CBL's 2019 Open House, part 2

Welcome to old friends and new acquaintances! I’m Carrie, reading in Seymour, Tennessee, usually with my 7-year-old Shih Tzu, Adrian, on my lap. He will make appearances here from time to time. I have fairly broad reading tastes. Mysteries are my comfort reads, but I also enjoy literary fiction, history, genealogy, literary travel, and books about books and libraries. I spent the better part of the last two years sorting and moving, so I haven’t been as active in this group as a result. I'm trying to change that in 2019!

Best of 2019
Rain: Four Walks in English Weather by Melissa Harrison (4.5) Review
Nerve by Dick Francis (4.5) Review
Poems of Robert Burns by Robert Burns; selected by Ian Rankin (4.5) Review
The Chosen by Chaim Potok (5) Review
The Children of Willesden Lane by Mona Golabek and Lee Cohen (4.5) Review
The Thief of Auschwitz by Jon Clinch (5) Review
Cheaper by the Dozen by Frank B. Gilbreth Jr. & Ernestine Gilbreth Carey (4.5) Review
The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro (5) Review
Digest of the Laws of Indiana of Special Application to Women and Children (5) Review
When Poets Pray by Marilyn McEntyre (5)
Singapore Sapphire by A. M. Stuart (4.5)
The Complete Maus by Art Spiegelman (4.5) Review
The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek by Kim Michele Richardson (4.5) Review

Books read in April
24. A Piglet Named Mercy by Kate DiCamillo, illustrated by Chris Van Dusen (3.5) - completed 4/4/19
25. Cheaper by the Dozen by Frank B. Gilbreth Jr. & Ernestine Gilbreth Carey (4.5) - completed 4/7/19
26. Men We Reaped by Jesmyn Ward (3.5) - completed 4/10/19
27. Friends in High Places by Donna Leon (3.5) - completed 4/11/19
28. Homes: A Refugee Story by Abu Bakr al Rabeeah with Winnie Yeung (4) - completed 4/13/19
29. They Do It with Mirrors by Agatha Christie (4) - completed 4/19/19
30. Unmarriageable by Soniah Kamal (3.5) - completed 4/21/19
31. Island Exiles by Jemima Garrett (3.5) - completed 4/29/19
32. The Lily Pond by Annika Thor (3.5) - completed 4/30/19

Books read in May
33. The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro (5) - completed 5/3/19
34. Reflex by Dick Francis (4) - completed 5/5/19
35. Tramp for the Lord by Corrie Ten Boom (3.5) - completed 5/6/19
36. Some Buried Caesar by Rex Stout (3.5) - completed 5/13/19
37. The Five: The Untold Lives of the Women Killed by Jack the Ripper by Hallie Rubenhold (4) - completed 5/13/19
38. The Stonecutter by Camilla Lackberg (4) - completed 5/18/19
39. A Jane Austen Devotional by Steffany Woolsey (4.5) - completed 5/19/19
40. To Die But Once by Jacqueline Winspear (3.5) - completed 5/22/19
41. Clue written by Paul Allor, art by Nelson Daniel, letters by Neil Uyetake and Gilberto Lazcano (4) - completed 5/24/19
42. Promised Land: Thirteen Books that Changed America by Jay Parini (4) - completed 5/27/19
43. Peter Pan by J. M. Barrie (4) - completed 5/31/19

Books read in June
44. Big Sky by Kate Atkinson (4) - completed 6/3/19
45. Art of the State: Illinois by Joanne Trestrail (3) - completed 6/4/19
46. A Sea of Troubles by Donna Leon (3) - completed 6/16/19
47. Digest of the Laws of Indiana of Special Application to Women and Children (5) - completed 6/15/19
48. Emmeline, the Orphan of the Castle by Charlotte Perkins Smith (2.5) - completed 6/20/19
49. Kingdom of the Blind by Louise Penny (3.5) - completed 6/21/19
50. When Poets Pray by Marilyn Chandler McEntyre (5) - completed 6/22/19
51. Singapore Sapphire by A. M. Stuart (4.5) - completed 6/23/19
52. The Just Men of Cordova by Edgar Wallace (3) - completed 6/27/19
53. The Complete Maus by Art Spiegelman (4.5) - completed 6/29/19

Books read in July
54. The Wolves of Willoughby Chase by Joan Aiken (4) - completed 7/3/19
55. Man and Wife by Wilkie Collins (4) - completed 7/5/19
56. The Stranger by Camilla Lackberg (4) - completed 7/9/19
57. A Pocket Full of Rye by Agatha Christie (4) - completed 7/12/19
58. Ayesha at Last by Uzma Jalaluddin (4) - completed 7/13/19
59. The Drowning Spool by Monica Ferris (3) - completed 7/19/19
60. The Call to Holiness by Timothy C. Tennent (3) - completed 7/19/19
61. The Three Clerks by Anthony Trollope (3.5) - completed 7/22/19
62. Coffee, Tea, or Murder? by Jessica Fletcher & Donald Bain (3) - completed 7/26/19
63. The Labours of Mrs. Stella Ryman by Mel Anastasiou (3.5) - completed 7/27/19
64. Revolutionary Brothers: Thomas Jefferson, the Marquis de Lafayette, and the Friendship that Helped Forge Two Nations by Tom Chaffin (3) - completed 7/31/19

Books read in August
65. The Case of Madeleine Smith by Rick Geary (4) - completed 8/2/19
66. The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek by Kim Michele Richardson (4.5) - completed 8/3/19
67. Further Still by Beth Moore (2.5) - completed 8/7/19
68. Harvest by Jim Crace (3) - completed 8/11/19
69. Willful Behavior by Donna Leon (4) - completed 8/12/19
70. Murder at the ABA by Isaac Asimov (3) - completed 8/17/19
71. Rat Race by Dick Francis (4) - completed 8/18/19
72. Hotel du Lac by Anita Brookner (3.5) - completed 8/19/19
73. The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman by Ernest J. Gaines (3.5) - completed 8/20/19
74. The Truth about Fat by Anthony Warner (4) - completed 8/21/19
75. Campusland by Scott Johnston (3.5) - completed 8/27/19

Books read 1st quarter:

January
1. The Ice Princess by Camilla Lackberg (3) - completed 1/4/19
2. Rain: Four Walks in English Weather by Melissa Harrison (4.5) - completed 1/5/19
3. The Bafut Beagles by Gerald Durrell (3.5) - completed 1/11/19
4. Nerve by Dick Francis (4.5) - completed 1/13/19
5. Poems of Robert Burns by Robert Burns, selected & introduced by Ian Rankin (4.5) - completed 1/15/19
6. Something Rotten by Jasper Fforde (4) - completed 1/17/19
7. The Chosen by Chaim Potok (5) - completed 1/29/19
8. Dog Tales & Pup Parables by Janet DeCaster Perrin (4) - completed 1/31/19

February
9. She's My Dad: A Father's Transition and a Son's Redemption by Jonathan S. Williams with Paula Stone Williams (2.5) - competed 2/3/19
10. Good Dog, McTavish by Meg Rosoff, illustrated by Grace Easton (3.5) - completed 2/9/19
11. Fatal Remedies by Donna Leon (4) - completed 2/9/19
12. Betsy-Tacy and Tib by Maud Hart Lovelace (4) - completed 2/10/19
13. The Silence of the Girls by Pat Barker (4) - completed 2/17/19
14. Belinda by Maria Edgeworth (4) - completed 2/19/19
15. The Children of Willesden Lane by Mona Golabek and Lee Cohen (4.5) - completed 2/20/19

March
16. Forfeit by Dick Francis (3.5) - completed 3/4/19
17. The Preacher by Camilla Lackberg (3.5) - completed 3/12/19
18. Hospital Sketches by Louisa May Alcott (4) - completed 3/18/19
19. The Thief of Auschwitz by Jon Clinch (5) - completed 3/23/19
20. The Kellys and the O'Kellys by Anthony Trollope (3) - completed 3/25/19
21. The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Conan Doyle (4) - completed 3/26/19
22. Conan Doyle, Detective by Peter Costello (2) - completed 3/29/19
23. The Grave Tattoo by Val McDermid (3.5) - completed 3/31/19

Books added in April
13. The Last Asylum: A Memoir of Madness in Our Times by Barbara Taylor (free ebook)
14. A Piglet Named Mercy by Kate DiCamillo, illustrated by Chris Van Dusen (March ER book)
15. The Passion According to Carmela by Marcos Aguinis (free ebook)
16. This Life or the Next by Demian Vitanza (free ebook)
17. Go by Kazuki Kaneshiro (free ebook)
18. The Murmur of Bees by Sofia Segovia (free ebook)
19. The Dark Heart: A True Story of Greed, Murder, and an Unlikely Investigator by Joakim Palmkvist (free ebook)
20. All This I Will Give to You by Dolores Redondo (free ebook)
21. An American Princess: The Many Lives of Allene Tew by Annejet Van der Zijl (free ebook)
22. About the Night by Anat Talshir (free ebook)
23. The Hangman's Daughter by Oliver Potzsch (free ebook)
24. Blink & Caution by Tim Wynne-Jones (free audiobook)

Books added in May
25. Othello by William Shakespeare (free audiobook)
26. When Poets Pray by Marilyn Chandler McEntyre (book for review)
27. A Familiar Wilderness: Searching for Home on Daniel Boone's Road by S. J. Dahlman (gift)
28. Clue written by Paul Allor, art by Nelson Daniel, letters by Neil Uyetake & Gilberto Lazcano (gift)
29. Tear Down This Wall: A City, a President, and the Speech That Ended the Cold War by Romesh Ratnesar (free audiobook)
30. A Night Divided by Jennifer A. Nielsen (free audiobook)

Books added in June
31. The Dog Who Lost His Bark by Eoin Colfer (May ER book)
32. An Enemy of the People by Henrik Ibsen (free audiobook)
33. The Cruel Way: Switzerland to Afghanistan in a Ford, 1939 by Ella K. Maillart (free ebook)
34. The Golden Day by Ursula Dubosarsky (free audiobook)
35. Emmeline, the Orphan of the Castle by Charlotte Turner Smith (free ebook)
36. Digest of the Laws of Indiana of Special Application to Women and Children (free ebook)
37. Rat Race by Dick Francis (purchased ebook)
38. Olivia Twist by Lorie Langdon (free audiobook)
39. Man and Wife by Wilkie Collins (free ebook)

