Library Lovers Day 2025 is on Friday, February 14, 2025: from one book lover to another?

Friday, February 14, 2025 is Library Lovers Day 2025. Lauren's Loquacious Literature: Library Lovers Day Library Lovers Day

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from one book lover to another....?

"The Stolen Child" by Keith Donohue

"THE STOLEN CHILD, an ingeniously crafted tale about hobgoblins, is a coming of age story and one about identities both lost and found. This beguiling yet tragic novel is placed in the recent past when, at least in the "sophisticated" and technology driven West, the faery myths have lost their hold on the popular consciousness and the creatures have thus become, to our loss, an endangered species joining griffins, mermaids, gorgons, centaurs, and unicorns.

It's the late 1940s in a rural setting outside Chicago. Seven year-old Henry Day, alone in the woods near his home, is abducted by a band of a dozen hobgoblins, which, in mythology, are faeries "gone bad". By the story's definition, each hobgoblin was once human before being kidnapped while still young and, by some subtle process, turned into a creature that never ages, even over hundreds of years. At some point, determined by seniority within the group, a hobgoblin, or "changeling", can return to the society of humans by co-opting the identity of a kidnapped child. Once returned to the "upper world", the hobgoblin takes up the aging process where he/she left off. In this case, Henry, now "Aniday", languishes in the purgatory of eternal childhood while his replacement matures to fully actualized adulthood as "Henry Day". Aniday's tragedy comprises an identity and life's potential lost, while Henry's is that his new identity vies with that of his previous human existence, began in 1851, which Day subliminally remembers and eventually obsesses over. "

"Middlesex" by Jeffrey Eugenides

"His beautifully written novel begins: "Specialized readers may have come across me in Dr. Peter Luce's study, 'Gender Identity in 5-Alpha-Reductase Pseudohermaphrodites.' " The "me" of that sentence, "Cal" Stephanides, narrates his story of sexual shifts with exemplary tact, beginning with his immigrant grandparents, Desdemona and Lefty. On board the ship taking them from war-torn Turkey to America, they married-but they were brother and sister. Eugenides spends the book's first half recreating, with a fine-grained density, the Detroit of the 1920s and '30s where the immigrants settled: Ford car factories and the tiny, incipient sect of Black Muslims. Then comes Cal's story, which is necessarily interwoven with his parents' upward social trajectory. Milton, his father, takes an insurance windfall and parlays it into a fast-food hotdog empire. Meanwhile, Tessie, his wife, gives birth to a son and then a daughter-or at least, what seems to be a female baby. Genetics meets medical incompetence meets history, and Callie is left to think of her "crocus" as simply unusually long-until she reaches the age of 14. Eugenides, like Rick Moody, has an extraordinary sensitivity to the mores of our leafier suburbs, and Cal's gender confusion is blended with the story of her first love, Milton's growing political resentments and the general shedding of ethnic habits. Perhaps the most wonderful thing about this book is Eugenides's ability to feel his way into the girl, Callie, and the man, Cal. It's difficult to imagine any serious male writer of earlier eras so effortlessly transcending the stereotypes of gender."

Book lovers: would you rather?

Book lovers: would you rather?

Rarely buy new. Buy used (predominately paperback), keep the significant ones; and then, donate or give the rest away to charities, thriftstores, or friends.

I do borrow from the library, too. Well, mostly schedule days to speed read through sections methodically. The library was one of the best ideas ever. If a book interests me I might check it out, but if it reads like a Keeper or one that would be great to pass along, I keep an eye out for it at local used book sellers or grab it off www.amazon.com where sometimes books can be picked up for $.01 plus shipping.

This is a fun site for swapping, selling, buying.

World eBook Fair is July 4 - Aug 4. FREE access to over 6.5 million eBooks. Enjoy!

Edit: Sorry, forgot the 2nd half of the question was Why? I've can't possibly remember all the books I've read or reread. Keeping the favorites is a touchstone of recall.

Looking for additions to my music library that sound like...?

Looking for additions to my music library that sound like...?

