Booking Through Thursday ~ once again

BTT used to be a thing, but it seems to have ended in 2017.

I've decided to feature whatever books I choose on Thursdays.

The All of It ~ by Jeannette Haien, 2011, literary fiction (Ireland), 145 pages

This award-winning novel relates the seemingly simple tale of a parishioner confiding in her priest, but the tangled confession brings secrets to light that provoke a moral quandary for not only the clergyman, but for the reader as well.  Set in a small town in Ireland, is a subtle tale of morality and passion that gives voice to an age-old concern in a fresh way, according to the New York Times Book Review.

At Her Age ~ by Marian Novick, 1985, historical fiction (Florida and New York), 258 pages (353 pages in large print)

Seventy-five-year-old Molly Vorobey escapes the boring life of a Florida senior citizens' home and travels to New York, but after a mugging leaves her penniless, she moves into her grandson's Columbia University dorm.

I'm this old

And one little extra question for us old folks.  Why?  Because "I'm this old."  I still have some of these with coins and small stuff in them.  Do you know what these items are?  No, they are not book-related.

BTT ~ multiple copies

Today's prompt from BTT:

"Do you own multiple copies of any books?  Why?  Is it the format?  Size?  Just because you love it?"

I have multiple reasons for getting multiple books.

First, to replace one that's practically unreadable because it's falling apart.  On my last day at seminary (April 24, 1987), I went to the bookstore and bought Theology of Hope by Jürgen Moltmann, happy I'd finally have time to read it instead of assigned homework.  I underlined and wrote in the margins as I read the book, but the pages began to fall out of the browning cover as the glue dried out.  The first 78 pages are in one clump, and pages 79-156 are another clump.  The cover is still holding onto pages 157-342, with a huge gap in the front.  I could have thrown it away, but my notes are all through that copy.  After 25 years, I bought a new copy in 2012.  This shiny version, I'm happy to report, has a notice on the copyright page promising it won't turn all brown like the first one:

"The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of American National Standard for Information Sciences-Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials."

Second, I have multiple copies of books I use in classes I teach.  For example, I still have four brand-new copies of The Complete Gospels edited by Robert J. Miller, as well as my own well-marked and tabbed copy.  If and when I teach my class on "Seven Gospels," I'll sell those copies — probably for less than I originally paid for the books, but at least it will free up some shelf space for other books.

Third, I have been known to buy a copy of a book and get home to discover I have one already on my shelves.  Sometimes, they are different editions and, thus, don't look the same.  Usually, I simply gave one of them to my friend Donna so we can both read and discuss it.

Fourth, which is related to the third reason, I unknowingly bought a second copy of Misquoting Jesus: The Story Behind Who Changed the Bible and Why by Bart D. Ehrman, but have NOT given away either version.  Both were published by HarperSanFrancisco, but one has "Plus" in the back:

Questions and answers with the author
Readers' responses to the book
Famous manuscripts
Top ten verses that were not originally in the New Testamant

Unfortunately, though this one appears to be the newer one, it has browner pages and a cut-out oval on the front cover that will probably tear at some point (cover on the right).  The other (on the left) has whiter pages and slightly larger print, making it easier to read.

Fifth, I have a extra copy of We Make the Road by Walking by Brian D. McLaren because a friend decided not to join me and others in our year-long quest for spiritual formation as we studied the book.  I'll probably give it away.

You may have noticed all these examples are nonfiction.  I'm not likely to buy two novels, since I rarely buy fiction at all.  I'll let the library provide those for me.

BTT (#49) ~ vacation

Today's prompt from Booking Through Thursday:

"When you travel, do you bring one book with you?  Or a pile of them?  And, is that pile still a load of paper to lug around?  Or do you use an e-book reader like a Kindle or your iPad to help carry the load?  (Because, even if you prefer paper, it can get heavy when you’re traveling!)"

I haven't yet traveled with the Kindle I got recently, but I can report that I always take more than one book because (1) it would be terrible to finish a book and not have another on hand, and (2) it would be just as frustrating if I weren't in the mood for a particular book (say, nonfiction that I'm reading for a class) and really wanted to read another (say, light fiction because I'm tired).  It could also go the other way, that I don't want to focus on a story line, but want something short to read for a few minutes.

BTT (#48) ~ unread

For today's Booking Through Thursday, Deb asks:

"What proportion of the books you own are unread?"

Oh, my goodness!  "Most of them" sounds terrible, but I have lots of nonfiction that are related to books I am studying.  Not all my reading is for distraction.  In fact, most of the books I keep are for me to use when quoting in class or to footnote what I write.  I rarely keep novels, which I read for pleasure.  Those are the ones I borrow from the library, so they don't take up space on my very full bookshelves.  The photo above shows the tall bookcase beside my desk.  It probably isn't much of an exaggeration to say I could read from my own shelves for the rest of my life!

