BOOK: Murder on Montparnasse by Kerry Greenwood

Murder on Montparnasse by Kerry Greenwood, 256 pages

Paris in July; Series Challenge (book 12 of 20)

Phyrne Fisher is my hero. She's a woman far ahead of her time. Granted, it's her money that allows her to do what she likes, but she still does it. Set in 1920s Melbourne, the effects of the first world war are still being felt. Because she was an ambulance driver in France, I think she knows life is fleeting, and thus does what ever she wants. Be a dame detective? check. Have a Chinese lover and invite his intended wife over for dinner? check. Take in abused girls and give them opportunities? check. Wear the most fashionable, scandalous outfits? check and check.

Most of the books in this series are set in Australia, but luckily for Paris in July, much of this book is a flashback to Phryne's (fry-knee) time in Paris after the war, when she was hanging with the art crowd.  Her buddies, Bert and Cec, met up with their army buddies in Paris for a crazy couple of days, and now, ten years later, someone is killing them off in Australia. They must have seen something, and Phryne is going to solve the case.

Phrne Fisher books are light, but with a noir feel, with dames that carry guns and aren't afraid to use them and snappy dialogue. Although set in the same time as Maisie Dobbs, they are really the exact opposites. I enjoy both, especially for the connections both have to the first world war and its effects, but where Maisie is methodical and introspective, Phryne flies along (sometimes in her plane!) and figures things out very quickly.

BOOK: Agent Gates by Camaren Subhiyah and Kyle Hilton

Agent Gates and the Secret Adventures of Devonton Abbey by Camaren Subhiyah and Kyle Hilton, 130 pages

Are you a fan of Downton Abbey and all its glorious excesses? Are you in withdrawl after the last season in January on PBS and impatiently waiting for another season? (There will be more, right?) Then Agent Gates and the Secret Adventures of Devonton Abbey (a parody) is just the reading fix you might be needing.

It's a quick read, in graphic novel form. None of the names are quite the same - Gates for Bates, O'Malley for O'Brien, Mr Larson for Mr Carson, but the drawings match the actors in the roles perfectly so you know exactly who is who. The writing and characters are so perfectly done that I could hear the actors voices in my head exactly, even the minor characters.

The premise is that the British Secret Service (SIS) has Devonton Abbey as a headquarters outside London, with agents disguised as servants. Their job is to thwart attacks that may be dangerous to the Crown, and stop the impending war in 1914. Will the agents save Archduke Franz Ferdinand from assassination as he visits Devonton Abbey?

My favorite exaggeration of character was Lady Cynthia, based on Lady Sybil, forever taking up causes of the downtrodden, while continually downtrodding those around her, or for women's rights which amount to her rights to be a rich lady. Hilarious! Edith, here called Ethel was as pathetic and ignored as you would expect. However, I think the caricature of her on Jimmy Fallon's parody, Downton Sixbey, is even funnier.

It's a sign of a great show if it inspires parody, right?  If you get stuck browsing around youtube, another good one was the SNL 'preview'.

TOP TEN TUESDAY: Top Ten Books I've Read So Far In 2013

I missed last week's topic, Top Ten Books I've Read So Far In 2013. Since this week is even closer to the half way point, I'm going to go with it now. To see other posts on this week's topic, Top Ten Most Intimidating Books (might be intimated by size, content, that everyone else loves it but you are sure you won't etc) , head over to here at The Broke and the Bookish.


Small Island by Andrea Levy (just after WW2 in London, should be called Queenie, my review)

Mistress of the Art of Death by Ariana Franklin (historical mystery; female coroner;immediately bought the next book in the series;  my review)

Whirl Away by Russell Wangersky (short story collection; Canadian; my review)

Z: a novel of Zelda Fitzgerald by Therese Anne Fowler (fictional biography; just the thing to read after watching Gatsby to stay in the mood;  my review)

The Light Between Oceans by ML Stedman (1920s Australia; heart-breaking; my review)

Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? by Mindy Kaling (audiobook/comedy routine; funny, strong woman; my review)

Where'd You Go Bernadette? by Maria Semple (smart and funny; my mini review)

The Dance of the Seagull by Andrea Camilleri (14th in series; just as strong as ever; my review)

Life After Life by Kate Atkinson (must read everything author did not disappoint; my review)

I'd Like to Apologize to Every Teacher I Ever Had by Tony Danza (non-fiction memoir of his time in a Philadelphia high school; my review)

CHALLENGE: Paris in July 2013

It's almost time for Paris in July, 2013 edition. I've enjoyed dabbling in a few books each July since Karen at Bookbath and Tamara at Thyme for Tea started it.

