This has been my choice of audiobook-to-fall-asleep-to this summer. So delighted was I that I pulled the hardback down and reveled in the print. In thThis has been my choice of audiobook-to-fall-asleep-to this summer. So delighted was I that I pulled the hardback down and reveled in the print. In the same way that I read most mysteries for the "mood", I read Wodehouse for his turns-of-phrase and brilliant descriptions.
Everything in this book is perfectly ridiculous. Not irrational like Dadaism, but satire that makes you smile.
• Lord Emsworth, who is besotted with his pig, Empress of Blandings. Who, by the way, has a "high standard of obesity." • The Lord's neighbor, Sir Gregory Parsloe-Parsloe. • A butler called Beach. • The Lord's brother is The Hon. Galahad. Listening to the audio, I thought it was Ungalahad, perhaps related to unguent?
Stephen Fry was narrator par excellence. I snagged The Blandings Castle Collection (Books 3-6) for one credit on Audible. My favorite laugh aloud moment was when a formerly broken up couple reunites.
Ronnie was saying what he thought of himself and his opinion appeared not to be high. He said he was a beast, a brute, a swine, a cad, a hound, and a worm. [...] Sue said it had all been her fault. Ronnie said, No, his. No, hers, said Sue. No, his, said Ronnie. No, hers, said Sue. No, altogether his, said Ronnie. It must have been his, he pointed out, because, as he had observed before, he was a hound and a worm. He now went further. He revealed himself as a blister, a tick, and a perishing outsider.
Ten short stories. All pretty good, but this was the last of three frantic listens (before they left the free part of Audible on 5/3) and I would haveTen short stories. All pretty good, but this was the last of three frantic listens (before they left the free part of Audible on 5/3) and I would have enjoyed them more at a slower pace. ...more
Three stars means I like it —it's my default rating for genre fiction. This title isn't earth shattering, just a bit of silly fun. In the same way I rThree stars means I like it —it's my default rating for genre fiction. This title isn't earth shattering, just a bit of silly fun. In the same way I read most mysteries for the "atmosphere" I read PGW for his wordsmith skills.
Cyril Fotheringay-Phipps (pronounced Fungy-Fips), nicknamed "Barmy" gambols into the world of theater. Dinty Moore made a great heroine. This action is located in America.
One scene made me chortle. Two crooked playwrights, coaxing Barmy to buy the play, give a fingernail sketch with a hilarious run-on sentence:
"So it's her bedroom and she's in a negligay, and in comes the hero through the window and says, 'Genevieve!', and she says 'Harold!', and she says 'Is it you?', and he says, 'Yah, it's me', and back and forth and back and forth, and then it comes out that the brother has died and confessed on his death-bed that it was him that dun it, and she says she loves the hero still but must stick to this guy she's married because she's the soul of honour, see, and they have a farewell scene, and suddenly in comes the husband and he thinks the hero is a burglar and he plugs him with his gun and the hero falls to the ground a corpse and the dame falls on top of him and has a fit and dies on his body. The next act's in heaven," said Mr. Lehman, going to the water-cooler. Barmy blinked. "Heaven?"
I'm breaking my own rule: "Never read Wodehouse back to back."
However, when I saw "included until 5/03" next to many Simon Vance's narrations of WodeI'm breaking my own rule: "Never read Wodehouse back to back."
However, when I saw "included until 5/03" next to many Simon Vance's narrations of Wodehouse books — all bets were off.
I don't read Wodehouse for the plot or the story.
I read him for humor, for vocabulary, for word play, for names, for English idioms, What ho?
Speaking of names, it seems so delightfully Wodehousian to shorten Felicia to Flick.
Simon Vance did his usual superlative job of narration. Sadly, when I listen, I intend to remember the zingers, but almost never do. With apologies to my friends in Pittsburgh here's a laugh aloud: Judson had accused him of being like a wet Sunday in Pittsburgh. Quite justly. He had been like a wet Sunday in Pittsburgh.
Dylan's words glint and sparkle: — the moon bundling down the street — we sang and wallowed all night and day — I would scourDelightful. Charming. Fun.
Dylan's words glint and sparkle: — the moon bundling down the street — we sang and wallowed all night and day — I would scour the swathed town for news — vast dewlapped dogs, with flasks round their necks, ambled and shambled up to us — there wasn't the shaving of a moon to light the flying streets ...more
After a lifetime of being a sound sleeper, I became an insomniac. I found this book while browsing my library's shelves. Serendipity! Dr. Winter's booAfter a lifetime of being a sound sleeper, I became an insomniac. I found this book while browsing my library's shelves. Serendipity! Dr. Winter's book wins the prize, hands down, for the goofiest zaniest footnotes ever.
