Retro Reads discussion

Tania wrote: "My brother lives in Japan, and much as I would love to visit in the summer, when they have loads of festivals, the humidity puts me off, can be around 95℅ humidity; I have been in spring, cherry bl..."

Humidity is no joke, can be so uncomfortable, makes it hard to breathe! I’m in NC, love to visit my sisters in Charleston, SC, but hot summer there is like walking into a wet towel…🥵🥵

Spring and autumn in Japan sound delightful, I imagine less touristy, as well! ;)

Tokyo and Kyoto certainly get very crowded, but there are plenty of other places that are much less so. He lives in Shizuoka which is very nice and you don't see the crowds there. Not as well set up for western tourists though.

Tania wrote: "Tokyo and Kyoto certainly get very crowded, but there are plenty of other places that are much less so. He lives in Shizuoka which is very nice and you don't see the crowds there. Not as well set u..."

Much as I would like to, I don't think I will be going very far afield in the future. May still go to Australia again.
* * *

Its calm outside now, so I'm on the computer.

Really rugged night last night - which I slept through.

Marty thought the roof & the archgola were going to come off! When I woke at 5 everything was calm. Picked up a bit around 7ish, but ok now (9.13am)

It hasn't hit Auckland (really) yet. Apparently it is going to loop back. :(

Thanks for checking in! You've been on my mind. I'm glad it wasn't too bad for you—no major damage at least.

Abigail wrote: "Thanks for checking in! You've been on my mind. I'm glad it wasn't too bad for you—no major damage at least."

I think the worst of it for our area will be over by 9am tomorrow (my time) But the weather will still be bad till Friday.

Wow, that’s a long-lasting storm!

Abigail wrote: "Wow, that’s a long-lasting storm!"

Believed it will the worst in NZ history.

Abigail wrote: "Wow, that’s a long-lasting storm!"

For context the cyclone was 2-3 times the size of NZ.

Well our town AFAIK hasn't done too badly. The road Marty's sister lives on is flooded & looks likely to give way. The walking track I use to walk into town is closed as power lines down. Flooded where you come into our town from Auckland & the road is closed as far as Kopu (small village, 9km away) Kaueraunga Valley (adjacent to us) flooding. East Coast of the Coromandel bad, bad, bad.

Just very light rain atm.

Yikes, that’s a BIG storm! I remember seeing the map of Hurricane Katrina when it filled the entire Gulf of Mexico and thinking, I wish I’d visited New Orleans while I still could.

So far it sounds as if your community has inconvenience and expense but not life-threatening disaster. Hope it stays that way for you! And that Marty’s sister has a secondary way to get out.

Abigail wrote: "Yikes, that’s a BIG storm! I remember seeing the map of Hurricane Katrina when it filled the entire Gulf of Mexico and thinking, I wish I’d visited New Orleans while I still could.

So far it sound..."

Marty has spotted some slips on our neighbour's property. Nothing can be done about it until things dry out.

We can see some flooding in town.

There is a walking track at Marty's sisters. It is flooded as well but doesn't look damaged in the pictures. They are still using the road atm.

& I wish we had done some driving around the Coromandel before all this happened. But it hasn't been a great summer & we were worried about COVID.

National State of Emergency has been declared.

Marty's sister in Wellington experiencing high winds.

We have just had a wind warning for our town until midnight, so maybe the winds are late arriving.

Wow, hope you can catch a break soon, poor NZ!

CindySR wrote: "Wow, hope you can catch a break soon, poor NZ!"

Sort of. Not raining now, but looks like it could start again.

Our road (long way from where we live) had a torrent of rain coming down it. Not that bad now, but looks like they may have to make it a single lane road for a while.

The crowds in Japan are not so bad, there are a lot of people, but generally people are very considerate of others, very little bumping, pushing, shoving, etc.

As for the humidity, it is pretty intense! Sometimes I would have to bike an hour in business clothing, and would have to plan time for a 30 minutes cool down after arriving to avoid looking like I have been sitting in a suit in a sauna.

And I am saying that as a person who really dislikes crowds!

Carol, just checking to see if the storm has moved off and you and yours are okay.

Abigail wrote: "Carol, just checking to see if the storm has moved off and you and yours are okay."

Hi Abigail

Gabrielle has gone but the aftermath will remain with us for years. Really bad in the Hawkes Bay region. Around 5.6k missing & they have set up temporary morgues. Problems with looters. My best friend's daughter & her family lives there - she spent the weekend in Taupo with my friend. I just hope she didn't go back to a looted house.

My son lives in a part of Auckland that was affected (but not his street) both his car & work vehicle were broken into on separate nights. There was nothing in the car (which he rarely uses) but they got a good haul from his work vehicle.

I am really concerned about a slip on my neighbour's place - my husband is going to contact him today to find out what he is intending to do about it. He can't do anything now as the ground still too wet.