During the month of July, read your book, eat some food, watch a movie. Something French.

The books I hope to read include:

Murder in Montparnasse by Kerry Greenwood.
It's a female detective series that I enjoy, starring Phryne Fisher, set in 1920s Australia. I'm going with the fact that the Eiffel Tower is on the cover that there will be some connection to Paris.

Paris to Die For by Maxine Kenneth
Looks like a fun, intrigue-based spy story, chick lit style. Young Jackie Bouvier (Kennedy Onassis) is recruited by the CIA. I added it to my library list after last year's challenge  so someone must have enjoyed it.

Madame Bovary goes on my list every year, although I can't see me getting it read at all. Similarly, I've got Madame de Stael on a dailylit.com account that I still haven't finished. Maybe this July!

It's not quite the same thing, but we are planning to go to Quebec the first week of August, staying in Quebec City one night, and then a week at Sherbrooke for the Canada Games. Go PEI Basketball!  It'll be the finale to Paris in July - my very own Quebec in August!

TOP TEN TUESDAY: Books At The Top Of My Summer TBR List

Topic Today:  Top Ten Books At The Top Of My Summer TBR List 
Check out The Broke and the Bookish for more links and future TTB lists.

I love these TBR lists, and I've been making them to remind me of books I really want to read before I get distracted by other shiny new books. This is a good mix of new books, books I've bought, authors I like love, library books, and reading challenges. Looks like a great summer!

1. Blood Safari by Deon Meyer (I'm trying to read all Meyer's books)

2. Guilt by Association by Marcia Clark (supposed to be a great new mystery series)

3. Microserf by Douglas Coupland (for the Canadian Challenge)

4. The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton (more Morton!)

5. Americah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (great new fiction by great author, library)

6. Sisterland by Curtis Sittenfeld (more great new fiction by great author)

7. Packing for Mars by Mary Roach (a nonfiction)

8. The Aviator's Wife by Melanie Benjamin (school library book)

9. Paris to Die For by Maxine Kenneth (or something elso for Paris in July, library)

10. Lives of Girls and Women by Alice Munro (Canadian and Short Stories with a terrible cover)

LIST: the well read canadian

John at the Book Mine Set has made his list (inspired by other lists) of the books that should be read to be a well read Canadian. Or to be Canadian well-read. I guess it goes either way. I've read 37 which seems alright, but wouldn't be a passing grade. How do you do? It's a ready made list for the Canadian Book Challenge if you want to join.


1. Lucy Maud Montgomery- Anne of Green Gables
2. John Vaillant- The Tiger
3. Modecai Richler- Barney's Version
4. Rohinton Mistry- A Fine Balance
5. Miriam Toews- A Complicated Kindness
7. Susanna Moodie- Roughing it in the Bush
8. Wayne Johnston- The Colony of Unrequited Dreams
9. James Houston- White Dawn
10. Michael Ondaatje- In the Skin of a Lion

11. Robert Munsch- The Paperbag Princess
12. Christian Bok- Eunoia
13. Pierre Berton- the Last Spike
14. Margaret Laurence- Stone Angel
15. Seth- It's A Good Life If You Don't Weaken
16. Ken Dryden- The Game
17. Farley Mowat- Never Cry Wolf
18. Carol Shields- The Stone Diaries
19. M. G. Vassanji- the In-Between World of Vikram Lall
20. Michel Tremblay- The Fat Woman Next Door is Pregnant

21. Elizabeth Hay- Late Nights on Air
22. Sheila Watson- the Double Hook
23. Robertson Davies- Fifth Business
24. Richard Van Camp- Lesser Blessed
25. Ann-Marie MacDonald- Fall on Your Knees
26. Kit Pearson- The Sky is Falling
27. Kenneth Oppel- Silverwing
28. Margaret Atwood- The Handmaid's Tale
29. Marshall McLuhan- Understanding Media
30. Alistair MacLeod- No Great Mischief

31. Alice Munro- The Love of a Good Woman
32. Guy Vanderhaeghe- The Last Crossing
33. Emma Donoghue- Room
34. Guy Gavriel Kay- The Summer Tree
35. Douglas Coupland- Generation X
36. Tomson Highway- The Rez Sisters
37. Leonard Cohen- Beautiful Losers
38. Phoebe Gilman- Something From Nothing (I read Jillian Jiggs and The Balloon Tree)
39. The Complete Poems of Robert W. Service
40. David Adams Richards- Mercy Among the Children

