June 2021

I wasn't planning on listing my non-reading, used to be routine, activities but getting my hair professionally cut for the first time in sixteen months was a really Big Deal! I cut it myself three times (with in between trims on the bangs) during quarantine: the first time I did a really good job but who could see it? the second time was so-so but it looked OK for a medical visit; the third time was a real mess and by the time I was fully vaccinated it looked terrible! 

Another biggie! I resumed my water exercise class. Ahh, did it feel good to be back in the pool! 

As for the reading...some surprises, a couple of disappointments, but mostly good reading.

Fiction:

 Abide with Me by Strout, Elizabeth
  Always reliable Ms Strout

The Lost Book of Adana Moreau by Zapata, Michael

 I loved this!

Summer : a novel by Wharton, Edith 

  One of my "Twenty Books of Summer 2021"

  Unusual Wharton - it's not about the gilded privileged set.

Checkmate to Murder: A Second World War Mystery by Lorac, E.C.R.
 So enjoyable to read the classic mysteries from the British Library/Poisoned Pen Press. Ah the world without smartphones!

Maids by Skelly, Katie
  A graphic interpretation of a real crime (murder) that took place in France in 1933. Grisly but good. 

They Were Found Wanting - They Were Divided (The Writing on the Wall: The Transylvania Trilogy #2-3) by Bánffy, Miklós; translated from the Hungarian by Thursfield, Patrick and Bánffy-Jelen, Kathy
   The Trilogy has been on my to-read list for ages, I'm glad I finally got to it.

 

Turbulence by Szalay, David 

 Linked short stories. One of my favorite reads this month.

A Passage North  by Arudpragasam, Anuk
  I really liked the author's The Story of a Brief Marriage so I was looking forward to this. I received an electronic review copy from the publisher and it was a real struggle to read in that formatI think I need to get a print copy and read it again.

The Charmed Wife by Grushin, Olga  

 I enjoyed this modern day look at the aftermath of the Cinderella story, but I liked Grushin's Forty Rooms more.

Migrations by McConaghy, Charlotte  

 An Irish/Australian woman breaks her parole to follow the migration of arctic terns from Greenland to Antarctica. 

How Beautiful We Were by Mbue, Imbolo 

 An African village vs American Oil interests. This one fell flat for me.

Christmas at The Mysterious Bookshop edited by Penzler, Otto

 Seventeen short mystery stories, each by a different author, set in and around Penzler's Manhattan bookshop.  A fun "summer" read.

 Authors:  Charles Ardai, Lisa Atkinson, George Baxt, Lawrence Block, Mary Higgins Clark, Thomas H. Cook, Ron Goulart, Jeremiah Healy, Edward D. Hoch, Rupert Holmes, Andrew Klavan, Michael Malone, Ed McBain, Anne Perry, S. J. Rozan, Jonathan Santlofer, Donald E. Westlake.

 

Juvenile fiction:

A Tale of the Summer Holidays by Mockler, Geraldine

  One of my "Twenty Books of Summer 2021"

  I was surprised. This was written in the 1890s. I expected tame and sedate. I got a contest the resembled the grass-bomb wars we had defending our "forts" in 1940s rural California.  Good fun.

 

Poetry:

Mortal Summer by Van Doren, Mark

 One of my "Twenty Books of Summer 2021"

 What a mishmash! Greek deities and Christian archangels journey to America and mess with rural (hillbilly?) society. Why? Not Van Doren's best effort.  It made little sense.

Nonfiction:
Footnotes: The Black Artists Who Rewrote the Rules of the Great White Way by Gaines, Caseen

 A learning experience.

 

The Battle of Versailles: The Night American Fashion Stumbled into the Spotlight and Made History by Givhan, Robin 

  High fashion never made much sense to me. Still doesn't.

 

Letters to Camondo by Waal, Edmund de 

  Well worth the read..

 

Free the Beaches: The Story of Ned Coll and the Battle for America’s Most Exclusive Shoreline by Kahrl, Andrew W.

 Some Connecticut history. Wish it had been better organized because it's an important story.

