Welcome to my blog!

Michigan is a perfect garden spot. The springs and falls are glorious, the summers get hot (but not extreme) with plenty of rain, the winters are cold (again, not extreme) with plenty of beautiful snow and lots of down time to plan next year's gardens. The soil here is sandy and a tiny bit alkaline. If I had a wish it would be for more loamy soil and shorter winters but oh well!

I had long grown daylilies but discovered the incredible advancements in variety of form, color, and accents about 7 years ago and started buying more. I have about 350 varieties at the moment. I hybridize my own seedlings and have a large seedling bed. My garden here is relatively new (moved in 2008) but getting established.


It's tempting to plant beds with only my favorite flower but it's the combinations with other plants that make a garden beautiful so I'm careful to keep the entire composition in mind so that my garden is beautiful spring through frost.



Gardening is a lot of work - but how nice to come home after a busy day and forget my cares for a while by immersing my mind in maintaining beauty.




Sunday, January 25, 2009

Books Books Books

This topic will be edited a lot! I love to read and hate to waste my time reading something unworthy! Now that sounds snooty and I'm not - if someone loves bodice rippers and sappy romances, more power to them. To each their own. I like something with a bit more substance.

Here are books I have read recently with comments. I'm sure I'll add more as I remember them and read more. My opinions and worth what you have paid for them . . .
The Glass Castle, Jeannette Walls - Loved every page.
Me and Emma, Elizabeth Flock - Horrible subject but the telling is brilliant. I loved this book.
The Historian, Elizabeth Kostova - Started good; I turned off it about 3/4 of the way into it. I bought this one rather than got it from the library so I may start it again in the future. And I may not.
The Divide, Nicholas Evans - OK.
My Sister's Keeper, Jodi Picoult- Absolutely riveting. I literally was up all night reading it.
The Other Bolyene Girl, Phillippa Gregory - great book; I've read it twice. I love this Henry VIII era and she knows her stuff.
The Constant Princess, Phillippa Gregory - about Katherine of Aragon. Good read.
The Bolyene Inheritance, Phillippa Gregory - I haven't read anything of hers that turned out to be a disappointment.
Autobiography of Henry VIII, Margaret George - really a novel but very good, gives "the other side of the story" to ponder.
Mary, Queen of Scotland, Margaret George - another wonderful historical fiction writer.
Katherine, Anya Seton - great historical fiction, as was another by her:
John of Gaunt, Duke of Lansaster, Anya Seton.
Alias Grace, Margaret Atwood - Riveting.
The Tenth Circle, Jodi Picoult - great read.
Fall on your Knees, Anne-Marie MacDonald - Great read. I gave it to a family member and probably won't get it back.
Pale Morning Done, Jeff Hull - snore, and I didn't finish it but I remember it well so it had more impact than I thought; I may pick it up again.
Marley and Me, John Grogan - Not my usual genre but I love dogs and this book was recommended to me; it was good and very human; I cried several times.
The Other Side of the Bridge, Mary Lawson - picked this one from the new releases at the library; it was so good I got her first novel, an award winner, which was:
Crow Lake, Mary Lawson - good but not as good as the above.
Music and Silence, Restoration, The Colour, Rose Tremain - all excellent. More historical fiction.
Dalva, Jim Morrison - great character, not so great read.
Resistance, Last Time They Met, Fortunes Rock, Pilots Wife, Sea Glass, Testimony, Anita Shreve - if you get that I like this author, you're right. No sappy happy endings here but great reads.
Ursula Under, Ingrid Hill -a book I may have missed but it's set in Michigan, a wonderful book
Kite Runner, Kahled Hosseini - wow, loved it. Learned from it.
The Lake, the River, and the Other Lake - probably wouldn't have picked this up if it wasn't based in Michigan - liked it; kind of sad; great characters.
Their Eyes Were Watching God, Zora Neale Hurston - not impressed.
March, Geraldine Books - not impressed.
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, Jonathon Safran Foer - wow. Very compelling. I wanted to talk to others about this book.
Fire Point, John Smolens - another Michigan Book, enjoyed it.
Cloud Atlas, David Stephen - the strong enslaving the weak and the few that fought back. Good read.
Black Swan Green, David Stephen - I enjoyed more than Cloud Atlas.
Thread of Grace, Mary Doria Russell - Jews hidden by Italians in WW2. Very good.
Harbor, Loraine Adams - failed to endear me to Algerian illegal immigrants but it pointed out how ridiculous Homeland Security can be.
Small Island, Andrea Levy - Good read.
These is my Words, Nancy Turner - The diary of a young girl/woman in the American west - great read.
Sarah's Quilt, Nancy Turner - The Sequel to These is my Words, not worthwhile reading
Two Rivers, T. Greenwood - Good read.
Mercy, Salem Falls , Change of Heart, Keeping Faith, Perfect Match, Jodi Picoult- All great reads. I love this author. She has, over the last few years, become my favorite author.
Atonement, Ian McEwan - very good.
The Gathering, Anne Enright - Didn't finish. I may, at another time.
The Heretic's Daughter, Kathleen Kent - OK
Innocent Traitor, Alisone Weir - another book of my favorite historical period. This is the story of Lady Jane Grey.
The Last Summer (of You and Me), Anne Brashares - OK
My Husband's Sweethearts, Bridget Asher - not my usual style, but I read a review in the newspaper and decided to buy it. Worthwhile, if on the light side.
The Other Queen, Philleppa Gregory - another winning story of the Tudor era; this one focuses on Mary, Qeen of Scots.
Sail, James Patterson - another on the light side, it was OK.
The Story of Edgar Sawtelle, David Wroblewski - Very good read.
Sea of Poppies, Amitav Ghosh - started it, put it down. I was having trouble following the pidgin language.

