Merry Christmas!

 

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

1 Day to Christmas!

 

Coco at the Ritz: A Novel by Gioia Diliberto -- BOOK BEGINNINGS

BOOK BEGINNINGS ON FRIDAYS

Merry Christmas for those of you celebrating this weekend! This post goes up Thursday evening, Christmas Eve Eve as we used to say when we were kids. By Friday, I will be deep into celebrations, with my mind far away from book blogging and concentrating only on all things Christmas. 

But once the ribbons, wrapping, and cookie crumbs are swept away, I'll be in the mood to curl up with a good book. Especially if Portland gets snowed in next week like might happen! 

Do you plan to do any reading this holiday weekend?

MY BOOK BEGINNING

When the doorbell rang at eight thirty on that hot, languid morning, Coco knew they'd come to arrest her.

-- Coco at the Ritz: A Novel by Gioia Diliberto. That's an excellent opening sentence!

This new novel about Coco Channel is based on the true story of Channel's war-time romance with a German spy and how that affair led to her arrest for treason following the Liberation of Paris. Coco at the Ritz came out this month from Pegasus Books and is historical fiction at its page-turning best.

Coco at the Ritz went straight onto my list of French Connections books.

YOUR BOOK BEGINNINGS

Share the opening sentence (or so) of the book you are reading, or just a book you want to highlight. Please link to your blog or social media post, not the home page of your blog or your social media profile page. If you share on social media, please use #bookbeginnings.

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THE FRIDAY 56

Freda at Freda's Voice hosts another teaser event on Fridays. Participants share a two-sentence teaser from page 56 of the book they are reading -- or from 56% of the way through the audiobook or ebook. Please visit Freda's Voice for details and to leave a link to your post.

MY FRIDAY 56

From Coco at the Ritz:

There was no question of Coco changing addresses, of moving to another part of town. She had to be at the Ritz, where she could keep an eye on her shop across the street, the source of her income.

I just want to cuddle up in a fuzzy robe in front of the tree and fireplace and read this from cover to cover. With a glass of champagne so I can channel my inner Channel. I'll even wear pearls with my fuzzy robe!

2 Days to Christmas!

 

The TBR 21 in '21 Challenge -- My Wrap Up Post

THE TBR 21 IN '21 CHALLENGE

COMPLETED

MY WRAP UP POST

2021 was the first year I hosted a TBR reading challenge I called the TBR 21 in '21 Challenge. The idea was to read 21 books off your TBR shelves in 2021. Not particularly creative maybe, but easy to remember! And the challenge will get just a tiny bit more difficult each year. 

If you want to join me in 2022 for the TBR 22 in '22 Challenge, please check out the main challenge page here and sign up! 

MY TBR 21 IN '21 BOOKS

I kept my books in this basket near my bed and read them in random order. One is missing because it was on my nightstand when I took the picture and I didn't realize it until I did my sign up post. Doh!

See any here that sound good?

• Not Now but Now by M.F.K. Fisher, the one missing from the picture. Fisher wrote about food and almost entirely nonfiction. This is her only novel. It was very odd and involved time travel. Reminiscent of Virginia Wolfe's Orlando. 

• Fear of Fifty: A Midlife Memoir by Erica Jong. My mom gave me this when I turned 50 a while back. I loved it!

• Three Men on the Bummel by Jerome K. Jerome, the sequel to Three Men in a Boat, which I had already read but reread this year because it is so funny. The sequel was good but never as good as the original. 

• Old Filth by Jane Gardam. Gardam's Old Filth trilogy tells the story of the long, complicated marriage of Sir Edward Feathers and his wife Betty. The three were the highlight of this challenge. 

• The Man in the Wooden Hat by Jane Gardam. In Old Filth, we get the story from Sir Edward's point of view. In this one, we get Betty's story and our perceptions change accordingly.

• Last Friends by Jane Gardam. In this last volume, we get the story of Terence Veneering, Sir Edward's professional and romantic rival. 

• The Florence King Reader by Florence King. King was a prolific writer, mostly of essays and articles, known for her writings about the American South and her acerbic wit. 