 

Bounty from the Box: The CSA Farm Cookbook by Lipe, Mi Ae 

 Great book but its 4.1 pound weight overwhelmed me even more then the overabundance of collards, chard, lettuce & other greens in our very own CSA box!

My Summer in a Garden, and Calvin: A Study of Character by Warner, Charles Dudley 

  One of my "Twenty Books of Summer 2021"

  Warner was a neighbor of Stowe and Twain in the Nook Farm area of Hartford. Similar writing style to Twain. Fun to read. Gardening is not easy in these parts which is why I don't do it.

Online:

Enough with Copenhagen! It is Time for U.S. Cities to Learn From Models Closer to Home by Juan Miró 

Six Degrees of Wikipedia: Find the shortest path between any two Wikipedia pages

 

Several short pieces at New World Writing (published on June 11):

 

   Mary Grimm ~ Her Sketchbook, Found Among Her Things
   Maria Robinson ~ The Requirement
   Mike Itaya ~ Rasthole Flats
   Laurie Blauner ~ Four Pieces
   Daniel Adler ~ The Lion Tamer

 

The Filing Cabinet by Craig Robertson "The filing cabinet was critical to the information infrastructure of the 20th-century. Like most infrastructure, it was usually overlooked."

 

20 Best Zucchini Recipes We signed up for a CSA subscription and expect the zucchini will soon be filling the box. I do know lots of zucchini dishes but more is more. In addition to the recipes, this site has tips for handling (including freezing) the squash.

Mary Grimm ~ Her Sketchbook, Found Among Her Things

Maria Robinson ~ The Requirement 

Mike Itaya ~ Rasthole Flats

Laurie Blauner ~ Four Pieces

Daniel Adler ~ The Lion Tamer

High Voltage

Mary Grimm ~ Her Sketchbook, Found Among Her Things

Maria Robinson ~ The Requirement 

Mike Itaya ~ Rasthole Flats

Laurie Blauner ~ Four Pieces

Daniel Adler ~ The Lion Tamer

May 2021

Now that I'm vaccinated I probably can stop logging all these little errands and such. So here's the activities list for what I hope is the last time:

5/3  Verizon store for new Smartphone

5/4   Mah Jongg

5/11 Mah Jongg; Mazzicato Bakery (Middletown): Library

5/18 Mah Jongg; brief walk downtown.

5/25 Picnic; Library

Weather has been cold and rainy so I haven't been out and about as much as I'd like but I've had plenty of time to read some really good books this month. (Nice to be able to browse in the library again!)

Fiction:

They Were Counted (The Writing on the Wall: The Transylvania Trilogy #1) by Bánffy, Miklós; translated from the Hungarian by Thursfield, Patrick and Bánffy-Jelen, Kathy; foreward by Fermor, Patrick Leigh 

Abigail by Szabó, Magda; translated from the Hingarian by Rix, Len

Silence Is a Sense by AlAmmar, Layla 

Oraefi: The Wasteland by Sigurðsson, Ófeigur; translated from the Icelandic by Smith, Lytton 

Miss Mole by Young, E. H. (Emily Hilda) 

Send for Me by Fox, Lauren

Gonzalez and Daughter Trucking Co.: A Road Novel with Literary License by Escandón, María Amparo 

Aviary by McNamer, Deirdre

The Sicilian Method   (Commissario Montalbano #26) by Camilleri, Andrea; translated from the Italian by Sartarelli, Stephen 

The Children's Blizzard by Benjamin, Melanie 

The Performance by Thomas, Claire 

Amy and Isabelle by Strout, Elizabeth

Improvement by Silber, Joan

 

Verse:

More About Teddy B. and Teddy G. The Roosevelt Bears by Seymour Eaton (Paul Piper)

 Audio recordings of this and other Roosevelt Bear books can be found at LibriVox

  

Nonfiction:  

American Covenant: National Parks, Their Promise, and Our Nation's Future by Soukup, Michael A Book Arts of Isfahan: Diversity and Identity in Seventeenth-Century Persia by Taylor, Alice 

Cult Writers: 50 Nonconformist Novelists You Need to Know by Smith, Ian Haydn

 Short (one page) bios, very basic 

Life of James Mars, a Slave Born and Sold in Connecticut by James Mars; first published in the 1860s.

