2022 Challenge Status Updates

and what nots….

Btw, I deleted all my Twitter accounts. End of an era? I do miss it, but it was no longer the Twitter I knew and loved.

Let’s talk CHALLENGES. I’m looking at the few challenges I worked at in 2022 and picking books from what I read that satisfy as a last ditch effort – I was picky and in doubt about a few but at this stage in the game, WHO CARES!

The What’s in a Name Challenge is COMPLETE:

I’m not bothering to figure out if I posted to the host site (SORRY!) and just enjoying the accomplishment over here in my personal glory/reflection.

Moving on to the question of will I continue in 2023! YES! Yes, of course, and I have a stack of books picked out that will satisfy the new categories but will list more in a dedicated post here in the next few days or weeks.

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Classics Club 50 Part 2 – I read a few classics from my lists and some I realized after that the publish date qualifies for this challenge so I will commit, once again, to a dedicated post in the future with what I’ve read so far and how many I have yet to read. Quick glance says I have to read between 20 – 25 by the end of year 2024. I’ll make it. Looking good.

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Buddy Reads! Who is in for 2023? The Stephen King Fairy Tales is sure showing up in the publicity marketing machine! Anyone want to commit a date for that in 2023?

or is TOB going to suck up all the reading time and force me to say, “How About April?!”

Which brings me to the Tournament of Books. I am almost half way through the 18 on the short list. I think I’ll make this one, too. HUZZAH!

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Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! Eat some pie.

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The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek

Thoughts by Kim Michele Richardson, Sourcebooks 2019, 309 pages

Challenge: What’s in a Name 2022: Category Person with Description

What’s in a Name Challenge: Description category

Genre/Theme: Adult Fiction; history, pack horse library, blue people of Kentucky

Type/Source: Tradeback / Purchased at Half Price Books, I think

What It’s About: This story focuses on the last of the Kentucky blue people and how our protagonist worked to make her own journey in the world, as a Pack Horse Librarian, during the Depression. The story isn’t light – it contains disturbing violence, racism, and death. There are also tender moments and some humor.

Thoughts: I actually allowed myself to get swept away in this and it could be because I needed a hero to truly cheer for after a struggle with NightBitch, I’m not sure. It certainly is more plot and story and not the introspective contemporary snob-literature that I often find myself really falling for. I didn’t notice, for example, all the melodrama and the repetition of her being blue, over and over again until I read it in a review. Oh. Yeah, perhaps. Maybe it was all the references to pie. It surely gained it an extra slice on the rating for pie being a many-mentioned element.

And I also agree that the ending was … a bit much. Too much for only a few pages! WHAT JUST HAPPENED? Good thing I didn’t have a chance to go read reviews before I finished which is what happens when I have doubts mid-way. But I just kept trucking with the story until the last page.

“The first Friday in June, Troublesome always held its pie bake dance, a pie auction to hitch unmarried folks.”

page 60

Rating: Four slices of pie. Because of the pie and the fast flow.

“Winnie‘d been … the only one to bring a pie and sit with me one long Sunday, and then the next, reading to me while I recovered.”

page 73

Question: Will I read the second in the series? The Book Woman’s Daughter, published in May of this year. I don’t know. I’m not rushing out to get it, and I rarely read series books… I probably won’t, to be honest.

 

 

May 2022 Celebration

and June Plans

 Monthly Recap Time!

• 7 books; 49 for the year
• 2331 pages, ~23.2 hours | 11478 total pages, 137.5 hours for the year so far

My favorite was … difficult to choose. I’m going with Margaret Atwood’s Burning Questions. Followed by The Candy House, A View of the Harbour, Devil House, All Boys Aren’t Blue, and The Other Einstein. Bonk was least favorite but I still gave it 4 stars.

“I was in the initial or “mud pie“ phase of exploring the possibilities, although I had sent a one-pager to my publishers in February.“

-88% in Burning questions

Locations and travels:

• A small harbourside village in England post WW2
• All over the world in The Candy House, as in Bonk
• New Jersey and Virginia in All Boys Aren’t Blue
• Devil House was California
• Burning Questions was mostly Canada, but also New England USA, Berlin, and England

Forking up shepherd’s pie with an expression of contempt.

-A View of the Harbour

For challenges, I finished my Wichita KS Library Annual #ReadICT with 12 categories; Devil House completed for an author, John Darnielle, visiting our town. I missed that event, however.

