Sunday Salon : Highlights of our United Kingdom trip

Highlights of Trip to the UK

Weather: We got home from our UK trip yesterday at 9 PM, PDT. It was overcast in the high 60s in London when we left, very comfortable on our last day for a hike in The Regent's Park before we boarded our plane homeward bound. This morning we awoke to light rain and fog, temperatures in the lows 50s here at home. We experienced a range of weather on our trip: sunny, cloudy, rainy, windy, cold, warm but never uncomfortably hot.

Our trip began here in Bath, England

Our 17-Day Itinerary: We flew into Heathrow airport and traveled immediately to Bath, England (Roman baths, Georgian architecture, Jane Austen sites); after renting a car we made our way to Stonehenge (prehistoric site) enroute to the Cotswolds (medieval villages) staying in Chipping Campden; onto the Lake District (Beautiful scenery, Beatrix Potter sites) spending two nights in Keswick; driving the coast of Scotland north of Glasgow with a visit to Loch Lomond before spending a night in Oban (seafood capitol of Scotland); with iffy weather we decided to skip our planned detour further into the highlands and headed directly to Edinburgh (Royal Mile, Edinburgh Castle, home of Presbyterianism) for three nights; re-entering England our last stop with the car was York for two nights (2,000 years of historic sites, including medieval walls and market places); a train trip to Stratford-upon-Avon (Tudor architecture, Shakespeare sites including attending one of his plays, "As You Like It"); and finally concluding our trip in London (Tower of London, museums, historic sites, West End theatre experience seeing "Hadestown").

Cathedrals left to right - Top: Bath Abbey; inside St. Giles' Cathedral in Edinburgh; the dome of St. Paul's Cathedral in the background. Bottom: outside York Minster; inside Westminster Abbey in the choir section where we sat for evensong.

Evensong and other services/programs in the grand cathedrals of the U.K. : We attended three evensong services as we toured around -- Bath Abbey, York Minster; and Westminster Abbey (London) -- all Anglican services sung by choirs. In Westminster we sat in the padded pews of the choir, or 'quire', part of the cathedral. In York we were seated in folding chairs on the floor within the choir, which increased our spiritual/musical experiences being so close to the singers. September 29th is the day Anglicans celebrate Michaelmas, the day set aside to honor the Archangel Michael and all angels. On that evening, we joined the congregation at St. Paul's Cathedral in London for a sung Holy Eucharist service. Afterwards Don kept exclaiming, "We got to sing a hymn in St Paul's!" Lastly, we bought tickets for candlelight concert in St. Giles' Cathedral in Edinburgh. The Piccadilly Sinfonietta played a wonderful program that featured Vivaldi's "Four Seasons", along with works by Mozart and Bach. Exquisite!  

Literary moments: (Top) Old Books store in Bath; dressing up in Regency clothes, Tea in the Pump Room which featured prominently in Austen's Northanger Abbey novel (with Jane Austen tea and live music from movies made from her books). (Middle) Inside Beatrix Potter's Hill Top Farm House, Carly has collected Beatrix Potter books and memorabilia her whole life, a scene from Mr. McGregor's garden after he nearly caught Peter Rabbit. (Bottom) The Tolkien inspiring doors of St. Edward's church in Stow-on-the-Wold; The Writer's Museum in Edinburgh; a memorial dedicated to Shakespeare in Poet's Corner, Westminster Abbey, London.