Having read all the blogs and articles, I'm familiar with Circadian Rhythm and Sleep Hygiene. yeahyeahyeah. What he offered beyond those rudiments was a bracing breeze of hard words that I think are good words. He takes a swipe at "insomniac identity" (e.g. see my first sentence). With the provisional note that insomnia does not equal sleep deprivation, he gets down to the nitty gritty:
—> Don't make your sleep disturbances a defining characteristic in your life. The hour or two it takes you to fall asleep is not that big of a deal.
—> Insomnia is really all about one thing: fear. You need to gain control and perspective over the fear you feel when sleep isn't happening.
—> This leads to my plan: Fake it till you make it. As of right now, you are a great sleeper. On the nights you sleep like a star, you're not surprised. On the nights your sleep is a little less than fantastic, it's no big deal ... a bump in the road.
His best advice to achieve the best sleep? Pick a wake-up time and stick with it.
A few more choice quotes: —> Why did televisions wind up in the bedroom? I don't have a clue. To me, it's like a toilet in the family room.
—> Sedation and sleep are not always the same thing.
—> Kids must be able to initiate sleep by themselves....more
Reread. TMWWT is in the same category as CS Lewis's Till We Have Faces: each time I read it I hope to plumb more of its depths and, eventually, to lovReread. TMWWT is in the same category as CS Lewis's Till We Have Faces: each time I read it I hope to plumb more of its depths and, eventually, to love it.
Above all else, I cherish Chesterton's lighthearted approach to life, even when in dire circs. Do you understand that this is a tragedy? **Perfectly, replied Syme; always be comic in a tragedy.**
When I read this twenty years ago, I posted the next quote. It was when creating greeting cards with stamps and stickers was what we all believed we should do. My friend Melanie made me several cards with this quote on the front! "I have a suspicion that you are all mad," said Dr. Renard, smiling sociably; "but God forbid that madness should in any way interrupt friendship."...more
I found this title by searching for Simon Vance in Audible. It's a stand-alone madcap Wodehouse. The down side of audio books is in retrieving quotes.I found this title by searching for Simon Vance in Audible. It's a stand-alone madcap Wodehouse. The down side of audio books is in retrieving quotes.
There are scads of aliases in this story -- few are who they appear to be. My favorite name for a butler: Cakebread!!
Experience has taught me to resist, to positively fight against, the impulse to grab another P.G. Wodehouse title. I must put ten titles in between PGW. Otherwise they lose their charm....more
The best part of this book is its Britishness. All the glorious phrases, and words like foozled and hooshed, and the syntax that says Jolly Old EnglanThe best part of this book is its Britishness. All the glorious phrases, and words like foozled and hooshed, and the syntax that says Jolly Old England.
Three stars because I liked it, and three stars because the humor thinned out, inducing closed-mouth smirks instead of loud guffaws. Very close to P.G. Wodehouse in tone. I find it's better to read snark and humor in short segments spaced in between other genres.
Here's a fun sample:
...a really good actor can often give a clue to the feelings of a character simply by facial expression. There are ways of shifting the eyebrows, distending the nostrils, and exploring the lower molars with the tongue by which it is possible to denote respectively Surprise, Defiance and Doubt.
exploring the lower molars with the tongue —>> that is rich!...more
I'm just going to say it: Joe Posnanski's writing bolsters my belief that eternity in heaven will never be boring. His book, Baseball 100 was my favorI'm just going to say it: Joe Posnanski's writing bolsters my belief that eternity in heaven will never be boring. His book, Baseball 100 was my favorite 2021 read. But, you ask, what more could be said? Why yet another book on baseball?
Because, my friend, Posnanski —storyteller extraordinaire—can take what you think you know about a moment, and spin it on its side, showing you more sparkling depth and texture and verve. There is the constant delight of discovery. The beauty of backstory. He, in short, is never boring.
He takes excursions that enchant and amaze. He finds ordinary moments and he invests them with meaning. This writer has perfect pitch, perfect pacing, perfect power.
I buy few audiobooks because not many are worthy of repeat listens. I bought Why We Love Baseball. My husband and I will listen in the kitchen, listen on the road, listen while we butcher and package elk. Joe Pos (along with Ellen Adair - who reads the mini-chapters) does a highly excellent job narrating. ...more
4.5 stars. A lovely melody of friendship and support. And — hallelujah! — Lisette Lecat is back as the best and brightest narrator of Mma Ramotswe sto4.5 stars. A lovely melody of friendship and support. And — hallelujah! — Lisette Lecat is back as the best and brightest narrator of Mma Ramotswe stories.