I read both of the Litsy Spin Books and completed one *BINGO*. I’ve readied by 20 books for June’s Book Spin Bingo but have yet to write a blog post here about it. Maybe I can do that now?

Yes! I will be reading I Was Anastasia with Melissa of Avid Reader and am reading Sea of Tranquility with Nancy the BookFool. I’m reading Either/Or now to get ready for TOB Summer Camp and the numbers 5 & 6 above will be discussed during Litsy’s version of Summer Camp.

Pie was mentioned in four of this month’s reads.

I only made pie once this May. I’m eliminating Instagram from my social addiction but will continue to use the #CaresPieShow hashtag at Litsy.

Thank you to Laila of Big Reading Life for doing a buddy read of The View of the Harbour by Elizabeth Taylor. I even posted about it.

What was YOUR favorite book of May?

June 9 is Strawberry Rhubarb Pie Day. I hope to make a Mulberry Pie sometime later today.

Copyright © 2007-2022. Care’s Books and Pie also known as and originally created as Care’s Online Book Club. All rights reserved. This post was originally posted by Care. It should not be reproduced without express written permission.

All Boys Aren’t Blue

Thoughts by George M Johnson, Macmillan Audio 2020, 5 hours 12 minutes

Narrated by the author.

Challenge: What’s in a Name: Color category

Genre/Theme: Nonfiction, essays, LGBTQ+

Type/Source: Audiobook / eLibby

What It’s About: This is a collection of essays detailing the author’s growing up in a loving family and also identifying with interests more socially conditioned to be typically girl things – like double-dutch jump rope at recess. They talk about trauma of bullying, wanting and fearing being different, identifying as queer, how much their Nanny provided in love and support, their education from a black perspective, and their sexuality.

The memoir is a firsthand account of trials, tribulations, and triumphs that have made George M. Johnson into the person they are today.

—Coryandre Wright (IMDB link)

Thoughts: I learned a few things! Important work – they’re willing to share and I am willing to know more and do more about how to promote respect for all humanity and be a good human.

This book was requested via my library because school districts near me have banned it. I wanted to know why and I wanted to show community support for books and marginalized people. I believe a couple of things when the topic of books and age appropriateness is discussed; 1) if a kid reads something they don’t understand, they look it up and/or ask a trusted adult to explain more, or 2) they just skip over it because they don’t understand it or it’s just not relevant to them to relate to. They aren’t groomed or seduced or corrupted. If a kid is seeking out this book, they just might need it and it would be best for all to be able to discuss and pour love not judgement onto the situation. Education, education, education. I respect the parents that take the tough questions and build trust rather than promote fear and shame. Love and respect. Stand up to hate. Have the tough conversations.

Rating: Four slices of pie.

 

 

The Slow March of Light

Thoughts by Heather B Moore, 2021, 10 hours 54 minutes

Narrated by: Stephen Graybill and Christa Lewis

Challenge: What’s in a Name: Speed category

WiaN SPEED

Genre/Theme: Adult Fiction, Berlin/Cold War, Based on a true story. Inspired by real events.

Type/Source: Audiobook, Audible

What It’s About: Bob was a senior in college, majoring in economics with dreams of moving on to law school, when he was drafted into the US Army. The year was 1959. After basics in Oklahoma and proving more than competent in shooting, he is sent to a US base in Germany. He is voluntold into the spy game and is eventually captured, enduring 4-5 months in a GDR communist prison camp.

Before impersonating a US economics student studying post-war economics with a German professor who regularly travels into East Germany, he meets a German nurse named Luisa who through circumstance, personal moral courage, and her determination to get her grandmother out of East Berlin, becomes a resistance fighter.

We get his side of the tale and hers. This is a historical post-WW2 story documenting the building of the Berlin Wall. If communism doesn’t scare you, read this.

Thoughts: Despite the note on my gr progress that I found it to started with few emotional hooks and that it felt rather fact-based more than emotional-story, I ended up liking this very much. I cannot but admire the faith and convictions of Bob and also Luisa; I loved their friendship, I was very touched by the ending. A really lovely story that hit hard in a good way and at the right time.

Rating: Five slices of pie.

 

 

From April into May 2022

 Monthly Recap Time! and plans for current merry month of May:

• 10 books; 42 for the year
• 2881 pages, ~21.8 hours | 11478 total pages, 114.3 hours for the year so far
  • By Type:
    Hardcover – 2
    Tradeback 2
    eBooks 4
    Audiobooks 2

My favorite was … The City of Girls by Elizabeth Gilbert, followed very VERY closely by The Slow March of Light by Heather B Morris. Chouette was the most artsy (and musical) and creative and just wild! If you like unsettling books, I recommend.