Books added in July
40. Love Game: A History of Tennis, from Victorian Pastime to Global Phenomenon by Elizabeth Wilson (free ebook)
41. The Canterville Ghost by Oscar Wilde (free audiobook)
42. The Cambridge Companion to Jane Austen edited by Edward Copeland & Juliet McMaster (purchased)
43. Book Crush by Nancy Pearl (purchased)
44. Among the Janeites by Deborah Yaffe (purchased)
45. Decoding Your Dog by the American College of Veterinary Behaviorists (purchased)
46. Inside of a Dog by Alexandra Horowitz (purchased)
47. A Time of Gifts by Patrick Leigh Fermor (purchased)
48. Dangerous Davies, the Last Detective by Leslie Thomas (purchased)
49. Helmets and Lipstick: An Army Nurse in World War Two by Ruth G. Haskell (free ebook)
50. Beside Still Waters: A Big Sky Novel by Tricia Goyer (free ebook)
51. Becoming Kareem by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (free e-audiobook)
52. The Go-Between by Veronica Chambers (free e-audiobook)
53. Kids of Appetite by David Arnold (free e-audiobook)
54. Research in Indiana by Dawne Slater-Putt (purchased)

Books added in August
55. The Case of Madeleine Smith by Rick Geary (purchased)
56. Hotel du Lac by Anita Brookner (purchased)
57. The Appian Way: Ghost Road, Queen of Roads by Robert A. Kaster (free ebook)
58. The Founding Fortunes by Tom Shachtman (ARC from publisher)
59. Berlin: Portrait of a City Through the Centuries by Rory Maclean (purchased)

Books added 1st quarter:

January
1. The Pseudoscience Wars: Immanuel Velikovsky and the Birth of the Modern Fringe by Michael D. Gordin (free ebook)
2. Murder at the Mayan Temple by Mary Jane Hathaway (free ebook)

February
3. McKay's Bees: A Novel by Thomas McMahon (free ebook)
4. Good Dog, McTavish by Meg Rosoff; illustrated by Grace Easton (January ER book)
5. Belinda by Maria Edgeworth (ebook purchase)
6. Clippings from My Notebook by Corrie ten Boom (purchased)
7. Hospital Sketches by Louisa May Alcott (free ebook)
8. Preserve Your Family Pictures by Amber Richards (free ebook)

March
9. The Kellys and the O'Kellys by Anthony Trollope (free ebook)
10. How We See the Sky by Thomas Hockey (free ebook)
11. The Labours of Mrs. Stella Ryman by Mel Anastasiou (February ER ebook)
12. Murder at Morija by Tim Couzens (purchased)

British Isles Challenge
January - The Natural World
Rain: Four Walks in English Weather by Melissa Harrison (4.5) - completed 1/5/19
The Bafut Beagles by Gerald Durrell (3.5) - completed 1/11/19

February
Pat Barker - The Silence of the Girls (4) - completed 2/17/19

March - The Murderous Scots
The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Conan Doyle (4) - completed 3/26/19
Conan Doyle, Detective by Peter Costello (2) - completed 3/29/19
The Grave Tattoo by Val McDermid (3.5) - completed 3/31/19

April - Wild card
The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro (5) - completed 5/3/19

May - Edwardians
Peter Pan by J. M. Barrie (4) - completed 5/31/19

June
Wilkie Collins - Man and Wife (4) - completed 7/5/19

July
YA fantasy series
The Wolves of Willoughby Chase by Joan Aiken (4) - completed 7/3/19

August
Jim Crace - Harvest (3) - completed 8/11/19
Anita Brookner - Hotel du Lac (3.5) - completed 8/19/19

American Authors Challenge

JANUARY
Chaim Potok - The Chosen (5) - completed 1/29/19

FEBRUARY
Louisa May Alcott - Hospital Sketches (4) - completed 3/18/19

MARCH
Jon Clinch - The Thief of Auschwitz (5) - completed 3/23/19

APRIL
Jesmyn Ward - Men We Reaped (3.5) - completed 4/10/19

MAY
Jay Parini - Promised Land: Thirteen Books That Changed America (4) - completed 5/27/19

JULY
Founding Fathers - Revolutionary Brothers: Thomas Jefferson, the Marquis de Lafayette, and the Friendship that Helped Forge Two Nations by Tom Chaffin (3) - completed 7/31/19

AUGUST
Ernest J . Gaines - The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman (3.5) - completed 8/20/19

Nonfiction Challenge
January - Prizewinners & nominees
Rain: Four Walks in English Weather by Melissa Harrison (4.5) - completed 1/5/19

March - True Crime
Conan Doyle, Detective by Peter Costello (2) - completed 3/29/19

April - Comfort reads
Cheaper by the Dozen by Frank B. Gilbreth Jr. & Ernestine Gilbreth Carey (4.5) - completed 4/7/19

May - History
The Five: The Untold Lives of the Women Killed by Jack the Ripper by Hallie Rubenhold (4) - completed 5/13/19
Promised Land: Thirteen Books That Changed America by Jay Parini (4) - completed 5/27/19

June - Pictures
Art of the State: Illinois by Joanne Trestrail (3) - completed 6/4/19
The Complete Maus by Art Spiegelman (4.5) - completed 6/29/19

July - Biography & memoirs
Revolutionary Brothers: Thomas Jefferson, the Marquis de Lafayette, and the Friendship that Helped Forge Two Nations by Tom Chaffin (3) - completed 7/31/19

August - Animal, vegetable, mineral
The Truth about Fat by Anthony Warner (4) - completed 8/21/19

SeriesCAT
January - Series in translation
The Ice Princess by Camilla Lackberg - completed 1/4/19

February - YA/Children's
Betsy-Tacy and Tib by Maud Hart Lovelace - completed 2/10/19

March - Series by a favorite author
They Do It with Mirrors by Agatha Christie - completed 4/19/19

April - Series I've been meaning to get back to
The Lily Pond by Annika Thor - completed 4/30/19

May - Newest book in a favorite series
Big Sky by Kate Atkinson - completed 6/3/19

June - Series that is definitely complete
The Just Men of Cordova by Edgar Wallace - completed 6/27/19

July - Fantasy
The Wolves of Willoughby Chase by Joan Aiken - completed 7/3/19

August - Set in a region/country where I do not live
Willful Behavior by Donna Leon (Italy) - completed 8/12/19

Commonwealth Challenge

Cameroon The Bafut Beagles by Gerald Durrell (3.5) - completed 1/11/19
Nauru Island Exiles by Jemima Garrett (3.5) - completed 4/29/19
Singapore Singapore Sapphire by A. M Stuart (4.5) - completed 6/23/19

Other reading projects

Poetry
Poems of Robert Burns by Robert Burns; selected & introduced by Ian Rankin (4.5) - completed 1/15/19
When Poets Pray by Marilyn McEntyre (5) - completed 6/22/19

Holocaust Literature
The Children of Willesden Lane by Mona Golabek and Lee Cohen (4.5) - completed 2/20/19
The Thief of Auschwitz by Jon Clinch (5) - completed 3/23/19
The Lily Pond by Annika Thor (3.5) - completed 4/30/19
The Complete Maus by Art Spiegelman (4.5) - completed 6/29/19

Jane Austen
Unmarriageable by Soniah Kamal (3.5) - completed 4/21/19 (P&P in modern Pakistan)
A Jane Austen Devotional by Steffany Woolsey (4.5) - completed 5/19/19
Ayesha At Last by Uzma Jalaluddin (4) - completed 7/13/19 (P&P in Toronto's Muslim community)

Agatha Christie
They Do It with Mirrors (4) - completed 4/19/19
A Pocket Full of Rye (4) - completed 7/12/19

Dogwood season has always been one of my favorite times of year. Here I am with my mother. I was probably 10-11 months old at the time.

Currently reading:



Many Long Years Ago by Ogden Nash
Cheaper by the Dozen by Frank B. Gilbreth, Jr., & Ernestine Gilbreth Carey
A Jane Austen Devotional by Steffany Woolsey
Men We Reaped by Jesmyn Ward
Friends in High Places by Donna Leon

Hope I am not too early to wish you a Happy New Thread, Carrie. xx

>14 PaulCranswick: Thanks, Paul! Your timing is perfect!

24. A Piglet Named Mercy by Kate DiCamillo, illustrated by Chris Van Dusen

This picture book for young children is a prequel to the Mercy Watson series of chapter books for early readers. It tells the story of how Mercy came to live with Mr. and Mrs. Watson as a piglet and how she got her name. The story seemed flat on my first reading, but I haven’t read any of the Mercy Watson chapter books. Perhaps readers who are already familiar with Mercy, the Watsons, and their neighbors, the Lincoln sisters, would react differently to the book. The colorful, cartoon-like illustrations are more appealing than the story. Children will probably enjoy this story more in a one-on-one reading session with an adult than in a group story time setting.

This review is based on a complimentary copy provided by the publisher through LibraryThing's Early Reviewers program.

3.5 stars

Happy new threads, Carrie! But I'm only starring this one.

>17 ronincats: Thanks, Roni! I think something weird is going on with the site. I'm not sure how I ended up with three continuation threads!

Happy new thread, Carrie!

Happy new thread!

Happy new thread, Carrie.

>12 cbl_tn: I love that photo.

>19 AMQS: >20 figsfromthistle: >21 BLBera: Thanks everyone!

Happy newthread!

Happy new thread, Carrie!

Happy new thread, Carrie. Love the dogwood picture.

Have a lovely weekend, Carrie.

Another fan of the photo too! Happy new one.

>23 drneutron: >24 FAMeulstee: >25 Familyhistorian: >26 PaulCranswick: >27 charl08: Thank you all! It has been a lovely weekend. Yesterday was beautiful with a high in the upper 70s. I started on my spring cleaning with the windows. We had a beautiful afternoon after a rainy morning, and more 70 degree weather. Adrian and I sat on the deck and I finished Cheaper by the Dozen. The only thing missing is the dogwood. There are none in my neighborhood. :-(

25. Cheaper by the Dozen by Frank B. Gilbreth Jr. & Ernestine Gilbreth Carey

In my first management course in graduate school I learned about scientific management and motion study. This wasn’t my first introduction to Frank Gilbreth, Sr., and Lillian Moller Gilbreth, though. I had already met them as the parents of a dozen children through the memoir written by two of their children and the movie based on the book. It’s been long enough since I’ve read the book that it was a fresh experience for me. The brother and sister who co-authored the book tell stories from their childhood episodically rather than chronologically. They write of parents and siblings with genuine affection. Many of the stories are laugh-out-loud funny. I had a happy childhood myself, and yet I found myself wishing I could have been among the Gilbreth dozen.

