TOP TEN TUESDAY: First Lines

The topic this week is First Lines. I've gone through and found the first lines of some books I've loved, and also where the first line so clearly identifies the book, I smile as soon as I read the first line. Do you recognize the lines as well? I've hidden the answer after the quote - highlight the area to see if you are correct.
Top Ten Thursday is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl - check out her site for links to today's topic, and to see the future topics.


Monday 27 January 129 lbs. (total fat groove), boyfriends 1 (hurrah!), shags 3 (hurrah!), calories 2,100, calories used up by shags 600, so total calories 1,500 (exemplary). Bridget Jones' Diary

If it had not rained on a certain May morning Valancy Stirling's whole life would have been entirely different. The Blue Castle by LM Montgomery


Mr. and Mrs. Dursley, of number four, Privet Drive, were proud to say that they were perfectly normal, thank you very much. Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone by JK Rowling


Mrs. Rachel Lynde lived just where the Avonlea main road dipped down into a little hollow, fringed with alders and ladies' eardrops and traversed by a brook that had its source away back in the woods of the old Cuthbert place; it was reputed to be an intricate, headlong brook in its earlier course through those woods, with dark secrets of pool and cascade; but by the time it reached Lynde's Hollow it was a quiet well-conducted little stream, for not even a brook could run past Mrs. Rachel Lynde's door without due regard for decency and decorum; it probably was conscious that Mrs. Rachel was sitting at her window, keeping a sharp eye on everything that passed, from brooks and children up, and that if she noticed anything odd or out of place she would never rest until she had ferreted out the whys and wherefores thereof. Anne of Green Gables by LM Montgomery


Maniac Magee was not born in a dump. Maniac Magee by Jerry Spinelli


Dave, I just finished the first chapter of a new novel - a real crime novel with a dead body and all- and I thought of you. Heads You Lose by Lisa Lutz

Major Pettigrew was still upset about the phone call from his brother's wife and so he answered the doorbell without thinking. Major Pettigrew's Last Stand


He knew at once it was a human bone, when he took it from the baby who was sitting on the floor chewing it. The Silence of the Grave by Arnaldur Indridason


How angry am I? You don't want to know. Nobody wants to know about that. The Woman Upstairs by Claire Messud


At half past six on the twenty-first of June 1922, when Count Alexander Ilyich Rostov was escorted through the gates of the Kremlin onto Red Square, it was glorious and cool. A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles


The day Somebody McSomebody put a gun to my breast and called me a cat and threatened to shoot me was the same day the milkman died. The Milkman by Anna Burns


The Herdmans were absolutely the worst kids in the history of the world. The Best Christmas Pageant Ever by Barbara Patterson

WEEKEND COOKING: Oatmeal Waffles

Marg from The Adventures of an Intrepid Reader is back to blogging, and has taken over the hosting of Weekend Cooking. I thought I had participated many times over the years, but a perusal of my blog shows me I only did once. In honour of Marg's return (it is so nice to see an 'old' face in my feed reader) that I am going to try to post a little more regularly, and Weekend Cooking is a great start for me.

A few Christmases ago I bought the family a waffle maker for a house present. It has taken me a while to get the hang of making them so they don't squeeze out the side and make a huge mess to clean up but I have. I also have found the recipe that I make over and over again, so much so that I don't even look for other recipes anymore. If they don't all get eaten (rarely)  I just pop them in the toaster the next day. My favourite way to eat these waffles is with some cut up fruit (strawberries or bananas), and a little bit of syrup. If I'm serving for company, I might get some Cool Whip.

As I think about some of my favourite recipes, it turns out I really, really like oatmeal, so don't be surprised to see more oatmeal recipes here.

Oatmeal Waffles (from kyleecooks)

makes 4 or 5, depending on your waffle maker)
Ingredients

1-1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 cup quick-cooking oatmeal
3 tsp baking powder
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
2 eggs lightly beaten
1-1/2 cups milk
4 Tbs butter melted
1 Tbs dark brown sugar
Instructions

In a bowl, combine the dry ingredients: flour, oatmeal, baking powder, cinnamon and salt.
In another bowl, whisk eggs, milk, butter and brown sugar.
Add wet to dry, and mix until just combined. The mixture will be thick!
Pour batter into a lightly greased waffle iron and cook until desired colour is reached.