• The Library Book by Susan Orlean. A history of the Los Angeles library from an amazing storyteller. 

• Orchids & Salami by Eva Gabor. I got this 1954 memoir for its funny title and glamorous cover. It was the oddest book in the bunch, so obviously ghostwritten! Unless Eva Gabor wrote like a 1950s wise cracking sports columnist. 

• A Really Big Lunch: The Roving Gourmand on Food and Life by Jim Harrison, a collection of  food essays by one of my all-time favorite authors. 

• Love your Enemies: How Decent People Can Save America from the Culture of Contempt by Arthur C. Brooks. This was a timely read.

• Plum Sauce: A P. G. Wodehouse Companion by Richard Usborne. I've been meaning to read this for years. It was a deep dive into the Wodehouse oeuvre. 

• Fork it Over: The Intrepid Adventures of a Professional Eater by Alan Richman, a former food critic for GQ magazine. This was one of my favorites in the bunch.

• What French Women Know: About Love, Sex, and Other Matters of the Heart and Mind by Debra Ollivier. Her book Entre Nous: A Woman's Guide to Finding Her Inner French Girl inspired me to start a "French Connections" list of books set in France or by French authors, but this one fell flat for me. 

• Reclaiming Conversation: The Power of Talk in a Digital Age by Sherry Turkle. An excellent book that will make anyone put away their phone!

• Walden by Henry David Thoreau. This was on my Classics Club list. I tried to read it with my ears last year but could not engage with the audiobook. I got through the paper book, but can't say I'll be rushing out to read everything Thoreau ever wrote. Lots of words about the value of a good wool suit and descriptions of ponds. 

• Mysteries and Manners: Occasional Prose by Flannery O'Connor, a collection of essays, lectures, and criticism by one of America's best authors. 

• Fever Pitch by Nick Hornby. A memoir about soccer fandom is not exactly my cup of tea, but if anyone can make a description of 30 years of soccer games readable, it is Hornby. I'm a Hornby completist, in part because he taught me that word. 

• Wry Martinis by Christopher Buckley is a book of his collected essays. I found it a little uneven. I think it was cobbled together after the success of Thank you for Smoking.  

• An Alphabet for Gourmets by M. F. K. Fisher. Unlike her novel, this quirky book of food essays is Fisher at her idiosyncratic best.

• The Book that Changed My Life: 71 Remarkable Writers Celebrate the Books That Matter Most to Them, edited by Roxanne J. Coady and Joy Johannessen. I like books about books, so enjoyed this one, although some of the choices of contributors struck me as a bit random. 

All in all, I was pleased with my picks. I read over 125 books in 2021, more than usual. So these 21 were only a small part of the total. The others I didn't pick ahead of time, just at whim. I like preselecting a manageable number of books that I know I want to read for one reason or another and making myself read them. Usually the only thing "making" me want to read them is curiosity or the time they have been sitting on my shelf. 

3 Days to Christmas!

 

4 Days to Christmas!

 

THE TBR 21 IN '21 CHALLENGE -- Wrap Up Page

WRAP UP PAGE

FOR THE TBR 21 IN '21 CHALLENGE

January 1, 2021 to December 31, 2021

THIS IS THE PAGE TO LINK TO YOUR WRAP UP POSTS

TO LINK REVIEWS OF INDIVIDUAL BOOKS, GO TO THIS PAGE

If you want to join us again in 2022 for the TBR 22 in '22 challenge, please go to the main 2022 challenge page here to sign up. I hope you do!

LINK YOUR WRAP UP POSTS HERE

Please put your name and/or the name of your blog or social media handle. Please link to your review post and not your blog home page or main social media profile page.

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If you have questions about how to find the URL for a social media wrap up post, leave a comment or email me at gilion at dumasandvaughn dot com.

If you have trouble adding your link, leave it in a comment and I will add it or email me your link at gilion at dumasandvaughn dot com and I will add it for you. Please put your name and the name of your blog or social media handle in the comment or email. Thanks!