We were in Auckland for the weekend & we noticed our road felt different under the car in a second part. Marty is going to take pictures today for me to email the council about it.

A lot of houses red stickered in our town. That means not repairable & the residents had to move out immediately. I know a couple of the people affected.

That sounds so frightening! Glad you are safe but what a nightmare for your beautiful country.

Elinor wrote: "That sounds so frightening! Glad you are safe but what a nightmare for your beautiful country."
Aww thanks.

A niece just arrived back to NZ (she lives in Canada now) - her husband & his family arrive later & will have to change their routes.

I will emphasise for anyone planning a trip to NZ that the South Island is not affected by this.

I was in Auckland in the Eastern Suburbs & the City Centre & everything already cleaned up.

But;
Hawkes Bay
East Coast
Piha/Muriwai (West Coast Auckland) will not be places anyone wants to visit for quite some time. The devastation for all three is so absolute.😢
Northland - seek advice.
Coromandel (my area) so many roads damaged. Will probably be fit to visit in a couple of months. But the Kopu Hikuai highway they think it will take at least a year to be repaired, so tourists will have to allow more time.
Also one of our area's more famous attractions (Cathedral Cove) is closed. The Cove itself is undamaged but there has been a giant slip. No word on when they will be able to reopen.

What terrible news! I’m glad you and yours are okay, but so much suffering all around you. I’m very sorry to hear about the looting—but more than 5,000 people missing?? And there is zero about this on our news.

The whole world needs to start factoring in the costs of weather disasters when calculating the risk/reward of polluting industries.

I'm glad you are OK, Carol, but it is sobering how many "once in a lifetime" storms are happening so often these days. A woman in my in-person book group used to live on a sail boat and she said New Zealand was known as safe place to head for during Cyclone Season.

Abigail wrote: "What terrible news! I’m glad you and yours are okay, but so much suffering all around you. I’m very sorry to hear about the looting—but more than 5,000 people missing?? And there is zero about this..."

At first because communications were down we didn't know how bad it was in the East Coast/Hawkes Bay. & some of the missing people may still be alive, but in areas they can't reach yet. But rescued people have reported seeing bodies float past them.

My sister showed me a screenshot of a message one of my nephew's received from a friend who thought he was going to die. (he is ok) but the terrified message is going to take a long time to go out of my head.

Jackie wrote: "I'm glad you are OK, Carol, but it is sobering how many "once in a lifetime" storms are happening so often these days. A woman in my in-person book group used to live on a sail boat and she said Ne..."

It is something to do with global warming where this could happen more often in NZ now.

Thanks for the good wishes.

So sorry to hear about all this, Carol. Glad you are OK.

Abigail wrote: "What terrible news! I’m glad you and yours are okay, but so much suffering all around you. I’m very sorry to hear about the looting—but more than 5,000 people missing?? And there is zero about this..."

The planting of huge pine forests is what has made it so bad for the East Coast. I saw a programme a couple of years ago warning of the risks. I saw an aerial shot (I think on East Coast) showing native trees unscathed & pine tree areas with slips.

Thanks for the good wishes everyone.

So sorry about the widespread missing people and damage and looting, Carol, but glad you and your family are ok.

A publisher who brought many Retro Reads back into circulation through Dean Street Press has died at the age of 54, very sad. Here’s the link to his obituary. https://www.thebookseller.com/obituar...

As a follow on to Elinor's post:
When you read Rupert Heath's obituary, be sure to click on the link to Scott Thompson's Furrowed Middlebrow blog, wherein he discusses the future of his imprint.

This is all very sad. I hope that Scott is right and that other publishers will continue finding and reprinting more 'golden oldies'
In the meantime, we will still have the Dean Street and Furrowed Middlebrow backlists to explore.

Oh dear, that’s terrible news! Dean Street, and Furrowed Middlebrow in particular, gave so much pleasure.

Hi Everyone! I'm going up to Auckland for the long weekend (& it is really hard to think of Queen's Birthday as King's Birthday now!) It is my daughter's birthday & we are going to a concert together, having brunch for her birthday & helping a bit with their garden.

I'll probably do any updates for the Book Pool when I get home. :)

Carol She's So Novel꧁꧂ wrote: "Hi Everyone! I'm going up to Auckland for the long weekend (& it is really hard to think of Queen's Birthday as King's Birthday now!) It is my daughter's birthday & we are going to a concert togeth..."

I know what you're saying about King's Birthday, but enjoy your weekend, concert, and gardening with your daughter. Hope the weather treats you well. Drive safely!

Thank you!

Hope you enjoy your King's Birthday Weekend as well!

In Canada we celebrate Queen Victoria’s birthday as a national holiday called Victoria Day each year on the Monday closest to her actual birthday on May 24. So the reigning monarch has nothing to do with it. Do you have a different celebration in New Zealand?