TOP TEN TUESDAY: Spring 2020 TBR

The topic for this week's Top Ten Tuesday, hosted at That Artsy Reader Girl, is your Spring TBR list. I love making these lists, but maybe this one should be the 'social distancing/isolation list' as we all hunker down and live our best introverted bookworm life. I also expect to get through this list a lot faster than a usual seasonal TBR list. It is technically our March Break this week and how the next few weeks plan our isn't exactly clear for teachers yet, but I expect to be home for quite a bit. So, read on...

Couple of audiobooks I've got borrowed for my walks:

Ask Again, Yes! by Mary Beth Keane

I'm already part way through this one and really liking it!

Fingal O'Reilly, Irish Doctor by Patrick Taylor

Looking forward to a little stay in the simpler 60s of Ireland

next in a series:

Rest Not in Peace (Chronicles of Hugh de Singleton, Surgeon) by Mel Starr 

Way back in the 1200s...

Dying Fall by Elly Griffiths

I got this Kindle book on Amazon because my library is missing books 5 & 6 in the series, which is ridiculous. I actually won a $10 Amazon gift certificate through the Participaction app, just for recording my active minutes of exercise. 

books I grabbed at the library on Sunday because I was worried the library would close (which it has!)

All Grown Up by Jami Attenberg 

Truth & Beauty: A Friendship by Ann Patchett 

Girl: A Novel by Edna O'Brien 

Girl, Woman, Other by Bernardine Evaristo

Love & Gelato by Jenna Evans Welch 

And my Book Club book for the month:

Winter Garden by Kristin Hannah 

Also, Happy St Patrick's Day!

TOP TEN TUESDAY: One Word Titles

This week's topic on Top Ten Tuesday, hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl,  is One Word Titles. I'm amending the topic to One Word Titles of Books I Already Own and Want to Read.

Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier

Causeway by Linden MacIntyre

Eligible by Curtis Sittenfeld

Astray by Emma Donoghue

Sovereign by CJ Sansom

Tangled by Carolyn Mackler

Drood by Dan Simmons

Gone by Lisa Gardner

Eventide by Kent Haruf

Rockbound by Frank Day

TOP TEN TUESDAY: Love (books from the past decade)

The topic for this week's Top Ten Tuesday, hosted at That Artsy Reader Girl, is Love. I'm going with some books I've loved, the best of the best, my favourite books of the past decade. When I look at this list, I nod approvingly.

my favourite books of the past decade

2019 - Milkman - Anna Burns

2018 - Eleanor Oliphant is Perfectly Fine - Gail Honeyman

2017- Finding Wonder - Jeanne Atkins

2016- The Frozen Thames - Helen Humphries

2015- The Martian - Andy Weir

2014- Ready Player One - Ernest Cline

2013- The Light Between the Oceans - ML Stedman

2012- Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World that Won't Stop Talking - Susan Cain

2011- Heads You Lose - Lisa Lutz

2010- Major Pettigrew's Last Stand - Helen Simonson

2009- The Lizard Cage - Karen Connelly

CHALLENGE: What's in a Name?

I haven't joined an actual challenge in quite a while, other than the Canadian Book Challenge which I haven't officially completed in a while, or the RIP challenge, which isn't a challenge for me when most of what I read is mystery and suspense books. Anyway. The challenge is now hosted at Carolina Book Nook; head there to sign up.

I participated in the What's in a Name for many years, from 2008 until 2014 when I DNF'd with 3/5 books read. But I'm feeling the need to make a list of possible books, and this is the perfect challenge for that. The topics this year, with my possibilities are:

• An ampersand – &  
• Truth & Beauty - Ann Patchett;
•  Love & Gelato
• Serpent & Dove

• An antonym 
• City of Saints & Thieves
• An Irish Doctor in Peace and War

• 4 letters or less  
• Girl by Edna O'Brien
• Gone by Lisa Gardner,

• A given/first name 
• Yaqui Delgado Wants to Kick Your Ass by Meg Medina
• Still Alice by Lisa Genova
• Rebecca; 

• Reference to children  
• Lost Children Archive by Valeria Luisella
• How to Build a Girl - Caitlin Moran

• One of the 4 natural elements – water, air, fire, earth 
• The Water Rat of Wanchai by Ian Hamilton
• Disappearing Earth by Julia Philips
• The Man Who Played with Fire

TOP TEN TUESDAY: Newest Additions to Shelves

Top Ten Tuesday topic today is the most recent additions to my shelves. This will give me a chance to write some mini-reviews of books I've recently finished, and a chance to look forward to some books upcoming. Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by That Arty Reader Girl - check her blog out for links to other participants, and to find future topics.

