Aurora Teagarden mystery

 Real Murders by Charlaine Harris. Recorded Books audio. 2009. Narrated by Therese Plummer.

Endurance: a year in space. A lifetime of discovery

 By Scott Kelly, retired American astronaut, former military fighter pilot, and a retired U.S. Navy Captain. Penguin Random House audio. Narrated by Scott Kelly. 2017

Buster

 

Rose

 

Bookmarked for Death

 By Lorna Barrett. Booktown mystery series. 2009

Shoot for the Moon

 : The Space Race and the Extraordinary Voyage of Apollo 11 by James Donovan. 2019. Read by Allan Robertson. Hachette Audio

Susan Branch

 "A Fine Romance: Falling in love with the English Countryside" Susan Branch and Joe Hall are on their way back from England on the Queen Mary II now, ten years after this trip in 2012.

Nightwork by Nora Roberts, 2022

Love, Lies, and Liquor by M. C. Beaton

 Agatha Raisin and James Lacy take off for a romantic holiday only to be interrupted by murder. 2006.

Just Kids by Patti Smith

 A Memoir of Patti Smith and Robert Mapplethorpe from their chance meeting in Brooklyn in the late sixties until his untimely death of AIDS at the age of 41.   " Just Kids begins as a love story and ends  as an elegy. It serves as a salute to New York City during the late sixties and seventies and to its rich and poor, it's hustlers and hellions. A true fable, it is a portrait of two young artist's ascent, a prelude to fame. "  * 2010

*from the cover

Agatha Raisin and the Haunted House

 Author M. C. Beaton published 2003

Night and Day by Robert B. Parker

A Jesse Stone and Sunny Randall mystery published 2009. Narrated by James Naughton Random House Audio.

Agatha Raisin and the Love From Hell by M. C. Beaton

Murder is Binding by Lorna Barrett

 First in the Booktown Mystery series starring Tricia Miles., 2008

Agatha Raisin and the Quiche of Death

Agatha Raisin by M. C. Beaton. audio book narrated by Penelope Keith on Libby 

A Sunlit Weapon : a Maisie Dobbs Novel by Jacqueline Winspear

 Harper Audio Recording performed by Orlagh Cassidy. Published 2022

Tart of Darkness by Denise Swanson

 A Culinary Cozy Mystery (Chef-To-Go mysteries book 1)

All Fudged Up by Nancy Coco

 Candy-Coated Mystery book 1 with Allie McMurphy  as the new owner of a hotel in beautiful Mackinac Island where she is a culinary trained chocolatier. Published 2013. With fudge recipes.

The Boys by Cliff Howard and Ron Howard

 A Memoir of Hollywood and Family. Published 2022

Sunny Randall

 Perish Twice, Sunny Randall book 2 by Robert B. Parker. 2000

Agatha Raisin

 Agatha Raisin and the Wellspring of Death by M.C. Beaton

Jesse Stone Novel

 Robert B. Parker's Blind Spot: a Jesse Stone Novel by Reed Farrel Coleman. 2014

The Mystery of Mrs. Christie

 The Mystery of Mrs. Christie by Marie Benedict. Published 2021

Lana Lewis : A Coffee Lover's Mystery by Tara Lush

 Cold Brew Corpse: A Coffee Lover's Mystery by Tara Lush. Published 2021

Caramel Pecan Roll Mystery

A  Delicious Culinary Cozy Mystery ( a Hannah Swensen mystery) by Joanne Fluke. 2022

The Disappearance of Agatha Christie, reimagined

 The Christie Affair by Nina de Gramont. 2022

Lana Lewis mystery

 Grounds for Murder: a Coffee Lover 's Mystery by Tara Lush. 2020

Bill Slider Mystery book 23

 Dying Fall by Cynthia Harrod-Eagles. 2022

A Duncan Kincaid and Gemma James novel

 Kissed a Sad Goodbye by Deborah Crombie. Bantam Publishing.1999

Duncan Kincaid and Gemma James book 5

 Dreaming of the Bones by Deborah Crombie. 1997

Jesse Stone

 Robert B. Parker's Fool Me Twice by Michael Brandman. Narrated by James Naughton. Random House Audio. 2012

No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency Series

In the Company of Cheerful Ladies by Alexander McCall Smith. narrated by Lisette Lecat. Recorded Books, LLC. 2005

Amber Beach

 Amber Beach by Elizabeth Lowell. 1997.a Donovan novel. Book one

Claire Watkins Thriller

 Bone Harvest: a Claire Watkins thriller by Mary Logue. Part police procedural, part mystery, part suspense, and part thriller.