1. Sing, Sing, Sing - Benny Goodman & His Orchestra (1937)

2. Take The A Train - Duke Ellington (1941)

3. In The Mood - Glenn Miller Band (1939)

4. Begin The Beguine - Artie Shaw & His Orchestra (1938)

5. Lover Man (Oh Where Can You Be) - Billie Holiday (1944)

6. White Christmas - Bing Crosby (1942)

7. Stardust - Artie Shaw & His Orchestra (1940)

8. I'll Never Smile Again - Tommy Dorsey Orchestra w/Frank Sinatra & the Pied Pipers (v) (1940)

9. Mack The Knife - Louis Armstrong (1955)

10. Chattanooga Choo-Choo - Glenn Miller Band, w/Tex Benecke & The Modernaires (v) (1941)

11. String of Pearls - Glenn Miller Band (1942)

12. Bei Mir Bist Du Schon - The Andrews Sisters (1937)

13. Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy - The Andrews Sisters (1941)

14. At The Woodchoppers Ball - Woody Herman Orchestra (1939, Decca)

15. Jumpin' At The Woodside - Count Basie Orchestra (1938)

16. T'Ain't Whatcha Do - Jimmie Lunceford Band (1939)

17. One O'Clock Jump - Count Basie Orchestra (1937)

18. Flying Home - Lionel Hampton Band (1942)

19. Blues In The Night - Woody Herman w/his Orchestra (v) (1941)

20. Tenderly - Randy Brooks & His Orchestra (1946)

21. Sentimental Journey - Les Brown Band w/Doris Day (v) (1945)

22. Sometimes I'm Happy - Lester Young (I) (1943)

23. Don't Be That Way - Benny Goodman Orchestra (1938)

24. Stardust - Charlie Spivak Orchestra (1943-aircheck)

25. The Blues My Naughty Sweetie Gives To Me - Sidney Bechet & His Hot Six (1951)

26. Satin Doll - Duke Ellington & His Orchestra (1953)

27. Solitude - Billie Holiday (1940)

28. Why Don't You Do Right? - Benny Goodman Band w/Peggy Lee (v) (1942)

29. The Man I Love - Benny Goodman Quartet (I) (1937)

30. Over The Rainbow - Judy Garland (1939)

31. It's Only A Paper Moon - Nat "King" Cole Trio (1944)

32. Where Or When - Benny Goodman Trio (I) (1937)

33. Deep Purple - Larry Clinton Orchestra w/Bea Wain, (v) (1938)

34. I Don't Want To Set The World On Fire - The Ink Spots (1941)

35. I Can't Get Started - Bunny Berigan (1937)

36. Nuages - Django Reinhardt (1940)

37. It Might As Well Be Spring - Dick Haymes (1945)

38. Hep Hep The Jumpin' Jive - Cab Calloway & His Orchestra (1939)

39. Rum and Coca-Cola - The Andrews Sisters (1945, Decca version)

40. Marie - Tommy Dorsey Band w/Jack Leonard, vocal (1937)

41. God Bless The Child - Billie Holiday (1941)

42. Stormy Monday Blues - Earl Hines Orchestra, w/Billy Eckstine, vocal (1942)

43. The Christmas Song - Nat "King" Cole (1946)

44. A Tisket, A Tasket - Ella Fitzgerald w/Chick Webb Band (1937)

45. Oh! Look At Me Now - Tommy Dorsey Band w/Frank Sinatra & The Pied Pipers (1941)

46. Summertime - Billie Holiday (v) (1936) / Artie Shaw & Orchestra (I) (1945)

47. Glow-Worm - The Mills Brothers (1952)

48. Frenesi - Artie Shaw & Orchestra, (1940)

49. Body & Soul - Coleman Hawkins (1939)

50. I'll Be Seeing You - Tommy Dorsey (Orchestra) w/Frank Sinatra (v) (1940-s, 1944-r)

51. If I Loved You - Perry Como (1945)

52. Ain't Misbehavin' - Fats Waller (1936)

53. September Song - Sarah Vaughn (v) w/Teddy Wilson Quartet (1946)

