Mark's Reading Place: Chapter Sixteen

-Jackson. Seven weeks.



-Brown Thrasher



“We need the tonic of wildness... At the same time that we are earnest to explore and learn all things, we require that all things be mysterious and unexplorable, that land and sea be indefinitely wild, unsurveyed and unfathomed by us because unfathomable. We can never have enough of nature.”

~ Henry David Thoreau

Audiobook:



Graphic/Comic:



July:

74) The Armchair Birder: The Secret Lives of Familiar Birds by John Yow 4 stars (audio)
75) Joe by Larry Brown 4.7 stars
76) A Room With A View by E.M. Forster 3.7 stars
77) The Incognito Lounge by Denis Johnson 3.6 stars P
78) The Old Ways: A Journey on Foot by Robert Macfarlane 4.6 stars (audio)
79) Diary of a Young Naturalist by Dara McAnulty 4.4 stars
80) When Women Were Birds by Terry Tempest Williams 4.2 stars (audio)
81) Damnation Spring by Ash Davidson 4 stars
82) The Dangers of Smoking in Bed: Stories by Mariana Enriquez 3.8 stars
83) Patience & Esther: An Edwardian Romance by SW Searle 4 stars GN
84) Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford 4.2 stars
85) The Midnight Library by Matt Haig 3.4 stars

August:

86) Gordo by Jaime Cortez 4.4 stars E
87) The Secret to Superhuman Strength by Alison Bechdel 5 stars GN
88) The Last Town on Earth by Thomas Mullen 3.8 stars
89) Yellow Bird: Oil, Murder & a Woman's Search for Justice by Sierra Crane Murdoch 3.7 stars (audio)
90) Second Place by Rachel Cusk 4.6 stars
91) Any Other World Will Do by Alex Lubertozzi 4.2 stars
92) Nature's Best Hope by Douglas W. Tallamy 4.3 stars (audio)
93) Afterparties: Stories by Anthony Veasna So 4.6 stars
94) Man Walks Into a Room by Nicole Krauss 3.8 stars
95) The Birds of Opulence by Crystal Wilkinson 4 stars (audio)
96) The Pull of the Stars by Emma Donoghue 4.4 stars
97) Seek You: Journey Through American Loneliness by Kristen Radtke 4.2 stars GN

September:

98) Swimming to the Top of the Tide by Patricia Hanlon 3.7 stars ER
99) The Vagabonds by Jeff Guinn 4 stars (audio)
100) House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune 3.8 stars
101) Sweet Time & other stories by Pixin Weng 3.8 stars GN
102) A Pale View of Hills by Kazuo Ishiguro 3.6 stars
103) The Magician by Colm Tóibín 4.4 stars
104) Death in Venice by Thomas Mann 3.5 stars
105) The Life and Afterlife of Harry Houdini by Joe Posnanski 4.2 stars (audio)
106) Man V. Nature: Stories by Diane Cook 4 stars E
107) The Man Who Lived Underground by Richard Wright 4.4 stars (audio)
108) Meadowlark: A Coming-of-Age Crime Story by Ethan Hawke 3.7 stars GN

October:

109) Great Circle: A novel by Maggie Shipstead 4.7 stars E
110) Fuzz: When Nature Breaks the Law by Mary Roach 4 stars (audio)
111) When Two Feathers Fell from the Sky by Margaret Verble 4.2 stars
112) Tears of the Trufflepig: A Novel by Fernando A. Flores 4 stars
113) Dialogues with Rising Tides by Kelli Russell Agodon 5 stars Poetry
114) Once There Were Wolves by Charlotte McConaghy 4.5 stars
115) The Office of Historical Corrections: Novella & Stories by Danielle Evans 4.3 stars
116) Icebound by Andrea Pitzer 4 stars (audio)

The Peace of Wild Things

When despair for the world grows in me
and I wake in the night at the least sound
in fear of what my life and my children’s lives may be,
I go and lie down where the wood drake
rests in his beauty on the water, and the great heron feeds.
I come into the peace of wild things
who do not tax their lives with forethought
of grief. I come into the presence of still water.
And I feel above me the day-blind stars
waiting with their light. For a time
I rest in the grace of the world, and am free.

-Wendell Barry

Hello? Tree Swallow in a bluebird box.

Dude, that's one seriously cute kid! Happy new thread!

Hey, Mark. Is that little guy gonna stare down every visitor. Tell him we'll be good. I'm thinking I better find me some behavior.

Ha ha. Love 'im. He needs a cigar. Or not. Probably most assuredly not.

ETA: I didn't get sleep last night, so I'm more loopy than usual. Disregard anything I may have written in this post.

>1 msf59: ADORABLE!
Happy 16th thread Mark.

He is a cute little fellow for sure, Gramps!

Happy new one Mark.

Happy new thread, Mark!

Happy new thread, Mark (and Jackson)!

>1 msf59: I love how ready he looks just to take in everything that the world has to give.

>3 msf59: Not much of a poetry person, but I love that one.

>1 msf59: *baaawww* so adorable

>4 msf59: Ha! The bird's clearly taken possession of that nestbox. Great image.

Happy Tuesday and new thread, Birddude.

>5 drneutron: Thanks, Jim and I have to completely agree with you on little Jack.

>6 weird_O: Hey, Bill. Sorry to hear about the lack of sleep. Can you nap later? I do mind that kind of stare down, at all. If I last at least another 20 years, I would love to share a beer and a cigar with Jackson.

>7 mdoris: Thanks, Mary.

>8 PaulCranswick: He sure is, Paul and thank you.

>9 katiekrug: Thanks, Katie.

>10 alcottacre: Thanks, Stasia. It looks I may get another Jackson-sitting stint later this afternoon, while Bree and my niece head to the barn to take care of Vayda. I won't mind. Glad you like the Berry poem.

Happy new one, Mark. Can't believe it that I made it twice a day at your place. 😉

Happy New Thread, Mark! Welcome back! Go Jackson!

Hey man, if you didn’t read the whole Paper Girls gN series, or even if you did, it’s now all in one volume. I’m probably going to buy it (loved that series but I’m sure the library will get it.

BTW, I LOVED The Book of Form and Emptiness. Now I’m happily reading Matrix by Lauren Goff .

Happy new one, Mark. That's a cute photo gracing the top of your thread!

Happy new thread!

That's quite a charming host you have there!

>11 richardderus: Happy Tuesday, to you too, RD! Hooray for Jackson and the protective tree swallow.

>13 Ameise1: Thanks, Barb. I love seeing you stop by twice in one day.

>14 jnwelch: Thanks, Joe. I don't remember how many of the Paper Girls books I had read, so this single volume sounds perfect. I appreciate the heads up. I have added The Book of Form and Emptiness to the TBR. Matrix is all ready on there. I hope you are loving it.

>15 Familyhistorian: >16 quondame: Thanks, Meg & Susan! Yep, Jackson makes the perfect host, doesn't he?

Happy New Thread, Mark. Yes, little Jackson makes the perfect host!

>3 msf59: Very good poem. We do need that kind of peace don’t we?

Happy new thread, Mark. Love the topper! :)

>1 msf59: what beautiful eyes he has! That's a great topper, Mark.

Happy new one, Mark. Great topper!

>18 EllaTim: Thanks, Ella. Hooray for Jackson and the Berry poem.

>19 BLBera: Thanks, Beth.

>20 lauralkeet: Thanks, Laura. He has quite the gaze, doesn't he? The girls are going to love him.

>21 jessibud2: Thanks, Shelley.

Hi Mark, sorry to read that your camping trip was so rainy! That kind of weather must have you thinking about getting your own camper or 5th wheel! I was so excited when I saw The Lincoln Highway by Amor Towles listed as "Available" at my library, I put in for it and only then found out that I am 111 on the list! Oh well, it isn't as if I don't have plenty of reading material while I wait. ;)

>23 DeltaQueen50: Hi, Judy! We made the best of the camping trip. Being able to stay in a camper and be surrounded by such good friends, made it all worthwhile. I also want to read The Lincoln Highway but have not checked my local waiting list. It will probably also be long.

Morning, Mark, and happy new thread!

Happy new one!

>25 scaifea: Thanks, Amber and Good Morning!

>26 figsfromthistle: Thanks, Figs.

'Morning, Mark! Happy Wednesday and happy new thread.

>1 msf59: There's that soul-searching stare of Jackson's... so cute.

I hope you enjoy your birding and booking adventures today.

Happy Middle of the Week, buddy. Yes, I’m loving Matrix. It’s refreshing to read one that is chronologically straightforward. I’m glad you’re going to give the Ozeki a go.

Enjoy the day. Sounds like birds and books are on the agenda. Perfect!

Humpday orisons, Birddude.

After churlishly commenting on Jackson's appearance at the top—Is that little guy gonna stare down every visitor?—I discover that I missed seeing him when I stopped in just now. The automatic jump to the first unread post is so quick, Jackson's appearance is subliminal at best. I had to jump back to the top to say hello.

Hi Mark -

To welcome your New Thread, BORDER SONGS by Jim Lynch not only has a great plot
and fun, very distinct, and memorable characters, but it features the best weaving in of BIRDS
that I've ever read.

>28 karenmarie: Happy Wednesday, Karen. Yep, you can't beat that "soul-searching stare of Jackson"! I enjoyed my bird walk with my buddies.

>29 jnwelch: Hi, Joe. I am so glad to hear you are loving Matrix. Is this your first by Groff? I had a good time with the birds this AM and now the books are calling.

>30 richardderus: Back at ya, RD!

>31 weird_O: Howdy, Bill. I did not take your earlier comment as churlish at all and I am glad you pop up to see him. That photo is also my background on my cell, so I really get a heavy dose of it.

>32 m.belljackson: Thanks, Marianne. Can you believe I read Border Songs back in 2014 and gave it 5 stars? It looks like I may have to own a copy and give it a reread. I am so glad you are enjoying it.

^I am really enjoying a pair of Netflix shows- "Maid" & "Squid Game". "Maid" is particularly excellent. I see it is based on a memoir too, Maid: Hard Work, Low Pay, and a Mother's Will to Survive that I might just have to seek out. Squid Game is like a bloodier adult version of Hunger Games.