Jesse Stone

 Robert B Parker's Stone's Throw a Jesse Stone novel by Mike Lupica. Narrated by James Naughton per Penguin Random House audio. 2021

Jesse Stone

Robert B. Parker's Fool's Paradise: a Jesse Stone novel by Mike Lupica 2020

The Whistler book 2

 The Judge's List by John Grisham. A Lacy Stoltz legal thriller. Published 2021

Reunion Beach

 Reunion Beach: Stories inspired by Dorothea Benton Frank by Elin Hilderbrand et. all. 2021

Arthur Bryant and John May: the Peculiar Crimes Unit

 Full Dark House by Christopher Fowler, 2003

The Thin Man

 The Thin Man by Dashiell Hammett. Published 1934

A Thursday Murder Club book

 The Man Who Died Twice by Richard Osman, 2021

A Sherlock Holmes Bookshop Mystery

 A Body on Baker Street by Vicki Delany. 2017

Sherlock Holmes Bookshop Mystery

 Elementary, She Read by Vicki Delany, a Sherlock Holmes Bookshop Mystery, 2017 starring Gemma Doyle

Thriller by John Grisham

 The Whistler by John Grisham. Read by Cassandra Campbell. Penguin Random House Audio. 2016

Inspector Ian Rutledge

 A Test of Wills: An Inspector Ian Rutledge mystery by Charles Todd and Caroline Todd. Published 1996.

Summer of '69

 Summer of '69 by Elin Hilderbrand. 2019. Hachette audio narrated by Erin Bennett.

The Remains of the Day

 The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro published 1989. Booker Prize for Fiction 1989

By Sara Desai

 The Marriage Game by Sara Desai

Summerland by Elin Hilderbrand

 Summerland by Elin Hilderbrand unabridged Cd, read by Erin Bennett. Hachette Audio. Published 2012

Imogen Quy mystery

 The Bad Quarto: An Imogen Quy mystery. by Jill Paton Walsh Published 2007

Imogen Quy Mystery

 Debts of Dishonor: An Imogen Quy Mystery by Jill Paton Walsh published 2006

Romantic Comedy

 The Dating Plan by Sara Desai published 2021

Jerry Seinfeld

 Is This Anything? By Jerry Seinfeld. Narrated by Jerry Seinfeld. Published by Simon and Schuster audio. 2020

An Imogen Quy Mystery

 A Piece of Justice: An Imogen Quy Mystery by Jill Paton Walsh published 1995

Elin Hilderbrand novel

 The Rumor by Elin Hilderbrand. Hachette Audio Narrated by Kathleen McInerney, Erin Bennett, and Rick Zieff. Published 2015

A Sharon McCone Mystery

 Coming Back: a Sharon McCone Mystery. By Marcia Muller. BBC America Audio. Narrated by Deanne Hurst. Copyright 2010.

Reflections on a Writing Life

 A Lowcountry Heart: Reflections on a Writing Life by Pat Conroy. 2016 Published after the death of Pat Conroy. Introduction by his wife, Cassandra King

A Hannah Swensen Mystery

 Wedding Cake Murder: a Hannah Swensen Mystery by Joanne Fluke. Narrated by Suzanne Toren. 2016

Winston Churchill's daughter

 A Daughter's Tale: The Memoir of Winston Churchill's Youngest Child by Mary Soames. Copyright 2011. The war years and up to 1947 when Mary Churchill meets her husband.

A Jesse Stone Thriller

 Trouble in Paradise: a Jesse Stone novel by Robert B. Parker. 1998

A Hannah Swensen Mystery

 Double Fudge Brownie Murder by Joanne Fluke. Audio by Suzanne Toren. Recorded Books. Published 2015

Introducing Imogen Quy of Cambridge University

 The Wyndham Case: a mystery by Jill Paton Walsh. Published 1993.