WRAP UP

The idea of the challenge was to pick 21 books off your TBR shelf and read them in 2021. You do not have to review the books to "complete" the challenge, just read them. Do a wrap up post and tell us about the 21 books you read.

If you didn't make it through all 21 books, do a wrap up post anyway and tell us about the books you did read and what distracted you from reading all 21. Will you join us again in 2022 to read 22 books?

If you do not do a wrap up post separate from your sign up post -- you just update your original post -- that's fine! Please still link to the updated post.

5 Days to Christmas!

 

6 Days to Christmas!

 

7 Days to Christmas!

 

8 Days to Christmas!

 

Murder at the Castle by M. B. Shaw -- BOOK BEGINNINGS

 

BOOK BEGINNINGS ON FRIDAYS

Well, after botching last week's post, I have my act together this week! This time of year can scramble my brain. Between holiday prep and festivities, end-of-year office admin tasks, and regular work to get done, I end up feeling like one of Santa's elves trapped in Legally Blond. 

I need to finish my book club book before we meet for a our final 2021 get together next week. Then I plan to coast into Christmas week with this wonderful looking new holiday mystery, Murder at the Castle. 

How is your month going?

MY BOOK BEGINNING

Iris Grey scanned the faces of the crowd milling around Aberdeen railway station, hunting for her driver.

-- Murder at the Castle by M. B. Shaw, new from Pegasus Books. 

This is the second book in M. B. Shaw's mystery series featuring portrait painter and amateur sleuth Iris Grey. The first book, Murder at the Mill, found Iris solving a murder that happened at a charming cottage during a Christmas Eve party. 

Murder at the Castle takes Iris north to a Scottish castle during the week between Christmas and New Year's Day. Baron Jock MacKinnon has commissioned Iris to paint the portrait of his fiancé, but plans go awry when a dead body turns up on the castle grounds.

YOUR BOOK BEGINNINGS

Please share the opening sentence (or so) from the book you are reading this week -- or just a book you want to highlight. If you share on social media, please use the hashtag #bookbeginnings. Leave the link to your Book Beginnings post in the linky box below.

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THE FRIDAY 56

Freda at Freda's Voice hosts another teaser event on Fridays. Participants share a two-sentence teaser from page 56 of the book they are reading -- or from 56% of the way through the audiobook or ebook. Please visit Freda's Voice for details and to leave a link to your post.

MY FRIDAY 56

From Murder at the Castle:

"Don't you find that strange?" Iris probed, slowing her own pace, taking in the soft sensation of dropped pine needles like an eiderdown under her feet, and the rich, resinous smell of the trees. The combination of the dark, towering trunks and the cold tendrils of mist snaking around them gave the whole place a distinctly Tolkien-like, fantasy feel.

I can't wait to tuck in! But I'm such a completist that I want to start with the first book in the series so just ordered Murder at the Mill to read first. It will get here next week, right after book club. Perfect timing to enjoy it over Christmas Eve and this one during the week between Christmas and New Year -- just like the plots of both books! Hopefully without any foul play!

 

9 Days to Christmas!

 

Monthly Wrap Up -- My November Books

 

MONTHLY WRAP UP

I got so caught up in Christmas prep that I forgot to post my monthly wrap up of the books I read in November. Doesn’t it feel like the last weeks of the year race by?  Between end-of-year work stuff and holiday festivities, I don’t know where my head is half the time.

MY NOVEMBER BOOKS

I read 13 books in November, including four for Nonfiction November. I love these theme reads that seem more popular with the the boom of bookstagram.

