DFED's new decade of reading!

Hello all! My name is Dawn and I live in Lexington, KY with my husband where we both work in the equine industry. I'm happy to rejoin the 75'ers in a new decade and my 12th thread in this group!!

I enjoy reading horse-related books, cookbooks, biographies and travel memoirs but who knows what may turn up in my thread in the coming year? You can find my 2019 thread here: https://www.librarything.com/topic/301429#

Welcome back!

Best wishes for 2020!

Happy reading in 2020, Dawn!

Another resolution is to keep up in 2020 with all my friends on LT. Happy New Year!

Hope you read lots of great books this year!

Hope 2020 is full of some excellent reads for you!

Thank you all for the 2020 welcome!

The first reads of the year are in:



#1 - Life Will Be the Death of Me by Chelsea Handler, audiobook (library). Handler, though retaining her humor, dives pretty seriously into therapy in this book. I admire her being so open about her past and her shortcomings. The audiobook was read by her and she was quite teary at times.



#2 - Kentucky Horse Tales by Ercel Ellis, 154 pages (library). If you're not a horse person, you can relate to books such as this by thinking of the Bible: this horse begat that horse that begat that horse...There were a lot of pedigrees in this book but I liked his more personable stories about Lexington (and horse racing's) past.



#3 - Gold Rush! by Jesse Wiley, 171 pages (library). My husband checked this out of our library on a lark. We both grew up enjoying "choose your own adventure" books and read this together. Needless to say, we died several times but the beauty of those books is that you can change your mind, right??

#4 - When French Women Cook by Madeleine Kamman, 384 pages (own). A random buy at my local ReStore, I really enjoyed reading Madeleine's profile of several French Women and their cooking styles. Though Kamman herself is a stickler for proper ingredients!!



#5 - Southern Discomfort by Tena Clark, 296 pages (library). Tena had the fortune/misfortune to grow up in a privileged southern family rife with drinking and fidelity problems in addition to being gay herself. And, surprisingly to me, this book unfortunately pointed out how racial segregation is still prevalent in certain areas of the south.



#6 - Land of Milk and Omelets by Ken Kraft, 309 pages (own). Post WWII, Ken and his wife decide farm living's for them (even though they don't know anything about it) and buy a farm in MO. Fun farm adventures ensue - a pleasant and humorous read.

#7 - After They've Seen Paree by Ceeney Way Dodson, pages (own). Good luck finding any proof online that this book exists at all! I'm lucky I found a picture of the cover, which really is a shame - it's a cute tale of Dodson and her husband's travels over the years throughout Europe and the Middle East. I'd love to read another book of theirs.



#8 - Cheerful Money by Tad Friend, 386 pages (own). I've been working on this one for awhile. Not that I didn't find it interesting (though Friend does talk A LOT about his therapy and romantic relationships), I kept getting distracted. My MIL is very much a WASP so I appreciated this look into that "class" of people (I'm very much not a WASP, lol)

#9 - Falling For Me by Anna David, 320 pages (own). David is in her 30's, has had a pretty messed up life and, as a result, finds herself single with no potential partners on the horizon. When she finds a copy of the book Sex and the Single Girl from the 60's, she decides to following the advice of it's author Helen Gurley Brown.



#10 - Heartland by Sarah Smarsh, audiobook (library). I'll start off with stating that the author reads the audiobook and her accent is a little off-putting. However, this is a very valuable book about growing up poor in America and what that means. It's shocking how much our society doesn't address poverty and it's shocking the personal choices those who are in strained financial circumstances must make.

It's been awhile! I just recently had the chance to visit Seattle for the first time for a work convention. Unfortunately, I also came home with "the crud" so I've had ample opportunity to read on planes and while I've been recovering.



#11 - Love and Death Among the Cheetahs by Rhys Bowen, 290 pages (library). I love me some Royal Spyness mysteries!



#12 - Hill Women by Cassie Chambers, 304 pages (own). An Early Reviewer book - review to follow. This book nicely dovetailed into my recent reading of Heartland.



#13 - Maggie - Woman of Roberts County by Char Jarman, 124 pages (own). I also love me some pioneer stories! This wasn't the greatest writing but it was certainly entertaining and I like how it mixed the past and present.



#14 - A Common Table by Cynthia Chen McTernan, 285 pages (library). I recently realized that I rarely list the cookbooks that I read here! Maybe because it's difficult to consider a cookbook fully "read?" At any rate, I'll try to be better about that this year.



#15 - When Crocs Fly by Stephen Pastis, 176 pages (own). My husband is a big Pearls Before Swine fan and I enjoyed reading this short collection of the cartoons.



#16 - White Goats and Black Bees by Donald Grant, 316 pages (own). A lovely and well-written book about (as the cover says) an American couple that decides to retire and farm in Ireland in the 70's.



#17 - Bright Island by Mabel Robinson, 288 pages (own). I'd never heard of this award-winning book until it caught my eye at my local Goodwill. Robinson's writing is amazing and I purposefully took my time reading it because I was enjoying it so much. I look forward to passing my copy on to my best friend - I really think she'll enjoy it.



#18 - Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha by Roddy Doyle, 288 pages (own). Though it had a sad ending, Doyle's voice for Paddy was very true.

>12 DFED: Looks like you had some good reads!

thornton37814 - I have lately! Admittedly, I've been working on a lot of these for awhile.



