Hope Tries Again in 2025

A YEAR OF READING IN 2025!

In the words of the brilliant Lewis Grizzard, Shoot Low, Boys - They're Riding Shetland Ponies. I'm shooting low this year - 25 books in 2025.

I'll try to remember to post stats here at the end of the year.

January: 5 Books
February: 4 Books
March: 3 Books
April: 2 Books
May: Hmmm - I'm noticing a depressing pattern! 1 Book
June: 3 Books - Things are picking up!
July: 2 Books
August: 3 books (2 were picture books . . . ) (also, I started a book via Overdrive and didn't get it finished in time, so will finish it when it shows up again)
September: This is truly depressing! Due to circumstances beyond my control, I may only actually complete one book this month. I'm hoping October will be a little less depressing. Started two - one I finished in October and one I eyeballed, but didn't really read it, because it wasn't what I though it would be.

Helpful Hints:

How to force a touchstone:
Left square bracket + title + comma + author last name + right square bracket will usually get you close to the correct (if not correct) touchstone.

The Library, Stewart = The Library, Stewart

If it still isn't the correct touchstone you can look to the right of the "add a message" box where the touchstones display, click (Others), scroll for the correct touchstone, click the link, and ta-da...correct touchstone.

Last way to get correct touchstone: left square bracket + work number + colon + colon + title + right square bracket.

The Library = The Library

To Make a Checkmark: & # 1 0 0 0 4

To Make a Star: & # 9 7 3 3

Other helpful "how-to's": http://www.librarything.com/topic/59470#

To insert a cover or other image: img src = "URL_HERE" (take out space around = sign and put in html brackets)

2017 Reading Pyramid - https://www.librarything.com/topic/244325
2018 Readings - https://www.librarything.com/topic/279502
2019 Readings - https://www.librarything.com/topic/300982
2020 Readings - https://www.librarything.com/topic/314462
2021 Readings - https://www.librarything.com/topic/328168#n7647720
2022 Readings - https://www.librarything.com/topic/337837
2023 Readings - https://www.librarything.com/topic/346938#n8309890
2024 Readings - https://www.librarything.com/topic/356269#n8682274

Pick a Winner; Make a Friend - 2025

✔ 1. Bookworm by Robin Yeatman - April
2. Done and Dusted by Lyla Sage
✔ 3. The Life We Bury by Allen Eskins - March
4. The Lives They Left Behind by Penney
5. The Girl Who Chased the Moon by Sarah Addison Allen
✔ 6. Lady Fortescue Steps Out by M.C. Beaton
7. Her Pilgrim Soul by Alan Brennert
✔ 8. What Does It Feel Like? by Sophie Kinsella - January
9. Wonder Boy of the Whistle Stop by Fannie Flagg
✔ 10. The Deep, Deep Snow by Brian Freeman
11. Something Borrowed by Emily Giffin
✔ 12. The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah - February

NAPL CHALLENGE

January: Face on the Cover - My Little Golden Book about Greek Gods and Goddesses by John Sazaklis
February: Takes Place on Vacation - The House across the Lake by Riley Sager
March: Green Cover - Death of a Green-Eyed Monster by M. C. Beaton
April: Mystery/Thriller - Kills Well with Others by Deanna Raybourne
May: Celebrity Book Club - (Missed this one. Not sure I'm allowed to participate any more because I've been asked to be on the board.)
June: Set in a Different Country -
July: American Historical Fiction -
August: Nonfiction -
September: Number in the Title -
October: Orange Cover
November: Staff Picks -
December: Holiday -

Add to the TBR

I've transferred most of my TBR to a spreadsheet. I'm only going to add 2025 new additions to the list here.

Comments, Musings, and Other Ideas . . . We didn't know we were making memories; we just knew we were having fun."

"You don’t have to keep books to be a reader. And you certainly don’t need a reason to keep them. But if you grew up on stories, if your memories are infused with what you read where and when and who you talked about it with, books aren’t that different from photographs. They remind you how, and when, and why, and what you did with that knowledge, and how it fits into your life even now."

Landmark Childhood of Famous Americans series
Sunfire Series - Jessica by Mary Francis Shura
The Forest of Coubron - painted by Jean-Baptistie-Camille Carot - The art hanging on our wall!

