Play Book Tag discussion

2019
Trim the TBR Challenge Grand List
with mid-year swap-outs!
1. Parable of the Sower
2. A Regimental Murder The Man in the High Castle
3. Wild Seed Mind of My Mind
4. Up a Road Slowly
5. How the García Girls Lost Their Accents
6. World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War
7. Jovah's Angel
8. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society
9. Silent in the Grave
10. Bloodchild and Other Stories
11. The Women of Brewster Place
12. Sword of the Guardian
13. Bertie And The Tinman
14. Cold Comfort Farm
15. The Hero Strikes Back
16. The Wind in the Willows The Red Tent
17. Rodzina February 11, 2019
18. Caught in Amber
19. Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea January 10, 2019
20. The Safe-Keeper's Secret The Blazing Bridge
21. The Emperor's Arrow
22. A Discovery of Witches
23. Lady Susan
24. The Smoke-Scented Girl
25. Vanity Fair
26. A Vindication of the Rights of Woman
27. Candide
28. These Is My Words They Do It with Mirrors
29. The Elegance of the Hedgehog
30. Madam, Will You Talk?
31. The Alice Network Night Hawk
32. The Secret History of the Pink Carnation
33. Kushiel's Dart
34. The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms
35. The Library Book Wraiths of Time
36. Sisterhood Everlasting Monster

2019
Trim the TBR Challenge Grand List
1. Parable of the Sower
2. The Man in the High Castle
3. Mind of My Mind
4. Up a Road Slowly
5. How the García Girls Lost Their Accents
6. World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War
7. Jovah's Angel
8. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society
9. Silent in the Grave
10. Bloodchild and Other Stories
11. The Women of Brewster Place
✔12. Sword of the Guardian April 23, 2019
13. Bertie And The Tinman
14. Cold Comfort Farm
15. The Hero Strikes Back
16. The Red Tent
✔17. Rodzina February 11, 2019
18. Caught in Amber
✔19. Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea January 10, 2019
20. The Blazing Bridge
21. The Emperor's Arrow
22. A Discovery of Witches
23. Lady Susan
✔24. The Smoke-Scented Girl May 29, 2019
25. Vanity Fair
26. A Vindication of the Rights of Woman
27. Candide
28. They Do It With Mirrors
29. The Elegance of the Hedgehog
30. Madam, Will You Talk?
31. Night Hawk
32. The Secret History of the Pink Carnation
33. Kushiel's Dart
✔34.The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms March 21, 2019
35. Wraiths of Time
36. Monster

2019
Expand our PBT horizons
1. Iraq - Gilgamesh, 304 pgs, 1/4/19
2. Portugal - The High Mountains of Portugal 332 pgs, 2/13/19
3. South Korea - When My Name Was Keoko 208 pgs, 3/21/19
4. Italy - The Chef's Secret 384 pgs, 4/21/19
5. Brazil - The Seamstress 646 pgs 5/25/19
6. Greece - Lysistrata 132 pages 6/4/19
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.

2019
Monthly Tags
January - Action/Adventure, Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea 394 pgs
February - Life, The Color Purple 250 pgs
March - Debut, The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms 427 pgs
April - History, The Chef's Secret 384 pgs
May - Beautiful The Seamstress 646 pages
June - Retellings Wintersong 436 pages
July -
August -
September -
October -
November -
December -

Random Travel Challenge
(12 countries)
Iraq - Gilgamesh, 304 pages, finished 1/4/19
Bulgaria - The Historian, 642 pages, finished 1/8/19
Ethiopia
Azerbaijan
Taiwan - The Astonishing Color of After, 462 pages, finished 02/03/19
Ukraine
Colombia
Indonesia
Australia Death by Water
Ghana - Solo, 320 pages, finished 1/6/19
Burundi
Mexico - Malinche 5/26/19

Gilgamesh by Anonymous, Gardner/Maier Translation, ★★★★ 304 pages, finished Jan 4, 2019
(view spoiler)[
The lyrical words, when coupled with the age of this story, and that it is still in existence (remembered) is mesmerizing. This story has survived over 4000 years, and that is the main reason why it is so revered. It provides an amazing version of the culture of the time. It is only available to most people seen through the modern eyes of translators, so unless you have studied historical cuneiform, you have to trust to the abilities of zealously devoted scholars.