Literary Moments: We had many planned and several unplanned literary moments. In Bath we were all about Jane Austen since she set two of her novels in Bath and lived in Bath for a portion of her life. We visited the Jane Austen Centre where we were met at the door by Mr. Bennet (Elizabeth's father in Pride and Prejudice) and our guide was Anne Elliot (Persuasion). While in the Cotswolds we found the St. Edward's church which has a door that inspired JRR Tolkien to write The Lord of the Rings. In the Lake District we visited Hill Top Farm, home of Beatrix Potter (The Adventures of Peter Rabbit, et al) and visited an interactive exhibition for all things dedicated to this very popular children's author/illustrator in Bowness-on-Windermere. In Edinburgh we stumbled upon The Writer's Museum dedicated to Scots authors: Robert Louis Stephenson, poet Robert Burns, and Sir Walter Scott. We puttered around in it for a few moments before continuing our tour of the Royal Mile. Stratford-upon-Avon is of course dedicated to Shakespeare. In Westminster Abbey we found Poet's Corner, where many famous authors are buried, or have memorials on the walls or in the floor. A few we noticed: C.S. Lewis, Charles Dickens, Rudyard Kipling, the Bronte sisters, and Dylan Thomas. We also visited several indie bookstores: Bath Old Books, Ironbridge Book Nook, and London's Daunt Books in Marylebone, not far from our hotel.

Theater moments: The three of us in Stratford and in London. In Stratford we are standing in front of an image of Shakespeare created from Lego bricks. Bottom picture is our view of the stage (lighted in blue) and the rest of the theater. All but the floor seats were on sharp angles and each level is practically straight up. We had to lean forward to see most of the action of the stage.

Theater moments: When we began planning our trip, our daughter Carly, who loves musical theater, rightly insisted we include some theater. When we learned that the actor Jonathan Groff (known for King George III in the original cast of Hamilton, and the Glee TV series) was playing one of the leads in "As You Like It" in Stratford-upon-Avon, we knew we had to find a way to make it happen. The performance dates meant we had to alter our itinerary somewhat, but we made it work. I'm so glad we did as this was the best Shakespeare I've seen performed on stage. We also asked Carly to pick a show for us to see in London's West End. She selected "Hadestown", an excellent choice. I'd say that attending these two performances were the highlights of the highlights of our whole trip.

Don watching his head in Chipping Campden; view of Oban Bay

Accommodations: We followed the Rick Steve's Guide suggestions to stay in hotels and B&B spots close to the old towns and sites we hoped to visit. This meant we often encountered unique and charming issues. The funniest place we stayed was the Eight Bells Inn in Chipping Campden. We were greeted by a sign which warned of uneven floors and low ceilings so we should watch our steps. (See photo above of the cross beam we had to navigate under to get to our bedroom.) Our favorite was No. 21 York B&B where the proprietor was so friendly and made homemade bread every day. The best view was from the Kenavara House in Oban, Scotland of the Oban Bay.

Food: The last time Don and I were in the UK (2019) we had terrible experiences with food so our expectations were low going into this trip but we were pleasantly surprised by the many wonderful meals we ate this time. A few highlights -- Sunday Roast Dinner at the Dog and Gun pub in Keswick, Northern England. True to the pub's name, there were lots of dogs laying around under foot throughout the pub. The fish chowder at the Cuan Mòr restaurant in Oban. Everything we ordered at the Wee Greek Kitchen in Edinburgh: Moussaka, Chicken 'Paprikash', and the Lamb 'Tsigariasto'. Just thinking about these meals makes me want to go back.

Castlerigg. Note the boots Carly is wearing.

Funny moments: As a family we love to laugh at ourselves and will often retell funny stories of what happens to us. Here are a few of those memorable, funny moments from this trip:

