|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Books I'm reading now:
· Graveyard Dust, by Barbara Hambly. In 1834 New Orleans, Benjamin January, is a free man of color, educated as both a doctor and a musician. When his sister, Olympe, is accused of assisting with a murder, he wants to help. · Refuse to Choose, by Barbara Sher. According to Ms. Sher's description, I am a scanner. Unlike the divers who make up the rest of the world and who can take a career and make it their own for their entire lives, I am just not built to follow just one track. Instead I have several passions and interests, and if I try to focus on just one, to the exclusion of the others, I'm not being the best me I can be. This book has lots of advice about how to accommodate passionate interests in diverse occupations. It answers a lot of my questions about why it has been so hard for me to put all of my energy into my career. · Recent reads: · Minerva Clark Gets a Clue.**** This is young adult fiction, but I enjoyed it anyway. Minerva Clark is an awkward thirteen year old who is in awe of her gorgeous, beauty-queen cousin. Minerva participates in an experiment which goes wrong, and her brain gets a big shock from a lightning strike. When she regains consciousness, she's no longer shy and embarrassed about her body, as most thirteen year olds are. Instead she can focus her attention on other, more important things. Like who killed her cousin's friend, the bookstore manager. · A Girl from Zanzibar, by Roger King.***** The story about an extraordinary woman of Indian heritage, born on the African island of Zanzibar. The island is way too small to hold her. Her travels, from Zanzibar to England, to London and then to a British prison, are told as she starts a new life as a college professor in Vermont. It gave me insight into what it's like to be an immigrant from a third world country. She's such an amazing person, always manages to come out on top, no matter what misfortunes life throws at her. · A Vision of Murder, by Victoria Laurie.*** The main character, a professional psychic, buys a house with the intention of renovating it, but the ghosts inside are so violent that nobody can stay inside long enough to make any progress. She traces their origin to the father of a local jeweler, and unravels the story that can finally put their souls to rest. · Booked to Die, by John Dunning.* About a disgraced cop who becomes a rare book dealer. I haven't finished this book. About 25 pages into it there's a graphic description of a pet doberman pinscher who was killed by his owner, the bad guy. He was hung. The description upset me so much I had to stop reading. I hope to pick it up at a later date, because it's supposed to be a good story. I just have a hard time with animal cruelty, even if it's fictional. · The Brethren, by John Grisham.*** Three disgraced former judges, now in prison, come up with a scam that could make them all very rich. I was disappointed in this book, I usually enjoy Grisham's work much more than this. The judges were scum, and it sure seemed to me that they didn't get what they deserved. But, you know, a bad John Grisham is still better than a lot of other books that I've read. · A Cry from the Dark, by Robert Barnard.*** Successful, seventy-something novelist living in London, relives her Australian childhood while writing her memiors. While you learn about a traumatic event that was a turning point in her teens, the elderly novelist discovers that somebody is trying to kill her. Who could it possible be? And who was that brutal rapist from her distant past? · The Prophecy of the Stones, by Flavia Bujor.** Three teenage girls are destined to help save a world of castles, swords and magic, from an evil ruler who controls people with his mind. This novel, originally written in French, is a not-bad effort by a fifteen year old. · Lead a Horse to Murder, by Cynthia Baxter.* Long Island veterinarian Jessica Popper gets involved with the polo set when a promising young player dies in an accident which turns out to have been murder. I didn't care for this book. I loved her prior one, Putting on the Dog, but I'm not interested in polo. This one was a trudge. · The Rule of Four, by Ian Caldwell and Dustin Thomason.*** Harvard kids try to decipher the puzzle in a manuscript from fifteenth century Italy. The puzzle didn't interest me, but I liked the characters and cared what happened to them, so I kept reading. I'm pretty sure I understood the ending, and if I did I liked it. · Bag of Bones, by Stephen King.