What are you reading the week of May 6, 2023?

I read Maigret and the Nahour Case, which leaves me with only ten more books in the series. I'm almost finished with The Waves Extinguish the Wind by Arkady and Boris Strugatsky. It's the last novel in their Noon Universe series. Their later books from the 1980s aren't up the same standards as their earlier writing.

About two-thirds of the way through Outposts on the Frontier. Untethered Sky and Vought F-8 Crusader will be next.

Well into Culture in Nazi Germany.

Lighthouse Island
Paulette Jiles
3/5 stars
This story revolves around Nadia, who was left by her mother and father and ended up living in an orphanage. But now she is grown up and on her own. She believes that her family is now on Lighthouse Island. She meets up with James Orotov who makes maps. They decide to try and find Lighthouse Island while evading arrest. Will the island be refuge they think it will be? Interesting concept but not my favorite book of hers.

Currently reading:
SF/F
A Day of Fallen Night by Samantha Shannon
House of Gold by C. T. Rwizi
Other
The Lost Soul of the City by Dean Koontz

Started this audio via Libby ~

It Ends with Us: A Novel
by Colleen Hoover
(#1 of a duet)

Murder In Grub Street– Bruce Alexander
3***

Book two in the Sir John Fielding mystery series. Young Jeremy Proctor has been apprenticed to a printer on Grub Street, but the night before he was to move to Mr Crabbs’ establishment to begin his training, the entire Crabb family and the two apprentices to lived with them were brutally murdered. A poet who also resided there was found with the likely weapon in his hand and taken into custody. But he maintains he is innocent. Sir John, though he is blind, is an astute investigator and Jeremy along with some of the colorful residents of Covent Garden help Sir John ferret out the truth.

This was much more complicated than the first book, and I admit my attention wandered a bit. There is religious fervor, multiple personalities, professional jealousy, anti-semitism, dreadful conditions of tenement buildings, and a light-fingered imp of a thief to complicate the case. Still, I love the way that Alexander has taken bits and pieces of history and woven them into these mysteries. Set in 1765 London, the protagonists must rely on their wits and old-fashioned investigative techniques. Sir John is, of course, further hampered by being blind, but Jeremy is an astute observer and honestly relates what he sees to his mentor.

I’ll keep reading this series.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – J K Rowling
Book on CD performed by Jim Dale.
4****

The seventh, and final, episode in the uber popular Harry Potter series, provides a few surprises and a satisfying ending to the story of the Boy Who Lived vs You Know Who.

It’s been several years since I read book six, so I was a bit lost at first and a few times I had to stop and think to remember what had occurred before. But Rowling’s storytelling pulled me along, and the series has always been aimed at this confrontation. Some of the scenes were truly frightening. I appreciated the several bits of humor that provided some relief from the seemingly relentless danger. And can I just say that I want one of those evening bags!

One thing I really like about the series is the strength of the friendships between the central trio: Harry, Hermione and Ron. What couldn’t any of us accomplish with such loyal backing! I also noticed how they have matured from eleven-year-olds to being on the cusp of adulthood.

While I was experiencing this audio, news arrived of Robbie Coltrane’s passing. (He’s the actor who portrayed Hagrid in the films.) That made the scene near the end where Hagrid is carrying Harry’s limp body all the more poignant for me.

Jim Dale’s masterful performance of the audio was nothing short of mesmerizing. He is able to switch from one voice to another seamlessly. (Yes, I know sound editing plays a part here … still masterful.)

I finally finished Natchez Burning, the fourth book in Greg Iles' Penn Cage series. This is certainly the strongest so far of the series (although I remember the first book in the series, which I read several years ago, as being pretty good as well). Natchez Burning delves into several Civil Rights Era murders and the ways in which the harms done in those times are still poisoning lives in modern day America. The villains were a bit over the top for me, but otherwise the storyline was strong and the writing mostly tight. However, 800 pages is just too long a time commitment for me for a crime novel. This is the first book of a trilogy-with-the-series, and as such left a few loose ends at the end. That didn't bother me, as the conclusion we do get is quite satisfying enough. However, due to the length of the two subsequent books, which are at least as long as this one, I won't be continuing on. However, if the length is not a stumbling block for you, you might well enjoy the entire endeavor. I've posted a bit longer review on my 50-Book Challenge thread.

Next up for me will be On the Black Hill by Bruce Chatwin, which I'm very much looking forward to.

I had the distinct pleasure this week of finishing the audiobook of Cloud Cuckoo Land by Anthony Doerr. What a story! Beautiful prose, imagination, humour, tragedy: this book had all of that.

Now I'm reading The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid - gossipy, quirky, and fun. As an audiobook I'm listening to We are the Light by Matthew Quick.

>8 rocketjk: I read On the Black Hill a couple of months ago. I think you'll not be disappointed.

I'm still reading The Wind Through the Keyhole by Stephen King, but soon I'm going to need to switch over to Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus for book club.

I finished Doris Lessing's The Summer Before the Dark. It is an internal struggle resulting in the growth of a woman from family server to self possessed middle age. A summer without family, a competent job, an affair, time with a younger woman, and a dream are backdrops in this journey.