4.5 stars

I love the new thread, Carrie. Adrian makes the perfect topper! I read Cheaper by the Dozen before LT and enjoyed it immensely. Sometimes one just needs a fun book! We have a dogwood tree in our back yard but it's not the best example of its kind. One of its much bigger neighbors dropped a branch on it shortly after I planted it and it is still recovering from the shock…and the loss of one of its major limbs. It will be blooming in all its lopsided glory in a week or so.

>30 Donna828: Thanks, Donna! I have noticed that, while wild dogwoods seem to do OK in the woods, the ones you plant do best if they're the tallest tree around. The ones that have larger trees around them tend to be puny and don't live very long.

26. Men We Reaped by Jesmyn Ward

During a 5-year period beginning in 2000, Jesmyn Ward lost her brother and four close friends from DeLisle, Mississippi. Ward weaves the story of these five men with the story of her childhood and young adulthood. She tells her life story chronologically, and the men’s stories in reverse chronological order. The two threads finally intersect with the tragic death of Ward’s only full brother in 2000. Ward’s brother and another of the young men died in car accidents, another young man died of a drug overdose, a fourth took his own life, and the last was murdered. For Ward, these tragic losses are indicative of the problems of poverty and racism that affect the lives of so many African Americans in the South. It’s a difficult book to read, and I could only manage a chapter or two at a time. It must have been infinitely more difficult to live.

3.5 stars

27. Friends in High Places by Donna Leon

Venice’s Commissario Brunetti is surprised when a young man from the Ufficio Catasto shows up at his apartment. The bureau is converting it records to computer and they’re following up in person with the owners of properties that have documentation problems. After Brunetti’s initial worries about the status of his home, it recedes to the back of his mind when he doesn’t hear any more from the Ufficio Catasto. Then one day he receives a call from Rossi, the young man who had visited him. He’s concerned about something going on at the bureau, but dies in a fall before he can tell Brunetti what’s worrying him. Although the death is ruled accidental, Brunetti suspects murder. He knows something that others do not. Rossi was afraid of heights, and he wouldn’t willingly have put himself in the position to fall to his death.

Brunetti’s investigation is more satisfying than many of the others in the series. With very few initial clues, he and his team manage to solve the crime. However, the plot is weighed down by the very detailed explanation of the bureaucracy of the Ufficio Catasto, the Guardia di Finanza, and other Venetian or Italian government agencies. And once again justice eludes Brunetti, as the perpetrator will not have to pay for his crime.

3.5 stars

28. Homes: A Refugee Story by Abu Bakr al Rabeeah with Winnie Yeung

This book is currently featured as OverDrive’s latest Big Library Read. It tells the story of a refugee family from the perspective of a young man who was nine years old at the beginning of the family’s journey. Abu Bakr and his family lived in Iraq at a time when Sunni Muslims were persecuted by the Shia Muslims in power. Abu Bakr and one of his sisters had distinctly Sunni names so it was difficult for them to escape the bullying of other children and the disfavor of teachers. The family relocated to Syria, intending for this to be a brief stopping point before emigrating to Europe or North America. They arrived in Syria just before the Arab spring and endured several years of shootings in mosques and in the streets, car bombings, and mortar shellings. Several years later, the family received approval to emigrate to Canada. Before he left Syria, Abu Bakr’s friends and cousins asked him to tell their story. Abu Bakr’s ESL teacher helped him realize this dream. The plight of Syrian refugees has been in the news for several years. For those who want to dig deeper into this issue, this book is well worth the read.

4 stars

I'm also reading Men We Reaped, Carrie, and it is heartbreaking.

>35 BLBera: Yes, it is. And living in Appalachia I'm hearing more and more stories like this. It reminded me a bit of Hillbilly Elegy. Education allowed both Ward and Vance to escape the fate of too many of their peers.

Currently reading/listening to:



They Do It with Mirrors by Agatha Christie (I believe this was the first Christie I ever read when I was a teenager!)
Unmarriageable by Soniah Kamal

>34 cbl_tn: I've seen that one every time I've logged in, but I've been afraid to read it because of how awful Flat Broke with Two Goats was.

>38 thornton37814: It's available through today if you want to give it a try. If you start it and don't like it, no need to finish it!

>39 cbl_tn: I don't have time at the moment to get to it. If it were available all month long, it might be a different story.

>40 thornton37814: It may disappear after today if TN Reads or KCPL don't own it. You'll have 3 weeks to get to it, and worst case it will expire before you get a chance to read it. You really haven't lost anything.

29. They Do It with Mirrorsby Agatha Christie

At a reunion with a friend from her youth, Jane Marple learns that her friend is very worried about her sister, Carrie Louise, whom Miss Marple hasn’t seen in decades. Miss Marple agrees to accept an invitation to stay with Carrie Louise should she offer an invitation, and she soon finds herself ensconced at Stonygates, the estate where Carrie Louise and her third husband rehabilitate juvenile delinquents. Miss Marple’s presence isn’t enough to avert the murder of Carrie Louise’s stepson from her first marriage. The murder occurred while the household feared another was taking place in a locked room. One member of the household must have viewed the goings-on in the locked room as a distraction to cover the murder. But which one? The spoiled granddaughter, her sullen American husband, the daughter with a chip on her shoulder, one of the stepsons from the second marriage, or one of the many troubled inmates?

I have a soft spot for this book since it was the first of Agatha Christie’s novels I read many years ago. Miss Marple uses excellent deductive reasoning in figuring out what must have happened. “They do it with mirrors.” Of course, there are also the village parallels that make Miss Marple such a discerning judge of character.

4 stars

Happy Easter weekend, Carrie.

>43 Ameise1: Thanks, Barbara! It was a good one!

Just saw a news report that about 600 people in East TN have been contacted by the health department because they may have been exposed to measles earlier this month. It reminded me that I actually had measles in a local outbreak when I was in 8th grade. I got them despite being vaccinated twice. It was the sickest I remember being during my childhood. I was sick for 2 weeks but only missed 5 days of school because we had so many snow days. (It was January.) When I was well enough to go back to school, I went only half days for a week or so. My first full day back at school we had a minor fire in the boiler area and were evacuated to the high school auditorium across the street. Without our coats. In January. For months after I recovered I would see purple spots on my skin whenever I got cold.

30. Unmarriageable by Soniah Kamal

Alys was talking to an ex-student, Sarah… At the moment she and Alys were discussing potential thesis topics.

“You can,” Alys suggested, “ask if friendships in Austen are more complex between friends or sisters. Or explore who jumps class in Austen and whose class cannot be forgiven, overlooked, or worked around. Or compare colonizer Babington Macaulay and Kipling’s ‘England’s Jane’ with a ‘World’s Jane,’ a ‘Pakistani Jane,’ a ‘Post-Colonial Jane,’ Edward Said’s Jane. What might Jane make of all these Janes? Discuss empire writing back, weaving its own stories.”

Unmarriageable, a Pakistani Pride and Prejudice, is empire writing back. The novel is written primarily from the perspective of Alysba “Alys” Binat, the second of five daughters of Barkat and “Pinkie” Binat. Alys and her older sister, Jenazba (“Jena”) are thirty-something teachers at the British School of Dilipabad, a fictional town located about a two-hour drive from Lahore. The Binat family have been invited to attend a wedding which is Dilipabad’s event of the season. At the festivities, they meet Fahad “Bungles” Bingla, his sisters, and his aloof friend, Valentine Darsee. Readers who are familiar with Pride and Prejudice can guess where the story goes from here.

Some aspects of Austen’s original translate well to early 21st century Pakistan, such as issues of class and Mary’s piety (with Kamal’s Mari aspiring to Islamic piety). I was less persuaded by the feminist Alys of the novel. Austen’s Elizabeth Bennet was unconventional for her time, but not disrespectful, selfish, or unkind. I often found Alys hard to like and her behavior difficult to condone.

3.5 stars

>46 cbl_tn: It is hard to imagine Austen's storylines in 21st century Pakistan, Carrie!

Have a lovely Sunday.

>47 PaulCranswick: Thanks, Paul!

31. Island Exiles by Jemima Garrett

Pacific island Nauru is one of the smallest nations in the world. At the beginning of World War II, Nauru was under Australian administration. It was occupied by the Japanese during the war. The Japanese deported about two thirds of Nauru’s indigenous population to Truk, where Japan had a large base. Nauruans in both locations suffered during the war years, both from ill treatment by the Japanese and from malnourishment due to severe food shortages. Australian journalist Garrett interviewed survivors about their memories of the war years. Most of the Nauruans who spoke to Garrett were children or young adults during the war. Those who survived the war relied on the older generation’s memory of traditional methods of gathering and preparing local foods. One wonders if reliance on outside food sources has grown to the extent that the loss of life would be much greater under similar circumstances today.

3.5 stars

32. The Lily Pond by Annika Thor

The Lily Pond continues the story of Stephie Steiner, who was introduced in A Faraway Island. Stephie and her younger sister, Nellie, are Jewish children from Vienna who have been taken in by families on a Swedish island during World War II. As the second book in the series opens, Stephie is going to the mainland to continue her schooling since the island school only goes through sixth grade. Stephie has been offered a room in the apartment of the Soderberg family, who had rented Aunt Marta and Uncle Evert’s home on the island the previous summer. Stephie makes friends with another scholarship student, May. Stephie has a secret crush on 17-year-old Sven Soderberg. Not everyone is as welcoming as May and Sven. Stephie’s German teacher, Miss Krantz, is prejudiced against Jews, and a classmate, Alice, seems to hate her for no reason. And Stephie is worried about her parents, who are still in Vienna but hoping to get visas to emigrate to America. A secluded lily pond is Stephie’s retreat when things get to be too much for her.

