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Life
It was kind of a quiet, catch-up week. We had one trip to Fox Chase Cancer Center in Philadelphia (just a day trip), I had one medical appointment for myself, and I met a friend for a walk, something I hadn't been able to do in months! I'm still not fully out of my winter relapse yet. I had a couple of good days this weekend, but the flu-like aches are back today (though mild).
The sun is finally shining today, for the first time in over a week! This is exactly what it looked like every day last week (though sometimes it was raining, too):
Despite the dark, gray, gloomy days, I am seeing encouraging signs of spring all around: buds on our forsythia tree, daffodil shoots just beginning to peek out of the soil, the first skunk cabbage emerging (that's a big deal around here), and hundreds of robins all over the yards in our neighborhood.
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| Buds on the forsythia bush (taken at noon!) |
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| Snowdrops almost ready to bloom |
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| I spotted the first skunk cabbage on my walk! |
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| Daffodils starting to poke out of the soil |
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| They're back! So many robins in our neighborhood! |
Last night, we finally saw a glimpse of light as the sun set. And today is sunny and 70! It feels great to have the windows open.
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| What is that strange brightness in the sky? |
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March Reading Plans - a quick overview of the books I plan to read this month, as I juggle March Mystery Madness, Middle-Grade March, Murderous March, plus books for book group, review, and Booktopia!
Weekly Reading Wrap-Up - Outstanding fiction, middle-grade mysteries, and more.
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Several of our favorite shows have come back, either with a late-season start or a restart after a mid-season break (when did that become a thing?). We're enjoying getting back into the worlds of (links go to my reviews & trailers, where available):
- Tracker, an outdoor mystery thriller series about a guy who finds missing people.
- The Rookie, back for its 8th season, a cop show that mixes action, suspense, humor, and drama with in-depth characters and great acting.
- Matlock, a re-conception of the classic legal drama, featuring a twisty plot, lots of secrets, and the fabulous Kathy Bates.
- NCIS Origins, a prequel to NCIS (now in its 23rd season!), focusing on the early years after Leroy Jeffrey Gibbs (played by Mark Harmon) lost his family and first joined NCIS in San Diego.
- NCIS Sydney, another spin-off of the popular series, set in Australia, with a great cast.
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I finished reading White Teeth by Zadie Smith, a pick for Black History Month and my first by Smith. Wow, it was an outstanding novel that had everything! It centers on two men from two very different backgrounds who become friends because of their trials together during WWII; the women they marry; and their children. Archie is a white British man who is very middle-of-the-road about everything in life (he often relies on a coin toss to make decisions). His war buddy, Samad Iqbal, is a Muslim originally from Bangladesh who fought for the British during the war. Samad is thoughtful and philosophical, so sometimes Archie's lack of an opinion drives him crazy, but the two are lifelong friends. In the 1970's, late in life, they both marry. Samad marries his arranged marriage partner (he had to wait for his bride to be born!), and Archie impulsively marries a tall, beautiful 19-year-old Jamaican woman he just met who wants to escape her strict religious family. Their children, twin boys for the Iqbals and a daughter for Archie and Clara, grow up together. I absolutely loved this delightful novel. The writing is bright, playful, and vibrant, the characters are unique and fully-drawn, and I love the way the reader gets the perspective of each of the characters, including the children as they grow up, plus their ancestors. It's warm and funny but also tackles issues of race, class, religion, history, and more, with a fabulous suspenseful climax that brings every single character together.
Now I am reading Double Shadow, the sequel to Splinter Effect by Andrew Ludington that I enjoyed last fall. This series is about a time-traveling archeologist (and you know how much I love time travel!). In 2019, Rabbit Ward works for the Smithsonian, traveling to places and times where ancient artifacts were lost to history (like the fire in 48 BC that destroyed part of the Library of Alexandria) to save them. In this second book, Rabbit impulsively responds to a call for help from a fellow time-traveler (who is either his nemesis or his love, he's not sure). He pulls together a last-minute expedition (breaking several of the Smithsonian's rules) to 68 CE Jerusalem, hoping to find what he needs to save Helen (though he doesn't know what he's looking for). It's excellent so far, just like the first book, filled not only with action and suspense but also fascinating historical detail. I'm reading an ARC; the book will be released on April 21.
I finished my first audio book for Middle-Grade March, Blood in the Water by Tiffany D. Jackson. I enjoyed her novel, White Smoke, last fall on audio (mini review at the link), and this one also works for March Mystery Madness. Kaylani lives in Brooklyn and has been struggling with her father's arrest and imprisonment for a white collar crime he says he didn't commit. Her mother sends her to Martha's Vineyard to spend the summer with a family her grandma knows from church. The Watsons live in an enormous house, but the girl her age, London, whom Kaylani knew when she was 5 years old, has no interest in spending time with her and the whole family seems very snobby. They've barely been on the island a few days when a local teen boy, who used to date London's older sister, shows up dead. Was it a shark, an accident, or murder? Since there is a lot of focus on London's sister, she and Kaylani begin to investigate on their own. It was excellent--a suspenseful mystery with in-depth characters that also explores issues of class and history.
And I am almost finished with my next audio book, The Free State of Jax by Jennifer Nielsen, another middle-grade novel with a mystery at its heart. Jax's parents died a long time ago, and he's been raised by his grandma. But when she develops dementia and has to live in a care home, Jax is sent to live with his aunt, uncle, and six cousins. They're all (expect for one cousin, Daisy) really mean to Jax, don't treat him well, and barely feed him. So, Jax forms his own micronation on a raft in the lake near their house. Based on everything he's learned in school, he writes a constitution and declares the Free State of Jax. The next-door neighbor (who owns the property) is kind to Jax and allows him to stay (after Jax claims Eminent Domain), but Jax discovers he's a hermit who is despised by the rest of the town because they suspect him of stealing money donated by the townspeople and of killing his own brother. Gradually, other kids come to help Jax, and Jax must make his own decisions about the next-door neighbor, as the law tries to force him to return to his aunt and uncle's house. There are multiple mysteries here, about the next-door neighbor, the disappearance of both the money and his brother, and why his aunt and uncle are so eager to officially adopt him when they don't even seem to like him. While it seemed a bit silly and farcical at first, this novel has some pretty deep roots, delving into bullying, dementia, found family, and lots of interesting details about how government works.
My husband, Ken, finished reading Wings: The Story of a Band on the Run by Paul McCartney, edited by Ted Widmer, a Christmas gift from me (it's a chunkster!). Like me, he usually reads just one book at a time, but he decided to try reading nonfiction during the day and fiction at bedtime, and he enjoyed it very much. He's also interested in watching the new documentary, Man on the Run, when he finishes the book. He hasn't picked his next daytime book yet.
At bedtime, he is reading another gift from me, God of the Woods by Liz Moore. He hadn't heard of it before, but I've heard nothing but rave reviews! It was one of the hottest books for Big Book Summer the past two years in a row, and I thought he'd enjoy this thriller set at a camp in upstate NY (an area we're both very familiar with). I will definitely be reading this one, too!
I got a reading update from our son, 31, last weekend. For his birthday last year, we gave him The Light of All That Falls, book 3 in the Licanius Trilogy by James Islington. So, he is currently rereading book 2, An Echo of Things to Come. He often does this, but also, in this case, a friend told him he'll want to reread book 2 before he dives into this latest book. He always enjoys this author and this series.
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What are you and your family reading this week?
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