#19 - Invincible Summer by Alice Adams, audiobook (library). This book follows the lives, and all of its unexpected turns, of four college friends.

Stable Rat by Philip Welsh, 175 pages (own). This is another book I've been slowly working away on. It's amazing to me that a family that had (essentially) nothing to do with an industry (horse racing) would send off their 13-year-old son to learn the trade in a faraway town. Boy, you had to be tough in those days!



#21 - The Housekeeper's Tale by Tessa Boase, 314 pages (library). Remember Mrs. Hughes in Downton Abbey? She was the Housekeeper for Downton and, as such, there were no higher positions than that of the family or head butler. This book profiles Housekeepers of English estates throughout time and it was so interesting to read of their struggles.

#22 - When All the World Was Young by Barbara Holland, 256 pages (own). What a screwed up child and young-adulthood Holland had! But, I loved her insights in the family dynamics of the time and I found her writing pretty darn funny. I'll definitely be reading more of her books!



#23 - Entre Nous by Debra Ollivier, 254 pages (own). I am a Francophile and, though this book certainly wasn't very deep, it did reference some books and movies that I need to add to my TBR/TBW lists.



#24 - The People We Hate at the Wedding by Grant Ginder, audiobook (library). Boy, what a screwed up family this cast of characters was!

Hey, Dawn! Just checking in on the thread - and adding books willy nilly to the BlackHole.

Have a great weekend!

Hello alcottacre! So nice to "see" you again! I'm glad I could add to the TBR pile in some way :)



#25 - Good Husbandry by Kristin Kimball, 296 pages (library). I was so excited to see this sequel to The Dirty Life! I'd always wondered what happened to Kimball, her husband and their farm. She's brutally honest in this book about the marital and familial challenges she faces while farming - especially with a husband who has such an unwavering "vision."



#26 - The Royal Runaway by Lindsay Emory, 290 pages (library). I honestly thought this would be a re-telling of Roman Holiday. However, it was so much more than that with plenty of adventure thrown in.



#27 - The Totally Unscientific Study of the Search for Human Happiness by Paula Poundstone, audiobook (library). This book outlines Poundstone's hilariously honest personal search for happiness. Most intriguing to me were her attempts to cure her son of electronic addiction. That was something I'd never really thought of but, as she said, God help us all since technology is so prevalent!



#28 - In a French Kitchen by Susan Hermann Loomis, 303 pages (library). Loomis dives into the private cooking lives of regular French families. She also provides some mouth-watering recipes throughout the book.

#29 - French Cooking in Ten Minutes by Edouard de Pomiane, 176 pages (own). Written in the 30's, this thin book was Pomiane's response to the modernization of cooking. There wasn't a lot in here that I'd cook myself but I loved his sound advice to start boiling water the minute you get home to get a head start on cooking!



#30 - A Country Escape by Katie Fforde, 373 pages (library). Fforde's books seems to have great premises but the writing is just lackluster...



#31 - Weddings in the Family by Dale Fife, 248 pages (own). The story of an Alsatian family (and their relatives that soon follow them to the US) that settle in Ohio and their many weddings.



#32 - My Antonia by Willa Cather, 272 pages (own). I expected this book (that I should have read long ago) to be heavy going but I thoroughly enjoyed it and look forward to reading more of Cather's works.



#33 - Twelve Recipes by Cal Peternell, 304 pages (own). A fomer chef at Chez Panisse, I love Peternell's books. Here, he takes 12 simple recipes and elaborates on them to create a variety of dishes that anyone can cook!

#34 - Ten Thousand Heavens by Chuck Rosenthal, 222 pages (own). This was an Early Reviewer book from a loooong time ago. However, it was one of those that I was enjoying so much, I kept putting it down. For you horse lovers out there, the horse "voices" in the story were very realistic and they definitely make me look at a herd of horses in a different light!



#35 - The Days Before Yesterday by Fern Crehan, 206 pages (own). How I wish Crehan had written more books! I've said it before but I just love stories of "days gone by" and Crehan writes about growing up on an Ohio farm with her father and grandparents after the death of her mother. Bonus content: her grandfather was into harness racing!



#36 - The Diary of a Provincial Lady by E.M. Delafield, pages (own). This book was Fantastic. In a journal Format, I loved how she stressed truly Important Points by capitalizing words Randomly. There were definitely Laugh Out Loud moments throughout and I bet Delafield was one of the Original "busy mother" Diarists. I'm so glad to hear there are other books by her out there and I can't wait to get my hands on them!

Hello all - I've finally finished a few books. I've been having a hard time of it lately - I just can't seem to concentrate on any books for very long. The pile of vaguely-started books by the side of the bed has grown exponentially in recent weeks.

Being home now (though, luckily, still working) I also feel more pressure to "finally read that book I've been meaning to" which certainly doesn't help the situation! Below are the few I've managed to complete/finish:



#37 - The Distancers by Lee Sandlin, 224 pages (own). A sad (to me anyways) story about an average American immigrant family. It's funny to think that family stories that "loom large" in your life may be perceived differently or...forgotten altogether?



#38 - French Impressions by John Littell, 256 pages (own). An absolutely adorable tale of an American family that travels to and lives in France for a year in the 1950's. Littell writes from the point of view of his mother, based on her journals from the time and does a fantastic job!