The first book in the series reminded me of the Anne of Green Gables books. This one didn’t so much. This book rehashes several themes from the first book, with Stephie trying to fit in with a new family, a new group of children, and a new “city” culture. Stephie’s unrequited crush on Sven is the only really new theme. This book didn’t have enough of Nellie, Aunt Marta, and Uncle Evert to suit me. Even though I didn’t like this book as much as I did the first book in the series, I still want to finish the series to find out what happens to Stephie and Nellie. Will they be reunited with their parents in the end, or will they be among the 6 million Jews who perished in the Holocaust?

3.5 stars

April Recap

Books owned - 3
Ebooks borrowed – 3
E-audiobooks borrowed - 3

Best of the month: Cheaper by the Dozen by Frank B. Gilbreth Jr. & Ernestine Gilbreth Carey (4.5)

Currently reading:



The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro
A Jane Austen Devotional by Steffany Woolsey
Tramp for the Lord by Corrie ten Boom, read by Nadia May

33. The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro

This is a beautifully crafted novel about regret, about the road not taken. Stevens has been the butler at Darlington Hall for several decades. Its current owner, an American, urges Stevens to use his car for a short holiday and Stevens takes him up on the offer. He drives west where he plans to visit Darlington Hall’s former housekeeper, whom he still thinks of as Miss Kenton. As he travels, he reflects on the past and his relations with his father, with Miss Kenton, and with his previous employer, Lord Darlington. The journey to the west keeps the momentum going forward, while Stevens’s reminiscences of the past fill in character and the complex motivations for the journey and for Stevens’s self-reflection. Greatness is one of the novel’s themes. The novel itself is exemplary of literary greatness.

5 stars

34. Reflex by Dick Francis

Against his better judgment, jockey Philip Nore gets involved with the aftermath of the death of sports photographer George Millace. Although Nore didn’t like Millace, he does like Millace’s son, Steve, a fellow jockey. A series of burglaries in Millace’s home suggests that Millace had photographs that someone wanted to keep hidden. Nore’s amateur photography skills help him to spot things the police and insurance investigators missed, but he’ll have to figure out the right techniques to reveal what Millace has so carefully concealed. In a parallel story, Nore meets his dying grandmother for the first time, and he reluctantly agrees to help her lawyers search for a long-lost family member.

This is a satisfying crime novel that gives readers two mysteries - a murder and a missing persons investigation. Philip is at a turning point in his life, and his interest in the puzzles he solves helps him make decisions about his future. As in the last Francis novel I read, the hero is basically good but flawed. Adversity brings out the best in his character.

4 stars

35. Tramp for the Lord by Corrie ten Boom

Corrie ten Boom spent several months in Ravensbruck during World War II after the Germans discovered that she and her family had been hiding Jews in their home. After the war, she became an evangelist and traveled to many countries around the world. This book recounts some of her experiences in nearly 30 years of worldwide ministry. It’s not what one would expect from a typical memoir since the reminiscences and meditations are not presented in chronological order. However, it would work well for daily devotional reading since each chapter is preceded by a verse or two of Scripture and contains a spiritual lesson.

3.5 stars

>55 cbl_tn: That's a great suggestion for Tramp for the Lord, Carrie. I love my C. S. Lewis daily devotions but might look for a copy of TftL as I loved The Hiding Place both times I read it.

>56 Donna828: Hi Donna! The Hiding Place is one of my favorite books. I listened to the audio version of Tramp for the Lord and I think Nadia May was the perfect reader for it.

36. Some Buried Caesar by Rex Stout

Nero Wolfe and his assistant Archie Goodwin are on their way to an agricultural fair where Wolfe will exhibit orchids when a car accident strands them in a rural area. They head for the nearest house they can see using the most direct route through a field, only to be stranded by a fierce-looking bull. When they’re finally rescued, they learn that the bull is a national champion, Hickory Caesar Grindon. The bull is the center of controversy since his current owner, Pratt, intends to barbecue him later in the week to generate publicity for his restaurant. Pratt has a long-standing feud with the neighboring cattleman, Osgood. Soon Osgood’s son is dead, apparently gored by the bull. But what was he doing in the bull’s pasture during the night? Was his death truly accidental, or was it murder? If it was murder, the culprit made a big mistake by carrying it out right under Wolfe’s nose.

I listened to the audio version, and I probably would have enjoyed it more in print format. The plot is complicated enough that it was sometimes difficult to follow in the audio version. And I kept confusing the two “B” characters, Bennett and Bronson. Finally, the reader sounded like the television announcers from my childhood. The best part of the book is that it introduces Lily Rowan, who will have a recurring role in the series as Archie’s girlfriend.

3.5 stars

37. The Five: The Untold Lives of the Women Killed by Jack the Ripper by Hallie Rubenhold

“The Five” of the title are the five women most researchers agree were murdered by the serial killer known as “Jack the Ripper” in 1888: Mary Ann Nichols, Annie Chapman, Elisabeth Stride, Catherine Eddowes, and Mary Jane Kelly. If you’re looking for a book about the murders, this isn’t it. There are plenty of those available. Rubenhold focuses on the biography of the five women from their earliest days up to the date of their murders. She makes extensive use of primary sources to piece together the personal history of each woman. The common thread linking the five women is not prostitution. Although all five women have been labeled as prostitutes, Rubenhold found no concrete evidence linking three of the women to prostitution. What they do have in common is alcoholism and homelessness. This book should serve as a starting point for researchers and curious readers who want to know more about the Ripper’s victims.

This review is based on an electronic advance reading copy provided by the publisher through NetGalley.

4 stars

38. The Stonecutter by Camilla Lackberg

It’s tragic when a Fjällbacka fisherman hauls in the body of a drowned child. It’s even more tragic when the medical examiner determines that the drowning wasn’t accidental. The evidence points to murder. The girl’s mother, Charlotte, is a friend of new mother Erica Falck, whose partner Patrik is the police detective assigned to the murder. The present-day murder investigation is interwoven with the story of a stonecutter and his family. The two threads will eventually connect.

Although I liked the first two books in the series, they had problems with pacing, or maybe with translation. Läckberg and her translator hit their stride in this third book in the series. The pacing is much improved, with less awkward dialog. I still don’t like Läckberg’s habit of withholding information from the reader for several pages after a character learns of it.

The character development and story arcs that span several books in the series make this a series to read in order. Even so, this might be a good place for readers new to the series to start since the writing has improved. Once a reader is hooked on the series, they can always go back to the beginning to fill in the gaps.

4 stars

I'll have to wait until Adrian is finished with my book:

LOL, I hope Adrian is finished soon ;-)

>61 cbl_tn: He looks pretty absorbed to me...

>62 FAMeulstee: He's a slow reader, and he has trouble turning pages with his paws.

>63 charl08: That's one word for it!

39. A Jane Austen Devotional by Steffany Woolsey

A Jane Austen Devotional consists of excerpts from six Austen novels with devotional commentary by Steffany Woolsey, concluding with a relevant Bible verse. While Austen doesn’t explicitly address religion and theology in her novels, they are under-girded by a Christian ethic. Austen’s heroines weigh their own conduct and that of others against a biblical moral standard. Close reading of passages from the novels provides the reader with deeper insight into Austen’s characters, as well as with encouragement to develop virtues such as kindness, respect for others, contentment, and forgiveness, and with caution to avoid negative traits such as envy, worry, self-centeredness, and a critical spirit. The primary audience appears to be young adult women, with some devotions assuming that the readers are or will be wives and mothers. However, most of the devotions will apply to readers in any stage of life.

4.5 stars

40. To Die but Once by Jacqueline Winspear

The Second World War is underway as this installment of the Maisie Dobbs series opens. The landlord of the pub across the street from Maisie’s office approaches her about locating his missing son. Joe Coombes is still too young for military service, but old enough to work in a civil support role away from home. Joe is part of a work crew contracted to paint military air fields with a special fire retardant paint. Joe’s parents are concerned because his personality seems to have changed in recent weeks, and he’s complaining of severe headaches. Joe’s parents haven’t heard from him in more than a week, and their worry motivates them to ask Maisie to find out where he is and if he’s alright. Meanwhile, Maisie’s friend, Priscilla, continues to worry about her three sons as they serve as a constant reminder of the three brothers she lost in the last war. Middle son Tim gives all who love him a scare as he sets out to do something both incredibly brave and incredibly foolish. Finally, Maisie begins the process to gain permanent custody of her orphaned ward, Anna, who is recuperating from measles.

I always look forward to spending time with Maisie, but I didn’t enjoy this book as much as others because the various threads weren’t tied up as neatly as I’ve come to expect in this series. Maisie’s desire to adopt Anna and the vetting she’s undergoing of her suitability as a parent affects the way she conducts her investigation. Even her assistant, Billy, notices this and comments on it. In this instance, the case took a backseat to Maisie’s personal life and the lives of her friends and associates.

3.5 stars

41. Clue written by Paul Allor, art by Nelson Daniel, letters by Neil Uyetake and Gilberto Lazcano

If you’re a fan of the board game, Clue, you’ll enjoy this graphic novel based on the game. The familiar characters are all there, with a modern twist. For instance, the cook/maid, Mrs. White, has become Senator White, who made a fortune as the CEO of a maid service. The additional characters Dr. Orchid, Detective Ochre, Detective Amarillo, and the butler, Upton, round out the diverse cast. Mr. Boddy (who “enjoys leaving weapons in random rooms”) has invited guests to dinner at his mansion. It’s a dark, stormy night, and the guests are stranded when the bridge washes out. Soon the deaths begin. The butler, Upton, does his best to narrate the story, but the comic’s creators keep putting him in his place. The creators have done a nice job with creating a back story that links all of the characters and makes use of the familiar rooms in the mansion.

4 stars

>67 cbl_tn: Sounds like fun!

>68 thornton37814: It was fun!

>66 cbl_tn: I guess they all can't be stellar books, Carrie. Maisie Dobbs is still a compelling series. I'm a few behind you but am in no rush to catch up as I hate it when I have to wait for the next book. This is my "go to" audio series and I can stretch them out by listening for 30 minutes before bedtime.

That's an adorable picture of Adrian "reading" his book!