I read No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency novels for philosophical asides such as this:
It was a curious thing, she thought, that a person's eyes should tell you so much about what was going on inside them. There were so many ways in which people might reveal their thoughts and emotions — gestures of the hands, smiles, shrugs. The repertoire of human body language was an extensive one.
And one that we all learned to read without ever being specifically taught to do so. How many parents sat their children down and told them what these things meant? Very few, or none, she thought.
We learned how to read a face right from the very start when we were looking up at our mother and saw her looking down at us. And we knew, when we were still only a few months old, that a smile meant one thing and the absence of a smile meant another. And for the rest of our lives that understanding grew, until, with any luck, we could pick up all the signs if we needed.
My 3-star rating should be viewed as the best a book could be without saying "I liked it very much." Parts were delightful, but as a whole, the book wMy 3-star rating should be viewed as the best a book could be without saying "I liked it very much." Parts were delightful, but as a whole, the book wasn't. Sections were stinking funny. Four times I guffawed, a Victorian way of saying laughed loudly. But large swaths of it were simply a slog.
It was 100 chapters (32 hours of Timothy West's flawless narration) of broken engagements, of four romantic triangles, of a pompous businessman who went into politics, of parallel subplots. Around the 60% mark, a wisp of caring entered into my consciousness.
In the large and colorful cast of characters (with delicious names like Bideawhile, Hurtle, Crumb, and Batherbolt) there were only two who were good and solid. Sigh. It was fun to encounter the word contumely apart from Hamlet's soliloquy.
Quotes:
As for Felix - he had so groveled in the gutters as to be dirt all over. Nothing short of the prolonged suffering of half a life could cleanse him.
This section on showing sexual affection in older age got a Bravo! from me:
Then he drew her towards him, and in a moment she was kneeling at his feet, with her face buried on his knees. Considering their ages perhaps we must say that their attitude was awkward. ... But how many absurdities of the kind are not only held to be pleasant, but almost holy, - as long as they remain mysteries inspected by no profane eyes! It is not that Age is ashamed of feeling passion and acknowledging it, but that the display of it is without the graces of which Youth is proud, and which Age regrets.
I believe I have now read all of Trollope's major novels (Chronicles of Barsetshire, the Palliser series, and several stand alones.) My first love will always be the Barchester books with their clergy and country life; I believe I'd accrue more pleasure rereading those then working through the rest of Trollope's oeuvre. ...more
If a prerequisite for a 5-star rating is "I want to read this again" (for me, it is) — this is as firm a five star as can be. Perhaps it was my siIf a prerequisite for a 5-star rating is "I want to read this again" (for me, it is) — this is as firm a five star as can be. Perhaps it was my sixth or seventh listen.
It's funny, it's charming, it's delightful. I chortled at Collins's answers to audience questions.
I adore The Lanyard which we traditionally read every Mother's Day.
I flew across the country yesterday after a family visit freighted with grief and fatigue (but also with the treat of being with my people). What comfort it was to put on my noise-canceling earphones (a gift from my husband; they really do make a difference), lean back, and listen to Billy Collins.
Since the audio is a little over an hour, I would try to find this at a library. ...more
It had more charm at the beginning. I prefer Anne of Green Gables, but I'm shaken by this eye-popping comparison that does not reflect well o3.5 stars
It had more charm at the beginning. I prefer Anne of Green Gables, but I'm shaken by this eye-popping comparison that does not reflect well on L.M. Montgomery. Nevertheless, I love Anne and don't feel the same intensity for Rebecca, winsome as she is.
Two obscure subjects in Rebecca that I relished:
Rebecca calling the subjunctive mood the saddest tense: nothing but ifs, ifs, ifs! [I only know this from long-ago Latin studies.] The subjunctive deals with hypothetical situations, e.g. If I were a rich man... There is something satisfying about "getting" the reference.
Hymn tunes In bygone times hymnbooks didn't have printed music, just the poetry. When a hymn was called out, the tune it would be sung to was also announced. Tunes (or melodies) that went with a certain meter had names. Amazing Grace, one of our most well-known hymns today, is sung to the tune New Britain. Geeks like me know many songs by their tune names. Hyfrydol, Old Hundredth, Kingsfold, and Finlandia are other common ones.
When Rebecca was at a missionary meeting and asked to play "Mendon" (<- name of tune) I exulted. Rebecca could have played Mendon in the dark, so she went to the melodeon and did so without any ado.
