Little Pixie`s Bookshelf 2014

[Athena]

Thank you.

 

No, this`ll be my very first Grisham !

 

I`m not sure if I`ll get to 100 books read first, or 800 books in my TBR.

The Client was my first Grisham book too !

 

It could be a race, between your reading and your TBR/buying .

[pontalba]

Wow! You'll certainly get to a hundred by the end of the month at that rate...so that will be at the half year! Impressive!

[Little Pixie]

Wow! You'll certainly get to a hundred by the end of the month at that rate...so that will be at the half year! Impressive!

 

Thanks - it`s my most readingest year ever !   I`ve been very fortunate to come across some new authors ( like Patricia Moyes, Diana Gabaldon and Louise Penny ), so that`s helped.  

Edited June 10, 2014 by Little Pixie

[julie]

HiYa Pixie

 

Jumping in to catch up on your thread. Holy Smokes, have you been reading a lot or what ?  You could very well hit 200 this year if you keep chugging along like this !

 

And The Client was one of my favorite Grishams .... along with The Chamber ... and Painted House ( but it's a different sort of book--VERY good ) .

[Little Pixie]

Hi Julie !

 

I`ve had a really good year for books ; it also helps that I`ve been going to bed earlier, and thus reading more ( plus, I`ve read a lot of myestery books, and you end up thinking that you might as well finish them off once you get to 60-100 pages from the end... ). Oh, and now that I`m keeping a record of my `books bought`, I do feel obliged to actually read them.

[julie]

Well , whatever secret you have come up with, it's sure working !  You are doing great . Is this the most books you think you've ever read in a year ?

[Little Pixie]

Well , whatever secret you have come up with, it's sure working !  You are doing great . Is this the most books you think you've ever read in a year ?

 

A couple of years ago, I finished the year at 132 or so ( my book`s upstairs with my book lists, but that sounds about right ). 150+ looks doable for this year.

[pontalba]

A couple of years ago, I finished the year at 132 or so ( my book`s upstairs with my book lists, but that sounds about right ). 150+ looks doable for this year.

 

Wow!, I thought I'd read a lot this year, 65 at the moment.   But you and Athena have me beaten by many miles.   Good on ya!  

[Little Pixie]

Wow!, I thought I'd read a lot this year, 65 at the moment.   But you and Athena have me beaten by many miles.   Good on ya!  

 

Hee, thanks.

 

Though my video tapes are really piling up now...  

[Little Pixie]

Been a bit busy lately ; I`ve had dizziness on and off for ages, thought I`d mention it again when I was getting a migraine prescription at my Doctor`s - she referred me to the Ear/Nose/throat consultant - he found I have some hearing loss and sent me off for an audiological MRI - had that on Monday - today, just had a physio appt. and have some exercises to do to help with balance. The physiotherapist says you can get something called vestibular migraines ( where your balance goes ), which I`d never heard of.    Tbh, I wasn`t aware till quite recently that I was getting migraines, `cos I just get pain around my right eye ; apparently, there are all different types.

 

  Meh, could be worse.

 

Anyhoo, the MRI was entertaining ; the hospital was pretty much deserted `cos it was after hours, so a bit creepy to go along all those long corridors. The ground floor has big picture windows which look out onto atria ( nothing exciting, just gravel and prickly bushes ), but the atrium near the Scanning Dept has a family of ducks living in it ( one Mummy Duck and three almost-grown ducklings, which all quacked at people and looked cute ) - someone`s put a paddling pool in there for them, aww.

[Athena]

Wow, sounds like you have a lot of doctor's appointsments going on. I hope you feel better soon . The ducks sound really cute though .

[Little Pixie]

Wow, sounds like you have a lot of doctor's appointsments going on. I hope you feel better soon . The ducks sound really cute though .

 

Aw, thank you. You too.

 

Perhaps they should have Therapy Ducks, they quite cheered me up.   

[Little Pixie]

I got some used books from a neighbour, which was a nice surprise.   

 

Trick of the Dark - Val McDermid

Into the Blue - Robert Goddard

The Flight - MR Hall

The Lady Elizabeth - Alison Weir

Daughters in Law - Joanna Trollope

Second Honeymoon - Joannna Trollope

[Athena]

Aw, thank you. You too.