>70 Donna828: Thanks, Donna! Adrian seems to enjoy nonfiction, although it makes him drowsy. He can't read a whole page without falling asleep. ;-)

42. Promised Land: Thirteen Books That Changed America by Jay Parini

Parini has selected a baker’s dozen of books that significantly impacted U.S. history and culture, beginning with William Bradford’s Of Plymouth Plantation and concluding with Betty Friedan’s The Feminine Mystique. For each book, Parini provides a brief introduction, a biographical profile of the writer and the historical context of the book, a detailed description of the book, and a discussion of the book’s legacy. The appendix includes a list of 100 more books that didn’t make Parini’s top thirteen.

I heard my high school English teacher in this passage about the Adventure of Huckleberry Finn:

Huckleberry Finn is a book one reads in childhood for the adventure itself, the thrill of imagining a wild boy who runs away from home, lighting out for the territory. In young adulthood, the novel must be read again, for the questions it poses about the meaning of maturity, for the directions for living it offers. In middle age, the novel works magic in other ways, by dislodging us from our comfortable lives, offering alternative visions, including the vision of nature as a resource for rehabilitation. The hypocrisies of “civilized” life strike us freshly and force us to rethink our assumptions about what matters. In later life, it must be read again, for what it says about the ultimate nature of reality. A noel of this complexity and strength cannot be digested in a single reading or at one stage of life. It requires a lifelong devotion to its fluttering pages, to the shifting images of Huck and Jim in their encounters with the world in their experience of the big river and woods that sustain it, and with their own ample, contradictory natures. One rides the river with them, again and again, and the journey is never complete, as another bend in the river always appears. There is, indeed, the final lighting out for the territory, but this destination ultimately lies beyond human comprehension or confines, a glimmer on the horizon.

When I read The Adventure of Huckleberry Finn in high school, my English teacher told the class that we should reread it every five or ten years to see how much we’ve grown. Parini reminded me that it’s been too long since I’ve read Huck Finn, and that there are even more treasures to discover in the other books that have shaped America.

4 stars

>72 cbl_tn: I added that one to the Knox County overdrive wish list. I've got too many books right now to request it, even with a bit of a hold.

43. Peter Pan by J. M. Barrie

Although the story was very familiar to me, I don’t recall ever reading the book before. I saw the Mary Martin version on TV as a child. It struck me this time around how odd the plot is, with everyone expecting Wendy to assume the role of mother to Peter and the Lost Boys. Things have changed in the century since this book was written. Infant and child mortality was a lot higher in the early 20th century than it is now. Women’s mortality from childbirth (or other causes) was also a lot higher then. Children who had lost their mothers, or who had friends or relations who had lost their mothers, might see themselves among the motherless children of Neverland. The story may not resonate with 21st century children in the same way, and that’s a good thing.

4 stars

May Recap

Books owned – 4
Ebooks borrowed – 3
E-audiobooks owned - 1
E-audiobooks borrowed – 3
ARCs - 1

Best of the month: Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro

There are lots of good books in your recent reading, Carrie. You got me with BBs for The Five: The Untold Lives of the Women Killed by Jack the Ripper and the Clue GN.

>76 Familyhistorian: Hi Meg! Hope you enjoy it!

44. Big Sky by Kate Atkinson

It’s been a long time since the last Jackson Brodie novel. Jackson has aged. His daughter, Marlee, is grown, and his son, Nathan, has turned into a surly teenager. Jackson currently lives near the Yorkshire coast to be within a reasonable distance of his ex, Julia, with whom he shares custody of Nathan and Julia’s elderly dog, Dido. Jackson gets caught up in an investigation of a decades-old human trafficking operation involving rich and powerful people. In the process, he meets with someone from his past – my favorite character from the previous Jackson Brodie novels.

Atkinson seems to have based characters in this novel on Jimmy Savile, the disgraced British entertainer who was never called to account for sexual abuse and child molestation. Atkinson has a gift for creating quirky but sympathetic characters, especially children and teenagers. Although they’re presently down on their luck, readers know that, with the right breaks, these characters can make something of their lives. Crystal Holroyd and her stepson, Harry, are standouts in this series installment. Jackson Brodie’s many fans will be happy to find that he hasn’t lost his touch. Nor has Atkinson!

This review is based on an electronic advance reading copy provided by the publisher through NetGalley.

4 stars

45. Art of the State: Illinois by Joanne Trestrail

This book should really have been titled Art of Chicago, but then it wouldn’t have been published in the Art of the State series. It’s more of a general state/city history using art works as illustrations than it is a book about art. The illustrations are nice, though. I probably wouldn’t have been disappointed if the title and jacket info matched the actual content of the book.

3 stars

46. A Sea of Troubles by Donna Leon

Two clam fisherman, father and son, die in a terrible fire on their fishing boat while moored on the island of Pallestrina, which borders the Venetian lagoon. Although the deaths appear to be accidental, the coroner determines that the men had been murdered before the fire. It’s clear that Commissario Brunetti and his team aren’t going to get any information from the Pallestrinans. Signorina Elettra, secretary to Brunetti’s boss, has relatives on the island, and she insists on going “undercover” to see what she can find out about the murders. Brunetti’s worries about the signorina’s safety raises questions from his wife, Paola.

This isn’t one of the best books in the series. Leon spends more time discussing the environmental and health impact of clam fishing in Venice’s lagoon than she devotes to the investigation of the crime. Brunetti really doesn’t solve the case. He just happens to be in the right place at the right time to apprehend the killer.

I listened to this book on a road trip with a friend. We decided that the recurring characters reminded us from the characters in the classic TV series WKRP in Cincinnati, with Brunetti as station manager Andy, Signorina Elettra as office paragon, Jennifer, and Brunetti’s clueless boss, Patta, as station owner Mr. Carlson. The book seemed more entertaining in that light!

3 stars

>80 cbl_tn: I didn't put the last part in my review, but I'm glad you shared it. I still laugh about our version of it!

>78 cbl_tn: Great to know that the new Atkinson is a good one, Carrie. I'm waiting for my copy from the library.

>79 cbl_tn: Even so, I'll have to look for that one.

>81 thornton37814: Our version certainly made it more entertaining!

>82 BLBera: Hi Beth! I hope you don't have long to wait!

>83 lindapanzo: I thought you might like that one, Linda!

47. Digest of the Laws of Indiana of Special Application to Women and Children

My family history research into late 19th century Indiana land records raised some questions about laws regarding women’s property ownership. I found this handy digest of state laws pertaining to women and children that answered my immediate questions and more. I’ve bookmarked it for future reference.

5 stars

48. Emmeline, the Orphan of the Castle by Charlotte Turner Smith

Emmeline Mowbray is an illegitimate orphan who has been allowed by her uncle to use her father’s name and live in his castle in Wales. When her uncle and her cousin, Delamere, visit the castle, everything changes for young Emmeline. Delamere becomes obsessed with her and places her in physical danger. Instead of restraining his son, Emmeline’s uncle keeps forcing her to move. She makes friends wherever she goes, but the threat of Delamere’s violence continues to hang over her and limits her choices of companions and activities. Emmeline and her acquaintances are members of the class that doesn’t work, and since they have nothing better to do, they worry about who might say what to whom, and how others will react to that, and work themselves up into highly emotional states. The book is interesting as a specimen of the literature of its time, but readers shouldn’t expect writing of Austen’s caliber.

2.5 stars

49. Kingdom of the Blind by Louise Penny

Gamache is on suspicion after the events of the last book, where he allowed the shipment of a new and powerful opioid to enter Quebec in order to capture those higher up in the trafficking chain. He still manages to become involved in a murder investigation when he, Myrna, and a young man who is a stranger to both of them are named as liquidators for the estate of a recently deceased woman who was also unknown to either Gamache or Myrna. The woman was known as the “baroness” and, as they dig into her background, it seems there could be some truth to the wild stories she told her family about their history. When the baroness’s oldest son, an investment manager, is found murdered in the ruins of the old family home, Gamache and his former colleagues at the Sûreté must determine whether his murder is related to his family history or his professional conduct. Meanwhile, Gamache is still trying to recover the last of the drugs that he allowed through before they hit the streets. This is complicated by the relapse of a promising cadet at the academy into her old life of drug addiction.

Penny comes up with creative and intricate plots that capture and hold the reader’s interest. The inheritance plot is no exception. If I described the plot in more detail here it would seem far-fetched, yet Penny has a way of making the implausible seem plausible. I was not as enamored with the drug story. It wasn’t difficult to figure out where Penny was going with Amelia Choquet because she had done the same thing earlier in the series with Agent Nichol.

Penny has an unusual writing style and she frequently uses incomplete sentences as part of the style. Her style translates well to the spoken word. Robert Bathurst has taken up the mantle of the late Ralph Cosham and he provides outstanding narration for this book.

3.5 stars

>87 cbl_tn: I should finish it on the way to Atlanta tomorrow. I'll probably let the Monica Ferris audio book expire and then check it out again if I don't finish it. I'll finish it up by ebook if I'm unable to get a copy by audio.

>88 thornton37814: I'm not sure I'm going to get to the Monica Ferris any time soon. I'll have to check it out again.

50. When Poets Pray by Marilyn McEntyre

Just some brief comments since I’m reviewing this one for publication. The book consists of a couple dozen poems or excerpts of poems that are about prayer or that can be read as prayers, followed by a 2-3 page meditation/analysis by McEntyre. Poets range from Mary Oliver and Thomas Merton to an anonymous Ghanian truck driver. I used it for daily devotional readings. The poems and reflections spoke to me and I’ll be looking for more of McEntyre’s work.

5 stars

51. Singapore Sapphire by A. M Stuart

Widow Harriet Gordon has recently joined her brother in Singapore in 1910, serving as an unpaid secretary to the English boys’ school of which her clergyman brother is headmaster. Needing a source of income, Harriet places a newspaper ad offering her shorthand and typing skills in the evenings and on Saturdays. Her first client doesn’t work out so well. When she returns to his home following her first day of work, she finds that he’s been stabbed to death. The dead man was a noted explorer who discovered gem mines in Burma. Might his murder be connected to something in his past? Harriet’s observational skills contribute to the murder investigation led by the English Inspector Curran.