In the order I read them, not the order they are in the picture:

The Incredulity of Father Brown by G.K. Chesterton. I’m working my way through all the stories. This one isn't in the picture at all because I read it with my ears. 🌹🌹🌹🌹

Funerals are Fatal by Agatha Christie, the first of three Christie books I read in November just because I was in the mood. 🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹

French Lessons by Ellen Sussman, one from my French Connections list and a fun trip to Paris! 🌹🌹🌹🌹

Vol. 71 of Slightly Foxed from Foxed Quarterly, the Autumn 2021 edition. I count it as a “book” so I can keep track of which ones I read. 🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹

Rizzio, the new historical fiction novella by Denise Mina from Pegasus Books was an excellent way to spend a stormy afternoon. Great read! 🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹

Cat Among the Pigeons by Agatha Christie 🌹🌹🌹🌹

House Made of Dawn by N. Scott Momaday, which won the 1969 Pulitzer Prize. I wanted to like it more than I did, but the stream of consciousness, multiple narrators, and multiple narrative voices (including the always confusing second person) made it a difficult book to engage with. 🌹🌹🌹

Peril at End House by Agatha Christie 🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹

Past Tense by Lee Child. I have one more to go before I finish all the Jack Reacher books written by Lee Child (without his brother as co-author). Fine with me. I was an ardent fan, but I’m off them.🌹🌹🌹🌹

Walden by Henry David Thoreau. I finally read this classic about living in the woods and can check it off my list! 🌹🌹🌹🌹

The French Chef in America: Julia Child's Second Act by Alex Prud'homme. If you want more of My Life in France, this is the book for you. I loved it.  🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹

March Violets by Philip Kerr. This is the first book in his Bernie Gunther series and I’ll definitely stick with it. 🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹

Plum Sauce: A P.G. Wodehouse Companion by Richard Usborne is a deep dive into Wodehouse’s 97 books. 🌹🌹🌹🌹

Also in the picture are the white camellias that bloom in my yard from November through Christmas. 

 

10 Days to Christmas!

 

11 Days to Christmas!

 

12 Days to Christmas!

 

13 Days to Christmas!

 

14 Days to Christmas!

 

Book Beginnings on Fridays

 Yikes! Work got away from me this week!

Please share your Book Beginning link in the box below. I hope to get back here and fill in my post later today.

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15 Days to Christmas!

 

16 Days to Christmas!

 

17 Days to Christmas!

 

18 Days to Christmas!

 

19 Days to Christmas!

 

20 Days to Christmas!

 

21 Days to Christmas!

 

22 Days to Christmas!

 

The Red Button by Keith Eldred -- BOOK BEGINNINGS

 

BOOK BEGINNINGS ON FRIDAYS

Do you read anything special in December? For instance, do you read books with a definite Christmas or holiday theme? Or particularly cozy books? 

I like cozy books in December. They don't need to be Christmas books, but I stay away from books that are too action-packed, depressing, or political. I like a big shaggy classic this time of year, or a vintage mystery, and I try to slip in a feel-good rom com or Aga saga.

I look forward to the Book Beginnings on Fridays posts in December to see what you like to read during the holidays. Please share the first sentence (or so) of the book you are reading or a book you want to highlight.

MY BOOK BEGINNING

From The Red Button by Keith Eldred:

Belle would have started work early in her life regardless, since her family needed her contribution, but it was all the earlier because her mother, Lily, died of consumption when Belle was still a girl. 

The Red Button is an imaginative prequel to A Christmas Carol. It is the story of a young Ebenezer Scrooge and his romance with Belle Endicott. Belle is mentioned only briefly in the original story. This book is built around the captivating idea that Ebenezer Scrooge secretly carries a red button around with him that reminds him of his lost love. It will give you a new appreciation for Dickens' classic. 

Keith Eldred wrote The Red Button as part of a project called This is Red. Keith and his wife Janet started This is Red when she was diagnosed with early stage dementia. The goal of This is Red is to raise money for their local library where Janet has worked as the library director for many years.

YOUR BOOK BEGINNINGS

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THE FRIDAY 56

Freda at Freda's Voice hosts another teaser event on Fridays. Participants share a two-sentence teaser from page 56 of the book they are reading -- or from 56% of the way through the audiobook or ebook. Please visit Freda's Voice for details and to leave a link to your post.

MY FRIDAY 56

From The Red Button:

Ebenezer had provided an assortment of samples, so Archie and Belle were able to show what was available from the factory. Merrell seized on one item.