BTT (#47) ~ recommended

For today's Booking Through Thursday, Deb asks:

"Do you read books recommended by friends?  Or do you prefer to find your own books to read?"

My answer is "yes" to both.  No, I don't read everything recommended by friends, not without considering how much the subject interests me.  But books my friends like are usually considered more carefully than a random book whose title I run across.  Specifically, anything recommended by my best reading buddy Donna goes to the top of my list, simply because she and I read and study the same things.  I'm sharing what she told me today that she "doesn't want to put it down."  It's that good.

The Secret of Magic ~ by Deborah Johnson, 2014, fiction (Mississippi)

In 1946, a young female attorney from New York City attempts the impossible: attaining justice for a black man in the Deep South.  Regina Robichard works for Thurgood Marshall, who receives an unusual letter asking the NAACP to investigate the murder of a returning black war hero.  It is signed by M. P. Calhoun, the most reclusive author in the country.  As a child, Regina was captivated by Calhoun's The Secret of Magic, a novel in which white and black children played together in a magical forest.  Once down in Mississippi, Regina finds that nothing in the South is as it seems.  She must navigate the muddy waters of racism, relationships, and her own tragic past.  This book brilliantly explores the power of stories and those who tell them.

Ah, I see why Donna got this one.  She actually met Thurgood Marshall on her high school trip to Washington, DC.  Yes, I do want to read this one and will put it on reserve at my library.

BTT (#46) ~ carrier

Deb's question for today's Booking Through Thursday:

Do you carry a book around with you?  Inside the house?  Whenever you go out?  Always, everywhere, it’s practically glued to your fingers?  (And yes, digital books very much DO count as long as you’re spending time reading on your Kindle or iPad and not just loading them with books that you never actually read.)

Yes, I usually have a book with me, something to read if I'm stuck waiting for someone.  Next week, I am scheduled to take a friend for oral surgery, so I know I'll need to have a book with me there.  I don't always take along a book when (for example) I'm meeting someone for lunch, since I also enjoy people watching and spending time pondering life's imponderables.  But when I expect long waits, I always take along something to read.  For that, I'd choose a book with short chapters or maybe a magazine that could be put aside when the person arrives.

BTT (#45) ~ weeding out books

Deb at Booking Through Thursday asks:

"Do you ever weed out unwanted books from your library?  And if so, what do you do with them?"

Oh, sure!  When my shelves look like this (photo from 2011), it's time to reconsider which ones to keep.  I always manage to get rid of some of my books when I move.  If I didn't weed out my books periodically, I would have nowhere to sit or sleep or eat because every flat surface would be covered with books.  What do I do with those I discard?  I take some to used book stores for trade credit.  Notice that means I'll be replacing them with more books, possibly even the same day.  Sometimes I give away my books, to my son or my friends or even some random stranger who may have found the one book I released through BookCrossing.

When I sold my house and moved to an apartment in 1984, I got rid of over a thousand books, by count — in other words, this was not an estimate.  Nevertheless, I still have thousands of books, many still in boxes from my latest move last summer.  I've run out of shelves, so I must either get more shelves in my new place or get rid of boxes and boxes full of books.  I'm trying to keep only books I still plan to read or know I want to re-read.  And still I bring in books from the library every week.  Yes, I know I'm crazy.  A crazy book lady.

BTT (#44) ~ books read last year

Most fun (#93) because of the Charlie Brown tree and Linus's blanket

Deb at Booking Through Thursday asks:

"What was your favorite book (or books) for 2014?  What reading really caught your attention?  Sparked your interest?  Changed your world?  Made you laugh?"

FAVORITE BOOKS

All year long, I "rate" the books I read on a scale of one to ten, all of which is totally subjective.  Since I list those I finish, I could simply have you look at the books I completed in 2014.  However, I also choose my favorite book each month.  Here are my twelve monthly favorites.

January favorite (#4)

Knocking on Heaven's Door: The Path to a Better Way of Death

by Katy Butler, 2013, memoir, 9/10

February favorite (#10)

The Housemaid's Daughter 

by Barbara Mutch, 2012, fiction (South Africa), 10/10

March favorite (#14)

The Invention of Wings 

by Sue Monk Kidd, 2014, fiction (South Carolina), 10/10

April favorite (#24)

The Alphabet Versus the Goddess:

The Conflict Between Word and Image 

by Leonard Shlain, 1998, language and culture, 10/10

May favorite (#30)

Paul and Jesus: How the Apostle Transformed Christianity

by James D. Tabor, 2012, history of religion, 9/10

June favorite (#39)

The Pink Party

by Maryann Macdonald, illustrated by Abby Carter, 1994, children's, 10/10

July favorite (#44)

