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BookishHistorian

BookishHistorian

Joined September 2016

I like books, and history, and books.
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Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison
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Anarchist's Guide to Historic House Museums by Franklin D Vagnone, Deborah E Ryan
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BookishHistorian
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Ray Bradbury is one of the world's greatest authors. His mastery of language was amazing - his descriptions captured emotions and could be read like poetry. ❤

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BookishHistorian
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BookishHistorian
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This sign @ a bookstore mirrors my current reading list.

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BookishHistorian
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4 likes1 stack add
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BookishHistorian
1984 (School & Library) | George Orwell
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BookishHistorian
1984 (School & Library) | George Orwell
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BookishHistorian
Handmaid's Tale | Margaret Atwood
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I've been reading a lot of distopic/post apocalyptic books recently.

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BookishHistorian
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And with that, I declare myself on a Facebook hiatus.

Megabooks Yay!!! I've been off for almost a year and am probably not going back!! 8y
BookishHistorian Day five and going strong! I find I don't even miss it--and I'm getting so much more reading done. 😁 8y
6 likes2 comments
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BookishHistorian
The Road | Cormac McCarthy
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Pickpick

I typically love post-apocalyptic stories. I don't typically love spare, unflinching prose in the style of Hemingway. This time, my love of the story being told won out. This story tells the tale of a man on his boy on the road following some sort of apocalyptic event. The spare, direct writing style really worked here--drawing similarities to the bleak, spare setting of the story. This is destined to become a classic.

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BookishHistorian
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BookishHistorian
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Spent my week studying the 1764 Manual of Arms.

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BookishHistorian
Girl in a Blue Dress | Gaynor Arnold
Mehso-so

Well written, but it felt like the author was looking for a way to show off all the 19th-century trivia she had learned. The writing felt a little too pre-meditated--if that makes sense? The book ending is lackluster as well, striking me as if the author was just tired of writing or couldn't figure out how to end the story. Most of all, this makes me want to read an actual Charles Dickens biography.

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Middlemarch, where have you been my whole life? I can't believe it has taken me this long to read you! So far, it's following in the tradition of Jane Austen's books and Jane Eyre.

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BookishHistorian
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Mehso-so

This was my second time reading this book (actually, this time I listened to Emma Thompson read it). This book frustrated me both times, as I simply couldn't grasp what was happening in the plot. After this listen, I did some research online and found two things that helped me considerably: 1) the narrator is likely unreliable, and 2) since this is the Victorian time period, things left unsaid are probably sexual in nature.

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BookishHistorian
Girl in a Blue Dress | Gaynor Arnold
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Starting in on a new book while debate whether or not to bail on #Cryptonomicon.

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BookishHistorian
Cryptonomicon | Neal Stephenson

Help! I need some feedback. I'm a little more than half of the way through #cryptonomicon. So far I'm fairly bored with it and feel the book was lacking a good content editor. Can anyone tell me if there is a point to this story? Is it worth continuing on? I'm about ready to bail, but I hate bailing on books. FOMO I think. So any thoughts or suggestions?

TRANSOM Bail. 8y
BookishHistorian @MiloThePilot Good advice. Thanks! 8y
TRANSOM There are just too many books out there begging for your attention to waste time slogging through another 400 pages of something you don't love. 8y
1 like3 comments
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BookishHistorian
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Continuing my history work. Getting a little reading in. At the moment it's antique recipe books.

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BookishHistorian
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I've been absent from Litsy due to work duties, but I was still able to get some reading in! 😆

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BookishHistorian
Cryptonomicon | Neal Stephenson
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Neal Stephenson's hyperbole is on point!

#HypnoticHyperbole

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BookishHistorian
Cryptonomicon | Neal Stephenson
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Stiff as a Radio Flyer?! 😆

#SpectacularSimilies

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BookishHistorian
Cryptonomicon | Neal Stephenson
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The descriptions in this book are just...wow...😆

#SpectacularSimilies

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BookishHistorian
The Lake House | Kate Morton
Pickpick

4 stars. I love Kate Morton's writing style--she reminds me of Daphne du Maurier, Rosamund Pilcher, and Maeve Binchy. This one, set in Cornwall, definitely had echoes of du Maurier. Some aspects of the mystery seemed obvious, while others kept me guessing until the end.

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BookishHistorian
Good Omens | Neil Gaiman, Terry Pratchett
Mehso-so

This book was funny. It is immensely quotable. But the story feels joke-driven rather than story-driven or character-driven. As a collection of jokes and one-liners it was great. As a cohesive story, it just doesn't do it for me.

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BookishHistorian
Pickpick

Fantastic insight into the workings (or lack thereof) of our thoughts, ideas, and decision making.

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BookishHistorian
Mehso-so

If you like Colin Quinn and his style of humor, you will love this book. He discusses the various races and ethnic groups he grew up around in Brooklyn. Definitely NOT PC.

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BookishHistorian
Pickpick

This book was sweet, loving, and a bit sad. I felt a particular connection to it, having lived in the area where it takes place.

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BookishHistorian
Good Omens | Neil Gaiman, Terry Pratchett
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BookishHistorian
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I'm getting into the Halloween spirit with The Sandman Chronicles. It took me a bit to get into, but
I'm warming up to it.

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BookishHistorian
Good Omens | Neil Gaiman, Terry Pratchett
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Starting in on Good Omens.

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BookishHistorian
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This quote is from book 3 of the "Red Rising" trilogy. A great quote from an entertaining series.

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BookishHistorian
The Stand | Stephen King
Pickpick

I thought Stephen King was *just* a horror writer. However, after reading -- and being blown away by -- 11/22/63, I decided to give King another shot. I'm so glad that I did. I was expecting this to be a standard post-apocalyptic survival story, but instead, King delivered an epic, timeless tale of good versus evil. This is a must read -- the story was riveting, the characters well-developed, and the writing masterful.

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BookishHistorian
The Stand | Stephen King
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Ha! Stephen King made a funny!

3 likes1 comment
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BookishHistorian
The Stand | Stephen King
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You know, it's been a while since I've read any Stephen King, and I've forgotten what a fantastic wordsmith he is. It's too easy to pigeonhole him as a "horror writer," while forgetting how good he is at his craft. I feel the same way about Ray Bradbury.

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BookishHistorian
The Stand | Stephen King
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BookishHistorian
The Stand | Stephen King
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MrBook Welcome to @Litsy ! We hope you enjoy your stay, I think you'll like it here 😎👍🏻. 8y
BookishHistorian Thanks! I'm loving it so far! 8y
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