - so many titles to catch up on

40avatiakh
set. 12, 2015, 5:50 pm


Battlesaurus : rampage at Waterloo by Brian Falkner (2015)
YA
Loved this and recommend it for teen boys especially. An alternate history adventure story set around the Battle of Waterloo, one with rampaging dinosaurs on the side of Napoleon. The story revolves around Willem who is the son of a famous magician who went into hiding many years earlier after earning the wrath of the Emperor. Very exciting and I hope there's a sequel at least as the story leaves interesting loose ends.

Added to category #12: Spotlight: New Zealand YA - so many titles to catch up on


The rest of us just live here by Patrick Ness (2015)
YA
Another impressive read from Ness, focusing on mental illness but with a brilliant twist. In lots of YA urban fantasy, our hero finds out he's the chosen one, the one who'll save the world, fight the monsters or battle the supernatural, but here Ness turns this around and we focus instead on a minor character, Mikey, who struggles with low confidence and OCD, he's concerned about his sisters and fed up with his dysfunctional parents. He now has only a few weeks till graduation (and/or the end, of the world) to tell his friend, Henna, that he's in love with her and then there is his best friend, Jared, who is gay and the only one who seems to understand him.

What makes this idea so effective are the chapter descriptions which tell us what's going on offstage with the 'heroes', the indie kids, in their battle with the immortals. Occasionally their doings end up as something Mikey notices in the background as he focuses on his growing anxiety.

Added to category #4: Favourite Writers - continuing to read them

41avatiakh
set. 12, 2015, 5:51 pm


The adventures of Beekle: the unimaginary friend by Dan Satat (2014)
picturebook
Story is about Beekle, who lives on the island where imaginary friends start out, slowly they all get chosen by a real child and when Beekle is left all alone he decides to come to our world to find his friend. Imaginative story with lovely illustrations, Beekle is very cute.
Winner of the Caldecott Medal (2015).


Keys by Sacha Cotter (2014)
picturebook
The Maori edition won the Maori Language Award recently at the New Zealand Children's Book Awards, so I thought I'd check out the English language edition.
A cute story, a father who works late, a little daughter who wakes up most nights from the sounds of his key unlocking the front door. As he settles her back into bed, she asks about each of the keys on his keyring and what they are for. Each key gets more elaborate and so do the stories that go with them, in the end the best key is his housekey as that unlocks the door to home and family. Delightful. Illustrations by Josh Morgan (of Te Aitanga-a-Mahaki and Rongowhakaata descent) are good too.


Benno and the night of broken glass by Meg Wiviott (2010)
picturebook
A story from a cat's perspective of Kristallnacht and the growing Nazi threat to Jewish families living alongside their German neighbours in a Berlin neighbourhood. I especially liked the illustration style used by Josée Bisaillon. There is a short bibliography and additional reading list as well as a factual afterword with two photos of the events described in the text including the burning of the Neue Synagogue, the largest in Berlin.



The Butterfly by Patricia Polacco (2000)
picturebook
Based on the true story of Polacco's aunt whose mother was in the French resistance and hid a Jewish family in the cellar. Young Monique wakes to see a ghost of a young girl in her room, but it turns out to be a real girl who is living in her cellar. They share a friendship until it becomes dangerous and Sevrine and her parents must be moved. A compelling story and equally compelling images.
The cat and the Star of David necklace reminded me of an excellent Holocaust YA read, The Thought of High Windows which is also set in the south of France.


42avatiakh
set. 12, 2015, 5:52 pm


Dancing on the Bridge of Avignon by Ida Vos (1989)
children's fiction
Rosa, a young violin virtuoso, describes daily life under German occupation and the slowly diminishing rights of the Jewish population; sudden deportations, only permitted to shop between 3-5pm, a curfew at 8pm, no visits to the park, rides on the tram, no longer allowed to visit non-Jewish homes and the much hated yellow star they are forced to wear even in their homes. She keeps a list on her bedroom wall along with the date of each new regulation.
There are many Dutch who thrive on this oppression of the Jewish community, even so Rosa's parents refuse to consider going into hiding as that will put their compatriots at risk if they are found. Because Rosa can no longer have lessons with her music teacher as she can no longer go to a non-Jewish home her uncle finds her a remarkable Jewish musician and famous conductor, Mr Goldstein, to learn from. Her uncle also has a plan for the family to get to safety, to Avignon in the south of France.
Ida Vos's own experiences of the war provides the background to this novel. She bases the character of the uncle 'Sandor' on real life Friedrich Weinreb - who 'became notorious for selling a fictitious escape route for Jews from the occupied Netherlands in the Second World War. When his scheme fell apart in 1944, he left his home in Scheveningen and went in hiding in Ede. He was imprisoned for 3.5 years after the war for defraud as well as collaboration with the German occupier. In his memoirs published in 1969 he maintained that his plans were to give Jews hope for survival and that he had assumed that the liberation of the Netherlands would take place before his customers were deported. .' from wikipedia

The characters of Mr Goldstein, the musician and Brammertje, the hairdresser/cleaner are both especially memorable.
Added to category #4: The young ones - YA and children's fiction & nonfiction


One by Sarah Crossan (2015)
YA verse novel
Oh this is a beauty and so unusual. Grace and Tippi are conjoint twins, fused into one at the hip. Their parents have homeschooled them but now at sixteen the family finances dictate that they must go to school for the first time. Told from the POV of Grace, their story is sensitively told - the father who can no longer provide, the talented younger sister who could be a ballet star if only, the crippling health insurance costs which take priority over everything, an overworked mother and now the prospect of being ogled by all the normal students. Just as they start attending school and finding two wonderful new friends, Grace can feel that her shared body is beginning to falter.

I'm a huge fan of the verse novel, this one is just wonderful and I can also recommend Aleutian Sparrow by Karen Hesse.

Added to category #4: The young ones - YA and children's fiction & nonfiction

43avatiakh
set. 12, 2015, 6:05 pm


The Bakehouse by Joy Cowley (2015)
children's fiction
Bert, an old man in his 80s, looks back to his school days during World War 2 in New Zealand and tries once again to come to terms with his role in hiding a young soldier who had deserted and was hidden in the derelict old bakery near his home. He's carried a secret all his life. This was a satisfactory story though trying to moralise at the very end about New Zealand troops in Afghanistan didn't quite gel for me.

Added to category #12: Spotlight: New Zealand YA - so many titles to catch up on

44avatiakh
oct. 1, 2015, 3:39 am


The girl in the spider's web by David Lagercrantz (2015)
crime fiction
Subtitled, A Lisbeth Salander novel, continuing Stieg Larsson's Millennium Series.
I was at first reluctant to go here but then read a great review of the book and that persuaded me. It's been several years since I read the trilogy, so I wasn't as invested in the characters, and so for me it was a pleasant read. A fairly complex plot, when I started telling my daughter about the plot I realised how implausibe it all sounded but I really enjoy these reads. If you liked the original trilogy then go for it.

Added to category #11: Shiny New - new writers and/or new books


The Divine by Boaz Lavie (2015)
graphic novel
While I liked this I have to mention the struggle I had with text, such tiny print. The story about an undercover job in a fictional Asian kingdom by two US ex-soldiers, one roped in by the other for his skill in working with explosives. The explosives expert ends up working alongside a small group of child soldiers who despite their age are completely ruthless. They are led by two brothers, one of whom has powers drawn from the area that they live in. Not for everyone but an interesting read.
The writers based the book on the Htoo brothers who led the God's Army guerilla group in Burma in the 1990s.

Added to category #14: Images - photography, graphic novels, illustrated and picturebooks


Displaced Person by Lee Harding (1978)
YA fiction
The alternate title was Misplaced Persons. The book won Australia's Children's Book of the Year back when it was first published, 'a powerful fable about a teenager who finds that the rest of the world cannot see him.' It's really good and I can see it being an intriguing teen read. Graeme who's 17 starts noticing that he's being ignored, first at McDonalds where he struggles to get his order taken and then the food never comes. At home his Mum sets a table for two not three and then his girlfriend walks past him on the street. At the same time he notices he's beginning to see things in shades of grey, colour is disappearing. Eventually he finds himself in a kind of 'limbo', separated from the world and unable to interact with people or objects anymore. Then he sees a man playing a flute, he's also in limbo.
I like reading these older books, so many have been childhood favourites of today's writers.

Added to category #6: The young ones - YA and children's fiction & nonfiction

45avatiakh
oct. 1, 2015, 3:41 am


Make Me by Lee Child (2015)
thriller
This is Jack Reacher #20 and does not disappoint.
Added to category #9: Comfort reads - lighter reading and continuing series


Heart of Danger by Fleur Beale (2011)
YA
The final book in the Juno trilogy and while most of the danger and adventure was over well before the end, it was a pleasure to read how all the inhabitants from Taris finally settled into their new lives back in Aotearoa. The book is set about 60 years into the future.
A 20pg bonus read is available on the publisher's website which settles a final question about Juno's future. I went straight there on finishing the book, couldn't wait to find out the extra bit of happily ever after.

Added to category #12: Spotlight: New Zealand YA

46avatiakh
oct. 1, 2015, 3:46 am


Yellow Blue Tibia by Adam Roberts (2009)
fiction
More alternate history with a lashing of scifi. Imagine that in 1946 Stalin decides to get some scifi writers together to write an alien invasion, it's then all hushed up until around the time of Chernobyl when one of these writers resurfaces and says that what they made up is actually coming true. Implausible but entertaining read that lost me a little at the end when it went sort of The Matrix. I loved the array of characters especially poor old Konstantin Andreiovich Skvorecky, our underrated hero.
Apparently Stalin was really interested in UFOs which was the starting point for Robert's novel.

This was meant to be a shared read last month with Judy who liked it a bit less than me.

Added to category #7: Challenging - shared reads, theme reads, group reads, CATs etc, shortlists, long lists etc etc


Into the Wilderness by Mandy Hager (2010)
YA, new zealand
The second in Hager's dystopian trilogy, Blood of the Lamb. Hager comes from a family of political activists and this worthy novel which continues the story from The Crossing is partly based on the experiences of the Tampa refugees who ended up in Nauru back in 2001. So a great read for budding human rights activists.
I'm looking forward to the final book, where Maryam and her companions will return to their home islands. Hager has written several books since this trilogy that I've been wanting to get to, her latest YA won the NZ Children's Book of the Year, Singing home the Whale.

From wikipedia: In August 2001, the Howard Government of Australia refused permission for the Norwegian freighter MV Tampa, carrying 438 rescued refugees (predominantly Hazaras of Afghanistan from a distressed fishing vessel in international waters) to enter Australian waters. The government introduced the "Pacific Solution", whereby the asylum seekers were taken to Nauru where their refugee status was considered, rather than in Australia. Most were held in two detention camps, 150 were diverted to New Zealand where they eventually gained citizenship. Internationally, Australia was criticised by several countries, particularly Norway, which accused it of evading its human rights responsibilities.

Added to category #12: Spotlight: New Zealand YA


The Little Green Drum retold by Lucy Coats (2015)
children's fiction
An early reader that Lucy Coats has retold from the original Arabic story written by Jordanian Taghreed Najjar. The illustrations by Hassan Manasrah are great. This simple Ramadan story would also work as a picturebook, in fact I felt a little cheated to have these exuberant illustrations bursting from the smaller page size.
Coats writes about the book here: http://girlsheartbooks.com/2015/06/03/we-need-diverse-books/
__
The original book in arabic, titled Why Not?

47avatiakh
oct. 1, 2015, 3:47 am


The spy who loved: The Secrets and Lives of Christine Granville by Clare Mulley (2012)
nonfiction
Excellent biography on Krystyna Skarbek, a young Polish aristocrat who became Britain's first female agent for the British Special Operations Executive (SOE) during WW2. She was extremely daring and brave and was one of Britain's most successful agents, yet struggled after the war to even obtain British citizenship and be recognised for her achievements as the government refused to give military honours to women. The men who knew her during the war years came together after her brutal murder to suppress/censor any biographies as they didn't want her reputation to suffer due to the many lovers she had had. Mulley has managed to finally crack the silence all these years later and give us a more thorough glimpse of her life.

The book also illuminated for me the fate of the many thousands of Polish people who fought for the allies and could not return to Poland after the war due to the communist government. Most of the members of the Polish Free Government in exile, Polish free army, the Polish resistance etc would be executed on return. So many became stateless as they were now unwanted in Britain, seen as foreigners rather than allies, as the returning British servicemen were given priority for work etc. Some of the most esteemed Polish diplomats from the war years were reduced to taking menial jobs such as dishwashing. The British government banned the Polish Armed Forces from taking part in the postwar Victory Parade in London to avoid offending Russia.
I think the Yalta Conference in Feb 1945 was where Britain basically sacrificed Poland to the Russians in order to win the war.