#39 - One Dog, His Man and His Trials by Marjorie Quarton, 176 pages (own). This book was a little difficult to read because it was A) written from a dog's point of view and B) written from an IRISH dog's point of view :) Once I got into the swing of it, I did enjoy all of the various adventures happening in Shep (and his family's) lives.

#40 - Going Gypsy by David James, 232 pages (own). A couple faced with an empty nest after their youngest goes to college, they start traveling the country in an RV on their new "life with no purpose." They eventually start a blog about it and turn it into this book. Though amusing (and I'm sure relate-able for any parents facing the same crisis), this was one of those books that maybe could've stayed a blog...



#41 - The Bread and the Knife by Dawn Drzal, 257 pages (library). A rather depressing read, Drzal alphabetically lists 26 foods that were relevant to her throughout her life. Side note: my first name is a not a common one, and the author's kept getting mentioned because this was biographical, and it was unnerving :)



#42 - Egg Gravy by Linda Hubalek, 136 pages (own). I know I said that I didn't really enjoy Butter In the Well, but this book intrigued me because I love reading about old recipes. An easy, one-sitting read, the author doesn't guarantee results on any of the recipes but I did see a few that would be fairly easy to replicate in today's kitchens.

I can't believe that I'm actually getting some reading done on my own books!! It only took a worldwide virus to do it....



#43 - The Road to Nab End by William Woodruff, 384 pages (own). Woodruff grows up the poor son of a Lancashire weaving family. His matter of fact way of writing about his meager and, at times, horrifying childhood is admirable and I can't wait to read his other books.



#44 - Nicholas Again by Rene Goscinny, 120 pages (own). I've said it before - I adore the Nicholas books. This was one I purchased awhile back for my nephews when they're old enough. It doesn't hurt to read it in the meantime, does it?



#45 - Riding In Cars With Boys by Beverly Donofrio, 192 pages (own). Looking at the penciled date from my library's bookstore, I've had this one around since 2007! My husband and I have done some recent reshuffling of books and this one "came to light." I watched the movie starring Drew Barrymore many moons ago, was excited to find the book at a later date and enjoyed reading the tale of Donofrio's teenage pregnancy and eventual college education at a much later date! :)

#46 - Susie, Sadly and the Black Torpedo of Doom by John Littell, 304 pages (own). I was so excited to get my hands on the follow-up to French Impressions!



#47 - Paris In the Rain with Jean & Jacqueline by Thea Bergere, 32 pages (own). I can't go to bookstores but I can certainly peruse offerings on Paperbackswap! This was one find that I'll be passing on to my nephews.



#48 - The Purloining of Prince Oleomargarine by Mark Twain, 151 pages (library). I think this is misleading to be listed as authored by Mark Twain. Apparently, this children's tale was written based off of anecdotes and some journal entries by Twain and his daughters. The illustrations in this book were absolutely amazing!



#49 - A Valley in Italy by Lisa St. Aubin de Teran, 224 pages (own). The author definitely leads a life that I cannot relate to but her writing style reminds me very much of Marlena de Blasi, whom I love. What is it about living in Italy that makes you write this way? I enjoyed this tale of renovating an abandoned villa in Italy but, in looking for other books she has written, I believe that she has since moved on?

#50 - Christmas on Jane Street by Billy Romp, 160 pages (own). I expected a book about a family who lives in NYC during the Christmas season selling trees and their adventures. And, there was some of that. But, this was mostly a preachy-type book about a father not embracing his daughter growing up.



#51 - Reflections of a Schoolmistress by Nora Frye, 174 pages (own). Books like this always impress me that people who may seem "insignificant" at the time and could have been easily forgotten live on through their letters, essays, etc. Frye seems like she was quite the interesting person.



#53 - Blackie the Horse Who Stood Still by Christopher Cerf, pages (own). Though I don't own this for long - I bough it for my nephews :) What a sweet story though and there's a statue of Blackie in CA that I'll have to visit some day.

#54 - Lassie Come-Home by Eric Knight, 221 pages (own). How did this book pass my childhood by?? What a wonderful read from a 1st edition that we discovered at a yard sale last year - it even included a copy of the letter to the original owner from the publisher hoping they'd enjoy it!!



#55 - From Scratch: A Memoir of Love, Sicily and Finding Home by Tembi Locke, audiobook (library). Tembi marries a Sicilian man who (no spoiler alert here!) eventually dies of cancer. This is her memoir of their love story and her attempts to reconcile the death of her husband with his homeland. I'm not going to lie, it took me awhile to listen to this. With all of the virus stuff going on, I simply did not want to hear about more death! But, if you're in the mood for it, it's an achingly true memoir.



#56 - American Triumph by Susan Martins Miller, 576 pages (own). I liken this to the American Girl stories, only with a Christian aspect and it contained four stories about four different girls throughout the Great Depression and WWII.



#57 - Elizabeth the Queen by Marion Crawford, 236 pages (own). I'd sum this up as a love letter to Queen Elizabeth II from her governess, Crawford. Elizabeth certainly sounds like she was made for the job as Queen!

#58 - The Second Mount by Christine Pullein-Thompson, pages (own). A book I scored on Paperbackswap, this is apparently the second in a series. A good rider, David graduates from school in the UK and hopes to open a riding school with his friend Jane. Things do not go according to plan. This also included a lot about Pony Club in it!



