Familyhistorian's Reads for 2023 - Part 6

The night just getting started on Broadway in Nashville

Welcome to my thread. My name is Meg. I am a bookaholic. That’s not a rare thing around here and it might be catching as my fellow 75ers and enablers can attest to. There will be talk about books, reading, Wordling and travel in 2023. Come along and see where my reading and travel take me. Should be an interesting ride.

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I write about genealogy and history on my blog. Follow my blog posts as I embark on another year of exploring and writing about my ROOTs (the family kind). You can see my latest blog posts at: A Genealogist’s Path to History

Challenges
Reading Through Time

Quarterly

January-March 2023 – WWI (1914-1918) - The Somme Legacy by M J Lee - DONE
April-June 2023 – 20th Century: Between the Wars (1919-1938) - The Bee's Kiss by Barbara Cleverly - DONE
July-September 2023 – 20th Century: World War 2 (1939-1945)
October-December 2023 – Modern History: 1946 – the Present Day

Monthly

January: Our Feathered Friends - The Evening Chorus by Helen Humphreys - DONE
February: Lions, Tigers and Bears, Oh My! - Dumb Witness by Agatha Christie - DONE
March: Notorious Women - Wild Romance: The True Story of a Victorian Scandal by Chloë Schama - DONE
April: April Fool - Son of a Trickster by Edin Robinson - DONE
May: The Big City – Yesterday, Today & Tomorrow
June: The Fabulous Fifties - The Perfume Collector by Kathleen Tessaro
July: Revolutions
August: Migration and Immigration
September: School Days
October: Traditions
November: Indigenous Peoples
December: Reader’s Choice

2023 Nonfiction Challenge

January: Prizewinners and Nominees
February: Hobbies & Pastimes. Gardening, Genealogy, Travel etc. - Trespassers in Time: Genealogists and Microhistorians by Anne Patterson Rodda - DONE
March: Empires - Condemned: The Transported Men, Women and Children Who Built Britain's Empire by Graham Seal - DONE
April: The Sea/Ocean
May: Literary Biography
June: Indigenous/Aboriginal Peoples/First Nations - Northwest Coast Indians by Mira Bartok - DONE - The Face Pullers: Photographing Native Canadians 1871-1939 by Brock V. Silverside - DONE
July: Explorations and Expeditions
August: The World of the Land, Trees and Plants
September: Family Ties
October: Crimes, Mysteries, Puzzles, Enigmas
November: Matters of Faith and Philosophy
December: As You Like It

List of books for challenges

Reading Through Time

Quarterly

January-March 2023 – WWI (1914-1918)
April-June 2023 – 20th Century: Between the Wars (1919-1938)
July-September 2023 – 20th Century: World War 2 (1939-1945) - An Unlikely Spy by Rebecca Starford
October-December 2023 – Modern History: 1946 – the Present Day - Last Night at the Telegraph Club by Malinda Lo

Monthly

January: Our Feathered Friends - The Evening Chorus by Helen Humphreys
February: Lions, Tigers and Bears, Oh My!
March: Notorious Women - Wild Romance by Chloe Schama
April: April Fool
May: The Big City – Yesterday, Today & Tomorrow - Sweet Thames by Matthew Kneale and/or The City Beautiful by Aden Polydoros
June: The Fabulous Fifties - The Perfume Collector by Kathleen Tessaro
July: Revolutions
August: Migration and Immigration
September: School Days
October: Traditions
November: Indigenous Peoples
December: Reader’s Choice

2023 Nonfiction challenge

January - prizewinners and nominees - Having it so Good: Britain in the Fifties by Peter Hennessy - 2007 winner of the Orwell prize for political writing
February: Hobbies & Pastimes. Gardening, Genealogy, Travel etc.
March: Empires
April: The Sea/Ocean
May: Literary Biography
June: Indigenous/Aboriginal Peoples/First Nations
July: Explorations and Expeditions
August: The World of the Land, Trees and Plants
September: Family Ties
October: Crimes, Mysteries, Puzzles, Enigmas
November: Matters of Faith and Philosophy
December: As You Like It

Shared Reads

Peter Ackroyd's History of England series, a shared read of the series with Paul.

A History of England: Foundation
Tudors: The History of England from Henry VIII to Elizabeth I
Civil War: Volume III: The History of England this was also published as Rebellion: The History of England from James I to the Glorious Revolution - I own both titles
Revolution: The History of England from the Battle of the Boyne to the Battle of Waterloo
Dominion: The History of England from the Battle of Waterloo to Victoria's Diamond Jubilee
Innovation: The History of England Volume VI

Group Reads

11/22/63 by Stephen King in May with Kim?
East of Eden by John Steinbeck in July with Mark, MDoris, Linda P, Lynda, Paul, Anita

Little Free Library

Books culled in 2023

January - 16

February - 0

March - 6

April - 0

May - 6

June - 10



LT Your Library number starting 2023 - 2944

Books read in May 2023

1. The Marlow Murder Club by Robert Thorogood
2. Son of a Trickster by Eden Robinson
3. The Black Dahlia by James Ellroy
4. Smoke and Mirrors by Elly Griffiths
5. Wired to Create: Unraveling the Mysteries of the Creative Mind by Scott Barry Kaufman
6. The Accidental Beauty Queen by Teri Wilson
7. Revenge of the Librarians by Tom Gauld
8. All the Beggars Riding by Lucy Caldwell
9. Kindred in Death by J.D. Robb
10. Ancestry by Simon Mawer
11. Lady Violet Enjoys a Frolic by Grace Burrowes
12. The Unexpected Inheritance of Inspector Chopra by Vaseem Khan
13. Women in White Coats: How the First Women Doctors Changed the World of Medicine by Olivia Campbell
14. 11/22/63 by Stephen King
15. Scones and Scoundrels by Molly MacRae
16. Guilt Trip by Ben Rehder