Ruth Galloway Mystery

 The Night Hawks: a Ruth Galloway Mystery by Elly Griffiths. Published 2021

Jesse Stone book one

 Night Passage: a Jesse Stone novel. By Robert B. Parker. 1997

Her Majesty the Queen Investigates

 The Windsor Knot by SJ Bennett. Published 2021

A Saga of Churchill, Family, and Defiance During the Blitz

 The Splendid and the Vile by Erik Larson. Narrated by John Lee. Published by Penguin Random House audio. 2020

Ruth Galloway Mystery

 The Lantern Men: a Ruth Galloway Mystery by Elly Griffiths. Published 2020

The Crime of the Century

 The Crime of the Century: The Lindbergh Kidnapping Hoax by Gregory Ahlgren and Stephen Monier. Published 1993.

Clouds of Witness by Dorothy L. Sayers

 Clouds of Witness: a Lord Peter Wimsey Mystery by Dorothy L. Sayers. 1926

A Jesse Stone Novel

 Split Image: a Jesse Stone Novel by Robert B. Parker. Narrated by James Naughton. Published 2010 by Random House Audio.

A Lord Peter Wimsey Mystery

 "Whose Body?: a Lord Peter Wimsey Mystery" by Dorothy L. Sayers. Published 1923

A New Lord Peter Wimsey and Harriet Vane Mystery

 The Attenbury Emeralds: a New Lord Peter Wimsey and Harriet Vane Mystery by Jill Paton Walsh. Published 2010. Audio book narrated by Edward Petherbridge BBC audio

Maisie Dobbs Novel

 2021. The Consequences of Fear : a Maisie Dobbs Novel by Jacqueline Winspear. The year is 1941, London, the war is on with the bombing of England by the Germans. France has been invaded and the French are in England planning the resistance. Maisie is involved with war work. Her daughter is in the country with Maisie's Dad Frankie and his wife Brenda. 

A New Lord Peter Wimsey and Harriet Vane Mystery

 A Presumption of Death: a New Lord Peter Wimsey and Harriet Vane Mystery by Jill Paton Walsh and Dorothy L. Sayers. Finished on May 27, 2021. Audio book on CD with Edward Petherbridge as the narrator, published 2003.

Loved Anne Bogel's book "Don't Overthink It. Loved her book recommendations at the end of the book. I definitely subscribe to the " buy experiences rather than things" philosophy of life. I have never regretted my decision to join my sister in her trip to the Netherlands. Nor my camping trips with my husband to Colorado, Utah, or Michigan. Been lucky that I never regretted my decision to leave Penneys for the experience to work in a library. It changed my life for the better. And my decision to continue my education. And I am grateful for our decision to buy this house and move to Troy, Ohio and be near my children. This book is about finding the joy in our daily decisions.

    Carolyn Hart wrote "Set Sail for Murder" after she took a cruise along the Baltic in preparation for the writing and research for this book. The details of the travel itinerary make for an interesting backdrop to the story. The Riordian family is set on taking a family vacation with their stepmother and her husband. The husband, James A. Lennox, is an old friend and lover of Henrietta O'Dwyer, or Henry O to her friends. Jimmy asks Henry O to go along on the Baltic cruise to help him protect his wife, the famous documentary filmaker, Sophia Montgomery, from her own family. After Sophia has been murdered, Henry O has to prove who was the murderer to protect Jimmy from going to prison.

Jack, 1939

I have just finished reading Francine Mathews' excellent historical fiction of Jack Kennedy's trip to Europe in the summer of 1939, researching his senior thesis, "Why England Slept" while he carries out a secret spy trip for Franklin Roosevelt, unbeknownst to his father, Joseph Kennedy, the ambassador to England. His trip takes him to Paris, Berlin, Prague and other itineraries that were actual travel destination of the actual Jack Kennedy.. The spying is all fiction, but believable. The Book makes Jack Kennedy a real hero, interesting. In the epilog, Francine Mathews gives a list of books to read about young Jack Kennedy. More food for thought. It was a very interesting and thrilling book to read. Published 2011. Title: Jack 1939

I have read 46 books in 35 weeks. Just finished "N" is for Noose by Sue Grafton. Excellent book, nice surprise ending. Just couldn't wrap my head around the motive for the murders. I like the way she set up the detective work, as she moves closer to the danger, the tempo increases, the tension increases. This time around, Kinsey is out of her league. She's up against the whole town where she is a stranger. Rumors circulate about her, and she feels she needs to have an ally, but who can she trust? Being out of her own turf is unsettling. I feel for her, I feel the fear. One of Sue Grafton's best.