This is an excellent historical mystery with a strong sense of place. The characters are interesting and well-developed, with a plot that blends adventure with detective work. Harriet is a fairly young widow with a couple of admirers. One is an attractive journalist who traveled aboard the same ship as Harriet from England to Singapore. Harriet and Inspector Curran seem to develop a mutual regard over the course of the book, but this is complicated by the fact that Curran has “gone native” (that era’s euphemism for taking a local mistress). I hope that this is the first book in a series featuring Harriet Gordon. I liked the characters and setting well enough to want to see how they develop over several books.

This review is based on an electronic advance reading copy provided by the publisher through NetGalley.

4.5 stars

>50 cbl_tn: >51 cbl_tn: Both of those sound good.

>92 thornton37814: I think you would like them both!

52. The Just Men of Cordova by Edgar Wallace

The “Just Men” of the title are vigilantes who bring criminals to justice when the legal system isn’t able to. Think the A-Team or Leverage. Very little of the action takes place in Spain. The Just Men are on the trail of an Englishman, and most of the action takes place in England. There are lots of people in disguises, and characters with enough similarities that it was hard to keep them all straight as I listened to the audio version. And while I had no trouble identifying the really bad characters, I had a hard time sorting out many of the other characters into heroes, villains, and innocent bystanders. I probably would have been better off reading the print version, but then I would have missed out on Bill Homewood’s excellent narration. I don’t know that I’ll seek out any of the other books that feature the Just Men, but I don’t regret the time I spent with them in this book.

3 stars

>85 cbl_tn: That looks like a handy reference, Carrie, and Singapore Sapphire looks like it should go on my list.

>78 cbl_tn: I just finished Big Sky today, Carrie. Your review is spot on! I also enjoyed meeting up with Reggie again in this book. I may have to read these books again sometime closer together. I kept hoping we would see the love interest that didn't pan out for Jackson in an earlier book. Was it Louise something? He's an interesting character.

>95 Familyhistorian: Hi Meg! I think you would like Singapore Sapphire.

>96 Donna828: Hi Donna! Wasn't that a fun book? I always enjoy spending time with Jackson. And Louise sounds right for the love interest. I wish he could find someone who would appreciate him more than Julia does!

53. The Complete Maus by Art Spiegelman

Cartoonist Art Spiegelman’s biography of his father might be unconventional in its graphic novel format, but it’s effective. It’s part memoir as well, since Spiegelman incorporates his interviews with his father and his writing process into the work. Both of Spiegelman’s parents survived Auschwitz, although many of their family members perished. The psychological effects of the Holocaust seem to have contributed to Spiegelman’s difficult relationship with his father. Maus seems to have been Spiegelman’s way of working through the complexities of their relationship and coming to an understanding of his father and the experiences that shaped him.

4.5 stars

June Recap

Books owned – 2
Books borrowed – 1
Ebooks owned - 2
Ebooks borrowed – 2
E-audiobooks owned - 1
E-audiobooks borrowed – 2
ARCs - 2

Best of the month: When Poets Pray by Marilyn McEntyre
Worst of the month: Emmeline, the Orphan of the Castle by Charlotte Turner Smith

I took the day off today and spent most of the day shopping with a friend. Our main purpose was to buy shoes, but we also ended up at the big used book store. I came home with the books below.



The Cambridge Companion to Jane Austen edited by Edward Copeland & Juliet McMaster
Book Crush by Nancy Pearl
Among the Janeites by Deborah Yaffe
A Time of Gifts by Patrick Leigh Fermor
Decoding Your Dog by the American College of Veterinary Behaviorists
Inside of a Dog by Alexandra Horowitz
Dangerous Davies, the Last Detective by Leslie Thomas

>100 cbl_tn: I thought about going to McKays while I was in Knoxville yesterday but I didn't go. I was trying to not add to the piles awaiting my consumption.

>101 thornton37814: Alice had books to take and I have lots of credit to spend. Alice gave me her trade credit so I ended up with $.50 more trade credit than I started with.

Adrian likes my new covered swing. I think it will be my favorite reading spot!

>102 cbl_tn: I'm probably going to do a cleaning out of books that no longer appeal to me. I know the hardbacks (at least fiction-wise) are a lost cause there, but I may be able to try to see if Empty Shelves might take them and give C-N credit. Still I hope for more credit at McKays with it--and maybe some room.

>103 cbl_tn: Looks comfortable for both human and dog :-)

>105 FAMeulstee: It is, once it cools down in the evening!

54. The Wolves of Willoughby Chase by Joan Aiken

Young Bonnie Green of Willoughby Chase has a new governess. Her mother, Lady Green, is very ill, so Sir Willoughby is taking her on a journey to recover her health. While they are away, Sir Willoughby’s distant cousin, Miss Slighcarp, will do double duty as governess and caretaker of Willoughby Chase. Bonnie’s cousin, Sylvia, is coming from London to be a playmate for Bonnie while her parents are away. As soon as Sir Willoughby and Lady Green are gone, Miss Slighcarp reveals her true character. With the assistance of some faithful friends, Bonnie and Sylvia must escape from Miss Slighcarp and her cronies and prevent her from stealing Sir Willoughby’s home and his fortune.

This story shares many characteristics with the fairy tales I loved as a child, as well as a few things from the mystery and adventure stories I loved. If I had read it in my childhood, it’s likely to have been a favorite. The audio version I listened to was read by the author’s daughter, who also wrote the introduction for this version. The daughter’s memories of her mother as author and of being one of the first to hear this book made me appreciate it even more.

4 stars

55. Man and Wife by Wilkie Collins

Scottish marriage law forms the basis for the plot of Man and Wife. Apparently in the 19th century all one had to do to be married in Scotland was to claim to be married in front of witnesses, no civil or church ceremonies required. Collins spins an entertaining tale around a young woman on the brink of ruin and a chivalrous young man doing a favor for a friend who may have unwittingly tied the knot. This leads to all sorts of complications. The book’s tone and the relationship between the young lovers, Blanche and Arnold, remind me a lot of The Moonstone. Readers who loved that book should give this one a try.

4 stars

56. The Stranger by Camilla Lackberg

Patrik Hedstrom and the station’s new hire, Hanna Kruse, answer an emergency call on Hanna’s first day of work. A woman is dead in a tragic car accident after an argument with her lover. Some things don’t look quite right, and eventually it’s ruled as murder. Before the police are able to make much progress in the investigation, they have another murder on their hands. Tanumshede is hosting a Big Brother-like reality show, and the body of one of the contestants is discovered after she was last seen (and filmed!) arguing violently with several of the other cast members. Meanwhile, Patrik and Erica are preparing for their wedding. Can Patrik wrap up both murders before his wedding date with Erica?

After a shaky start, this has become a solid series. The writing is formulaic, but the formula works. I didn’t even mind that I figured out the solution to the murders fairly early on. I was in suspense as I waited for Patrik and his team to figure out what I already knew. A cliffhanger ending will leave most readers eager to start the next book in the series.

4 stars

57. A Pocket Full of Rye by Agatha Christie

Sing a song of sixpence, a pocket full of rye...

Businessman Rex Fortescue is found dead in his office after drinking his morning tea. It doesn’t take long to determine that he’s been poisoned. But the really puzzling thing is the handful of rye that was found in his pocket. What purpose did it serve? Inspector Neele is on the case, and of course he’s interested in finding out who would gain by Fortescue’s death. His much younger widow, who doesn’t play golf yet has lots of golf dates with a handsome young man? His son and junior business partner? His daughter, who is in love with a young man with socialist views? Or his estranged son who has just reappeared on the scene from exile in Africa? Or maybe the murderer will be found among the household help, including the secretive housekeeper, Miss Dove, the butler, Crump, the cook, Mrs. Crump, or the young maid, Gladys? More deaths make it even more urgent to find the killer. Inspector Neele finally gets the breakthrough he needs once Miss Marple arrives on the scene.

This is one of my favorite Miss Marple novels. I had read it years ago and still remembered the solution. What I didn’t remember is that Miss Marple doesn’t show up until about halfway through the book. As usual, she makes the most of her limited page time. Her insights into human nature from decades of village life help her spot individuals with character flaws that just might lead to murder under the right circumstances.

4 stars

>108 cbl_tn: Glad to see you enjoying Wilkie Collins so much, Carrie!

Have a lovely weekend.

>110 cbl_tn: A Pocket Full of Rye sounds vaguely familiar, Carrie. Maybe its due a reread and it is on my shelf (an omnibus edition, which may lead to more Christie reading.)

>111 PaulCranswick: Hi Paul! Collins is one of my favorite authors!

>112 Familyhistorian: Hi Meg! I am trying to re-read Christie's books in publication order. I've made it into the mid-1950s, so that's about 30 years' worth of her books.

>103 cbl_tn: Swinging and Reading. That's my favorite thing to do in the summer. Adrian looks like he is right at home there, too. You two enjoy yourselves! It looks like you have some interesting newish books to read. I'd rather go book shopping than shoe shopping any day.

>114 Donna828: Hi Donna! It's much easier for me to find books that fit me than shoes that fit me. :-)

>113 cbl_tn: A Christie reread in publication order sounds like a great goal, Carrie. At least they are relatively short books unlike the tomes that are published these days.

58. Ayesha At Last by Uzma Jalaluddin

There’s something about Jane Austen that transcends time and culture. This sweet romance set among Toronto’s Muslim community isn’t a strict retelling of Pride and Prejudice, but P&P fans will recognize the nods to Austen’s novel. Ayesha is a twenty-something Indian immigrant who has just started her first job as a substitute high school teacher after completing teacher’s college. 26-year-old Khalid works in corporate IT and lives with his mother. He’s a conservative Muslim, but not fundamentalist. Ayesha and Khalid have a mutual friend who initially brings them together. Their participation in a mosque committee to plan a youth conference keeps them in contact with each other. Although Khalid intends to let his family (i.e., his mother) find a suitable girl and arrange his marriage, he finds himself attracted to Ayesha. There’s just one problem. He thinks Ayesha is her cousin, Hafsa.

Khalid’s awkward shyness and kind nature are endearing, as are Ayesha’s intelligence and honesty. I liked this book better than Soniah Kamal’s Pride and Prejudice retelling set in early 21st century Pakistan. Kamal followed Austen’s plot much more closely, to the point that situations and interactions between characters seemed forced. In contrast, Jalaluddin’s characters seem to have an existence of their own, and the novel may be equally enjoyed by readers who’ve never read Austen’s original as well as Austen’s biggest fans.

