Hello everyone! Hope you've had a good week and your life and reading are going well enough. I've just gotten back in from my morning walk and it was quite comfortable if not a little cool. Without a jacket anyway. Our first fall cold front came a couple of days ago and our morning temps were in the high 40's yesterday and it was maybe 50 or 51 this morning. This too shall pass, but I think I can wave the humid mid-70's goodbye for this year - early morning anyway.
I'm continuing to get connected in my new community and have begun my book-shelving volunteer work at the library. I enjoy that job and it's peaceful and quiet in this new library. I worked at the 'Friends of the Library' bookstore on Wednesday and that venture has become such a fun time. I went to the 'Talking Texas' Book Group yesterday and I'll share a bit about that time. I'm also planning on going to an author event on Saturday afternoon that I'll talk about next week.
For the 'Talking Texas' Book Group, we discussed water. Ha! The book we read was A Thirsty Land: The Fight For Water In Texas by Seamus McGraw. I found the book more interesting than I imagined when I first started it and the discussion was brisk. Lots of talk about conservation among the members and people sharing their favorite parts. I'm not the biggest fan of non-fiction, but I think that doing some reading with book groups here will be informative. Next month this group will switch to a fiction book (a mystery, yay!), Bluebird, Bluebird by Attica Locke. I've had this one on my TBR for a long time and look forward to reading it.
As to my RIP reading, I've finished another couple of books. I enjoyed both, but maybe not as much as the Joanna Schaffhausen books. I read
The Wonder Test by
Michelle Richmond. In this book, widowed FBI Agent Lina Connerly is in Silicon Valley with her teenage son, Rory, to clear out her late father's house. She's on leave from her FBI position for several reasons and her son is going to a new school while they are in California. Yes, a new school with some very odd rules, tests, classmates and parents. Kids have gone missing and then returned very different. Lina ends up getting involved and with help from various contacts and also Rory, she discovers secrets galore. I found this book held my interest for sure, but it was a curious blend of themes. I don't think I've read anything else by this author, but I'd try more of her work.
I also read
The Girl From Widow Hills by
Megan Miranda. This book is the October selection for the Mystery Book Group that I had to leave behind when I moved. Left behind my 'in-person' attendance anyway. I'll likely try to keep up with what they are reading and send my thoughts to Gayle, the new leader, by email. We had several former members that did that after they relocated. Anyway, I had read a couple of books by this author in the past and liked them. I also enjoyed The Girl From Widow Hills, though I think I would have liked it more if I had not recently read the 'missing girl' storyline from the Ellery Hathaway series. This book is a standalone and the situation is quite different. Arden Mayor was a little girl of 6 when she went missing while sleepwalking during a storm. She was discovered days later and she became 'The Girl From Widow Hills'. With all the hoopla and publicity of the 10-year-anniversary of her rescue, Arden changes her name when she goes to college and becomes Olivia. Now the 20-year marker is coming and again, Olivia/Arden fears the press and what they might bring up. No one in her current life knows that she's 'The Girl...'. Things begin to happen, someone might be watching her, her sleepwalking is back, and then someone dies. As I said, I did like this book but the protagonist's repetitive thinking about people and events annoyed me a bit. I do think the mystery group will have a good time discussing this one and I'll be reading more by this author in the future.
That's about all I have to share. I'm in the middle of Liane Moriarty's new book, Apples Never Fall, right now. More to say about that one next week.
Sounds like you are really settling in and keeping busy Kay. I have read Megan Miranda but not the book you shared so I'll be curious. I went to my first library book sale last week since before COVID; it was fun and not crowded either. I used restraint and only got 5 books:) Hope the weekend is good for you.
ReplyDeleteDiane, glad you got to go to a book sale. We've missed those haven't we?
DeleteI smiled at your library and book group involvement. Glad to see you are finding your place. I really liked Bluebird, Bluebird by Attica Locke and have continued to follow her Hwy 59 series!
ReplyDeleteJenclair, glad to know that Bluebird, Bluebird worked well for you. I'm looking forward to reading it.
DeleteI'm glad you are enjoying your new town, Kay. And I should write down the title of that book on water in Texas. My naturalist group might be interested.
ReplyDeleteDeb, you should definitely check out the book on water - A Thirsty Land - several of the people who attended were master naturalists like you!
DeleteEnjoyed reading your update, Kay! I really enjoyed Bluebird Bluebird. It has a strong cast of characters and is a solid start to a new series.
ReplyDeleteSo glad to see you here, Catherine! Another thumbs-up for Bluebird, Bluebird. Sounds like we have a winner on our hands. :-)
DeleteGlad you're settling in and the volunteer work has started!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Angela! Yes, I feel like I'm finding my place here in our new surroundings.
DeleteSo glad you're settling in! The library volunteering sounds so fun. The Girl from Widow Hills sounds good though I can see if it falling a bit flat if you've read something similar.
ReplyDeleteYes, I'm glad to be feeling more settled as well and I love volunteering at the library. While one is shelving, one can look for new books to try - oh, did I just give away my secret? LOL
DeleteThat's great that you've started your volunteering and joining the book groups! I hope you'll love Bluebird, Bluebird. I thought it was excellent. Isn't the weather so much nicer now? I love being able to open the windows and let the cool air in (well, at least in the mornings!). Have a great week ahead!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Iliana, and I'm getting such good thoughts about Bluebird, Bluebird. I hope this 'Talking Texas' group will like it. So far my time with them has only included non-fiction. I hope they like a good mystery - set in Texas. LOL
DeleteI'm glad to hear you're settling in and the library volunteering sounds like fun to me! I've read some mixed reviews about The Wonder Test so I shall see. And I look forward to hearing your thoughts on Apples Never Fall as I've the library copy.
ReplyDeleteI have been having fun at the library. The Wonder Test is good, but quite odd in some ways. Hard to describe without spoilers. As to Apples Never Fall - hmmm...still thinking about what to say.
DeleteHi. I didn't realize you were back after your break earlier in the year. Sounds like the library shelving is a fun job ... and I'm sure it adds to your TBR list. Was the Moriarty book any good? hmm. Or is it a skip?
ReplyDeleteYes, I'm back on a sorta regular basis now. And yes, I do enjoy shelving books at a library. As to Liane Moriarty's new book, still thinking about what to say. I'll share some thoughts in a couple of days. I liked it - sorta.
DeleteI'm glad you are settling in and have started your volunteer work at the library. It sounds like you're going to have a good time with all the various programs at the library, as well.
ReplyDeleteI'm interested to hear what you think of Bluebird, Bluebird after you've read it. I tried it on audio and couldn't get interested. I think Rod tried the print edition and couldn't get interested, either. Maybe you can convince me to try again. The Wonder Test has me intrigued, though!
Hope your weather continues to cool down. We're on the road heading south to warmer weather this week. :)
Les, thanks for telling me what you and Rod thought about Bluebird, Bluebird. We'll see how it goes. If I have a hard time with it I'll likely set it aside, go to the meeting anyway, and see what others thought. Take care and enjoy your trip!
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