'Churchill tried to dodge questions about Russia's trustworthiness, and expressed his confidence that Stalin would
respect the terms of the Yalta Agreement. He stated, " I know of no government which stands to its obligations more
solidly than the Russian Soviet government." . But three months after the Yalta Conference, the Russian government already reneged on its agreement. The NKVD had embarked on a massive manhunt for the members of the Polish Home Army. They were arrested, tortured, and hanged. Thousands more Poles were deported to the Russian gulag.
Polish troops which had helped the Red Army drive the Germans out of Lwow, Wilno, and Lublin, were repaid for their
efforts by execution. Among those arrested were sixteen prominent leaders of the Polish Underground. The Polish
government was aware that their disappearance was linked directly to British interference. The British Foreign
Minister, Anthony Eden convinced the Polish government to give him a list containing the names of all the Polish
Underground leaders. In turn, he surrendered the list to Stalin, with a warning that should any of the Poles be
harmed, Russia would be severely reprimanded. With this list, the NKVD was able to track down each member, and
invited them to a meeting to discuss the future of a coalition between the Red Army and the Polish Underground. The sixteen men were never seen or heard from again.
With the British economy in shambles, the public and the government showed little if any appreciation to the Poles for their sacrifices in the war, especially for their part in winning the Battle of Britain. Attlee, who replaced Churchill as Prime Minister stated emphatically that "everything should be done to ensure that as few Poles remain in...England.”
The presence of the Poles had become an embarassment to Britain who had betrayed it's most trustworthy and
valuable ally. Poles were subjected to vicious diatribes by the British public. A survey indicated that the British
wanted the Poles to repatriate. The British government used propaganda to impress upon the Poles how bad their
future would be in England if they remained. The Atlee government ordered all Polish military personnel to return to
Poland. If not, there was no guarantee they would be allowed to stay in England. The Poles could not return to
Poland, now under Soviet domination. Many who had already repatriated were immediately arrested and deported to
Siberia. Less than 20 % of Polish military (approximately 30,000) returned to Poland. The remainder chose to live in
Britain, or other western nations. In the meantime, the British government set up a Polish Resettlement Corps to help the Polish soldiers find work.' from http://www.polishgreatness.com/yaltaconference.html

Added to category #15: Spies - both fiction and nonfiction

48avatiakh
oct. 1, 2015, 3:48 am


Dear Committee Members by Julie Schumacher (2014)
fiction
This won the 2015 Thurber Prize for Humour earlier this week.
I enjoyed this. As a professor of creative writing in the Department of English, Jay Fitger writes numerous letters of recommendation for students, fellow professors, department employees and through his letters which don't always stay on point we discover much about his own failed career as a writer, his failed relationships with women and the undermining of funding for his beleaguered department. Rather hilarious.

“Belatedly it occurs to me that some members of your HR committee, a few skeptical souls, may be clutching a double strand of worry beads and wondering aloud about the practicality or usefulness of a degree in English rather than, let’s say, computers. Be reassured: the literature student has learned to inquire, to question, to interpret, to critique, to compare, to research, to argue, to sift, to analyze, to shape, to express. His intellect can be put to broad use. The computer major, by contrast, is a technician—a plumber clutching a single, albeit shining, box of tools.”

Added to category #11: Shiny New - new writers and/or new books


Walking your octopus: : A Guidebook to the Domesticated Cephalopod by Brian Kesinger (2013)
picturebook
A picturebook targeted at adults rather than a child. A sort of steampunk look at keeping an octopus for a pet. Endearing illustrations.


49avatiakh
oct. 1, 2015, 3:49 am


The wonderful O by James Thurber (1957)
children's
I wouldn't have read this now, but thanks to TIOLI challenges I decided to read a book by James Thurber. First I need to draw attention to the delightful illustrations by Marc Simont which have been included in the NYRB edition. The story is highly amusing, imaginative and full of word play that even adults will enjoy. A story about a pirate who hates the letter 'O' driving a community on the island of Ooroo to despair as he tries to uncover a hidden treasure.

Added to category #6: The young ones - YA and children's fiction & nonfiction


Witch Wars by Sibéal Pounder (2015)
children's
I loved this fun story about Tiga Whicabim, an orphan who discovers she's a witch, her name is actually an anagram of I AM A BIG WITCH. She's also been nominated to take part in Witch Wars, a reality tv competition to find the next leader of Ritzy City. So first a trip down the drain pipe to the world of witches and midget fairies where she finally meets some true friends. The illustrations by Laura Ellen Anderson are suitably hilarious.
Can't wait for the next one Witch Switch

Added to category #6: The young ones - YA and children's fiction & nonfiction

50avatiakh
oct. 1, 2015, 3:53 am


Oreo by Fran Ross (1974)
fiction

This ended up in the Not my type of book pile, though when I first saw mention of it over on Darryl's thread I thought it sounded intriguing. I struggled with the language, lots of Yiddish and 'black vernacular'. Best I quote from the back cover: 'a playful, modernised parody of the classical odyssey of Theseus - with a feminist twist, immersed in seventies pop culture.'
A teenager, Oreo, has been raised by her maternal African American grandparents, her mother's work takes her away from home constantly. She's had no contact with her Jewish father and now sets out on a journey to the streets of New York to find him.

Kirkus reviews: 'A brilliant and biting satire, a feminist picaresque, absurd, unsettling, and hilarious ... Ross' novel, with its Joycean language games and keen social critique, is as playful as it is profound. Criminally overlooked. A knockout.'

Added to category #7: Challenging - shared reads, theme reads, group reads, CATs etc, shortlists, long lists etc etc


179) Nylon Road: A Graphic Memoir of Coming of Age in Iran by Parsua Bashi (2006)
graphic memoir
Fairly interesting look at the contrasts between Bashi's life in exile in Switzerland and her coming of age in Iran. Another insight into Iran under the mullahs and also the difficulties of settling into a new life, language and more liberal way of life. Bashi in Switzerland is constantly visited by her 'former self' at various ages and together they explore these issues. Overall I'd recommend Persepolis if you haven't already read it and also Zahra’s Paradise before this one.
Bashi married when she was young and unfortunately the marriage was very repressive, her husband who was also an artist forbid her to work outside the home, meet with her friends and lambasted her mother. They had a child who Bashi was unable to have contact with when she divorced him, only realising that she was losing custody as the divorce was being processed.
Bashi went back to Iran to live in 2009 after 5 years in Switzerland, presumably to try again to have contact with her daughter.


Added to category #2: The Arab Spring

I came across an academic text that looks interesting, Rethinking Orientalism: Using Graphic Narratives to Teach Critical Visual Literacy: http://www.amazon.com/Re-thinking-Orientalism-Narratives-Critical/dp/1433122286


A beam of light by Andrea Camilleri (2015)
crime
Montalbano #19. Another good installment of Montalbano. Some sadness in the end and a couple of nifty phone calls with the Mafia about hunting lions.

Added to category #4: Favourite Writers - continuing to read them and hopefully completing the ouevre

51AHS-Wolfy
oct. 1, 2015, 6:08 am

>44 avatiakh: There seems to be quite a mixed bag of reviews for the David Lagercrantz continuation of the Millennium trilogy. I guess there are a lot of pre-disposed feelings to it involved and it would be difficult to disengage those when trying to objectively review it. Glad to see that you managed to enjoy it.

52-Eva-
oct. 2, 2015, 2:46 pm

I'm still hesitant about The girl in the spider's web, but if it falls in my lap, I might have a gander. :) I've heard that it's a good read, regardless.

53avatiakh
oct. 2, 2015, 4:17 pm

It's one of the cases where if you want to 'let go' you'll enjoy it for what it is, a continuation of these characters' stories. For those who were really invested in Larsson's vision perhaps it is not so great a read. I don't usually go for these continuation of series with new writers, but every now and then a review by someone I respect will persuade me.

Anyway I'm currently reading Arcadia by Iain Pears and finding it hugely appealing and complex. He's designed an app to help follow the story strands for those who can't 'do' multiple story lines.
http://www.theguardian.com/books/2015/aug/20/novel-use-for-app-iain-pears-arcadi...

54-Eva-
oct. 2, 2015, 4:51 pm

>53 avatiakh:
I'm halfway between "couldn't they've just have left it alone" and "I really want to read more of these characters," so I'll have to wait and see where I land.

I hope it's possible to follow the Pears-book without the app! :)

55avatiakh
oct. 4, 2015, 6:37 pm


Childhood by Jina Oberski (1978)
novella
Beautiful autobiographical novella from the perspective of a very young child (4yrs to 8yrs old) set during the Holocaust. The boy accompanies his parents from Amsterdam to Bergen Belsen and is the only one to survive the war. The Penguin classics edition has a moving essay by Jim Shepard of The book of Aron fame about writing from the viewpoint of a young child.
Added to Dropbox - extra category for books that don't fit


The Search Warrant by Patrick Modiano (1997)
novella
The narrator tracks down the clues left behind by a young Jewish girl who was a runaway during WW2. He comes across an old newspaper with an advert for information on the missing girl, put in by her parents and 30 yrs later begins a search for her identity, that of her parents and her ultimate fate. In the process he meditates on his father and himself. I can admire Modiano's writing but really it doesn't appeal to me, I read more for story than meditation.

Added to category #5: Challenging - shared reads, theme reads, group reads, CATs etc, shortlists, long lists etc etc


Tug of War by Joan Lindgard (1989)
YA
Lindgard bases this loosely on her husband's own experiences of being a Latvian war refugee fleeing the Russians in the closing months of WW2. Twins Hugo and Astra must leave their homeland with their family as the Russians will have their father on a wanted list as he's a prominent academic. Interesting and there is a sequel.
I'm keen to read more of Lindgard's writing, she's written several books that appeal.

Added to category #6: The young ones - YA and children's fiction & nonfiction


The Big Lie by Julie Mayhew (2015)
YA
Speculative fiction set in 2013 Nazi England. Mayhew writes an interesting story about a teen who finds herself questioning the indoctrination she has been brought up with. Jessika is a great character, so mixed up, wanting to be a good Nazi but she has feelings for her best friend, Clementine. Clementine and her parents aren't so committed to the German ideals, in fact, Clementine is keen to kickstart a revolution.
This look at an established world of Nazi rule has been well researched and Mayhew explains in her Historical Notes how she included genuine Nazi organisations and publications for girls and applied them to a more modern society. There's also a glossary of German words and phrases as well as a bibliogpraphy. I'm definitely going to try her debut novel, Red Ink.
She mentions being impressed with a documentary, We Are Legion. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-zwDhoXpk90

Added to category #6: The young ones - YA and children's fiction & nonfiction

56avatiakh
nov. 2, 2015, 12:45 am


Momo by Emile Ajar (1975)
fiction
The book won the Prix Goncourt, though the real author was not revealed for several years until it was republished as The Life Before Us under the writer's real name, Romain Gary, after his death in 1980.
I really enjoyed this. Momo is short for Mohammod, one of several children under the care of Madame Rosa, an old Jewish woman, a former prostitute who has survived Auschwitz. The book is set in the 1960s or 1970s in the poor immigrant neighbourhood of Bellevue in Paris and is about their last months together.
It seems to have been a common undertaking where immigrant prostitutes left their young children in the care of a person such as Madam Rosa in order that they weren't seized by the authorities and thrown into institutional care. At the heart of the book is the relationship between Momo and Madame Rosa but the other inhabitants of the building and surrounding neighbourhood also shine.

Added to: Dropbox - extra category for books that don't fit

57avatiakh
nov. 2, 2015, 12:46 am


Malice: a mystery by Keigo Higashino (1996 Japanese) (2014 Eng)
fiction
Gripping mystery which alternates between the journal kept by one of the main suspects/witness about the incident and ongoing investigation and also the thoughts of the head detective on the case. A well known writer is murdered in his home and the investigation looks at the timeline and alibis of those who visited on the fatal day. The key is the motive.