Online:

A Glance at the Life and Times of Miklos Banffy some background material on the author and setting of   The Transylvanian Trilogy which I started this month

Highway of Darkness: A Mystery Reader’s Road Trip Up California’s Highway 99 by Jane Rosenthal

April 2021

So much coming and going this month. Two (2)- count them -Picnics! Getting back to the usual stuff.

4/5  Post Office; CVS; Stop&Shop (first time in a supermarket in over a year!)

4/6  (am)Mah Jongg; (pm) library; JC Farms: Uncle Bob's Garden Center for roses 

4/7  Picnic! Gillette Castle (food from River Valley Provisions)

4/8  Dentist; Lino's Market

4/13 Mah Jongg

4/16 Em (housemate) 2nd Pfizer dose; Neils donuts

4/20 CVS; Mah Jongg; Neon Deli

4/22 Library (indoor); Lyman Orchards

4/23 Stop & Shop

4/27 Vote (fire district budget); Mah Jongg; Istanbul Gyro & Kabab

4/28 Robert's Food Center; picnic Chatfield Hollow 

4/29 Gassed car; library

  

And, of course, plenty of reading. Most of it good with a couple of disappointments. 

Fiction: 

5 of 5 stars;

The Liar's Dictionary by Williams, Eley

 lots of word fun...

Eleven Sooty Dreams by Draeger, Manuela; translated from the French by Mahany, J.T.

Leapfrog and Other Stories by Rosales, Guillermo; translated from the Spanish by Kushner, Anna
Madrid Tales by Constantine, Helen: translated from the Spanish by Costa, Margaret Jill

A Thousand Ships by Haynes, Natalie
Northernmost (Eide Family, #3) by Geye, Peter

   Liked this better than #1, haven't read #2 yet.
Cobble Hill by Ziegesar, Cecily von

4 of 5 stars:

Bangkok Wakes to Rain by Sudbanthad, Pitchaya
Transcendent Kingdom by Gyasi, Yaa
An Elegant Woman by McPhee, Martha
The Lighthouse Road (Eide Family, #1) by Geye, Peter 

3 of 5 stars:
The Sculptor by McCloud, Scott 

 graphic novel
The Sirena Quest by Kahn, Michael A. 

 somewhat silly adventure by somewhat grown-up former college boys
Half Life by Cantor, Jillian

 Alternative lives of Marie Curie. 

The Killing Tide (Commissaire Dupin #5) by Bannalec, Jean-Luc; translated from the French by Millar, Peter

 Not a bad diversion, may read a couple of more from the series when the mood strikes me.
 

2 of 5 stars:

Sarahland by Cohen, Sam

Afterlife by Alvarez, Julia

Nonfiction:
Sobremesa: A Memoir of Food and Love in Thirteen Courses by Caminos Oria, Josephine 

  A modern romance set to food and place (4 of 5 stars)
Fortune's Many Houses: A Victorian Visionary, a Noble Scottish Family, and a Lost Inheritance by Welfare, Simon

 Interesting house, interesting lives but too much detail of the houses and not enough on the lives. Loved the historical footnotes. (3 of 5 stars)
de Gournay: Art on the Walls: Everlasting Beauty, Hand-Painted Interiors by Gurney, Claud
 Beautiful to look at but I couldn't live in most of these rooms (3 of 5 star)

The Secret Life of Dorothy Soames by Cowan, Justine

  Psychological damage in a childrens home... (3 of 5 stars)

Online:

 

Not your "what I had for Lunch" on Instagram food shots: Family-meal image wins international food photo contest.

 

From Project Gutenberg some lovely Floral Illustrations of the Seasons by M. Roscoe

"Consisting of The Most Beautiful, Hardy and Rare HERBACEOUS PLANTS, Cultivated in the Flower Garden, from Drawings by M^rs. EDWARD ROSCOE"

 

Looking into Lost Persian Architecture through Safavid Manuscripts 

Noor Completes Reconstruction of the Mirror Palace in Iran 

March 2021

Now that I'm fully vaccinated I've resumed some activities but I'm still sticking to essentials. Next month I'll have a dental check-up and resume my mahjong games. Also can do more as my housemate will also be vaccinated. I read plenty this week--lots of library books plus one off my "owned-but-unread" shelves. Once again I think I added more to the latter than I read...