Mosser Jennifer miniature glassware

Jeffty Is Five by Harlan Ellison
Spending a Day at the Lottery Fair by F. Pohl

Poem: For the Fallen by Laurence Binyon
High Flight by John Gillespie Magee

Block Optic
Tea Room
Pyramid

Red Gallagher

You Owe Me a Murder - Ellen Cook - rec by T Balthas

Little Witch by Anna Elizabeth Bennett

The Dragon in the Clock Box by M. Jean Craig

The Monster Club - third part - Ghouls

1949 Scott Foresman. Our Big Country. "Mark King's Town."

"We Wish You a Merry Christmas and a Happy New You!" - KMH - 3 years old
"Doesn't this town have anywhere to eat?" - KMH - 4 years old
"Creepyface. Creepyface," - KMH - 4 years old

"Second grade is boring. I really should be in third grade." - BMH - 7 years old
"Grandma - I like kindergarten, but I can't do these long days" - KMH - 5 years old - after having 3 early outs and 1 regular day

Pontiac Ventura

Kids' Books

Happy Valentine's Day, Mouse by Laura Numeroff
Love, Splatt by Rob Scotton
Bubbly, Beautiful Kitty-Corn by Shannon Hale
Hop on Pop by Dr. Seuss
Sign and Sing Along: Baa Baa Black Sheep by Annie Kubler
The Pigeon HAS to Go to School by Mo Willems

Books by Rating:

5 ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
Orbiting Jupiter by Gary D. Schmidt - 183 p.
Jupiter Rising by Gary D. Schmidt - 201 p.
The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah - 584 p.
Now Everybody Really Hates Me by Jane Read Martin - NP
The Pigeon HAS to Go to School by Mo Willems - NP

4 ½ ★ ★ ★ ★ 1/2
The Woman in the Window by A.J. Finn - 427 p.
What Does It Feel Like? by Sophie Kinsella - 133 p.
Kills Well with Others by Deanna Raybourne - 356 p.
The Deep, Deep Snow by Brian Freeman - 354 p.

4 ★ ★ ★ ★
My Little Golden Book about Greek Gods and Goddesses by John Sazaklis
The Christmas Bookshop by Jenny Colgan - 311 p.
The Night We Lost Him by Laura Dave - 298 p.
The House Across the Lake by Riley Sage - 349 p.
The Dressmaker by Rosalie Ham - 275 p.
Death of a Green-Eyed Monster by M. C. Beaton - 224 p.
Touching Spirit Bear by Ben Mikaelsen - 241 p.
The Life We Bury by Allen Eskens - 301 p.
Your Guide to Not Getting Murdered in a Quaint English Village by Maureen Johnson - 128 p.
When Women Ran Fifth Avenue: Glamour and Power at the Dawn of American Fashion by Julie Satow - 320 p.
Quantum Physics for Babies by Chris Ferrie - n.p.

3 ½ ★ ★ ★ 1/2
Midnight at the Christmas Bookshop by Jenny Colgan - 302 p.
Bookworm by Robin Yeatman - 272 p.
Lady Fortescue Steps Out by Marion Chesney - 159 p.
The Clockmaker's Daughter by Kate Morton - 485 p.
The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning by Margareta Magnussen - 128 p.

3 ★ ★ ★

2 1/2 ★ ★ 1/2

2 ★ ★

1 ★

Did Not Finish
All the Women in my Brain and Other Concerns by Betty Gilpin

January: May your coming year be filled with magic and dreams and good madness. I hope you read some fine books and kiss someone who thinks you're wonderful. - Neil Gaiman (edited to add that while Gaiman himself might be a horrid person, he does have a way with words.)