Is anyone watching these shows? If not- add them to that Watchlist.

Afternoon, Mark! Happy new one! I love the Jackson photo at the top, and I'm glad you brought that one over from your previous thread. Bill's comments made me laugh. To me, Jackson looks like an old soul, just like our Birdy. Of course, you won't know until he starts talking and can share his thoughts with you.

>34 msf59: I have not watched either of these shows, but I am intrigued by both.

>34 msf59: 'Maid' is on my list. Not sure if I'll go for 'Squid Games'. I still have 'The Underground Railway' on Prime to watch Mark.

>34 msf59: - Both are on my Watch Soon list! After my last day of work on the 21st, I hope to catch up on some of the shows on that ever-expanding list...

>34 msf59:
I am not sure that I would go for Squid Games since I HATED Hunger Games so much. There was a rather longish discussion on CBS This Morning about Squid Games as it has topped the numbers for the last two weeks. The question was "why are people watching this." Apparently somebody is getting some blowback because it is so bloody. Personally, I am not good with blood and guts so this might be one I will sit out. However, I do wonder why it would be so popular. And I understand it isn't even in English? If it is that popular and people have to read subtitles, I really wonder why it would be so watched?

>34 msf59: Thanks for the hot tip! Alwaygs good to get recommendations for Netflix.

>39 benitastrnad: It's probably because we all want to go out and kill something by now!

Happy Wednesday, Mark! Off to check if Border Songs is in the BlackHole or not. . .

>35 Crazymamie: >36 Crazymamie: Thanks, Mamie! That is one of my favorite photos of Jackson, so I had to use it for my next topper. He does have soulful eyes at this point, we will be curious how that will evolve. I hope you put both of those shows on your Watchlist.

>37 Caroline_McElwee: Hi, Caroline. I am glad you have Maid on your list. I highly recommend it. I liked The Underground Railroad but in the end I didn't love it.

>38 katiekrug: Hooray for the fast-approaching 21st! Looking forward to your thoughts on both shows.

>39 benitastrnad: Hi, Benita. You hated The Hunger Game books, right? I forgot that. I am also curious why Squid Game has been such a success. There is violence but there is some depth too. It is also dubbed, (which I do not like) so it is not subtitled, which I am really surprised about. That might add to it's attraction & accessibility.

>40 mdoris: You are welcome, Mary. I aim to please.

>41 quondame: LOL. You may be on to something there, Susan.

>42 alcottacre: Happy Wednesday, Stasia. I think you would LOVE Border Songs. Did you start Great Circle?

>44 msf59: I have not yet started Great Circle, Mark. I have not heard from Mark as to how far he got in the book today. Border Songs was not in the BlackHole, but I found a copy out on PBS, so it should be to me soon.

I was curious when I saw Maid among the Netflick shows but didn't check it out. I'll have to have a look now that it has the Mark stamp of approval!

>44 msf59: I'm curious about Squid Game too. Not sure if I want to watch it. I'm on the fence between dubbed and subtitled. I go back and forth. I was curious about your comment about it being dubbed, so I checked it out, my Neflix defaulted it to English, but I went into the Audio options, the original Korean was there as well as English subtitles. I'd probably watch it that way.

When I eventually get to it, I'll probably do the same with Disney's Star Wars Visions show. Its short stories done by different Japanese anime studios. Looks interesting.

And while we're on the subject of Netflix, did you see they're doing a Book Club. They're doing some sort of mashup of a monthly read along, as an incentive to watch some of the movies they've done that are based on books. Sounds interesting. Here's the website.

https://www.netflixbookclub.com/#

>33 msf59: Definite 5 Stars for Border Songs on my 3rd reading!

Also, definitely keep Wyalusing in Wisconsin and the Effigy Mounds in Iowa on your camping radar.

>45 alcottacre: I finished Great Circle on the 3rd and gave it 4.7 stars. I reviewed it on my last thread. Is that an incentive? Congrats on snagging a copy of Border Songs all ready. You will not regret it.

>46 Familyhistorian: Hi, Meg. I highly recommend Maid!

>47 mahsdad: Squid Game is dubbed but you can watch it captioned. The captioning is better than the silly dubbed words that come out of several of the characters. I still recommend watching it. I did not hear anything about the Netflix Book Club. I will have to check it out. I appreciate the heads up.

>48 m.belljackson: 3 times? How cool is that? And thanks for the WI & IA recs too! Both places sound very good.

>1 msf59: Aw! What’s Jackson reading these days? :) (When Chris was tiny, I’d just read aloud whatever book I was reading at the time. You can only get away with that for so long though.)

Not surprising, the books you’re reading are ones I’ve got lined up, including Great Circle and When Two Feathers. I also have The Lincoln Highway waiting.

Did Mary Roach narrate Fuzz?

It’s actually been a lot of years since I’ve camped but I did a lot of it in my 20s. It rained? Isn’t it supposed to rain when you camp? Honestly...it always seemed to rain. :) Iowa seems like such a pretty, rolling state the couple times I’ve driven through. I should spend more time there.

>50 Copperskye: Hi, Joanne. Surprisingly, I haven't had a chance to read to Jackson yet. I do have my own book along. Maybe, I need to be a better multi-tasker. No worries. I plan on reading to him a lot.

You got some very good reads ahead of you. I am just about done with When Two Feathers and I am finding it quite a treat but it will probably not be for everyone. I also cannot wait to read The Lincoln Highway. Yes, Roach narrated Fuzz. I thought she did her earlier ones too but this was the only one.

Actually, we have avoided dealing with the rain more times than not, while camping but the last 3 times, not so much. It will be better when we get the camper.

"Long before Bering or Amundsen, long before Franklin or Shackleton, there was William Barents, in many ways the greatest polar explorer of them all. In this engrossing narrative of the Far North, enriched by her own adventurous sojourns in the Arctic, Andrea Pitzer brings Barents' three harrowing expeditions to vivid life..."

Even my audio book reading has slowed down, the past few weeks. I might have to start finding other times and places to listen. I just finished Fuzz and now I will start Icebound: Shipwrecked at the Edge of the World. I love reading/listening to NF adventure stories and this one sounds promising.

'Morning, Mark, and happy Thursday to you.

>34 msf59: I checked 'em both out, but neither appeals for some reason. Bill and I just finished watching a documentary series about the geological aspects of supercontinents - fascinating stuff about how plate tectonics brought land masses together then separated them over millions of years. I didn't know there were supercontinents before Pangea.

We're trying to find something that we'll both watch. Sigh.

>53 karenmarie: Morning, Karen. In regards to the TV shows I recommended, at least there is plenty of shows out there to pick from. Maybe too many? The doc you mentioned, sounds interesting.

Hiya Birddude. Something to get you in at the beginning: David Attenborough talks eggs.

I was *riveted*!

Afternoon, Mark! I have Icebound on my list from seeing it on LitHub, so I will eagerly awaiting your thoughts on it. I love books set in the very cold places.

>55 richardderus: Hey, RD. I will check out the Attenborough video. He is awesome. Nature's best. Thanks.

>56 Crazymamie: Hi, Mamie. Icebound is off to a good start. I like reading about cold regions too, much more than visiting them.

"Written with infectious verve, bold imagination, and oddball humor, Fernando A. Flores’s Tears of the Trufflepig is an absurdist take on life along the border, an ode to the myths of Mexican culture, and an introduction to a staggeringly smart new voice in American fiction."

^I am not sure how Tears of the Trufflepig escaped my attention back in 2019, when it was released. Reading just a short description of it, was enough to seal it for me. Just my cuppa. 30 pages in and it is off to a terrific start. Had this one landed on anyone else's radar?

-Bob Englehart

Hello Warbler!! As usual, love your books, your humor, and your grandson!! Happy Thursday. : )

>58 msf59: If only I hadn't exhausted my hold limit... Well I'll note it down for that future with a shorter TBR.

>59 msf59: WHAT American-made products? That's the problem.

Enjoy the Trufflepig!

>59 msf59: That cartoon is pretty much the view from my front balcony...

Mark - while wishing that BORDER SONGS could go on for a few hundred more pages,
Jim Lynch's first book, THE HIGHEST TIDE arrived in the morning mail,
along with Joe's recommended Sweet Thursday.

>63 mahsdad: My view from the boardwalk, too.

>63 mahsdad: How far out does the holding patter go?

>59 msf59: Buy American. What a concept Mark 😏

>65 richardderus: Your boardwalk is beside a Cargo Port, too? ;p LOL

66> Pretty much most of the way down to Huntington Beach. If this link works, its from a Live Marine Tracking website, all the green dots are container/cargo ships.

https://www.marinetraffic.com/en/ais/home/centerx:-117.5/centery:33.4/zoom:9

ETA - zoomed out a bit. I think all the dots are ships at anchor, all the arrows are ships that are moving.

>34 msf59: >47 mahsdad: Squid Game is remarkably popular worldwide. I am a fan of Korean dramas, I find it a very interesting format. Usually they are 16 episodes of about an hour, but with a single director and single writer. Very different from a season of an American show which can have a different writer and director for every episode. Another interesting difference is that Korean dramas are rarely filmed ahead of time, but are released almost as soon as they are edited. Sometimes scenes are filmed the same day they are released! One outcome of this is that the show can respond to feedback from viewers. Korean fans have much more sway in both the product and the lives of the actors than American fans. I find it all quite interesting. I'm not sure I will watch Squid Game, as I am squeamish, but some of the themes sound interesting.

>47 mahsdad: P.S. Thanks for mentioning the Netflix book club. It looks interesting. The host is Uzo Aduba, and the first book is Passing. Not a fluffy one.

>68 mahsdad: Whoa, that's way amazing! Do you know what the red-green-blue-orange and other colors signify. Panning out to the world view is stunning.

>49 msf59: I started Great Circle tonight and thus far am enjoying it. I am reading it along with Paul.

>60 Berly: Hi, Kimmers! Always good to see you, my friend.

>61 quondame: Tears of the Trufflepig is off to a good start, Susan. I am glad you have added it to the list.