Activities:

3/1   Library to pick up holds and browse! Yes, I went inside but only for about 5 minutes. 

3/4   Library (book drop only); JC Farms: Lyman Orchards 

3/10 Lab Work

3/11 CVS Cromwell

3/12 Eye Dr 

3/15 DR; Library; gas

3/16 Tree removal. I didn't leave home for this (other than moving the cars to neighbor's driveway) but I did have to interact with tree guy who was probably not vaccinated.

3/24  Library pick up & browse; Durham Dari-serv

3/24  Took E to Uconn (Munson) for 1st dose vaccine; Neil's Donuts

Reading:

 

Fiction (roughly in the order I liked them but The Rib King was the only real disappointment among the fiction):

Dear Child by Hausmann, Romy; translated from the German by Bulloch, Jamie
Lost Girls: Short Stories by Morris, Ellen Birkett 

 A fine collection.

Elemental International short stories by various authors and translators (my copy)
The Caretaker by Arbus, Doon
Indelicacy by Cain, Amina

Mona and Other Tales by Arenas, Reinaldo; translated from the Spanish bt Koch, Dolores M.
The Bass Rock by Wyld, Evie
Inheritance from Mother by Mizumura, Minae; translated from the Japanese by Carpenter, Juliet Winters
The Glorious Ones by Prose, Francine 

Archipelago by Roffey, Monique

The Last Garden in England by Kelly, Julia
The Rib King by Hubbard, Ladee

  Started out fine but bogged down...I admit to a bit of skimming...

 

Nonfiction (three good, one meh, and a bomb):

Finding Dora Maar: An Artist, an Address Book, a Life by Benkemoun, Brigitte; translated from the French by Gladding, Jody
The Chiffon Trenches by Talley, André Leon
A Most Beautiful Thing: The True Story of America's First All-Black High School Rowing Team by Cooper, Arshay

The Next Great Migration: The Beauty and Terror of Life on the Move by Shah, Sonia 

  this was kind of disjointed and, not exactly to the point (of the title), wish I hadn't bothered..

Leave Only Footprints: My Acadia-to-Zion Journey Through Every National Park by Knighton, Conor 

  Too much "I" more a memoir than a travelogue, he tried to give a thematic presentation but ended up just wandering. His skipping all over the place made me want to do the same with his book.  Didn't make me want to visit any park I haven't already visited (and some that I have visited were barely recognizable). 

 

Online:

 I somehow stumbled onto to the site Olive Oil Times which has a lot of good stuff of interest to the industry and the consumer, see:  Remains of 2,500-Year-Old Mill Discovered in Italy  and Volunteers in Italy and Spain to Track Spittlebug Activity both by Paolo DeAndreis. In addition to news there are producer profiles, health info, and a bunch of recipes.

 

Paolo DeAndreis

Paolo DeAndreis

The Mystery of New England's Gray Corned Beef  by Anne Ewbank

 I was wondering about this as we ate our boxed take-out St Pat's dinner.

Yaupon: The rebirth of America's forgotten tea by Matt Stirn

 Humm..wonder is this stuff will grow in Connecticut...according to the USDA apparently not...see  Plant Guide: Yaupon and Plants profile: Ilex vomitoria Aiton yaupon and Willis Orchard Company: Yaupon Holly Tree

 

Iceburger No, not some crazy frozen dessert. This is an oddly compelling site that lets you create an iceberg an see how it floats. 

How Cats Walk In case you were wondering...

10 Incredible Women of Route 66 by Candacy Taylor (Moon Travel Guides). Interesting sidelights for a road-trip. A couple of the links are broken but easily found by Googling. The hotel in Winslow, AZ is where I want to stay if I ever go to the area again. (We stayed at a Holiday Inn in Williams on our cross country trip in 2001.)