Added to category #11: Shiny New - new writers and/or new books

58avatiakh
nov. 2, 2015, 12:48 am


The Secrets of the Wild Wood by Tonke Dragt (1963 Dutch) (2015 Eng)
children's fiction
Finally translated and published in English, I think I enjoyed this even more than the first book, The letter for the king. I've put it down as children's fiction but these two books are great for all ages. Tiuri (now a knight) and his squire Piak venture into the Wild Woods to find a missing knight. A brilliant sequel.
An interview with the author here: My knights’ tales belong in England


Hopefully all these will get translated into English

Added to category #4: Favourite Writers - continuing to read them and hopefully completing the ouevre

59avatiakh
nov. 2, 2015, 12:49 am


Ally: My Journey Across the American-Israeli Divide by Michael B. Oren (2015)
nonfiction
Oren was the Israeli Ambassador to the US from 2009 to 2013, before that he was best known as a writer of historical nonfiction and now he is an MK in the Israeli parliament. I'd already read two of his books, Six Days of War and Power, Faith, and Fantasy: America in the Middle East: 1776 to the Present both of which I rate highly. In this memoir which also covers his childhood in the US and aliyah to Israel as a teenager, Oren gives us a look at what an ambassador's work is actually like in the day to day grind. He was not a diplomat before becoming ambassador so had to learn it on the run and this is really interesting.
He also goes into the relationship between Israel and the White House in great detail, debunking some media claims and reinforcing others. He attempts to 'understand' Obama and the direction that Obama has taken the US. What comes over most in this book is Oren's great love for both countries.

There have been many articles about Oren & the book in the media:
http://www.jewishjournal.com/cover_story/article/the_loyalist_david_suissa_revie...
http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2015/06/michael-oren-interview-...

Added to category #1: Israel: political nonfiction

60avatiakh
nov. 2, 2015, 12:52 am


Longbow Girl by Linda Davies (2015)
YA
I really liked this timeslip novel set in Wales. I loved all the archery details, Davies clearly understands the sport and has also done her research thoroughly. Merry Owen lives on her family farm granted to the family over 700 years ago for the service of her ancestor as a longbow man. A stipulation of the grant is that each generation must be ready to bear arms for their king, and so she has been trained in the skill of longbow archery since she was a young child. The novel sees Merry travel back to the times of Henry VIII in order to save the farm from confiscation when one of her ancestors is wrongfully imprisoned.
I've added one of Davies nonfiction books to my 'to read' list, Hostage: Kidnapped on the High Seas.
An interview with Linda Davies is here: http://teenlibrarian.co.uk/2015/08/31/longbow-girl-interview-with-linda-davies/

Added to category #6: The young ones - YA and children's fiction & nonfiction

61avatiakh
nov. 2, 2015, 12:53 am


Forbidden love in St. Petersburg by Mishka Ben-David (2005 Hebrew) (2015 Eng)
fiction
Another great espionage novel about the Mossad. I really like how Ben-David is most concerned with the psyche of the agent himself and how his job affects his relationships with his family etc. In this one, 'Paul' is still recovering from a messy divorce and is sent to live in St Petersburg, to set up business opportunities and create a cover for possible future operations. So he meets a woman and falls deeply in love and is convinced she also loves him. He's one of Mossad's most experienced agents yet dismisses some of the niggles he feels as probably being coincidences. When Mossad tells him to break off with Anna, he has to decide between his love and his job. Mossad has to launch an operation to get their agent out of Russia before he is caught by the authorities, but where has he gone and who is Anna.

Added to category #15: Spies - both fiction and nonfiction

62avatiakh
nov. 2, 2015, 12:57 am


Happy Birthday, Turk! by Jakob Arjouni (1985 German) (2011 Eng)
fiction
This is the first in the Kemal Kayankaya series, German Turk detective who was adopted at a young age by an ordinary German couple so has grown up estranged from his Turkish roots. Set in Frankfurt this plot is rather noir, featuring the seedier side of life, that of drug dealing, addicts, prostitutes and pimps. A little violent but overall a great read. I'll be reading all 5 books in the series.

Added to category #9: Comfort reads - lighter reading and continuing series


There's a Lion in My Cornflakes by Michelle Robinson (2014)
picturebook
Hilarious picturebook about two children who send away for a lion after collecting vouchers from 100 boxes of cornflakes. Unfortunately the cornflake company has run out of lions and their mother is making them eat cornflakes for every meal. Jim Field has done the illustrations.



Cats Are Cats by Valeri Gorbachev (2014)
picturebook
An old lady brings home a kitten from the pet shop and calls it Tiger, and indeed it grows to be a tiger. Later she headsa off to buy a goldfish... Amusing, typical of its type.

63avatiakh
nov. 2, 2015, 12:59 am


Girl on a Plane by Miriam Moss (2015)
YA
Having read David Raab's memoir of the 1970 Dawson Field hijackings, I was really interested to read this one. Moss was also on one of the hijacked planes, the BOAC flight from Bahrain that was hijacked by the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) in order to force the UK to release the terrorist, Leila Khaled who was part of the failed hijacking of an ELAL plane from Amsterdam. Moss's experience was of much shorter duration than Raab's.

So all these years later she has produced a teen novel based on what happened to her when she was 15, travelling alone back to boarding school in the UK. She strips the novel of most of the political background as she's writing from the POV of a naive young teenager. It's quite a good read, a good introduction to the politics of terrorism and the Middle East. And again, it's apparent the the Red Cross did nothing to help these passengers access food and water. The only interaction they had with Westerners was when the media were allowed to come and interview them, all the time all she wants is a drink of water which was being rationed.
'I was a child on my own, in a hijack: scared, hungry and thirsty, and sleeping for three days on a plane wired with explosives'

Added to category #6: The young ones - YA and children's fiction & nonfiction


The Walls Around Us by Nova Ren Suma (2015)
YA
Rather creepy YA based around ballet and a reform prison. What gives it atmosphere is the structure, Suma throws us into the story at the midway point and from there we get to work out what happened and what will happen. What we know; two friends both talented at ballet, though one has more natural talent than the other; two girls from the ballet class murdered during a dress rehearsal of The Firebird; Was the wrong girl found guilty? What happened at the prison?
I liked it and consider it my Halloween read as there is a supernatural element. Definitely consider reading other books by the writer.

Added to category #6: The young ones - YA and children's fiction & nonfiction

64avatiakh
Editat: nov. 2, 2015, 1:02 am


Submission by Michel Houellebecq (2015).
fiction
This was my first Houellebecq novel and I was surprised at how easy it was to read and how literary. Set a few years into the future, the outcome of the French elections sees a Muslim Brotherhood party, under a charismatic leader, gain dominance when the two leftist parties can't bring themselves to form a coalition with the far right Le Pen party. The book covers the fallout in academia as the Sorbonne comes under the patronage of the Saudi government and all teachers must convert to Islam to keep their jobs..
We follow all this through the fortunes of Francois, a middleaged lecturer in literature, his whole miserable way of life is forced into change, can he adapt, does he want to adapt. He reflects on French writers and philosophers from the past, the past grandeur of Christianity, all the while being courted by male colleagues who've sold out and taken the plunge into Islamic lifestyles.
As for the controversy, this book isn't anti-Islam, Houellebecq uses the concept of Islamic politics to show up the fading fortunes of France's republican ideals and how it's all been sold out by politicians and modern society. The book has also been compared to Jean Raspail's 1973 novel The Camp of the Saints which I read earlier this year.

From the NewYorker: Houellebecq is, simply, a satirist. He likes to take what’s happening now and imagine what would happen if it kept on happening. That’s what satirists do. Jonathan Swift saw that the English were treating the Irish as animals; what if they took the next natural step and ate their babies? Orwell, with less humor, imagined what would happen if life in Britain remained, for forty years, at the depressed level of the BBC cafeteria as it was in 1948, and added some Stalinist accessories. Huxley, in “Brave New World,” took the logic of a hedonistic and scientific society to its farthest outcome, a place where pleasure would be all and passion unknown. This kind of satire impresses us most when the imaginative extrapolation intersects an unexpected example—when it suddenly comes close enough to fit... Houellebecq is not merely a satirist but—more unusually—a sincere satirist, genuinely saddened by the absurdities of history and the madnesses of mankind...
Like most satirists worth reading, Houellebecq is a conservative. “I show the disasters produced by the liberalization of values,” he has said. Satire depends on comparing the crazy place we’re going to with the implicitly sane place we left behind. That’s why satirists are often nostalgists, like Tom Wolfe, who longs for the wild and crazy American past, or Evelyn Waugh, with his ascendant American vulgarians and his idealized lost Catholic aristocracy. Houellebecq despises contemporary consumer society, and though he is not an enthusiast, merely a fatalist, about its possible Islamic replacement, he thinks that this is the apocalypse we’ve been asking for. http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2015/01/26/next-thing

Added to category #11: Shiny New - new writers and/or new books

65avatiakh
nov. 2, 2015, 1:02 am


195) Katy by Jacqueline Wilson (2015)
children's fiction
I loved this retelling of What Katy Did. I read lots of Wilson's books many years ago and all these years later she still writes a fab tale. She's taken a beloved classic and breathed new life into the story. Katy Carr is now an English tomboy, always getting into trouble. The second half of the book deals with Katy's rehabilitation, this time she is not going to walk again and must get used to a life in a wheelchair.

Added to category #6: The young ones - YA and children's fiction & nonfiction


The Fish in the Bathtub by Eoin Colfer (2014)
children's fiction
This is a delightful story, and beautifully illustrated. The publisher specialises in books for reluctant readers, and there is a note on the website that the 'book has a dyslexia-friendly layout, typeface and paperstock so that even more readers can enjoy it.'
Set in Poland during the communist era, a grandfather finally gets a carp which he keeps in the bathtub fattening it for the Christmas meal. His granddaughter befriends the carp, she has learning difficulties and this is the first time she has focused so clearly and for long periods, talking and reading to the fish. So will grandfather carry out the deed or not.

66avatiakh
nov. 2, 2015, 1:04 am


The Scorpion Rules by Erin Bow (2015)
YA
This is the first in the Prisoners of Peace series and the premise is interesting - 'In the future, the UN has brought back an ancient way to keep the peace. The children of world leaders are held hostage—if a war begins, they pay with their lives.' So the UN is more or less the overall ruler of the world and is run by a great Artificial Intelligence, Talis. The story is told from the POV of Princess Greta, who has been a hostage since the age of five.
I enjoyed Bow's Plain Kate so was keen to try this one and wasn't disappointed.

Added to category #6: The young ones - YA and children's fiction & nonfiction

67avatiakh
Editat: nov. 2, 2015, 1:06 am


197) The Mantle of the Prophet: religion and politics in Iran by Roy Mottahedeh (1985)
nonfiction

I was reading an article 'How to Understand the Ayatollahs' in The Commentator, and the writer, Michael Rubin, in the first paragraph says 'When lecturing to practitioners, be they military, law enforcement, or intelligence analysts, a recurring question is, “If I could read one book about Iran, what should it be?”
I hastened to get this book after reading the article and wasn't disappointed, I read it slowly and tried hard to take it all in. I feel I now have a strong grasp of the Shia Muslim philosophy, I know more about Islamic jurisprudence than I ever thought I would ever know and I do now understand the why, who and how about the ayatollahs in Iran. A fabulous book, it takes you through the whole history of Iran finishing at the edge of the revolution in 1979. It will take another whole book to understand what has been done in Iran since then.
The festival of Ashura took place last week and it was a bit disconcerting to see the photos in the news after reading about it in the book. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3287819/Spilling-blood-religion-Tiny-Shi...

Rubin: 'One book, however, has always stood out: Harvard University Professor Roy Mottahedeh’s Mantle of the Prophet. It might be 30 years old, but it is the only book that takes the reader inside the mind of an ayatollah.....The true strength of Mantle is how smoothly Mottahedeh transitions from the biographical sketch to sidebars about shopping in a Persian bazaar, Islamic philosophy, and Iranian history. It’s not a political book, and it’s not going to detail the contemporary Iranian leadership’s embrace of terrorism or the details of a covert nuclear program. Nevertheless, more than any other work out there, it goes deepest into the mindset of the ayatollahs and the factors and philosophy which has shaped their thinking.'
https://www.commentarymagazine.com/foreign-policy/middle-east/iran/how-to-unders...