• "But does it have marzipan?" I have an allergy to walnuts so I was given a special tray of sandwiches and treats for the Jane Austen tea that contained NO nuts. I kept eyeing the treats on the other tray and was especially interested in one that looked like it was covered with marzipan, which I love. Both Carly and Don tried a bite to test it and neither could tell me if it had marzipan or not. I eventually tried a tiny bite myself. I couldn't tell either. For the rest of the trip anytime anyone commented on a food, someone would ask, "But does it have marzipan?"
• We stopped for lunch one day we were on the road near Newcastle-upon-Tyne at a charming village of shops called the Milkhope Center. The lunch menu included a tuna-mayo-chive sandwich. Don and I decided to share one. I went off to save a table while Carly and Don stood in line. When it was his turn to order, Don said he'd like a tuna-mayo-chive sandwich, a coffee, and whatever else he ordered. As the young man was reading back the order he asked, "Are you sure you just want two mayo and chive sandwiches?" Don and Carly realized there was a pronunciation problem. We pronounce tuna as "two-na", they pronounce it as "choo-na". We did get tuna in our mayo and chive sandwiches but unfortunately the order was not completely correct...we still ended up with two sandwiches.
• We visited an ancient stone circle, Castlerigg, near Keswick, Northern England. Unlike Stonehenge it was not guarded and sheep are allowed to graze nearby and among the stones. As we walked among the stones we had to take pains to avoid the dung. The next day Carly kept complaining that her raincoat smelled like sheep dung. She finally figured out why. After we left Castlerigg she stuffed the boots she was wearing that day into a bag with her raincoat. Guess what she stepped on? She refused to wear that coat for the rest of the trip. Wonder why?

Birds: Egyptian Goose, Eurasian Coot, Common Raven (residents and characters in the Tower of London), Mute Swan in Stratford-upon-Avon, Pigeons everywhere and so irreverent. These are hanging out on a landmark in Bath.  

Bird Watching: Whenever we had a chance both Carly and I would break out the Merlin Bird App on our phones and try to identify new birds to us. Carly added 23 new birds to her life list, I added 20. Carly was thrilled to see a ring-necked pheasant up close and personal in Hollyrood Park after Don and Carly climbed Arthur's Seat. I enjoyed identifying all but two of the possible corvids which live in the UK: Hooded crows, Jackdaws, Rooks, Common Ravens, Eurasian Magpies, and Carrion Crows. Our last day in the UK we spent some time in Regent's Park and had fun figuring out the water birds we saw. Carly was especially smitten by the Egyptian Geese. And I was amazed by the feet of the Eurasian Coot. (See above.)

Museums and landmarks/historic sites: Roman Baths; Stonehenge; McCaig's Tower (Oban); Edinburgh Castle; Hollyroodhouse Palace (Edinburgh); Scottish National Gallery; walking tour of York; Hop-on/Hop-off Bus tour of London; Victoria and Albert Museum; the Tower of London; British Museum. I'll let the collages (See top of page, too) do the talking with just a few comments -- I was too tired by the time we got to the Scottish Art Gallery to appreciate it. The Hop-on/off bus tour in London was disappointing. We would have appreciated more history and information than we got. The British Museum was overwhelming. There were so many people. You had to fight through mobs of people to see many of the exhibits. See the photo below of Don and Carly trying to see the statue of Ramses.

We did so much more but I'm ready to stop typing and post this. We had a wonderful trip but as happens to me after long trips, I am always happy to be home.

-Anne

Friday Book Snippets: THE ASTRAL LIBRARY

Title: The Astral Library by Kate Quinn

Book beginning, Chapter 1:

I was doing poverty math the day my life fell apart.

2nd snippet, 52% of preview:

Fantasy. That is where I have always wanted to live, since I first crawled between the pages of The Voyage of the Dawn Treader at age eight.

Summary: Welcome to the Astral Library where books are not just things but portals to a new world and a sanctuary from the old one. The day Alix Watson's life falls apart she finds herself in the Boston Public Library when she passes through a door into another realm, The Astral Library. When she learns that she can enter one of her favorite books and escape her horrible life, she is ready to go. But suddenly the Astral Library Board threatens to make a decision which will wreck this magical place.

My thoughts: I read this book knowing it was not historical fiction, what Kate Quinn has become famous for writing. But when I recently read several reviews of Goodreads, one would think that Quinn committed some crime by not sticking to her favored genre. Readers complained that the book, which is identified as fantasy, wasn't what they wanted or hoped for. Well I, for one, was delighted by the book. The idea of living inside a favorite book and using that existence as a sanctuary from the horrors of life on earth was a fun and compelling idea. Yet, Alix Watson never had the chance to live inside a book because of the increasing meddling by the Library Board. Eventually Alix assisted the Astral Librarian and the books themselves in righting the ship to save literature for future generations.

