BJ's 2017 ROOTS

Last year was a good reading year for me, but I'm concerned that I can't make those totals again this year, so I'm going to make my goal just 25. Chicken, I know. :) I think I will try to add a real ticker this year, if I can remember how.



My ticker is no longer working.

I have read 36 with a goal of 25.

OK, I can't recall. How do I create a ticker?

Welcome back & Happy 2017 ROOTing!

Also, here - our fearless leader posted this elsewhere:
How to get a ticker?
1. Go to tickerfactory.com
2. Select create a new ticker.
3. Make your fun selections for the strand and the moving part
4. Copy the code (HTML) for the ticker when you are finished
5. paste it in your opening post as well as the ticker thread.
6. each time you want to update right click on your ticker and select open in a new tab, enter your password, adjust your total and hit save - tickerfactory.com will automatically update here and on the ticker thread!

Thank you so very much!!!

sure thing ;)

Good luck with your 2017 ROOTs!

Here's to a great 2017 with lots of ROOTing

Hello and happy reading!

Thank you, everyone! I have a couple of books going, but they are kind of long. I need a short one so I can see some progress. :)

>9 billiejean: I know the feeling.... ;)

Welcome back and good luck! I'm having the same thoughts of feeling "behind" already, too. It will even out in the end :)

Welcome back and Happy ROOTing, BJ.

May you enjoy everything you read!

Thank you so much! I have started a shorter book to help me through the two longer ones.

But just think of the satisfaction when you finish those two larger books. That's what I keep telling myself but I sneak in the short fast reads too. Best of luck with your ROOTing.

Thank you! I am getting within reach on the first one. I hope to finish it soon.

>15 Familyhistorian: lol me too.. I've been trying to resist right now, though, so I can finish this chunkster that's been pending for way too long ....

I finally finished the first long book! Once I got close, I stopped reading the other books. What a relief. I was a great read, but it was also kind of deep. I usually just post at the end of the month. Maybe I will do things differently this year. But I don't have the list with me right now.

>18 billiejean: yay! Love finishing a long book...

Arrrgh! I usually hate finishing a long book because they're the ones that suck me in and let me wallow around in them.

Books by Dorothy Dunnett and Neal Stephenson, for example.

But I delight in reading those little gems that hold great value condensed.

I actually agree with both of you. When I get close to the end of a long book, I can't stop reading it because I want to finish. Sometimes though, there is the sense of loss when it is finished, too. I am glad to here how good Stephenson is as I have three of his books and have never read him before.

>20 Limelite: >21 billiejean: that wallowing & that sense of loss... when it's a long book and you loved it and it was satisfying.. sometimes it takes years to either find something else that was that satisfying... or give up. I remember reading articles and "if you loved that, then try this!" recommendations for a couple years after finishing Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell (I know, not a universally loved book ;))... I think I finally just gave up on trying to find "another one like that." Sometimes there's only one. But fortunately, there are other ones like themselves that are just as satisfying!

I also look forward to finally reading something by Neal Stephenson!! I have several on the shelves...

I have heard good things about Strange & Norrell. That is one I don't have yet. Yet. :)

I loved Strange & Norrell.

Now I definitely want to read it!

I have a couple of Stephenson titles to get to, as well. I tried Snow Crash years ago but didn't finish. I want to give it another shot :).

>23 billiejean: heh heh ;) There's time ... ;)

>24 connie53: :D :D I think it was also the perfect book at the perfect time, for me. :)

I also loved Strange & Norrell! And I know I have an unread Stephenson lying about somewhere, so maybe I'll also give that a shot...

I can't explain it. I updated my ticker three times, but it doesn't show up on the ticker here.

All books in January were roots:
1. Advent and Christmas Wisdom from St. Francis of Assisi compiled by John V. Kruse.
2. The Little Blue Book: Advent and Christmas Seasons 2016-2017 Six Minute Reflections on the Infancy Narrative of Luke by the Diocese of Saginaw.
3. Witness to Hope: The Biography of Pope John Paul II by George Weigel. This book was exceptional.
4. Meditations from a Simple Path by Mother Teresa. Lovely gem of a book.
5. In Conversation with God: Volume 1, Part 1 Christmas and Epiphany by Francis Fernandez.
6. I, Robot by Isaac Asimov. Very enjoyable.
7. Legends by Robert Littell. A different take on a spy story, and quite different from the tv series.
8. In Silence with God by Benedict Baur.
9. The Voyage of the H.M.S. Beagle by Charles Darwin. Darwin wears many hats on this circumnavigation of the globe mostly in the Southern Hemisphere.

I hope to figure out what I'm doing wrong on my ticker.

>22 avanders:

Looking for a successor to JS & MN? Have you read The Quincunx, or much more recently, The Luminaries?

>29 billiejean: so frustrating when the tickers lag like that :P
It usually updates eventually!
Congrats on such a successful January!

>30 Limelite: I have not, but I own them both!! Glad to hear the comparison.... will put them higher on the "read soon" list!! :)

>31 avanders: Oh, wow, you're right! Thank you so much!

>29 billiejean: after updating the ticker you have to refresh the page. That might help. I hope you have it fixed by now.