>62 richardderus: You got that right, RD! Buy American!!

>63 mahsdad: Wow! Thanks for sharing, Jeff. That really puts it in perspective for us. BTW- You also have a nice view from your balcony.

>64 m.belljackson: I think I have The Highest Tide on shelf too, Marianne. Note to self- read more Lynch.

>67 brenzi: I completely agree, Bonnie.

>68 mahsdad: That is quite a Marine Map, Jeff. That green cluster is just unbelievable.

>69 labfs39: Hi, Lisa. Thanks for your thoughts on Korean dramas. I have not seen many. Do you have any favorites? I am sure you are a fan of the film Parasite, right? That is a masterpiece, IMHO.

I had not heard of Passing. Had you? It sounds interesting.

>72 alcottacre: I am glad to hear you started Great Circle, Stasia. I have a feeling it will take Paul awhile to get through that one. He is another one, who has several books going at once.

>75 msf59: Wonderful photo!

Morning, Mark! Love the photo of you and Jack! So sweet that he has a grip on your finger.

Katie and I both read Passing earlier this year - it's an interesting choice, and also one that is on a lot of lists.

>63 mahsdad: Great photo!

>76 labfs39: Thanks, Lisa. Bree captured that one nicely.

>77 Crazymamie: Morning, Mamie. Jack likes being held like that- football style and it seems to calm him down, when he gets fussy. It looks like I may have to read Passing. Thanks.

‘Morning, Mark! Happy Friday to you. I hope you enjoy your Trail Watch duties and reading today.

>63 mahsdad: Wow, Jeff, and nice view from your front balcony in general.

>68 mahsdad: That tracking website is amazing. And like Susan said, panning out to the world view is stunning.

>75 msf59: Grandpa, baby, and books! Excellent photo.

>78 msf59: Rae loved to be held like that - she always wanted to be facing out as if she were afraid of missing anything.

>75 msf59: Nice one!

Happy Friday, Mark.

Matrix was excellent, and now I've started Cloud Cuckoo Land. What a fall season of good novels.

My rehab therapist also was talking about how good that Netflix Maid series is. Wasn't Squid Games a trip?

>75 msf59: Nice shot Grandpa! (I probably missed it, what is your preferred moniker?)

>71 quondame: I found the filters on that tracking website, here's what the colors mean

Green - Cargo
Red - Tankers
Blue - Passengers
Yellow - High speed
Light Blue - Tugs & Special craft
Orange - Fishing
Purple - Pleasure craft

Just goes to show how our oceans have become the new super super highways.

There is a book about how that happened and the invention of the box container and the ships that carry them. Box: How the Shipping Container Made the World Smaller and the World Economy Bigger by Marc Levinson. It was published in 2006 and I want to read it but just haven't gotten around to reading it. I bet it would be an enlightening read right now.

While the main character of THE HIGHEST TIDE is intriguing,
Jim Lynch's writing makes me miss Brandon Vanderkool...
who sends this message to Jackson:

"Birds are easy to talk to."

>75 msf59: Nice photo of you with Jackson, Grandpa! Love the seasonal colours of his onesie.

>79 karenmarie: Happy Friday, Karen. We had a good Trail Watch walk today. We saw a pair of adult bald eagles too. Bree took a nice phot of us, didn't she?

>80 Crazymamie: Hi, Mamie. I don't remember if we carried either of our kids that way. Sue didn't remember either.

>81 jnwelch: Happy Friday, Joe. I am so glad to hear you loved Matrix. I hope to bookhorn it in, along with Cloud Cuckoo Land. It has been a great fall season for book releases and we also have the new Towles and Whitehead too. I highly recommend Maid and I have a couple more eps of Squid Game to watch. Enjoying both.

>82 mahsdad: We prefer the traditional Grandpa & Grandma, Jeff.

>83 benitastrnad: The Levinson book looks like an interesting read, Benita.

>84 m.belljackson: I presume Brandon Vanderkool was the lead in Border Songs, Marianne?

>85 Familyhistorian: Thanks, Meg. Let me tell you, this kid is well-dressed. He will be making the girls swoon.

I find it interesting that you missed Maid: Hard Work, Low Pay, and a Mother's Will to Survive when it came out. The author was on most of the talk shows. She was interviewed by Terry Gross on Fresh Air. Here is the link to that interview. https://www.npr.org/2021/10/15/1045995752/in-maid-a-single-mother-struggles-to-m...

I have had it on my TBR list for some time and it has languished there.

I just finished reading Bible Nation: The United States of Hobby Lobby by Candida Moss. This is a book length expose of the Green family, owners of Hobby Lobby, and their Museum of the Bible. The authors of the book and written a magazine length article about the Green family illegally acquiring antiquities looted from the Iraq National Museum and then failing to declare some of them to U. S. Customs, and lying about the contents of the shipping boxes on other stolen cuneiform tables when they were imported to the U. S. This article was published in The Atlantic and another in The Economist. The Green family had to pay a $3 million dollar fine and return thousands of artifacts to Iraq and to Egypt. I had heard about the scandel and wanted to know more about it, so I picked up this book at the library and read it. It is short - 190 pages, but hefty in its talking points. It is very academic as the authors are both professors and the book is published by Princeton University Press, but it did answer my questions. I have now started reading Thieves of Baghdad by Matthew Bogdanos. He is the Marine colonel who investigated the looting of the Iraq National Museum and tracked down many of the stolen artifacts that were sold to the Green family.

>75 msf59: Great picture!

I own The Highest Tide. I did not realize it was also by Jim Lynch. I will have to find my copy!

>75 msf59: Hard to tell which one of you is happiest there.

Happy weekend, Mark, and may some Nella Larsen words pass your corneas. I think that book, Passing, is as marvelous as Their Eyes Were Watching God at telling the inner story of racism. (Ain't just po'folks get pushed around....)

I'm tidying up my thoughts on Marge Piercy's 1976 delight, Woman on the Edge of Time, for Sunday. Lots to think about.

>88 benitastrnad: I do not remember Maid crossing my radar but it is a crowded field, that is for sure. I am sure it would make a good audio. Bible Nation also sounds really interesting. You do find good titles, Benita.

>89 alcottacre: Maybe we can read The Highest Tide together, at some point, Stasia.

>90 richardderus: Happy Friday, Richard. I think I am the happier of the two but I am hoping he will catch up with me. Another endorsement on Passing. I will have to give that one a try. Not at all familair with Woman on the Edge of Time but it does sound promising.

To Help With Climate Change,
We Buy Rechargeable Sex Toys

When the saleslady says, This one gets about forty-five minutes
before needing to be charged, I joke, Forty-five minutes?
What is this, amateur hour? Somewhere in another city
a woman is making a sign for a protest that reads,
The earth is hotter than my imaginary girlfriend.
We’re doing our part in different ways like the people
who arrived in a Prius holding a pamphlet, The Eco-Friendly
Guide to Sex Toys- they bought the handblown
dildo created by a local artist. As I pick up
the feather tickler from the bargain bin, I think
of the decline of North American birds, three billion birds
missing and how each year fewer cliff swallows return
to our neighborhood. And as I hold the blue vibrator
I was told Oprah recommended (a detail I kind of doubt),
I’m reminded of a sky I saw when I was eight,
before the brown haze of smog turned the city
into a health concern, the wife of a superhero dying
of lung cancer at forty-four even though she never smoked,
the thin layer of ash we wonder about then wipe off
our car windows before we drive home.

-Kelli Russell Agodon

This is from my current poetry collection, Dialogues with Rising Tides, which will probably be a one of the best collections I have read this year. I had to type this one out, (I am not a typist, so it takes me awhile) but I really wanted to share it.

>82 mahsdad: Thanks! I was looking for things like source but that was clearly not the distinction. I didn't notice any purples and probably conflated the orange and yellow. I did notice the light blue on the rivers though.

>75 msf59: Capturing a moment of trust? So many expressions that one has.

>87 msf59: Yes. only one Brandon Vanderkool!

Here's your Poem for the Day related to a book you were reading:

Two Feathers
and I
went awry
after the loss of Ocher.

>91 msf59: I looked for my copy of The Highest Tide briefly today, Mark, but had no luck in finding it. I will try again over the weekend. I would love to do a read along!

Happy new thread, Mark!

>52 msf59: We learned about Willem Barentz expedition at school. I always found it an interesting story, trying to find a Northern seaway to the East. I hope you enjoy Icebound.

>75 msf59: Lovely picture.

>94 quondame: Good observations, Susan. Looking forward to seeing this little guy tomorrow.

>95 m.belljackson: Hi, Marianne. You didn't care for When Two Feathers, right? It ended up, working for me. I really liked these characters and a pretty unique setting.

>96 alcottacre: I am sure you have a lot of books to comb through, Stasia. Take your time.

>97 FAMeulstee: Thanks, Anita. Funny, I thought about you while listening to Icebound and was going to recommend it to you, for the Dutch angle. It has been an interesting read so far. I was not familiar with Barentz.

'Morning, Mark, and happy Saturday to you.

We had two does grazing within 5 feet of the back porch this morning. I don't recall seeing them this close to the house before, even once hunting season starts. There are no birds at the feeders right now.

>99 karenmarie: Morning, Karen. I would sure love to see deer grazing in my backyard. I envy you your country setting. Nothing happening at my feeders either.

111) When Two Feathers Fell from the Sky by Margaret Verble 4.2 stars

“But the white people were too thick to understand that. And no amount of reasoning could get it through their wooden heads. They acted like starved turkeys. Gobbled up everything in sight. Broke ground directly in animals’ paths and planted corn. Then they sat out next to the plants with guns to scare the game away. And when they hunted they killed more than they could eat. And more of them kept coming.”

“That every cave, spring, and river has a spirit. And are part of their greater spirits. That the white people’s religion is one of their greatest evils because it drives all the spirits from the earth into the sky. It makes everything feel dead, when it is very much alive.”