Added to category #2: Arab Spring - Middle East/North African/Islamism - fiction & nonfiction

_
so alongside this book I also watched a culinary travel tv series, Spice Journey, by Shane Delia, an Aussie/Maltese, married to a Lebanese and renown chef of Maha in Melbourne. In series 1 he travels to Malta, Lebanon and Iran. So it was quite surreal to see the sights, foods and markets etc of Iran while reading Mantle of the Prophet. He visits a saffron farm and ends up spending $1000 on a kilo or so of saffron threads at the local market, a bargain all told.
He has done another series on Morocco & Andalusia and a third on Turkey, so I'll be looking out for those. His Maha cookbook is great and he has another cookbook based on his travels coming out next year.
Trailer: http://www.madman.com.au/series/home/17629
Recipes: http://www.sbs.com.au/food/program/shane-delias-spice-journey

68avatiakh
Editat: nov. 2, 2015, 1:12 am


Honor Girl: A Graphic Memoir by Maggie Thrash (2015)
graphic memoir
Surprisingly refreshing account of a girl's summer at camp where she discovers that she has a crush on one of the camp leaders, a young woman. Romantic and funny. I enjoyed this.

Added to category #14: Images - photography, graphic novels, illustrated and picturebooks


Stan the Van Man by Emma Vere-Jones
picturebook
This won last year's Joy Cowley Award for a picturebook script. The fun illustrations for this fun story have been done by Philip Webb.
Stan volunteers to stand in for the missing van driver so the mail can be delivered, but he has a secret...there isn't time so off he goes, and so the secret that he can't read gets out as the parcels all end up in the wrong place. Needless to say the community rallies, teaches Stan to read and he keeps his job.

69avatiakh
nov. 2, 2015, 1:10 am


Murder in Amsterdam: The Death of Theo van Gogh and the Limits of Tolerance by Ian Buruma (2006)
nonfiction
Really interesting look at modern Dutch society through the story of the death of Theo van Gogh. Van Gogh was a controversial film maker, murdered by an Islamic extremist. Buruma returns to his native Holland to try to make sense out of the mix of Muslim migrants, the legacy of the Holocaust and other questions that arise.

Added to category #8: Fact - nonfiction general

70avatiakh
Editat: nov. 2, 2015, 1:15 am


The Crossing of Ingo by Helen Dunmore (2008)
YA

The fourth in the Ingo series and finishes the story of Conor and Sapphire as far as I'm aware. The 5th book begins a new Ingo cycle.
Conor and Sapphy join the young mer in a coming of age ritual, the crossing of the oceans journey that takes them to the South Pacific and back. I'm enjoying this series and have the 5th book ready to go.

Added to category #6: The young ones - YA and children's fiction & nonfiction

71avatiakh
nov. 2, 2015, 1:14 am


Arcadia by Iain Pears (2015)
scifi
My first read for November, just couldn't quite manage to squeeze this one in by the end of October. Anyway I really enjoyed this, there are multiple storylines, alternate worlds, time travel and ends with most loose ends very nicely tied together. A story to wallow in and enjoy.

Added to category #11: Shiny New - new writers and/or new books

72avatiakh
Editat: nov. 2, 2015, 1:17 am


Books do furnish a room by Anthony Powell (1971)
fiction
And so I continue the Dance to the music of Time series with book #10. It's now after the war and Nick gets back into writing and publishing. I'm listening to an audio of these last three books, 2 to go.

Added to category #9: Comfort reads - lighter reading and continuing series

73AHS-Wolfy
nov. 2, 2015, 6:17 am

>62 avatiakh: I enjoyed Happy Birthday, Turk! so glad you liked it too. Haven't got around to picking up the sequels as yet so I'll be looking out for what you think on them if you beat me to it (which in my current reading funk is a high probability).

74mamzel
nov. 2, 2015, 11:25 am

Wow! You have been busy reading! My library just received The Walls Around Us and your review inspires me to read it soon.

75avatiakh
nov. 2, 2015, 6:05 pm

>73 AHS-Wolfy: The other books are available at my library so I hope to get to them over the summer.

>74 mamzel: I've been fairly lax about updating my category challenge this year so my reading arrives all at once every month or so. That said I've been reading more than usual but I can't see that continuing next year as I'll be much busier.
The walls around us was quite unusual and I've read enough raves about the author that i'll be trying more of her work.

76avatiakh
nov. 2, 2015, 6:05 pm


Cairo by W.Willow Wilson (2007)
graphic novel
A highly imaginative tale of djinns and myth set in modern Cairo.

Added to category #14: Images - photography, graphic novels, illustrated and picturebooks

77-Eva-
nov. 2, 2015, 11:04 pm

That's quite a batch! I'll take a BB for Cairo!

78DeltaQueen50
nov. 4, 2015, 5:30 pm

I am also taking a BB for Cairo and for Honor Girl. Both look very interesting.

79avatiakh
nov. 4, 2015, 7:28 pm

>77 -Eva-: >78 DeltaQueen50: I've seen Cairo mentioned as a prelim to Alif the unseen, her debut novel which I need to read at some stage.

80avatiakh
nov. 6, 2015, 2:16 pm


The kingdom and the cave by Joan Nathan (1960)
children's fiction
Lovely magical story about a young prince, a talking cat and horse who save their kingdom from the Underpeople. I read it after coming across an article a few weeks ago about how the book is to be republished. It was Aiken’s first novel, written when she was 17.

Added to category #6: The young ones - YA and children's fiction & nonfiction


The wolf wilder by Katherine Rundell (2015)
children's fiction
Took my time with this one as I wanted to stretch out my enjoyment for a few days. Feo and her mother are Wolf Wilders, they take wolves who have been pets in Russian aristocratic households but no longer wanted and train them to live in the wild. The story is set during the winter when the country is on the cusp of revolution.
I liked Rundell's Rooftoppers but enjoyed this one much more. I ended up buying my own copy as the library hardback edition was not illustrated and the paperback edition has beautiful illustrations by Gelrev Ongbico throughout.
There's a good article about Ongbico's work for the book here: http://tygertale.com/2015/09/23/katherine-rundells-the-wolf-wilder-by-gelrev-ong...
Tygertale: Although Gelrev didn’t work directly with Katherine Rundell there were unexpected overlaps between her vision for the book and Gelrev’s realisation. ‘This is the photo that gave me the idea of Feo asleep in a pile of wolves‘, she writes.
_
And this was Gelrev’s finished image. ‘As far as I know, Gelrev never saw the photo – just a lovely coincidence’ says Katherine.

Added to category #6: The young ones - YA and children's fiction & nonfiction

81avatiakh
Editat: nov. 7, 2015, 4:18 am

I read these two book back in March but never added them to my challenge here.


Hot Pink Spice Sagas: an Indian culinary travelogue with recipes by Peta Mathias & Julie Le Clerc (2014)
nonfiction
Well, I looked through this travel/cookbook on India and read some of the travel bits. The train journey made me laugh out loud. They booked a first class sleeper only to find that they were sharing it with 2 men. Endless hawkers through the journey, filthy sheets, no view from tiny window, unmentionable toilet facilities. Julie wakes to find a man sitting on her feet using his laptop! She's also told off by the men for taking photos of the hawkers, that is not interesting, you should be taking photos of scenery. All told in a very humorous 'grin and bear it' style. Peta is a well known NZ foodie, she leads culinary tours to Morocco, France and India, hosted a few food tv shows and is age defying with her bright red hair and colourful outfits. Julie Le Clerc is also well known, has written several cookbooks, tv shows, a magazine, cafes etc etc. She does her own food photography & styling and has been in India recently as a food consultant for a 5 star luxury hotel. I follow Julie on FB as she is so enthusiastic about her work.

Lots of the recipes look interesting and the photographs capture local families and chef, arts and crafts as well as the food. I've copied out the recipe for Maheshwari scrambled eggs which is slightly more complicated than this one I found online for egg burjhi.

http://www.petamathias.com/
http://julieleclerc.com/

Added to category #13: Food Writing - cookbooks and food writing in general


The Depot: the biography of a restaurant by Al Brown (2014)
nonfiction
Also looked through this one. The Depot is a popular eatery in central Auckland, full name is The Oyster Bar Depot eatery.
I've been there a couple of times and while Al Brown is one of NZ's most famous chefs, he's deliberately made this place very casual and affordable. I don't do fancy schmancy restaurant eating anymore. The book covers his philosophy on food and restaurants and gives ample space to the architect, builder, graphic design artist as well as the food and waiting staff. Really fascinating insight into the personalities that make up the staff and how and why he came to hire them. Also comes with recipes for some of the famous items on the menu.
I've taken note of a few of his basic recipes at the back of the book for babaganoush, red pepper harissa and kasundi.
Yum. http://albrown.co.nz/ http://www.eatatdepot.co.nz/ http://www.thefed.co.nz/
I loved his book Go Fish and now need to look through Stoked.
Here's his recipe for Skirt Steak with Habanero Mustard, Tobacco Onions & Iceberg Wedge which I've had at The Depot and can vouch for how tasty it is.
and another article
I've also now had breakfast a couple of times at his Best Ugly Bagels, the bagels and coffee are excellent and it is fun to watch the bagels being hand rolled. http://www.bestugly.co.nz/

Added to category #13: Food Writing - cookbooks and food writing in general

82avatiakh
nov. 7, 2015, 5:28 am


The Flavor of Jerusalem: international recipes from the many cuisines of the sacred city by Joan Nathan & Judy Stacey Goldman (1974)
cookbook
This is an interesting glimpse into the diversity of Jerusalem. Nathan & Goldman, both journalists, went around the city and outlying villages and interviewed a huge number of the city's inhabitants and collected special recipes. The 1970s was a period when the city was finally unified and the people were living together in optimistic harmony. While I knew that Jerusalem is the home to people from all round the world the book was still a revelation. Reading about each person, family or special tradition was really interesting. I probably learnt most about the different Christian denominations, so many including a long history of Ethiopian monks going back to the birth of Christianity. I've taken note of a few recipes.
The most memorable meal I've had in Jerusalem was in a small Kurdish restaurant about 15 years ago.
I'll now be able to read and cook from Ottolenghi's Jerusalem: a cookbook with a little more insight into the diversity of flavours.

Added to category #13: Food Writing - cookbooks and food writing in general

83-Eva-
nov. 7, 2015, 7:33 pm

Jerusalem: A Cookbook is on top of my Christmas wishlist - if nobody gets it for me, it may just be my present to myself. :) A friend shared the Babka recipe and I can't wait to try something else of his!

84avatiakh
nov. 7, 2015, 10:32 pm

Hi Eva, also look out for Zahav: A World of Israeli Cooking, it's a beauty, I have it home from the library and it's gone on my wishlist.

85avatiakh
nov. 8, 2015, 5:18 am


Trotsky: a graphic biography by Rick Geary (2009)
GN / nonfiction
I got it into my head to read some of these graphic adaptions of biographies. I have a Che one home from the library, though my initial enthusiasm has waned somewhat. Anyway this gives a brief overview of Trotsky's life and the illustrations are superb. Just that I probably need some more 'meat in the sandwich' than what i'm getting from 130pgs of comic strip bio.

Added to category #14: Images - photography, graphic novels, illustrated and picturebooks


How to be happy: a memoir of love, sex and teenage confusion by David Burton (2015)
YA nonfiction
This won last year's Text Prize for a YA manuscript which is why it came to my attention. Unusual in that it's a memoir rather than a work of fiction, but an incredibly strong, raw and powerful coming of age story that needs no fictional embellishment. Burton suffered from depression and anxiety as a young child, his younger twin brothers both diagnosed with Aspergers Syndrome (they communicate using lines from popular culture tv shows), both parents on anti depressive medication. So, when he starts high school, every day for for Dave is an act. The first part of the book is about his high school life and how debating and drama classes saved him from staying a loner with no friends, though the act goes on. Only at the midway point do we realise that he's living a lie, when he starts to detail how withdrawn with his own family, all the energy of the highschool day is draining. Then he gets really confused by sexuality issues and thinks he's probably gay.
This exploration of his sexuality is so frank and honest as he finds himself unable to identify with the 'strong dominant male' idea in a hetero relationship but abhors the lack of monogamy and flamboyance seemingly expected in the gay community. He comes out in the final weeks of high school, though several years later 'comes in'.
What I really liked about this was that instead of finishing at highschool graduation the book goes on, in less detail perhaps but covers his university years, his first real (disastrous) relationship, rebuilding his life and learning to be himself through therapy and the support of his friends. The book finishes with a welcome short recap on what happened to the many people he encountered on his journey. Very wonderful and funny too, not a promiscuous book at all, just an honest one, he doesn't have his first kiss till he's at university and that is during a bottle game.

Also his father gave him a copy of John Marsden's Secret Men's Business, Manhood: The Big Gig which I'd not heard of but now want to read.