41. Joseph Boyden- Three Day Road (read Through Black Spruce)
42. Mariko Tamaki and Jillian Tamaki- Skim
43. Ivan Coyote- Bow Grip
44. Naomi Klein- No Logo
45. Will Ferguson- Why I Hate Canadians
46. Lisa Moore- February
47. Mary Watson- Crow Lake
48. Alan Bradley- The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie
49. Cory Doctorow- Little Brother
50. P.K. Page- Planet Earth: Poems selected and new

51. Lawrence Hill- The Book of Negroes
52. Timothy Findley- The Wars
53. Margaret Atwood- Alias Grace
54. Jane Urquhart- The Stone Carvers
55. Mavis Gallant- From the Fifteenth District
56. Hugh MacLennan- Barometer Rising
57. Joy Kogawa- Obasan
58. Wayson Choy- Jade Peony
59. Chester Brown- Louis Riel
60. Yann Martel- Life of Pi

61. Gabrielle Roy- The Tin Flute
62. W.P. Kinsella- Shoeless Joe  (pretty sure I read this years ago)
63. Elizabeth Smart- By Grand Central Station I Sat Down and Wept
64. Thomas King- Green Grass, Running Water
65. Sara Gruen- Water for Elephants
66. William Gibson- Neuromancer
67. Margaret Laurence- The Diviners  (I read The Stone Angel)
68. Marie-Claire Blais- A Season in the Life of Emmanuel
69. Brian Moore- The Luck of Ginger Coffey
70. Ethel Wilson- Swamp Angel

71. Stephen Leacock- Sunshine Sketches of a Little Town
72. W.O. Mitchell- Who Has Seen the Wind?
73. Robert Sawyer- Flashforward
74. Roch Carrier- The Hockey Sweater
75. Eric Walters- Camp X
76. Bryan Lee O'Malley- Scott Pilgrim's Precious Little Life
77. Jeff Lemire- Essex County
78. Hubert Aquin- Next Episode
79. David Bergen- The Time in Between
80. George Elliott Clarke- Wylah Falls

81. Lynn Coady- Saints of Big Harbour
82. Michael Crummey- Galore
83. Esi Edugyan- Halfblood Blues
84. Rawi Hage- De Niro's Game
85. Bernice Morgan- Random Passage
86. Peter C. Newman- The Canadian Establishment
87. bpNichol- The Martyrology
88. Louise Penny- Still Life
89. Paul Quarrington- Whale Music  (read King Leary)
90. Sinclair Ross- As For Me and My House

91. Nalo Hopkinson- Brown Girl in the Ring
92. Vincent Lam- Bloodletting and Miraculous Cures
93. Dennis Lee- Alligator Pie
94. John McCrae- "In Flanders' Fields"
95. Zoe Whittal- Bottle Rocket Hearts
96. Andrew Davidson- The Gargoyle
97. Al Purdy- Rooms for Rent in the Outer Planets
98. Pierre Berton- The Arctic Grail
99. Stephen Galloway- The Cellist of Sarajevo
100. Lynn Johnston- Something Old, Something New

BOOK: Children of the Jacaranda Tree by Sarah Delijani

Children of the Jacaranda Tree by Sarah Delijani, 280 pages

review book from Simon & Schuster Canada

I watched Jon Stewart's last show before his hiatus from The Daily Show. He showed a clip* of Jason Jones in Iran in 2009, during the revolution and protests before the 'democratic' elections. One of the reporters they talked to was subsequently arrested. Stewart and the show had become friends, and after his eventual release, and book writing, Stewart decided to make a movie based on the events. That's what his hiatus is for, and it is also the subject of this book, sort of.

The revolution and protests of 2009 mirrored the revolution and crack down that happened in the 1980s. Starting in Evin Prison in 1983, a child is born to a prisoner. Delijani immersed the reader in the scene - the fear, the confusion, the horror. Several stories are followed in the 1980s, from connected young people who have been imprisoned, and their young children who are looked after by other family members. Some of the prisoners survive, some don't. Some left Iran, some stayed. Twenty odd years later, the children are grown, and living their own revolution, and also the effects of having parents who were in prison for the same revolution.

It was a beautiful book, and reminds you that an 'axis of evil' represents a government and its leaders, not the people. Iran had been a well educated, vibrant country with women who had vital roles in society. Then, bam. A totalitarian government, fundamentalist religiously based changed all that. The people are still fighting, still rebelling as best as they can. The fact that a new generation who grew up under Khomeni still turned out in numbers to protest showed that the brainwashing of a generation did not take.

