Actually, I just finished a book, a marvelous book that made me nostalgic for the years when I was an adolescent reader. Author Ann Hood is only a few months older than me, so some of the books that she read and loved were ones I read around the same age. She talks about them in a wonderful book that is scheduled for release on August 1,Morningstar: Growing Up with Books. We didn’t have the same childhood, and I was lucky to have a public library for all of my reading youth, which Hood did not. But, we shared one memory she only touches on.
How many of you remember the Childhood of Famous Americans series? Hood describes them as orange-covered, and they were in the Huron Public Library where I read them. On LibraryThing, there is a list of those books. https://www.librarything.com/series/Childhood+of+Famous+Americans The titles bring back such memories! I remember Elizabeth Blackwell: Girl Doctor. I know I read Annie Oakley: Little Sure Shot, and I was positive that an insect would fly into my ear, and then I’d go deaf or die from it. I read Lotta Crabtree: Gold Rush Girl. I know I read all of them the library had, which wasn’t a lot. When I look at that list on LibraryThing, I wish we’d had more of them.
Memories. The book I just read brought back memories. What are you reading right now? Is it a book that resonates with you? I hope you’re enjoying whatever book you’re going to share with us!
I am reading The Promise Girls by Marie Bostwick.
Just finished SNOWBLIND by Ragnar Jonasson yesterday, and though I liked the first in his Icelandic mystery series, I would not rave about it the way some reviewers have. I'll have to see how the series develops.
Now reading POLICE AT THE STATION AND THEY DON'T LOOK FRIENDLY (great title), latest in Adrian McKinty's Sean Duffy series, set in 1980s Northern Ireland. Also Joe R. Lansdale's short story collection, HAP AND LEONARD: BLOOD AND LEMONADE.
Just finished NEVER LET YOU GO by Chevy Stevens. WOW!!! That lady can write!
Just started rereading Elmore Leonard's THE MOONSHINE WAR. Also read a few chapters from Roy Huggins' THE DOUBLE TAKE, which I haven't read previously, despite having had a copy for many years.
The Promise Girls is a slight departure for Marie Bostwick, isn't it, Sharon?
Isn't that an unusual title, Jeff? You'll have to tell me what you thought. I liked it, but, as I said, I hadn't read previous ones in the Sean Duffy series.
I have Snowblind on a TBR pile.
Chevy Stevens scares me, Karen.
Like you, Bill, I have mountains of TBR books that I just haven't had a chance to read. I'll get to them someday.
Sharing time again, 😊
I finished Rosemary's Gravy by Melissa F Miller.
Almost at the end of Dead Peasants by Larry D Thompson. Have two books written by him on hold at the library.
I am also reading Thyme to Live by Melissa F Miller. When I finish this it will be the last of her till the new one comes out this month. Sad knowing that when I read it there will not be a new one for a year. Her books are in three series so far. I like the Sasha McCandless series the best and the new book will be from that series. My second favorite is the Aroostine Higgins series.
Hope you all have plenty of time for reading this week.
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Bill, I thought that Huggins book was great when I read it, in 1977! Can't believe you've never read it before.
I am readings several ARCs, so not tackling my overwhelming TBR mountain.
THE ART OF VANISHING by Cynthia Kuhn is a fun read so far and I have not read an academic mystery for a while.
NO WAY HOME by Annette Dashofy… I love this series with a female paramedic protagonist.
Jack Batten who is a Canadian author who has written his series over the past 30 years but is probably not well known but BLOOD COUNT is his latest book.
There is a big gap in time between books…only 7 Crang books written but I do enjoy his wise-cracking lawyer protagonist and it's rare to read a mystery book set in Toronto.
I just finished Boomer's Bucket List. It was a quick read about a woman who takes a month off from her job to travel Rt. 66 with her dying dog. Of course she meets a man along the way. Not what I usually read but I wanted a break from the mysteries I'd been reading.