My favorite part of the book was how strongly it spoke to importance of libraries and to the practice of reading.  Here are a few snippets from the book on these topics:

“What makes you think anyone can control stories? They take on a life of their own, once the author sets down the pen. Stories are not obedient. Even old well-loved favorites sometimes grow teeth.”

“A library is a sanctuary. It's one of the only places left where you can walk through the doors and draw breath and stay, without needing to buy something, without having to justify your presence.”

“And the smell. The book smell that was my favorite smell in the world, the smell that all libraries had, the smell that said home to me more than any home I'd ever actually had.”

Clearly Kate Quinn is a book lover and a staunch supporter of libraries. The recent book banning attempts all over the US in the past few years has alarmed her, as it should alarm all of us. This book is her paean to libraries and to books. It is beautiful, fun, silly, happy, sad, maddening, and hopeful. I liked it a lot.

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Welcome to a combined Book Beginnings on Friday and Friday56 with a new name Friday Book Snippets. I am co-hosting this weekly blogging event with Olivia at Bemused & Bookish. You can link up at either of our sites but be sure to still visit and comment on other participant's blogs to increase our community.

Directions: Share two snippets (a sentence or short paragraph) from a) the book's opening and b) page 56 (or another page) from the book you are currently reading. No spoilers, please. 

 Note: I always try to comment on everyone's blog post but I am still out of the country. Please don't think I've abandoned you. Come back! Thanks for sharing your snippets. I'll be around next week to visit for sure.

LinkUp: 

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

-Anne

TTT: Matching Fall Themes with Books

Top Ten Tuesday: Matching fall themes with books

I was a high school teacher/librarian for 37 years  Since autumn always meant the start of a school year it is always where my brain goes when I am asked to identify autumn themes. I'll start there.

Back to School. We meet McCourt in the opening scene of Teacher Man by Frank McCourt on his first day as a teacher. The scene is hilarious and one of my favorites in all of literature. 

Pumpkins. We live in an area where quite a few farms have pumpkin patches one can visit in October. Pumpkin spiced drinks are very popular this time of year, too, though I have never had a Pumpkin Spiced Latte, Have you? Country People by Daniel Mason is set in Vermont and though there is not a specific scene involving pumpkins, farm stores abound.

Cozy Bookstores. Bad weather chases people indoors including cozy spaces like bookstores. How to Read a Book by Monica Wood is partially set in such a space, as the cover implies.

Banned Books Week. One of the first tasks I would tackle at the beginning of the school year was to prepare my library for Banned Books Weeks which is an event sponsored by the American Library Association sometime in the early Fall. This year it will be held October 4-10, 2026. I encourage you to read a banned book during that week and slather it all over your blog! For ideas take a look at Banned Books: The World's Most Controversial Books, Past and Present by DK Publishing as a place to start.

Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving falls on the fourth Thursday in November in the US. In Wreck by Catherine Newman a family spends a lot of time planning for their Thanksgiving meal together.

American Football. Football season is hard upon us with the pros playing games every Sunday (or Monday) and college games on Saturdays and, if you are really into it, high school games on Friday nights. We are season ticket holders to our college's team. We do a lot of football all autumn. In Dairy Queen by Catherine Murdock a girl helps her boyfriend, a high school football quarterback, with his skills.

Colored Leaves. We have three trees in our backyard which give us a treat every fall when they turn colors. It is one of the big joys in my life. Cold Sassy Tree by Olive Ann Burns is also something that brings me great joy. I read it ages ago so I don't remember specifically if is is mainly set in the autumn but I picked it for its cover.

Soups and chilis. When the weather starts to turn cold I run to the cupboard looking for recipe books to make these warm, cozy foods. I don't own a copy of Soups, Stews, & Chilis by Cooking Illustrated but I do own at least four other soup cookbooks which I consult a lot every fall and winter.