Books read in 2023

Books acquired in 2023

Acquisitions in May 2023

Devil's Music, Holy Rollers and Hillbillies: How America Gave Birth to Rock and Roll by James A Cosby
Trust by Hernan Diaz
Mummy Darlings by Emily Hourican
The Private World of Georgette Heyer by Jane Aiken Hodge (I know this was a BB from Sandy)
The Queen's Fool by Philippa Gregory

Welcome!!!

Happy New Thread, Meg! Am I first? :-)

Happy new thread Meg!

I am first and now I can look at the pictures and image on your new thread. Nashville looks fun and lovely!

Happy new thread, Meg.

Re posts 98-101 in your last thread...what a lovely parade! I haven't been to a parade in years.

>7 Familyhistorian: I certainly need to cull a few books. Actually, my lovely other could cull some first ;)

Happy new thread, Meg!

happy new one!

Happy new one, Meg.

Happy New thread, Meg! Wow I've never been to Nashville. It looks like an exciting place to go.

Hi Meg - I love the photo at the top. It does look exciting.

>13 vancouverdeb: >15 vancouverdeb: You were first, Deborah, and I didn't even notice that you had snuck in while I was setting up the thread. Nice to see that you came back to view the pictures. The topper was early in the evening in Nashville, the street got more crowded and rowdier as the night went on!

>14 quondame: Thanks Susan!

>16 PaulCranswick: Hi Paul and thanks!

>17 LovingLit: I know what you mean about not attending many parades recently. I only became aware of the May Day Parade held in Port Coquitlam by being in it. I didn't get to see much of the parade as I was in it but the tail end was fun.
Good luck with your book culling. Unfortunately, my acquisitions regularly outpace my culls and, unlike you, I have no one else to pressure to get rid of their accumulation.

>18 FAMeulstee: Thanks Anita!

>19 figsfromthistle: Thanks Anita!

That felt like deja vu. I think you both posted around the same time on my previous thread.

>20 katiekrug: Hi Katie, thanks for the thread wishes!

>21 Carmenere: Hi Lynda, Nashville was quite the party town with lots of honky tonks on Broadway and loads of places selling boots - cowboy ones, of course. They really emphasize their musical past. Not only do they have the Country Music Hall of Fame but we also took in tours of the Ryman Auditorium and the Museum of African American Music.

>22 BLBera: It was an exciting place, Beth, although when the purple building in the topper got more crowded part of the excitement came from wondering if the building would stay standing!

Better than yesterday and the start of a new streak

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Happy new one Meg -- sounds like you had fun in Nashville.

all good wishes Meg and welcome home.

thePhilippa Gregory books are always a treat - i quite liked The Queen's Fool

Happy new one!

Hi Meg my dear, Happy New Thread dear friend, i hope that you are enjoying your time in Nashville.

New 🧵 orisons, Meg. I'm glad you liked your first Ben Rehder story... he was a local author in Austin, more or less, and a lovely guy.

>29 magicians_nephew: I think I might have read one Phillipa Gregory book before, Jim, but I know the name and she was actually in program that I saw recently. Thanks for the welcome home. I'm here to stay for a little while which, after the last two months, feels like a nice break.

>30 drneutron: Thanks Jim!

>31 johnsimpson: Hi John, good to see you here. I moved on from Nashville after 4 days or so, went to Memphis, then New Orleans and now I'm back home and trying to remember what I should be doing!

>32 richardderus: It sounds like you met Ben Rehder, Richard. It was a fun mystery. I liked the humour that came through in it.

A strange word when I look at it

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>36 Familyhistorian: It was, but it was the first word that came to after my first two words. Come visit my thread when you get a moment. Nothing exciting, just don't be a stranger, as they say.

Happy new one!! I've never been to Nashville...someday?!?!

>37 vancouverdeb: I'm way behind on the threads, Deborah. That's what comes from taking two trips in the last two months. I should be at home for a while and hopefully will get caught up with threads and everything else. I'll come by and visit soon.

>38 Berly: Thanks Kim. Nashville is a fun place to visit especially if you're into music history.

91. City of Endless Night by Preston & Child



In the thriller, City of Endless Night, Lieutenant D’Agosta was on the track of a serial killer leaving headless corpses in their wake. Who was the perpetrator? The clues didn’t add up. Even with the help of the unorthodox methods of FBI Agent Pendergast, the search for answers took so long that the lives of the investigators were in jeopardy and the stakes became higher and higher.

That’s more like it

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92. Feline Fatale by Linda O. Johnston



I’m not a reader of e-books so I pack light books when I travel. Cozies fit the bill so I took one along, Feline Fatale. The sleuth, Kendra, was a lawyer/pet sitter filling in for another sitter where there was a faction in the building looking to ban pets. The ring leader of the neighsayers ended up dead with a person close to Kendra as the main suspect. What else could she do but investigate?