Two Feathers is a young Cherokee woman, working as horse-diver at the Glendale Park Zoo. The setting is Nashville, 1926. The story revolves around the people that work at this park, from the owners down to the laborers and performers. It is an interesting and diverse group and Two Feathers is a wonderful character, that anchors it down, with her wisdom and beauty. The animals at this zoo also feature prominently, with Two Feathers sharing a kindred spirit with many of them. I particularly liked the buffalo and the bears. There is romance, treachery, racial tensions and a mystical angle, that makes this novel such a pleasant surprise. A lovely discovery.

>98 msf59: Sadly Icebound isn't translated yet, Mark. It would be nice to compare with the Dutch books about Barentsz. I find it funny his name is different in English (William instead of Willem and Barents instead of Barentsz), In Dutch we used to do the same. That was usual in the centuries before the world wide web connected us all.

Morning, Mark!

>92 msf59: Thanks for taking the time to type that out for us - I like it. Adding the collection you mentioned to The List.

>102 FAMeulstee: I hope Icebound is eventually translated, Anita. Yes, interesting about the name change.

>103 Crazymamie: Morning, Mamie. Glad you like the poem. It really made me chuckle.

>101 msf59: I was so mesmerized by that photo that I took a while to read your warble of delight!

Happy Jackson Day upcoming. Try to fill the time somehow until then.

>105 richardderus: Hey, RD. That is quite a photo. I didn't expect the horse-divers to go head first like that. Yep, looking forward to watching the Bears game tomorrow with Jackson in my arms.

>101 msf59: - This one sounds really good, Mark. I'll add it to my list.

As a young teenager (maybe tween), my favorite movie for a while was about Depression-era horse divers. I can't remember the name and it's driving me crazy. Off to Google...

ETA: Wild Hearts Can't Be Broken! Man, it was so cheesy.... Now I feel like finding it and watching it.

Horse divers as cruel and often fatal to animals as the buffalo hunts over the cliffs.

>101 msf59: I hope I enjoy that one as much as you did, Mark.

The search for The Highest Tide continues. . .

Happy Saturday!

>102 FAMeulstee: One of my favorite sections in a favorite historical series, The Lymond Chronicles, features a north of Norway voyage made from England to Russia and back about 1556.

Hi Mark, I hope you are enjoying your Saturday. You've added to my list of things to watch and read. I've taken a BB for When Two Feathers Fell From the Sky and now plan on giving Squid Game and Maid a look-see! I am another one who has read and can recommend Passing.

HI Mark, I think you will love this link of someone in your neck of the woods who has set up a bird cam at her feeders. There are some wonderful photos in the link too!

https://www.theepochtimes.com/mkt_morningbrief/michigan-woman-sets-up-homemade-f...

>92 msf59: Love it Mark. Adding a collection with that recommendation to the lust list.

ETA: just clickerty clicked...

>107 katiekrug: Hi, Katie! I am glad I got you with When Two Feathers and I am glad it brought back some memories. I hope more of my LT buds give this one a try.

>108 m.belljackson: I am sure it was cruel, Marianne and the book definitely does not glorify it.

>109 alcottacre: Looking forward to your thoughts on When Two Feathers and good luck with The Highest Tide search, Stasia.

>111 DeltaQueen50: We are having a very nice Saturday, Judy. Thanks. Glad I added to your TBR and your TV show watchlist.

>112 mdoris: Hi, Mary. I will circle back and check on the bird cam. Thanks, for thinking of me.

>113 Caroline_McElwee: I am so glad you responded to the poem, Caroline. I think it is priceless and I think you would love Dialogues with Rising Tides. It is one of the best collections I have read this year and I am still not done with it.

Mark, I found my copy of The Highest Tide. How about a November read along?

>115 alcottacre: Hooray, Stasia! Sounds good. Lets make it for the second part of the month, if that is okay. I am also doing a mini-group read of Swann's Way in November.

>116 msf59: No problem. Just let me know when you want to start.

>101 msf59: We had a good friend, Shirlene, who rode horses off that tower (in the photo) in her youth. On the sign in the photo, it reads "Steel Pier," which was in Atlantic City. I don't know when she did nor for how long she did it. Judi would know, but, of course, she's no longer available. Damn!

>Benita! I read The Box years ago. Definitely an informative book. If you own a copy, push it up the TBR. A related good read is Moby Duck by Donovan Hohn; it tracks a shipment of rubber duckies from Asia, which went overboard somewhere off the Alaska coast, and how a few of them (ok, maybe only one) turned up on a beach in Maine.

>88 benitastrnad: I'd read Bible Nation, but no. I've heard enough about sleezeballs like the Green family to have formed an opinion. Were there a loving god, he/she would vaporize the Greens and their ilk ( like Jerry "I-like-to-watch" Falwell Jr.).

Happy Sunday, Mark. Hopefully filled with lots of reading.

>118 weird_O: Howdy, Bill. I bet Shirlene was a very interesting woman and a daring one too. Pretty gutsy job. Thanks for the endorsement on The Box and Moby Duck. I do remember hearing about the latter when it came out, along with the original story.

>119 Ameise1: Happy Sunday, Barb. I will have to get some reading in early today, because I will be going over to Bree's to watch American football and hang out with Jackson for most of the afternoon.

Have a great time. 😀

>121 Ameise1: Thanks, Barb. You know I will and there will probably be photos.

110) Fuzz: When Nature Breaks the Law by Mary Roach 4 stars

I had not read Mary Roach in a few years, so I was delighted that her new book dealt with nature colliding with humanity. A subject that fascinates and horrifies me. There is her usual humor here but she mostly takes an informative dive into many areas, where animals and even trees, cross deadly paths with people. She covers bears, mountain lions, deer, elephants, albatross, macaques and mice. She also offers some solutions, for a better co-existence with this wildlife. A good, solid read and Roach does a fine job narrating the audiobook.

>123 msf59:
I have read a few books by Mary Roach and have a few more on the shelves. I have always liked her breezy approach to science and her curiosity about some of the weirder aspects of science where it crosses over into matters of faith and knowledge. I do have to say that this book Fuzz doesn't really interest me. Maybe that is because I come from areas where wildlife is everywhere and the borderline between humans and wildlife is already fuzzy. As an example, deer. I am old enough to remember when citing a deer was cause for articles in the local newspaper. I remember when my grandfather saw deer tracks in his garden and he took the time to explain to all of us kids in the neighborhood what deer were and how common they had been when he was a boy. (he was born in 1890.) Now they are everywhere in our area and have become a major destructive force because their numbers are so high. This, while at the same time, pheasants, who were a major game bird in our area and brought hundreds of thousands of dollars into the local economy, have been slowly disappearing due to their habitat loss. Strange how there doesn't seem to be a balance in these things.

^This handsome little fella is two months old today. Can you believe it? Go Bears!

>125 msf59: Two months already! He's such a cutie.

>124 benitastrnad: Hi, Benita. Thanks for chiming in on Roach. I also love your story about your grandfather and nature. My paternal grandfather did the same. He owned a farm, when we were kids and these were some of the happiest memories of my childhood. Yep, deer can be a nuisance and a danger. Our forest preserves cull the deer populations from time to time. I have not heard about it happening this year, so maybe it is under control for now.

>126 scaifea: He certainly is, Amber.

>124 benitastrnad:
I made a typical librarians faux pas in that post. I cited a deer. It should have been sighted a deer.

I have spent the last two months teaching everybody how to cite things properly and doing workshop after workshop on citations and storing citations that the "cite" form of the word has overshadowed the "sight" form of the word. Such is the life of a librarian.

Sorry for that mixup but it is too good of a joke on me to go back and edit it out.

‘Morning, Mark! Happy Sunday to you! Go Bears! Go Panthers! Go Jackson!

>125 msf59: How time flies.

>125 msf59: *baaawww* (Betcha he grows up to be an Eagles fan just to show all y'all)

>123 msf59: I'm actually contemplating this as an ear-read just to hear her read her own work. I'd like to see if I've been "hearing" her right all these years.

Happy week-ahead's reads!

>127 msf59: A couple of nature news sources have blamed the Browsing areas which farmers increased
around the edges of forests and fields = at hunter's requests =
for the increase in deer, as well as hunters killing off natural predators like wolves.

>125 msf59: He's looking like a little man now.

In that photo he reminded me a bit of British actor Jason Watkins (but without the stubble!):

>125 msf59: He needs his own fantasy football team - he looks that ready to manage it!

>128 benitastrnad: No problem, Benita. I didn't even catch it the first time around.

>129 karenmarie: Happy Sunday, Karen. I had a great time with Jackson, despite the Bears loss. Sorry about your Panthers. They just dropped 3, right?

>130 richardderus: Hey, RD. I know you are not at all into audiobooks but Roach is worth reading in any format.

>131 m.belljackson: I was not familiar with "Browsing Areas", Marianne. I will have to look into that. Interesting.

>132 Caroline_McElwee: Obviously, I don't see it, Caroline but I am glad my boy reminds you of someone. Grins...

>133 quondame: He was a complete joy today, Susan. I look forward to next Sunday, although I am sure I will see him before then.

>125 msf59: So cute!

>123 msf59: I like Mary Roach and that sounds like a good one! Like the bear photo too. ; )

>125 msf59: Cute! Too bad you are not enjoying grandpa-hood at all.

Hi Mark. You got me with When Two Feathers Fell From the Sky. That photo!!

I have a brief trip to Seattle at the end of this month and I'm SO excited to do some book shopping!

My current read is The Midnight Library. It's good, engaging and entertaining.

The Seahawks offense came out much stronger at the start of this second half but I'm still waiting for the defense to act like, well, like a defense. It's so weird how weak the Seahawks' defense is this year after almost a decade of being so strong!

Good morning, Mark. I wish you a great start into the new week.

>135 banjo123: Yes he is, Rhonda. A pure delight.

>136 Berly: Hi, Kim. Glad I got you with Roach. An entertaining read. Yep, grandparenting has become such a grind...grins.

>137 EBT1002: Hi, Ellen. When Two Feathers was such a pleasant surprise. I think you would like it too. Glad you are enjoying The Midnight Library. It ended up being a bit "lite" for me. Sorry, about your Seahawks. With Wilson out and the D struggling, the season looks like a lost cause.