Halloween. October 31st. To my mind The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, published in 1820, written by Washington Irving, was the beginning point in time for this fun, but oddly gruesome holiday.

Rain. I live in the Pacific NW. Autumn generally means a forecast of rainy weather for us. I picked Small Rain by Garth Greenwell based on the title. I really liked the book and don't feel like I talk it up enough so I included it here.

What themes do you think of which you associate with autumn? What books also hold an autumn-ish association in your brain?

By Graham Annable

-Anne

Friday Book Snippets: THE TYPING LADY

Title: The Typing Lady and Other Fictions by Ruth Ozeki

First line of first story: "The Typing Lady: An Author's Note":

I first met the typing lady in a library. "Met" is not the right word. Let's say I noticed her, became aware of her presence, caught sight of her out of the corner of my eye.

First line of third story: "Leafblower" (page 52):

Leafblower. It's a lovely word, really.

Summary: The Typing Lady and Other Fictions is a short story collection by Ruth Ozeki. There are twelve stories in this collection each with the characters standing at a threshold of their life. "The Typing Lady is an electrifying meditation on the stories we tell ourselves, the stories we abandon, and the stories we become. Threaded with the tactile ephemera of writing—typewriters, letters, manuscripts, and disappearing ink—the book reveals how we record ourselves in language, and how language, over time, records us in return."  (Storygraph)

My thoughts: I am a Ruth Ozeki fan. Her book A Tale for the Time Being is one of my favorite books. It is so complex and it just about blows my mind. She is a Zen Buddhist Priest and all of her books and stories bring a different awareness to them that is missing in other books. This collection of stories is both clever and funny. Each story focuses on a character (or two) who is at a threshold in their life, wondering where they should go next. For example, the story "Leafblower" is about a girl who is trying to decide what to do with her life but in the meantime she is tasked with taking care of a woman who is slowly slipping into dementia. In the last story, "The Problem of the Body", a grandmother is trying to figure out how to help her granddaughter. All of the characters are complex and interesting, fully fleshed-out. I loved many of the stories and liked all the others. 

If you think you'd like to read short stories but don't want to wallow in overly long ones, or read a collection of some good and other bad stories, this would be a great place to start. I liked all the stories and none were overly long. My rating 4.5 stars.

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Welcome to a combined Book Beginnings on Friday and Friday56 with a new name Friday Book Snippets. I am co-hosting this weekly blogging event with Olivia at Bemused & Bookish. You can link up at either of our sites but be sure to still visit and comment on other participant's blogs to increase our community.

Directions: Share two snippets (a sentence or short paragraph) from a) the book's opening and b) page 56 (or another page) from the book you are currently reading. No spoilers, please. 

Note: I always try to comment on everyone's blog post but this week and next I will be out of the country and I just don't know if I will be able to make comments like usual. Please don't think I've abandoned you. Come back! Thanks for sharing your snippets.

LinkUp: 

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

-Anne

TTT: My Fall Reading List (and how I did on my summer list)

Top Ten Tuesday:

 Fall 2026 Reading List (and How I Did On My Summer Reading List)

Top Ten Tuesday: Fall Reading List. 

Below the line is how I did on my summer reading list.

Fall reading list: 

Book Club Selections:

1. SOTH Gals (October) : Homestead (Moustakis)
2. RHS Ladies (October): Mad Mabel (Hepworth)
3. SOTH Gals (November) : TBA
4. RHS Ladies (November/December) : Whistler (Patchett)
5. SOTH Gals (December) : TBA

Challenge Books:

1. Classics Club Spin Book TBA from this list -- possibly: The Sun Also Rises (Hemingway)
2. Printz Award Winner or honor book -- Sisters in the Wind (Boulley)
3. A NYT Book Best of  the 21st Century selection -- possibly The Sellout (Beatty)
4. A National Book Award winner or finalist (announced in November) TBA
5. The Booker Prize winner or finalist (announced in November) TBA
6. Three Goodreads Fall Challenge selections TBA, starting October 1st
1. TBA
2. TBA
3. TBA

Books I've already started, recently acquired, and/or have on-hold at the library:

1. The Calamity Club (Stockett)
2. Good Poems (edited by Keillor)
3. The Man Who Died Twice (Osman)
4. The Things We Never Say (Strout)
5. Crook Manifesto (Whitehead)
6. Anything is Possible (Strout)
7. How to Be Brave (Budde)

There are a few unknowns right now which will become clear as the season progresses. Since I 

participate in challenges that have specific books which aren't announced until later this year, 

I have a lot of TBA books again.