Evolution of the House Plan in Europe: from the Industrial Revolution to the Interwar Period

 by Hana Abdel & Christele Harrouk

February 2021

More isolation, more (mostly good) reading, and a reaction to second covid shot. Such an exciting life!

 

Activities:

2/4    Gas; Neil's Donuts; Ace Hardware

2/11  Library (curbside pickup); Lyman Orchards (breakfast fruit & other essentials)

2/17  Library (curbside)

2/21  CVS

2/25  Nissan (key battery replacement); West Side Market (Rocky Hill); traffic check E.Berlin Rt 372

2/26  covid vaccine dose 2 (followed by two days of nothing but sleeping, mild aches, and light eating)

 

The reading was, as usual, all over the map both geographically and thematically.  The Passenger, set in Nazi Germany, and Pigeons on the Grass, set in Post War Munich, went nicely with Endpapers a family memoir that covers both periods and more.

 

Fiction: 

The Adventures and Misadventures of the Extraordinary and Admirable Joan Orpí, Conquistador   

 and Founder of New Catalonia by Besora, Max  (a fun romp)

The Passenger by Boschwitz, Ulrich Alexander
Pigeons on the Grass by Koeppen, Wolfgang

The Theory of Flight by Ndlovu, Siphiwe Gloria (Zimbabwe?)
The Cat and The City by Bradley, Nick (the city here is Tokyo)
The Mission House by Davies, Carys (India)
The Last Moon Before Home (Moon Trilogy, #2) by Dzikowski, Barbara J. (USA; nice, but not necessary, to have read the first of the trilogy)

At the Edge of the Haight by Seligman, Katherine (Post hippie Golden Gate Park, these are not flower children)

The Ancestry of Objects by Ryckman, Tatiana (meh)
White Ivy by Yang, Susie (My least favorite of the month)

Nonfiction:
Uprooted: A Gardener Reflects on Beginning Again by Dickey, Page (This was a nice read. In the past the garden (in northwestern Connecticut) has been open occasionally for tours. I hope they can do it again. It would make a good day trip)
Endpapers: A Family Story of Books, War, Escape, and Home by Wolff, Alexander   
The Doctors Blackwell: How Two Pioneering Sisters Brought Medicine to Women and Women to Medicine by Nimura, Janice P.
 

Online:

I won't be trying this at home. I never even got past a simple paper airplane...

These impossibly detailed origami figures are made of a single piece of paper Thousands of folds. By Lilly Smith "Several months. One sheet of paper. Juho Könkkölä’s origami characters have to be seen to be believed."

 

Speaking of Neil's donuts...

Food & Wine magazine names Neil's Donuts as Connecticut's best

 

And still on the calorie laden treats theme...

I am impressed with once having a First Lady who behaves as a human (as opposed to a clueless mannequin) that I have been following Dr. Jill on Twitter. Sooo...when Dr. Jill visited a DC bakery. The Sweet Lobby I couldn't resist checking out their site. I was quite taken with their boozy Cocktail Cupcake Menu. I shared this find with my housemate and she countered with a local source of treats -- Nora Cupcake Company -- which offers several cupcakes featuring boozy additives. So we spent a pleasant few minutes at our laptops in a sort of Cupcake War, reading delicious descriptions to each other.

Best Places to Visit in Europe (according to USNews)

I love lists like this one. They open up memories of places I've been to and dreams of places I'd like to go. It's a good list of 25 places, 16 of which I've visited.

January 2021

Another month of quarantine but maybe there's a little light coming--I got my first (of two) jab of the Pfizer  Covid vaccine. So here is the total of my outside contacts. Not impressive. 

Errands  etc.

1/2 Library to pick up holds.

1/8 Library returns; Lyman Orchards for produce & bread. 

1/12 ditto of 1/8

1/21 cvs

1/21-??? phone problem

1/25 covid vaccine dose 1

1/26 land phone repair (a stranger had to enter our house!)

Most of the  reading this month was good. A mixed bunch. Five from my shelves (first group), two Advance review copies (second group), and eleven from public libraries (third group plus the nonfiction). Of the fiction, Polar Vortex was the only one I didn't like at all. The Smiley, Moore, and Osman books were fun light reading. I needed that!