Jonathan Livingston Seagull: A Story

by Richard Bach, photos by Russell Munson, 1970, fiction, 10/10

August favorite (#49)

Goodnight June

by Sarah Jio, 2014, fiction (Seattle, Washington), 10/10

September favorite (#60)

The Story Hour 

by Thrity Umrigar, 2014, fiction (USA and India), 10/10

October favorite (#77)

Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet 

by Jamie Ford, 2009, fiction (Seattle, Washington), 9/10

November favorite (#78)

My Beloved World 

by Sonia Sotomayor, 2013, memoir, 9/10

December favorite (#88)

A Friendship for Today

by Patricia C. McKissack, 2007, YA fiction (Missouri), 10/10

MOST MEMORABLE

The Alphabet Versus the Goddess by Leonard Shlain argues that literacy reinforced the brain's linear, abstract, predominantly masculine left hemisphere at the expense of the holistic, iconic feminine right one.  This shift upset the balance between men and women and initiated the disappearance of goddesses, the abhorrence of images, and — in literacy's early stages — the decline of women's political status.  Patriarchy and misogyny followed.

OUTSTANDING

(#95)  Suspicion Nation: The Inside Story of the Trayvon Martin Injustice and Why We Continue to Repeat It ~ by Lisa Bloom, 2014, history, 9/10

This one really made me think.  Lisa Bloom, an American civil rights attorney, shows step by step what happened during George Zimmerman's trial for killing Trayvon and uses Zimmerman's own testimony to show without a doubt that he lied.  Fascinating book about the state of our country today.

BTT (#43) ~ time

Elisabeth and Jurgen

Today's Booking Through Thursday from Deb is short and sweet:

"If you had all the time in the world, what would you read?"

The first thing that comes to mind, as I sit amid books and books and books that I'm sorting out before moving, is the 31 books by and about Jurgen Moltmann that I have.  I'd finally get around to reading what he had been writing for decades, studying and comparing his early thoughts and his later understandings.  On the day I left seminary, I went to the bookstore and bought another of his books, even though I had already completed everything required to graduate with my MDiv (Master of Divinity).  Something about what this theologian said really spoke to me, though I don't agree with everything he's ever written.  Far from it.  I'd just like to know him better.  And his wife, Elisabeth Moltmann-Wendel.  She is also an inspiring theologian, and I especially like a book they wrote together ~ God: His and Hers (1991).  Here's a list of books by Jurgen Moltmann in English.  I own most of them, plus books others have written about his theology.

BTT (#42) ~ favorite

Today's prompt from Booking Through Thursday asks:

"Do you have a favorite book?  What do you say when people ask you?   (This question always flummoxes me because how can you pick just one, so I’m eager to hear what you folks have to say.)  And, has your favorite book changed over the years?"

Once upon a time, I loved Uncle Wiggily stories by Howard R. Garis. Uncle Wiggily Longears was an elderly rabbit who first appeared in a story in 1910, thirty years before I was born.  Wikipedia says, "Garis penned an Uncle Wiggily story every day (except Sundays) for more than 30 years."  I think I had more than one book of his stories when I was little.

I remember the story of Jackie and Peety Bow Wow who wanted to sled, but there was no snow.  I remember when Uncle Wiggily played tag with Lulu Wibblewobble, the duck girl — she flew over the bush with sticky, red berries, but he ran into it.  At dinner time, Nurse Jane Fuzzy Wuzzy saw the red spots and called Dr. Possum to come because Uncle Wiggily was breaking out with measles.  I could identify, since I had measles, mumps, and chickenpox in my first three years of school.  Children wouldn't understand some of these stories now, and you adults can't imagine a doctor coming to a person's home, right?

I don't have my original Uncle Wiggily books, but a few years ago I found one at a used book store called Uncle Wiggily and His Friends, copyright MCMLV, MCMXXXIX.  Did you know publishers regularly "hid" the copyright dates by using Latin numerals?  MCMLV would be 1955, and MCMXXIX would be 1939.  (Yes, I studied Latin, back in the Dark Ages.)

But that was my favorite about 70 years ago.  I can't begin to tell you what my favorites have been over seven decades, though it would be fun to try to remember someday when I'm not busy reading a new book.  Here are my current favorites, one nonfiction and one fiction.

The Heart of Christianity ~ by Marcus J. Borg, 2003, religion

Time and Again ~ by Jack Finney, 1970, science fiction (time travel)

BTT (#41) ~ annotating books

Deb @ Booking Through Thursday asks about mark-ups:

"Do you write in your books?  Highlight?  Make notes?  Or do you like to keep your copies as pristine as possible?"