23 Days to Christmas!

 

24 Days to Christmas! An Advent Calendar Tradition

ADVENT: COUNTDOWN TO CHRISTMAS

Today is December 1, which means it's time to post an advent calendar of vintage Christmas cards here on Rose City Reader! This countdown to Christmas with vintage holiday cards is a holiday tradition I've kept up since I started this blog in 2008.

I love holiday traditions and vintage ephemera. If you also like vintage cards and want to see more, click on the "Advent" or "vintage postcard" tags at the bottom of these posts (or bottom of the page) and scroll through hundreds of images from past years. You will find Santas, elves, trees, ornaments, birds, cats, dogs, squirrels, gifts, candles, bells, and lots more!

THIS YEAR'S THEME - OR NOT?

Most years I have a hodgepodge of images. Some years I have a theme. Last year I followed a theme of cards with houses on them, since it was 2020 and most of us spent most of the holiday season at home! This year I'm back to a mixed bag, since it looks like that is what the holidays may have in store for us this year! 

When it comes to real time Christmas cards, do you send them? I do! I still send old-fashioned cards out of a box, usually with a picture of me and Hubby stuck inside. Yes, I hear the voice of Christmas Past calling! I like all the design-your-own cards because I like seeing the pictures of my friends and their families, but I still love a traditional card with a festive picture on the front and, if lucky, a handwritten note inside. 

I did order printed cards from Zazzle for my law firm. My law partner and I wanted to send a card that didn't look too "corporate" and, since we both have cocktails in hand, I think we succeeded! (We were celebrating the successful resolution of one of our cases.)

DECEMBER BLOGGING

Besides this advent countdown, I don't do much Christmas-themed blogging. Do you? I don't really do Christmas-themed reading that lends itself to Christmas-themed blogging. Although I like the idea of reading Dickens in December so I'm rereading A Tale of Two Cities. 

December is also the time to plan ahead for 2020 reading challenges. I get excited about them this time of year, although with so much else going on, it is hard to get all the posts up before the end of the year. I really prefer planning in December and posting in January. 

I am hosting the European Reading Challenge again in 2022 and will get that post up ASAP, I promise! 

What are your blogging plans for December? Do they include planning or posting any 2022 reading challenges?

See you tomorrow when the advent calendar continues!

 

21 Book Ideas for Holiday Gifts in 2021

 

21 BOOK IDEAS FOR HOLIDAY GIFTS

Books make terrific presents! Here are 21 ideas for the people on your list: fiction, nonfiction, history, mystery, cookery, gardening, memoir, house books, pictures books, even a sticker book -- a little something for everyone!

These are my personal picks for book gift ideas. Links go to my Rose City Reader bookshop.org shop. You can find my other bookshop lists there too, like 15 Favorite Campus Novels, Winners of the Women's Prize, and others. Feel free to poke around!

THE BOOKS

In alphabetical order by author name:

Ghosts by Dolly Alderton. A smart, sexy rom-com perfect for holiday reading. Came out August 2021 and was shortlisted for the Wodehouse prize for best comic novel.

Djinn Patrol on the Purple Line by Deepa Anappara. On the edges of a sprawling Indian city, a boy and his two friends set out to solve the mysterious disappearances of several children. This spellbinding mystery deserves the international praise heaped on it. It came out in 2020 and won the 2021 Edgar Award for best mystery novel.

Flavours of Greece by Rosemary Barron. Rosemary Barron started a cooking school in Greece in the 1980s and has been championing Greek food ever since. This redo of her best selling cookbook is a must-have for any lover of Greek food who wants to cook at home. Out June 2021 from Grub Street Cookery.

Dragons & Pagodas: A Celebration of Chinoiserie by Aldous Bertram. For the chinoiserie lover on your list, this one is a show stopper. Complete with Bertram's own chinoiserie–inspired watercolors and collages, Dragons & Pagodas is an irresistible confection. This coffee table gem came out September 2021.

Shoot the Moonlight Out by William Boyle. A neo-noir crime story set in pre-9/11 Brooklyn. Fans of Dennis Lehane or Michael Connelly will like this new rich, complex thriller. Out November 2021 from Pegasus Crime.