#59 - A Look of Eagles by Barbara Berry, pages (own). Are you sensing a theme yet? Apparently, I'm on a reading old horse books tear :) This is the story of Sam and a Thoroughbred named The Cat. The ending is not a happy one but I'm glad that I read it and I've since passed it on to a co-worker, who apparently read it in her childhood!



#60 - The Mating Season by P.G. Wodehouse, 272 pages (library). Ah, Wodehouse. Just what I needed during a very stressful week!



#61 - Two Dogs and a Horse by Jim Kjelgaard, 94 pages (own). Written by one of my favorite childhood authors, illustrated by one of the best horse illustrators ever (Sam Savitt) -what more can I say?



#62 - Dr. Max: Adventures of a Kentucky Vet by Marilyn Dungan, 200 pages (own). Dr. Max wanted to be a veterinarian since the death of his pet iguana as a child. Herein lies many stories of his adventures as a veterinarian in KY - from dogs to bison and everything in between, this is an enjoyable book if you are interested in this sort of thing.



#63 - Dr. Seuss's Horse Museum by Dr. Seuss, 80 pages (own). There's a Dr. Seuss book about horses!! And art!! Just love this :)

#62 - Ashleigh: Winter Race Camp by Joanna Campbell, 176 pages (own). Hang around my thread long enough and sooner or later you'll see that I've read a Thoroughbred series book :)



#65 - A Single Thread by Tracy Chevalier, audiobook (library). I've always been a fan of Chevalier's books, so they're a treat when a new one comes out. This follows Violet, a single woman post-WWI who struggles with her single status. It's very easy to believe that the social experiences she had back then were true-to-life, which was a shame.



#66 - Wired To Eat by Robb Wolf, 400 pages (library). I think Wolf has made even more of a case for eating a Paleo diet. Additionally, I think his idea to individually test responses to carbs is a good one.



#67 - Grocery: the Buying and Selling of Food in America by Michael Ruhlman, 288 pages (library). An absolutely fascinating look at the inner workings of grocery stores in America. Ruhlman specifically follows employees of the Heinen's grocery story chain in Cleveland, OH. The scale of some of these stores is amazing! For instance, I had no idea that Kroger (my own particular major chain) is one of the largest grocers in the US?

#68 - The Girl Who Reads on the Metro by Christine Feret-Fleury, 175 pages (library). I fully expect this book to start making the rounds on here...it very much reminds me of the Nina George books, yet I seemed to enjoy this one more?



#69 - A Window on Provence by Bo Thorne Niles, 208 pages (own). A perfect read for summer because Niles travels with her parents to Provence for a summer in the early 90's sans child and husband to relive her childhood a bit.



#70 - The Tidal Poole by Karen Harper, 290 pages (library). This is: weird. I was taken in by the idea of Queen Elizabeth I starring as hero in her own mystery series, so I bought book #s 3-6 from my library's used book sale. Book #2 (this one) was available for loan. Book #1? Nowhere to be found. Why?? I've actually had to order that via Paperbackswap because I'm not sure how ILL's are working nowadays. So confusing!



#71 - Everyday Paleo by Sarah Fragoso, 304 pages (own). This is one of my (many) cookbooks that I've technically read but in spurts so...I'm looking a bit closer at my diet and this is one of the resources I've been using...

#72 - Culinary Intelligence by Peter Kaminsky, 272 pages (own). There's a lot of name dropping in this one and he tends to drone on a bit, but he rounded up his entire concept nicely towards the end and provided a few recipes to boot.



#73 - The Country Kitchen by Della Lutes, 296 pages (own). WHY did I wait so long to read this lovely book!?!? I literally had a receipt from its purchase back in 2010 in it! What a lovely memoir of growing up on her family's farm in the late 1800's and all of the culinary delights to be had back then. She includes her mother's recipes throughout but modified for a more modern kitchen. I do believe I need to try some of them.

According to my rating, I loved The Country Kitchen too, but I don't remember it. I read it in 2012. My library consortium doesn't have it, but it does have a couple others by the author, so I may try to order them.

And, drum-roll please....



#74 - The Twylight Tower by Karen Harper, 289 pages (own). Book #3 in this series. I managed to order a copy of book #1 on PaperbackSwap so hopefully I can read about the beginnings of the Queen's privy council!



#75 - Kick Me: Adventures in Adolescence by Paul Feig, 288 pages (own). This book just HURT reading it. Feig was very unique growing up which didn't make him the most popular guy...unfortunately, I can relate :(



#76 - Ballads of the Turf by William Galvin, 81 pages (own). I'll be the first to admit that I don't like poetry but, poetry about horse racing? Yes, please!

>31 DFED: Congratulations on reaching 75, Dawn!

Congrats!

Thank you everyone! Aktakukac - I'm jealous since I'm eager to read more of her books!



#77 - The Grace Kelly Dress by Brenda Janowitz, 336 pages (own). Three generations of brides, all with the same wedding dress inspired by Grace Kelly...a pleasant, quick read.



#78 - The Every Girl's Guide to Diet and Fitness by Maria Menounos, 336 pages (own). I've been "reading" this one for quite some time. We were just re-organizing our bookshelves and I realized how close I was to actually finishing it! I'm glad I did actually, because she's got some great suggestions for desk/home workout moves.

Congrats on 75! Woohoo!

alsvidur - thanks so much!