Sometimes I read a book again. I just did that with "Sister Mother Husband Dog (etc.)" by Delia Ephron. I was making a suggestion to a friend about books that could be read out loud to seniors. This book came to mind because I had a fond memory of the book. Rereading it, I am not sure if it would work. I loved it again because I love her voice. She's a likeable person and she describes her own pain so perfectly. Maybe that's why reading it aloud won't work. There is pain, but I love it because it has soul.

So many books, so little time. My new thing is not finishing books.  Back to so little time. I start a book with fresh enthusiasm, but even half way I'll give up and go to my to-be-read pile of books I have waiting because I don't want to waste another minute. Sometimes I am glad when I have stuck by and finished a really good book, like Catch 22. That book grew on me, and I read it twice, once in audio. And I watched the movie. Right now I am reading The Bookish Life Of Nina Hill by Abbi Waxman. I am enjoying it, it came recommended on Library Reads. I need to stick to good recommendations. My sister Ann asked me if I read any great books lately, and I was disappointed that I'd read such mediocre books. I did like Headlong by Cynthia Harrod-Eagles. Not all Bill Slider mysteries are great, but this one was especially good. I read all of Catherine Graham's Midsomer Murders and loved them. I read all of Ann Granger's Mitchell and Marby mysteries and hated to see them end. I am reading all of Jacqueline Winspear's Masie Dobbs books and enjoying them as well. Sometimes I'll read a book just for something new, and it's so good it will stay with me. That's what I look for in a good book, staying power, and I won't know right away if the book has staying power. Sometimes it's just the quick easy reading that I like, like an Agatha Christie book. I don't remember the plot, but I enjoyed it while I read it. Here's to good summer reading, and the bookish life of Carolyn Rector. Cheers!

Every Last Lie

I just finished reading Every Last Lie by Mary Kubica. It's the story of Nick and Clara Solberg, and the secrets Nick kept from his wife in the months leading up to his death in a car accident. Clara discovers her husband is killed in a car accident with their daughter, four year old Maisie, in the back seat. She is in denial, she can't believe he caused his own accident. These fears are exasperated by the dreams Maisie has been having about a bad man and a black car. Each chapter of the book alternates between Clara's reality today and Nick's thoughts leading up to the accident. One of the things that keeps Nick from sharing the truth with his wife is the upcoming birth of their son Felix. Felix is four days old when Nick is killed in the automobile accident. This is not the type of book I normally read, but there is going to be a book discussion on it at the Huber Heights Library on June 20th and I thought I'd add that to my something new now that I have some time.

I read Raven Black by Ann Cleeves in  short time. It was a good read, a police procedural, with the village as a character. The characters ' thoughts are in italics. It takes place in the Shetland in Scotland. I watched the first episode Red Bones on Netflix and decided I wanted to read the series in order. I did that with Midsomer Murders in PBS, and read all of Caroline Graham's books, but the episodes continued with them being written by Anthony Horowitz. The story in Raven Black is atmospheric with  thriller ending, and a surprise ending for me. Two dead girls, eight years apart, in such a small village. Locals are suspected, especially an older man who is slow-witted. The festival in the book is played out in the Netfix episode Red Bones, so I got an understanding of that from this book. It's a reenactment of a Viking ship and a bonfire. Interesting story. Will read more in the series, which is not a cozy mystery, it's a thriller.