***** Grieving young widower/author has bad dreams, goes to his vacation home to chill out. There he's haunted by ghosts, harassed by a crazy rich guy, and falls in love with a sweet young thing. I couldn't read this at bedtime. I liked this book much more than the last Stephen King book I read. · Women & Dogs, by Judith Watt and Peter Dyer.**** This is a picture book showing famous women of the last 150 years or so with their dogs. There is also a brief note about each woman's relationship with dogs. From Sarah Bernhardt to Felicity Huffman, it's amazing the ground it covers. It boggles my mind to think of the number of dog generations that have gone by since Sara Bernhardt's dog went over the Rainbow Bridge. Isak Denisen's story about losing a beloved greyhound to a zebra's death throes made me cry. · Be, by A.C. Ping.**** Good book for anyone trying to decide what they want to do next. · Savannah Blues, by Mary Kay Andrews.*** Weezie Foley is a feisty divorcee living next door to her ex husband. She has the extraordinary bad luck to be the only one there when her ex's fiancée's dead body falls out of a bathroom closet. But being arrested and under suspicion by her neighbors doesn't stop her from pursuing her passion for antiques and a hunky chef. What a great girlfriend story! · The Retirement Catch-Up Guide, by Ellen Hoffman.*** Really good, understandable advice about planning for retirement. Unfortunately, it's a little out-of-date; it was published in 2000. A lot of financial advice is perennial, you just have to weed out the stuff that no longer applies in our post-9/11 world, e.g., dot-com stocks are obviously no longer a good bet. · Reinventing the Rest of our Lives, by Susanne Braun Levine.**** Helped me to realize that I'm not going crazy! Lots of women my age begin to question the path they've spent a lifetime pursuing. · The Snack Thief, by Andrea Camilleri. *** Good mystery. Snuck up on me. By the time I get to the end I couldn't put it down. But I found I wasn't engaged by his characters, and I wondered, "Why do I care what happens next?". · Smoky Mountain Tracks, by Donna Ball.**** How can you go wrong with a mystery novel about a woman who works with a rescue dog? This is the first of a series that shows a lot of promise. · Tapping the Dream Tree, by Charles de Lint.***** Mr. de Lint is one of the few authors who can publish a collection of short stories that I'll buy sight unseen because I know I'll enjoy them. Most of the stories take place in his fictional Canadian city of Newford. Regular characters pop up here and there, sometimes they're central to the story and sometimes they take supporting roles. Authors I like: Sherri Tepper · Sophisticated science fiction from a woman's perspective, commentary on current issues. This is a genuine, bona fide Wise Woman and I wish more people would read her stuff! · My favorites so far: Raising the Stones; Family Tree Charles DeLint · Urban fantasy. What lurks beyond our consciousness? What if there really is another world beyond what we can detect with our traditional five senses? His characters are three-dimensional and show up again and again, like old friends you haven't seen in awhile. · My favorites so far: Svaha; The Onion Girl Tim Myers · Feel-good mystery fiction. Wonderful characters you just want to hang out with. · My favorites so far: Anything in the candlemaker's series. Sue Grafton · Private detective Kinsey Milhone is tough on the outside and vulnerable on the inside. She's so painfully honest with her readers. I'd love to have her as a best friend! And her pals would be good to hang out with, too · My favorites so far: All of them. Every book is better than the one before it. Tony Hillerman · Mr. Hillerman is so good at making you feel like you're right there, where it's all happening. · My favorites so far: Thief of Time. In the opening scene you can almost feel the air against your skin as it cools in the gathering dusk.. Also, A Fly on the Wall. Margaret Coel · A great blend of Sue Grafton and Tony Hillerman. Her characters are people I'd love to have as friends. And they're a part of an Indian culture that she's educating me about. · My favorite so far: The second novel, The Ghost Walker. John Grisham · He starts out slow, but by the time you reach the middle of the book you can hardly bear to put it down. · My favorites so far: The Testament; The Last Juror. Nancy Atherton · The ultimate fantasy: you're poor and broke and starving, and suddenly you inherit a fortune, an English cottage, a loving husband and a mentor who's a ghost! · My favorite so far: The first novel, Aunt Dimity's Death. |
|