 

In nonfiction, The Dan Rather book was the weakest. I just didn't learn anything from it at all, certainly not what the title suggests.

 

Finally, I spent a lot more of my online time reading stuff other than the news. Still, it was such a pleasure to see competence that I became addicted to White House Press Briefings on CSPN.

 

Fiction
The Regal Lemon Tree by Saer, Juan José
That We May Live by Si'an, Chen and others, various translators (Short Chinese speculative fiction.)
Joseph Walser's Machine by Tavares, Gonçalo M.
Harmada by Noll, João Gilberto
Life Went On Anyway: Stories by Sentsov, Oleg

 

Here Lies a Father by Cassidy, Mckenzie (ARC via LibraryThing. Coming of age--surprised I liked it.)

Polar Vortex by Mootoo, Shani (ARC via LibraryThing. I didn't like it at all.)

Perestroika in Paris by Smiley, Jane
Facing the Bridge by Tawada, Yōko
Igifu by Mukasonga, Scholastique
Missing Person by Modiano, Patrick
The Gift of Rain by Tan Twan Eng
Hamnet by O'Farrell, Maggie
Shakespeare for Squirrels by Moore, Christopher
The Thursday Murder Club by Osman, Richard

Nonfiction

Fifth Sun: A New History of the Aztecs by Townsend, Camilla
City Squares: Eighteen Writers on the Spirit and Significance of Squares Around the World edited by Marron, Catie
What Unites Us: Reflections on Patriotism by Rather, Dan
      

Online

Gamey Meat: Here’s the Deal by Hank Shaw

Shaw's blog -- Hunter-Angler-Gardner-Cook -- is always a good read even if one isn't into game meat, foraging, etc. 

 

The History of Esculent Fish By Roger North. 

Includes descriptions of several edible fish and an essay on the breeding of fish and construction of fishponds. There are notes on what the fish eat, where to find them and how to catch them, but nothing about preparation and cooking. The plates, drawn and engraved by Eleazar Albin are what made me want to keep going back to this. Here is his Haddock:

The Smoky Valley  by Birger Sandzén

 I found this on Gutenberg and it was a nice introduction to an artist I'd never heard of. However the works are all in black and white so it was nice to find a resource that has them in color.

Birger Sandzén Memorial Gallery 

June 2020

 Books in the Time of Quarantine

Durham, Connecticut, June 2020

Even though the state is slowly reopening I continue, because of my age, to self quarantine. It's been warm and humid so I haven't been getting much exercise. Outings have been limited in June. Two for library curbside pickup which I combined with a trip to a farm market. Another was also a produce run combined with a stop at a fish market. Then, on the most comfortable day weather wise, we had a picnic!

Reading:

Lots of good books this month...

On Lighthouses by Barrera, Jazmina; translated from the Spanish by MacSweeney, Christina - 3 stars
I enjoyed these essays but this didn't give me much that was new to me.

Gathering of Waters by McFadden, Bernice L. - 4 stars
I liked this a lot but not as much as her The Book of Harlan which I read in 2016. I think when interlibrary loan opens up I'll be reading more of her work. I also enjoy following her tweets. 

b, Book, and Me by Kim Sagwa; translated from the Korean by Sunhee Jeong  - 4+ stars
A kind of  "almost coming of age story." It's worth a re-read.

Big Machine by LaValle, Victor - 5 stars
The Craft Is All the Same: A Conversation with Victor LaValle; Ayize Jama-Everett interviews Victor LaValle. Another author to add to my list of writers to read.

Conjure Women by Atakora, Afia - 5 stars
A Conversation with Afia Atakora, Author of Conjure Women

Auntie Poldi and the Sicilian Lions (Auntie Poldi #1) by Giordano, Mario; translated from the German  by Brownjohn, John - 4 stars
Fun, but not sure about following the series...

Sharks in the Time of Saviors by Washburn, Kawai Strong - 5 stars
How Kawai Strong Washburn Opened Up the Legends of Hawaii for Mainlanders author interview with Anderson Tepper (Vanity Fair)

The Man in the Red Coat by Barnes, Julian - 4 stars
Dr Samuel Jean Pozzi was the man in the portrait but this gossipy book is about so much more...