Too many possibilities

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Lots happening today. It started out with my first ever bone scan which included getting measured. I'm glad to report that I'm still the same height (I'm holding on to that as long as I can.)

At noon registration opened for SIWC so that's taken care of. After that it was the first spring/summer farmer's market in Port Moody and this evening I'm heading off to a meeting with my women's group.

In between all of those things I got a chapter in my book rewritten and send off to my cohort for their feedback. Now to think up a topic for my blog for this Saturday.

Hi Meg. I am envious of your trip to Nashville, Memphis and New Orleans - I bet you had a great time! Sounds like you are keeping busy now that you are home - my days mostly consist of computer time and reading and maybe a nap now and again!

I wanted to be the one posting your 1,000th post to your threads this year. xx

>46 DeltaQueen50: It was a great trip, Judy. Lots of history and music which are high on my list of interests. We also got to attend a cooking class in New Orleans and toured a plantation for a visit to make us aware of the underbelly of the South - slavery. Highly educational all around.

Coming back home after trips at the end of both April and May truncated the time I have to work on the various classes and projects I'm doing. There's a lot of catching up for me to do!

>47 PaulCranswick: Thanks Paul, it hardly seems possible that I've had that much traffic on my threads as I neglect them a lot.

Better result today

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I only have one book of the four I have out from the library to return today but there are six holds waiting to be picked up. How does that happen? Looks like I'll have to start reading faster!

The last letter was the sticking point
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93. Fantasy in Death by J.D. Robb



The one library book I finished out of the four I borrowed was, of course, one of the in death books, Fantasy in Death. I held out as long as I could trying to finish one of the other library books first but, in the end, I couldn’t resist and the read was done in next to no time. This time the people ending up dead were the founders and heads of a cutting edge gaming company but there were few clues as to the killer. Dallas would have to think outside the box for this one so that she and her crew could nab the guilty party.

This installment of the series also featured the book launch for Nadine’s tome about the Icove case.

Happy weekend-ahead's reads, Meg!

>51 Familyhistorian: Hi Meg, I know how that happens. I can do unlimited reserves too. I have put all my holds on freeze for the summer months hoping to get to some books on the shelves. Still some waiting for me that have snuck through in transit. Such a BIG problem! Ha! Ha!

I would love to know how to read faster! Have a great day.

>54 richardderus: Thanks Richard. I hope the books are treating you well!

>55 mdoris: I know. I try to manage the holds but it's those ones with the mega waiting lists that sneak in because they all of a sudden come up because there so many copies that throw off my calculations. They're the worst ones too because there are still people waiting for them after your three weeks are up. At least the most popular one this time is Ducks: Two Years in the Oil Sands. GNs are usually faster reads.

>57 Familyhistorian: Yes and no some GN are whoppers.

94. On the Waterfront by Mike McCoy





There’s a huge difference between the ages of 13 and 16. The same thing can be said of the stories we make up about other people’s lives and the reality of those life experiences. The writer of On the Waterfront makes use of both of those differences to fashion a story based on the experiences of two members of Scout camp staff. They were a pair of young guys who were forced together and, despite their differences, become friends. It was a heartening yet poignant story.

>58 mdoris: You're right, Mary. Ducks: Two Years in the Oil Sands is on the hefty side.

Imagine if you will two days of the only thing available on your TV being "Hell's Kitchen". That's what was happening to me. I spent lots of time on my computer, that's for sure. It was worth the hours on line with the Telus tech getting my TV service back up and running once we figured out how to rejig everything between the two remotes.

>61 Familyhistorian: Oh no ! Though I'm not sure I've ever watched Hell's Kitchen , but yeah , that would bother me too. I like a nice hour of TV in the evening , a good thriller or mystery episode from Amazon Prime, Britbox etc. I'm glad you were able to get your TV back on line today with Telus, even if it did take a lot of time. I checked , and Richmond Public Library allows just 15 holds at a time, which I've never had - I think the max I have had is maybe 6 holds at one time. I picked up a hold today from the library, but just a cook book for two. But I prefer having leftovers so I have to cook less frequently. But perhaps small batch chocolate chip cookies or brownies might prove useful. The more I have around , the more I eat.

>62 vancouverdeb: I'd never watched Hell's Kitchen before either, Deborah, and I hope to never see it again - it played for hours two days in a row. Not that I watched the whole time. I'd just turn on the TV to see if things had gone back to normal and there it was still. I have Acorn TV on my computer so I watched that instead. I missed seeing the evening news though.

I don't know how many holds the libraries near me allow. Probably not as many as Vancouver. But I have libraries from three other cities in close proximity. I lost my library card for the PoCo Library and really should do something about it. The PoCo Library is part of the Fraser Valley Library system so gives access to all of the system's books which allows lots of scope.

Good luck with your cooking.

Hard one today

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Yesterday started with a meeting with a genealogy group on Zoom. It looks like this group is going to start meeting in-person again next month at the BCGS library as most of us are tired of the on-line meet-ups.

The first meeting last until noon and then at 1:00 I attended the AGM for PoCo Heritage. Probably a good thing that my first meeting was Zoom as it's about a 50 minute drive between the PoCo Museum and the BCGS library. As it was two meetings made for a full day and then I tried to make sense of some of the info from the Your DNA Guide study group sessions. I'm still trying to wrap my head around that info.