1. The Woman in the Window: a novel by A.J. Finn - 427 p. - ★ ★ ★ ★ 1/2

2. What Does It Feel Like? by Sophie Kinsella - 133 p. - ★ ★ ★ ★ 1/2

3. My Little Golden Book about Greek Gods and Goddesses by John Sazaklis - n.p. - ★ ★ ★ ★

4. The Christmas Bookshop by Jenny Colgan - 311 p. - ★ ★ ★ ★

5. The Night We Lost Him by Laura Dave - 298 p. - ★ ★ ★ ★

February: February, a form pale-vestured, wildly fair. One of the North Wind's daughters with icicles in her hair. - Edgar Fawcett

1. Midnight at the Christmas Bookshop by Jenny Colgan - 302 p. - ★ ★ ★ 1/2

2. The House Across the Lake by Riley Sager - 349 p. - ★ ★ ★ ★

3. Orbiting Jupiter by Gary D. Schmidt - 183 p. - ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

4. Jupiter Rising by Gary D. Schmidt - 201 p. - ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

March: March came in that winter like the meekest and mildest of lambs, bringing days that were crisp and golden and tingling, each followed by a frosty pink twilight which gradually lost itself in an elfland of moonshine. - L.M. Montgomery, Anne of the Island

1. The Dressmaker by Rosalie Ham - 275 p. - ★ ★ ★ ★

2. The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah - 584 p. - ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

3. Death of a Green-Eyed Monster by M.C. Beaton - 224 p. - ★ ★ ★ ★

April: April is the cruelest month, breeding lilacs out of the dead land, mixing memory and desire, stirring dull roots with spring rain. - T.S. Eliot

1. Touching Spirit Bear by Ben Mikaelsen - 241 p. - ★ ★ ★ ★

2. Kills Well with Others by Deanna Raybourne - 356 p. - ★ ★ ★ ★ 1/2

May: May, more than any other month of the year, wants us to feel alive. - Fennel Hudson

1. The Life We Bury by Allen Eskens - 301 p. - ★ ★ ★ ★

June: In early June the world of leaf and blade and flowers explodes, and every sunset is different. - John Steinbeck - The Winter of Our Discontent

1. Your Guide to Not Getting Murdered in a Quaint English Village by Maureen Johnson - 128 p. - ★ ★ ★ ★

2. When Women Ran Fifth Avenue: Glamour and Power at the Dawn of American Fashion by Julie Satow - 320 p. - ★ ★ ★ ★

3. Bookworm by Robin Yeatman - 272 - ★ ★ ★ 1/2

July: The Summer looks out of her brazen tower, through the flashing bars of July. - Francis Thompson

1. The Deep, Deep Snow by Brian Freeman - 354 p. - ★ ★ ★ ★ 1/2

2. Lady Fortescue Steps Out by Marion Chesney - 159 p. - ★ ★ ★ 1/2

August: August rain: the best of summer gone, and the new fall not yet born. The odd uneven time. - Sylvia Plath - August 1952 journal entry

1. Quantum Physics for Babies by Chris Ferrie - ★ ★ ★ ★

2. The Clockmaker's Daughter by Kate Morton - 485 p. - ★ ★ ★ 1/2

3. Now Everybody Really Hates Me by Jane Read Martin - NP - ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

September: That old September feeling, left over from school days, of summer passing, vacation nearly done, obligations gathering, books and football in the air . . . Another fall, another turned page: there was something of jubilee in that annual autumnal beginning, as if last year's mistakes had been wiped clean by summer. - Wallace Stegner - Angle of Repose

October: In the entire circle of the year, there are no days so delightful as those of a fine October. - Alexander Smith

1. The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning by Margareta Magnussen - 128 p. - ★ ★ ★ 1/2

November: In November, the earth is growing quiet. It is making its bed, a winter bed for flowers and small creatures. The bed is white and silent, and much life can hide beneath its blankets. - Cynthia Rylant - In November

December: God gave us memory so that we might have roses in December. - James M. Barrie

The Pigeon HAS to Go to School by Mo Willems

>1 Hope_H: Happy Reading! ☺️

Wow, Hope. You always amaze me with your monthly categories and this year you have outdone yourself with your timely quotes. Much success in your reading in 2025 🥂!

The Woman in the Window: a novel by A.J. Finn - 427 p. - ★ ★ ★ ★ 1/2

FYI - I can't find the correct touchstone for this one.

Anna Fox lives alone in her large New York City house. Suffering from agoraphobia, she spends her days watching old movies, drinking too much wine, and spying on her neighbors. When a new family moves in across the park from her, she meets the teenage son, spends a drunken afternoon with his mother and briefly meets his father. Then she sees something - the mother has been stabbed. She tries to go outside to help, and as the days go by, tries to distinguish reality from fantasy and imagination, where things aren't always what they seem.