I'm not thrilled with Rebecca's older wealthy man who took an interest in her, Adam Ladd. At least he took pains to conceal his interest by giving gifts to both Rebecca and her friend. ...more
My granddaughter and I took a road trip to visit her cousin. We decided to listen to this book. It was a hoot! We laughed, we shared smiles of commiseMy granddaughter and I took a road trip to visit her cousin. We decided to listen to this book. It was a hoot! We laughed, we shared smiles of commiseration, we anticipated, we groaned. Stockard Channing's narration was excellent. Sometimes the whiny Ramona was tooo annoying.
The irony is that we are both the youngest girl in our family, and probably resemble Ramona more than we do her older sister Beezus (Beatrice). But we like to think we are more like (responsible) Beezus!
A good children's book is as delightful to adults as it is to children. ...more
As I approach Social Security age, seldom does a book keep me reading past midnight. Eleanor Oliphant did.
This book goes deep into the interior of ouAs I approach Social Security age, seldom does a book keep me reading past midnight. Eleanor Oliphant did.
This book goes deep into the interior of our eponymous Eleanor. It made me think differently about awkward people. At the beginning I thought "this girl is completely on the spectrum." Now I'm not so sure. I believe social skills can get rusty or clogged up with sediment if they aren't practiced. I know and love a person who is isolated and (mostly) alone. This person's conversational habits are appalling. Inappropriate words or actions happen. Once Eleanor's relationships expand, all her social interactions improve.
The transforming power of friendship is an exquisite essence of this book.
I loved the Scottish setting, idioms, brogue. Language warning -
This title makes me smile... or demi-smile. Two years ago, our 81-year-old neighbor had been put on hospice. I brought some food over and was standing outside talking to his wife. He yelled out, "Tell the neighbor lady I'm Just. Fine." Six days later he died....more
Is everything sad going to come untrue? — Samwise Gamgee in Return of the King
Daniel Nayeri's autobiographical novel swept me away. Just lifted me up Is everything sad going to come untrue? — Samwise Gamgee in Return of the King
Daniel Nayeri's autobiographical novel swept me away. Just lifted me up like an Oklahoma tornado and placed me square in the life of a middle school Persian immigrant. After I finished it, of course I obsessed. Watched all the YouTube videos Daniel Nayeri was in, read articles by his sister Dina Nayeri, put some other books on hold by these sibling authors.
What did I love? I loved Daniel's mother. His unstoppable mom is the hero of this story. If you have 9 minutes, stop reading and watch the video of the mother and son making cream puffs together. #smitten [Go to YouTube and search Daniel Nayeri. It should be at the top.]
In the same way that Khaled Hosseini's Kite Runner gave us a glimpse of Afghanistan, Daniel Nayeri shows us how much he loves Iran. Both books are infused with a deep-seated yearning.
Daniel's story covers the whole gamut of emotions. He makes you cringe, suck in your breath, laugh, think, groan, shudder, pause, hope, and wonder. His story is the photo negative of many refugee stories. His life was full, rich and comfortable in Iran. When his family escaped Iran, he became familiar with bullying, poverty, displacement, rejection, and good old garden-variety difficulties.
If you have thoughts about the manipulation of St.John Rivers in Charlotte Brontë's Jane Eyre, I promise you'll have similar thoughts about the Oklahoma minister who used a Sunday evening service for a facile sermon preached directly to Daniel's Muslim father to score a "conversion."
And there are poop stories. I never imagined I would Google "Persian toilet". What an education!
Daniel gave a splendid narration on the audiobook.
But like you, I was made carefully, by a God who loved what He saw....more
The greatest draw of P.G. Wodehouse to me is his vocabulary and the way he appropriates biblical and literary quotes in the funniest way. The plot is The greatest draw of P.G. Wodehouse to me is his vocabulary and the way he appropriates biblical and literary quotes in the funniest way. The plot is tertiary, at best. In Frozen Assets Edmund Biffen Christopher ("Biff") stands to inherit about ten million from his godfather with only one proviso: Biff must not be arrested, even for a misdemeanor, before he turns thirty. Can a man who loves to drink and fight make it one week without getting arrested?
This was a great audio listen (yay you, Simon Vance!); but audio has it drawbacks. You hear the perfectly formed phrase and you repeat it three times aloud, hoping it will stick to your hippocampus. Alas, there is no adhesive.
I transposed one sentence. Stealing trousers and leaving the victim in his skivvies is a recurring theme. A steals from B. B steals from C. C steals from D. The trousers don't always fit, but they cover the necessaries. Thither he directed his steps; difficult steps, for the Philbeam trousers were an unpleasantly snug fit, sticking closer than a brother....more
Carol Bakker
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