Happy New Year

I wanted to read fifty books this year, but the last one, Life After Life by Kate Atkinson is too long to finish. I love her writing, and the subject matter is my favorite, England during the Great War and World War II. The main character, Ursula Todd, is a young woman in 1938, and lives through the Blitz and lives another life through Berlin during the war, I don't fully understand, but I love this book. The characterization is well developed, the plot is interesting, the atmosphere is very realistic and thoroughly a character in the novel. To be a best seller or to appeal to a large audience one must have all the draws of appeals and the author does just that. I am listening to the novel and the narrator does a great job. If I wasn't so tired, I'd read this book into the new year, but I've been up since 6 and I need to go to sleep. I finished A Fatal Winter at the nursing home today, and it ended with a lunar eclipse and a holiday party on Dec 21, so fitting for the day. It's a cozy mystery in an English village with the Episcopal priest as the detective, Father Max, a former MI5 operative. Good stuff. Love this series.

The reading life

I've had a rich life. As I browse the list of books I've read this year, I realise how truly blessed I have been. I started out trying to read more new fiction. And that has been good for me, but sometimes I am reading for comfort, something familiar and I have been doing that, too. I just finished Glare Ice by Mary Logue, and I am back in the world of Claire Watkins. How nice to know there are more books in the series if I want to visit Minnesota again in the winter. I read for atmosphere, I read winter, snowy books when the weather is cold. We got snow last night and I await a book by G.Mallory about an English village in winter. And I will probably pick up a favorite Agatha Christie, Murder at Hazelmoor sooner than later. It's a 40 cents Dell paperback copy from my Mother's collection of Agatha Christie paperbacks that I borrowed years ago. Those are comfortable too, going back to the past, and the English village again. "Backward, turn backward O time in your flight; Make me a child again just for tonight.". There's a quote on Susan Branch's blog about wishing to be a child again, never more than at Christmas, when I would always receive a pile of new books to read, and the vacation time to read them. Yes, I have had a full life of books, and a job at a library surrounded by them. Thank you, God, for my life, my family and friends.

Dewey The Small-Town Library Cat Who Touched the World

Vicki Myron wrote a book about the special cat that she found one morning in the bookdrop at her library. It was minus fifteen degrees in her Iowa small town, and someone had shoved the eight- week old kitten into the library bookdrop in the night. The library adopted him, or maybe it was the other way around, he adopted this library as his home, and he thanked everyone with his own special brand of wonderfulness. Read this book and you will be reminded how special animals can be. Being without an animal in my life for more than twenty-five years, I was reminded of how animals can work their way into your hearts and love you unconditionally. I am glad that Vicki Myron shared her cat story with the rest of the world, and shared her life story as well.

As I read "Still Me" by Jojo Moyes I was surprised how easily I could pick up the third book in the series and understand all the relationships. This is a story of Louisa Clark from the U.K. who decides to take a job in Manhattan as a companion/assistant to the young new wife to an older extremely wealthy man.  She soon leans that the woman, Agnus, is very unhappy and stressed by the demands of a highly philanthropic man. He wants his trophy wife to show up at the charity events looking beautiful and happy. But, the second wife is rejected by society, seen as a gold digger and a home wrecker. But this is not that simple. She had been a hard working Polish immigrant who caught the eye of her employer, and she made him happy. How can Louisa help Agnus find happiness in her new life? She can help by being her friend. Louisa Clark learns a lot about friendships and relationships during this year abroad. She has some things to work out between her boyfriend in the U.K. and the grumpy neighbor in her apartment complex. This is a good read and I enjoyed the character of Louisa Clark.

I just started reading Citizen Reader's blog. Quite interesting stuff here. I like this quote about nonfiction readers:

"How do nonfiction readers differ from fiction readers?

From Neal Wyatt*: "Reading nonfiction, even highly narrative nonfiction, is a different experience than reading fiction." She calls this the Learning/Experiencing appeal.

From Catherine Sheldrick Ross**: NF readers often read NF and F; exclusive NF readers like the "real'"; readers pick NF when they expect interruptions; they read to be entertained AND "to take something away"; they are avid readers in general

A personal definition: Not so much escapist readers as involvist readers" Sarah Cords

I used to find that I would read a fiction book and then a nonfiction book, just to change things up a bit. I do like to learn new things. I also like to read nonfiction books about the subject matter of a fiction title. Last year I read " The Love-Charm of Bombs: Restless Lives in the Second World War by Lara Feigel." I had read so many books about World War II that this was an interesting idea, what it was like for certain writers in the London Blitz. Graham Greene would use his experiences in the Blitz to write his famous novel, "The End of the Affair" in 1951. I remember this book that I've read many years ago and watched the movie also. 