#79 - Stillmeadow Daybook by Gladys Taber, 274 pages (own). Taber was apparently quite a prolific writer! Stillmeadow is a farmhouse built in the 1690's!! Taber resides there with a friend and this is a series of essays on a year in the life of the farm. I look forward to reading more of her books if I can get my hands on them.



#80 - All My Patients Are Under the Bed by Louis J. Camuti, 222 pages (own). Oops! I actually read this quite some time ago but passed it on to my cat-loving boss and forgot to record it. Camuti is an extremely rare veterinarian, whose practice focuses solely on cats and he does house visits so that he doesn't upset them. What a fascinating guy!



#81 - String Too Short to be Saved by Donald Hall, 176 pages (own). I think that reading books like this, is my version of comfort reading lately. This is Hall's tales of spending summers on his grandparent's farm in the '40s and on - a way of life that doesn't seem to exist anymore.

>36 DFED: Hall's book does sound pleasant. I think how well written and edited those books determines whether it is a comfort read to me. Some memoirs of that nature are so poorly written and edited that they lose the comfort appeal. I really think that's why historical fiction or books like the Miss Read books appeal to me. They reflect a simpler time.

thornton37814 - that's exactly it! Things have been so crazy lately, I love just reading "good ol' days"/farming memoirs. Speaking of the simple life:



#82 - Simple Pleasures: 101 Thoughts and Recipes for Savoring the Little Things in Life by John Hadamuscin, 64 pages (own). Though I haven't fully "read" it yet in order to list it here, I recently bought another of Hadamuscin's cookbooks with lots of good, down-home recipes. This is the similar, but is a small gift-like book outlining simple pleasures to appreciate in everyday life along with recipes.



#83 - The Blue Zones Kitchen by Dan Buettner, 304 pages (library). I'd kind of forgotten about the Blue Zones project until it was brought to my attention again on the show Down to Earth. To be honest, this research kind of turns what I think I know about nutrition on its head, which gives me a lot of food for thought (ha!)



#84 - Recipes for Disaster by Tess Rafferty, 288 pages (own). I'm glad to hear I'm not the only one neurotic about hosting parties (not that there's much of that going on lately!).

#85 - Chitty Chitty Bang Bang by Ian Fleming, audiobook (library). Does anyone else find it hard to believe that the author of the James Bond novels wrote this?!?! I never much liked the movie growing up so I don't know why I got it in my head to "read" the book, but I'm so glad I did as the narrator of the audiobook was absolutely fabulous and the story was pretty darn cute too!!



#86 - The Beginner's Natural Food Guide and Cookbook by Judy Goeltz, 232 pages (own). In a continual effort to research diet and nutrition, I ordered a copy of this book. She's got some good advice scattered throughout but some of it's a little extreme AND it's hard to believe her advice when the very recipes she provides contain ingredients that she's heartily against (like white flour). The ONLY place I could find mention of this book on the inter-webs (besides one nice review on Amazon) was a blog that reviewed this book and pointed out the same thing!

She also lists some other 70's-era nutrition books to consult, but I wonder how believable any advice from back then is nowadays...



#87 - Park Avenue Summer by Renee Rosen, 368 pages (library). A good summer novel based in one of my favorite places...Alice Weiss moves to NYC in order to pursue a photography career but instead becomes the assistant to Helen Gurley Brown, famous woman editor of Cosmopolitan magazine. A little unbelievable at times but apparently the author did her homework on the personality of Gurley Brown. One of these days I'll read her famous Sex and the Single Girl.



#88 - The Mammy by Brendan O'Carroll, 176 pages (own). What a lovely, funny book about the life of a "Mammy" in the Jarro section of Dublin. I had the other two in the series already and am so glad I was able to find the 1st one (this) on PaperbackSwap! Now, on to the next in the series!

#89 - Farm Food, Volume 1: Fall & Winter by Kurt Timmermeister, 128 pages (own). Oops...I technically read this way back in January and forgot to record it! Bought in Seattle at a used bookstore (and finished on the plane ride back), this is just the type of picturesque cookbook that I love. I'd also love to get my hands on the second volume!



#90 - The Chisellers by Brendan O'Carroll, 190 pages (own). The second book in the Agnes Brown series, the kids are growing up!



#91 - The Cleaner Plate Club by Beth Bader, 305 pages (own). I "own" this one for the moment, since I bought it for my sister. But, I thought it was worth a read while it's still in my hands!



#92 - My Love Affair With the State of Maine by Gertrude Mackenzie, 328 pages (own). How funny that LT is doing a Maine book hunt in honor of the state's 200th year right now! I adored Maine when we visited a few years ago and love reading books based in New England...this is the story of how "Scotty" Mackenzie and her friend Dorothy buy and operate a local store in Goose Rocks, ME. The story is full of adventures and hilarity from the two girls that had no idea what they were doing! A lovely book for a girl like me who used to love playing "store" growing up :)

My Love Affair With the State of Maine sounds like one I'd love. I can't find it in my library consortium or through inter-library loan, so I have put a recommendation in for the e-book. I have no idea when my library (well, me, since it's part of my job) will start purchasing materials again, though.

And yes, I was floored when I learned Ian Fleming wrote Chitty Chitty Bang Bang! It's on my read someday list.

aktakukac - I was planning on getting rid of my copy. Would you like it? PM me and let me know!