Looking at it with post-2000 eyeballs, there are issues and irritations, of course. So far there is no mention of Gilgamesh and Enkidu having a romantic relationship, even with all of the extreme devotion and 'hugging him like a wife' or 'loving him like a wife' that is happening. Is this because there are no other stories remaining from that time that would explain more about Sumerian's feelings on homosexuality? At any rate, the terminology seems straightforward - Enkidu is the love of Gilgamesh's life.

The different terms chosen to describe the priestess (temple-courtesan, prostitute, 'the woman', love-priestess, whore) effectively capture how men ancient and modern think of women as a threatening, conquerable, despised, much-desired, pedestal decorations, etc. Gilgamesh is pretty representative of male 'leaders' throughout the ages - narcissistic, selfish, blustering, but I know he has a lesson to learn about love, life and death, which is what I am waiting to read.

A lot of the tablets are incomplete or missing great chunks of the epic, so I really like that the book includes the Old Babylonian parallel text.

This story has been re-told regularly in the Marvel and DC comic books of the 1980s and 1990s- Big, strong powerful guy with unusual powers is big, strong and powerful. Another guy shows up, being big, strong and powerful with unusual powers. Two of the main female character types (the wise mother Nimsun and the unnamed sex object) make appearances. Two big powerful guys fight each other honorably, then suddenly turn into best friends (with a bit of unresolved sexual tension), decide to challenge a horribly powerful enemy together, montage a preparation sequence including weapon-making and advice-seeking, and journey off to kick Humbaba-the-evil's butt.

Here Gilgamesh improves as a person - showing courage, supporting Enkidu, and accepting advice on how to succeed against Hambaba the ferocious. After giving Enkidu a thoroughly rousing pep talk, the great battle seems to take little to no time, Humbaba is defeated, and Gilgamesh has a slight lapse in character improvement, rudely spurning Ishtar, the goddess that (of course) is beside herself with lust for him.

Unfortunately, as with most tales, it is quite unwise to rebuff and scorn a god/goddess. Enkidu must have brought out the best in him, but for now, perhaps flush with his victory, Gilgamesh returns to his earlier, unlikable personality. Ishtar is pissed and all "I will make the dead rise, and they will devour the living" unless Anu her father-God makes this huge Bull of Heaven for her to ride down to earth so that it may eat Gilgamesh.

Gilgamesh and Enkidu defeat this huge bovine and anger more gods, who have a council and decide that Enkidu must die. Enkidu seems (to me) to accept the fate in order to spare Gilgamesh, and is consoled by the thought that everyone will be sad that he is dead, and will honor him, and hey, he had a good life anyway, so cheer up, and get ready to die of sickness.

Gilgamesh mourns, and wonders what the heck life is meant to be and what is the purpose of life if we die and are not immortal, etc, and starts a wander in search of the answers. At one point, he is feverish, and the verse gets trippy and repetitive, perfectly presenting a fever-walking dream.

Next, the barmaid. Her appearance seems like a last stop before journeying across the waters to the land of the dead. Is Ishtar, in the form of the barmaid encouraging or discouraging Gilgamesh to continue? After the uncertainty of his fevered roaming, this seems like a moment for him to clear his mind and contemplate before plunging ahead, running into the land of the death with his mouth and arms open. Which, of course, he does.

There is something captivating about him being the first living mortal to make the journey, when you see him destroying the way so that no one may follow after him. Why do people need to feel special in the way of being the 'first' or 'only' one to do something? This competitive hierarchy prevents humanity as a whole from progressing into greatness.