Took a bit to get on the right track with this one

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95. The Widows' Club by Amanda Brooke



A group of people had lost their partners so they formed a self-help group to support each other. Good in theory, but what if someone with a different agenda joined. That’s what happened in The Widows’ Club, a story that focused on a trio of women and their experience with the group. It kept me guessing until the end but then, women’s groups can be like that, had to grasp what is really going on at times although the outcome is not usually that deadly.

An unexpected solve

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96. Doctored Evidence by Donna Leon



I’d often seen reviews of the various Guido Brunetti mysteries on the threads so when I saw one sitting in the local Little Free Library, I had to pick it up. Now I’ve read it and I want to read more. This one was Doctored Evidence which was not the beginning of the series. It was probably somewhere in the middle. I really like how the detectives get things done by being underhanded and pursuing illegal methods that get results. I want to read more of these, but should I start at the beginning or continue on from this one?

>68 Familyhistorian: Wow!

>70 RebaRelishesReading: Yeah, from one letter to the whole word. Not what I was expecting!

Getting the last letter made it quick to work out

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97. The Adventuress by Arthur B. Reeve



I like classic mysteries but The Adventuress was different. It was probably cutting edge at the time as a new invention, the telautomaton, had been stolen after Marshall Maddox head of Maddox Munitions was killed. The detective, Craig Kennedy, and his Watson-like narrator were on the job and their attentions were soon drawn by Paquita, the story’s adventuress.

The prose and dialogue were very much of their time, the 1930s, as was the science, although when it was written it would have been cutting edge. An interesting dip into a historic mystery as written by an author in the past.

Appropriate to the times?

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>74 Familyhistorian: Appropriate, yes, I would say so , Meg. I had three holds come in from the Richmond Library today. I think that's a record for me.

>75 vancouverdeb: Good luck reading your way through three library holds, Deborah. Are they renewable or are other patrons waiting for them?

Sometimes you see words too often to think of them

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Another five

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Hi Meg!

From your last thread, I really liked On Writing, too. And for alt-history, I really liked Fatherland.

>x Working backwards: Ah, Shiloh. We went to the Shiloh National Military Park in 2010, on a sweltering day in July. Jenna wanted to see EVERYTHING, so we sweltered and did so. It was stunning and awe inspiring and overwhelming and sad, so very sad. Fascinating about the Vestry entries being about units of government. I saw a fan chart for the first time the other day on FamilySearch.org, but not, of course, female inheritance. Wow! Three screen workstations at the FHS in SLC. Very cool.

>41 Familyhistorian: I’m trying to catch up with books 4 & 6 in order to continue with 8 and etc. I have to be in the absolute right mood for Pendergast and D’Agosta because of things going bump in the night.

>45 Familyhistorian: Congrats on not shrinking! I’ve shrunk and my daughter gloats that she’s now taller than I am.

>69 Familyhistorian: I really like how the detectives get things done by being underhanded and pursuing illegal methods that get results. I like books and series like that, too, although the Brunetti series doesn’t appeal.

>79 karenmarie: Hi Karen, a visit to Shiloh would have been interesting but we were booked for a tour of the musical south so it wasn't on the agenda.

Finding my ancestor's name in the Vestry minutes was a surprise as I thought it would be only members of the established church who qualified and that family line were definitely nonconformist, predominantly Congregationalists. But the Vestry was in Kettering in Northamptonshire and C of E members were probably outnumbered in the community.

I was very pleased not to shrink. It's hard enough to reach things in the grocery store as it is and I know they've made some of the shelves taller than normal in the new store that opened recently.

The Brunetti was a pleasant surprise and I think I will follow up on the series because, you know I don't follow enough of those. (Just kidding) Have a great weekend and I hope you aren't impacted by the smoke drifting across the border.

98. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins



Like me, you probably know something about the story of Katniss Everdeen who takes the place of her sister, Prim, in the Hunger Games, a fight to the death game between chosen tributes from districts in future world North America. It’s a work that is constantly brought up as an example in writing sessions so I wanted to read it for myself. It engaged me more than I thought it would but no one warned me it was the first book in a trilogy or that, years after it was published, it’s still in demand with multiple holds placed on the library book I took out.

Five seems to be my number lately

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Hi Meg, I have been visiting regularly and following your amazing travels and reading but have not surfaced to say hello. Yes, the temps are more June-like now but I have to admit I loved that hot weather we had earlier. You sound busy (as usual!).

>83 mdoris: I'm a lover of warm weather too and really enjoyed the early summer-like weather. I'd like it to come back except for the fire problem. Right now I'm trying to catch up on everything that was put on hold while I went of gallivanting. I hope you're enjoying the weekend and the fact that you don't have to water the garden!

>73 Familyhistorian: The Adventuress sounds like a goodie. Adding it to the list

The Hunger Games trilogy might surprise you if you ever get your hands on the second and third installment.

>84 Familyhistorian: HI Meg, I love the word"gallivanting"! It is a perfect word.

>81 Familyhistorian: This series will always stand out to me & I just ordered the prequel a week or so ago. Probably why there's multiple holds currently as the movie for the prequel comes out this November & a lot of people have been rereading the original trilogy as well - I even thought about doing so myself. I hope you enjoy the rest of the trilogy once you're able to get a hold of them!