Berkeley Noir edited by Thompson, Jerry -  4 stars
One of the better anthologies in the Akashic Noir series.

Seven Samurai Swept Away in a River by Jung, Young-moon: translated from the Korean by Jung Yewon  - 4 stars
Korean writer Texas culture.

Online: 

Rayuela by Hugo Passarello Luna
"This is a series of portraits, taken in Paris, of friends and readers of Argentine writer Julio Cortázar to celebrate the 100th anniversary of his birth.

Depicting Writing
This was a double treat: a fine, nicely illustrated essay AND my discovery of The Crews Project! Thanks to The Literary Saloon (29 June 2020 blog) for leading me there.

Whonamedit? - A dictionary of medical eponyms
I found this when I was looking for more information about Dr. Pozzi. (See The Man in the Red Coat in my reading list above.)

New World Writing
I'm finding lots to like at this lit magazine.

Transformations
A new online site featuring narrative essays.

Breaching the Levee of Rage
A moving piece on taking a knee at a peaceful George Floyd protest/vigil. By David Abrams.

Joie de Vivre in Joyce's Garden
Another private garden tour by Jana Milbocker. This one, in Natick Massachusetts, is especially colorful.

Providence Pedestrian Bridge
A place I want to visit when I'm ready to expand my circle of comfort...

Collecting Guide: Wayne Thiebaud
Thiebaud turns 100 in November! That calls for cake and ice cream!

Cake Rows (1962)

 

Three Cones (1964)

August 2019 Reading

Fiction 
these I gave 5 stars out of 5
When the Plums Are Ripe by Nganang, Patrice; Transleted from the French by Reid, Amy Baram
  Giveaway Goodreads
Bright by Pimwana, Duanwad; Translated from the Thai by Poopoksakul, Mui
  From my collection 
From the Shadows by Millás, Juan José; Translated from the Spanish by Thomas Bunstead, Thomas and Hahn, Daniel
  Giveaway from LibraryThing 
Tales of Japan: Traditional Stories of Monsters and Magic by Chronicle Books
   Giveaway from LibraryThing

these got  4 stars 
Blood Ties by Fradkin, Barbara
  Giveaway from LibraryThing
Illuminations on Market Street: a story about sex and estrangement, AIDS and loss, and other preoccupations in San Francisco by Shepard, Benjamin Heim
  From public library
Hunter's Moon: A Novel in Stories by Caputo, Philip
  From public library 
Chances Are... by Russo, Richard   
  From public library 
The Hotel Neversink by Price, Adam O'Fallon
  From public library

these got 3 stars
Who are You, Calvin Bledsoe? by Clarke, Brock
  Giveaway from LibraryThing
The Century World's fair book for boys and girls: being the adventures of Harry and Philip with their tutor Mr. Douglass at the World's Columbian exposition by Jenks, Tudor
  From Project Gutenberg 
The Lightest Object in the Universe by Eisele, Kimi
  From public library

Periodical  
 5 stars
Two Lines 30 edited by Evans, Cj
 From my collection 

Nonfiction
these two got  4 stars
Schumann: The Faces and the Masks by Chernaik, Judith
  From public library 
Dutch Girl: Audrey Hepburn and World War  by Matzen, Robert
  From public library
 
this one got only 2 stars (boring)
Hungry: Eating, Road-Tripping, and Risking It All with the Greatest Chef in the World by Gordinier, Jeff
  From public library

Some online reading

Gertrude Jekyll - Sedate revolutionary By Judith Taylor
Colour in the flower garden by Gertrude Jekyll
 and then there's this place where we went on a day trip in June The Glebe House Museum and Gertrude Jekyll Garden.

After 53 Years, Athens’ Kentrikon Restaurant Serves its Last Meal By Philip Chrysopoulos
 A bit of nostalgia for me. This was our favorite spot when we stayed in the neighborhoodmany years ago.

How Tree Trunks Are Cut to Produce Wood With Different Appearances and Uses by José Tomás Franco
 This kind of stuff fascinates me.