• To the Land of Long Lost Friends: The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency #20  by Alexander McCall Smith (Jan 17)
• My library has been slow to add this to its catalogue, but I finally got myself on the waiting list, should be a few weeks til I get to spend some lovely time in Botswana with some old friends.

Still Midnight by Denise Mina (Jan 11)

I'm listening to this great Scottish police mystery, the first of five books with Alex Morrow as the tortured lead character. With only two hours left to read, I definitely will listen to more of these books.

• Pumpkinheads by Rainbow Rowell (Jan 5)
• Quick graphic novel read that takes place on the last night of pumpkin season at a pumpkin patch with two high-schoolers who will be heading off to university. It's a sweet friendship book, with amazing food as the two friends make it a night to remember.

• We Met in December by Rosie Curtis (Dec 30, 2019)
• Cute little British rom-com that I listened to to start the year. (Should have read this in December, obvs) Two great main characters sharing a flat with other housemates but are interested but know they shouldn't get involved - it's actually a house rule. But as the year proceeds...

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The Art of Theft: The Lady Sherlock Series, Book 4 by Sherry Thomas (Dec 29, 2019)

This series does not disappoint at all! Charlotte and her merry gang of misfits head to France to try and obtain a painting that may contain some blackmail information about a client. We learn more about Mrs Watson's previous life, Charlotte's sisters continue to be a part of the story, and Charlotte and Lord Ingram continue their back and forth. Moriarity's are still always in the background. Fans of Sherlock Holmes should enjoy.

• We Cast a Shadow by Maurice Carlos Ruffin (Dec 25, 2019)
• I borrowed the audio book after seeing this book on the Tournament of Books 2020 play-in list. I think I get what the author was aiming for, but I found it too bleak, and upsetting to enjoy. Set in a slightly future America, where race relations have not improved like you might hope, a father is trying to get his mixed race son surgery to prevent his birthmark from spreading. I didn't like the father and his blaming, and the author knew readers wouldn't like him and he even gives a speech defending his decisions, but it didn't help me. 

The Huntress by Kate Quinn (Dec 9, 2019)

• My neighbour teacher brought this historical book in for me, with great recommendations and I can't wait to get to it. 

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• Number One Chinese Restaurant by Lillian Li (Dec 5, 2019)
• I'm in the process of reading this book, a longlist book from last year's Bailey's Prize for Fiction. Set in Maryland, a Chinese-American Jimmy is trying to open up a new restaurant, separate from the family Beijing Duck House. There are a bunch of characters, and I'm not completely sure what the main plot is yet. It is okay so far, and it reminds me of another book that I haven't quite been able to recognize.

• Disappearing Earth  by Julia Phillips (Dec 5, 2019)

Now this book had a lot to recommend. First of all, the setting was in the far east of Russia, in the area known as Kamchatka Peninsula. I was not familiar with this, wouldn't even have thought people lived in this area; luckily a map is included. Bonus. The book starts with the disappearance of two young girls that we read from their perspective. The rest of the book, one chapter for each month, seems to become a series of stories about other characters in the area. Some of these characters are connected to each other, and then near the end, everything starts to come together in a satisfying way. 

• A Single Thread by Tracy Chevalier (Dec 3, 2019)
• I did enjoy this book but I read it in the weeks before Christmas, and I didn't get to get absorbed in in time-wise, which is too bad, because Chevalier is one of my favourite authors, and in another time, I should have loved this one because it had embroidery. Chevalier writes historical fiction so well, and her research on a topic is always enjoyable.
• Set in the early 1930s, after WW1 in London, our main character, Violet has lost her brother and fiance in the war, and is a spinster. She is expected to look after her mother, with no regard to her choices. She rebels a bit, and gets a job in a nearby town, lives on her own, and gradually begins to make a life. She discovers a group of embroiderers at a cathedral, and finds her artistic side. She also makes friends with a male bell-ringer at the cathedral, and we get to learn a lot about bell-ringing. Chevalier covers a lot of social territory and commentary, including family obligations, women's roles in society, lesbians, unhappy marriages that won't divorce so lead to affairs, single mothers, and friendships. I would recommend this one especially for fans of historical fiction, England between the wars, and women's fiction.