>85 magicians_nephew: I was wondering about the other books in the Hunger Game Trilogy, Jim. I expected the first book to be a bit different and that might be because what I heard about the book also included some of the things that happened in the rest of the trilogy.

>86 mdoris: Thanks, Mary. Yeah, my vocabulary reflects some of the reading I've done.

>87 WhiteRaven.17: I wasn't aware of there being a prequel or a movie about it. Thanks for the info, Kro. Makes sense that the books would be in demand if there are still books being written and movies coming out.

99. The Blood Card by Elly Griffiths



The third book in the Magic Men series, The Blood Card, involved anarchists and the coronation of Elizabeth II. It was up to DI Edgar Stephens and his friend, Max Mephisto, to thwart the plot if they could in a tale that involved an air flight to New York for Ed. Was air travel in deed that glamourous at the time? The modern world was also catching up with Max, who’d been talked into headlining a TV show to follow the coronation. The usual cast of characters made their appearance and the changes in their lives provided some of the action.

Sneaky one

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100. Ducks: Two Years in the Oil Sands by Kate Beaton



The graphic memoir, Ducks: Two Years in the Oil Sands, struck many chords for me. I lived in Nova Scotia and saw how people, especially those in Cape Breton, had to leave to live. As a female, I could also relate to her experiences working and living in a place dominated by men. Through her art and words she was able to paint a picture that brought the experience of working the oil sands to life. It was a different world but, in many ways, the concerns were recognizable.

Today it was so cold that I had to wear a heavier coat - one that I wear for West Coast winters. Quite a contrast to last week's shorts weather. Supposedly it will warm up for Wednesday, the official start of summer.

I was running out of letters and guesses

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Hi Meg. Our weather has certainly done a 180! It feels like we have gone back to March or April. I had to dig out some warmer clothes. Of course I am not complaining as I prefer it to be cooler rather than too warm.

>96 DeltaQueen50: I'll do enough complaining for the two of us, Judy. It's just so cold. Last week it was summer, now it feels like fall.

>96 DeltaQueen50: and >97 Familyhistorian: Hi Judy and Meg - I’m down in Seattle and have been feeling the same way! What’s up with the weather??!! It was 47F this morning! We call it “Junuary” here. 🙄 Stay warm!

Me too, I got out my wool sweater and down vest today. Brrrr. Do you see the chance of snow forecast for the Coquihalla?
>93 Familyhistorian: Good review of Ducks Meg!

>95 Familyhistorian: That was a tough one, Meg. Took me 6 tries. Not a word I expected in Wordle. I headed out for a walk today, but just wore short sleeves with gortex shell for the rain. But yes, it was cool enough. Bought the ingredients to make Minestrone soup tomorrow. Cool enough to think about soup.

Meg, I saw on the news that Banff and Jasper had SNOW! In June! Eek. I hope it turns around for you quickly

Hi, Meg. Glad you got to "Ducks". I thought it was excellent. Of course, it was also very disturbing. Men suck!

>98 PlatinumWarlock: Hi Lavinia. We call it Junuary here too and it really is the normal weather we get for June. At least the rain part, the cold not so much. Our high yesterday was 13 C which translates to 55 F.

>99 mdoris: In the morning, I was wearing my heavier jacket for this time of year and shivering. Down vest would be about the size of it. Thanks re the "Ducks" review, Mary.

Yep, 10 a.m. and 58/14 degrees outside. It's June 20 and here I am wearing long jeans and a sweatshirt. I know this is the NW but really...!

>100 vancouverdeb: Definite soup weather, Deborah. Yeah that Wordle was a tough one. I was left with very strange letters for the sixth try.

>101 jessibud2: Hi Shelley, they're predicting sun and highs in 20s on Wednesday so we're supposed to be going into summer weather for the start of the season. The weather is all over the place this year. We had a very dry hot May - don't think we've done that before. On some days the highs were close to 30. I went to Nashville at the end of May and the temperatures there were the same.

>102 msf59: Hi Mark, it took a while to get to "Ducks" the hold list at the library is so long! Yeah disturbing and, unfortunately the lived experience of many women as per the "me too" movement.

>105 RebaRelishesReading: We were just getting used to all that nice warm weather too, weren't we? There is a reason you don't put the winter clothes away too soon around here. It's supposed to warm up on Wednesday here, Reba. I hope it does for you too.

A sense of humor?

Wordle 731 4/6

⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜
⬜🟩🟩⬜🟩
🟩🟩🟩⬜🟩
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

abide, grout, front, frost

>110 Familyhistorian: - I said as much to you on my thread, Meg, lol! (Actually, I think it may have been to Deb)

>111 jessibud2: Yes, it was to Deb but it applies in either case. Summer tomorrow!

>109 Familyhistorian: Yes, we're expecting a warm up starting Thursday which is good because we have 15 or so people coming over on Friday night and we said we'd do sausages on the grill.

>112 Familyhistorian: Hmm, is it summer again tomorrow, Meg? Or perhaps not until Thursday? https://weather.gc.ca/city/pages/bc-96_metric_e.html

The weather does change quickly here though.

101. A Painted Doom by Kate Ellis



A post on LT reminded me that I was reading the Wesley Peterson mystery series but it had been a while since I picked one up. I remedied this with the sixth book in the series, A Painted Doom. A gruesome piece of art was found in an old barn which was being assessed to see if it was of historic interest. Both the barn and the art it contained had ties to the medieval past and a noble family who once lived in a manor in the vicinity. The story of the family and why it and the manor disappeared had parallels to the present day murder that Wesley and the team were investigating making for an interesting read as the solution to the mystery became clear.