 

Perhaps they should have Therapy Ducks, they quite cheered me up.

I think that's a great idea!

 

I got some used books from a neighbour, which was a nice surprise.   

 

Trick of the Dark - Val McDermid

 

Into the Blue - Robert Goddard

 

The Flight - MR Hall

 

The Lady Elizabeth - Alison Weir

 

Daughters in Law - Joanna Trollope

 

Second Honeymoon - Joannna Trollope

Woohoo for free books . I've read one book by Joanna Trollope,The Book Boy, I quite enjoyed that so I hope you like these two (and of course the other books) .

[Little Pixie]

Woohoo for free books . I've read one book by Joanna Trollope,The Book Boy, I quite enjoyed that so I hope you like these two (and of course the other books) .

 

I haven`t read any of those authors ( though I have another book by Val McDermid, and I think one by Robert Goddard .. ) Looking forward to expanding my reading horizons.

[Little Pixie]

This article was in the Sunday Times ; I don`t think I`ve heard of most of those authors ; it`s given me lots of goodies to look up now.  

 

Do you have that in English?  We’re missing out on too many great books


Christina Cacouris Published: 22 June 2014


Found in translation: Dragt’s classic Found in translation: Dragt’s classic

It was voted best Dutch children’sbook of the past 50 years, and translated into 15 languages, with more than 1m copies sold. It has even been made into a film. Now, more than a century after its release, Tonke Dragt’s The Letter for the King (De brief voor de Koning) has finally been translated into English.

Britain and America translate the smallest number of foreign novels in the literary world. Only 1% of children’s books sold in the UK were originally written in another language — and most are graphic novels and comics such as Tintin and Asterix. For books aimed at adult readers, the figures come in at about 5%, compared with 14% in France, 24% in Spain and 25% in Italy.

A big chunk of the translations bought here is made up of Stieg Larsson’s Millennium trilogy, which has shifted more than 6m paperbacks and 259,000 hardbacks since the first volume appeared in 2008 in the UK. Even a relative hit such as Alaa al-Aswany’s The Yacoubian Building sold only 51,000 copies in paperback and 5,236 in hardback; for the cult French writer Michel Houellebecq’s Atomised, the figures are 168,806 and 2,674. Is this a sign of how isolationist the English-speaking world has become?

Adam Freudenheim, who heads Pushkin Press, a specialist publisher of translations, dismisses this idea at first. “We are the exception — every European country translates more than we do — but I think there are some more obvious reasons for that, which are not as negative. With our literary culture, you’ve got people writing in English from so many countries all over the world. You’ve got all these perspectives already in English, so there is something to that.” Yet he concedes that “at the same time, we are missing out. The Letter for the King is a perfect example of that. As a culture, we aren’t really outward-looking enough.”

Standards have to be high for translated work, especially coming into a country that prides itself on a history of great writing. James Daunt, managing director of Waterstones and the founder of Daunt Books, says: “Because of the tradition of fiction-writing in this country, if we’re going to go to the bother of a translation, we want to be pretty sure the original is exceptional. In an odd way, translated work does outpunch ours.”

At 500-plus pages, The Letter for the King couldn’t be further from the Dr Seusses and Roald Dahls lining the shelves. It’s easy to see why it has done so well: it’s a story that is meant to be enjoyed by children and adults alike, the tale of a 16-year-old boy named Tiuri, who, on the cusp of being knighted, must break the rules, abandon his home and embark on a dangerous journey to give the neighbouring kingdom’s ruler a letter of the utmost importance. The writing doesn’t feel overly juvenile or excessively difficult, and it’s a true page-turner.

Freudenheim says he received sections of the English translation as they were being done and read them to his children. They found the story so exciting that his eight-year-old son snuck into his office to steal the last few chapters, unable to wait any longer to hear how it ended.

“It was a wonderful moment for me as a father, and a testament to how gripping the story is,” he says. “Readers don’t care whether or not a book is translated. We’re not publishing The Letter for the King as a great children’s book ‘in translation’, but simply as a great story.”