>138 Ameise1: Thanks, Barb. You have a nice week too.

‘Morning, Mark! I hope you've got a good day planned out.

>134 msf59: Yes, drat ‘em, they won their first three games and have now lost three. For yesterday's loss, the overtime rules favor the winner of the coin toss and completely disregard momentum. Grumble, grumble.

I've got a few cardinals and a Titmouse at the feeders right now. I need to get different suet. I accidentally bought the wrong kind after the failed hot pepper suet experiment, and the birds are voting with their wings, so to speak. They like the cherry, blueberry, and peanut suets best.

>140 karenmarie: Morning, Karen. House chores and then running my FIL around. I hope I can squeeze in some reading here and there. Bummer about your Panthers. I hope they can rebound. I always enjoy your feeder report. Get that new suet. The vote is in.

Running Water

Yes, I move, I live, I wander astray—
Water running, intermingling, over the sands.
I know the passionate pleasure of motion;
I taste the forests; I touch strange lands.

Yes, I move—perhaps I am seeking
Storms, suns, dawns, a place to hide.
What are you doing here, pale and polished—
You, the stone in the path of the tide?

Alfonsina Storni
translated by Muna Lee

From Poem-A-Day. This one was first published in 1925.

>125 msf59: Mark, I love the happiness your words and photos show regarding your beautiful grandson. There's nothing like a grand baby!!!!! All good wishes.

>123 msf59: I would add that one to the BlackHole, but it is already there - Joanne recommended it.

>125 msf59: Two months old! Wow, time does fly.

Happy Monday, Mark!

Happy Mmmday. Let's hope there's nothin' but blue, cold skies ahead!

>142 msf59: The poem "Running Water" fits neatly with THE HIGHEST TIDE.

>145 richardderus: Hey, RD. It is a beautiful day here in Chicagoland. Sadly, I spent a big chunk of it running my FIL around. He ended up in the ER, waiting on a room to open up in the main hospital. I am glad I could help.

>146 m.belljackson: That is perfect, Marianne. Looking forward to The Highest Tide.

>147 msf59: I'm glad you could help, too, but not glad that he's being admitted. Well...not glad that he *needs* to be admitted. Better he's there under his own power, not wheeled in under lights and sirens.

"Propulsive and spell-binding, Charlotte McConaghy's Once There Were Wolves is the unforgettable story of a woman desperate to save the creatures she loves—if she isn’t consumed by a wild that was once her refuge."

^Like many others here, I loved McConaghy's last novel Migrations and was looking forward to reading her latest Once There Were Wolves, which I bought a few weeks ago. There is a glut of fall books to make my way through but I wanted to knock this one out first.

>148 richardderus: Thanks, Richard. My FIL has serious vascular issues in his legs, which will require surgery. He put this off too long. He may lose a toe but we are praying that that will be the least of it.

>123 msf59: I just listened to an interview today where Mary Roach was speaking about this very novel and the research behind it as well. Seems quite interesting. Can't wait to read it.

>150 msf59: Fingers crossed for him!

>147 msf59: >150 msf59: I hope that your FIL recovers quickly, Mark!

>149 msf59: Adding both of McConaghy's books to the BlackHole. I have never read anything by her. Luckily my local library has both.

>147 msf59: >150 msf59: Oh ouch. Yes, losing a toe is unfortunate. I hope it won't come to that and that he get the treatment to halt his condition.

>151 figsfromthistle: I recommend all of Roach's books, Figs. My favorite is Packing For Mars.

>152 richardderus: Thanks, RD.

>153 alcottacre: Thanks, Stasia. I think you will really enjoy Migrations and I am looking forward to diving into Once There Were Wolves later today.

>154 quondame: Thanks, Susan. We are hoping that pumping him with a lot of antibiotics, will get much of this infection under control.

-Clay Jones

>149 msf59: Once There Were Wolves is one of my faves this year.

>150 msf59: Sorry to hear about your FIL. Best wishes to him and all his caretakers (like you!)

>156 msf59: Noooooo! Not more supply issues. And rocks are even worse for your teeth. LOL

Sorry to hear about your father in law, Mark. I hope that the doctors can get the infection under control and avoid/prevent further pain and distress.

‘Morning, Mark!

>150 msf59: I’m so sorry your FiL will require surgery. Keeping you all in my thoughts and prayers.

>156 msf59: LOL. We never get trick-or-treaters. I think some of the neighbors have a little party at the entrance to our teensy subdivision and hand out candy to passersby, but … introvert … just no.

Morning, Mark! So sorry to read about your FIL. Hoping the surgery goes well.

Jackson is so serious. And so adorable. I can't believe he is 2 months already!

I have Migrations in the stacks, and am hoping to get to it soonish.

>156 msf59: Ha! NEVER GIVE AN ANGRY KID A ROCK

I am 120 pages deep into Thieves of Baghdad and find myself enjoying reading this book - even if it is written by a jerk with overly high levels of testosterone. So far it is quite an exciting account of his work at the Iraq museum. If you liked Monuments Men this would be a good book to read that is very similar. It is capturing my interest enough that I have pretty much stopped reading most of the other books I have currently cracked open.

>156 msf59: Wow - I'd love a new Rock for my collection!

When in Elementary School, my daughter collected, from generous distant relatives and friends,
a "Rock, Shell, or a Fossil" from every state and even New Zealand, where she had a penpal.

She got almost all the continents, then wrote for one from Antarctica - not sure if it arrived -
there are still boxes upstairs to open.

>157 Berly: Hi and Kimmers and thanks in regards to my FIL. I am looking forward to getting ready to hunker down with Once There Were Wolves for the afternoon.

>158 jessibud2: Thanks, Shelley. Sue is visiting him now, so I should be getting a report.

>159 karenmarie: Hi, Karen. Thanks in regards to my FIL. We don't get many trick or treaters either.

>160 Crazymamie: Thanks, Mamie! And hooray for serious but adorable Jackson! I am glad you have Migrations in the stacks. You might want to bump it up. Grins...

>161 richardderus: Great point, RD.

>162 benitastrnad: I did like Monument Men, Benita so I will keep Thieves of Baghdad in mind.

Hi Mark, sorry to hear about your FIL. I hope he's getting better soon.

Yikes! I'm hoping your FIL gets better quickly!

>163 m.belljackson: Thanks for sharing your daughter's rock collection story, Marianne. This is pretty cool, especially Antarctica.

>165 Ameise1: >166 drneutron: Thanks Barb & Jim. It sounds like he is responding well to his current treatments. Whew!

^Once There Were Wolves is off to a great start. Sorry, to hear that they really haven't started reintroducing wolves to Scotland but it looks to be in the works. There is always strong opposition.

>161 richardderus: If you give almost any kid a rock, you will have an angry kid. Future geologists might be an exception.

>168 msf59: Great update on your FIL!

Scotland could offer to remove the wolves from Northern Wisconsin and end that hunting season.

Let me know if there's a site to contact.

Happy Tuesday, Mark! I hope your father-in-law is improving!

>170 m.belljackson:
I think that the kind of wolves native to Scotland are a different species than the North American Grey Wolf. Europe has several different species of wolves and they are generally much bigger than the North American species. They may not be able to introduce new species and it may be that there aren't available wolves in the right species. By-the-way, the last wolf in Scotland was killed in 1680.

>170 m.belljackson: Not a bad idea, Marianne. Hunting them is ridiculous.

>171 alcottacre: Thanks, Stasia. Let's hope the good news keeps coming.

>172 benitastrnad: The wolves they reintroduce in the book are of course from North America. So far, the author hasn't mentioned any differences. This is fiction, though.

^I just watched Angel at My Table. It is a wonderful film, from New Zealand. I am a big fan of the director, Jane Campion. The film is about the author and poet, Janet Frame based on her autobiography of the same name. I would be interested in reading one of her novels or short story collections. Has anyone read Frame? If so, any recommendations?

Campion also directed The Piano, which I also recently re-watched. Another absolute gem. All three leads are terrific.

Janet Frame's best book, for me at least, is Owls Do Cry. Very touching, very very involving.

Well I just looked to see where I can watch An Angel at My Table Mark and I find it's on HBO so I'll be watching it maybe tomorrow night. It sounds great.

>175 richardderus: Oh thanks, Richard. Owls Do Cry does sound perfect. It also sounds autobiographical.

>176 brenzi: I am so glad An Angel at My Table is running on HBO, Bonnie. Looking forward to your thoughts. There are some dark moments in this film, so be prepared.

^I can not warble loud enough about the poetry collection, Dialogues with Rising Tides. I mentioned to Joe in the past, that one of my favorite things in poetry is how deftly a poet ends a poem. Like Ada Limon, Agodon is masterful at this. Here are a few excerpts:

“...I write a postcard to Earth
- I love you, but watch me navigate your landfills
in stilettos, let me kill your buzz. And you know
I’m talking about the bees now. My hands in the dirt-
if you want to gather the honey, don’t kick over every hive.”

“Time is a long sunrise where we wait for our halos.
Night is the ash that covers the light. Lessons
in disappearing. We keep losing
glaciers
entire species of birds
honeybees
ourselves. For the last year I’ve wanted to undo everything,
unsew the haze from my eyelids- you are here to be
swallowed up. Open the window, let the stars burn.”

“So tonight with the moon wilting, evening
overflowing into the canal where a nuclear sub
passes, guardians of what we can’t see,
our reflections are employed by the waves
as if disaster were our business, as if we’re not
wildly waving our distress flag
from the edge of the eroding shore.”

**Also check out the full poem in post #92, if you didn't read it before.

'Morning, Mark! Happy Wednesday to you. Have fun on your guided walk and keeping my fingers crossed that all goes well with your FiL's surgical procedure today.

>179 karenmarie: Good Morning, Karen and thanks. Fingers crossed. Lots of singing and activity around the feeders this AM.

Morning, Mark!

Hey there, Birddude. I hope FiL's stent-installation is an easy success.

Happy Wednesday, Mark! I hope all goes well today.

>181 Crazymamie: Happy Wednesday, Mamie!