>113 RebaRelishesReading: Our warm up was scheduled for Wednesday but then pushed back to Thursday. There was rain today but the sun came out later. Have fun at your outdoor get together, Reba.

102. Buck Fever by Ben Rehder



I enjoyed the first book I read in the Blanco County mystery series but that was a few books in. I decided to go back and start at the beginning with Buck Fever the first in the series. It introduced the characters, game warden John Marlin and his friend, Phil Colby in an interesting investigation in which I was aware of the good guys and bad guys and half the fun of it was seeing what outrageous things would happen so that things would turn out alright in the end.

>114 vancouverdeb: Hi Deborah, summer officially began today in the morning but it looks like the summery weather comes back on Thursday. Our weather does have a hard time doing the right thing in the appropriate season!

So many possibilities for the fourth letter I was afraid I was going to run out of guesses

Wordle 732 5/6

🟨⬜⬜⬜🟩
🟩⬜🟩⬜🟩
🟩🟩🟩⬜🟩
🟩🟩🟩⬜🟩
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

abide, chafe, crate, crave, crane

>116 Familyhistorian: We ended up moving the get-together to July 7 because we had two couples where one partner came down with Covid this week, plus conflicts with travel and/or family events. Our group of 15 or so was down to 7 so yesterday we decided to change. So far two of the original "no's" stayed "no" with the new date but one couple moved to "yes". Not going to move it again though. Hope the weather is nice then. Today is supposed to be in the 80's/upper 20's but then cool back down. Hotter than I like but we have A/C so it'll be OK.

>120 RebaRelishesReading: Too bad things fell through for this Friday, Reba, but good call. According to the weather on my phone we're in for over a week of warm weather and sun, mostly upper 20s which is what I like. I don't have AC but my place is shaded by trees so the main floors don't get hot unless it's in the upper 30s. I hope everything works out for your gathering at the new time.

103. Well-Behaved Women Seldom Make History by Laurel Thatcher Ulrich



Traces of the lives of ordinary people are hard to find the further you get back in history. That is especially true of the women who disappeared behind their husbands names and whose deeds were rarely noted. That was a topic the author explored in Well-Behaved Women Seldom Make History, an account that looks far back in history and to the feminism of more modern times. It was telling at the beginning of her study of women’s history that the author thought of “real history” as that of men because that was what she had been taught. It took a while for her to come around to the understanding that the history that women made left different things behind that were also of value.

I appreciate your reviews of books about women! I had ordered Female Erasure p. 573 a whopper from the library on ILL and realized that I had to read it slowly over time so I purchased a copy and about to begin. They are essays and stories and poetry with lots of references. i have concerns!

>123 mdoris: I hadn't heard of Female Erasure before, Mary. I'll look forward to your review.

A quick one today

Wordle 733 3/6

🟨⬜⬜⬜🟩
🟨🟨🟨⬜🟩
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

abide, stake, taste

The weather was sunny and warm today so my trip to the library was good. I took back seven books and only took out four so the trend is in the right direction. Looks like the new four will need a fast turn around as three of them have holds on them.

>121 Familyhistorian: Thanks Meg. They're now forecasting thunder storms for this evening so I'm even more glad we postponed the get-together. I hope the weather stays nice, sans thunderstorms, for next week. Meanwhile I'm planning to sit in the shade and read this afternoon :)

Hi Meg!

Regarding the Brunetti series (>69 Familyhistorian:) I would go back to the beginning. I happen to be reading the 10th in the series and, as ever, I am really enjoying it.

I guess what I really like about Brunetti (and Gamache of the Three Pines series) is that he isn’t some broken-down character with a string of ruined romances/marriages, a clutch of children he never sees, struggling with alcohol or drugs and in thrall to his soul-crushing job.

>127 RebaRelishesReading: I hope you enjoyed your afternoon reading, Reba, and that the thunderstorms pass you by. No rain in the forecast for us which is nice.

>128 Fourpawz2: Thanks for the advice on the Brunetti series, Charlotte. It sounds like a good plan to start from the beginning. I like to see how a series originates anyway.

Interesting word choice

Wordle 734 5/6

⬜⬜⬜⬜🟨
⬜🟨🟨⬜⬜
🟨⬜🟨⬜⬜
🟩🟩⬜🟩🟩
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

abide, petty, tress, comet, covet

>129 Familyhistorian: Thanks,Meg. I sat in a comfy rocker on the deck where it was 80 in the shade with a slight breeze -- absolutely lovely -- and finished my book. Couldn't ask for a nicer afternoon.

>132 RebaRelishesReading: Sounds wonderful, Reba.

Fast one today

Wordle 735 3/6

🟨⬜⬜🟨⬜
⬜🟨🟨⬜⬜
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

abide, sadly, grand

Yesterday I went to pick up some groceries but didn't get in the store right away as the fire alarm was ringing.



Yes, those are two people with a shopping cart half full of groceries. I wonder how many people were tempted to just load them in their car and go home?

Today I went out to the BCGS library where a group of us gathered to do research. My findings were sparse but it was good to gather with like minded folks.