How I did on my summer reading list: 

 Yellow: completed. 

Aqua: in progress

Green:  not completed, DNF

Light pink: Did not get to yet!

Summer reading list: 

Book Club Selections:

1. SOTH Gals (July) : You Before Me (Moyes) (Read it several years ago, didn't reread it.)
2. RHS Ladies (July): No Meeting
3. SOTH Gals (August) : Theo of Golden (Levi)
4. RHS Ladies (August) : The Loneliness of Sonia and Sunny (Desai)
5. SOTH Gals (Sept.) : Civilizations (Binett)
6. RHS Ladies (Sept.): The Book Club for Troublesome Women (Bostwick)

Challenge Books:

1. Classics Club Spin Book TBA from this list -- The Stranger (Camus)
2. Printz Award Winner or honor book -- Sisters in the Wind (Boulley)
3. Paris in July Challenge -- The Red Notebook by Antoine Laurain
4. A NYT Book Best of Century selection -- Austerlitz (Sebald)
5. Three Goodreads Summer Challenge selections TBA, starting July 1st.
1. Last Summer on State Street by Toya Wolfe
2. Agnes Aubert's Mystical Cat Shelter by Heather Fawcett
3. Brokeback Mountain by E. Annie Proulx

Books I've already started, recently acquired, and/or have on-hold at the library:

1. Kin (Jones)
2. Agnes Aubert's Magical Cat Shelter (Fawcett)
3. Enormous Wings (Frankel)
4. Land (O'Farrell)
5. The Typewriter and the Guillotine (Braude)
6. The Warmth of Other Suns (Wilkerson)

“It is what you read when you don't have to that determines what you will be when you can't help it.” 

—Oscar Wilde

-Anne

Friday Book Snippets: EVIL UNDER THE SUN

Title: Evil Under the Sun by Agatha Christie

Book beginning, first snippet:

When Captain Roger Angmering build himself a house in the year 1782 on the island off Leathercombe Bay, it was thought the height of eccentricity on his part.

2nd snippet, page 64:

     It was eight o'clock when Linda, sitting at her dressing table, turned a little thick, calf-bound volume face downward, sprawling it open and looked at her own face in the mirror.

     Her lips were set tight together and the pupils of her eye contracted.

     She said below her breath:

     "I'll do it..."

Summary: Christie's 23rd Hercule Poirot novel, Evil Under the Sun is set on a tiny resort island off the coast of Devonshire. By the time the murder occurs almost every single guest at the resort is a suspect, including Linda, a sixteen-year-old daughter of the main suspect. In typical Poirot fashion, every single piece of evidence in uncovered and tied together to point at the actual murderer.

My thoughts: I enjoy Agatha Christie novels as much as the next person but I have to admit that one of the reasons I do is that all the pieces of evidence are all used and explained by Poirot by the end of the novel. One needs to pay close attention to even the smallest items because they will reveal some aspect of the plot later. And Christie also sprinkles her stories with red-herrings. All this makes reading her books both fun and very active. I did have a few problems with this particular book, however, which led to my rating of 3.25. Evil Under the Sun was published in 1941, presumably written in 1940. There is no mention of the actual date of the plot, so I kept assuming it was the late 1930s or early in 1940. Britain had already declared war against Germany by that time.  I just couldn't get past this point when nothing was mentioned about war at all in the plot. Other than that, it was a fun, fast read.