#93 - The Fat Fallacy by Will Clower, 297 pages (own). A bit old, a bit redundant but plenty of common sense to be found here (and perfect timing too, when I'm starting to confuse the he** out of myself with regards to diet!). Basing his viewpoint on personal experience and scientific study, Clower encourages everyone to not be afraid of eating high fat items because they are good for satiety and all-around health. What I most took from it? Pay ATTENTION to what you are eating, while you are eating it and listen to your body's cues for when to stop! A simply idea, but easily overlooked when you eat in front of the TV or a good book :)



#94 - The Bookish Life of Nina Hill by Abbi Waxman, audiobook (library). What's not to love about this romantic tale of a fellow book lover??



#95 - Gee Whiz by Jane Smiley, 272 pages (own). Is this the last book in the Oak Valley Ranch series?? I seriously hope note - any fellow horse lovers will appreciate how much Smiley actually knows about horses in this Young Adult series. The illustrations are great too!

#96 - Very Charleston by Diana Hollingsworth Gessler, 168 pages (own). An absolutely gorgeous book on one of America's most beautiful cities!! I've had the pleasure of visiting Charleston several times and loved learning much more about such a historic city.



#97 - The Work of Her Hands by Anne Knowles, 222 pages (own). What a pleasant surprise this book was! I've already ordered the sequel to it on PaperbackSwap. Rachel Bellamy has worked long and hard to earn her veterinary degree and now has to work just as hard to be accepted by the English farming community she goes to work in. Very James Herriott-ish.

>43 DFED: I owned a copy of that Charleston book. I may have traded it at McKays when I was downsizing my collection because as beautiful as it was, it wasn't useful genealogically.

thornton37814 - McKays! (drool...) We've so been wanting to go back there lately! Yes, I can see the book not being useful in that way, but boy were the illustrations gorgeous! I definitely want to try to get my hands on more of her books.



#98 - Healthier Together by Liz Moody, 240 pages (library). Soon to be owned...I liked her recipe ideas so much, I've ordered a copy for myself!



#99 - Horse Meets Dog by Elliott Kalan, 40 pages (library). Now this is a cute book - it made me laugh out loud! I'm definitely going to get a copy for the nephews.



#100 - The Idiot Girl's Action Adventure Club by Laurie Notaro, 225 pages (own). A re-read for me by one of my favorite authors; I needed a quick, funny read lately. I'm glad I re-read it as I've now realized I don't necessarily need this book taking up room on my over-stuffed shelves.



#101 - Galloping Gertrude by John Loeper, 66 pages (own). A recent Goodwill find, it's a children's story with the history of the motorcar wrapped into it. It wasn't quite what I was expecting but it will summarily be passed on to the nephews when the time is right.

>45 DFED: When I lived in Cincinnati, some of us used to drive to Lexington occasionally to go to Joseph-Beth. Eventually Cincinnati got one, but we'd still sometimes drive to Lexington--but not quite as often.

thornton37814 - isn't Joseph-Beth the best?? I'm afraid that I've never visited the one in Cincinnati, but I'm so glad they're here in Lexington!



#102 - Autobiography of a Fat Bride by Laurie Notaro, 272 pages (own). Another humorous re-read for me.



#103-106 - Stage Coach, Horse Trade, Riding Class and Endurance Ride by Bonnie Bryant, 144 pages each (own). Some more comfort reads from my stack o' TBR Saddle Club books. Boy, a couple of these were really dramatic!



#107 - Back Forty by Francis Zuiker, 143 pages (own). This appears to be the only book that Zuiker has written and is the chronicle of his family's move from Chicago to a farm in WI in the 1920's. Talk about culture shock! There was an "unsatisfactory" ending to it - though I suppose a lot of real like is like that? I would have liked to have heard what happened to the family next.

#108 - Trading Paper by Cali Canberra, 283 pages (own). Here's another unsatisfactory ending for you. The fictional tale of misdoings in the Polish Arabian world, this book was filled with many characters, many storylines and way too many details. But, if you're looking for a horsey soap opera-type read, this certainly kept my attention. There's a follow-up book so maybe that continues to sort things out? Side note: my co-worker owns and breeds Polish Arabs and tells me that there's a lot of truth to this "fictional" tale...



#109 - Now and Then by Emily Kimbrough, 176 pages (own). I found this gem in the dark depths of a used book store. It's weird to buy a book based on liking the illustrator, but there you have it! Little did I know that I already own another of Kimbrough's books, which I look forward to reading (and looking at!).



#110 - Make Something Good Today by Erin Napier, audiobook (library). My husband and I really enjoy watching the Napier's show, Home Town. They're just so sweet! That really does shine through in their book as well. And, a lot of what they said about family and following your life's path really spoke to me.

>48 DFED: My brother's family all went down to Laurel to visit the set, eat in the restaurant, etc. They enjoyed their stay. I think the restaurant visit is what they still discuss most. Their waitress was memorable.

thornton37814 - well, I'm jealous! One of these days, when we can travel again...

In the meantime, more books!



#111 - Madeleine Cooks by Madeleine Kamman, 207 pages (own). One of those cookbooks that I've "read" but feel like I really haven't...I'm not as much of a fan of this one as I was of When French Women Cook.