He makes it and encounters Utnapishtim, who was the one told to make a big boat to save some animals and people during a huge, long flood. Afterwards, a god turned Utnapishtim and his wife into gods. They test Gilgamesh, asking that he not sleep for 7 days (the length of the flood) and Gilgamesh immediately fails. When he awakens 7 days later, he is depressed that he cannot escape death. On his way back to Uruk, he finds the plant of immortality, but a snake steals it when he is sleeping. Another, final indication that immortality will not be achieved.

The poem captures the essence of man needing to feel important, to be more than fleeting dots of life lost among all other life.

(hide spoiler)]

Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne, ★★★ January 10, 2019
(view spoiler)[
This is the third of the three most famous books by prolific science fiction author Jules Verne, Journey to the Center of the Earth (not for me) and Around the World in Eighty Days (pretty entertaining) being the other two.

The book starts with sightings of a mysterious 'new' oceanic creature. People panic and decide to find and kill it because it is just so powerful, and I guess that is what people do? A ship with Professor Pierre Aronnax, his Flemish servant Conseil, and hot-headed harpooner Ned Land, travels over half the world's oceans before finding the mysterious creature. They chase it for ages, attacking with exploding bullets, harpoons and cannonballs. The ship is damaged, and Aronnax, Conseil and Land are thrown into the sea and rescued/captured by the ... mysterious creature. Surprise, it is the technologically advanced submarine Nautilus, under the command of Captain Nemo.

Captain Nemo is angry at the world, and secretly built this marvel of undersea exploration for the purposes of self-exile from civilization and to explore and research the sea for scientific enlightenment. He tells the three MC that they will have to stay with them forever because he does not want them to tell the world about the Nautilus. Not to worry, there is enough food and drink, and definitely plenty of entertainment and mental stimulation as they travel all over under the sea.

Aronnax and curious Conseil are overwhelmed by the entire situation, and are thrilled to see sea creatures, sea plants, ship wrecks, Atlantis, and the geography of the ocean. Ned Land just wants to escape, and probably find more creatures to kill and meat to eat.

Too much time is devoted to description of the submarine's tech, the ocean landscape and sea life, and not enough time telling us about Captain Nemo. Engineer, refugee, captain, underdog, genius, gentleman, nameless exile. Nemo is such an interesting character, and steals the spotlight throughout the book. What drove him to creating a huge mobile underwater laboratory and shunning the rest of the world?

Overall, this was an OK read, and I am glad that I read it. It was slightly better than Journey to the Center of the Earth, but not nearly as good as Around the World in 80 Days.
(hide spoiler)]

February
Trim the tbr - Rodzina
Horizons (Portugal) - The High Mountains of Portugal
Tag (Life) - The Color Purple

March
Trim the Tbr - The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms
Horizons (South Korea) -
Tag (Debut) - The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms There There

When My Name Was Keoko by Linda Sue Park ★★★★★
208 pages
Date Read 3/21/19


This story takes place in Korea during the Japanese occupation in World War II. Complete cultural assimilation is the invader's goal, and the Korean people are made to study Japanese culture and language. The story is told be two children who must appear to assimilate to avoid any repercussions, while staying true to and honoring their true heritage.

This book is scary, but has been written for middle grades / tweens /teens, so it never gets too graphic while still communicating the oppressive feeling of having to give up your identity in order to survive.

I found the example of the Rose of Sharon to be a great representation of how people kept true to themselves secretly while doing what they needed to do in order to stay alive.

The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms by N.K. Jemisin
421 pages
★★★★
Fits both trim the tbr and monthly tag (debut)

This is Jemisin's debut novel, and while it was enjoyable to read, I did not find it as compelling as her Broken Earth trilogy (which was pretty much perfect). I would recommend that everyone read The Fifth Season The Obelisk Gate The Stone Sky as an introduction to her work.

Yeine is summoned from her small northern nation to appear before her grandfather the King in Sky. Sky is a gorgeous and arrogant city which basically thinks it is the center of the world. Named as one of three possible successors to the throne, she is immediately plunged into a vicious struggle (view spoiler)[ involving gods and people, many of whom are blood relations (hide spoiler)].

I liked the character development and (view spoiler)[ her gods were really vivid and believable as non-human entities (hide spoiler)], but I often felt frustrated with the pacing. And I could not stop comparing it to her unputdownable Broken Earth trilogy.