Pesky final letter

Wordle 736 5/6

⬜⬜⬜🟨🟨
🟨🟨🟨⬜⬜
🟩🟩⬜🟩🟨
🟩🟩🟩🟩⬜
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

abide, derth, rowed, rodes, rodeo

Hi, Meg. I hope you had a nice weekend. Are you still interested in joining us in reading East of Eden next month? I will post something about it over on my thread, in a couple of days.

104. Northwest Coast Indians by Mira Bartok and Christine Ronan



Sometimes reading children’s books can be a good introduction to a subject. So it was with the book Northwest Coast Indians which I found on my shelves among heftier tomes about indigenous peoples of North America.

>137 msf59: OMG it's going to be July already! That snuck up really fast. I intend to join in the read of East of Eden in the upcoming month. Thanks for the reminder, Mark.

Nice warm day today, Meg. I quite enjoyed my walk along the dyke across from the airport. I imagine it was quite a bit warmer inland. Stopped in a Costco briefly, did not buy anything. Boy, it's crowded at dinner time. I must remember don't go at dinner time.

105. Indulgence in Death by J.D. Robb



The action in Indulgence in Death started in Ireland with Roarke and Dallas visiting his family over there. No sooner were they back in NYC than Dallas caught another case. At first the clues were hard to follow but soon she and her team were on the trail of a couple of entitled men who used others as pawns in a sick and indulgent game. Dallas had been chosen as part of their game in part because of the attention that Nadine’s book about the Icoves was bringing her. It was another satisfying book in the series.

Took longer than it should have

Wordle 737 5/6

⬜⬜⬜⬜🟨
🟨⬜🟩⬜⬜
🟨⬜🟩🟩⬜
🟩⬜🟩🟩🟩
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

abide, speck, tress, ghest, guest

>140 vancouverdeb: I try and hit Costco in the middle of a weekday, Deborah. I've never braved the after workday hours. Don't blame you for giving up on going into the store. It was warm here too and I went for a walk along the river. It was probably more shady than your walk along the dyke.

106. Highly Suspicious and Unfairly Cute by Talia Hibbert



Growing up Brad and Celine were good friends but that changed. But it was like they could completely ignore each other as they went to the same school. But when they applied to the same program with various outdoor challenges and a scholarship for a lucky three at the end, they find that their past and knowledge of each other’s quirks leads to something else in Highly Suspicious and Unfairly Cute.

It’s hard to think of everyday words

Wordle 738 3/6

🟩🟩⬜⬜⬜
🟩🟩⬜🟨⬜
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

abide, abhor, about

107. The Perfume Collector by Kathleen Tessaro



The Perfume Collector was a story told in multiple timelines the latest of which was the ‘50s. It involved a young woman in England, Grace, left an unexpected legacy by Eva d’Orsey, a woman in Paris. Just who was this woman? The clues were Eva’s flat and the shop of a perfumer that seemed all but abandoned. It was a mystery Grace wanted to unravel and, after all, it would occupy her while she decided what to do with her straying husband. It was a good read. Grace’s story was the one that intrigued me the most although Eva’s was interesting too.

Close one

Wordle 739 6/6

🟨⬜⬜⬜⬜
⬜⬜🟩⬜⬜
⬜🟩🟩⬜⬜
🟩🟩🟩⬜⬜
🟩🟩🟩🟩⬜
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

abide, foamy, prawn, trash, track, tract

I'm not used to travelling during rush hour anymore so I allowed an extra 30 minutes to get to a 6 pm meeting at the BCGS library. Good thing as with traffic it took an hour and twenty minutes to get there.

It was the first meeting for a group interesting in writing about the families they've found while researching. We also had a presentation by the person who was asking for submissions about military ancestors and the conflicts they were involved in. I think she'll have a lot of entries from this group. I know I have quite a few and the guy sitting beside me had 30. Now to figure out who I should include and fill out the submissions.

A bit better than yesterday

Wordle 740 5/6

⬜⬜🟨🟨🟨
🟨🟨🟨⬜⬜
⬜🟩🟨🟩🟨
⬜🟩🟨🟩🟩
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

abide, edits, mired, cider, diner

108. The Face Pullers: Photographing Native Canadians 1871-1939" by Brock V. Silversides



I pulled The Face Pullers: Photographing Native Canadians 1871-1939 from my shelves. The collection of photos of members of Prairie First Nations was grouped by time periods, from early contact to the end of the 1930s. With the aid of the explanations at the beginning of each section it was easy to see the changing attitudes of both indigenous people and photographers during the decades and the changing Canadian attitude to First Nations. The pictures in the section called “Transition” showed many pictures of groups with priests or at residential or industrial schools. A very thought provoking book.

That was quick

Wordle 741 3/6

🟨⬜⬜⬜⬜
🟨🟨🟨🟨⬜
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

abide, wrath, straw

109. The Bee's Kiss by Barbara Cleverly



It was a surprise to me that The Bee’s Kiss was actually the next book in the Joe Sandilands series. So I was reading a series in order even though I plucked it off the shelf to meet a challenge.

In this book, Joe was now investigating crimes in London, at the Ritz no less. He was in charge of the investigation but wasn’t quite sure about his second in command, a detective sergeant he’d last seen in the trenches of WWI, an upwardly mobile man brought up in the East End. Then there was his constable, a pretty society girl. With their aid his task was to investigate the murder of a controversial high society woman. But all was not as it seemed in this fast moving mystery.