Most books for children that are translated into English are graphic novels such as Asterix and Tintin (Benoit Tessier )Most books for children that are translated into English are graphic novels such as Asterix and Tintin (Benoit Tessier )

Pushkin Press never prints the word “translation” on its covers. “We feel strongly that this is the author’s work. It’s not about tricking the potential reader — they’re smarter than that. But many people could translate a book, whereas only one could have written it. The translator is part of the equation.”

Which is not to say the translator isn’t important; in fact, a successful one can expose publishers to new titles, as is the case with Laura Watkinson, who brought The Letter for the King to Pushkin. Daunt also cites Anthea Bell (of Asterix fame): “In one shop, we had a gentleman who would come in asking for ‘the new Anthea Bell, please’.” Because of that, Daunt agrees that translators’ names should remain off the front cover: “It is the author’s work, and we don’t want to confuse.”

Translations for a grown-up audience are more plentiful, yet even here there are shameful gaps. Since the inauguration of France’s Prix de Flore 20 years ago, only seven winners of the prestigious prize have received English translations. And in Italy, winners of the Zerilli-Marimo prize, which targets fiction likely to be well received in America, have remained untranslated.

A film adaptation helps, as was the case with the 2009 bestseller La Délicatesse (Delicacy), by David Foenkinos; the movie was nominated for multiple Césars, and only then did the book make it into English. Foenkinos has written many other hits — but no film adaptations, so no English translation.

Even a prominent writer such as Spain’s Jose Maria Merino has only a few works available in English. And in the Netherlands, De Avonden (The Evenings), written by Gerard Reve in the 1940s and hailed as one of the greatest Dutch books of all time, has not been picked up for translation by an English-language publisher.

Pushkin Press will go on bucking the trend.“Ninety per cent of what we publish is in translation,” Freudenheim says. “This is our focus. We use languages as bridges. My associate, Stéphanie, who is French, has discovered an incredible number of Japanese books through reading the French translations. I feel a bit of missionary zeal.”

[Athena]

I've read that when I was a child! I quite liked it but have to admit I don't remember much about it . Very interesting article, great find .

[julie]

Pixie

Sorry to hear of your migraines. I've never heard of that type either. I just get regular old migraines . You made the dark hospital hallways sound like the beginning of a Stephen King book ! You should try your hand at writing if you haven't before !

 

Best of luck with your health !

 

By the way, Robert Goddard is great -- hope you like him . 

[Little Pixie]

Pixie

Sorry to hear of your migraines. I've never heard of that type either. I just get regular old migraines . You made the dark hospital hallways sound like the beginning of a Stephen King book ! You should try your hand at writing if you haven't before !

 

Best of luck with your health !

 

By the way, Robert Goddard is great -- hope you like him . 

 

Thank you ! Again - you too !

 

Have you found anything which works for your migraines ? The best thing for me has been ginger ; I whizz up raw ginger root in a mini-blender and cover it with boiling water, then drink it as a cordial. 

 

" It was a dark and stormy night. The hospital corridors were deserted. Suddenly... there was a quacking sound... ! "

[pontalba]

Been a bit busy lately ; I`ve had dizziness on and off for ages, thought I`d mention it again when I was getting a migraine prescription at my Doctor`s - she referred me to the Ear/Nose/throat consultant - he found I have some hearing loss and sent me off for an audiological MRI - had that on Monday - today, just had a physio appt. and have some exercises to do to help with balance. The physiotherapist says you can get something called vestibular migraines ( where your balance goes ), which I`d never heard of.    Tbh, I wasn`t aware till quite recently that I was getting migraines, `cos I just get pain around my right eye ; apparently, there are all different types.

 

  Meh, could be worse.

 

Anyhoo, the MRI was entertaining ; the hospital was pretty much deserted `cos it was after hours, so a bit creepy to go along all those long corridors. The ground floor has big picture windows which look out onto atria ( nothing exciting, just gravel and prickly bushes ), but the atrium near the Scanning Dept has a family of ducks living in it ( one Mummy Duck and three almost-grown ducklings, which all quacked at people and looked cute ) - someone`s put a paddling pool in there for them, aww.

 

Interesting.  Although I'm sorry you've had to go through all that!  When you say pain around your right eye, do you mean above and below? Or just above?  I get something like that, but attributed it to sinus headaches.  Of course I don't get it very often, not like I used to. 