#112 - Mutch About Horses by Ronnie Mutch, 84 pages (own). How happy I was to come across an equestrian illustrator that I'd never heard of before at a sale supporting a local therapeutic riding center (and, weirdly, I found a book about Buzz Aldrin for my husband??). How sad I was to take it home and realize that it was moldy inside :(



#113 - The Blue Zones, Second Edition by Dan Buettner, 336 pages (library). I'd certainly heard of the Blue Zones before but hadn't had much reason to look into it further until recently (see above r.e. The Blue Zones Kitchen). I really enjoyed the more detailed look into the world's longest living communities and the amounts of careful research that went into assuring that these Blue Zones were actually "blue!" It's a shame that these traditional ways of living seem to be at risk (da** you SAD!). What I also found interesting is the scarcity of meat in these communities' diets and reliance on legumes as a staple of those diets. Considering the popularity of paleo/keto diets of late and the assumption that legumes are generally bad for you...I'm not sure what to think!

#114 - The Mitford Murders by Jessica Fellowes, 421 pages (library). It's kind of fun to see a famous author as a crime solver! Not too bad and I'll probably continue on with the series.



#115 - The Shy One by Dorothy Nathan, 178 pages (own). Another one of those sweet, old-timey books that I've been enjoying so much of lately.

#116 - The Long Haul by Finn Murphy, 229 pages (own). I picked this up under the assumption that I would pass it on to my step-dad since he's a trucker. I wanted to read it first though, and I'm so glad that I did. It certainly makes you look at the trucking industry in a different light!



#117 - Feast Without Fear by Gin Stephens, 166 pages (library). Oh, how I HATE books that are published from e-formatted books. I've been dabbling lately in OMAD eating and Stephens is a noted authority on it. So, I've been eager to read more of what she has to say. However, this book had not only the formatting issues but many, many links to various studies, etc. - it was apparent that this was always meant to be an e-book (grrr).



#118 - The Mighty Queens of Freeville by Amy Dickinson, 225 pages (own). Dickinson is most noted as the columnist "Ask Amy" which I've always enjoyed reading when I've had access to it. But, this book is not about her job at all: it's about the community that she grew up in (Freeville, NY) and raising her daughter as a single mother. It was a very enjoyable read.



#119 - Down the Garden Path by Beverley Nichols, 296 pages (library). Oh, boy - I've found another tongue-in-cheek British author to read! Written in the 1920's, Nichols was a playwright and columnist who took up gardening as a hobby. This book outlines the travails that he goes through to create his perfect garden: and the characters he meets along the way. I truly can't wait to read more by this author!

>52 DFED: I like the cover of that Nichols book.

thornton37814 - not going to lie, that's what drew me to it!



#120 - The Heir by Kiera Cass, 346 pages (library). You know what's not in my library's best interests with people like me? No limits on the amount of loan time you can have a book out and no fines! :) I started this book with the best of plans, got sidetracked, got back around to reading it to find a slip in it indicating that I checked it out in September of last year!! I've had this book in my house for well over a year!!



#121 - The Crown by Kiera Cass, 279 pages (library). Now, on to the series: this is the continuation of the Selection Series with America and Maxon's daughter, Eadlyn. Eadlyn is encouraged to take part in a Selection herself in order to bring peace to her kingdom. They were both enjoyable reads.



#122 - The Poyson Garden by Karen Harper, 310 pages (own). I'm kind of reading this series backwards, but I'm glad I finally finished this since I'd like to pass it on to my MIL who we're seeing this weekend.

>54 DFED: That would be a dangerous situation for me! Our items renew up to four times as long as there are no holds on them, but we have been telling people to keep them for a little longer if they need to as the quarantining time and travel time to and from other libraries in our consortium makes getting items take longer than usual. We don't have fines either, so that helps.

You're doing a lot of good reading! Maybe you'll get to 150 this year??

I just saw your message back at >42 DFED:! Will send you a PM.

aktakukac - I'd love to read that many! I guess we'll see? :)

I almost feel guilty for listing the following, but I guess they do count! My husband and I have been actively trying to declutter our lives, which naturally includes books. We came across a box of our old childhood books and ones that I've picked up as an adult. Obviously, we had to take the time to read through a few of them!:



#123 - The Family Under the Bridge by Natalie Savage Carlson, 128 pages (own). This was a book that I picked up at a library book sale because it won a Newberry Award and took place in Paris. What a lovely, lovely book and I can't wait until my nephews are at the right age to enjoy it too.



#124 - A Pioneer Civil War Story for Molly and Ben by Evelyn Thurman, pages (own). My husband owns a signed copy of this that a relative gifted to him as a child. He was reluctant to part with it until...we actually read it! What an awful book. Though full of history of Kentucky and the Civil War (to a certain extent), the story had no plot and the children's voices were very unrealistic. On top of the fact that the ending was very abrupt? Perhaps she'd written more books in a series of sorts?? (update: this is the best pic I could find online of this book - apparently there was a series)



#125-126 - The Berenstain Bears and the Substitute Teacher and The Berenstain Bears and Too Much Junk Food by Stan Berenstain, pages (own). My husband is also the owner of a rather large collection of Berestain Bears books. They are going to be passed on to the nephews now but not until we've had the chance to re-read a few! :)



#126 - DuckTales: the Great Lost Treasure Hunt by Wat Disney, ? pages (own). Way back when, I was a big fan of this cartoon. Time has dimmed my memory of character names, etc. so I can say with authority that, if you were not familiar with this show, you would have no idea at all what exactly was going on in it!

#127 - The Breadwinner by Deborah Ellis, 176 pages (own). Why did this story sound so familar? Because I've seen the movie! And, with the somewhat open ending, I'm glad to hear that it's a series.