>153 richardderus: Thanks Richard! Nice to see fireworks but I hope that most of them around here are virtual. We don't need any sparks flying around right now.

>148 Familyhistorian: Hi Meg! I forget about rush hour, too. I rarely am driving during it, since that's the time I'm usually cooking dinner. I live in the suburbs, and I have to "cross the river" in order to get into the rush hour traffic. Are you a morning person? (I imagine you as one, but maybe I'm wrong.) I have the problem of going to stores at 8am and being surprised they don't open for another 2 hours.

>155 The_Hibernator: Hi Rachel. I didn't forget about rush hour and don't have to go beyond the suburbs to get to it, unfortunately. I was actually going from one suburb to another and it was pretty backed up. A morning person? Not really although I did used to start work at 6:45 am. It seems like you must be a morning person yourself if you're getting to the stores before they open!

110. Bait by Karen Robards



The tensions were high in Bait as Maddie was being stalked by a serial killer who had already slain a woman of the same name staying in the same hotel she was staying in. That wasn’t the killer’s only victim. The FBI had been on his tail for weeks and, so far, Maddie was the only one of his potential victims who had survived. Agent Sam McCabe wanted to keep her safe but Maddie had secrets she hadn’t revealed.

Strange word but it fit

Wordle 742 3/6

⬜🟨⬜⬜🟨
🟩🟨⬜🟩⬜
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

abide, beset, bleep

Meg, I answered on my thread, but no, no bears in Richmond. I'm not sure why? Too urban? Here is from the City website on Urban Wild Life and you'll see no mention of bears. I've not heard of them in South Delta or Vancouver either - though I guess there is the odd incursion . https://www.richmond.ca/parks-recreation/parks/aboutrnp/urbanwildlife.htm

We did have a bear on Sea Island in 2011, to my consternation! It made the news. It was just a brief thing, and it was thought it may have come in on log boom, or just wandered in from somewhere. Maybe the bears don't want to cross all the bridges into Richmond ??? Or go through the tunnel, though I've not heard of any bears in South Delta either. Coyotes, yes.

>159 vancouverdeb: No bears might have something to do with being further from the mountains maybe. We used to have very few bears where I live in the flatter area of Coquitlam until they started building up the mountain. Now they come down to this level.

I don't think bears cross the bridges. They're more likely to swim over.

Hi, Meg! BelatedCanada Day wishes! Hope the fires aren’t effecting you too badly and that they are brought under control soon. We here in the northeast part of the US are suffering along with you - I’ve had to keep the windows closed and the A/C on all day and night since Thursday, and it’s not as bad here as other places. I can’t even imagine how awful it is to the north of us.

Isn’t it wonderful not to have to get up before the sun to get to work or to have to deal with rush hour traffic every day anymore?!

Hi Meg, I hope you are enjoying the Canada Day weekend! We went out to Langley for lunch the other day, forgetting it was a Friday of a long weekend - getting home took us awhile.

Luckily I don't think we get bears in South Delta, I think our wildlife consists of raccoons, coyotes and squirrels!

>156 Familyhistorian: I didn't used to be a morning person, but I get so tired during the day that I go to bed as soon as IL4 is in bed now. 😂🤣

>161 Storeetllr: Hi Mary, thanks for the Canada Day wishes. I'm in the far west of the country so haven't been suffering from the smoke from the east and, so far, the smoke from the fires to the north of us hasn't drifted across to the Lower Mainland of BC other than a few hazy days.

I really appreciate not having to get up early and not dealing with rush hour traffic!

>162 DeltaQueen50: From the looks of things around here Friday was the first day of summer for school kids. You probably ended up in the getting away for the loong weekend traffic that started early because of that!

You're lucky not to have bears in your area. I have seen lots around here. Before we got wise with out garbage there used to be one that did the rounds of the garbage cans in the townhouse complexes. He was a big guy and I saw him fling one of those Laidlaw size garbage containers across our parking lot. We're better at garbage disposal now.

>163 The_Hibernator: Changing your schedule like that is one way to become a morning person, Rachel. IL4 must get up early. Many years ago, when my son was young he used to go to sleep at 1:00 am. That was his natural rhythm. Good thing I was working afternoon shift at the time!

Given where I live, I can relate to this word

Wordle 743 4/6

⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜
🟨⬜🟨⬜⬜
⬜🟩🟩⬜🟨
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

abide, shook, costs, mossy

111. Affair by Amanda Quick



Investigating potential marriage partners for women was Charlotte’s stock in trade. Marriage for herself was the last thing on her mind. Who knew better than she did the pitfalls that matrimony held for women. She did, however, need a new man of affairs. The candidate for the job seemed ideal on the surface but she was trained to see beyond that veneer. Still she took Baxter on trial, after all one of her clients had been murdered and the sooner she was able to start investigating the better. That decision was to add more complication to her life than she counted on in Affair.

Easy one

Wordle 744 3/6

⬜⬜⬜⬜🟨
⬜🟨🟩⬜⬜
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

abide, petty, hotel

112. The Sinister Booksellers of Bath by Garth Nix



I got a kick out of The Left-Handed Booksellers of London so needed to read the sequel, The Sinister Booksellers of Bath. It was just as good as the first book and a page turner from start to finish.