>182 richardderus: Thanks, RD. Unfortunately, the FIL's procedure was postponed until tomorrow. Sighs...

>183 alcottacre: Thanks, Stasia. All good here. Nice birding this morning.

^He has become one smiley boy.

>178 msf59: I've just started this Mark, so glad you warbled. I am also an Ada Limon fan.

>185 msf59: Great smile.

>185 msf59: - What a sweet pic! What a charmer!

>185 msf59: What a beautiful baby! Was he looking at you when he was smiling?
I send prayers for your father in law and decisions that need to be made.

>186 Caroline_McElwee: Funny, I was going to stop by and recommend Dialogues with Rising Tides, Caroline. It was one I knew you would appreciate. Yah, for the Jackson smile!

>187 jessibud2: Thanks, Shelley. Since he has started focusing on faces, he has become all smiles.

>188 Whisper1: Yes, Jackson was looking at me, in the photo. I guess Grandpa makes him smile. Thanks in regards to my FIL. His procedure was postponed until tomorrow afternoon. Fingers crossed.

>185 msf59: AW! There's a smile!

>185 msf59: awww, I love that smile!

>185 msf59: what a sweetie, Mark.

>185 msf59: Wow, time is flying. Jackson is smiling already! Very very cute!

>185 msf59: Oh my gosh, a smile, a real smile. Treasure!

Thanks, Mamie, Laura, Bonnie, Mary & Susan. I am sure there will be more photos to share of this smiling baby boy.

>185 msf59: Oh gosh, just look at that sweet face! Happy babies are the best.

>196 scaifea: Good Morning, Amber! Hooray for happy babies!

Incantation of the First Order

Listen, no one signed up for this lullaby.
No bleeped sheep or rosebuds or twitching stars
will diminish the fear or save you from waking

into the same day you dreamed of leaving—
mockingbird on back order, morning bells
stuck on snooze—so you might as well

get up and at it, pestilence be damned.
Peril and risk having become relative,
I’ll try to couch this in positive terms:

Never! is the word of last resorts,
Always! the fanatic’s rallying cry.
To those inclined toward kindness, I say

Come out of your houses drumming. All others,
beware: I have discarded my smile but not my teeth.

-Rita Dove

Morning, Mark! Sweet Thursday!

>198 msf59:
"To those inclined toward kindness, I say

Come out of your houses drumming. "

What does this mean exactly? That those inclined toward kindness would drum her out of their company? I know that to be drummed out of service is to be dismissed in disgrace. But doesn't it also imply that the person would be forced out - she does not seem at all unwilling to go. I am just on my first cup of coffee, so keep that in mind. Permaybehaps my brain is not yet working.

'Morning, Mark, and happy sweet Thursday to you.

>185 msf59: What a sweet smile, especially as it was aimed at his Grandpa.

>199 Crazymamie: Morning, Mamie. In my amateurish opinion, I took her use of "drumming" as a positive term. Like marching forward and taking life's issues head-on. I could be wrong.

>200 karenmarie: Morning, Karen. I am hoping for a lot more Jackson smiles "aimed" directly at me.

-Joe Heller

>201 msf59: Ah. That makes sense.

>202 msf59: Yeah.

>202 msf59: I wouldn't've voted for him but I would've understood those who did.

Thursday orisons.

>204 richardderus: Hey, RD. I definitely miss Powell's kind of Republicans. Was he last one?

>204 richardderus: In a party that *wants* 45 back, I'd have to guess "yes." *shudder*

>206 richardderus: Good point, Richard. Shudder indeed...

^Recent book acquisitions. Thanks to the ever generous, Ellen for The Fortune Men and The Unseen. Both sound great, along with Bewilderment, which has been getting lots of raves. I will start that one soon. Has anyone read Craig Nova? I have not, although I had a couple of his books on my WL from years ago.

112) Tears of the Trufflepig by Fernando A. Flores 4 stars

“It wasn’t some monster or cheap science-fiction alien conquest, but people creating all the horror, enslaving one another at all cost in a world where more and more syndicates and absolute power reigned supreme.”

“In this world, it is only men who are guilty of anything, men of flesh and bones and gravity and sins.”

South Texas. Near future. There are now three border walls and major food shortages. Drugs are legal but there is a thriving trafficking business, in ancient artifacts and shrunken heads. Mexican gangs have kidnapped scientists and have forced them into bringing back extinct animals for food and entertainment, for the wealthy. This includes the mystical truffle-pig. Thrown into this mix, is Esteban Bellacosa, a middle-aged Mexican-American businessman, who somehow gets caught in between warring factions. This is a highly inventive first novel, well-written and finely crafted. This is an author to keep an eye on.

'Morning, Mark, and happy Trial Watch and Jackson day to you.

>209 msf59: And onto the wish list it goes! I just recently finished The Mandibles: A Family 2029-2047, another book set in the 'near future'. It's almost scarier being set in the 'near future' because I can see some of the patterns that could lead there. This one sounds similar.

>210 karenmarie: Morning, Karen and thanks. I saw my junco again under the feeders a few minutes ago. Glad I got your attention with Tears of the Trufflepig. A nice surprise.

^Hey, great news! We have been waiting on a new one from Ms. Millard. And "River of the Gods" sounds promising too.

Nice book haul, Mark.

>212 msf59: - WOOT! (I still have to read her one on Churchill...)

Have a great day, Mark.

>213 BLBera: Thanks, Beth.

>214 katiekrug: Thanks, Katie. Hooray for Big Tech Trophy Wife! Hero of the Empire is very good. I hope you have time to bookhorn it in now.

Morning, Mark! I still have not read any Millard, but I do have one in the stacks, I am thinking.

>212 msf59: I’m guessing Burton and Speck? If so, that’ll be a good one. They hated each other…. 😀

>212 msf59: Aaannnd onto the preorder pile it goes!

>209 msf59: I'll try this one again because you don't praise things this highly without reason.

>212 msf59: Ooh that's great news, Mark. I've been waiting for her new one! I just started the Wiley Cash and so far it's good.

Howdy, Mark.

>185 msf59: Fantastic smile, Jackson. Just passing a wee bit of gas, eh?

>202 msf59: I never "got" Colin Powell. He quietly and methodically rose through the ranks, got the top military job, but just kinda sat there. Then he got caught up in the Cheney-Bush Crime Family, got hung out to dry, and died with his mouth shut. Big disappointment. My favorite moment: when he ran out of gas in a traffic jam on the Washington Beltway.

>209 msf59: Given the chance, I'd read it. I'll have to keep an eye peeled for a copy. Ow ow ow. On second thought, forget the eye-peeling. I'll just keep an eye out for it. Oooo. Wait...

>212 msf59:. Mmmmmm. Ms. Millard. But, but... Another river! The Amazon was plenty bad. And now the Nile.

>216 Crazymamie: Happy Friday, Mamie. Which Millard do you have in the stacks?

>217 drneutron: Hey, Jim. I don't know much about Burton and Speck, so I am looking forward to it.

>218 richardderus: Hey, RD. I remember you liking Millard too. I hope you give Trufflepig another shot.

>219 vivians: Hi, Vivian. Hooray for another Millard fan. Glad to hear that you are enjoying the new Cash, but not at all surprised.

>220 weird_O: Howdy, Bill. That Jackson smile was definitely not gas, but I have seen those too. Good observations about Powell, that many of us probably overlooked. Please, no eye-peeling.

How many Millard's have you read? The answer, should be all of them. Grins...

"Danielle Evans is widely acclaimed for her blisteringly smart voice and x-ray insights into complex human relationships. With The Office of Historical Corrections, Evans zooms in on particular moments and relationships in her characters' lives in a way that allows them to speak to larger issues of race, culture, and history."

I had an itch to read a story collection. It has been nearly a month since my last one. Nancy sent me her copy of The Office of Historical Corrections a couple of months ago and I thought it would be the perfect time to dig in. I read and enjoyed the first story, (a bit George Saunders like, which of course is high praise indeed). Has anyone else heard anything about this collection? It has received stellar reviews.

>208 msf59: Nice additions - go Ellen!

>220 weird_O: A tad harsh, Bill, surely? Heaven only knows what would have happened in the Bush/Cheney White House without his moderating influence. Not on the right side of every political debate (but then who is?) but I thought of him as a thoroughly decent man.

Have a lovely weekend, Mark.

It's the weekend!!! Not that is makes much difference to a retiree like you, but have fun anyway. : )

>223 PaulCranswick: Hi, Paul. I think Bill may be on to something there with Powell but the positives seem to over shadow the flaws, at least in my opinion. I hope you are having a good weekend too.

>224 Berly: Happy Saturday, Kim. I think we will lay this weekend. Plenty of house chores to attend to and then there are the books, of course.

^Waterfowl are beginning to migrate through and some winter here. We saw a lone Canvasback the other day. A beautiful male. I also snapped a shot of a green-winged teal:



Waterfowl can be tough to photograph (due to distance and shyness) but these were in a small pond behind a Wal-Mart, if you can believe it and this made it a bit easier.

>189 msf59: I am much enjoying this volume Mark. I'm not rushing it, but should finish the first read this weekend. I read most poems a couple of times at least, in each read of a volume.

>226 msf59: Nice shots Mark.

>227 Caroline_McElwee: Hi, Caroline. I had a feeling you would love Dialogues with Rising Tides. She is a terrific poet. I hope Joe checks this one out too. I am enjoying my current volume, What Kind of Woman: Poems but on smaller scale than the Agodon. Have you heard of Baer?

Thanks in regards to the photos. I have not had a chance to post many of them.

‘Morning, Mark, and happy Saturday to you!

>226 msf59: Great pics of the Walmart ducks.

>220 weird_O: I tend to agree with you about Colin Powell, Bill, especially as his speech to the UN ‘justified’ starting the Iraqi War. It would have been bad enough to give a speech anywhere with the inaccuracies he later admitted to, but that speech got us into another war.

>229 karenmarie: Morning, Karen. Hooray for the Wal-Mart ducks! You would not believe how many interesting ducks and other water-birds that I have seen in these retention ponds, over the years.

Good point on Powell.