I just finished a realistic book, "Need to Know" by Karen Cleveland, a former CIA analyst. It's her debut novel and is quite the thriller. Hard to put down. All I kept thinking, this can't end well. But I am glad that I read it and I probably will remember this one for a very long time. Very plot driven action, movie-like drama. The nonfiction book that I read about CIA operatives was " The Company We Keep: A Husband-and-Wife True-Life Spy Story by Robert and Dayna Baer."  That one was interesting. 

Julia Spencer-Fleming

“We none of us get what we deserve, thank God. We get what we’re given. Love. Compassion. A second chance. And then a third, and a fourth.” This comes from a blog that I read: Cakes, Tea and Dreams. I am so comforted by these words, that's grace: we don't get what we deserve. Thank God. It has been a long time since I've read Julia Spencer-Fleming novels, but I did like them all. The last one in the sereis, "Through the Evil Days" was published in 2012. The series is called Clare Ferguson/ Russ Van Alstyne, a mystery series, part police procedural and part amateur detective. I wanted to re-read this one to fully remember what I liked so much about this series. It was a fast read, with just enough setting to make you feel you feel you were there. Been through plenty of bad snow storms, always like to read about the atmosphere of a snowstorm. Not enough of Clare's real job in this one, she's a priest in the Episcopal church. The mystery is wrapped up too fast to be believable. I liked the drama of the two main characters being on the outside where no one believes them, and no one trusts them. Falling in love over the course of the first four books, they are coming to terms with what that really means for them and the people they love. Part love story, part mystery thriller, good idea to start with the first in the series, In the Bleak Midwinter.

     Checking all the alfresco dining in my area. Spring ahead daylight savings means I can start to think about sitting outside again in the twilight and catching a few rays. Panera Bread was my go to last summer. May have to try Smith's Boathouse here in Troy. For my birthday my daughter's took me there for their Sunday brunch, was delicious. We also like A & W Rootbeer. La Fiesta has a nice outdoor patio. Ah, many selections, or opportunity spaces. May even set up my own porch space for eating out, or having that first cup of coffee in the morning. I do look forward to the warmer season.
      Thinking about susanbranch.com and Joe Hall on the Queen Victoria as they head to England this week. I'll bet they do a lot of eating on deck.
      Listening to "In This Grave Hour" by Jacqueline Winspear.

Had to visit Briget Jones's Diary again, in all its forms. Watched the movie on Netflix with all the wonderful actors. Listened to the audiobook and read the hardcover copy of the book. Reading about chicklit in Library Journal and this book was the first notable book of that genre. Great article by Rebecca Vnuck. Running through my head is the song by Van Morrison, "Someone like you" with the great YouTube  montage photos from the movie with Renee Zellweger and Colin Firth falling in love. Didn't know Helen Fielding used Pride and Predjudice as her inspiration. Loved everything about this movie. Funny but it even appeals to this 65 year old romantic.

Susan Branch and Martha's Vineyard: Isle of Dreams

Reading "Martha's Vineyard: Isle of Dreams" by Susan Branch was a real delight. Enchanting, to use her word. I thought I knew the story of her discovery of Martha's Vineyard at the time of her divorce, but there was so much more to the story. She goes through her old diaries and re-creates her landing on the island in 1982 with hand-written pages and her lovely watercolor paintings. She tells us all about her friends and her visit from her dad, and how she decides to live alone on the island and follow her dream of writing a cookbook. I love how she takes us through the painstaking process of stepping one foot in front of the other as she creates her first cookbook one page at a time, water coloring each page and her trip to New York and to Boston to get a publishing deal. It's all there, more exciting in her own words. I love how she writes about her walk that she goes on to the beach every day, knowing that she is still doing this today. I love her perseverance and audacity, just the whole believing in herself. I love how she has her own style of writing and painting, staying true to herself the whole time. Her paintings have only gotten better through the years, but she was an original talent from the beginning and Little, Brown and Company believed in her, too. Her many fans attest to her talent and charm.

