What are you reading the week of March 11, 2023?

Still in a reading slump, but managed to finish Maigret and the Old People. It was a decent entry in the series. In other news, I put down a deposit on a new dog. The breeder is expecting a couple of litters in the next two months. If I'm lucky, I'll have a new dog by summer. It's difficult being without a dog. I keep turning around expecting to find Dante. The house is empty without him.

I'm just starting what I hope will be some fun science fiction (or fantasy, I'm not sure which, yet): River of the Dancing Gods by Jack L. Chalker.

>1 fredbacon: Sorry to hear of the loss of Dante. Enjoy the new puppy. I am taking care of my daughter's dog now and he goes home in a day or two. He sleeps next to my bed so I will miss him.

About 50% through The Atlas Paradox. Conquest of the Skies is the bed-side reading, because the book is too heavy to lug around! Expect to be starting Coalition Strategy and the End of the First World War during the forthcoming week.

Currently reading:
SF/F
A Fugue in Time by Rumer Godden
The Race by Nina Allan
Count Zero by William Gibson
Other
Belle Mer (Getaway collection)by Luanne Rice

>1 fredbacon: So sorry to hear about the loss of your dog. I hope that the new dog helps you move forward.

I spent much of the week reading The Huntress by Kate Quinn, who weaves marvellous stories. This was no exception.

Now I am reading Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin. I've heard so much good about it, and it is definitely living up to the hype.

In the world of audiobooks, I'm listening to A Primate's Memoir: A Neuroscientist's Unconventional Life among the Baboons by Robert M. Sapolsky, which is informative and laugh-out-loud funny. We hear not only about the primates Sapolsky has come to study, but about the adventures he has in Africa, drily witty. self-deprecating, and with so many unexpected glimpses into the people and geography with which he comes into contact.

Finished Belle Mer (Getaway collection) by Luanne Rice. Meh. Added Catch Her in a Lie (Getaway collection) by Jess Lourey to my rotation.

>1 fredbacon: That's good news, Fred, and that pup will be a spirits lifter, for sure! Elkhound, if I remember correctly?

I'm very much enjoying Rebecca Makkai's I Have Some Questions for You.

The Four Winds – Kristin Hannah
Audiobook performed by Julia Whelan
4****

As she did in The Nightingale, Hannah uses female characters to tell a bit of the history of a time and place. In this work, the timeframe is 1920s to mid-1930s, and the place is America, specifically the Great Plains and California.

Elsa Wolcott had a bad start in life despite being born into a prosperous family; she was sickly as a child and rather plain, especially as compared to her sister. Her parents have declared it her fate to be a spinster. But Elsa wants more. Her need leads to some bad decisions, and she winds up in a hasty marriage to an unsuitable man. Still, Rafe Martinelli’s family accepts her, and she learns to become a wife and mother. And then the Depression and the Dust Bowl hit their Texas wheat farm.

Elsa turns out to be quite the warrior. She is fiercely protective of her children, in turns frightened and courageous, but determined and willing to nearly kill herself in the fields to feed her family. She is suspicious of dreams of a better tomorrow because dreams don’t put food on the table or a roof over one’s head. But when pushed just a little too far, Elsa will answer the call to fight. Brava!

I loved Elsa’s teen-aged daughter, Loreda. Oh, I definitely recognized the push-pull of the mother-daughter relationship as the youngster is trying so hard to grow up. I feared for her but cheered Loreda on as she found her voice and learned to temper her impulses with good sense and planning.

And I also loved the mother-daughter relationship between Elsa and her mother-in-law Rose. Here is a woman who has seen hard times, but retains her faith in God, and in hard work, and in sacrifice to see them through the toughest trials. She shows Elsa the kind of love that helps her release the strong woman inside her.

I’ve heard some say it’s like Steinbeck’s masterpiece The Grapes of Wrath, but with the focus on women. I certainly see the comparison, but I always felt the most important character in that classic was Ma.

While I saw a couple of plot points coming a mile off, the twist at the end caught me by surprise, and I found myself crying in my car in the grocery store parking lot.

Julia Whelan does a superb job of narrating the audio edition. As a bonus there is an interview with both Hannah and Whelan at the end of the book. I had to laugh when they went to such pains to avoid spoiling the ending; they even acknowledged the folly of this since, if the listener has gotten to the interview, she’s already read (listened to) the twist at the end.

The Dog of the South
Charles Portis
3.5/5 stars
Charles Portis who wrote True Grit explores the ups and mostly downs of Ray Midge's life after his wife takes off with another man and his car. Ray is determined to find his wife, his car and is able to track her down with his credit card statements but along the way he meets a variety of kooky and interesting people. 1979

Enjoying a very unusual novel Becoming Strangers by Louise Dean.

I've started The Sot-Weed Factor but the book was too big to carry with me on my week's trip to Florida so took My Broken Language which is a memoir written by a Philadelphia Puerto Rican about her struggle to cope with two languages, two cultures, and two religions and two financial and educational realities.

>8 Copperskye: I'm getting another Keeshond, they're closely related to the Elkhound. They have such a wonderful temperament. The breeder has two litters coming up, but I have no idea how far down the list I am. I may or may not end up with a dog.

Finished Catch Her in a Lie (Getaway collection) by Jess Lourey. Enjoyed it. Next up is Shell Game (Getaway collection) by Rumaan Alam.

Started on and captured by Bellman & Black by Diane Setterfield A Ghost Story.
This is the third of Setterfield's novels that I have read in the past few weeks.

