Do you have friends in real life that you met through LibraryThing? Have you attended any LT meet-ups in your area? Would you be open to attending meet-ups or is LT strictly an online thing for you?
I don't have any real life friends from LT and I haven't been to any meet-ups. I'm a bit apprehensive about meeting people from online in real life. I had a not-so-great experience meeting people from a theatre message board once when I was in college . . . and some of us even went to the same college!
Maybe I should give it another try, once I'm a bit more active in the LT groups. Aside from my usual shyness, there were a lot of other factors that contributed to the horridness of that outing. They had all known each other for a while and I was having an awful day (I thought my friend stood me up on plans for my birthday, so I went out with the theatre people instead). I've also decided--as awful as this sounds--that since I'm just a fan of going to the theatre and reading plays, as opposed to participating in productions and performances, that there's somewhat of a personality clash between most theatre people and myself. They seem to think I'm a mute freak. I think I might do better with book people.
Title: Moon Tiger
Author: Penelope Lively
Date: 1987
Booker Prize Winner (1987)
Nearing the end of her illustrious life, Claudia Hampton decides that her final work as a historian should be to write the history of the entire world. While she may not achieve this lofty goal, Claudia succeeds in providing the history of her own life. Lively uses her narrator's profession to great advantage, and the novel is comprised of Claudia's ruminations on her past told in the first person, as well as glimpses of her experiences told in third person. Her philosophies about history--which permit both anachronisms and fictionalization--dictate the manner in which her life story unfolds. Claudia informs us, "I've always thought a kaleidoscopic view might be an interesting heresy. Shake the tube and see what comes out. Chronology irritates me." Her other assessment, that she is "a myriad Claudias who spin and mix and part like sparks of sunlight on water," also provides the framework for which the story will be told, and is representative of the poetic tone Lively uses throughout the novel.
The majority of the novel recounts Claudia's experiences as a journalist in Egypt during World War II, where she engages in a fondly-remembered romance with a soldier named Tom. With the exception of the unusually close bond she shares with her brother Gorden, most of the other events and interactions in Claudia's life--however exciting and life-altering--pale in comparison to her love for Tom. Her relationship with her daughter, Lisa, is strained, probably because two of Claudia's most admirable traits--professional ambition and wanderlust--result in frequent absences from the child's life. Although her relationship with Jasper, Lisa's father, is amicable and provides one of the few constants in Claudia's life, it lacks the intensity she feels with Tom. As her life draws to an end, Claudia considers the separateness of the past and present, while not discounting the former's everlasting influence.
While the temporal and narrative shifts are initially confusing, they work well within the greater concept of the novel, and it is interesting to watch Claudia's life unfold from the "kaleidoscopic" view. Occasionally, a scene narrated by Claudia will then be told in the third person, with slightly different details, adhering to the notion that history is never free of fiction. Lively's narrator is witty and amusing, albeit distant and abrasive to those around her. She's seldom apologetic or regretful which, strangely, seems to make her more likable. Claudia does not try to drive people away for the sake of being icy or vindictive, it is simply part of her nature to give precedence to her own pursuits. (As I was reading, Katharine Hepburn came to mind. Claudia would have been right at home in Hepburn's repertoire of unconventional, fiercely independent wartime heroines.)
Rating: 
(4/5 bookmarks)
Number four is my favorite this week. Sort of.
1. The last meal I had at a restaurant was strawberry-banana French toast at IHOP.
2. Gossip is something I intensely dislike.
3. The full moon looks like it's smiling.
4. Um. . . (there aren't any) is one of my favorite local expressions.
5. Sometimes it's best to be in denial.
6. The Dark Knight is the best movie I've seen so far this year!
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I’m looking forward to celebrating Mum's birthday, tomorrow my plans include sleeping and reading and Sunday, I want to go to Whole Foods and the bookstore!
Damn, I need more exciting weekends.
* Do you or have you ever read books about the Olympics? About sports in general?
* Fictional ones? Or non-fiction? Or both?
And, Second:
* Do you consider yourself a sports fan?
* Because, of course, if you’re a rabid fan and read about sports constantly, there’s a logic there; if you hate sports and never read anything sports-related, that, too … but you don’t have to love sports to enjoy a good sports story.
* (Or a good sports movie, for that matter. Feel free to expand this into a discussion about “Friday Night Lights” or “The Natural” or whatever…)
I haven't read any books about the Olympics. It hadn't appealed to me before, but I'm on the hold list at the library for Rome 1960: The Olympics That Changed the World by David Maraniss. I saw Maraniss on a morning show, and the book sounds really interesting. And to answer the next question . . .