4 comments:

Unknown said...

Thanks for the great book list. im always looking for a good one. I read mostly gardening realated books but am not a very consistant reader. Im trying to get in the habit though. Im from Manistee, MI. I love MI. ITs my favorite place. Living in NC now and really miss home. The soil here is no good! Red clay every where. I have tryed digging holes. its impossible. I cant wait to return home!

Love your daylilies. I have around 40 var. Thanks for the blog.

joey said...

Good luck with your new garden ... sure lots of goodies in your reading stack! I'm with you, another Michigan lover.

Anonymous said...

Great book list; figured you might be interested in this event? Or at least know people that may be interested?

Seed Swap
Saturday, February 27, 2010
12:00 - 3:00 PM

Wildwood Metropark
Ward Pavilion
5100 W. Central Ave.
Toledo, OH 43615

Free and open to the public!

Diversify your garden by exchanging seeds and learning new skills! No matter your gardening ability, you’ll enjoy the chance to interact with other gardeners, while swapping favorite seeds, houseplants, bulbs, et cetera.

Live entertainment by the Root Cellar String Band and activities for kids!


Free Workshops
Saturday, February 27, 2010
at Toledo Botanical Garden

10:00 - 11:30AM From Plant to Plate: Easy, Tasty Vegetables to Grow (TBG Conference Center)
10:00 - 11:30AM All About Gourds (Children’s Ed Building)
10:00 - 11:30AM Bugs & Birds in the Garden (TBG Conference Center)
1:30 - 3:00PM A Creative Approach to Herbal Gardening (Children’s Ed Building)
1:30 - 3:00PM Troubleshooting Your Vegetable Garden (TBG Conference Center)
1:30 - 3:00PM Container Gardening (TBG Conference Center)
3:30 - 5:00PM Preserving the Harvest (Children’s Ed Building)
3:30 - 5:00PM Gourmet Vegetables for Fun & Profit (TBG Conference Center)
3:30 - 5:00PM Raising Chickens (TBG Conference Center)



Participating organizations:
Ben Sells Greenhouse, Bench Farms, Junior League of Toledo, Maumee Valley Herb Society, Metroparks of the Toledo Area, Naturally Native Nursery, Nothing But Nature, OSU Extension Master Gardeners, Quarry Farm Gourds, Rupp Seed, Titgemeier’s Feed & Garden, Toledo Lucas County Public Library, Toledo Museum of Art, Weston A. Price Foundation, Wild Ones

For more information email michael.szuberla@toledogarden.org

TheGardenCloche said...

Wow. That's quite a book list. I wish I had more time to read some more books. I'm trying to get through Omnivore's Delimna by Michael Pollan right now.

Jeff
TheGardenCloche.com | Garden Plant Protection