#128 - Lost Cat by Caroline Paul, 176 pages (own). One of Paul's cats disappears for five weeks...and then comes back home. This is her attempt to find out where he went.



#129 - Stories From the Peterkin Papers by Lucretia Hale, 90 pages (own). I hope that I haven't lost my sense of humor, but these stories were so silly, they were honestly hard for me to read.

#130 - The Vineyard by Louisa Hargrave, 272 pages (own). What a well-written memoir. Hargrave and her husband decide to start a vineyard on Long Island - they were pioneers in the field at the time and it was shocking the hoops they had to jump through just to make a go of it. It was also shocking the toll it took on their marriage. It was a touching story and the vineyard still exists!



#131 - The French House by Don Wallace, 336 pages (own). I really, really wanted to like this book. I hung in there thinking something more would happen...the premise was right up my alley but, in my opinion, the writing style left something to be desired.



#132 - Strange Planet by Nathan Pyle, pages (library). A friend of mine started posting these cartoons on Facebook so I definitely wanted to check more of them out. I've already got his second book of them on hold.



#133 - One Plastic Bag by Miranda Paul, pages (library). I think this children's book might be hard for a reader to follow but it's the tale of a Gambian woman who begins recycling the plastic bags that riddle the Gambian landscape.

#134 - Stranger Planet by Nathan Pyle, pages (library). I told you I already had the second one on hold! :)



#135 - The School of Essential Ingredients by Erica Bauermeister, 261 pages (own). What a suprisigly well-written book! I'm not going to lie, I came close to tears a few times reading this. And, what a surprise to find that this is the first in a series.



#136 - The Midnight Colt by Glenn Balch, 224 pages (own). A troublesome racehorse named Peck O' Trouble is bought by the Darby siblings to be re-trained. This is a well-written children's book and the author photo was just too funny! I didn't know anything about Balch but he just LOOKS the epitome of a cowboy journalist!!



#137 - The Trail Provides by David Smart, 345 pages (own). A memoir of Smart's hike of the Pacific Crest Trail. I find books about hiking this trail so darn interesting! Who knows - maybe I'll hike it one day myself??

>59 DFED: #137 Reading about hiking trails, like the Appalachian and the Pacific Crest made me want to hike too. I'll probably never cross the Atlantic to get to those trails, the reading did inspire me to start hiking a trail in my own country (The Netherlands).

FAMeulstee - of course, my idea is based on absolutely no experience but that certainly hasn't seemed to stop any of these authors from doing it! :) I'm glad that you're exploring and I've always wanted to go to the Netherlands!



#138 - Riding Lessons by Jane Smiley, 183 pages (library). What an adorable book! And, it's a continuation of the Oak Valley Ranch series. I'm tempted to say that I like Ellen's character better than Abby's?



#139 - Buddha's Diet by Tara Cottrell, 240 pages (own). I'm always a sucker for these Buddhism-related diet/health books. They just seem much more balanced than most. This was a good read, though I did set it down off-and-on for quite awhile and so it's lost some of its potency with me...



#140 - Apple of My Eye by Helene Hanff, 121 pages (own). Oh, Helene, how I love you! Such a humorous take on being a tourist in New York City. If you've ever been to the city, or wish to, this is a worthwhile (though a bit dated) read.

#141 - Saddles & Secrets by Jane Smiley, 195 pages (library). Book #2 in this series and just as enjoyable!!



#142 - Our Hearts Were Young and Gay by Cornelia Otis Skinner, 247 pages (own). I'm a fan of Emily Kimbrough's writing and she's the Emily in this book! She and the author (best friends) assert their independence by traveling to Europe in the 1920's. Hilarity ensues.

#143 - Horse Diaries: Jingle Bells by Catherine Hapka, 208 pages (loan). A co-worker lent this very timely little book to me. I didn't used to like this series, but it's growing on me!



#144 - A Prairie Christmas by Pamela Griffin and Maryn Langer, 240 pages (own). Every so often, a girl just needs a good romance story, right? This was given to me for free and was also a very timely read! I enjoyed the 1st story by Griffin - the second story by Langer's plot was outrageous to say the least and hard to follow. And, I was not prepared for the epilogue to both (but I'll leave that for the next read to find out).

#145 - Mobituaries by Mo Rocca, audiobook (library). I'm not sure I entirely understand the concept behind "Mobituaries" (maybe if I listened to the podcast, I would?) but, boy, did I learn a lot of interesting factoids from this book.



#146 - Falling In Honey by Jennifer Barclay, 352 pages (own). Kind of your typical "girl dealing with heartbreak by traveling the world"-type book. Though I enjoyed her story and I'm glad she ultimately found her "happy place," the writing was disjointed and repetitive. I get the feeling this book was compiled from blog postings?

#147 - Real Life Organizing by Cassandra Aarssen, 149 pages (library). Cassandra is better known as the "Clutterbug" on her TV show and social media. Narrowing down my Clutterbug type has been very helpful as I've been doing a major overhaul of my house, its storage and all of the cr** that's built up in it over time!!



#148 - Big Wishes for Little Feat by Cheryl Olsten, 56 pages (own). An Early Reviewer book, review to follow.

Well, I've not managed to add any last minute reads for 2020, so it's on to the next year's thread here!: https://www.librarything.com/topic/328058