First, let me say that I teach from books.  It helps to have notes about — or at least highlight — sections of a book I may want to quote.  Friends who have Kindles assure me I can make notes in them, but I have noticed they cannot quickly find what they need.  And they can't flip back and forth easily.  So yes, I do write in the margins of my books, including my Bible.  I underline, occasionally highlight, definitely make notes in the margins, and use post-it notes to guide me to important points I want to share while teaching my students.

On the other hand, I rarely mark in novels — mostly because (1) I rarely teach from a novel and (2) I rarely keep my novels.  In fact, if my library has a copy, I usually borrow novels I want to read.  Naturally, I can't mark in library copies, though I may annotate them using temporary post-it notes.  The only people I know who keep "pristine" copies of books are collectors.  Although I "collect" books in the sense that I actually have thousands of books, I don't collect books just to have them.  I use books for a specific purpose:

for the ideas I find in them
for learning
for discussions
for sharing the knowledge gained
for clarity

BTT (#40) ~ multi-tasking

Deb @ Booking Through Thursday asks:

"Do you do other things while you read?  Watch TV?  Cook?  Brush your teeth?  Knit?  (For the record, I’m guilty of all of the above.)  Or is it a quicker question to ask when you DON’T read?  (Please tell me you don’t read while you’re driving.)"

I apparently don't read like other book bloggers.  I guess it's possible to read a novel while doing these other things, but — as I say under my profile photo on the sidebar — "I read to explore ideas."  Do I do other things while reading?  Yes.

I underline important points in the book.
I look up what I wrote about a similar subject earlier, so...
I can connect the two thoughts.
I do sometimes read while eating (or eat while reading).

But, no, I don't read while driving.

BTT (#39) ~ quality or quantity?

Today's prompt from Booking Through Thursday:

"Which is more important?  Quality for your reading?  Or quantity?"

The question makes no sense to me.  Oh, I understand the words, just not why anyone would choose to read books just to say they had read lots of books.  My answer, of course, is quality.  See my profile on the sidebar, where the only thing I say is "I read to explore ideas."

BTT (#38) ~ Neither a borrower…

Today's prompt from Booking Through Thursday:

"I’ve asked before how you feel about lending your books.  I’ve asked how you feel about libraries.  But how do you feel about borrowing books from friends?  Is this something you like to do?  Does it make you feel uncomfortable or rushed while reading?  Does it affect how you feel about the book you’re reading, pressured into liking it?"

Yes, I do feel pressured to finish within a reasonable time and have been known to return a book unread when I know I can't finish it anytime soon.  I don't usually read books to "like" them, but to discuss them and the ideas in them.  So I feel no compunction about giving my honest opinion.

BTT (#37) ~ choosing books

Today's prompt from Booking Through Thursday:

"What makes you choose the books you read?  Genre?  Reviews?  Certain authors?  Covers?  Recommendations?"

By the covers, to some extent.  Look at these two book covers.

. . . The one on the left looks like literature, and the one on the right looks like chick lit.  Look closer, though, and you'll see that both are the same book.  I wouldn't look twice at the one on the right, but I might read the back cover or dust jacket information of the one on the left.

• Genre?  Yes, as above, I don't generally read breezy beach books.
• Reviews?  Sure, if a book blogger I trust recommends a book.
• Certain authors?  I notice a new book, if I liked her previous books.
• Covers?  Yup, see above.
• Recommendations?  Of course, especially from like-minded friends.

This topic makes me realize that I don't read like other book bloggers.  I read too many "kinds" of books.  Mostly, I read books on the subject of my professional life — books on theology, which makes me wonder why I have 73 followers.  Those books are obviously chosen by subject matter, as I go from one scholar to another, or from one theologian's book to her next book.  I'm a teacher, a writer, and sometimes a teacher of writing.  And that determines another kind of reading.  I also read fiction for fun.  For this Booking Through Thursday, I simply assumed Deb @ BTT was really asking, "How do you choose the novels you read?"  That's what you, my readers, are probably interested in, anyway.

BTT (#36) ~ my ideal reading experience

Today's prompt from Booking Through Thursday:

"I want you to think about your ideal reading experience.  Think about the location.  (Your bed?  Favorite chair?  The beach?  Indoors or outdoors?).  Think about the sounds.  (Is there music playing?  Happy children playing in the background?  Utter silence?)  Is there a snack or beverage nearby?  Are you alone or with friends/family (presumably being quiet enough for you to read in peace)?  What kind of lighting is there?  Are you dressed in something ultra-comfy?  What’s your position?  Curled up?  Stretched out?  Now … describe it so that we can all feel exactly how perfect it is … and why."

Not in a hammock...

Not on the ice...

Not on a beach...

Not on a bench...

Not on a Kindle...

Not on a beast...

I read in bed...

...and like my books well done.

(Best of all, of course, is reading to a child.)

Bonnie and Raegan