>230 msf59: Walmart attracts ducks! Go Waltons.

>222 msf59: Your analogy to George Saunders is spot-on. I, however, do not think of that as a compliment.

Happy weekend!

>231 richardderus: Hey, RD. This is is closest I come to Wal-Mart these days and I am completely fine with that. I always forget you are not a Saunders fan. Regardless, I am really this Evans collection. She is quite a talent.

Privacy

On the black wet branches of the linden,
still clinging to umber leaves of late fall,
two crows land. They say, “Stop,” and still I want
to make them into something they are not.
Odin’s ravens, the bruja’s eyes. What news
are they bringing of our world to the world
of the gods? It can’t be good. More suffering
all around, more stinging nettles and toxic
blades shoved into the scarred parts of us,
the minor ones underneath the trees. Rain
comes while I’m still standing, a trickle of water
from whatever we believe is beyond the sky.
The crows seem enormous but only because
I am watching them too closely. They do not
care to be seen as symbols. A shake of a wing,
and both of them are gone. There was no message
given, no message I was asked to give, only
their great absence and my sad privacy
returning like the bracing, empty wind
on the black wet branches of the linden.

-Ada Limon

^I sure hope this poem is from an upcoming collection. I think Ms. Limon's last collection was 3 years ago.

Morning, Mark! Hoping Saturday is full of fabulous for you.

>221 msf59: The River of Doubt is the one I have own the stacks.

>233 msf59: I also have big love for Ada Limon. I loved her Bright Dead Things.

>232 msf59: I read two stories and bailed. "The Office of Historical Corrections" was very grating to me.

>225 msf59: Happy Saturday Mark and looking forward to many more Jackson smiles!

If only Colin Powell had stayed with what he knew and had previously spoken as The Truth
and not made that leading our nation into war speech that electrified the UN with its lies.

^^^^^^^^^
Are you and Joe the so far "Secret Buyers" for Madison's ALE ASYLUM?
What a fun retirement business and you could add a Book Shop and Coffee House.

>235 richardderus: Sorry to hear that The Office of Historical Corrections rubbed you the wrong way, RD. I am three stories in and liking it quite a bit.

>236 m.belljackson: Happy Saturday, Marianne. And hooray for Jackson smiles! We can't get enough of those.

Ale Asylum is up for sale? What is the reason? No, Joe and I are not the secret buyers, but it sure is a wonderful thought.

Happy weekend, Mark, and hooray for a new Candice Millard!

>238 banjo123: Happy Sunday, Rhonda. Hooray for another Millard fan!

Added >101 msf59: to the wishlist Mark, so thanks for that!

I love the photos of visiting ducks - there is a managed wetland relatively local to me that includes a collection of international birds, as well as lots of visitors. I haven't been in so long because of obvious reasons. Hope to get there soon. My favourites will always be the mandarin ducks, they have such beautiful plumage.

>208 msf59: Your haul is impressive.
I inadvertently read the last in the Jacobsen trilogy first. But for my money is worked very well. I am hoping to pick up the other two: I liked that he somehow managed to avoid the expected paths (being vague to avoid spoilers!)

GN-wise, I found a tiny Adrian Tomine GN in the bookshop yesterday, part of a Faber special series of novella-type paperbacks. A very quick read. I'm hoping Arbitrary Stupid Goal, the GN I've just ordered (by Tamara Shopsin), takes a bit longer.

>226 msf59: Lovely pictures, Mark.
Both species only live in your part of the world, so thanks for introducing them to me :-)

>240 charl08: Happy Sunday, Charlotte. Great to see you. I hope you can track a copy of When Two Feathers down. Glad to hear from another migrating duck fan. These bird sightings keep things interesting through the winter months, when everything else is pretty much shut down. I am getting more and more familiar with the different species, as well, which makes identifying easier.

I will also read the Jacobsen trilogy out of order, so I am glad to hear that it still worked for you. I always like to hear about your GN reading. I just started "Last Things". This will be a tough, heart-breaking read, but it is very well done.

>241 FAMeulstee: Happy Sunday, Anita and thanks. I hope to share more waterfowl sightings. There are so many beautiful ones.

114) Once There Were Wolves by Charlotte McConaghy 4.5 stars

“The world he describes, empty of wild creatures and places, overrun instead by people and their agriculture, is a dying world”

“I want never to leave this place. I want never to see another human again. I want it more than I've ever wanted anything. The aloneness is exquisite; it is calm.”

The last wolf seen in Scotland was in the late 17th century. They were hunted into extinction. There have been proposals to reintroduce wolves back into Scotland, since the 1960s. In this novel, it is present day and a team of biologists take on the task of placing fourteen gray wolves into the Highlands. The team is led by Inti Flynn, a young Australian woman. She is accompanied by her twin sister, Aggie.
The challenges seem to be insurmountable, led by the disgruntled local farmers and ranchers. To make matters worse, someone is killed and it appears it was done by a wolf.
Inti tries to stave off the imminent attack by solving the murder herself.
This is another fine book by McConaghy. She does her research and presents a narrative that is both insightful and suspenseful. She delivered the same soulful, approach with her last novel, Migrations, which I also loved. She has quickly become a favorite.

'Morning, Mark! Happy Books and Bears day to you.

As I mentioned on my thread, we need the Bears to beat the Bucs to help my Panthers, the Panthers to beat the Giants, and the Washington Football Team to beat the Packers to help your Bears.

Morning, Mark! You missed me yesterday, but I was here. Wishing your Bears good luck today.

>244 karenmarie: Morning, Karen. It looks like we have our football day mapped out, even though the Bears and Washington have the biggest challenge. Your Panthers should be able to beat up on the lowly Giants.

>245 Crazymamie: Morning, Mamie. I am so sorry I missed you yesterday and I had read your post too. I will try to be more diligent. The River of Doubt is Millard's debut and it is a good one. Hooray for Bright Dead Things. Such a great collection and one I have on the "Keeper" shelf.

Go Bears! Brady & Co. are going to be tough.

Sunday orisons, Mark.

Mark!

Sorry that I haven't stopped by in a while. Comments on a few things, but especially that little grandson of yours - what a sweetie!

>34 msf59: I read Maid in audio last year. The author reads it. I thought it was well-done. Curious to see the Netflix series. I hear Margaret Qualley is great in it. Interesting note - her dad, Paul Qualley, grew up about a mile from me and went to my high school, but is closer to Shawn's age.

>123 msf59: Glad to hear you liked Fuzz. I still haven't read it, but here is a link to the video of our event with her and Roman Mars of 99% invisible. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=63vLyTxjmOU&t=323s

I am currently reading Five Tuesdays in Winter and Poet Warrior and am enjoying both of them. Oh, William! is on deck.

Have a great Sunday! My sister and I are going hiking with Cooper today.

>247 richardderus: Back at you, Richard! Enjoy, my friend.

>246 msf59: No worries, Mark. I was just letting you know.

I really want you to beat Brady & Co. Really.

>246 msf59: - "the lowly Giants" *SOB*

Happy Sunday, Mark!

>251 katiekrug: Rae said, "Them's fighting words!"

>248 alphaorder: Hi, Nancy. Great to see you. I have missed you. Glad to hear you liked Maid. I have added that one to my audio list. Thanks again for the Roach link. I missed it the first time around. I have an e-galley of Five Tuesdays in Winter and Poet Warrior is on my TBR. Glad you are enjoying both. Have a great time on the hike. Isn't it raining there? It looks like it will be raining all day here.

>250 Crazymamie: Go Bears! I would like to see an upset too, against the Super Bowl champs.

>251 katiekrug: Sorry, about the slip, Katie. There is a good chance, that we will be the "lowly" Bears after today. Their rough schedule continues...

>252 Crazymamie: Go Rae! Go Rae!

>253 msf59: Not raining here yet. Probably be gone for our hike during the first half of the game.

I think I like Lily King's novels better than her short stories, but this collection is still good.

Gloomy here. Good for reading about King Arthur's Noble Knights.

>255 alphaorder: Enjoy the hike, Nancy. May it stay dry. I did not realize the new King was a story collection. Interesting...

>256 weird_O: Happy Sunday, Bill. Gloomy here, as well. I good day to stay indoors with books & football viewing. Enjoy!

Hi Mark, I watched the Janet Frame movie last night and loved it. Also, I've watched the first couple of episodes of Maid and I'm really enjoying it. You know how to pick them.

I'll be anxious to get to Millard's new book. I loved both River of Doubt and Destiny of the Republic.

>258 brenzi: Hi, Bonnie! I am so glad to hear you loved An Angel at My Table and are enjoying Maid. My warbling is still paying off. I still have a couple more eps to go on the latter.

In regards to Millard, also keep Hero of the Empire in mind. Another gem.

Breaking News

I’m not a poet anymore—
I’ve interviewed too many politicians.
All they care for is ghosts.
Breaking news, I’m breaking
up with my stupid shame.
I have dates on my calendar
just for fucking. I do this
between my 9-5. Hello, hello.
I’m quieter than I seem.
I’m a man in a suit.
Please pass the damn hookah.
Please tell the magistrates
I’m tired of reporting.
My desire to fix this window is corrupt.
Your desire to call your looking
through this window
an act of social justice is corrupt.
At a protest, a white woman calls me fake news.
Okay, fine, I tell her back. I don’t smile
anymore. I do the job so well
I outcry the eagles. I outrun
the sad. I trouble
my brain into a blender
then hand you a cup.
My mother holds a butterfly
to the sky.
White winged glimmering mess.
Someone, please, snap a photo.
My shoes are drenched in blood.

-Noor Hindi From Poem-A-Day

Monday orisons, Mark. Make the best of the thunderboomers.

Hiya, Mark. Woo, what a gloomy mess out there this morning!

I liked that poem from Dialogues with Rising Tides and, given your positive comments about the collections, added it to the WL. Good reviews of Two Feathers from the Sky and There Once were Wolves. I'm immersed in the latter; she's just come across the body in the middle of the night.

I think you'll like Cloud Cuckoo Land. More great writing from this guy.

C'mon out with a new collection, Ada Limon!