It's a book that brings history, and modern events to life. As I read, I enjoyed the story and the people, but at all times, recognized that as much as it is a novel, it is also what has really happened to real people.

In the author’s own words, “Children of the Jacaranda Tree is an attempt not only to keep alive the memory of my uncle and all those who were murdered in that blood-soaked summer, but also to shed light on this dark moment in Iranian history, on its tales of violence, prison and death, which have remained untold for so long. To give voice not only to the victims of this atrocity, but also to the ordeal of their families and their children, who have had to live with their unspoken grief buried inside them year after year, decade after decade.”

Other books to read:  Persepolis 1 and 2  by Marjane Satrapi; Reading Lolita in Tehran by Azar Nafisi; 1982 by Jian Ghomeshi (as a book by one of the Iranian children who left Iran before the revolution)


(*Behind the Veil: Persians of Interest, Minarets of Menace, Ayatollah You So these are links to the Comedy Channel, the Canadian site. They should also be on Comedy Central. Don't judge! I get my news from The Daily Show)

BOOK: Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald by Therese Anne Fowler

Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald by Therese Anne Fowler, 375 pages

It's all the rage to write a fictional autobiography from the perspective of a famous man's wife. (The Paris Wife - Ernest Hemingway's first wife; The Aviator's Wife - Charles Lindbergh's wife; even vaguely American Wife by Curtis Sittenfeld from a few years ago.) As long as they're as good as the ones I've read so far, I say keep 'em coming. Note to self - find The Aviator's Wife.

I loved Zelda! It was told from her perspective, from how the author interpreted events. We zip from the Southern US to New York, flapper life, the famous time in Paris, and the eventual destruction of some lives. Sure, Zelda probably had bipolar disorder, but much like many women in the 1930s and 40s who were institutionalized, it was that they weren't towing the male line. Imagine wanting to create in her own right and name and not just as Scott's wife? I thought it was interesting that in the author's notes at the end, she mentions how much of the mythology of Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald is based on what Ernest Hemingway wrote about them in The Moveable Feast, and he certainly wasn't a Zelda fan.

also reviewed: bookfool at bookfoolery (the review that inspired me to request from the library. Thanks Nancy!)

CHALLENGE: 7th Annual Canadian Book Challenge

John Mutford at The Book Mine Set is once again (seventh time!) hosting The Canadian Book Challenge. It's easy - just read books by Canadians and about Canada. Some people read by themes (provinces, authors, kids, mysteries) but I just read the ones I want. The only rule is that reviews must be written and posted. (I don't get all mine reviewed, and then they don't count in my totals :{

John met Douglas Coupland! Holy moly that's exciting. I think I will
have to read a Coupland this challenge to commemorate this. I adored Hey Nostradamus! and Eleanor Rigby and All Families are Psychotic and Generation A. Plus, the Canadian Souvenir books, and the Terry Fox book. I want to read JPod, Microserfs, Miss Wyoming, or Girlfriend in a Coma.




Head to The Book Mine Set to get more details and to sign up.

Pool of Books (left over from last year or the year before)
Microserfs by Douglas Coupland
Diamond Dreams by Stephen Brunt
Getting Over Edgar by Joan Barfoot
The Age of Longing by Richard B Wright
The Republic of Love by Carol Shields
 Lives of Girls and Women by Alice Munro
 The Fire-Dwellers by Margaret Laurence
 Beatrice and Virgil by Yann Martel
 In the Skin of the Lion by Michael Ondaatje

Ideas/books since the last challenge
Teaching by Gerry Dee
The Reluctant Detective by Martin Finley
The Last Crossing by Guy Vanderhaeghe
Our Lady of the Lost and Found
Inger Ash Wolfe series

Books I Actually Read:

1.  Indian Horse - Richard Wagamese
2.  The Woman Upstairs - Claire Messud
3.  Cockroach - Rawi Hage
4.  How the Light Gets In - Louise Penny
5. Dead in Their Vaulted Arches - Alan Bradley
6. The Bear - Claire Cameron
7. An Astronaut's Guide to Life on Earth - Chris Hadfield
8. The Penelopiad - Margaret Atwood
9. MaddAddam - Margaret Atwood
10. Highly Inappropriate Tales for Young People - Douglas Coupland
11. The Silent Wife - ASA Harrison
12.