April Horizons: Italy

The Chef's Secret
by Crystal King
★★★
384 pages
Fits History and Italy

This is a historical fiction story based on the life of Bartolomeo Scappi, a revered Italian Renaissance celebrity chef.

Scappi was born in 1500 in Dumenza, Lombardy, Italy, and moved to the Vatican to chef for six popes. He was a contemporary of Michelangelo, and wrote a cookbook of over 1000 recipes which you can still find in print today: The Opera of Bartolomeo Scappi (1570): L'Arte Et Prudenza D'Un Maestro Cuoco.

Those are the facts, now to the story. The story grabs those scant details and throws in secrets, true love, intrigue, murder, shakes crazily for a good ten minutes, and then neatens the results into an epic family soap opera equal to real life histories of the Medicis and the Borgias.

The story begins with Bartolomeo's (henceforth known as 'Barty') death, and is told from the point of view of Giovanni (henceforth known as 'Gio'), his nephew and apprentice. Gio inherits all of Barty's worldly goods, recipes, journals and Barty's Chef Knife. Gio learns that Barty wants him to burn the journals unread, which of course is impossible because that is a right proper dose of temptation for anyone with an ounce of curiosity. Adding to that, the journals are partly in code. Who can resist investigating?

Gio starts reading and decoding, and the pov switches neatly to Barty's voice. Here comes the drama, all you could want and more. After discovering some pretty shocking surprises, Gio discovers that he truly did not know Barty. Oddly (to me), Gio does not read through all of the journals immediately to find out the entire situation, rather he starts talking to others and trying to figure out himself what is truly happening. Read the journals, Gio! Neither does he safeguard the journals, which he has been urged to do by several of his confidants. Hide the journals, Gio! Perhaps because the rest of the story could not happen without conflict?

I liked the daily life detail that was smoothly mixed in with the storytelling - actually that was my favorite thing about the book. The descriptions of cooking, architecture, ceremonies, and the cities and countryside of Italy were pretty delicious, I ate them up. I would have liked more character development across the board. Villains were mostly mustache twirling balls of evil, friends were devoted more to the MC than to their own friends and families, and there were a few characters who began as seemingly steadfast enemies, who then instantly flipped over to 'loyal to the death' allies. Mercurial and excessive!

As for the MCs Barty and Gio, and flipping back and forth between the journals and the present, at times their voices became muddled and indistinct, and I forgot who's brain I was inside, and what the year was, to be reminded only by the names of surrounding characters. I found that the choices that these two made (especially Barty) really made me dislike them.

Overall, I loved the research into lifestyles and setting, and I was not in love with the characters or the story.

*I received a free ARC of this title through Atria Books and Netgalley*

#12 Sword of the Guardian
by Merry Shannon
272 pages
April 23, 2019
Rating 3 stars
High Fantasy f/f romance.
Talon is a female acrobat posing as male, part of a travelling troupe with her younger sisters. While performing for the royal family, she saves the princess (Shasta) from assassination. Her gender is discovered as she is being treated for her injuries, and the king decides to retain her as a personal bodyguard for Shasta. Spending so much time together, they develop feelings, all while battling barbarian enemies and allies, prejudices and injustices.

Overall, too angsty and inconsistent for my tastes. Too many times characters contradicted themselves, and those characters are all pretty one-dimensional. I liked the main character Talon, and that might have been it. I generally like fantasy and romance, but with this book, the idea was spectacular, and the execution was lacking. All of the 'fear the stranger' and 'hate those different' sentiment overwhelmed the story, in what could have been a refreshing take on the "nomadic outcast saves privileged royalty and everyone benefits" trope.

May New Horizons Brazil
The Seamstress by Frances de Pontes Peebles
646 pages cross posted to beautiful
Finished 5/25/19
Rating 5 Stars

Picture it: Brazil 1920s and 1930s. Two sisters born in the northern countryside of Brazil, the interior, the backlands. Emília and Luiza dos Santos are expert seamstresses under the repressive rule of their Aunt. Both want to escape their tiny town and the restrictions placed on them by their family and society. Steady Emília longs for true love and big city sophistication. Fiery Luiza wants to escape the superstitious scorn of the townspeople, who are disdainful of her for the irrational reason that she fell from a tree and survived with a permanently injured arm.