It took me a while to get into this one. I thought the first third of the book was fairly slow - it didn't demand that I pick it up and continue reading. There was a lot of ground that needed to be covered, though. Also, I didn't really like Anna. For God's sake - put down the merlot and go take a shower! However, once I got to the possible murder, it started to pick up speed. The last third of the book flew by and I could not put it down, staying up til after 2:00 this morning to finish it. Early on, I had a hunch as to what would happen, but as the story progressed, I talked myself out of it. I shouldn't have! I just didn't see the clues when they were presented. An excellent read - except I still wanted her take a shower once in a while.

What Does It Feel Like? by Sophie Kinsella -
133 p. - ★ ★ ★ ★ 1/2

Author Eve Monroe has incredible luck. She has a fantastic husband, five great children, and a backlist of best sellers. Her latest book was made into a movie and she's walked the red carpet. Until her luck runs out. She wakes up in the hospital, having had surgery for a stage 4 glioblastoma - brain cancer. She has to relearn walking, talking, and writing. As she and her husband confront her illness, she knows what is most important to her: her ordinary life with her family.

I thought I was going to be reading one of Kinsella's light, cute, humorous romances. While there is humor, it isn't light or cute, but it is a beautiful love story. Wow - this one blew me away. My mom faced a cancer diagnosis when I was twelve. Her doctor's goal at the time: keep her alive for two years. Fortunately, he kept her alive for over 40. The other reason I'm blown away: this is Sophie Kinsella's fictionalized account of her own brain tumor, treatment, and family's response. A beautiful read.

My Little Golden Book about Greek Gods and Goddesses by John Sazaklis
n.p. - ★ ★ ★ ★

Having spent some years of my teaching career in the English classroom and having taught the Evslin books of the Greek gods and goddesses, I was pleased to find this Little Golden Book about the ancient Greek deities. It gives an illustration of each member of the pantheon and a brief description of their purpose. This would have been handy in the classroom!

I needed a book with a face on the cover for my library's reading challenge. None of my "up next" books had that, so when putting away the Christmas gifts, I noticed Athena's face looking at me from the cover. Mission accomplished.

The Christmas Bookshop by Jenny Colgan
311 p. - ★ ★ ★ ★

Carmen doesn't relish the idea of spending Christmas with her perfect older sister Sofia, Sofia's perfect family, in her perfect house. Sofia is a lawyer in Edinburgh. She's expecting her fourth child, and needs help with a client who is about to lose his dusty old bookshop. Since Carmen is recently unemployed from her retail position, she begrudgingly takes the job and moves into Sofia's basement where she tries her best to avoid the insufferable nanny and the three children. As Carmen settles into McCredie's Bookshop, she tries to breathe some life into it. This includes digging out Mr. McCredie's old train set and a doll house, and arranging for some gruesome children's story times and a popular author's visit. Throw in a cute visiting professor and a little magical realism, and you have a delightful read!

A charming novel. I picked this book up few days before Christmas from the public library because the cover was cute. The story is too! There is one sequel, which I will get when I go into town tomorrow. I'll probably read more of Colgan's books since I really enjoyed this one.

The Night We Lost Him by Laura Dave
298 p. - ★ ★ ★ ★

Liam Noone was many things to many people. He was the CEO of the luxury hotel chain. He was a friend to two of his three ex-wives. He was the distant but loving father to his three children. And there was side of him that very few people knew. When he dies at his coastal California home, the authorities say he fell. One of his sons, Sam, thinks he was pushed. Sam contacts Nora, his estranged half-sister. She is drowning in grief, having lost both her mother and father within a few months of each other. Sam convinces Nora to go to California and help him investigate. Once they start, Nora questions whether she ever really knew her father as she uncovers long-hidden family secrets.

I think everyone, at some point, questions how good of a son or daughter they were. Nora, with her raw grief, questions this every time she uncovers something new about her father. There was a lot to uncover - with the story jumping from the present to back 40+ years ago when Liam first met Cory and the paths their lives took. A good story - part mystery and part family saga.