John Derian Picture Book by John Derian. This oversized coffee table book (11" x 14") came out in 2016 but is so gorgeous it deserves a spot on a gift list. Dreamy! 

John Derian Sticker Book by John Derian. For anyone who loves the world of John Derian -- or just loves really cool stickers! Came out November 2021.

The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas. Lawrence Ellsworth is in the middle of the first new translation of Dumas' "Musketeer Cycle" in over 100 years. His take is is fresh and lively, without the Victorian fustiness of earlier versions. If you thought the Musketeers were fun before, wait until you see how they swashbuckle now! The Three Musketeers is the first book in the series and came out in 2018. It's nice to start at the beginning. Four other books in the series are now available.

The Beauty of Home: Redefining Traditional Interiors by Marie Flanigan. New in 2021, this design book showcases Marie Flanigan's timeless, livable style. She also explains the elements needed to recreate her signature look. Can you tell I like pretty coffee table books? There's probably someone on your list who does too.

The Accidental Collector: An Artworld Caper by Guy Kennaway. This frolic through the world of art dealing and English villages is a freewheeling farce that will bring a smile with every page. It won the 2021 Bollinger Everyman Wodehouse Prize for comic fiction. 

The Splendid and the Vile: A Saga of Churchill, Family, and Defiance During the Blitz by Erik Larson. Erik Larson writes nonfiction history books that read like the most exciting thriller novels, like The Devil in the White City and Dead Wake. This one came out in 2020 but there are probably people on your list who missed it, just like I did.

Island of Gold by Amy Maroney. Amy Maroney launched a new series with this rollicking adventure story set in 1454 on the Greek island of Rhodes and featuring a strong female protagonist. Great pick for teen readers and any fan of exciting historical fiction.

The Garden in Every Sense and Season: A Year of Insights and Inspiration from My Garden by Tovah Martin. These 100 essays are like spending a year in a garden with a good friend. This reissued edition of Martin's garden classic came out in March 2021 from Timber Press.

Murder at the Castle: An Iris Gray Mystery by M. B. Shaw. Portrait painter Iris Grey arrives at Pitfeldy Castle in the Scottish Highlands to paint a portrait ahead of a New Year's wedding. But she must solve a murder instead. This Christmas-themed cozy mystery is PERFECT for the holidays. It comes out December 7, 2021.

Double Blind by Edward St. Aubyn. As you would expect from the author of the Patrick Melrose novels, Double Blind is rich literary fiction reminiscent of Iris Murdoch or Kingsley Amis. Came out June 2021.

The Florentines: From Dante to Galileo: The Transformation of Western Civilization by Paul Strathern. This masterful examination of the history of Florence is a nice choice for the history buff or Italian lover on your list. Out July 2021 from Pegasus Books.

Hill House Living: The Art of Creating a Joyful Life by Paula Sutton. Paula Sutton is a stylist, writer, and creator of the popular blog, Hill House Vintage. She's like a British, Black, 21st Century Martha Stewart and this is my favorite coffee table book of 2021. Get it for anyone with a sense of vintage style and dreams of living in a Stately Home of England. Came out October 2021.

Jubilee: Recipes from Two Centuries of African American Cooking: A Cookbook by Toni Tipton-Martin. Fresh and modern recipes with deep roots in African American culinary history. This award winning cookbook hit the shelves in November 2019 but is still getting attention. A solid building block for a cookbook library.

The Lincoln Highway by Amor Towles. The new book from the author of A Gentleman in Moscow and Rules of Civility. This came out in October 2021. Given the almost universal popularity of his earlier books, you probably can't go wrong with this one!

Taste: My Life Through Food by Stanley Tucci. Who doesn't like Stanley Tucci? For the foodie on your list, this one fits the bill. It came out in October and is getting all the buzz.

Harlem Shuffle by Colson Whitehead. Literary noir set in 1959 Harlem. This page turner of a caper shows Whitehead at his storytelling best. Came out September 2021.