At this time, Brazil is plowing ahead into modernity, which mainly affects the coastal cities, and leaves the interior of the country under the rule of tyrannical land-owners. While the country is affected by drought, economic depression and political instability, Luiza is kidnapped by a group of cangaceiros (nomadic bandits) led by the enigmatic, intriguing Hawk. Emília escapes to Recife through her marriage into the wealthy, influential Coelho family.

The book alternates between Emília and Luiza, city and countryside, opulence and poverty, structure and lawlessness, as they live their lives separately surrounded by political turmoil. Emília endures isolation, loneliness and fear that her connection to the infamous Luiza will be discovered, and Luiza immerses herself in the harsh, perilous bandit lifestyle.

This book is full of beauty and pain, gorgeous language and exceptional story-telling. I loved how the sisters' lives diverged, but also mirrored each others. I loved the strong connection that they maintained with very little direct contact. I loved not knowing what was going to happen at all times.

June
Greece -
Retellings -
Trim-the-tbr

Get ready to switch out up to 6 books!
Possible
Out:

20. The Safe-Keeper's Secret
22. A Discovery of Witches
28. These Is My Words: The Diary of Sarah Agnes Prine, 1881-1901
31. The Alice Network
35. The Library Book

In:
20. Alexander Dolgun's Story: An American in the Gulag
22. The Man in the High Castle
28. Purple Hibiscus
31. They Do It with Mirrors
35. The Mysterious Affair at Styles
Monster

You are switching out the Alice Network? So a lot of people had mixed reviews about this book, but a lot of people loved it! I was in the love camp and it was in my top 10. Don’t know if you would feel the same, but just a saying.

Amy wrote: "You are switching out the Alice Network? So a lot of people had mixed reviews about this book, but a lot of people loved it! I was in the love camp and it was in my top 10. Don’t know if you would ..."

Wow! Your all-time top ten, or top ten of the year? That is strong praise either way. What other titles are on in your top ten?

I have heard a lot of great responses to The Alice Network. I tried to start it twice, and was never able to really get into it - it might just be more about what reading mood I am now. If I put a book aside twice, I usually need to wait a while before picking it up again.

Some of the other titles I am removing because are a bit more difficult to find at the library or on ku.

I have done three top tens through PBT. I want to say this one was in 2017, with Ordinary Grace, and America’s First Daughter. I have copies of them somewhere! Hard to pare it down to just ten!

I don't know that I could do an all-time top ten - too difficult! I might try to do one after this year and see how that goes.

Mid-year swap-out!
2. A Regimental Murder - The Man in the High Castle
3. Wild Seed - Mind of My Mind
16. The Wind in the Willows - The Red Tent
20. The Safe-Keeper's Secret - The Blazing Bridge
28. These Is My Words - They Do It with Mirrors
31. The Alice Network - Night Hawk
35. The Library Book - Wraiths of Time
36. Sisterhood Everlasting - Monster

June Trim the tbr: Greece
Lysistrata by Aristophanes, 3 Stars
Date Finished: 6/4/19
132 pages


The plot in a nutshell: Women in ancient Greece, frustrated by the incessant warring of the men, are lead by our heroine Lysistrata in withholding sex from their husbands until everyone agrees to stop fighting. I like the idea, and have wanted to read this ever since I heard of the plot, but never once did I forget that this was a comedy written by a man who spent the entire time inserting bawdy, crude and rarely funny innuendo into this shell of a play.

The idea that the women wanted their husbands, sons and brothers safe and close at hand was not really a valid consideration. I was pretty disappointed, but I guess it makes a nice palate cleanser from all the morose Greek tragedies.

July


The Girl in the Tangerine Scarf by Mohja Kahf
Lady Susan by Jane Austen