Midnight at the Christmas Bookshop by Jenny Colgan
302 p. - ★ ★ ★ 1/2

Carmen Hogan has had a memorable, although kind of miserable, year. She's broken up with Oke, who went back to Brazil for a study in the depths of the rain forest with his old friend Mary. She's still at McCredie's, where they are hanging on by a thread. Mr. McCredie is considering selling out to Jack McClockerty, who sells touristy tartan junk. The money will give Mr. McCredie enough to go on a trip to the Antarctic - something he's always dreamed of. And her sister Sophia really wants her out of her room in the basement.

A nice sequel to The Christmas Bookshop. Carmen is still her awkward, funny, and quirky self, Oke is his quiet self, and Sophia is still the bossy older sister. I really liked seeing the relationships among the Victoria Street merchants play out. Cute.

The House Across the Lake by Riley Sager
349 p. - ★ ★ ★ ★

Casey Fletcher, an award-winning actress, has been sent to her Vermont lakeside cabin by her A-list actress mother. Casey, mourning the death of her husband, has turned to alcohol to ease her pain. Fired from her last Broadway show for being drunk on the job, she's supposed to be drying out. Instead, she drinks her way through her days and evenings. One day, she sees something in the lake and winds up rescuing the famous Katherine Royce, who lives with her husband Tom in the house across the lake. Casey is drawn to Katherine, and she begins to observe Katherine's life through her binoculars. A few days later, Katherine is missing, leaving Casey to wonder what she has seen when looking at the house across the lake.

Another one that had a slow start, but this soon picked up speed. I finished the last 125 pages at 3:00 a.m. because I knew I wouldn't sleep trying to figure out what had happened to Katherine. The ultimate "explanation" is a little meh - almost ridiculous. But the storytelling is good and the characters began to grow on me. (Another drunken heroine who needed to take a shower once in a while . . . wonder what I can read in March to match that!)

Orbiting Jupiter by Gary D. Schmidt
183 p. - ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Jack, a 6th grader, knows only a few things about his new foster brother, Joseph. Joseph is in 8th grade. He has served time in a juvenile facility for assaulting a teacher. Joseph is father to a newborn daughter Jupiter, whom he has never seen. As Joseph slowly learns to trust his new foster family, he starts to share his heartbreaking story, and Jack begins to realize just how far he will go to protect Joseph and his dream of seeing Jupiter.

This was one of my favorite books to recommend to my middle schoolers who wanted something sad or emotional. The first time I read it - in 2015 - I was ugly crying at school. (A few years ago, an 8th graders cried in my office for an entire class period over this book. After I had her finish the last chapter, she came back crying for the next period. I get it, Joscelyn - I ugly cried, too.) I love this story. But I needed to refresh my memory of what happened in it because THERE IS A SEQUEL! And I have it. And around page 30, I decided I needed a refresh. So the sequel was paused and the reread commenced. A haunting, beautiful book.

Set in Maine.

Jupiter Rising by Gary D. Schmidt
201 p. - ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Things haven't been going so great for Jack Hurd. The coach pairs him with sophomore Jay Perkins to work with Jack on his cross country skills. Jay doesn't like Jack and Jack doesn't like Jay - ever since the day Jay tried to beat up Jack's foster brother Joseph and Jack helped Joseph fight off Jay. The boys begin to grudgingly respect each other, when Jack's family gets the devastating news. Their adoption of Jupiter is being contested by her maternal grandparents. Could the universe - just this once - get things right?

A beautiful sequel to Orbiting Jupiter.

The Dressmaker by Rosalie Ham
275 p. - ★ ★ ★ ★

Love, revenge, and fashion meet in Ham's The Dressmaker. Tillie Dunnage was banished from her small Australian town as a child. Nearly twenty years later, she returns to check on her mother, whom the locals refer to as "Mad Molly." She decides to stay, and even though she is still an outcast, she attracts the attention of Teddy, whose family is almost as despised as Tillie's. However, her friendship with the local police officer and her knack for creating designer fashions get her a foot in the door with the local women. But after tragedy strikes yet again, Tillie begins to exact revenge on those who wronged her.

I found all of the characters a bit overwhelming at first. But as we began to learn their secrets (usually something involving sex) they became clearer. My heart went out to the young Tillie, and I certainly understood her motivations at the end. But the end did blow me away! Did not see that coming! And I've just now discovered there is a sequel to it! I am going to see if it is available through Bridges/Overdrive right now.