BOOK: Flight Behavior by Barbara Kingsolver

Flight Behavior by Barbara Kingsolver, 436 pages

Women's Prize for Fiction (formerly Orange Prize) shortlist 2013

 Flight Behavior, State of Wonder, Intuition: a trifecta of Orange nominated, well written, science based books. Something also about their readability - not character driven, not particularly plot driven, but characters grow and change, and there is a page-turning aspect to the plot - what will happen next? I didn't loove any of the three, and yet, I quite enjoyed reading each of them, and found them very engaging.

Kingsolver (of The Poisonwood Bible fame) writes this one closer to home - the mountains of Appalacia, and her environmental concerns. The last Kingsolver I read was Animal, Vegetable, Mineral, her non-fiction account of living strictly off her own land, self-sufficiently.

Plot - Monach butterflies appear on a Tennessee hill destined for clear-cutting, which would provide some much needed money. Dellarobia, the married at 17, stay at home mother of two, has been feeling stifled, and becomes involved in the butterflies when the scientists come to study them. The book is maninly Dellarobia, and her growth and self-examination. You cheer for Dellarobia as you read, hoping for her to find what she needs in her life, to stretch her intellect, and reach her potential.

Best part - a guy who comes to hand out leaflets (the mountain becomes quite a magnet for all types of protesters) for ways to lower a person's carbon footprint. As he explains all the tips to Dellarobia, the conceit of the rich and middle-class who need these tips to assail their guilt at the damage to the environment becomes laughable.
ex) take tupperware to restaurants to take home your left-overs (Dellarobia hasn't been to a restaurant in two years)
- carry a nalgene bottle instead of buying bottled water (Dellarobia would never buy water, too poor)
- reduce intake of red meat (Dellarobia is trying to increase her family's eating of red meat instead of KD, and she doesn't have a freezer)
- try to buy reused items (Dellarobia laughed at this one - she has no new items of clothes)
- switch to socially responsible stocks and investments
- make sure computers get recycled (Dellarobia doesn't have a computer - guy looks shocked)
he ends with - fly less. Less? she says.

TOP TEN TUESDAY: Books Featuring Travel In Some Way

Top Ten Books at The Broke and the Bookish is Featuring Travel In Some Way (road trips, airplanes, travelogues, anything where there is traveling in the book!) Check out here for more Top Ten Tuesday posts.

1. Paper Town by John Green
Has the coolest, funniest road trip in any book

2. Wild by Cheryl Strayed
She walks the Pacific Coast Trail by herself

3. Harry Potter by JK Rowling
Hogwart's Express, leaving from Station 9 1/2 is the coolest way to get to school

4. Life of Pi by Yann Martell
Crossing the Pacific Ocean in a boat with a tiger

5. Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie
Gotta have a train ride here somewhere

6. Anne of Green Gables by LM Montgomery
That fateful horse and buggy ride with Anne and Matthew changed both their lives forever

7. The Unexpected Mrs Pollifax by Dorothy Gilman
She travels all over the world as a spy in the 1960s. Her trip down a river in Turkey was pretty memorable

8. The Road by Cormac McCarthy
Travelling by foot is the most harrowing of trips, especially in this ash-laden view of the future

9.  The Greatest Thing Since Sliced Bread by Don Robertson
When Morris Bird III pulls his wagon across Cincinnatti after a natural gas explosion, a little boy shows courage

10. The Unnamed by Joshua Ferris
The main character's legs will force him to walk without stopping, sending him on walking trips to where he doesn't know

Did I forget any great travel books?

BOOK: Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (And Other Concerns) by Mindy Kaling

Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (And Other Concerns) by Mindy Kaling, (4 hours, 37 min)

This book and Bossypants will be forever linked in my mind. Both are written by hilariously funny women (Tina Fey and Mindy Kaling) and both audio versions are (in my opinion) the way to listen to them. They are essentially stand-up routines by non stand-up comedians. It happens that I listened to both books, and hearing the funny women read them adds a lot to the experience. Both are a series of essays and thoughts by two of the funniest women in show business.

Kaling is best known for The Office (I haven't watched her new show on Fox yet) and actually wrote one of my favorite episodes, "The Injury". It seems timely that I was listening to this book as The Office wrapped up it series. (Btw, great last season of the show. I love that they finally dealt with the documentary, and had Jim and Pam have some bumps, but ultimately their love shone through. Plus Dwight and Angela belong together.) I watched the show from the very hilarious beginning.