Thank you. It's amazing how much I have forgotten about tickers. :)

Just dropping by to say Hi!

Hi, BJ. Just dropping by to say Hi to you.

Thank you for stopping by. I'm still alive; I just got behind at work and couldn't make time for LT. I will try to catch up at the end of the month.

>37 billiejean: it happens - we'll be here when you're able to return!

February:
10. The Atlantis Plague by A. G. Riddle
11. Interior Freedom by Jacques Philippe
12. Conversation with Christ by Peter Thomas Rohrbach
13. Life After Gluten by Jack Samuels -- no touchstone
14. The Waste Lands by Stephen King

March:
15. True Devotion to the Holy Spirit by Luis M. Martinez
16. The God's Eye View by Barry Eisler
17. The Restaurant at the End of the Universe by Douglas Adams
18. Furrow by Josemaria Escriva
19. Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel

April:
20. The Gender Game by Bella Forrest
21. Interior Castle by St. Teresa of Avila
22. Resisting Happiness by Matthew Kelly
23. Mass Journal by Matthew Kelly
24. The Light Fantastic by Terry Pratchett
25. The Lantern Bearers by Rosemary Sutcliff
26. Lent and Easter Wisdom from St. Ignatius Loyola edited by James L. Connor, SJ
27. Difficulties in Mental Prayer by Dom Eugene Boylan

May:
28. The Opposite of Fate by Amy Tan
29. Return of the Maca: Chronicles of the Maca Book 4 by Mari Collier
30. Poisonfeather (The Gibson Vaughn Series Book 2) by Matthew Fitzsimmons
31. Killing Hemingway by Arthur Byrne (AKA Brian Meeks) -- Boy, I really like Hemingway better than he does.

June:
32. The A.B.C. Murders by Agatha Christie
33. Down the Rabbit Hole by J.D. Robb, et al.
34. Introduction to the Devout Life by St. Francis de Sales
35. A Dog Like Ralph by Clare Cogbill
36. Eats, Shoots & Leaves: The Zero Tolerance Approach to Punctuation by Lynne Truss

Thank goodness I met my goal. I only hope I can update the ticker.

>43 billiejean: Congratulations on meeting your goal!

Well done on meeting your goal - and then some! :)

Wow, you really are forging ahead. Well done.

Congrats on reaching your goal!

Congratulations from me too!

Thank you, everyone. :) I wasn't able to update the ticker for some reason. But I put a note about it on the thread.

I've been spring cleaning (late, I know), and I have been looking over all of my old books that I haven't seen in a while. I really need to get to reading them. It was fun to see all those books, just like getting new books since I hadn't seen them in so long.

Just dropping by to say hello!
& Congrats on meeting your goal!
What did you think about Station Eleven?

I really enjoyed Station Eleven. And thank you for stopping by. :)

Hi BJ, just stopping by to say Hi. I've been away from LT for some time due to RL things. But now I'm back trying to keep up with threads.

>49 billiejean: I know the feeling of those old and forgotten acquisitions on shelves that have to be cleaned. It's really nice.

And should be an incentive to stop buying. It's not working so far.

>53 billiejean: It never does, BJ.

I just wanted to drop again by to say hi :)
I couldn't possibly catch up on the threads here (explanation on my own thread), though I wish I could!
I hear that you feel like you have a little more time again at some point after having a kid... here's to hoping ;)

>51 billiejean: You know, Station Eleven was one of those books.. I didn't love it while I was reading it... but I am constantly thinking back to it and referring to it and talking about it... It must have been really well done!

Things do get busy with a little one. :) Thanks for stopping by.

Looks like 3 1/2 months later, I don't have much new to say....

Hello... sorry for such a long absence! I kept seeing that "unread" number get higher and higher and was completely intimidated... Finally, I figured it's better to just stop by and say HI. :)
I wish I had time to go through these threads and read all about what you've all been doing and reading! But, alas, I very much do not. But I think of you often!! And my "hello" is heartfelt and repeated often in my own head ;)

I'm not sure how I will remain involved next year, but I will be around in some fashion!
xo

Thank you for stopping by! I have had a decline in reading time this year. But I want to finish my list:
37. Epic: A Journey Through Church History Study Set by Steve Weidenkopf & Dr. Alan Shreck
38. An Acceptable Time by Madeleine L'Engle
39. Life of Pi by Yann Martel
40. The Soul of the Apostolate by Dom Jean-Baptiste Chautard
41. Divergent by Veronica Roth
42. Angles of Attack by Marko Kloos
43. The Pilgrimage by Paulo Coelho
44. Catechism of the Catholic Church
45. Little Talks with God by St. Catherine of Siena
46. The Good Portion: A Faith Journey for Women by Vicki Burbach
47. True Devotion to Mary with Preparation for Total Consecration by St. Louis de Montfort
48. The Silver Chair by C. S. Lewis
49. Cold Energy by James M. Corkill
50. Heaven's Prisoners by James Lee Burke
51. Nine Words by Allen Hunt
52. Death Spiral by Leena Lehtolainen
53. Vanished by Kendra Elliot
54. Advent: A Family Celebration by Julie Walters

That finishes up my ROOT reads for 2017.

Fantastic end to 2017!! Now, onto 2018...

Thanks!