The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah
584 p. - ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

From Amazon: France, 1939 - In the quiet village of Carriveau, Vianne Mauriac says goodbye to her husband, Antoine, as he heads for the Front. She doesn't believe that the Nazis will invade France … but invade they do, in droves of marching soldiers, in caravans of trucks and tanks, in planes that fill the skies and drop bombs upon the innocent. When a German captain requisitions Vianne's home, she and her daughter must live with the enemy or lose everything. Without food or money or hope, as danger escalates all around them, she is forced to make one impossible choice after another to keep her family alive.

Vianne's sister, Isabelle, is a rebellious eighteen-year-old girl, searching for purpose with all the reckless passion of youth. While thousands of Parisians march into the unknown terrors of war, she meets Gäetan, a partisan who believes the French can fight the Nazis from within France, and she falls in love as only the young can … completely. But when he betrays her, Isabelle joins the Resistance and never looks back, risking her life time and again to save others.

The Nightingale tells the stories of two sisters, separated by years and experience, by ideals, passion and circumstance, each embarking on her own dangerous path toward survival, love, and freedom in German-occupied, war-torn France.

Wow - I was blown away by this book. The story itself is beautiful - a testament to the women who worked in the Resistance during World War II. It is beautifully written - so many lines I wanted to write down but didn't want to put the book down. I'm also a little afraid of the parallels I saw between the 1940's and today. I'm adding Hannah's other works to by TBR.

Death of a Green-Eyed Monster by M.C. Beaton
224 p. - ★ ★ ★ ★

One of the Hamish McBeth books completed after the death of M.C. Beaton, this is a solid addition to the series. Hamish gets a new constable - Dorothy McIver. She quickly wins over the locals and Hamish. A brutal murder and the attempted murder of a local man, though, cause them to investigate, and it seems the seedy underworld crime in Glasgow once again spill over into McBeth's beloved Highlands.

I had kind of given up on Beaton's novels, but this one might draw me back in! I was pleasantly surprised by it, and I enjoyed seeing Jimmy Anderson and several of the village residents and Hamish's former coworkers.

Touching Spirit Bear by Ben Mikaelsen - 241 p. - ★ ★ ★ ★

Cole, a boy from Minneapolis, is in serious trouble. He has severely beaten a classmate, causing some permanent injuries. He can either be incarcerated, or through Circle Justice, he can spend a year in isolation on a remote Alaskan island. He agrees to the isolation, faking humility and remorse. However, his anger frequently gets the best of him, and it does when he first arrives on the island and meets the spirit bear. A second chance presents itself, and Cole must figure out his actions and redemption.

I subbed for our 6th grade ELA teacher last week for three days. While there, I read aloud four chapters of this book. Those four chapters were so good, I had to take it home and read the whole thing! Parts were a little gruesome for the 6th graders - as I was reading aloud, I could see their faces, and today when I was back (NOTE TO SELF: NEVER SUB AGAIN ON APRIL 1ST) we talked about some of that. I'm getting the sequel through ILL (if we can still get ILL books after cutting IMLS) and I would love a book about Edwin's and Garvey's back stories.

Kills Well with Others by Deanna Raybourne
356 p. - ★ ★ ★ ★ 1/2

The assassins from Killers of a Certain Age are back! Naomi calls the four - Billie, Natalie, Mary Alice, and Helen - together to let them know there has been a data breech, and someone is probably after them. Revisiting one of their first killings, they must investigate everything they knew about the case. They also try to figure out who the mole in the organization is, because that person is setting them up to be killed. When they eliminate the person they think has killed a fellow agent (different department - this one was in Provenance) - they discover that their problems run deeper and they go back to square one with the earlier case. From New York to Greece to Italy to Montenegro, the four are back in fine form.