Kaling is surprisingly normal, and disproves the adage that comedians deal with the tragedy of their youth in their comedy. Not only did she have a pretty normal life, she relishes and appreciates her family and their normalcy. A few of the essays that stood out to me were her defence of marriage as evidenced by her parents, her confusion over the attraction of one night stands, and why is it best not to peak socially in high school. She is very funny, and observant, and my only complaint is that is wasn't long enough. I could have listened for several more hours.

BOOK: Miss Hargreaves by Frank Baker

Miss Hargreaves by Frank Baker, 305 pages

Miss Hargreaves is the last of the Bloomsbury 'pretty cover' books I bought back in 2009. It was different, and maybe a little too long. Here's a librarything link to all the books in the series. (The Bronte's Went to Woolworths was the most fun of the bunch!)

Miss Hargreaves is the story of two young men (early 20s) who foolishly make up an elderly lady, who suddenly then appears in their life in real life. Written in 1939 it describes a different England. The main character is an organist in the Cornford Cathedral, and some of the music and church life could easily have been cut out.

The premise is funny, and seeing the boys react to her answering their letter and showing up was good. But that wears after a while. The middle part of the book, up to the point where they realize they have to 'get rid of her' somehow, dragged a bit. But then the ending was good again.

BOOK: The Firebird by Susanna Kearsley

The Firebird by Susanna Kearsley, 466 pages

review copy from Simon&Schuster Canada;
Canadian Book Challenge

This was my first book by Canadian author Susanna Kearsley, but not her first. The Firebird is her ninth novel, and the notes at the end suggest that some of the characters have come from a previous novel. Colonel Patrick Graeme was a major character, and based on a real person, from The Winter Sea. He is a minor character here, and while other characters are also based on real people, the main character in the present is fictional.

The Firebird has two stories - a present day art historian with a gift of sight, and a early 1700s story of a Scottish girl and how she ends up in Empress Catherine's Russian court with a potentially valuable artifact. The historical Jacobite's provide the backdrop to the past.

Nicola and her gift of sight felt a little forced to me as a method to 'see' the history of Anna and how and why she moved from Scotland and ended up in Russia. Nicola and her ex-boyfriend (and clearly going to be her new one) Rob, who also has the sight, can conveniently fast forward through history to see the scene they are interested in. Other than that weird little skill, I liked the book. The historic story of Anna and the Jacobites and the Russian court of early 1700s was really good. Kearsley writes great historic fiction, and I hated being brought back to the present day romance. I now want to read another book from the Russian court or one of Kearsley's Jacobite intrigue novels.

BOOK: The Dance of the Seagull by Andrea Camilleri

The Dance of the Seagull by Andrea Camilleri, 5 h 40 min

translated by Stephen Sartarelli, narrated by Grover Gardner
book 15

I've been reading, and enjoying this series since I discovered it in 2006. Camilleri keeps writing, and Sartarelli tries to keep up with the translating, and it is one of the few books I buy as soon as a new one is released. I missed this latest book's release date, and happened to notice it as an audiobook at the library. Hmm. It was only about 5 hours, just about the length I like to listen to without feeling rushed, so although I generally prefer nonfiction on audio, I decided to give it a try.

Wow. Listening to it gave me a whole new appreciation for Inspector Salvo Montalbano, and his devoted and patient police officers. In this one, Mimi Agiello goes missing. (I'm not a very auditory person, which is why I haven't taken to audio books so much. I have no idea how names are spelled from listening.) Montalbano is beside himself with worry, and becomes very focused on finding Mimi and solving the case of who kidnapped him. I was actually able to pick up on some clues a little better on the audio for some reason, and the mystery just zoomed along. Montalbano and Livvie will be making a decision about their future soon I think, and Salvo wasn't quite as depressed about being old this book.

Camilleri is having lots of fun playing with the meta in this book. Montalbano has been made into a television series in Italy, and our character complains at one point of the filming and his worry of running into the actor playing him on the show. Later, Montalbano muses how only Camilleri knows the ending. Between these references, Montalbano One and Montalbano Two fighting over philosophical decisions, and of course, Catarelli's continual mangling of whatever language he speaks, I spent quite a bit of time chuckling in the car.

I don't know if it was the new format, or Camilleri really stepped up the mystery plot, but it's not often that the 15th book in a series is one that I've enjoyed as much as any in the series. I'm now hoping to listen to the next book (20 books have been written in Italian) as well.