Being Mortal: Medicine and What Matters in the End by Atul Gawande

I have read 60 books in 36 weeks for 2016. I have gone over my goal of a book a week. This latest "Being Mortal" by Atul Gawande is being considered by The Big Read Dayton as a book for 2017. It's a very good book. As I read it, it became easier to read. I hope that others who start reading it give it the chance that it needs. The book is about end of life care by doctors, and the ability to ask the questions of patients. I am going to quote from the Epilogue on questions that need to be asked of patients as they face the tough decisions of their care at the end. "What is your understanding of the situation and its potential outcome? What are your fears and your hopes? What are the trade-offs you are willing to make and not willing to make? And what is the course of action that best serves this understanding?" The author walks us through various people's last days and what their desires are. I only hope that when my time comes, that I can communicate to my family my end of life wishes beyond my 'do not resuscitate' DNR that I already have in place in my living will, that I don't want unnecessary efforts if I am dying. The author makes a good case for Hospice, for a variety of reasons, one being that most people want to die at home. It is a good book to start a conversation between relatives before the end is upon us.

Commonweath by Ann Patchett

Just finished reading Ann Patchett's latest, "Commonwealth." She is always a joy to read. I think I read that she based some of this on her own life experiences. From reading her other books, I know that her father was a policeman in LA. She had four step-siblings. Her mother and her step-father moved to the eastern part of the country from LA. Her mother and her step-father divorced after many years together and her mother remarried. I think the rest of the story is made-up. This was an excellent novel by one of the best writers around.
  The story begins with Fanny's christening in LA. Her future step-father is a DA, and he is at the party of an LA policeman. He falls in love with the policeman's wife and moves her and her small children to the commonwealth of Virginia. Fanny has an older sister, Caroline. Their father sends them the Kaplan LSAT to encourage them to study to become lawyers for Christmas while they are in high school. Their father is now in law school in LA. Every summer their step-siblings come to Virginia for the summer to live with them. Makes for interesting summers. This book is the story of the blended families, their parents and future generations.    

The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah

The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah is the story of two sisters, separated by years and responsibility, as they navigate through the German occupation of France and the steps they took to honor their long held beliefs and morals. One sister, Vianne, is a mother and a wife to a prisoner of war. She is best friends to her Jewish neighbor, and she tries to make decisions that honor that friendship. She loses her job as a teacher and faces depredation as the Germans take all the food that the French can provide. She is fighting for the life of her daughter and the young boy that she shelters from the Nazis. Her impulsive sister fights for a place in her family as she has been shunted off the boarding schools for years and has little in common with Vianne. She decides to fight for the Resistance and guide downed airmen over the French Pyrenees to Spain and back to Britain. She is young and in love and fighting with all abandon to help free France from the occupation of the Germans. The story is told from the women's point of view and the struggles they had during the occupation, and the lack of men in their country. Young men were rounded up and sent to Germans work concentration camps, and no one was sure of the future. It is a good story, based in part on actual documentation of a French woman's fight to save the downed airmen who ended up in France and fleeing from the Nazis by guiding them over the French Pyrenees, a mountain range between Spain and France. The plot and the characterizations are the driving force behind the novel. The bravery of the women tell the real story. 

"Love That Dog" by Sharon Creech is about a boy in school who doesn't think he likes poetry and even less doesn't believe he can write poetry. Through his journal entries we learn about the poems that he is introduced to in school. Slowly his writing takes on the appearance and tone of poetry. He is fascinated with a poet, Walter Dean Myers, whom his teacher is able to plan a visit to the school by this poet. That fascinates the boy and his poem about his dog Sky is influenced by Myers' poem, "Love That Boy." This is a book recommended for reluctant readers in the 4th to 6th grade level. I am glad I read this novel and was impressed by the method of introduction to poetry for the teacher's students.