______________________________________________________ 

Welcome to our second week as a combined Book Beginnings on Friday and Friday56 with a new name Friday Book Snippets. I am co-hosting this weekly blogging event with Olivia at Bemused & Bookish. You can link up at either of our sites but be sure to still visit and comment on other participant's blogs to increase our community.

Directions: Share two snippets (a sentence or short paragraph) from a) the book's opening and b) page 56 (or another page) from the book you are currently reading. No spoilers, please. 

Note: I always try to comment on everyone's blog post but this week and next I will be out of the country and I just don't know if I will be able to make comments like usual. Please don't think I've abandoned you. Come back! Thanks for sharing your snippets.

LinkUp: 

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

-Anne

TTT: Authors I Would Like to Meet

Top Ten Tuesday: Authors I Would Like to Meet and Visit Over a Cup of Coffee or a Glass of Wine

Lately I've been including my husband and his opinions more in the topics I am pondering for upcoming blog posts. Today when I asked him what authors he'd like to meet, he made a big deal about this being more than a handshake and getting a signature in a book. He'd want to sit and visit over a beer and really have a good chat with the authors. I mulled this over. I am much more of an introvert than he is and the idea of actually sitting down and visiting with these authors sort of terrified me. But putting my fears aside, these are the authors I really would like to chat with if the occasion were ever to arise.

In 2017 I created a list of Authors I've Met.

David Attenborough
He is one of my heroes and I know I don't have much more time to make this dream a reality since he is over 100 years old. I recommend this book: A Life On Our Planet: My Witness Statement. On my TBR, Ocean: Earth's Last Wilderness.

Ann Patchett
Of all the authors on this list it sort of seems like Ann Patchett is just a regular gal who happens to write my kind of books. After she published her most recent book, Whistler, I read an interview where she said, and I'm paraphrasing, she has decided to write about normal people who don't have some huge trauma they are dealing with and who decide to be humane and kind. I like that.

Louise Erdrich
Both Erdrich and Patchett own bookstores and are leading literary features in their communities. Don and I agreed on Erdrich for our lists today. I rely on authors to help me understand other points of view so I lean quite heavily on Erdrich for insights into Indigenous cultures. My recent favorite book of hers is The Sentence, but I also am a huge fan of her Justice Trilogy with The Round House being my favorite of the three books.

Michelle Obama
I was going to say Barack Obama but when my husband said I had to sit and drink a cup of coffee with my choices, I imagined myself too tongue-tied to hold up my end of the conversation with him. But Michelle Obama is another thing. I loved her book Becoming. I even attended a book event at the Tacoma Dome where Jimmy Kimmel interviewed her. So inspiring.

Barbara Kingsolver
For years now, when asked, I will identify Kingsolver as my favorite author. Her new books are always on my TBR long before they are available. Her newest, Partita, is set for publication in early October. I hope to get my hands on it before years' end since I'm pretty far back in the line. Her book Demon Copperhead blew me away. I understand that Kingsolver used the royalties from the book to build a recovery house for drug addiction. Bravo!

Rachel Maddow
Better known as a primetime political commentator, Maddow has also written several excellent and thought-provoking books. I imagine a conversation with her could go for hours. I can't stop thinking about her book Prequel: An American Fight Against Fascism since it related to what is happening right now worldwide.

That's it.

A short list today.

How about you? 

What authors would you like meet over a cup of coffee?

-Anne

Sunday Salon -- September 13th

The family after the University of Oregon football game wearing duck hats given to us as a prize for winning by my younger sister, Grace. So fun.

Weather: Rain. It rained all night and hasn't stopped. This feels like Fall weather to me.

Two things you should know about politics in the USA right now:

• 1. The FCC banned James Talarico from appearing on Jimmy Kimmel's Live show. The FCC doesn't ban Republicans from Fox News, just Democrats on ABC. Anyway. To make sure the interview is seen, Jimmy Kimmel Live posted it on YouTube. Click on the link below and watch it (or at least run it in the background) so that this unfair situation is rectified by a larger viewership than they would have gained if the interview were aired on the show. Stand up for Free Speech! There were 4.9 Million views at the time I viewed it. What is the viewership number now for you?