Buy a Whisker – Sofie Ryan
Digital audio read by Marguerite Gavin
3***

Book two in the Second Chance Cat Mystery series, featuring Sarah Grayson, proprietor of Second Chance, a consignment shop in North Harbor, Maine, and her rescue cat, Elvis. Sarah gets involved in a controversy over developing the waterfront. Sarah, along with most of the residents, are in favor, but one notable holdout is baker Lily Carter. So, when Lily is found murders in her bakery, fingers are pointed as those who were in favor of the development.

Once again Sarah is helped in her sleuthing for her band of friends who’ve dubbed themselves “Charlie’s Angels.” This colorful crew of senior sleuths are tenacious and inventive. And, though I’m not a cat person, I love Elvis and his ability to recognize a lie.

It’s a pretty typical cozy mystery. There are enough suspects and red herrings to keep the reader engaged and guessing, and an interesting regular cast of colorful, quirky characters.

Marguerite Gavin does a fine job of reading the audio version. She sets a good pace and has clear diction.

I am feeling burned out on reading right now. I’m currently about a third of the way through Pigs in Heaven which is the sequel to The Bean Trees by Barbara Kingsolver. I didn’t read at all yesterday despite enjoying what I did read in the book over the weekend.

>6 ahef1963: I love, love, love A Primate’s Memoir. Such a great book!

I am reading American Spy by Laura Wilkinson. For some reason Dan Brown keeps coming to mind. It's early yet.

starting this Libby audio ~

Mad Honey: A Novel
by Jodi Picoult and Jennifer Finney Boylan

I just finished the audio version of The Four Winds by Kristin Hannah and agree that the narrator did a great job. I also liked the author interview at the end. I am listening to Horse by Geraldine Brooks right now, but, since it is one of three books on the go, it won't be finished any time soon. But I have a feeling this will be the kind I want to savor....to keep listening to a little bit each day. I'm also reading A Sorrowful Sanctuary by Iona Whishaw. It's a combination of mystery and historical fiction -- takes place in Northern British Columbia. I'm on a bit of a mystery bent these days.

Binge reading "A Gilded Newport Mystery" series by Alyssa Maxwell from the library
Started: Murder at Kingscote #8

The Amityville Horror
Jay Anson
4/5 stars
In 1975 the Lutz family has moved to Amityville, New York because of George Lutz's new job. However, things go terribly wrong when they moved in. Strange and horrible things were happening in the house. They were never informed that the son of the previous family, Ronald J. DeFeo Jr. killed his family. As much as they tried to live there, they eventually had to move out. What a fascinating story. Several film versions were made of the events. 1977

I finished up The River of Dancing Gods by Jack L. Chalker, a so-so fantasy novel that is the first entry to Chalker's Dancing Gods series, which I will not be taking the time to continue. Joe and Marge are brought to an alternate world where they train to become strong and adept at magic and then take part in an epic battle between good and evil (on the side of the good guys, natch). It was a semi-enjoyable light read with about a B- writing style, though I'll say that there is some nice cleverness and a bit of humor, as well. I've written about the book a bit more on my 50-Book Challenge thread.

Next up for me will be a reread of the very powerful short story collection, A Manual for Cleaning Women, by Lucia Berlin. It's my turn to select a book for my monthly reading group and this is what I chose. The rule is that you have to pick something you've already read, so that you know it's good and not just being hyped. Most of my group mates pick books they've read recently and can recall well enough to discuss, but I like to pick books I've read a while ago and am interested in reading again. We've read novels, memoirs, biographies, histories and a poetry collection for the group, but never a short story collection.

Iona Iverson’s Rules For Commuting – Clare Pooley
Digital audiobook performed by Clare Corbett
3***

This is a delightful ensemble piece featuring Iona Iverson, a woman of a certain age, who has long held a position as an advice columnist. Every day she rides the tube to her job site, along with her French bulldog, Lulu. She recognizes the regular riders but doesn’t interact with them and knows them only by the descriptions she’s given them, such as “Impossibly-Pretty-Bookworm,” or “Mr-Too-Good-To-Be-True.” And then one morning, one of the group chokes on a grape, and another performs the Heimlich maneuver, saving the first man’s life. And this shared experience brings them into one another’s circles with charming results.

I really liked all these characters, even the insufferable Piers, and enjoyed watching how their expanded circle of friendship affected each of them. I worried for some of them as their backstories unfolded and cheered them all on as they emerged from their troubles and all vowed to “be more Iona.” It’s my own new rallying cry!

Clare Corbett does a marvelous job of performing the audio version. She has a lot of characters to deal with and gives them each a unique voice.

Note: Originally published in the U.K. as The People on Platform 5

>13 fredbacon: Keeshond, of course. Here’s hoping for large, healthy litters!

I Have Some Questions for You was an excellent read and now I couldn’t resist getting back to Slough House with London Rules.

All about Me!: My Remarkable Life in Show Business
Mel Brooks
4/5 stars
What a great book about all the films that Mel Brooks wrote and filmed! He also writes about his life growing up, his time in the military in WWII, how he got into show business and how he met his wife, the lovely Anne Bancroft and their relationship. Definitely for film fans!

The new thread is up over here.

I'm sorry you're missing your dog. It's the worst.

Last week I read The Hearts of Horses by Molly Gloss. I was in Oregon so I chose a book set there. I loved it! I quickly got lost in the story each time I picked it up.

>28 PaperbackPirate: Oh, I loved The Hearts of Horses, too!

MY latest is from one of my favorite authors The Sheep Queen by
Thomas Savage he has also written The Power of the Dog.

Murder at Beacon Rock by Alyssa Maxwell
#10 in the "Gilded Newport Mystery" series. The new and 11th installment comes out this summer. I checked out all the books in the series (so far) from the library.