There are so many "causes", before I underwent "the change", I used to get a headache just before and just after my time.  Then there were what I called "sinus headaches".  Now I wonder. 

 

Do you get headaches from red wine?

 

The hospital does sound a bit Stephen King(ish). heh  But the ducks sound adorable.  Do you know what kind of ducks they were?  I used to raise Muscovy Ducks, the black and white ones.

[julie]

Thank you ! Again - you too !

 

Have you found anything which works for your migraines ? The best thing for me has been ginger ; I whizz up raw ginger root in a mini-blender and cover it with boiling water, then drink it as a cordial. 

 

" It was a dark and stormy night. The hospital corridors were deserted. Suddenly... there was a quacking sound... ! "

 

 

I take Maxalt , a drug that my neurologist ordered a couple years ago. Most times it helps, but once in awhile I get a doozy and end up in ER .

I've never tried anything Herbal or such for them, but a company in Canada used to make these things that looked like huge chapsticks. You smeared them on your head right where the pain was and it was something that sunk into your skin and actually relieved the pain somewhat . They no longer make them, so I cant get them anymore though .

 

 -- I like your story with the ducks !

[Little Pixie]

Interesting.  Although I'm sorry you've had to go through all that!  When you say pain around your right eye, do you mean above and below? Or just above?  I get something like that, but attributed it to sinus headaches.  Of course I don't get it very often, not like I used to. 

There are so many "causes", before I underwent "the change", I used to get a headache just before and just after my time.  Then there were what I called "sinus headaches".  Now I wonder. 

 

Do you get headaches from red wine?

 

The hospital does sound a bit Stephen King(ish). heh  But the ducks sound adorable.  Do you know what kind of ducks they were?  I used to raise Muscovy Ducks, the black and white ones.

 

The pain is all around and in the eye ; I used to think it was sinussy `cos it`s sometimes also painful along the top of the eyebrow ( and sometimes lemsip or pseudephedrine will help ), but lately I`ve also felt sick with it and it`s gone on for 3 or 4 days ( and it does seem to be a cyclical thing, same as you used to get ).    

 

Looking at this NHS symptom sorter, the symptoms do seem to vary from person to person ; mine just aren`t what I thought was a migraine.

 

Hmm, I`m a vodka girl, though whenever I`ve had red wine, I`ve been fine. The physiotherapist yesterday said all sorts of foods can contribute to a migraine ( I knew about the fun stuff like coffee, chocolate, cheese, salami, but apparently, citrus also causes `em ).

 

They were these mallards, which are pretty typical for around here. They come into the garden when it floods, and we often see them in next door`s garden (` cos they put out seed for their doves and quail ) . Just had to look up Muscovies on Youtube - goodness, never seen the like !  They do look exotic ( to me  ).

[Little Pixie]

I take Maxalt , a drug that my neurologist ordered a couple years ago. Most times it helps, but once in awhile I get a doozy and end up in ER .

I've never tried anything Herbal or such for them, but a company in Canada used to make these things that looked like huge chapsticks. You smeared them on your head right where the pain was and it was something that sunk into your skin and actually relieved the pain somewhat . They no longer make them, so I cant get them anymore though .

 

 -- I like your story with the ducks !

 

I`ve not heard of Maxalt ; I was offered Migraleve.

 

I wonder if the chapsticks had things like Wintergreen and menthol in them ?

 

" Suddenly....... A quack rang out ! "

[Athena]

The physiotherapist yesterday said all sorts of foods can contribute to a migraine ( I knew about the fun stuff like coffee, chocolate, cheese, salami, but apparently, citrus also causes `em ).

Wow, call me ignorant but I didn't know that . My aunt heavily suffers from migraines and headaches but the doctors here don't know what causes it and can't do much to help her.

[pontalba]

Yes, I knew about the lovely chocolate and caffeine contributing, for some people. Fortunately they don't bother me. But let me drink a glass of a good Port wine, and I am down for the count. One of the worst headaches I ever had was from red wine. I love it, but it doesn't reciprocate!

 

I do have a couple of helpers though. One is to drink a cup of strong coffee (I always drink it black in any case), and take a Claritin before drinking alcohol. It works for me.

 

I like vodka too. . With tonic water, usually.