I did it! I finished Team
of Rivals by Doris Kearns Goodwin. I
borrowed it from the library on March 8th, but had to return it
because it was too heavy for me to hold up at night. I bought the Kindle version and then spent the
next three months reading it. I finished
on Jun 18th at 2 a.m. It was
a very good book. Here are the main things I learned:
- Some things about
politics haven’t changed much.
- Oh, the trouble those generals gave Lincoln!
- Many, many sad things happened to the Lincoln family.
- Be careful when you are dealing with a guy named after a fish.
- The
assassination of President Lincoln was part of a more extensive violent plot
against the entire Lincoln cabinet. I had not been aware of that before
reading this book.
I also finished Still Life with Breadcrumbs by Anna
Quindlen. I really enjoyed this book,
and it only took me a few days to finish it - a great relief after Team of Rivals. I related to the main character,
especially when she was pining away for her own pots and pans that she left
behind when she moved.
Here is what is on the night stand now. Actually, these books usually sit in a huge
stack on the floor next to the night stand, so as to prevent the sound of heavy
books crashing to the floor in the middle of the night. I should also note that just because these
books are at my bedside does not mean I will get around to reading each one. Being surrounded by books makes me comfy
(drives my husband crazy).
Books from the library:
 |
| I'm reading "I Am Malala" next. Probably won't be able to hold up Richard Pipes ("The Russian Revolution") but it looks impressive there. |
Books not from the library:
 |
| I'm slogging my way through "The Truth" by Terry Pratchett only because the rest of the family loves this author. |
Strictly speaking, the Philip Yancey book about grace is
from a library – our church has a small library, from which I am the only one
who borrows books.
What is on your nightstand?
10 comments:
I read a bunch of Yancey's books years ago - I really enjoyed them. Right now I am reading Still Writing: The Perils and Pleasures sof a Creative Life by Dani Shapiro. Found it at the library...
Nightstand? I have stacks all over the house, but I always have to read the library books first so I rarely get to the stacks. Slogging is the word for me. Lately I seem to have attention problems.
I will definitely make time for our fellow blogger, Minnesota Matron, Marie Petrie's book
@Smalltownme - I am excited to hear that Minnesota Matron has a book! What is the title?
I have been saving up books for the first few days of recovery from my surgery. These are all on my kindle, waiting for me :-)
Vertigo 42, by Martha Grimes
All Fall Down by Jennifer Weiner
The Blue Virgin by Marni Graff
At The End Of Magic by Marie Petrie
That last one is Minnesota Matron's book.
Currently I'm still finishing up Quiet, and still reading long sections out loud to Rob and Emma.
I slog through books, too, not so much because I read slowly, but more because I generally only take the time to read before falling asleep in bed at night, and that doesn't last very long. I write book reviews for a website called LitStack.com, so I read a lot of women's lit for that site. Not much noteworthy lately.
Anonymous, but this is really Sandy DeLorenze: I loved "Team of Rivals," but yeah ... definitely took a while to read. Also, love Yancey's books. Whatever I have on my bed table to read next is probably not what I'll read next.
I'm reading the latest by Sue Monk Kidd about slavery. Some of your books are too high-brow for me!
I have a stack of waiting-to-be-read books. Gifts from the past few years which I can't wait to read, sadly I keep getting bogged down with reading group choices which I never seem to enjoy these days.
I don't have a nightstand, but this post did break my minor case of blogger's block- thank you! I maintain you ask the very best questions.
You have such excellent books on YOUR nightstand that I wish I could whisk the whole caboodle to my house; but then I guess that'd be stealing.
I haven't read Team of Rivals, but always heard amazing things about it. Evidently Goodwin went into a pretty major depression while writing the section about Lincoln's assassination, she'd gotten so attached.
I'd like to read T of R, someday. Right now I'm fluctuating between The Interestings by Meg Wolitzer and Week-End Wodehouse.
Post a Comment