Jeff: I think you will have a long wait until the rest of the Dark Iceland series is available in the US. But one tip: if possible, do NOT read them in order of publication since they were released not in chronological order. NIGHTBLIND is the second book published but is set 5 years after SNOWBLIND. Whereas BLACKOUT is set 6 months after SNOWBLIND and RUPTURE is set another year later. I don't understand why the publisher decided to publish them out of order. Book 5 will be published in English in time for Bouchercon and Ragnar Jonasson is coming to Toronto!
Grace, I really like Annette Dashofy's series too.
Sandy: NO WAY HOME is a bit different than the previous books and I am liking it so far. The story starts in her usual setting of rural Pennsylvania but Zoe also travels to a remote part of New Mexico.
Lesa, I read every one of those children's biographies at my public library, starting at the age of eight. I think I worked through them all within two years. Augusta Stevenson wrote some of them; her name has stuck in my memory for some reason!
Currently reading a classic author, Elizabeth Daly, NOTHING CAN RESCUE ME. She was allegedly Agatha Christie's favorite American detective story writer. Thanks to Felony & Mayhem Press, her books are available again. She's an inspiration to older adults who want to be published. She didn't become a published novelist until she was 65.
I'm reading fiction and non-fiction today. WINTER AND NIGHT by S.J. Rozan and RACECRAFT by Karen E. Fields and Barbara J. Fields. Both are excellent. RACECRAFT came to me via ILL. I live on a county line so I have access to two wonderful public library systems.
Reading Death and Taxes by David Dodge. I read Plunder of The Sun when Hard Case Crime re-published it, and watched the movie based on that book.
This one features a different sleuth, but I picked it up when I saw it.
I love reading all of your comments. Thank you. Miranda, I'm jealous. Our library was in a small town, and we didn't have a large number of those biographies. But, I loved them.
I read some of Elizabeth Daly's books years ago when I learned she was Agatha Christie's favorite author. I don't remember anything about them, though, other than I enjoyed them.
Thanks, everyone!
Just started Kale to the Queen.
I am not familiar with the books you are talking about, but I'm sure I would have devoured them as a kid. I remember a huge amount of Lois Lenski books at our library–far beyond the lone Strawberry Girl you find nowadays, if you are lucky. I always liked Prairie School, and she did the illustrations for some of my other favorite books as a kid, the early Betsy Tacy ones!
I loved the Betsy Tacy books, holdenj! I read all of those! We didn't have a lot of Lois Lenski books. I don't remember Prairie School. I probably would have read it, though.
Grace, thanks for the tip on the Dark Iceland books. Why do publishers do that?
Jeff: I have no idea why this publisher (Orenda books) decided to translate and release the first 4 Dark Iceland books out of order…really weird! I was lucky to buy book 1 via Book Depository (UK) and books 2-4 in Reykjavik and then binge read them in the "correct" order. I like the development of the main characters and the claustrophobic Icelandic atmosphere in each book. The crimes (murders) in each book are secondary. I also found the book were becoming more complex so Jonasson is becoming a more confident, better writer.
Holdenj: I enjoyed reading KALE TO THE QUEEN. I really like culinary mysteries and this was a strong debut.
Miranda: It's interesting to learn that Elizabeth Daly was Agatha Christie's favourite American mystery writer. I just perused my library and see that I own 14 of Elizabeth Daly's books. I agree with Lesa that the Gamadge books are not particularly memorable …I read them about 20-25 years ago. but it's good to know that they are being re-issued by Felony and Mayhem Press.
I am looking forward to reading this one, Lesa. Right now I'm reading an ARC of Catriona McPherson's "House. Tree. Person." It is excellent!
I'm so happy, Kaye, to see Catriona doing so well.
Just found this e-mail! Reading Hazard by Margaret Combs,she has a severely autistic brother like me and had a completely different reaction from me so that made me want to read her book. Also listening to Rescue by Anita Shreve.