Added to category #6: The young ones - YA and children's fiction & nonfiction

86-Eva-
nov. 8, 2015, 7:25 pm

>84 avatiakh:
That one looks great too - BB for me!

87avatiakh
nov. 9, 2015, 11:54 pm


The Ambassador by Yehuda Avner & Matt Rees (2015)
fiction
An alternate history of WW2. Here Avner & Rees consider what could have happened had Israel come into existence 10 years earlier, in 1938 rather than 1948. Ambassador Dan Lavi is sent to Germany in 1938, his role is to aid Jewish immigration from Germany to Israel. He must liaise with Eichmann who runs the Office for Jewish Emigration.
With the War of Independence over, Israel is almost immediately caught in a no-win situation. The Germans demand that Israel remains neutral, if Ben-Gurion sides with the Allies then the Nazis will cease all Jewish emigration from German-controlled areas. The British demand that Israel sides with them, otherwise they'll be forced to invade Israel in order to protect the Suez Canal.

I loved the texture of the paper in this quality hardback novel, a joy to read. I do feel that the cover is a little unappealing and only those seeking it out will pick it up. I enjoyed this story, the writers kept as close as they could to actual events up to the Wannsee Conference.

Added to category #11: Shiny New - new writers and/or new books

88avatiakh
Editat: nov. 11, 2015, 9:28 pm


displaced visions:: Emigre Photographers of the 20th Century by Nissan N. Perez (others)
photography

Book is from an exhibition at the Israel Museum in Jerusalem. There is an interesting essay about the earlier practitioners of photography and how 'many of these pioneers were immigrants - people displaced by choice or, quite often, by necessity. These photographers became observers and interpreters of their new surroundings through the filters of their different cultures, languages and religions. Photography in the 20th century (particularly the Modernist vision) is deeply indebted to them.
Photography in the 20th century (particularly the Modernist vision) is deeply indebted to them.
Displaced Visions reconsiders the work and influence of key figures in modernist photography from the point of view of their status as immigrants, considering how this condition affected their vision and creativity and enhanced the development of the photographic language in general. ' from publisher's website

Standout photos included a great one of a younger Dali by Luis Bunuel.


Israel: 50 years as seen by Magnum photographers (1998)
photography
Impressive selection of photographs taken from 1948 to 1997 in Israel. Each decade is preceded by memories and impressions by the featured photographers chosen to represent that decade. One of the memorable ones was from Micha Bar Am, who recalled being in Haifa 50 years earlier, watching the British troops leaving. He was on the rooftop of the Haifa Port Authority and watched a photographer shooting pictures at every possible angle. He looked up and they made eye contact. Years later he found himself at age 17 in a photo from that day, the photographer had been Robert Capa.


“In 1966, while working on a feature about a Picasso exhibition at the Tel Aviv Museum of Art, I recorded the pre-opening preparations and observed a moment: One of the cleaners stopped, puzzled, in front of the Picassos—Micha Bar-Am

David Chim, 1952 - Wedding under an improvised huppah made with guns and pitchforks, Israel

Robert Capa, 1950 - Jewish refugee child from an Arab country in absorption camp near Haifa.

There's a selection of these photos at the Magnum website: http://www.magnumphotos.com/C.aspx?VP3=SearchResult&ALID=29YL53GEXPE


The Palestinians: photographs of a land, its people from 1839 to the present day by Elias Sanbar (2014)
photography

This was first published in French in 2004 and Hazan publishing has done this English edition more recently. Elias Sanbar is a Palestinian historian, poet, essayist and currently the Palestinian ambassador to UNESCO. There is a long rather rambling essay Out of time, out of place where Sanbar explains the themes of the various sections. As it focuses on the history of photography in Palestine of the 19th and early 20th century, the early sections are mostly photographs of landscapes, biblical settings and stereoscopic images such as most of us would be familiar with from postcards of those eras. I'm currently reading The storyteller of Jerusalem: The Life and Times of Wasif Jawhariyyeh, 1904-1948 and was looking forward to seeing the life in Jerusalem that he writes about but the focus of this photography book does not provide such an insight into daily life during the Ottoman era or the British mandate period.

Overall it is in some ways a disappointing book despite the promise of the cover and quality and size of the book. My first disappointment is that there is not enough detail in the captions for the photos considering it is a history of photography. Many photos are not dated or the caption is fairly vague or the photographer credited as anonymous. There is not enough information on the photographers themselves and many photos I've seen before on the internet.
The last part of the book focuses on Palestinians as refugees. Missing are the photographs of the Israeli Arabs who stayed in Israel. The review I linked to below considers that at this point Sanbar's book becomes autobiographical.

There is a selection of photographs where the UNRWA photographers tried to draw a parallel with the biblical Israelites by posing refugees in biblical scenes. 'Virgin and Child': Palestinian refugees resemble all other refugees, but their country is like none other. This is the special 'touch' of the UNRWA photographers: by approaching this reality with 'the eyes of the Gospel', over the years they have produced an impressive gallery of 'Virgins and children' and scenes from the life of the Holy Family on its flight into Egypt' - from the text
I can't find examples of these images on the internet as the UNRWA photo archive is currently offline until 2016.

There is an excellent review of the book by Issam Nassar, a Palestinian historian of photography and the Middle East, in Frame by Frame magazine: http://www.palestine-studies.org/sites/default/files/jq-articles/31_nassar_1.pdf


Tiberias

Bedouin Encampment at Capernaum, 1893

Bedouins from Jericho by Bonfils, c.1876-85

The Jews wailing place, a friday. Bonfils, circa 1880s.

I'm now waiting for a copy of Revealing the Holy Land: The Photographic Exploration of Palestine by Kathleen Howe to arrive. It's an older book but promises to give more information on these earlier photographers. My disappointment with the above book might in some way be from the anticipation I had while I waited for my library to obtain the order. When I tried for an interloan copy I was informed that there were no copies available in New Zealand so it was suggested that I ask the library to purchase a copy which I went ahead and did. The book is a valuable archival resource as it collates so many early photos, just a shame that 99% of these are of barren, abandoned landscapes.

All added to category #14: Images - photography, graphic novels, illustrated and picturebooks

89avatiakh
nov. 12, 2015, 5:14 am


My son's band, The Essential Tremor, has put out two singles recently. The name of the band came from Nick, the lead singer, who suffered from essential tremor after an injury to his arm. Anyway Alon plays both lead and bass guitar on these.
I really like this one, 'Curious' - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=61j7I7lRU1M&feature=youtu.be
'It's over now' has a three weeks in 3 mins time elapse of flowers budding, blooming and then withering which is quite stunning - https://www.facebook.com/136941693120988/videos/536878639793956/?pnref=story

I got to listen to 'Curious' a lot as I voted for the song every day for a month which helped them win a $10,000 grant with NZ on Air.

90-Eva-
Editat: nov. 12, 2015, 1:00 pm

I love the video for "It's Over Now!"

>88 avatiakh:
I've yet to see a Magnum book that wasn't absolutely beautiful!

ETA: And I just noticed that I've been singing that song in my head now for a while - it's apparently very catchy! :)

91avatiakh
nov. 12, 2015, 3:53 pm


New Zealand Cafe Cookbook by Anna King Shahab (2015)
cookbook
This is probably the third cafe cookbook of this type I've looked through and probably the least appealing for me personally. Most of the cafes verge on restaurant-level and many of the featured recipes are for trendy main meals rather than interesting salads or sweeter fare. 'well-known food writer Anna stops off at a selection of the cafés she feels collectively reflect the very best of what’s going on in our café scene.'
Each entry gives a bio of the owners and that's generally interesting reading, a photo spread of the cafe itself, generally a few sentences describing the design and decor, popularity and history of building. I wondered why they included the very few cafes where they is no info on the owners, it sort of sticks out when there are so many quirky or passionate stories. I also didn't care that they included three cafes in my region that are part of the successful HIP group, why should a corporate group get three entries no matter how good their cafes are.

So I took note of a couple of simpler recipes to try: one for a green dressing that looks good and has been used in the Wholemeal Cafe for many years -
Wholemeal Cafe, Takaka - Place all ingredients except oil in food processor & blend to smooth paste - 1 large handful flat-leaf parsley; 1 small handful other green herb - basil, mint, or tarragon; 1/2 c cider vinegar; 4 pickled gerkins; 2 cloves garlic; 1 tbspn mustard; 1 medium cucumber, chopped; 1 tsp salt.
With machine still running, slowly add 1/2-1 cup olive oil & blend till well emulsified and thick and creamy.

The Boatshed Salted Peanut Caramel Slice recipe from Queenstown, NZ:
Base: 200gms biscuit crumbs & 125gms melted butter, put in greased tin and chill.
Mix 1 can sweetened condensed milk, 1/2 c brown sugar, 2 tblsp golden syrup over heat till sugar dissolves. Add 250g roughly chopped salted peanuts.
Bake 25 mins 180C until golden brown. Cool before slicing.

Overall though I see it more as a foodie book, one to take note of the actual cafes and visit them rather than trying out their special recipes in your own home. I really liked the story of Lukes Kitchen, it's in Kuaotunu, Coromandel so a bit remote for me at present - http://www.lukeskitchen.co.nz/
For NZers here are 5 of the cafes: http://www.viva.co.nz/article/food-drink/favourite-cafes-5-great-holiday-brunch-...

Added to category #13: Food Writing - cookbooks and food writing in general

92avatiakh
nov. 12, 2015, 3:57 pm

>90 -Eva-: Happy that you liked the video. That song is also growing on me.

93lkernagh
nov. 12, 2015, 10:00 pm

>91 avatiakh: - I love to peruse foodie books for ideas and interesting tidbits. That books sounds promising from that perspective!

94avatiakh
nov. 12, 2015, 10:49 pm

>93 lkernagh: Oh always. I'm a magpie for food related books.

95avatiakh
Editat: nov. 14, 2015, 8:38 pm


Only a donkey by Celeste Williams (2007)
picturebook, Australia
One of the reasons I read this was because I love the work of illustrator, Patricia Mullins. I found out a few years ago that Mullins who has illustrated several beautiful picturebooks featuring horses, is also involved in the restoration of wooden carousel horses. http://patriciamullins.com.au/Restoration.html
This is a lovely ANZAC story told from the pov of farmyard animals. The donkey is teased, he's 'only a donkey', ridiculed especially by the big brawny bull.
The donkey has a dream and so they all set out on a journey eventually arriving at a statue of a donkey. They learn that this commemorates a donkey that served at Gallipoli in WW1 bringing the injured down a cliff under fire to the beach to be treated and hopefully evacuated out to ships. The various animals are a much more compassionate bunch on the return journey and the donkey never hears, 'only a donkey' again.
There is a big market each year here in Australia/New Zealand for children's books around ANZAC Day commemorating our participation in WW1 & 2.

_


Ms Marvel by G. Willow Wilson (2014)
graphic novel
A story about a Muslim girl who gains superpowers but has to deal with family life rather than villains. It's the first of a series and was quite good. I especially enjoyed the depiction of her family. This is the first in a series.

Added to category #14: Images - photography, graphic novels, illustrated and picturebooks


Can't we talk about something pleasant? by Roz Chast
graphic memoir
A good followup read to Being mortal. Chast tells us about the last few years of her parents' lives and how they manage, she manages and with flashbacks to earlier years. Her parents lived into their 90s so were very entrenched in their ways by the time they needed care.

Added to category #14: Images - photography, graphic novels, illustrated and picturebooks


An ANZAC Tale by Ruth Starke (2013)
graphic novel
Oh, this was unexpectedly a quite brilliant read. I got sucked in by the book cover when browsing a Pinterest board on ANZAC teaching resources, the teacher had repinned one of my pins and so I visited back and was rewarded with many interesting links and books.
I didn't notice from the cover image that the Australians were going to be depicted as muscled kangaroos, but how apt. I also thought I was getting a picturebook story, but ended up with a graphic novel for approx 10-14yrs. The book follows the fortunes of two outback friends as they enlist at the start of WW1 and end up in Gallipoli. The book finished with the withdrawal of the troops and a small speech bubble - 'Why would any Australian want to come to Gallipoli?', turn the page to a double page spread of our present day annual commemoration ceremony at Gallipoli, which is wonderfully striking way to finish. There is also a timeline.

The depiction of battle is not for all tastes, I always feel that it is respectful for those who died for our freedoms to read as much as possible about war and those who fought.

