What are you reading the week of March 4, 2023?

Still the reading doldrums. I managed to get through Maigret in Court, but it took me several days. Normally, I can read these books on a Sunday afternoon, but I'm completely unmotivated.

I have started on Once Upon a River by Diane Setterfield so far a great reading experience. It has received great reviews.
This is the second of her novels that I have read The Thirteenth Tale was a gothic classic.

I'm still working my way through Andrew Young's memoir, An Easy Burden: the Civil Rights Movement and the Transformation of America. It's extremely interesting, but very long. That's not a complaint, but rather an explanation of why it's taking me so much time to complete.

About 75% done with The Infinite: The Outside Book III. About 20% done with Bernd & Hilla Becher. Next up will be Winning and Losing on the Western Front and The Terraformers.

Currently reading:
SF/F
A Fugue in Time by Rumer Godden
The Race by Nina Allan
Count Zero by William Gibson
Other
Uncharted Waters (Getaway collection) by Sally Hepworth

Began this audio via Libby ~

The Searcher: A Novel
by Tana French

Finished up my reread of All Creatures Great and Small yesterday. Still charming.

I just started Mick Herron's Spook Street and I suspect it will be as good as the previous books in the Slough House series.

>7 Copperskye: I read those books in high and loved them. A reread is a great idea!

I'm finishing up The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek by Kim Michele Richardson and have really enjoyed the journey.

Finished Uncharted Waters (Getaway collection) by Sally Hepworth. Meh. Added His Happy Place (Getaway collection) by Zakiya Dalila Harris to my rotation.

Andy and Don: The Making of a Friendship and a Classic American TV Show
Daniel de Visé
4/5 stars
Daniel de Vise writes a fascinating book about the relationship between Andy Griffith and Don Knotts as he follows their lives and careers and especially their time on The Andy Griffth Show. Highly recommended!

Finished His Happy Place (Getaway collection) by Zakiya Dalila Harris. Meh. Added Stockholm (Getaway collection) by Catherine Steadman to my rotation.

E Is For Evidence – Sue Grafton
Digital audiobook read by Mary Peiffer
3***

Book five in the “alphabet” series has PI Kinsey Milhone dreading a not very merry Christmas. Her ex-husband, Daniel, pops in to complicate matters, and she can’t get the bank to take seriously the $5,000 mistake they’ve clearly made by crediting her account for a check she did not deposit. So, she’s pleased to have a case to investigate. But not for long; she’s accused of insurance fraud and finds herself out on her own trying to clear her name.

What I love about the series is the time frame – no cell phones or computers. Kinsey has to rely on her wits and good old-fashioned footwork to ferret out the information she needs. There are a lot of characters, most of whom are suspects, and enough twists and turns to keep this reader guessing right up to the reveal.

Mary Peiffer does a fine job of narrating the audiobook. If I actually read the text of one of these books, I’m sure I’ll hear Peiffer’s voice as Kinsey.

Finished from the library: Enola Holmes and the Black Barouche by Nancy Springer
#7 in the popular "Enola Holmes Mystery" series

Started: Murder at the Breakers by Alyssa Maxwell
1st installment of the "Gilded Newport Mystery" series. I checked out all of the books in this series so far from the library.

>13 BookConcierge: I love this series too and wish I knew Kinsey! Along the lines of pre-digital age: love when she goes to libraries etc., the great neighbors/friends, let alone the exciting action scenes! Enjoy!!

Am reading The Numbers by Nick Pirog, the latest in his detective quirky series. I enjoy all his fun series, so this book has been long anticipated…he needs to write faster!!

High Tide In Tucson – Barbara Kingsolver
4****

Subtitle: Essays From Now Or Never

Kingsolver was already a successful novelist when this collection of essays was published. She relates her thoughts on family, home, politics, nature, social issues and personal responsibility with humor, compassion, wit and integrity. Her training as a scientist is evident, as is her talent as a poet.

As she ponders what is meaningful in life and what one person’s impact may be, she takes the reader to a number of surprisingly diverse locations and situations: from a small village in West Africa (where she obtained a voodoo love charm), to her backyard (where she battled the wild pigs intent on digging up her lovingly tended plants), to a museum of atomic bomb relics (which she found both fascinating and horrifying), to a bird-watching hike in the Virginia mountains. She examines the impact of too much television, or the use of pesticides, against the natural wonder of nature and biodiversity.