BOOKS: April Reads

Without meaning to, I took quite the tour of England this month. Life After Life was the last book I read in March, where the same (British) life was relived over and over. I then proceeded to read about England over and over in April, through different time periods and cities, but mostly London. I even consciously tried to change settings for my last book, but ended up reading about a creepy serial killer. Some months I manage great reviews for every book I read; some months get recaps.

25. Speaking From Among the Bones by Alan Bradley, 358 pages

book 5 of 6 in the Flavia de Luce series
1950s England, and our heroine, the crime-solving teenage Flavia is enmeshed in crimes again. I read this at the first of the month, and can't remember the mystery! No wait, they are digging up the church relics, and the missing organist is found under the church. Really, the mystery is only a small part of these books - Flavia, her sisters, her father, the local police, are the main attraction. And all anyone will remember after reading this book is the final, cliff-hanging sentence! Bradley hasn't ended a book like that before. Can't wait for the next book! (though not completely surprised at the revelation)

26. The Forrests - Emily Perkins reviewed here

27. Where'd You Go, Bernadette? by Maria Semple, 326 pages

Orange Shortlist 2013 (Women's Prize for Fiction)

This was a wonderful change of pace book. Fast action (epistolary books are low on description, high on action) as the disappearance of Bernadette is investigated. A Seattle mother is hiding out somewhat after an early in life, brief success as an architect. I liked Bernadette; I liked how the minor characters (the gnats, mothers at the private school)  also played big parts, and didn't stay stereotypes, but showed growth as well as providing humour. Add in a cruise to Antarctica and it was a fun week-end read.

28. N-W by Zadie Smith, 304 pages

 Orange Shortlist 2013 (Women's Prize for Fiction)

Modern Northwest London. Four characters from the same neighbourhood whose live somewhat intersect. Each gets a very different style (from stream of consciousness, no quotations to regular quotation style narrative) and it all came together quite nicely. We get to see each character from different points of view, from how they appear to be successfully living compared to the reality. The first section is the hardest to read, but I recommend persevering through it. It made sense after the fact, and added to the book in retrospect. I'd try another Smith.

29. Pardonable Lies by Jacqueline Winspear, 384 pages (book 3 of 10)

 Here's a series that got ahead of me. I bought this third book a number of years ago, and for some reason, I was remembering these books as slow going. Instead, I raced through Maisie's adventure as she explored the psychic world to prove to a widower, who promised his dying wife, that he'd find out if their son truly died in France in the war. Although it is 1930, the effects of the first war are still strongly felt in England and France. Maisie is getting close to facing some dilemmas regarding her love life, and is discovering there is more to her mentor, Maurice, than she originally knew.

I'll be reading the next book sooner rather than later.

30. Birdman by Mo Hayder, 448 pages (book 1 of 5)

I have to watch Criminal Minds with just one eye on the television. Half my brain can only pay attention because of how disturbing the serial killers the team chases are. Birdman could easily be on Criminal Minds, he's that creepy. This first book in the Jack Caffrey series may be my limit of how far I can read the creepy. I plan to read another one for sure, as there are only 5 in the series as of now, which feels like I can catch up with this one. I liked the main detective. It's another cop whose brother disappeared as a child.
And I spent more time in a London setting.

Cheer-ee-o London, I'm sure I'll be back!

TOP TEN TUESDAY: Words/Topics That Instantly Make Me Buy/Pick Up a Book

Top Ten Words/Topics That Instantly Make Me Buy/Pick Up A Book

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted at The Broke and the Bookish, and there is a different topic posted each week. Head over to see what other participants have posted.

Epistolary - so many books fit this category and I nearly always enjoy. Best example: Bridget Jones

Small British Village - may or may not contain a murder, but that pushes it up the list

two (or more) sisters - here's a list at librarything of books with sisters

mystery - bonus if it is a mystery from another country, or one I haven't read before.

police procedural - this started with the Ed McBain 87th precinct books

parallel histories - I can't even think of a good example, but I know I enjoy back and forths. It by Stephen King is kind of what I'm thinking of. Maybe more parallel stories, or different narrators is what I mean here.

modern Dublin - thanks Maeve Binchy!

historical fiction - not all historical fiction, but this topic will certainly make me look twice at the book, especially if there is a crime. Brother Cadfael by Ellis Peters is an excellent example

orange prize nominated - makes it easy to select a book if I know it has been nominated

Canadian- I know this is actually really broad, but I do enjoy reading different authors from around the country. Our country is pretty big and multicultural, so this encompasses almost everything.