“My tiny important job of the day is to crimp pie crusts.”

-Chouette

Locations and travels:

• A few of these were based in the US or England and then traveled around the world
• Slow March was set in cold war Berlin
• The Last Thing He Told Me started and ended in Sausalito CA with much of the action in Austin TX
• City of Girls was NYC
• Chouette was CA but also forest fantasyland somewhat.

She was a bright, energetic, pie-faced fourteen-year-old, who always dressed in the most outlandish costumes.

-City of Girls

For challenges, I added one more category for the What’s in a Name 2022 “Speed” with the SLOW in the title, The Slow March of Light by Heather B. Moore – and still hope to add a single post review of this soon. It was a scary book with a hopeful “Wow, good humans DO exist” ending that really touched me.

I’m excited to have completed the personal to me challenge of reading Truth & Beauty with The Autobiography of a Face. Interesting story of friendship, of writing, of memoir and who owns the telling.

As a refrain offered in Chouette, “It’s time to tell.” Ellman’s essays would certainly agree with that.

Pie was mentioned in five of this month’s reads: Things Are Against Us had many pie mentions! Which is not at all surprising if you had read Ellman’s prior book Ducks, Newburyport about a pie baker. And of course, the only reason I have a kids book read was because PIE is in the title. Chouette, City of Girls, and The Last Thing He Told Me round out the pie offerings.

I made a bunch of pie in April – for Easter. Go search #CaresPieShow hashtag in IG or Litsy to see a picture. (or my post prior)

Now it is May and I’m doing a buddy read with Laila of Big Reading Life of The View of the Harbour by Elizabeth Taylor. It is going to be GOOD, I just know. Looking forward to it! This was also a SPIN book for Litsy in May – yay me for having more reasons to read it (besides it being a classic for my Club 50.)

What was YOUR favorite book of April?

May 3 is Raspberry Tart Day, May 8 is Coconut Cream Pie Day, May 13 is Apple Pie Day, and May 20 is Quiche Lorraine Day – which is in a pie crust, so I call it pie.

“Just go sit inside and get yourself a piece of pie, okay?”

“I literally couldn’t want a piece of pie less,” she says.

LOL! -The last thing he told me

“… make mock apple pie out of green pumpkins”

Things are against us (many many pies in this!)

Copyright © 2007-2022. Care’s Books and Pie also known as and originally created as Care’s Online Book Club. All rights reserved. This post was originally posted by Care. It should not be reproduced without express written permission.

The Optimist’s Daughter

Thoughts by Eudora Welty, Vintage Books 1990 (orig 1969), 180 pages

Challenge: Classics Club, CC50_part2, WiaN – inspired by Ann Patchett

Genre/Theme: Adult Fiction, Southern Lit, Grief

Type/Source: Tradeback/Book-A-Holic purchase

Carolina Book Nook hosts the WiaN Challenge

What It’s About: Laurel is the daughter of the “Optimist”. She is in her mid-forties, and her mother has been dead over 10, maybe 15 years already. Last year, her father the Optimist up and married Fay, who is maybe forty but probably only late 30s and looks even younger.

Let’s just say that Fay is a piece of work. The southern ladies would say, “Bless her heart”. Actually, I don’t think they even bother with that. All the menfolk think Fay is tender and helpless and to be pitied. The women, not so much.

UGH. (Fay really appalled me.)

Father dies, Laurel manages (by which I mean that she “processes”), Fay annoys and despairs.

Thoughts: Please please please let me know your thoughts if you have read this. I wrote on a Litsy review:

So very much to think about! Packs a punch and not only because it is about grief but about personality, society expectations (and burdens) and perception. Would be a terrific book club book.

Rating: Four slices of pie. Probably on me that I kept getting confused who was who at the funeral. Could be a fiver.

You’ve got pies three deep in the pantry, and an icebox ready to pop.

 

 

Five Tuesdays in Winter

Thoughts by Lily King, Blackstone 2021, 6 hours 10 minutes

Narrated by: Bronson Pinchot, Mark Bramhall, Stacey Glemboski, Cassandra Campbell, Christa Lewis

Challenge: What’s in a Name: Season category

Genre/Theme: Short Story, Adult Lit

Type/Source: Audiobook / Audible

What It’s About: If you have Audible, this is an included special gift. I don’t even recall who alerted me, but I ran to my account and sure enough, I was able to download without losing a credit. SCORE!