This review is based on an electronic advance reading copy provided by the publisher through NetGalley.

4 stars

59. The Drowning Spool by Monica Ferris

Regular readers of the Crewel World series know that store owner and amateur sleuth Betsy Devonshire is a dedicated water aerobics participant. While her regular pool is closed for repairs, Betsy is able to join a class that meets in the therapy pool of an assisted living center. When the drowned body of a young woman is found in the pool one morning, Betsy gets involved at the request of one of the Monday Bunch group members. Her nephew works security at Watered Silk, and he is in danger of being accused of the murder as well as of losing his job because of the unauthorized entry to the pool on his watch.

The plot isn’t as tight as some of the other books in the series. Betsy doesn’t seem to spend as much time in the shop; just long enough for random customers to offer important bits of information. Betsy also ends up with two different “clients” from the Monday Bunch as suspicion moves away from Bershada’s nephew to a relative of other Monday Bunch members. This strains credulity just a bit too much. I was surprised that Lars agreed to participate in Betsy’s stakeout of the three main suspects. He’s a police officer and I would think that he could get in trouble doing this without official sanction.

3 stars

60. The Call to Holiness: Pursuing the Heart of God for the Love of the World by Timothy C. Tennent

This book by the president of Asbury Theological Seminary was a conference freebie. It’s about the Wesleyan doctrine of holiness. I am not Wesleyan so the book didn’t have as much to offer me as it would to adherents of that denomination. Chapter 8, “Holiness as the Church Bearing Fruit,” made it worth the read for me, as did the hymn that concludes the book, “Make Us Holy,” written by Tennent’s wife, Julie.

3 stars

Hi Carrie! Getting caught up here. Hope you're having a good summer! The Wolves of Willoughby Chase was a favorite of mine when I was a child, and I enjoyed reading it aloud to the girls several years ago. Glad you enjoyed it, too!

>120 AMQS: Hi Anne! I loved The Wolves of Willoughby Chase and I'm sorry I missed it during my childhood.

I've been away at a conference this week. Adrian has been staying with his friend Stella. Stella's "mom" had a death in her family, so before she left yesterday she dropped both dogs off at our vet's office, where they have boarding. She booked the VIP room for them so that they could stay together. The office closes early today so I won't get home until after they have closed. I'll have to pick them up in the morning.

61. The Three Clerks by Anthony Trollope

The three clerks of the title are young men starting out on civil service careers in London. Harry Norman and the slightly older Alaric Tudor get positions in the office of Weights and Measures, while Alaric’s younger cousin, Charley Tudor, gets a position in Internal Navigation. Harry is an honest and generous young man with an unforgiving streak. The ambitious Alaric always has an eye out for the next opportunity for advancement, and despite Harry’s warnings, he allows the end to justify the means. Charley is a happy-go-lucky young man who drifts along with the tide. Charley doesn’t have the strength of character to withstand the temptations of city life, yet he has enough of a sense of morality to be troubled by his dissolute behavior. Harry has a widowed cousin in Hampton who has three young daughters, Gertrude, Linda, and Katie. Harry introduces first Alaric and then Charley into the family circle, giving rise to unforeseen jealousies and heartaches.

The pace of the novel is somewhat uneven, with a focus on Harry at the beginning of the novel, Alaric in the middle, and Charley at the end. Their stories overlap but don’t intertwine as well as they might. The comic passages stand out, with Charley’s stab at novel-writing (Crinoline and Macassar) being the highlight of the book for me. Katie’s first ball also had me laughing out loud.

3.5 stars

62. Coffee, Tea, or Murder? by Jessica Fletcher & Donald Bain

Jessica Fletcher, her friend Seth Hazlitt, Sheriff Metzger and his wife, and other Cabot Cove denizens travel from Boston to London Stansted on the inaugural flight of Cabot Cove native Wayne Silverton’s new airline. Jessica is looking forward to spending time with her friend and potential romantic interest, Scotland Yard inspector George Sutherland. She just doesn’t expect their time together to be dominated by a murder investigation after Wayne Silverton’s body is discovered in the cockpit of his plane. There is no shortage of motives for murder among the crew and passengers. As usual, Jessica gets to the bottom of things and solves the murder.

I always loved the television episodes that took Jessica to tourist destinations like London. I was disappointed that the author didn’t take full advantage of the location in this series installment. The characters spent most of their time in England in hotels and restaurants. The number of weapons – knives and guns – on the flight seemed out of place in a book written and set after 9/11. I have a pilot friend and I have the impression that the rules against weapons on flights apply to the flight crew as well as to passengers. I was a bit leery of listening to an audio version narrated by anyone not named Angela Lansbury. Reader Cynthia Darlow exceeded my expectations, and her voice wasn’t a distraction.

3 stars

63. The Labours of Mrs Stella Ryman by Mel Anastasiou

Octogenarian and retired school librarian Stella Ryman lives in Fairmount Manor, a care home like many with overworked and underpaid assistants. Stella hasn’t been there long, but she’s already earned a reputation for solving mysteries. The kind of mysteries that occur in a care home, like what happened to her friend Thelma Hu’s mah-jongg box. You might say it’s a cold case, since the box disappeared shortly after Thelma moved in ten years ago.

It’s obvious that the author has spent time in real care homes. The characters are so well-developed that I wouldn’t be surprised to see them in the next facility I visit. They form friendships, make enemies, and push the boundaries of the facility rules in order to hold onto as much dignity and independence as they can under the circumstances. The inter-generational relationships that develop in the book may draw in some younger readers.

This review is based on an electronic advance reading copy provided by the publisher through LibraryThing’s Early Reviewers program.

3.5 stars

64. Revolutionary Brothers: Thomas Jefferson, the Marquis de Lafayette, and the Friendship that Helped Forge Two Nations by Tom Chaffin

The author’s intent for this book is to tell the story of the friendship between Thomas Jefferson and the Marquis de Lafayette and how their collaboration influenced the American and French Revolutions. However, it reads more like a parallel biography. Jefferson and Lafayette spent more time with other people than with each other. And Lafayette named his son after George Washington, not Thomas Jefferson. I will note that I do not believe that the electronic ARC I received from NetGalley included the entire text. It seemed to end in the middle of chapter thirty-six. Perhaps I’m missing the part that would have tied the two men together more closely.

This review is based on an electronic advance reading copy provided by the publisher through NetGalley.

3 stars

July Recap

Books owned – 1
Ebooks owned - 3
Ebooks borrowed – 3
E-audiobooks borrowed – 4
ARCs - 3

Best of the month: The Wolves of Willoughby Chase by Joan Aiken

65. The Case of Madeleine Smith by Rick Geary

Madeleine Smith became notorious in 1850s Scotland when she stood trial for murdering her lover, Emile L’Anglier. The two had been corresponding and meeting in secret for nearly two years at the time of L’Anglier’s death. However, there were signs that Smith was tiring of the affair and planned to marry another man. Geary’s graphic novel succinctly presents the facts of the case, the details of the affair leading up to L’Anglier’s death, the trial and verdict, and Smith’s life after the trial. The illustrations and the text work well together. Some of the lurid details are mentioned in the text, but the drawings are tasteful.

4 stars

Dropping by to wish you a splendid weekend, Carrie.

>129 PaulCranswick: Thanks, Paul! I had a great Saturday!

66. The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek by Kim Michele Richardson

Cussy Mary is one of the blue Carters, a Kentucky family with blue skin. Cussy Mary and her father, a coal miner, receive the same treatment as African Americans since they’re not white. Cussy Mary’s mother died a few months before the story begins. Mining is taking a toll on her father’s lungs, and he wants to see his daughter married before he dies so that he knows she’ll be taken care of. Cussy Mary has a different idea. She has a job as a pack horse librarian for the WPA, delivering books and other reading material to folk in the hills and hollows of the Kentucky backwoods. As the story progresses, readers get to know the patrons on Cussy Mary’s route and share her joys and heartaches as hunger and despair steal the weak and vulnerable among them. Cussy Mary is wise for her years, and she has a generous heart that hasn’t been broken by the ill treatment she receives from so many.

This book reminded me of one of my all-time favorite books, Catherine Marshall’s Christy. Both books are about young women fighting against ignorance and prejudice to provide educational opportunities for the poor of Appalachia. The audiobook is beautifully narrated by Katie Schorr, who gets the Appalachian accent just right. And if you’re wondering, Troublesome Creek is a real place, the Pack Horse Library Project was a real WPA project during the depression, and there really was a blue-skinned family in this part of Kentucky.

4.5 stars

>131 cbl_tn: I'm glad that one is worthwhile. I'm looking forward to getting to it sometime in the fall.

Hi Carrie, hope all is well.

I find that most of my recent reads are Net Galley mysteries. Every time I get ahead on those, I somehow seem to ask for more. Think of all the money I'm saving. LOL. I have gotten pickier but still getting quite a few, particularly from a pair of mystery publishing houses.

It's probably just as well that I didn't notice the Net Galley book in post 126.

>132 thornton37814: It was worth the wait for the audio version!

>133 lindapanzo: Hi Linda! All is good here. I'm enjoying what's left of summer. I am down to just one outstanding NetGalley book, and I hope to read it later this month. It's the latest Walt Longmire. I believe Revolutionary Brothers is still available for request, but I wouldn't bother since part of the book seems to be missing.

I got an email earlier today from a marketing manager at St. Martin's inviting me to read an ARC of The Founding Fortunes. He also said he had a few print galleys he could send and I took him up on that since Stephen Girard is one of the people profiled in the book. I probably wouldn't be here if not for his philanthropy, so I'm always interested in learning more about him. My grandfather grew up at Girard College in Philadelphia. Boys whose father had died were eligible for admission if they were from Pennsylvania, New York City, or New Orleans. They had to be enrolled before their 8th birthday, so my grandfather's older brothers weren't eligible. He received a good education and he was able to go on to college and then into the ministry.

>134 cbl_tn: Wow, that's interesting. Susan Wittig Albert, or her publisher, can't remember, reached out to me and offered me a Net Galley of her last two books.

Most of mine are from the mystery book publishers, Crooked Lane Books or Kensington Books. Occasionally, I'll get something from SMP or a few others. I think I'm pigeonholed into mysteries or sports, which is fine by me, though I just finished SMP's terrific Jet Girl about a female Navy aviator.