I'm generally not a sports fan (when I went to my first high school football game, it was half time before I realized the game started, no joke), but I'm getting into this year. I've always liked watching figure skating, luge, and bobsledding (in the winter) and gymnastics in the summer. This year I really liked watching the marathon, oddly, since that was just hours of people running, but I was impressed by how long the gold medalist from Romania held her lead. And like most poeple, I've loved the swimming this year. I really wanted Dara Torres to win the gold, though. I don't know when I last went swimming, and I never really did any proper strokes, but I kind of feel inspired to go and learn how to swim correctly (just for fun). I need to be in better shape before I get up the nerve to do that, though.
Title: Feather Man
Author: Rhyll McMaster
US Release Date: September 1, 2008
Rhyll McMaster's first novel is the turbulent coming of age story of Sooky, a young girl who lives in Brisbane, Australia at the start of her narration. Not long into the novel, she recounts an instance of sexual abuse at the hands of her adult neighbor, family friend, and amateur chicken farmer, Lionel, which sets the tone for the types of unhealthy and abusive relationships she will encounter throughout her life. Sooky's quarrelsome parents are blind to the instances of abuse, and as their interaction with their daughter increasingly consists of ignoring or berating her, Lionel's abuse morphs into welcome attention in the young girl's mind. When Sooky intimates that she "suffered people-burnout at an early age," it is not difficult to see why.
As she matures and eventually relocates to England in hopes of becoming a professional artist, Sooky struggles in nearly all of her relationships, particularly those that include men. Although she is often the victim in such relationships, Sooky's sympathetic situation does not absolve her from perpetuating unhealthy alliances. She comes to believe that "simple pleasures are for inferior people," and seems determined to break ties with any benevolent figure in her life. After encountering no shortage of narcissistic, manipulative characters, Sooky herself has acquired these traits and manages to shun seemingly successful relationships while pining over Lionel's equally troublesome son, Redmond.
Although Sooky is plagued by an inordinate number of volatile, abusive situations, McMaster imbues the novel with a dry humor that can induce actual laughter despite the largely bleak subject matter. It is occasionally difficult to sympathize with Sooky, and her decisions can be frustrating, but she is an intelligent, reflective character who is self-deprecating and witty. While she may be guilty of some of the behavior she abhors in others, Sooky's actions are often a painful reminder of the abuse she endured. Early in the story, McMaster writes that Lionel robbed Sooky of the "mundane, unexamined happiness of ordinary life," and despite her faults, one hopes that Sooky, having mastered the art of examining her life, finds some inkling of happiness even when she doubts that she wants it for herself.
Rating: 
(4/5 bookmarks)
What's your favorite bookstore? Is it an online store or a bricks-and-mortar store? How often do you go book shopping? Is your favorite bookstore (or bookstores) listed as a favorite in LT? Do you attend events at local bookstores? Do you use LT to find events?
My very favorite bookstores aren't where I live at the moment. I went to college in NYC, and the Strand is reason enough to make me want to move back. The prices may not be as good as other used bookstores, but they usually beat the chains, and since a lot of the books seem to be overstock from other stores, they're usually in fairly good condition.
Also in NYC is the Housing Works Used Book Cafe, which I loved, and I hate myself for not going there more often. It's volunteer-run (I also hate myself for not volunteering), and 100% of the sales from the used books and cafe go to a non-profit organization that provides a number of services, including housing, health care, and job training, to homeless NYC residents living with HIV and AIDS. It's such a good cause and it really is the quintessential used bookstore. It's very cozy and there's even a spiral staircase! The Web site proclaims that it's "Soho's best kept secret," and it's so true.
In another city in which I'd love to reside is Powell's Books. When my friend took me to her hometown of Portland, Oregon, I didn't believe her declaration that Powell's was better than the Strand. Even though it broke my New York-loving heart, I have to say that Powell's flagship store is not only larger than the Strand (that in itself is to be expected given NYC's small spaces), but it's also better organized.
In my hometown in Northern Virginia, we used to have a small used book store that I liked, but sadly, it closed a few months ago. Even though I'd prefer an alternative, I enjoy Barnes & Noble and Borders. The local Barnes & Noble was actually my favorite high school "hang out." I also love autumn, which I should start calling "Massive Used Book Sales at the County Libraries Season."
I should look into book events at these places, but I went to a few events in college and always felt awkward. This ultimately ruins any chance I have at enjoying or reflecting on a book without my own neuroses getting in the way. Maybe I'll give it another go sometime . . .
I don't have the stores "favorited" on LibraryThing, but I think I'll do that later today.
Number four is my favorite this week. Sort of.
1. You know you're old when you can think of a way to fill in this blank.
2. My heart is divided between books and everything else.
3. Sleep is what I need RIGHT NOW!
4. I have felt the warm, fleecy skeins of yarn, I have known the depths of unraveling an entire day's worth of knitting.
5. Gah, won't these people turn down the TV so I can read.
6. Autumn, come as soon as you can!