Morning, Mark!

>261 richardderus: Morning, RD! Yep, a messy one here today. Ugh! A good day for hunkering down with the books.

>262 jnwelch: Morning, Joe. Great to see you. Yep, it looks to be a nasty one today. I am so looking forward to your thoughts on Dialogues with Rising Tides. Thanks, in regards to the reviews. I am not surprised that you are "immersed" in Wolves. Such a good read. I will be reading Cloud Cuckoo Land & The Lincoln Highway at some point. An absolute glut of fall books out there.

>263 Crazymamie: Morning, Mamie!

‘Morning, Mark!

I think I jinxed it yesterday in >244 karenmarie:. 0 for 3. ☹

>246 msf59: ‘should’ didn’t work out yesterday, did it? My poor Panthers. Your poor Bears.

I finished Thieves of Baghdad by Matthew Bogdanos over the weekend. It was a middling memoir. It was NOT about the looting of the Iraq Museum in 2003, which was what I wanted it to be. It was his memoir of the part he played in the Second Gulf War. As such it was a good memoir, but it was NOT a book about the problem of international antiquities theft and smuggling. Only about 4 chapters of the book were about that: the two chapters at the beginning and the two chapters at the end of the book. For that reason it was somewhat a disappointment. As a memoir, written by a collaborating author, it was OK. Solid 3 star rating. Now I am on to the next book. I started listening to the novel Other Black Girl by Zakiya Dalila Harris.

Good morning, Mark and happy Monday!

It's gloomy and rainy here, too, as Montana gets the tail end of the weather cyclones heading in from the coast. I think we're only supposed to get an inch or so of rain over the next few days. I can't imagine the 8 -12 inches parts of California are getting.

I finished a book by Douglas Tallamy called Nature's Best Hope which I think you would enjoy. There's a lot of info about how birds are dependent on native plantings; I've been aware of the native plant movement for a while, but did not realize how it impacts native caterpillars, bees, and birds. Tallamy had given a zoom presentation for my Audubon group last winter; I did not realize what a well known scientist he was.

I'm rereading Hamnet for this week's book club.

>266 benitastrnad: Hi, Benita. Thanks for the book update. Sorry to hear that Thieves of Baghdad feel a bit short. Looking forward to your thoughts on Other Black Girl. I haven't heard much about that one.

>267 streamsong: Hi, Janet. Great to see you. It looks it might be raining, right across the country. That is a rarity. I listened to the audio of Nature's Best Hope back in August. I enjoyed it quite a bit. Glad to hear you like it. Did you see my review of Once There Were Wolves up there? It would definitely be your cuppa. Just sayin'...

Not even going to try and catch up again, Mark. I finished a couple of good ones while I was gone if you have time to drop by my thread and see my thoughts on them :)

>269 alcottacre: You might have missed a lot of important stuff, Stasia. Kidding...

I will be by shortly.

-Rick McKee

Hi, Mark! I came over to see what was going on with your FIL, and I will have to go back soon to read all the poetry you've posted. In the meantime, hope he's doing well.

>272 ffortsa: Hi, Judy. Great to see you. I NEED to start visiting your thread more often. Thanks for asking about my FIL. He is doing better. He is having a second procedure, (less invasive) this afternoon and should be released
tomorrow. I am sure he is itchin' to get home.

"With its soaring descriptions of the natural world, its tantalizing vision of life beyond, and its account of a father and son’s ferocious love, Bewilderment marks Richard Powers’s most intimate and moving novel."

Like many of my pals over here, I loved Powers' previous novel The Overstory and have been looking forward to reading his latest, Bewilderment. It has been getting mostly LT love. I just started it. Of course, this early passage made me smile:

"...Your mother was brilliant. She kept spotting them left and right. Warblers and thrushes and flycatchers-every one of those birds was an old friend. She didn't even need to see them. She knew them by ear. Meanwhile, there I was, poking around, stumbling over these confusing little brown jobs that I couldn't tell apart..."

>271 msf59: Heh. Cute!

>274 msf59: That one is already in the BlackHole and I hope to have my hands on a copy soon. I ordered it a couple weeks back from Book Depository.

Hi Mark, once again you are adding to my book list! Both River of the Gods and Once There Were Wolves have caught my attention. Keep reading and keep warbling!

>259 msf59: Bwahahaha guess what Mark? I totally forgot I also read Hero of the Empire. I guess I'm a real fan of Millard lol.

>262 jnwelch:

This is for you, Joe: https://milkweed.org/book/the-hurting-kind

>275 richardderus: Hey, RD.

>276 alcottacre: Glad you got a copy of Bewilderment winging your way. It is off to a good start.

>277 DeltaQueen50: Hi, Judy. Good to see you. Glad I landed a couple of BBs. No plans to slow down on the warbling.

>278 brenzi: I am not surprised that you had read Hero, Bonnie. As a Millard fan, I didn't think you would have missed it.

>279 alphaorder: Hey, I am a Limon fan too! That is awesome news, Nancy.

‘Morning, Mark, and happy Tuesday to you.

I think you missed me up there at >265 karenmarie:.

>274 msf59: “little brown jobs” – my “LBBs” – little brown birds. *smile*

>265 karenmarie: >281 karenmarie: Morning, Karen. Sorry about that. I read the post too. I did that to Mamie the other day, as well. I am slipping. I hope both the Panthers and Bears pull it together. Ugh. I thought you might like the LBB & LBJ reference.

-White-Crowned Sparrow

WCS, along with white throated sparrows have been migrating through our area. They are both favorites of mine. I snapped this shot last week. They both sometimes show up at my feeders but I have not seen either yet. I did have three dark-eyed juncos though, arriving for winter.

Morning, Mark!

Your photography skills are getting really impressive! You know I'm not a huge bird fan, but I do really enjoy coming here to see your lovely photos.

>284 scaifea: Morning, Amber and thank you. I wish I could get more practice in but these buggers are tough to capture. They usually don't pose this pretty.

>285 msf59: You should write a coffee table book, pairing your bird photos with some of your book reviews...

>286 scaifea: Hey, that is an idea. Thanks, Amber. I was all ready planning a calendar for 2022 but it is in direct competition with a Jackson calendar. I think I know the clear winner here. Grins...

>287 msf59: Ha! Yes to the Jackson calendar! I used to make Charlie calendars for the grandparents every year, I think up until Charlie was 10. It was always a hit.

Mark,

Have you read much Jim Harrison? Terry Tempest Williams introduces his Complete Poems.

https://lithub.com/terry-tempest-williams-on-the-loves-and-appetites-of-the-grea...

Tuesday again. What is it with these here weekdays? Getting a bit repetitive, aren't they?

Have fun with it, anyway.

Morning, Mark!

>283 msf59: Love the photo!

>288 scaifea: I am not at all surprised you had Charlie calendars, Amber. Such a wonderful idea.

>289 alphaorder: I am a fan of Jim Harrison. I like his fiction and have read some of his poetry too. This volume sounds great and you know I adore TTW. I read a little bit of the introduction and I will read the rest later. Thanks, Nancy. This is awesome.

>290 richardderus: Time just marches on, RD. It felt like a touch of winter out there this morning.

>291 Crazymamie: Morning, Mamie. I don't think it will be that, by the time you see this but it is now. Glad you like the sparrow shot.

Post-Fire Forest

Shadows of shadows without canopy,
phalanxes of carbonized trunks and
snags, their inner momentum shorted out.
They surround us in early morning
like plutonic pillars, like mute clairvoyants
leading a Sursum Corda, like the excrescence
of some long slaughter. All that moves
is mist lifting, too indistinct to be called
ghostly, from scorched filamental
layers of rain-moistened earth. What
remains of the forest takes place
in the exclamatory mode. Cindered
utterances in a tongue from which
everything trivial has been volatilized,
everything trivial to fire. In a notch,
between near hills stubbled
with black paroxysm, we spot
a familiar sun, liquid glass globed
at the blowpipe’s tip. If this landscape
is dreaming, it must dream itself awake.

You have, everyone notes, a rare talent
for happiness. I wonder how
to value that, walking through wreckage.
On the second day, a black-backed
woodpecker answers your call, but we
search until twilight without finding it.

-Forrest Gander

No attempt to catch up. Just wanted to say hello and that Jackson is utterly adorable.

Ha ha. I saw that quote from Bewilderment—Meanwhile, there I was, poking around, stumbling over these confusing little brown jobs that I couldn't tell apart... I remember picking up that jargon from you several years ago. LBJs. And then read Karen's post. >281 karenmarie:. Oh, and then read your post. It's going to be a slow day all around.

>294 SuziQoregon: Hi, Juli. So good to see you stop by. I have missed you. Yep, we are so glad Jackson is part of our lives. We are loving every minute of it.

>295 weird_O: Howdy, Bill. Hooray for LBJs. This term applies for more experienced birders too. They can be tough to ID. No buts about it.

Best of luck with your calendar, Mark. Your boy is so photogenic you’ll have a hard time picking which shots to put in it.

Ah, I'm glad you listened to Nature's Best Hope. Did you make any changes in your yard because of it? I'm thinking of suggesting it my book club for next year - it's very different than anything we've ever tackled.

Yes, I saw you review for Once There Were Wolves. It's definitely up my alley, but I'm trying to hold off adding anything else to my library list wish until I get caught up a bit. For the first time ever, I had to return a library book unread. It feels like a big deal, because the books are shipped from all over western Montana, so I caused them to spend money (do library ship books free?) or at least time without me reading it.

Outside magazine is currently doing a group read of Bewilderment on FB. Another one I know I'd love, but am holding off for now.

>297 Familyhistorian: Hi, Meg. You are so correct about the challenge of picking out just 12 photos of Jackson. It should be a success, with whatever choices we make.

>298 streamsong: Hi, Janet. I have not altered anything yet in my backyard but I am thinking about making changes in early spring. I definitely want to plant some bird/butterfly friendly plants back there.

You are showing some fine restraint on holding off on some of these new titles. I am finding this a challenge too. My OTS Challenge will definitely be taking a hit, in the coming weeks. It has been an excellent fall for book releases.