Ten short stories, some longer than others, all marvelous. I enjoyed the entire collection. Looking at the list now, some come back to me with a force of characterization and suspense, some I don’t even remember what they were about or am hazy about how they ended already but that’s just me. Many are about wistful misunderstandings or memories of relationships now unfixable. Perhaps some get fixed. All are delightful! Heartily recommended.

Thoughts: I think my favorites are the title story, “Five Tuesdays in Winter” – a shy widower bookseller with a teenage daughter has a crush on one of his staff, “When in the Dordogne” – two college kids get to house sit for a wealthy couple traveling abroad and they also get to watch their 14 yo boy, and “The Man at the Door” – a young mother desperate for time alone so she can write her novel struggles with her realities, her past and her present. All of the stories shine, all are provoking, just real good. Audio is well done.

“She was the type who could not take a compliment. If he told her she looked nice, she’d give the reason instead of saying thank you. But he was the type who could not give a compliment, so he just said hello and let her in.”

“Five tuesdays in Winter”

 

Rating: Five slices of blueberry pie.

Grant had heated up a Sara Lee pie, blueberry.

When he pulled it out, he started to cut into it and Ed said, “I know how you’re going to do this: miserly wedges, one at a time. When you know for a fact we’re going to eat the whole thing. Give me that.”

Ed took the knife from him and cut the pie into thirds, and put a mound of ice cream on each of the enormous pieces. We ate on the porch. It was a warm humid night, the hot pie and the cold ice cream were perfect together.

“When in the dordogne”

 

 

The Mermaid Chair

Thoughts by Sue Monk Kidd, Viking 2005, 336 pages

Challenge: What’s in a Name: Mythical Being or #ReadICT: Mythology (6)

Genre/Theme: Adult Fiction

Type/Source: Hardcover / Library Bag Sale 2021

What It’s About: — An empty-nester SAHM is unhappy. She finds her place in the world diminished and unsatisfied. In the process of rescuing her mom who is suffering from odd behaviors, she moves back to her hometown/island, has an odd affair with a monk, solves a mystery or two, and discovers the artist within. Ultimately, she rescues herself and her marriage.

Thoughts: In my quest to read everything by Sue Monk Kidd, because I really enjoyed her thoughts about how she came to write The Book of Longings (my review May2021), I set this book as my First Book this year. Mostly because I had just lifted it off the shelf to fit the WiaN category. It fits my other big challenge so Big YAY.

I couldn’t quite bring myself to go that far — all that paddling around in the alphabet soup of one’s childhood, scooping up letters, hoping to arrange them into enlightening sentences that would explain why things that turned out the way they had. Revoked a certain mutiny in me.”

(early in the book, when her husbands suggests she talk to a therapist.)

Knowing that the reviews on this book are mixed, I went into it with lower expectations, with a certain curiosity versus and hope-to-enjoy, if that makes sense? I did feel to me, that she set up her plot and then made it happen, but it misses that spark of something created out of nothing. It felt like a collection of thoughts and then-this-happened, etc. Plus, the main character is hard to like or feel anything for, unfortunately. Her assisting cast also felt stereotypical. However, it was readable and I didn’t mind my time in the story. I was curious about her mom and what really happened to her father. The spiritual questioning and awakening stuff wasn’t very convincing yet at the same time, I appreciated how she created her sentences. I won’t deny her writing skills.

This is a sophomore effort, coming off her best-selling debut, The Secret Life of Bees, which I read pre-blogging. She has kept at it and, as mentioned above, her latest is terrific and very brave, original. Now I will dive into her memoirs — I think I might enjoy these the best.

Rating: Three slices of pie. No pie mentioned.

 

 

First Book 2022

Tis the time of year to think fondly upon the end of the current year and all the amazing books that moved us in some way. Tis also the time to set goals for the upcoming year.

But all that stuff takes time and thought and sifting through data to make pie charts….

FIRST! We must pick that one book we will read or start on the first day, January 1.

Having begun the consideration list for the 2022 What’s in a Name Challenge, I’m going to pause my mad dash at the TOB Short List and read what I hope will be a fast feel-good tale by an admired author.

(I have a dear friend who did not give it high marks on goodreads but that now only makes me more curious.)

Wander over to Sheila’s blog, Book Journey, to participate! Happy Holidays

Copyright © 2007-2022. Care’s Books and Pie also known as and originally created as Care’s Online Book Club. All rights reserved. This post was originally posted by Care. It should not be reproduced without express written permission.