BOOK: The Forrests by Emily Perkins

The Forrests by Emily Perkins, 340 pages

Orange Longlist 2013 (Women's Prize for Fiction)

I persevered through The Forrests, and finally finished. Ringing endorsement, eh?

Jenny wrote a post about the unified theory of her reading tastes. You should check out her theory - it helped me realise what it is about books I don't like. (Well, I've essentially copied hers). I don't enjoy books where the characters are not put into a situation where they are forced to make a decision, or deal with a difficulty or show some growth. Books where characters just float along and do some thinking, combined with a lack of writer's 'readability for my brain' are books that I end up not enjoying. I can handle one or the other, but both? Me and the book are in trouble.

That would be my problem with The Forrests, because I did have problems. Most of the interesting action happened between chapters, and the (eventual) main character just seemed to float through life. The point of view, with no one's thoughts or viewpoint stressed (what's that actually called?), also made it difficult to connect with anyone at all. (And I know it is cliche to say I didn't connect with characters.) For an example of the missing action, at one point, Dorothy has had a number of kids, becoming quite agoraphobic, and quite obese. At the start of the next chapter, she is swimming at a local pool, and the comment is made that she had been dieting for the past two years. What?

Dorothy is one of four Forrest children, and we follow her life. The detail in the beginning chapters,  about all the kids as the family moves to New Zealand, did not lead me to realize that it was Dorothy, and her entire life that we'd be following.There were lots of sad things, some good things; a regular life.

I didn't actually hate it, and there were chapters where I did get into the story. I respect what the author has written and why it would be nominated for The Woman's Prize for Fiction, but overall, not a story that I enjoyed enough.

BOOK: Life After Life by Kate Atkinson

Life After Life by Kate Atkinson, 478 pages

review copy from Random House Canada

 "What if we had a chance to do it again and again," Teddy said, "until we finally did get it right? Wouldn't that be wonderful?"

First of all, this is not Groundhog Day, the movie. Ursula Todd is not reliving the same day, but she does get to live her life over and over. Each time, at some critical point, her life takes a turn. The people in her life stay the same, but different things happen each time, after 'darkness falls'.

The two world wars in England are lived over and over, with lots of chances for death. Ursula has deja vu eventually, as she somehow knows she needs to do things to prevent the deaths of her loved ones. London during the blitz is so ripe for reading about, and I do enjoy that setting.

It was fun as the book moved on to see the same people and same events, but from different views of Ursula's life, depending on how this world was going. Sometimes she might have been killed by the bomb that landed during the blitz, sometimes she was the ARP worker saving the same house and people from the bomb, sometimes she was nearby, sometimes she was in Germany instead. The essence of the other characters stayed the same in her various lives - she is always close to her sister, her aunt always comes to the rescue.

Atkinson is a wonderful writer, with a good sense of humor, and the ability to keep different characters and plot lines interconnected, and satisfying, by the end. I've loved all the books she's written (I haven't read two early books yet) but I so look forward to them. I'm not sure if I like this one better than Behind the Scenes at the Museum. Life After Life was more enjoyable during the reading but by the end of Behind the Scenes at the Museum, I was blown away by how it all came together. Life After Life was a bit of a let down, since how can the story ever end? But the ride was fabulous.

BOOK: Wild by Cheryl Strayed

Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail by Cheryl Strayed, 316 pages

review copy from Random House of Canada

Cheryl Strayed wrote this memoir of her time hiking the Pacific Crest Tail in the 1990s. She decided to walk the 1000 mile trail after her mother had died (quickly) of cancer when Cheryl was just twenty-one. In the few years after the death, her marriage broke up, and her step-father and siblings grew apart; the trail was a chance to rely on herself, and come to terms with her behaviour and grief.

She kind of planned for the hike, but not in a way that was terribly useful. Her family had been outdoorsy, but nothing that approached her adventure. The community that she ran into on the trail was nearly all friendly and congenial and her biggest fears were the wildlife. A trip today without a cell phone is almost unimaginable.

The book reads very easily, and could almost cause a reader to think a hike would be a fun idea. Almost, except for her feet which were raw and blistered the whole trip, the weight of carrying a pack, and dealing with unplanned detours. Strayed connects her past life and mistakes with how she came to terms with her present life, and is pretty upfront about herself and her decisions. It would be a great read for someone who liked adventures, self-growth, and seeing how far a person can push themselves when under duress. She was an person heading on a downward spiral, so there is sex and drug talk, but I enjoyed getting to know her.

Next to try: Bill Bryson's A Walk in the Woods which chronicles the east coast version of walking the Appalachian trail.