54. The Trolley Song - Judy Garland (1944)

55. Tangerine - Jimmy Dorsey Band w/Bob Eberly & Helen O'Connell (v) (1941)

56. Perfidia - Jimmy Dorsey Orchestra (1941)

57. Straighten Up & Fly Right - Nat "King" Cole Trio (1942)

58. Let's Get Away From It All - Tommy Dorsey Band w/Frank Sinatra, & The Pied Pipers (1941)

59. Stompin' At The Savoy - Benny Goodman Orchestra (1937)

60. And The Angels Sing - Benny Goodman Orchestra w/Ziggy Elman (I) & Martha Tilton (v) (1939)

61. Taking A Chance On Love - Benny Goodman w/Helen Forrest (v) (1940-s, 1943-r)

62. Yes Indeed! - Tommy Dorsey Band w/Jo Stafford (v) (1941)

63. Nature Boy - Nat "King" Cole (1948)

64. Night And Day - Billie Holiday (1939)

65. Song of India - Tommy Dorsey Orchestra (1937)

66. You Always Hurt The One You Love - The Mills Brothers (1944)

67. Moonglow - Artie Shaw & His Orchestra (1940)

68. The Man I Love - Billie Holiday (live, 1946) / (studio, 1939)

69. On The Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe - Johnny Mercer (1945) / Judy Garland (1945) [competing versions]

70. On The Sunny Side Of The Street - Tommy Dorsey Band w/The Clark Sisters (v) (1944)

71. It's A Sin To Tell A Lie - Fats Waller (1936)

72. Lady Day - Artie Shaw Orchestra w/Roy Eldridge (I) (1944)

73. Choo-Choo Ch'Boogie - Louis Jordan & His Tympany Five (1946)

74. Celery Stalks At Midnight - Will Bradley Orchestra (1940)

75. Skyliner - Charlie Barnet & His Orchestra (1944)

76. All The Things You Are - Artie Shaw w/Helen Forrest (v)

77. Long Ago And Far Away - Dick Haymes & Helen Forrest (1944)

78. One For My Baby and One More For The Road - Frank Sinatra (1947)

79. I've Heard That Song Before - Harry James Band w/Helen Forrest (v) (1942)

80. Cherokee - Charlie Barnet (1939)

81. Salt Peanuts - Dizzy Gillespie w/Charlie Parker (1945)

82. Perdido - Duke Ellington & His Orchestra (1942)

83. With The Wind and The Rain In Your Hair - Bob Chester Band w/Delores O'Neill (v) (1940)

84. All Or Nothing At All - Harry James Band w/Frank Sinatra (1939)

85. Candy - Johnny Mercer & Jo Stafford (v) (1945)

86. The Gypsy - The Ink Spots (1946)

87. Artistry In Rhythm - Stan Kenton & His Orchestra (1943)

88. Opus One - Tommy Dorsey Orchestra (1944)

89. The House Of Blue Lights - Ella Mae Morse w/Freddy Slack Orchestra (1946)

90. Mr. Five By Five - Ella Mae Morse w/Freddy Slack Band (v) (1942)

91. As Time Goes By - Dooley Wilson (1931, re-issued 1942)

92. Skylark - Harry James Band w/Helen Forrest (v) (1942) / Maxine Sullivan (v) (1943)

93. Personality - Johnny Mercer (1945)

94. Moonlight In Vermont - Billy Butterfield & His Orchestra w/Margaret Whiting (v) (1945)

95. Fools Rush In - Tommy Dorsey Orchestra w/Frank Sinatra (v) (1940)

96. The Mole - Harry James Orchestra (1941)

97. Sweet Lorraine - Nat "King" Cole Trio (1941)

98. I've Got A Gal In Kalamazoo - Glenn Miller Band, w/Tex Benecke & The Modernaires (1942)

99. I've Got My Love To Keep Me Warm - Les Brown Orchestra (1946-s, 1949-r)

100. Green Eyes - Jimmy Dorsey Band w/Bob Eberly & Helen O'Connell (v) (1941)

take care

dave

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