Croatian Tales of Long Ago by Ivana Brlic-Mazuranic; Translated by F. S. Copeland; Illustrated by Vladimir Kirin
  I haven't read this yet, but the illustrations are super.

Swamp skiing competition held in northern Finland  Photos by Matti Matikainen/Xinhua
 and, closer to home, SEEN: Mud Volleyball Tournament 2019 by Jenna Seward; photos by Lisa Nichols

A Day at the Beach and Some Other Interesting Times at the 2019 Venice Biennale by David Ebony

Online Goodies

The Necklace of Princess Fiorimonde, and Other Stories by Mary De Morgan  on Project Gutenberg



Mary de Morgan: Subversion through Fairy Tales by Marilyn Pemberton







The Orchid Album, Vol 1  ; The Orchid Album, Vol 2 by Robert Warner and Benjamin Samuel Williams and Thomas Moore
There are over 40 colored plates in each of these two volumes.
On Project Gutenberg.

U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Pomological Watercolor Collection
This is an amazing collection. There are over 7,000 images in this searchable database.

Trains, Names, and Other Online Stuff

Monorail, monorail, monorail...  Osaka Monorail Train switching

Strange and Silly Street Names  by Elyssa Millspaugh
all in Connecticut but how did she miss Pumpkin Delight Road in Milford?

Architecture and Embroidery: Discover the Art of Elin Petronella and Charles Henry by Victor Delaqua; Translated by Zoë Montano
So cool I want to stich one of these...

Multitasking Trees by Sonja Dümpelmann
If you love street trees...

An incidental reference to Kasper Hauser in Wolfgang Hilbig's The Females sent me Googling. Here are just a few of the results for this interesting character: 
The Enduring 200-Year-Old Mystery Of Kaspar Hauser By Gina Dimuro
Kasper Hauser - Wikipedia
Kasper Hauser on Atlas Obscura

Online Time

Having to Google whilst reading Dos Passos Rosinante to the Road Again

Translation (on Wikipedia) of stanzas of a poem by Jorge Manrique quoted in Spanish by Dos Passos

I

Recuerde el alma dormida              O let the soul her slumbers break, 
avive el seso e despierte             Let thought be quickened, and awake;
contemplando                          Awake to see
cómo se pasa la vida,                 How soon this life is past and gone,
cómo se viene la muerte               And death comes softly stealing on,
tan callando;                         How silently!
cuán presto se va el placer,          Swiftly our pleasures glide away,
cómo, después de acordado,            Our hearts recall the distant day
da dolor;                             the pain
cómo, a nuestro parecer,              The moments that are speeding fast
cualquiera tiempo pasado              We heed not, but the past,—the past,
fue mejor.                            More highly prize.

...
III

Nuestras vidas son los ríos           Our lives are rivers, gliding free
que van a dar en la mar,              To that unfathomed, boundless sea,
que es el morir.                      The silent grave!
Allí van los señoríos                 Thither all earthly pomp and boast
derechos a se acabar                  Roll, to be swallowed up and lost
e consumir.                           In one dark wave. 
allí los ríos caudales,               Thither the mighty torrents stray,
allí los otros medianos               Thither the brook pursues its way,
e más chicos,                         And tinkling rill,
allegados, son iguales                There all are equal; side by side
los que viven por sus manos           The poor man and the son of pride
e los ricos.                          Lie calm and still.

...

ajo blanco (ajoblanco): "... popular Spanish cold soup typical from Granada and Málaga. It is also a common dish in Extremadura. This dish is made of bread, crushed almonds, garlic, water, olive oil, salt and sometimes vinegar. It is usually served with grapes or slices of melon." Wikipedia

More googling... 
This whilst reading The Night Guest by Fiona McFarlane. Its set in Australia...

casuarina: "...a genus of 17 tree species in the family Casuarinaceae, native to Australia, the Indian subcontinent, southeast Asia, and islands of the western Pacific Ocean.Wikipedia


Elsewhere Online...

a place I would love to visit..  La Piscine Museum  Official site - in French

Here's an overview in English La Piscine Museum Roubaix | An art deco wonder in the north of France by Janine Marsh