Death On the River of Doubt – Samantha Seiple
Digital audiobook read by David de Vries
4****

Subtitle: Theodore Roosevelt's Amazon Adventure

This is a children’s middle-grade book detailing the expedition to chart a previously unexplored tributary of the Amazon. To say that this journey was treacherous is an understatement. Canoes broke up over waterfalls, native tribes attacked the intruders, their food ran short (huntable game was NOT plentiful), some members of the expedition were untrustworthy, injuries and infection could prove fatal. They had to cut their own path through dense jungle in order to create a portage area around waterfalls they hadn’t anticipated. At one point they had to fell trees to build new canoes!

Then there were the dangerous animals: jaguar, venomous snakes, piranhas and the Anopheles mosquito which carried malaria. Oh, and their fellow adventurers posed a risk as well. One man frequently “stole” extra rations for himself, leaving the others with a quickly diminishing supply. Another’s dire health crisis resulted in his rations being cut off, “since he was going to die anyway.”

The book includes numerous photographs from the journey and other times in Roosevelt’s life. At the end of the story Seiple includes “Teddy’s Travel Tips” with notes on when to go, what to pack and what food and supplies one would need for such a journey. Additionally. she provides a timeline of career highlights in Roosevelt’s life.

It's a great introduction for the younger set on Theodore Roosevelt and this particular historic adventure. Now I need to read Candice Millard’s book about the same episode.

David de Vries does a fine job of narrating the audiobook. He has clear diction and a good pace for this nonfiction adventure story. However, listeners are encouraged to have a copy of the text handy to see the many photos, maps and lists.

Finished The Lost Soul of the City by Dean Koontz and started Gentle Is the Angel of Death.

>10 snash: Yes, I think I recall your positive review. Anyway, through the first 20 pages or so, I'm enjoying On the Black Hill a lot.

>11 PaperbackPirate: I loved Lessons in Chemistry.

I just finished Crooked Heart by Lissa Evans, which was great. Now back with the Slow Horses in Slough House.

Plantation Shudders – Ellen Byron
Digital audiobook performed by Meredith Mitchell
3***

Book one in the Cajun Country cozy mystery series introduces the reader to Maggie Crozat and her family, who run an historic Louisiana plantation as a B&B. They’ve filled the inn with guests in town for the food festival. It’s an eclectic bunch, including elderly honeymooners, a trio of frat boys, and a group of women calling themselves the Cajun Cuties. But when two guests die of decidedly NOT natural causes, Maggie and her folks are suspects in murder.

This has all the hallmarks of a cozy mystery. A likeable amateur sleuth, romantic tension between the leading lady and the hunky cop, a gaggle of potential suspects, secrets galore, some delicious food and a loveable Basset hound named Gopher. And a few great recipes to whet the appetite.

Meredith Mitchell does a fine job of narrating the audiobook. She has a nice Southern accent and sets a good pace. I can practically smell the magnolias….

Becoming
By Michelle Obama
5/5 stars
This is a fascinating look at Michelle Obama’s life from her childhood growing up in Chicago, meeting Barack and through her role as First Lady of the White House. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and it will definitely be on top of my favorites list.

Finished Gentle Is the Angel of Death by Dean Koontz and started the next in the series: Kaleidoscope.

Starting this audio via hoopla ~

The Audrey Hepburn Estate: A Novel
by Brenda Janowitz

The Turtle Warrior – Mary Relindes Ellis
5*****

In 1967, the Lucas family, living in a remote corner of northern Wisconsin, is brutalized by their alcoholic father. Their neighbors, Rosemary and Ernie Morriseau, watch and offer a safe haven for the two boys: James and Bill. When James enlists at age seventeen and goes to Vietnam, nine-year-old Billy has only the protection of a turtle-shell shield and a wooden sword to keep him from harm. It will be a long and fraught journey to manhood for the sensitive Billy.

What a marvelous debut! Ellis writes with grace and style. She alternates point of view between Ernie, Rosemary, Claire, James and Billy, featuring a different narrator from chapter to chapter. In this way we learn dribs and drabs of the whole story, exploring the ways that personalities are formed or twisted, how a character can be broken and heal, how a marriage can survive or dissolve.

I loved Ernie and Rosemary; their quiet strength and willingness to continue offering support and refuge despite the many times they were turned down showed their sterling character.

And Billy … poor, innocent, damaged Billy. Trying to make sense of the senseless. Yearning for love and attention from people incapable of giving it. Many a time I worried he would be as lost as his brother and father, would succumb to the rage and fear. Powerless to lash out at those who hurt him, he follows his father’s path towards alcoholism. And yet …

Some wounds leave scars, and even faded scars are reminders of the pain. If we are lucky those reminders keep us focused on the positive and help us work to ensure we don’t cause wounds on ourselves or others. There are some horrific scenes in this book, and it is an emotionally difficult read. But the reader who can get through the horror will be rewarded with a hopeful ending.

Killing Mr. Griffin
Lois Duncan
4/5 stars
A group of students in Mr. Griffin's class are tired of his berating them. So, a few of them decide to prank him and they tie him up and kidnap him. Unfortunately, things go horribly wrong and now they have to cover up their tracks. Very well written and a fast read!

The new thread is up over here.

I'm re-reading Everybody But Us and The Long Game by Ben Rose. Five Stars each.
Both speak to me as a 14 year old. There is so much information contained and innuendo that I gain more with each subsequent read.

Also re-reading Soul on Ice by Eldridge Cleaver. Five Stars.
Such a timely read albeit things obviously haven't changed enough in 25 years