Reading Agatha Christie

I keep telling myself that I am going to read all of Agatha Christie in order by publication date. I have made a start but haven't gotten that far. Here is an introduction list I should try to remember:
 The Mysterious Affair at Styles
The Secret Adversary
Murder on the Links
Poirot Investigates (short stories)
Poirot's Early Cases (short stories)
The Man in the Brown Suit
The Secret of Chimneys
The Murder of Roger Ackroyd
The Big Four
The Mystery of the Blue Train
Black Coffee (play novelization by Charles Osborne)
Partners in Crime (short stories)
The Seven Dials Mystery
The Murder at the Vicarage
The Mysterious Mr Quin (short stories)
The Sittaford Mystery
Some of these I read many years ago, but I think I should just start over and watch the progression of her work by reading them in order. From this list I don't think I've ever read " The Big Four." Once I tried to read "A Caribbean Mystery" but just couldn't get into it. "The Sittaford Mystery" always grabs me on the first page and draws me right into it. I do like a good mystery.

Too Bad To Die by Francine Mathews

Francine Mathews has written a spy novel in Too Bad To Die. She recreates the drama around the Cairo Conference with chief players Winston Churchill and Franklin D. Roosevelt. In her fictionalized version she has Ian Fleming working as a Naval Intelligence officer becoming involved in the protection of the three players that are to meet in Tehran, Iran in the coming days of 1943. It is Franklin D. Roosevelt's first meeting with Joseph Stalin. Word is out that there is an assassination plot to kill all three in Tehran as Churchill, Roosevelt, and Stalin work out the details of the western invasion of Europe to conquer Htitler. The thriller suspense novel is excellent, the pacing is suburb and the details of the locale all standout to make an excellent novel. Many characters are drawn in the drama, some fictitious but many are drawn on real players at the time. Churchill is traveling with his daughter in-law, Pamela Churchill and his daughter Sarah Churchill Oliver. He also has his communication specialist who helps Ian Fleming send and receive messages to Alan Turing, who has broken the Enigma Code. Ian Fleming learns there is a spy among the American and British entourage and he goes undercover to learn the identity and protect Churchill. "Absolutely marvelous! This novel masterfully weaves fact and fiction into a high-pitched thriller that keeps us spellbound from the very first pages. Great plotting, exotic locales, and historical characters who positively come alive on the page, with some delightful sly winks along the way." Jeffrey Deaver, New York Times 

Jane and the Unpleasantness at Scargrave Manor

Stephanie Barron has written a series of Jane Austen mysteries and "Jane and the Unpleasantness at Scargrave Manor" is the first one. This is for Jane Austen fans and readers of historical fiction. Many footnotes explain the traditions of the times as the author unfolds her story. The pace is slow, the story is full of rich details, with a good description of the characters. There are many characters to keep up with, two brothers I kept getting confused, Tom and George Hearst, one a Lieutenant and one a man of the cloth. Intriguing court case toward the end of the book as Jane's friends are accused of murder and have to stand trial. A good mystery. Stephanie Barron also writes as Francine Mathews.  

Delicious by Ruth Reichl

Billie Breslin starts her new job as a assistant to the editor on the food magazine, "Delicious". She starts to work at Fontinelli's Italian cheese store in New York City. She has an extraordinary palate that recognizes flavors. The magazine closes and she is kept on to honor the guarantee, working in the building all by herself. She discovers the locked up library to do research for her clients. She and Sammy the traveling correspondent for Delicious discover a secret room in the library and make an amazing discovery. The story reveals that she has a secret about her sister and it hold clues why she doesn't cook any longer. A good fresh story about a cook and her past. Reichl was the editor of Gourmet magazine for ten years before they closed their doors and stopped publishing an old magazine due to the downturn in publishing in general. Writing is her forte and this is her first work of fiction. Well done

All Things Wise and Wonderful

In "All Things Wise and Wonderful" James Herriot tells about his time with the RAF during World War II, but mostly his memory goes back to his veterinary practice and his wife Helen. I usually like the stories about the Farnon brothers the best, although there is the tender tales of Helen which I also enjoy. His son is born while he is away. He doesn't share much of his RAF days, but he does tell of an operation that he had which made him unfit for flying after all his training. He sits out the war at various duties with the RAF, but not combat duty. He goes absent without leave when he worries about Helen and her pregnancy, but slipping away reassures him of her health and makes the trip home on the bus worth his risk. The continuation of the trials of a country vet are heartwarming. He is humble in the retelling of his early years as a country vet in the late 1930's. These books were bestsellers in the 1970's.