Carol She's So Novel꧁꧂ wrote: "Thank you!

Hope you enjoy your King's Birthday Weekend as well!"

Have a lovely visit, Carol!

I have neglected my favourite Retro Reads group for the last couple of months because of two things: I finally caught Covid for the first time and in my case it affected my sinuses and lasted for six weeks! I’m now fully recovered although hopelessly unfit.

AND it is very stressful living where we do in Invermere, British Columbia and being surrounded by forest fires on three sides! We can watch the water bombers land and take off from Lake Windermere through our living room window.

As an antidote to my problems, I read ALL SIXTEEN of the books in the Whiteoaks of Jalna series and loved every one of them. I believe there was some talk of a discussion? If so, I would be delighted to discuss this fascinating family.

I’m so sorry to hear about all you’ve been going through, Elinor! The long-lasting effects of COVID can be difficult to cope with. I seem to have a permanent frog in my throat (after a year)—not serious but just annoying! And I know all too well the stress of proximity to wildfires: it’s as if your life is permantly contingent. You can’t go out much because of the smoke, you don’t want to leave home in case the wind changes and you have to evacuate. The widespread destruction of beloved landscapes is a burden on the spirits.

So I’m glad you found a refuge in books! My reading menu is overwhelming right now so I probably wouldn’t join you, but I hope you get up a group for it.

Abigail wrote: "I’m so sorry to hear about all you’ve been going through, Elinor! The long-lasting effects of COVID can be difficult to cope with. I seem to have a permanent frog in my throat (after a year)—not se..."

Thanks for your moral support, Abigail!

Elinor wrote: "I have neglected my favourite Retro Reads group for the last couple of months because of two things: I finally caught Covid for the first time and in my case it affected my sinuses and lasted for s..."

Elinor, I am so sorry Covid has left you feeling wrung out - my husband and I got it late, after being vaccinated, but it can hit like a freight train. And wildfires must be terrifying; please take care, be easy on yourself, recovery can take quite awhile. And as Abigail points out, long Covid is a dreadful thing. Good for you, finding refuge in books, I found revisiting old favorites so restorative when I was recovering from brain surgeries. It was about all I could handle, and reminded me of happier days! I haven’t read that particular series, and hadn’t planned to as it isn’t available in my usual sources. But you’ve inspired me, I’m going to spend the rest of my reading year reading only what I want to spend time on - thank you for that!

Elinor wrote: "In Canada we celebrate Queen Victoria’s birthday as a national holiday called Victoria Day each year on the Monday closest to her actual birthday on May 24. So the reigning monarch has nothing to d..."

I missed this.

In NZ, QE2's real birthday was in April when we already have plenty of public holidays, so it was decided to celebrate her birthday in June.

Charles III's birthday in November. I would have loved the holiday to be moved till then, but I seem to remember reading that Charles himself was keen to keep it in June. So I guess this is the same holiday in the UK. I'll look it up later.

Elinor wrote: "I have neglected my favourite Retro Reads group for the last couple of months because of two things: I finally caught Covid for the first time and in my case it affected my sinuses and lasted for s..."

Thanks for the nice words about this group, Elinor. & sorry that COVID hit you hard! My husband & I both got COVID for the first time just before Xmas - worst Xmas ever!

The fires indeed must be terrifying!

& regarding the Jalna books. I haven't read them but they are available on Faded Page https://www.fadedpage.com/csearch.php... Everyone would just need to make sure their country's copyright laws are the same as Canada's.

Would you like me to set up a discussion just for The Building Of Jalna & see if there is any interest?

Carol She's So Novel꧁꧂ wrote: "Elinor wrote: "I have neglected my favourite Retro Reads group for the last couple of months because of two things: I finally caught Covid for the first time and in my case it affected my sinuses a..."

Might as well ask everybody and see… thanks!

Susan in NC wrote: "Elinor wrote: "I have neglected my favourite Retro Reads group for the last couple of months because of two things: I finally caught Covid for the first time and in my case it affected my sinuses a..."

I keep saying I will only read what I want, but then there are in-person book club reads and the "should-reads" list so this group has been a wonderful way to escape from all those reading duties!

;)

I've mentioned it in the Georgette Heyer Group, so I will also mention it here;

I may possibly be very busy the first two weeks in October, so I won't be around much then. This means I won't set up any buddy/group reads during that time.

I'll update this if my circumstances change. :)

& (finally) my internet all hooked up & I am back in business. I was quite twitchy without it! 😅

I get FOMO in those circumstances too.

Carol She's So Novel꧁꧂ wrote: "& (finally) my internet all hooked up & I am back in business. I was quite twitchy without it! 😅"

Yay! Congratulations and welcome back!

I'm going to Auckland for a few days!

See everyone when I get back!

Have a lovely trip!