Yea! A good sequel - although I didn't remember some details from the first book. And one thread was completely dropped from this one, so I'm guessing that is the one that another sequel will be tied to. (For my reference: Isabelle - children's party - corkscrew - Constance)

The Life We Bury by Allen Eskens
301 p. - ★ ★ ★ ★

Minnesota college student Joe Talbert has an English class assignment for the semester. He is to interview a stranger and write a brief biography. Joe figures an elderly person will have a lot to talk about, so he heads to a nearby nursing home. There he meets Carl Iverson, a dying Vietnam veteran. He is also a convicted murderer. Joe tries to reconcile the heroic soldier's actions with the rape and murder of a fourteen-year-old girl. With the help of his neighbor Lila, Joe tries to uncover the truth, all while dealing with his dysfunctional mother, autistic brother Jeremy, and his mother's abusive boyfriend. As Joe and Lila dig deeper into Iverson's past and his trial, the stakes grow higher and more menacing.

Oooh - this was a good one! And now there are like five books in the series! Guess what I'm adding to my TBR!

All the Women in My Brain and Other Concerns by Betty Gilpin
DNF

Sorry - this one was just too random for me. I feel kind of bad - I had asked my public library to order it a few years ago and they did. I had seen Betty Gilpin on Stephen Colbert (I think) and thought she was hilarious. I expected better from the book. Maybe if I had gotten into it . . . but I just couldn't. Sorry, Betty.

Your Guide to Not Getting Murdered in a Quaint English Village by Maureen Johnson
128 p. - ★ ★ ★ ★

Do not visit any quaint English village. If you do, do not attend a fete, speak with the vicar, or go to the local pub. If you happen to wind up in an English Murder Village, it will be the last place you'll ever visit! This guidebook lists all of the places, people, and events in the quaint village and nearby manor that you should avoid and why you should avoid them. (Stay out of the church - a visit to the belltower can be fatal!)

A cute book with great line drawings by Jay Cooper (reminiscent of Edward Gorey) filled with somewhat dark humor about all those quaint English villages we've visited in various mysteries.

When Women Ran Fifth Avenue: Glamour and Power at the Dawn of American Fashion by Julie Satow
320 p. - ★ ★ ★ ★

This is a fascinating look at the American department store from the beginning of the 20th century into the early years of the 21st century and three women who led the way: Hortense Odlum at Bonwit Teller, Dorothy Shaver at Lord and Taylor, and Geraldine Stutz at Henri Bendel. These women championed women in the workforce and American designers. They led their stores through many changes in the retail landscape.

A fascinating look at how the American department store developed. My biggest problem with the book was keeping all of the players straight. Maybe if I had ever been to any of their stores, I could have done better. Even at the end, I felt I needed a scorecard. As most of the big department stores around my part of the world have closed, I just want to say that I REALLY miss those big old stores!

Bookworm by Robin Yeatman
272 - ★ ★ ★ 1/2

Victoria is unhappily married to Eric, a controlling and ambitious lawyer. He's consumed with making partner. She's a massage therapist in a spa. They live a bland, spotless life in their bland spotless Montreal apartment. Victoria, though, is a bookworm and a people-watcher, making up their stories in her head. One day in her favorite cafe/coffee shop, she sees an attractive man reading the same novel she is. It must be fate! He must be her soulmate. The problem: Victoria is already married. Pulling from all of the stories she's read, and the ones she's made up in her head, she tries to come up with a solution. At first, it's harmless fantasy, and then . . .

I really wanted to love this book. But I didn't. The only reason I gave it higher than a 2.5 or 3 is because the last 20 pages really clicked. There's a heavy dose of magical realism, which I don't care for. There were a few literary references that I'm not sure were entirely accurate. And none of the characters - Victoria, Eric, Holly, or Luke - were all that likeable. But the last 20 pages - I could overlook all the problems because of the dark humor.

The Deep, Deep Snow by Brian Freeman
354 p. - ★ ★ ★ ★ 1/2

Deputy Shelby Lake, daughter of Sheriff Tim Ginn, is herself a mystery, having been left on the Sheriff's doorstep when she was an infant. Now she has another mystery to solve - what happened to 10-year-old Jeremiah Sloan? He was last seen riding his bike back toward his father's ranger station in the Minnesota northwoods. His bike was found by the side of the road. No body can be found. Secrets are uncovered, but Jeremiah cannot be found. Ten years later, the case has grown cold, but a chance discovery brings the investigation back to the forefront, with more lives being endangered.

Wow - this was an excellent tale! Parts of it I had figured out, but other parts I had not. I would love this to be a continuing series!