Ok, the illustrations are bloody brilliant. I've not heard of Greg Holfeld before.
http://gregholfeld.com/

Australians = kangaroos, koalas
Officers = cockatoos and other birds
Egyptians = cats
Turks = cougars



shame I can't find any images from his 'blue' pages, not many images from the book available online.

Added to category #14: Images - photography, graphic novels, illustrated and picturebooks

96avatiakh
nov. 14, 2015, 8:32 pm


'Because of them'
Not sure who did this illustration, the blog where I took it from says it might be a Turkish illustrator.

97avatiakh
nov. 14, 2015, 8:37 pm


The Pillbox by David Hughes (2015)
graphic novel
I saw this on display at the library and brought it home for a quick read. A trifle disturbing and with an illustration style that is sophisticated in some ways yet grotesque, think Ralph Steadman.
A boy on a seaside holiday stumbles into a ghost story from World War Two, unsettling ghost story that involves paedophilia, murder, innocent man sent to the gallows and a betrayal of a grieving family.
So not one i'll be recommending unless you like the odd and bizarre.

Here's a quote from Savidge Reads: 'I personally didn’t love the artwork yet I was mesmerised in a slightly haunted way by it, it captured my attention whilst also making me want to look away – a lot like some of the upsetting parts of the book as you read on. I loved how he uses colours around the emotions and feelings going on in the book when no one is speaking though. So I am conflicted between thinking this book wasn’t for me at all, yet also founding it deeply affecting and disturbing and won’t forget it in a hurry. Creepy and odd.'
https://savidgereads.wordpress.com/category/david-hughes/

Guardian review: http://www.theguardian.com/books/2015/jul/19/the-pillbox-david-hughes-review



These are some of the friendlier illustrations

Added to category #14: Images - photography, graphic novels, illustrated and picturebooks

98-Eva-
nov. 15, 2015, 12:05 am

The Ruth Starke book looks really interesting. Not available here as of now, but hopefully eventually.

99avatiakh
nov. 19, 2015, 2:32 pm


a thousand nights by E.K. Johnston (2015)
YA fiction
This is a retelling of the Arabian Nights. Taking note that Johnston is a forensic archaeologist who has spent time in Jordan, I felt that the descriptions of the desert, the folklore and life in the desert were really well done.

The story is about a young woman who gets herself chosen as the new bride of the prince in order to save the life of her more beautiful sister. Most brides rarely last 24 hours but this time it's a little different, the magic of the desert is part of the strength of the new bride and she will need it to defeat the djiin who has taken resident in the prince.
Something I didn't notice as I was reading this is that the only named character is the prince. Overall there is a lurking malice in the story that almost takes over the narrative, the evil to be defeated seems almost overwhelming, but Johnston is a great storyteller and weaves a magical ending.

I'm now looking forward to reading the other new release covering the same territory The Wrath and the Dawn. I'm also itching to get to Johnston's Prairie Fire which continues to tell the story of Owen.

Added to category #6: The young ones - YA and children's fiction & nonfiction

100avatiakh
nov. 19, 2015, 2:33 pm


The Arab of the Future by Riaf Sattouf (2015)
graphic memoir

I loved this, it's 'the unforgettable story of Riad Sattouf's childhood, spent in the shadows of 3 dictators—Muammar Gaddafi, Hafez al-Assad, and his father.'
His Syrian father is a student in Paris and meets a beautiful French student, they fall in love and get married. They have a child and the father gets his academic qualification, he can get a wonderful job anywhere but takes his family to Libya as he identifies with the new leader of Libya, Gaddafi. From there they end up living in the father's family village in Syria. It's tough in some ways being Riaf, he has beautiful curly blond hair so along with his non-Arabic speaking mother is bound to always be an outsider. The father is probably deluded.

What is portrayed is the utter poverty and desolation of living in these places. Everything is broken, unfinished (to avoid taxes sometimes) or polluted and one wonders why the family just doesn't stay in France, well the father is the one making the decisions. And it is funny, Sattouf finds many funny moments, Seinfeld-style perhaps but enough to make this highly enjoyable.

Sattouf was an artist for Charlie Hebdo for ten years, 2004-2014.


Added to category #14: Images - photography, graphic novels, illustrated and picturebooks

101avatiakh
nov. 19, 2015, 2:33 pm


Railhead by Philip Reeve (2015)
YA scifi

Another great read, one I've been looking forward to since first hearing about the book. It's scifi, set off earth. Reeve puts us in a new era where planets across the universe are linked by gates and travel is by rail. The story is exciting and nonstop action. I'm really hoping that he continues with this and doesn't leave it at just one book.

I picked up another YA scifi from the library that also has drawn me in, Way down dark.

Added to category #6: The young ones - YA and children's fiction & nonfiction

102avatiakh
nov. 21, 2015, 10:22 am


Career of evil by Robert Galbraith (2015)
fiction
Cormoran Strike #3 and a very good one at that. I dived in and didn't take a break till it was all over.

Added to category #9: Comfort reads - lighter reading and continuing series


216) The Dharma Punks by Ant Sang (2014)
graphic novel
Ok, this didn't hit the spot so much for me but it does for many other people. Ant Sang wrote a 8 part comic ten years or so ago and has long been out of print but thanks to a kickstarter campaign the 8 installments have been collected in one volume with an intro by Elizabeth Knox. It's set in 1980s Auckland, where I live and follows the exploits of 'Chopstick, an alienated young punk rocker' who along with other anarchist friends is plotting to make the opening of a multi-national fast-food family restaurant an explosive event. I still have his Shaolin Burning to read. Ant Sang is a fifth generation Chinese New Zealander and is well known for his work on the tv animation series Bro' Town.

http://www.antsang.co.nz/comics.htm

Added to category #14: Images - photography, graphic novels, illustrated and picturebooks

103avatiakh
nov. 23, 2015, 2:05 am


Way down dark by James Smythe (2015)
YA scifi
The first in The Australia Trilogy. The hype says that if you liked The Hunger Games you'll like this one. I went on after The Hunger Games and read The Inferior by Paedar O'Guilin which I ended up liking even more, it was on a list for post-Hunger Games readers. Way down dark has several twists in the plot so I won't say too much, except that it is action packed and with a strong female lead. Smythe has written several well received adult scifi novels that I've always meant to pick up and I'll probably do that while I await book 2 to come out.

Added to category #11: Shiny New - new writers and/or new books

104avatiakh
nov. 27, 2015, 3:12 am


The Journey to Tunisia, 1914: Paul Klee, August Macke, Louis Moilliet by Zentrum Paul Klee (2014)
nonfiction
Ok, here's one I haven't read but just looked at the pictures. I'd like to read the text but life is short and I need to read some of my own books so...
It's a beautiful volume to accompany the Museum Zentrum Paul Klee's exhibition to mark the centenary of Klee's trip to Tunisia. While Klee, Macke and Moilliet were only in Tunisia for two weeks, the trip was a very important step in Klee's development as an artist and for modernist art. The book not only contains many examples of the art, but also beautiful sketches, some with light additions of watercolour, photos and pages from Klee's travel journal. Also examples of local art from Tunisia. Really beautiful, and if you love art I can see this as one to spend some time with.

'In the course of a stay in Tunisia that lasted just two weeks, Paul Klee produced 35 watercolours and 13 drawings, August Macke 33 watercolours and 79 drawings in three sketch books. Louis Moilliet was less productive in Tunisia, and produced his most important works during later stays in Morocco and Southern Spain. For Paul Klee Tunisia remained an important source of inspiration for a long time. He repeatedly drew inspiration from his memories of the trip or the pictures that arose from it, and even in the early 1930s he made over 20 works that refer to the event.

The Tunis trip is a key event in 20th-century art history. Since Ernst-Gerhard Güse’s 1982 exhibition and the catalogue produced to accompany it, now long out of print, new research has thrown up much new evidence. It sheds new light on the history and prehistory of the Tunis trip, as well as its after-effects, and illuminates the context, both historical and art-historical, of the birth of modern watercolour painting. Zentrum Paul Klee has taken on the task of re-examining and honouring the art-historically significant event in a comprehensive, art-historically grounded publication. All the works exhibited are given full-page illustrations of very high printing quality, thus allowing a wide audience to grasp the Tunis trip as a visual experience.' - Zentrum website


Zentrum Paul Klee is located in Berne, Switzerland.


Paul Klee, Hammamet, 1914

August Macke, Landschaft mit hellem Baum, 1914

'Of the stories that gathered around Klee perhaps none is more powerful than the one that he encouraged about his visit to Kairouan. ‘Colour and I are one’, he wrote in his diary, in response to his stay in the Tunisian town in April 1914. Though this comment may have been written later, the sentiment that Klee encouraged was that he ‘broke through’ from his skill as a draughtsman into colour during his North African trip. He even hinted that his Swiss mother might have had ancestors from the region, so powerful was the adventure. What is clear is that the experience of Kairouan, visited with the painters Auguste Macke and Louis Moilliet on the eve of the First World War, fuelled Klee’s work for years to come.' Tate Gallery

some images: http://www.orientaliststyle.com/blog/more-works-from-zentrum-paul-klee-bern-hund...
http://www.orientaliststyle.com/blog/the-journey-to-tunisia-klee-macke-moilliet-...

some more info: https://www.goethe.de/en/uun/akt/20465785.html

Just putting this post together makes me want to hold on to the book for a few more days. ZentrumPaul Klee goes on my to do list for the next time I'm in Switzerland for sure.

105avatiakh
nov. 27, 2015, 3:12 am


Harry Miller's Run by David Almond (2015)
children's illustrated story

This story is very appealing. Almond sets his stories in Newcastle in the north of England and this story is no exception. Eleven year old Liam wants to train with his friends for the upcoming Junior Great North Run but his mum insists he comes with her for one last visit with their neighbour, old Harry who is about to enter a nursing home. They've been helping clear all the debris of his life and in this last visit they look through old photos with him. One photo is of a group of young friends at a nearby beach, and Old Harry tells the epic story of the big run of 13 miles he did one day with his friends when they were 11 yrs old. The illustrations by Salvatore Rubbino are delightful.
Almond wrote this for the Great North Run Culture which celebrates sport and art.
http://www.greatnorthrunculture.org/home


My Gallipoli by Ruth Starke (2015)
YA graphic

After writing An ANZAC Tale Starke felt she had enough material for another book, this time using the firsthand accounts she'd read when doing research.
'I did far more research for An Anzac Tale than found its way into the book, and I found myself thinking about another Gallipoli book, one which focused on specific narrators who would explain what Gallipoli meant to them, from well-known names like war correspondent Charles Bean and the war artist George Lambert to the largely unknown individuals like the Sikhs of the Indian Mule Cart Corp and the heroic soldiers of the 6th Gurkha Rifles. Then, of course, there were the Turks, led by the brilliant Mustafa Kemal: what must it have been like for them in their trenches above the beach, watching the invaders pour off the landing crafts on April 25?' - RS
So each double page is dedicated to different participants, from both sides of the war, including the war artist, the nurse and the press correspondent. It's an interesting read, I'd never thought much about it, but learned that indigenous (Aborigine) Australians were barred from enlisting but in spite of this about 500 Aborigines did fight.
The art is by Robert Hannaford - 'Such was my interest in this project that it prompted me to go to the Gallipoli Peninsula myself, to see the landscape where soldiers of all nations fought and died for their country and their empire, and to take in the ‘mood’ of the place itself. As both a person and an artist, I found it impossible not to be stirred by the rugged terrain on which these people fought, or moved by the sight of the cemeteries and memorials to the thousands who died in that eight-month battle. This first-hand experience gave me an emotional (as well as a physical) background to Ruth’s poignant stories in My Gallipoli.' - RH

It's listed as a graphic book for teens, though it is really just an illustrated nonfiction book.

The book goes past the fighting and covers the forensic work done by the War Graves Commission so introduces other interesting aspects of the aftermath of war. There are notes at the back of the book giving information about on each double page focus.

106avatiakh
nov. 27, 2015, 3:15 am


Lightning Jack by Glenda Millard (2012)
picturebook

I'm a fan of both Glenda Millard and illustrator, Patricia Mullins and so this book is a sure bet for me. Millard writes a beautiful lyrical narrative in the style of Banjo Patterson and Mullins' artwork is just stunning. Sam is at a muster of brumbies when he spots the most beautiful of all, a stallion that he names Lightning Jack and he goes for the ride of his life. I'll leave it at that except add the hint that Mullins is right into carousel horses.
Just beautiful and should be followed with Patterson's own The Man from Snowy River, the edition hat's illustrated by Freya Blackwood.