>135 lindapanzo: I rarely look at the mysteries on NetGalley except for specific authors/series I'm caught up on. It would be too easy to overcommit myself very quickly! Jet Girl sounds interesting!

67. Further Still by Beth Moore

Beth Moore is a popular Bible study leader and speaker in some Christian circles. I had never read any of her books or participated in any of her Bible studies, but I downloaded several of the books a while back when they were Kindle freebies. I finally got around to reading one and I’ve discovered that she’s not for me. Even though the book didn’t work overall for me, I did find a couple of gems that touched my spirit in the poem “Lord, Make Me a Student” and vignette that follows, “Lesson with a Hairbrush” about an incident that happened in the Knoxville airport. (And was I ever surprised to learn that people have connecting flights in and out of Knoxville, which couldn’t by any stretch of the imagination be called a hub.)

2.5 stars

Adrian and I went to an outdoor music program at the local public library branch last night. The Friends group is raising money to expand the building, which is really too small for our community. A little girl was there with her grandparents and she had brought a book with her. She "read" to Adrian for a while. It was sweet to watch.

>66 cbl_tn: You nailed it with the Christy comparison, Carrie. I loved that book and still have a copy. Hmmm, maybe a reread is in order. Very good review of The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek. It's refreshing to read a book that just tells a heartwarming story.

How cute that Adrian had his own personal book experience at the music program. I hope the FOL raised lots of money so your library can expand.

>139 Donna828: Thanks, Donna! The Friends have only managed to raise about 10% of the needed funds in several years. I'm afraid that by the time they reach the goal, the cost will have doubled.

68. Harvest by Jim Crace

It did not take many working days before I understood that the land itself, from sod to meadow, is inflexible and stern. It is impatient, in fact. It cannot wait. There’s not a season set aside for pondering and reveries. It will not let us hesitate or rest; it does not wish us to stand back and comment on its comeliness or devise a song for it. It has no time to listen to our song. It only asks us not to tire in our hard work. It wants to see us leathery, our necks and forearms burned as black as chimney oak; it wants to leave us thin and sinewy from work. It taxes us from dawn to dusk, and torments us at night; that is the taxing that the thrush complains about. Our great task each and every year is to defend ourselves against hunger and defeat with implements and tools. The clamor deafens us. But that is how we have to live our lives.

This apocalyptic novel tells the story of the last harvest of a remote English farming village. Its narrator, Walter Thirsk, is an incomer who married a village girl and adopted the rhythms of the village’s farming life. The arrival of strangers on the last day of the harvest heralds the coming changes. The biblical allusions are striking opposites. For instance, the village could be seen as the Garden of Eden from which Adam and Eve are finally exiled, yet it’s an Eden after the fall and the curse of the ground: “in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life...By the sweat of your face you shall eat bread” (Gen. 3:17, 19, ESV). It’s a well-written, well-structured novel that my head appreciated, but it didn’t speak to my heart.

3 stars

69. Willful Behavior by Donna Leon

When one of the brightest of Paola’s students asks her a legal question she can’t answer, Paola agrees to ask her husband, Commissario Brunetti. The girl’s question has to do with the reputation of her grandfather, who was convicted for criminal behavior during World War II but died before serving his sentence. Brunetti isn’t able to give her an answer she wants to hear. Brunetti thinks no more about it, until the girl is found dead in her apartment from what was quite clearly murder.

I enjoyed this one a bit more than some of the other installments in the series because of Paola’s contribution. She knew the murder victim and her insights were helpful to her husband as he tried to make sense of the case. I’m also fond of mysteries that involve art or libraries, and this one had both. I wasn’t as fond of the new narrator for the audio version. He mispronounced Chiara’s name throughout the book. It looks like this might have been a one-off for this narrator. Maybe the regular narrator couldn’t fit this one into his schedule.

4 stars

70. Murder at the ABA by Isaac Asimov

Author Darius Just is annoyed by the ingratitude of his former protege, up-and-coming author Giles Devore, but that doesn’t mean he wants to see him dead. When Just finds Devore’s body in his hotel room after failing to follow through on a favor he’d agreed to perform, he is determined to atone for his lapse by solving Devore’s murder. The trouble is, Just is the only person who believes Devore’s death was murder and not an accident. Just doggedly retraces Devore’s final hours in order to identify a motive and a murderer. He is assisted along the way by fellow author Isaac Asimov, who is under contract to write a book called Murder at the ABA and who just might be able to use Devore’s death as the plot for his novel.

This is a light mystery that doesn’t take itself too seriously, although it’s not a cozy mystery. It’s set during four days of the 1975 ABA Convention, which was also Memorial Day weekend. It’s a book of a different era, with a different sexual ethic. Just (and by extension, Asimov) spends a lot of time thinking about sex and he flirts with just about every female who crosses his path. I’m glad I tried one of Asimov’s mysteries, but if this is characteristic of his style, I doubt I’ll try another one. The mystery plot wasn’t good enough to outweigh the elements that I found distasteful.

One of the fun elements for me is that my birthday was on Memorial Day that year so it was one of the 4 days during which the events in the book supposedly occurred. I don't remember what I did that day, but I do know that I wasn't at the ABA convention. I was just finishing 5th grade!

3 stars

You've done some interesting reading, Carrie!

>103 cbl_tn: That looks like a great reading spot, as long as Adrian will leave space for you!

>144 tymfos: Thanks, Terri! It's a 3-seater and fortunately Adrian just isn't long enough to fill the whole thing. Not that he wouldn't try...

71. Rat Race by Dick Francis

Matt Shore is a good pilot who’s had some bad breaks. His current gig is flying an air taxi service, and his passengers are often employed in the horse racing industry. A couple of near misses leave him wondering who and what I behind them, and most importantly of all, why it’s happening. Pilots don’t have much room for error.

The mystery plot isn’t as strong in this book as in some of Francis’s other books, but other aspects of the book made up for it somewhat. I really liked most of the characters in the book, especially the younger Matthew, nephew of the Duke of Wessex. I also liked the flying theme, although the technical details in a couple of passages were over my head. It was obvious to me that the accident insurance had to be the motive behind everything as soon as this element was introduced in the plot since it didn’t make financial sense. And someone needs to introduce Chanter to Honey.

4 stars

72. Hotel du Lac by Anita Brookner

Romance novelist Edith Hope has escaped from her life at a quiet Swiss hotel at the end of its season. Her life in London consists chiefly of making others happy – her publisher by writing not-quite-bestseller romances, and her friends by making up numbers at dinner parties and saying what’s expected of her. She is more isolated than ever in her retreat, and to occupy her mind she analyzes her fellow guests almost as if they are characters in one of her books. The only eligible male guest attaches himself to her and he seems to offer a permanent escape from the difficulties she left behind.

This novel appears to be a response to Barbara Pym’s Excellent Women. Brookner uses this phrase twice in the novel, and this seems deliberate. Pym’s Mildred Lathbury ends her loneliness through marriage to an anthropologist, to whom she can be useful. Brookner’s Edith Hope makes a different choice, rejecting marriage to a man she doesn’t love and who doesn’t love her to continue as mistress to a man she loves who will never leave his wife for her. She has realized just in time that marriage to such a man will not end her loneliness. It would be interesting to pair these novels in a reading group and see where the discussion goes.

3.5 stars

73. The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman by Ernest J. Gaines

At 110 years old, Jane Pittman’s life has taken her from slavery to the civil rights era. Her “autobiography” reads like an oral history recounted to an anonymous interviewer. After the Civil War leaves them free, Jane and several other former slaves set out for Ohio, but Jane never makes it out of Louisiana. She finds work that she knows, laboring in someone else’s fields to keep a roof over her head and food in her belly. Her long life is filled with losses of the people she loves most, yet she never loses the fire of her spirit. I found the writing uneven. (Or perhaps it was the pacing.) The first two thirds of the book were hard to put down, but by the last third I was ready to be finished with it and to move on to another read.

3.5 stars

74. The Truth about Fat by Anthony Warner

Professional chef turned blogger Anthony Warner examines the complex problem of obesity in modern society. Obesity rates have been rising throughout the world, and especially in Great Britain and the United States. Warner looks at the problem, addresses several plausible theories to explain obesity, and discusses potential solutions.

Warner has an undergraduate degree in science, and the bibliographic notes cite research journals rather than popular literature. Warner also interviewed experts such as nutritionists and endocrinologists. Warner engagingly addresses a non-specialist audience. Readers looking for a “magic bullet” to solve the problem of obesity won’t find it here. On the other hand, readers who want a better understanding of the complexity of the problem will find this book a good place to start.

This review is based on an advance reading copy provided by the publisher through LibraryThing’s Early Reviewers program.

4 stars

75. Campusland by Scott Johnston

American literature professor Eph Russell feels more at home at Devon University, an elite Northeastern institution, than he ever did in his native Alabama. However, he’s about to find out that, while you can take the man out of Alabama, you can’t take Alabama out of the man. Other major characters include first-year student Lulu Harris, who is more interested in enlarging her social media following than in earning a degree, and progressive activist “Red” Wheeler, a professional student whose trust fund income ensures he can postpone graduation indefinitely. The action takes place over the course of one academic year.

This novel satirizes many of the current hot topics in academia. There’s something in the book to offend almost any reader, whether it be someone on the liberal/progressive side of the spectrum whose favorite causes are satirized or someone on the religious right who may be turned off by the often coarse language and sexual content. Readers from both sides of the spectrum who are willing to set aside their biases, as well as everyone in between, will find an entertaining novel that reflects the current zeitgeist.

This review is based on an electronic advance reading copy provided by the publisher through NetGalley.

3.5 stars

Congrats on hitting 75!

Congratulations on reaching 75, Carrie!

>151 drneutron: >152 FAMeulstee: Thank you both! It snuck up on me!

Woo hoo! Congrats on hitting the magic 75 book mark, Carrie!!

>154 ronincats: Thanks, Roni!

Congrats on 75, Carrie!

Congrats on the magic number!

>156 bell7: >157 katiekrug: Thanks, Mary & Katie!

Still enjoying the new swing!

Congrats on reaching 75, Carrie.

>159 cbl_tn: So cute.

>160 BLBera: Thanks, Beth!