Lady Fortescue Steps Out by Marion Chesney
159 p. - ★ ★ ★ 1/2

"It is a melancholy truth that even great men have their poor relations." - Charles Dickens. Lady Fortescue is the Duke of Rowcester's poor relations. She has sold everything in her home that she can, hanging on to her house and two older servants that she hasn't paid in ages. One day in Hyde Park, an elderly gentleman - Colonel Sandhurst - faints from hunger. Lady Fortescue takes him to her home and together they hatch a plan: find others in their situation and live together in her house. They find Miss Tonks, whose sister doesn't send her enough, and Mrs. Budley, whose late husband left her saddled with with debts. They find Sir Phillip, an elderly shyster, and the beautiful Miss James, who had once caught the eye of Rowcester. Together, they live fairly well, and decide to turn the home into a hotel - The Poor Relations. The original hope is that their relatives will be embarrassed and buy them out, but they discover they have a knack for the business and they enjoy it!

A cute story! Also, it was written when Chesney (M.C. Beaton) was on top of her game. There are five sequels, and I will be reading them!

Quantum Physics for Babies by Chris Ferrie
N.P. - ★ ★ ★ ★

Nice little book that starts little ones thinking about science. Kind of wished I'd had this at the middle school level for the kids who were totally lost!

The Clockmaker's Daughter by Kate Morton
485 p. - ★ ★ ★ 1/2

In the depths of a 19th-century winter, a little girl is abandoned on the streets of Victorian London. She grows up to become in turn a thief, an artist’s muse, and a lover. In the summer of 1862, shortly after her eighteenth birthday, she travels with a group of artists to a beautiful house on a bend of the Upper Thames. Tensions simmer and one hot afternoon a gunshot rings out. A woman is killed, another disappears, and the truth of what happened slips through the cracks of time. In 1928, Leonard, having been wounded in WWI and feeling guilty over his brother's death, comes to Birchwood to study the artist Edward Radcliffe and his work. He uncovers part of the mystery of Birchwood Manor, and in the early years of WWII, the house is occupied by Juliet and her children, who fled there after their London house was bombed. Years later, both Juliet's granddaughter and great granddaughter each visit Birchwood Manor, having been drawn there by family lore and the secrets of the house. A century later when Elodie is drawn to Birchwood Manor that its secrets are finally revealed.

I really debated giving this a four-star rating. On one hand, I loved the complexity of the novel. I always love Kate Morton's books, and their complexity is part of the reason. I loved the character of Birdie, and I loved the character of Elodie. I also liked Elodie's line of work as an archivist (Yea! for history and library science!) What I didn't like: Did two of the major characters have to have similar names - Lily and Lucy. I had to really think which one I was reading about or which one was narrating. As with Morton's other books, I kind of needed a scorecard - especially at the beginning of the novel. There were more characters in this one that I did not care for, especially in the modern setting. I also had to go back and reread a little, as part way through the novel I had forgotten the story about the Eldritch Children, whose story set the entire manor house history in motion. Lastly, the story was a little overlong. I think it could have been tightened up some.

Overall, a very satisfying read.

Now Everybody Really Hates Me by Jane Read Martin
NP - ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

This is one of my favorite children's books. Patty Jane has been sent to her room because she hit her brother Theodore (she says she didn't hit him - she only touched him hard) during his birthday party. She is never going to leave her room. But she will tunnel out of her room so she can go to Lisa's slumber party next week. She will use her pointy-toed shoes to tunnel. She will tunnel into Theodore's room and take all of his birthday presents, except for the clothes, which she hopes he gets a lot of.

I read this to five-year-old Kolbie. Seven-year-old Blakelee - who didn't want to be read to - said, "Hmmm. That sounds like me." Yep, Kiddo, it does.

The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning by Margareta Magnusson
128 p. - ★ ★ ★ 1/2

In an informal, chatty "conversation," Magnusson looks at the "why" of death cleaning as well as the "how." No new ground covered, but she does give "permission" for keeping certain things - letters, photos, kids' artwork, etc. Some things go into a box that should be destroyed upon death.

Having cleaned out my parents' homes (twice - once when they moved off the farm and once the apartment they moved into) and my parents-in-law's home, I promised my kids I would try to do better. I think I should start now - I have a lot of stuff! I did like Magnusson's approach of completing one room each week.