As I did with Small Wonder, I read this through as I would a novel. But this collection is probably best enjoyed by reading a chapter/essay now and again.

Well it took me close to three weeks, but it was a worthwhile journey as today I finished An Easy Burden: The Civil Rights Movement and the Transformation of America by Andrew Young. Andrew Young's memoir of his life and, most importantly, his experiences working alongside Martin Luther King in the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, is extremely detailed and, at 531 pages, takes a while to get through. However, the journey is very much worthwhile for anyone interested in reading a comprehensive history of the Civil Rights Movement in America. The rise and fall of the SCLC, SNCC and other organizations, and the Civil Rights Movement itself, all placed firmly within the context of a broad range of cultural, historical, political and economic factors, makes for very enlightening reading. Since this is a memoir rather than a straight history, Young is able to provide, also, a personal dimension that frames the events extremely well. You can find my in-depth review on the book's work page or on my 50-Book Challenge thread.

Next up for me will be something lighter (I think!), The River of Dancing Gods by Jack L. Chalker. This is a science fiction novel published in 1984 and the first of a series. We'll see if I like this first book well enough to continue on.

Dipping into and enjoying Is There Anything You Want? by Margaret Forster.

Bookish And the Beast – Ashley Poston
3***

Book number three in the Once Upon a Con series can easily be read as a standalone, though characters from the earlier books do show up here without much backstory. Still, the focus is on a new couple: Rosie Thorne, high school senior and geek girl bookworm, and Hollywood bad boy Vance Reign, who plays the villain in the Starfield movies.

Vance has recently been caught by paparazzi in a potentially scandalous situation (which really isn’t all that), so his mom and stepfather have sent him into exile in a small town with his godfather as guardian. Rosie stumbles onto the estate when chasing a dog, which she assumes to be a stray or runaway. And one thing leads to another.

I didn’t see a lot of Beauty and the Beast here, though Rosie does share Belle’s love of books & libraries. Vance is surly, to be sure, but hardly a beast. There’s a nice subplot involving Rosie’s dad and Vance’s guardian (I’d read THAT sequel).

To sum it up, this is a YA romance, full of the drama of homecoming, friends, college applications, frenemies, gossip, the pitfalls of social media, and a bit of Comic-Con nerdiness thrown in. The characters were pretty much right out of central casting, and the plot (even without the supposed B&tB background) was predictable. I was hesitant at first and thought I might DNF it, but I found myself caught up and sufficiently entertained to finish. It was a fast read and I can certainly see the appeal for the intended audience.

Finished Stockholm (Getaway collection) by Catherine Steadman. Meh. Added Belle Mer (Getaway collection) by Luanne Rice to my rotation,

The new thread is up over here.

Family Reunion – Nancy Thayer
3***

Thayer specializes in family dramas set on Nantucket. As per usual there is at least one troubled marriage, a grandchild that relates more to grandma than to parents, a possible new romance (or two), and at least one pet too cute for words.

And in this case, there is also a major decision regarding whether to keep the home that’s been in the family for generations or sell out to developers willing to pay millions of dollars for prime ocean-front land. Eleanor Sunderland is a widow who loves living in her family’s large home. She cherishes the memories of coming there when she was a child, and of bringing her children to the island when they were younger. She’s now one of the year-round residents and though the house is large and drafty and needs maintenance it is HER family home. Her adult children, though, think she should sell and move to a retirement community near them in the city.

Eleanor decides to invite her family to the island to help her celebrate her seventieth birthday. It will be a family reunion like they had in the old days! Well, not exactly … The majority of the drama comes from Eleanor’s daughter, Alicia, who is married to a surgeon and lives in Boston, and Eleanor’s only grandchild, Ari, who has just graduated from college and broken off her engagement to the scion of a wealthy family. Alicia is one of the most spoiled and self-centered characters I’ve come across in all my years of reading. Hard to believe that a woman like Eleanor could have raised a woman who is so shallow and money-grubbing. No wonder Ari wants to spend the entire summer with her grandmother!

Eleanor’s wonderful son and confirmed bachelor, Cliff, makes several appearances, though his contributions to the story are minimal. And the subplot involving a day camp for disadvantaged kids adds a nice touch (and a respite from Alicia’s self-made drama).

As is true of the other works by Thayer I’ve read, this was a quick read full of mostly likeable characters in recognizable situations. Perfect choice for a vacation read.