107avatiakh
nov. 27, 2015, 3:16 am


Zeroes by Scott Westerfeld, Margo Lanagan & Deborah Biancotti (2015)
YA
I decided to read this as the idea of three writers, two of whom I really like, collaborating on a text is an interesting one and I wondered how it would pan out. Overall it's like a script for a tv series like Heroes, but only the teens have powers and they are all difficult powers. The most interesting one is Anon, who has the powers of 'invisibility' or just not being remembered which made for a pretty sucky childhood especially when his parents forgot about him when he had to go to hospital. The most useful is Flicker's power, she's blind but can see through other people's eyes. They're a group of 5 and call themselves the Zeroes. this particular adventure starts when Scam, who has a power of a persuasive voice (though he can't control what it says) gets in trouble with local drug dealers, while talking his way into a lift home.
Overall it is an entertaining read with some great characters.

Added to category #6: The young ones - YA and children's fiction & nonfiction

108avatiakh
des. 2, 2015, 5:26 am


Ancillary Justice by Ann Leckie (2013)
scifi
Book #1 in the Imperial Radch trilogy/series. Most people who are going to read this have already read it. I've been guilty of having the book out from the library at least three times now so am pleased to have finally read it. It's good, interesting world building and I loved the relationship that slowly builds between Seivarden and Breq. I'll definitely read on.

Added to category #11: Shiny New - new writers and/or new books

109avatiakh
des. 4, 2015, 7:42 am


Asylum City by Liad Shoham
crime
This was a new Israeli writer that I happened upon, he writes crime novels set in Tel Aviv. I really relished this one, I'm familiar with all the areas that the book was set in so could really picture the various locations.
An Israeli woman, an activist who works for the rights of the African illegals in Tel Aviv is found murdered and finding the killer is more complicated that it at first appears. The main character is a woman police detective.

Added to category #11: Shiny New - new writers and/or new books

110LittleTaiko
des. 4, 2015, 9:27 pm

>108 avatiakh: - I'm planning on reading that one in December. Looking forward to it!

111avatiakh
des. 6, 2015, 8:03 pm

>110 LittleTaiko: It's good, a little wordy but an interesting world. I'm now reading a YA scifi set in space, Illuminae, I'm enjoying the fact that you're reading a file, full of messages, reports, info files etc but overall the story seems too junior Battlestar Galactica for me.

112avatiakh
Editat: des. 6, 2015, 8:05 pm


The storyteller of Jerusalem: The Life and Times of Wasif Jawhariyyeh, 1904-1948 by Wasif Jawhariyyeh (Eng 2013)
edited diaries
I came across mention of the diaries of Wasif Jawhariyyeh when reading Jerusalem: a biography by Simon Sebag Montefiore in the section about the British Mandate period. Jawhariyyeh was from one of the well known Greek Orthodox Christian families, he was a musician and civil servant. Montefiore accessed the diaries as edited by Palestinian scholars Salīm Tamārī &, Issam Nassar. These diaries were abridged and translated by Nada Elzeer into English only recently.
So The Storyteller of Jerusalem begins with two interesting introductory essays: Wasif Jawhariyyeh's Jerusalem by Tamari and From Ottomans to Arabs by Nassar and a foreword, Hearing Palestine by Rachel Beckies.

One of the reasons for the abridging of the diaries is to remove the excessive writings on music as Jawhariyyeh wrote endlessly about the playlists, the songs and the music he listened to and players who he was influenced by. Enough of this survives in the text to give you more than enough detail. Because he wrote his diaries up in the late 1940s after he left Jerusalem for Jericho, there are endless lists of people and extremely detailed descriptions of buildings and how they were placed in their immediate neighbourhood, the ownership of the buildings. At times this is quite tiresome though one can also see it as an act of remembrance. So I felt that as a reading experience the book could have been edited even more, though for academics searching for primary source material this detail could be invaluable.

So the text almost brings alive the late Ottoman period of Turkish rule in Jerusalem and also covers the full extent of the British Mandate period. Jawhariyyeh as a musician was extremely popular and invited to endless parties from all the social sectors of Jerusalem. From Montefiore's book I felt that this would be an illuminating read and in some ways it was. However there is always in the back of my mind that the material is only as good as the editors, what they choose to include and choose to leave out. I first noticed in an early section which is possibly headed 'Christian, Muslim & Jewish Festivals around Easter' - there are several paragraphs devoted to Easter for Christian Arabs and pilgrim visitors and also several paragraphs about Muslims sharing this festival at this time but the Jewish celebration of Passover gets only one fairly abrupt sentence. (Having read the book on kindle I find it impossible just to flick to the pages I want to refer back to)
Also the 1933 Arab Trade Exhibition is described as such a great success that the 'Zionists' who had been excluded from even visiting the exhibition decided to set up their own trade fair the following year, when in fact Jewish Palestinians had been doing trade fairs since the early 1920s. I was aware of this as I'd come across the Palestine poster project some years ago and enjoyed looking at the various styles of graphic design of the era including the posters for the Levant trade fairs.

Anyway Jerusalem's society parties sound incredibly hedonistic during the early Mandate period. Endless drinking to dawn, music, drugs, mistresses from an array of backgrounds, Russian, Armenian, Greek and Jewish. At first the Arab population welcomed the British and the overthrow of the oppressive Ottoman rule, though soon the tide turned against the British as Arab nationalism started to rise. Wasif's brother had been a gendarme in Beirut as part of his Ottoman conscription and on return to Jerusalem opened Cafe Jawhariyyeh, introducing the custom of serving mezze with drinks. Also of interest is how the Christian Arabs are educated almost as much in the Muslim traditions and religion as their own. There is no sign of dhimmitude in his descriptions though by 1922 (British Mandate census) the Jewish population was the majority at 33,000 and the Christian slightly edged out the Muslim population at 14,500 to 13,400.

Overall I'm pleased to have read this, many passages are extremely interesting and make me interested in reading more from this period of early to mid-century life in Israel/Palestine. There are several memoirs that I can track down, one by American, Bertha Spafford Vester, was referenced by Montefiore. On the other hand I felt that author's decision to leave Jerusalem as the Mandate was ending, influenced some of the tone of the book such as the Balfour Declaration always referred to as 'the sinister Balfour Declaration'. And always I felt that perhaps some of the passages concerning interaction with Jewish Jerusalemites has been excluded by either the editors or the translator... or not.

Added to category #2: Arab Spring - Middle East/North African/Islamism - fiction & nonfiction

a selection of the books on this era I want to read include:
Soldiers' Tales: Two Palestinian Jewish Soldiers in the Ottoman Army during the First World War by Glenda Abramson - based on the diaries of two young Jerusalem Jews.
Our Jerusalem by Bertha Spafford Vester - hard to source
Rebels in the Holy Land: Mazkeret Batya, an Early Battleground for the Soul of Israel by Sam Finkel
Moses Montefiore: Jewish Liberator, Imperial Hero by Abigail Green - earlier period but interesting
Anonymous Soldiers: The Struggle for Israel, 1917-1947 by Bruce Hoffman
The Aaronsohn Saga by Shmuel Katz or Aaronsohn's Maps: The Untold Story of the Man Who Might Have Created Peace in the Middle East by Patricia Goldstone
and
The Reckoning: How the Killing of One Man Changed the Fate of the Promised Land by Patrick Bishop

While looking for some of the titles in the list in the previous post I came across Matt Rees's top 10 novels set in the Arab world:
http://www.theguardian.com/books/2010/jan/13/matt-rees-novels-arab-world

Also for a look at Middle Eastern music, this performance by Israeli musicians for the movie 'The Ballad of the Weeping Spring' is fairly outstanding - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FA2Xku_THv0
From what I understand the music is Iranian.
also
http://faran-ensemble.com/about-us/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2X16HWbr87A

113avatiakh
des. 6, 2015, 8:07 pm


The horses didn't come home by Pamela Rushby (2012)
YA
Well, the title tells all. This novel is about the last great cavalry charge which took place at Beersheva during WW1 and is a great story. Two 16 yr old friends, Harry and Jack sign up for the Australian Light Horse when war breaks out. They're young but great horsemen. On the morning of departure, Harry's horse is found to be lame, so he takes his younger sister's horse, Bunty, who proves her mettle time and time again. I loved that Bunty writes letters to to Laura, the sister.
The author takes pains keep the storyline as close to the true events and there are many little details that make this an interesting read. I learnt that poet Banjo Patterson who arrived in Europe as a journalist was conscripted to help train horses arriving in Egypt straight from the Australian outback.
The end is terribly sad, the horses couldn't be repatriated to Australia or New Zealand, there were too many and they would all have had to be quarantined for many months on arrival. It was enough to get the soldiers home.

From the book -'By the end of 1918 there were 13,500 walers (Australian brumbies) in the Middle East. 2,000 injured and old horses were shot. Another 250 were destroyed 'without permission' (the fate of Bunty) as their riders couldn't bear to see them sold to the Arabs and used as carthorses. The rest were either sold or taken by the Indian and British Army, their fate unknown once these armies left Egypt. In 1930 an Englishwoman visiting Cairo was horrified to see these ex-cavalry horses being used to pull heavy loads or pull carriages. Many in appalling condition, emaciated, underfed, overworked and often badly treated. She went back to England and started a charity to set up a hospital for horses in Cairo, The Old War Horse Memorial Hospital.'
http://www.thebrooke.org/about-us/our-history/letter-to-the-telegraph

I also liked that Rushby gave the NZ Lighthorse men a good part in the book, sometimes the Aussies overlook us poor Kiwis.
I have Devils on Horses: in the words of the Anzacs in the Middle East 1916-19 which I'm now inspired to read. The centenary of the cavalry charge is coming up in 2017 and I'd love to be in Israel to help celebrate. Earlier this year when I was in Israel I wanted to include a trip to the ANZAC monument south of Beersheva but we didn't have access to a car so didn't.
I've requested Elyne Mitchell's Light horse to Damascus from my library's interloan, it's based on her father's experiences. She's well known for her brumby books. Also going to look at Armageddon : two men on an Anzac trail.

http://www.lighthorse.org.au/resources/history-of-the-australian-light-horse/the...
http://www.nzmr.org/alh.htm
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Australian_Light_Horse


Monument in Beersheva

The Aussies did a movie back in the 1980s, The Lighthorsemen which I should watch. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KdFsIYiq_jU


Added to category #6: The young ones - YA and children's fiction & nonfiction

114Chrischi_HH
des. 7, 2015, 4:47 am

>109 avatiakh: >112 avatiakh: Thanks for the reviews and the link to the top 10 books. Very interesting, I will certainly take a closer look at those books. :)

115avatiakh
des. 7, 2015, 6:30 am


A song for Ella Grey by David Almond (2015)
YA
Winner of the Guardian children's fiction prize, 2015, this is David Almond yet again proving he is a wonderful writer. The story, like all his others, is set in Newcastle-on-Tyne but his teens, on the cusp of adulthood, also move a little north to the wild beaches around Bamburgh Castle, a truly magnificent setting. This is a story of first love, between Ella Grey and the strange but beautiful Orpheus as told by Ella's best friend, Claire. Beautiful mythical elements and a pure pure love. Music and poetry. Stunning and out of the ordinary.


Bamburgh Castle

Added to category #4: Favourite Writers - continuing to read them and hopefully completing the ouevre

116avatiakh
des. 7, 2015, 6:31 am

>114 Chrischi_HH: Yes, that list looks interesting for sure. I've taken note of a few.

117apoorvajoshiuk
des. 8, 2015, 4:31 am

S'ha suprimit aquest usuari en ser considerat brossa.

118avatiakh
Editat: des. 9, 2015, 6:34 pm


A boy called Christmas by Matt Haig (2015)
children's
An utterly delightful (and at times cheeky) story about how Father Christmas came to be. It all started in Finland in a one roomed cottage in the forest, a young boy called Nicholas lives there with his father, a poor woodcutter. Chris Mould has done the illustrations to accompany the story and they are quite perfect. There's magic, reindeer, elves, a truth pixie and an adorable mouse.


Added to category #4: Favourite Writers - continuing to read them and hopefully completing the ouevre


Refuge by Anne Booth and Sam Usher (2015)
picturebook
This tells the bible story of the Nativity and then goes on to the journey into exile in Egypt. The book has been published to support refugees and every sale sends money to the War Child charity in the UK. The story is well known and Booth has kept the text very simple. The illustrations are great, Usher uses golden watercolour to emphasize hope otherwise keeping to muted blues and greys.
https://www.warchild.org.uk/what-we-do

119avatiakh
des. 9, 2015, 8:35 pm


Temporary Kings by Anthony Powell (1973)
fiction

Book #11 in the A dance to the music of Time series, so I now have one book left to listen to. I took a long time with this one, I've been a bit remiss with audiobooks this year and plan to get back into them in the New Year. Anyway Widmerpool's antics remain the most interesting part of the series for me, his strange marriage, his political motivations.