• 2. Do not use VOTESAFE (dot) org .  Do not even go and check it out. (Read why here.) In a nutshell, the website is a fake voter registration site by Elon Musk, designed to steal your information. Any visitors to the site will unwittingly hand over their full name, birthday, home address, email address, cellphone number, IP address, browser, location, voter registration status, and district, not to mention every link they click on and every page they look at. If you visit votesafe.org . . . A code based on the technical traits of the device, known as a device fingerprint, is created so a user can be tracked even if cookies are deleted. It is so sinister. I urge you to stay away. DO NOT USE votesafe.org. This is an Elon Musk site that will feed you phony information.
• If you are looking for information on voting:
  1. Search your own state department of elections.
  2. Search your county/city/town General Registrar, talk with them — call, go to the office, send email.
  3. Use https://vote.gov
  

We are heading out for a trip to the U.K. in a few days:  We will be visiting several literary sites: Bath (Jane Austen Festival), Hill House (Beatrix Potter home in the Lake District), Scottish site of the Culloden Battle (recently made famous in the first book of Outlander series by Gabaldon), Stratford-Upon-Avon (Shakespeare's birthplace); and several sites in London (so many books, so many plots!)

What I might read during the trip:

• Here are the books I will have with me in some format. I know I won't get to them all, but at least I'll have options.
• The Sun Also Rises by Hemingway (Print) -- I want to read this book this year as it was published 100 years ago. I purchased a physical copy to carry with me to read on the plane and at night after days of sightseeing. If I happen to finish it, I'll leave it behind someplace.
• Civilizations by Binet (Ebook) -- This is a book club selection for a meeting I'll be missing during the trip. I still want to read it. So far I am still in line at the library so it may not come in on time. When it comes in I hope it can downloaded from afar. (Update: I just ran into one of the book clubbers and she said the book is awful.  Maybe I'll just skip it!)
• Mad Mabel by Hepsworth (Audio) -- A fairly short audiobook so I may be able to finish it during our flights, if I don't fall asleep. I've heard it is very funny.
• Anything is Possible by Strout (Audio and EBook) -- This is the second book in the Amgash series. I've read all the other books in the series out-of-order: 1, 4, 5, 3. Time to finish up by reading the 2nd book! Ha! I have checked out both the audio and the ebook so I can toggle back and forth. I've heard the book reads a little like short stories. Good. I like reading short stories when I am traveling.

What I've read recently:

• The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek /Richardson -- A book club selection. I'll miss the meeting where it is discussed.
• Siddhartha: An Indic Poem /Hesse -- My Classics Club Spin book for the Fall.
• London Falling: A Mysterious Death in a Gilded City and a Family's Search for Truth /Keefe -- One of the best narrative nonfiction authors out there. Wow.
• The Typing Lady and Other Fictions /Ozeki -- I love this author and everything I've read by her. Review scheduled.
• Evil Under the Sun /Christie -- The 23rd Hercule Poirot mystery. Review scheduled.

What I'm currently reading:

• Dungeon Crawler Carl /Dinniman -- Well, this book is fun! 31% complete, audiobook. If I don't finish this book before we leave, it'll jump to the front of the list of the books I hope to read on the trip.

Blogging: 

• TTT: Books with Nationalities in the Title
• TTT Favorite Books from the Top Goodreads Titles of the Decade
• WWW Wednesday 

This: Voltaire quote will make you think.

Back to school: The grandsons are back to school. Off to a good start.

Ian -- 4th grade

Jamie -- Kindergarten

Jumping for joy at a before school event for the boys to meet their teachers.

September 11th: It has been twenty-five years since the terrorist attack on the WTC.

A note from a Norwegian:

It is unlikely I will create any Sunday Salon posts while on the trip, so I will see you on the flip-flop, hopefully with some good stories and lots of photos.

-Anne