Joe's Updates en-US Tue, 01 Apr 2025 17:08:23 -0700 60 Joe's Updates 144 41 /images/layout/goodreads_logo_144.jpg Review6842674404 Tue, 01 Apr 2025 17:08:23 -0700 <![CDATA[Joe added 'The Battle of Versailles: The Fashion Showdown of 1973']]> /review/show/6842674404 The Battle of Versailles by Mark Bozek Joe gave 5 stars to The Battle of Versailles: The Fashion Showdown of 1973 (Hardcover) by Mark Bozek
]]> ReadStatus9260162297 Tue, 01 Apr 2025 16:33:46 -0700 <![CDATA[Joe is currently reading 'Welcome to Temptation']]> /review/show/7454844029 Welcome to Temptation by Jennifer Crusie Joe is currently reading Welcome to Temptation by Jennifer Crusie
]]> Review7098014237 Tue, 01 Apr 2025 16:33:36 -0700 <![CDATA[Joe added 'The Snarkout Boys and the Baconburg Horror']]> /review/show/7098014237 The Snarkout Boys and the Baconburg Horror by Daniel Pinkwater Joe gave 2 stars to The Snarkout Boys and the Baconburg Horror (Snarkout Boys, #2) by Daniel Pinkwater
]]> Review6754144063 Tue, 18 Mar 2025 21:34:43 -0700 <![CDATA[Joe added 'Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents']]> /review/show/6754144063 Caste by Isabel Wilkerson Joe gave 5 stars to Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents (Hardcover) by Isabel Wilkerson
I started reading this just before the 2024 election but after the election I had a hard time finishing it because it hits different now � in an especially profound way.

I'm not going to write a proper review for it but what I will say is the book outlines the emergence, development, and continued implementation of systems that are centuries old maintaining the white supremacist status quo the nation was built upon. Wilkerson uses the caste systems of India and Third Reich Germany to draw parallels to America and its systems that still target and vilify people of color today.

The main and most disturbing takeaway I took from it was this ... toward the end of the book, Wilkerson poses the question: "If America is ever faced with choosing between democracy or white supremacy, how many will choose white supremacy?"

Now we know. ]]> UserChallenge62847278 Tue, 18 Mar 2025 21:33:21 -0700 <![CDATA[ Joe has challenged himself to read 15 books in 2025. ]]> /user/show/632671-joe 11627
He has read 2 books toward his goal of 15 books.
 
2 of 15 (13%)
Create your own 2025 Reading Challenge » ]]> ReadStatus8797169062 Thu, 26 Dec 2024 21:34:05 -0800 <![CDATA[Joe finished reading 'The Battle of Versailles: The Fashion Showdown of 1973']]> /review/show/6842674404 The Battle of Versailles by Mark Bozek Joe finished reading The Battle of Versailles: The Fashion Showdown of 1973 by Mark Bozek
]]> ReadStatus8797168095 Thu, 26 Dec 2024 21:33:50 -0800 <![CDATA[Joe finished reading 'Humans']]> /review/show/6991125454 Humans by Brandon Stanton Joe finished reading Humans by Brandon Stanton
]]> ReadStatus8762112370 Wed, 18 Dec 2024 18:10:26 -0800 <![CDATA[Joe is currently reading 'The Snarkout Boys and the Baconburg Horror']]> /review/show/7098014237 The Snarkout Boys and the Baconburg Horror by Daniel Pinkwater Joe is currently reading The Snarkout Boys and the Baconburg Horror by Daniel Pinkwater
]]> ReadStatus8738602163 Thu, 12 Dec 2024 22:38:00 -0800 <![CDATA[Joe is currently reading 'Collected Stories: Including The Member of the Wedding and The Ballad of the Sad Café']]> /review/show/11628615 Collected Stories by Carson McCullers Joe is currently reading Collected Stories: Including The Member of the Wedding and The Ballad of the Sad Café by Carson McCullers
]]> Review7075581843 Wed, 11 Dec 2024 16:56:37 -0800 <![CDATA[Joe added 'The Ballad of the Sad Café']]> /review/show/7075581843 The Ballad of the Sad Café by Carson McCullers Joe gave 3 stars to The Ballad of the Sad Café (Paperback) by Carson McCullers
The Ballad of the Sad Café is a novella about Miss Amelia, a shrewd, ornery, no-nonsense businesswoman who owns the local general store (and also lives above it), owns several plots of land, lends money with lots of interest to townsfolk, provides medical services to the ailing, and operates one of the finest stills in the county producing some of the best liquor around. She has a sturdy build, a hard unsmiling face, consistently wears overalls and wellies, and has the begrudging respect of every man and woman in town.

When Cousin Lymon, her hunchbacked distant relation, appears on her doorstep with no place to go the townsfolk are certain Miss Amelia will send him packing. However, after a few days of no sight of Miss Amelia or Cousin Lymon, rumors swirl that she has murdered the hunchback, so curiosity gets the better of the townsfolk. When they arrive at Miss Amelia’s general store/home they find an unusually happy and pleasant Miss Amelia and an equally happy and pleasant Cousin Lymon.

The two of them slowly transform the general store into a café serving hot home cooked meals along with Miss Amelia’s best liquor and it quickly becomes the thriving social center of the town. Miss Amelia thrives along with the café becoming friendly, personable, and generally happy. She even takes to wearing a dress from time to time. Life is pretty good for her and Cousin Lymon � that is until Miss Amelia’s spurned ex-husband Marvin Macy is released from prison and returns to town with a score to settle with her.

The Ballad of the Sad Café is a quick and impactful read that will leave you heartbroken by its end. It’s definitely Carson McCuller’s finest hour (and a very, very loose inspiration for the �80s film Baghad Café). Highly recommended. ]]>