Added to category #9: Comfort reads - lighter reading and continuing series

120avatiakh
des. 13, 2015, 3:07 am


Ruins by Peter Kuper (2015)
graphic novel
Mark said I'd enjoy this and I did. A beautiful work of art, combining the annual journey of the monarch butterfly to the south of Mexico and the extended visit of a NYC couple to Oaxaca in southern Mexico. The book covers the 2006 period of protest against the state governor in Oaxaca. The husband is an especially interesting character, he's just been made redundant from his job as an artist in the entomology department of a NYC Museum of Natural History, so he's very observant of all the insects they encounter while he searches for artistic inspiration. Meanwhile his wife, a writer, is struggling to complete her latest work as memories of an earlier trip to the same region begin to surface.

_

Added to category #14: Images - photography, graphic novels, illustrated and picturebooks

121avatiakh
des. 13, 2015, 3:09 am


The Walled City by Esther David (2002)
fiction
I almost forgot that I finished reading this a couple of days ago. This gives a glimpse into the painful world of a minority population that is in its last stages of stagnation. Following the life of one Gujarati Jewish girl living in Ahmedabad and her hopes and disappointments. We also experience the lives of her mother and grandmother, the falling away of rituals and customs, the family members who decide to marry outside their religion and convert. The young men are sent to either Israel or England or where ever to study and rarely return to live, leaving many sheltered girls little choice but to remain unmarried, destined to be companions for their parents in their old age.
The writing style was a little different but the subject matter compelling though sad. I've got others by David on my tbr pile.

An article about the Gujarti Jews - http://www.tabletmag.com/jewish-news-and-politics/970/a-passage-to-gujarat

Added to Dropbox - extra category for books that don't fit


Illuminae by Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff (2015)
YA
First in a new trilogy, The Illuminae Files, is set in 2575. Girl breaks up with boy in the morning, then in the afternoon their planet gets attacked. They end up evacuated on different spaceships and there's a third ship carrying evacuees who've been exposed to some form of bio-warfare plague. Helped and hindered by a corrupted AI called AIDAN that runs the fleet, the three ships must outrun a warship that's chasing them.
The story is told through a dossier of documentation, so you are reading emails, interviews, journal entries, messaging, reports, summaries of surveillance footage, wikipedia type data etc etc....this makes it visually appealing and rather fun to read.

The film rights have been purchased by Brad Pitt's company. I think it would make a fairly awesome teen movie.
http://www.thebookseller.com/news/brad-pitt-warner-bros-illuminae-oneworld-amie-...
The authors are Australian and I've not read either of them before.
https://misterkristoff.wordpress.com/
http://amiekaufman.com/

Added to category #11: Shiny New - new writers and/or new books

122mathgirl40
des. 13, 2015, 6:52 pm

>101 avatiakh: Railhead sounds great. I really liked Reeve's Fever Crumb series.

123-Eva-
des. 27, 2015, 5:32 pm

I'd be interested in hearing what you think of Light Horse to Damascus - Elyne Mitchell's Brumby-books were my favorite books when I was a kid, but I wasn't really aware of anything else she has written.

124avatiakh
des. 27, 2015, 6:12 pm

I'll be reading it early in the New Year. There is also a beautiful illustrated anthology of Mitchell's nonfiction writing, On the trail of the silver brumby and her daughter wrote a memoir as well, Elyne Mitchell : a daughter remembers by Honor Auchinleck.
I came across an article about her here: http://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/books/elyne-mitchell-and-the-brumbies-reign-...

125-Eva-
des. 27, 2015, 7:04 pm

Ooh, coveting!

126christina_reads
des. 29, 2015, 11:08 am

Phew, finally caught up with your thread! :) Both Houellebecq's Submission and Erin Bow's The Scorpion Rules look really interesting...BBs taken!

127avatiakh
Editat: des. 31, 2015, 1:42 pm


The door that led to where by Sally Gardner (2015)
YA
Ooh this was fun. A time travel book where a teenage boy gets to solve a mystery about his long lost father. AJ has only passed 1 GCSE and his Mum is angry and ready to throw him out, a last chance is a job interview she's wrangled for him with some poncey law firm in the City of London. Lots of interesting characters and a great plot.

Added to category #4: Favourite Writers - continuing to read them and hopefully completing the ouevre


Whispering in the wind by Alan Marshall (1969)
children's fiction
Delightful fairy tale story set in Australia. So our hero is a boy who has been raised by a stockman and sets off on a journey to rescue a beautiful princess from a dragon (which turns out to be a bunyip), as young men do in fairy tales. Along the way he picks up a companion, a kangaroo called Greyfur, who has a magical pouch from which just about anything can be pulled.
Overlooked when it was published, Marshall is well known for his adult work including his memoir about growing up with polio, I can jump puddles.

There's an interesting article about Whispering in the Wind here, Australia’s forgotten fairy tale: http://www.lib.latrobe.edu.au/ojs/index.php/tlg/article/view/594/555

Added to category #6: The young ones - YA and children's fiction & nonfiction


Chanukah in Chelm by David A. Adler (1997)
picture book
Apparently there are many tall tales in Jewish folklore that are set in a fictional Chelm where all the residents have 'good hearts, great dreams, and very little sense'. Here the caretaker of the synagogue can't find the table on which to place the Chanukah menorah. Illustrations are by Martin O'Malley.

128avatiakh
Editat: des. 31, 2015, 1:35 pm


Even dogs in the wild by Ian Rankin (2015)
fiction
Inspector Rebus #20. Another good outing for Rebus, he's now retired but called in as a consultant and works with Fox and Clarke to help solve two cases both of which involve in small ways his old nemesis, Cafferty.

Added to category #4: Favourite Writers - continuing to read them and hopefully completing the ouevre


Hearing Secret Harmonies by Anthony Powell (1975)
fiction, audio
Last at #12 in the Dance to the music of time series. I started reading these about 8 years ago, read the first 4 or 5 before getting on LT and then managing only 1 or 2 more over the years. This year I was determined to finish the last 6 so switched to audio and they've worked well for me in that format. I remember first hearing about the series when watching a local book tv show around 9 or 10 yrs back. An author was plugging the series as their favourite read and made a convincing case. I loved watching all these eccentric British characters interact with Nick over the years. I have Hilary Spurling's Invitation To the Dance: A Handbook to Anthony Powell's A Dance to the Music of Time to browse as well. I didn't want to read it before finishing the series as I was nervous about spoilers.
And I also have the tv miniseries to watch, I've held off for about a year.

Added to category #9: Comfort reads - lighter reading and continuing series

129avatiakh
Editat: des. 31, 2015, 1:42 pm


Challenger Deep by Neal Shusterman (2015)
YA

I listened to the audiobook version which was well done, though I've just read a review that says that some of Shusterman's son's art is featured in the book, I'll have to have a look next time I'm in a bookshop. I also just found out that the book is based on the mental health problems of Shusterman's son who collaborated with his father for the book.
This is a powerful depiction of what is going on in the head of a teenager who is suffering from schizophrenia. It feels very realistic in its depiction of the paranoia Caden experiences, the voices in his head, the lack of sleep, the excessive walking etc. And how Caden hides it all for so long, that his parents and school don't really realise how bad things are.
In Caden's rich inner life he is on board a pirate ship heading for the deepest part of the ocean a place called Challenger Deep. Highly recommended.

There's a book trailer here: http://www.storyman.com/books/challenger-deep/

Added to category #6: The young ones - YA and children's fiction & nonfiction

130avatiakh
Editat: des. 31, 2015, 1:57 pm


The reader on the 6.27 by Jean-Paul Didierlaurent (2015)
fiction
A delightful short novel about love. Guylain Vignolles doesn't have much of a life, while his mother thinks he's a publishing executive, in reality he has a job he hates, operating a huge machine that turns remaindered books into mulch at a rundown factory. Each day on his commute he reads from random salvaged pages to his fellow commuters. Charming and quirky, this one grows on you.

Added to category #11: Shiny New - new writers and/or new books


The distant marvels by Chantel Acevedo (2015)
fiction
Sheltering from Hurricane Flora in 1963, several old woman have been taken from their homes to sit out the storm in relative safety. To pass the time, Maria Sirena, tells the story of her childhood to the others and what a story it is, completely woven into the island's fight for independence from the Spanish which ends with the Spanish–American War of 1898. Wonderful.

Added to category #3: Latin Roots - fiction & nonfiction from/about Spain, Portugal & Latin America

And so ends my 2015 reading....

131avatiakh
des. 31, 2015, 1:50 pm

Final tally:

1: Israel: political nonfiction - 3
2: Arab Spring - Middle East/North African/Islamism 8
3: Latin Roots - fiction & nonfiction 5
4: Favourite Writers 10
5: Shocked that I still haven't read this 5
6: The young ones - YA and children's 56
7: Challenging 8
8: Fact - nonfiction 10
9: Comfort reads 22
10: Down Under 9
11: Shiny New 24
12: New Zealand YA 9
13: Food Writing 4
14: Images - photography, graphic novels etc 52
15: Spies - 5
Dropbox: 9

I aimed for a minimum of 5 per category apart from category 1 which I was happy to just read a couple in, so I mostly did pretty well. I always read a lot of children's and YA fiction, I should have had subsections.

132avatiakh
Editat: des. 31, 2015, 2:20 pm

Highlight reads per category:

1: Israel: political nonfiction
The Prime Ministers : an intimate narrative of Israeli leadership by Yehuda Avner

2: Arab Spring - Middle East/North African/Islamism
Zahra's Paradise by Amir & Khalil
Mantle of the Prophet: religion and politics in Iran by Roy Mottahedeh

3: Latin Roots - fiction & nonfiction
The Tunnel by Ernesto Sabato
The Crime of Father Amaro by Jose Maria Eca de Queiros

4: Favourite Writers
The seven good years by Etgar Keret
The secrets of the Wild Wood by Tonke Dragt

5: Shocked that I still haven't read this
Cider with Rosie by Laurie Lee

6: The young ones - YA and children's
Wanting Mor by Rukhsana Khan
Never fall down by Patricia McCromick
Buffalo Soldier by Tanya Landman
One by Sarah Crossan
Challenger Deep by Neal Shusterman

7: Challenging
In the heart of the seas by S.Y. Agnon

8: Fact - nonfiction
Jerusalem: a biography by Simon Sebag Montifiore
Being mortal: Medicine and What Matters in the End by Atul Gawande

9: Comfort reads
Harry Hole series by Jo Nesbø
Dance to the Music of Time series by Anthony Powell #6-12

10: Down Under
Wake by Elizabeth Knox
Once were warriors by Alan Duff

11: Shiny New
The Fishermen by Chigozie Obioma
Uprooted by Naomi Novik

12: New Zealand YA
A Winter’s Day in 1939 by Melinda Szymanik
Being Magdalene by Fleur Beale

13: Food Writing
The Depot: the biography of a restaurant by Al Brown

14: Images - photography, graphic novels etc
Bandette Volume 1: Presto! by Paul Tobin
This one summer by Mariko & Jillian Tamaki
The Arab of the Future by Riaf Sattouf

15: Spies
The spy who loved: The Secrets and Lives of Christine Granville by Clare Mulley
Forbidden Love in St Petersburg by Mishka Ben-David

Dropbox:
Gone to Soldiers by Marge Piercy
A Childhood by Jona Oberski

Overall a good year of reading, I enjoyed almost everything I read, I try to choose carefully and I also ditch books that I'm not enjoying.
Hardest book I read was The man who loved children by Christina Stead - one I did struggle with but one I was determined to read.

133-Eva-
des. 31, 2015, 7:33 pm

Happy wrap-up! I'm really looking forward to the new Rankin-book, but it won't be out here in the US until January 19, 2016.

134rabbitprincess
des. 31, 2015, 7:40 pm

>133 -Eva-: Not until January?! Weird! Canada got it in November -- I wonder what the holdup is for the States!

135-Eva-
des. 31, 2015, 7:48 pm

>134 rabbitprincess:
I was going to order it from the UK, but I like the US cover better. I know, not a deal breaker per se, but... :)