Linda the Librarian

We picked up child number 2 from school this week.  It's quite a trip, about 10 hours each way, and it's a perfect time to get some reading done (my husband prefers to do all of the driving). The Ladies of Ivy Cottage and The Bride of Ivy Green are books 2 and 3 in the Tales from Ivy Hill trilogy.  They're set in Regency era England about 10 years after Jane Austen's novels would have taken place, if you enjoy Jane Austen's work, I think you might enjoy these stories.  They aren't written on the level of Austen, but there are elements that have a familiar Austen feel.  The trilogy follows friends Jane Bell, Mercy Grove, and Rachel Ashford, three single women trying to find their way and make ends meet in an era when not having a husband (or rich brother, father, or uncle) could be difficult on a good day.  What I liked:  There was romance, but it didn't dominate the story line.  The situations the ladies found themselves in were pretty plausibl...

Death Comes to the School by Catherine Lloyd This is book five in the Kurland St. Mary Mystery Series that I read AFTER I read book six.  Clearly I was a little confused when I checked these out of the library!  Mysterious notes without a return address begin arriving at different homes around the village of St. Mary, nasty notes that threaten to reveal secrets that the villagers would prefer were left hidden.  Then the school teacher, Miss Broomfield, is found at her desk - dead!  Is Miss Broomfield's death somehow connected to the notes?  Did she write them?  Did someone else?   Even though I read the books out of order, the mystery itself wasn't ruined for me in any way.  It was still a fun way to spend my weekend with just enough suspense to keep me guessing.  Some of the relationship story between Lord and Lady Kurland I already knew how it was going to resolve, because I read the books out of order, but as I said it di...

Death Comes to Bath by Catherine Lloyd When Sir Robert and Lady Kurland take themselves to Bath for the improvement of Sir Robert's health, they have an opportunity to make a new friend in Sir William Benson.  Their pleasant trip is unpleasantly interrupted by the murder of the very wealthy Sir William Benson.  The Kurlands come to the aid of the Benson family and sleuth out "whodunnit" and find the missing will.   This is the sixth book in the series.  The mysteries themselves are stand alone stories, but you will want to read them in order to find out how Sir Robert and Lady Lucy Kurland meet and marry.  The first book in the series is called Death Comes to the Village.  All of the mysteries were fun and clean.  I confess, I had an idea of who committed the murder about three quarters into the book, but my reasoning for the motivation was wrong.  These are still great books to just kick back and enjoy on a relaxing weekend or a...

Finding Dorothy by Elizabeth Letts This is a work of historical fiction about Maud Gage Baum, L. Frank Baum (the author of Wizard of Oz), and the making of the movie.  The story is told in a flashback format alternating between 1939 when Judy Garland was making the movie and the 1880's when the Baums met, courted, and eventually married.  This was well-written and I wanted to finish the book (I didn't have to force myself to).  I learned many things I didn't know about the author, the writing process, and the movie industry in the late 30's.   Quiet Girl in a Noisy World by Debbie Tung Full confession:  This is a re-read from last year.  I loved this graphic novel so much that I needed to re-read it before I read her new graphic novel.  As an introvert I totally identified with many of the things that Ms. Tung described in her book.  I laughed out loud on several occasions - scaring my husband! Book Love by Debb...

This book is a yearly read, because I need the regular reminder that God does His part and I need to do my part to grow in Christ-likeness. This is a great read if you need direction for getting out of debt or just a resetting of your attitude toward money.   If you enjoy historical fiction, this may be the book for you. This is the author's idea of what a possible back story for King Hezekiah and Queen Hephzibah might have been.  I enjoyed it from beginning to end.  Because sometimes you need a good picture book. I think we all go through mid-faith crisis at least once - probably more than once in our lives.  I appreciated her honesty and I could see myself in some of her story. I liked the authors' take on cancer prevention and treatment.  They really put a lot of power back into the hands of the patient.  We have more control (for good or for ill) over our own health than we realize, I think. Enjoy!...

And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie Our library has been adding Playaway books to our collection.  I think they're pretty cool!  They're battery powered recorded books that fit into the palm of your hand.  All you do is plug your earphones into the device and you're good to go!  I was using mine when I was doing dishes, folding laundry, and whatever other household tasks needed to be accomplished. I'd never read Agatha Christie before this fall.  Murder on the Orient Express is one of the titles that our high school students need to read for summer reading.  It intrigued me, so after the students were done reading it and completing their projects I read it and loved it.  When I saw this book come through, I thought I'd give it a whirl. Ten people receive an invitation for a party at a house on Soldier Island off the coast of England.  The 10 guests don't have any apparent connection and seem an odd assortment for a house...

In Times Gone By by Tracie Peterson Kenzie left her life back in Kansas to forget the humiliation of being jilted at the altar.  She came to San Francisco not only to forget, but also to help her cousin in his chocolate business.  As she tries to heal and forget, the handsome Dr. Fisher tries hard to help her think about the possibility of true love.  She rebuffs him at every opportunity.  Will she be able to keep love out of her heart forever?  Will Dr. Fisher be able to win her?  There's only one way to find out! I liked this book because it was a light and relaxing read.  I also appreciated that part of the series was set during the great San Francisco earthquake and the city's time of recovery.  At the end of the book Ms. Peterson includes an overview of the characters in the story who are historical figures and what parts of the story were true events.  I learned some things about that era of our nation's history.  If y...

In Dreams Forgotten by Tracie Peterson The last two weeks have leant themselves to fun, relaxing reads.  It's been gray and snowy here, not great weather for deep thought and wrestling with big ideas.  So I read book two in the breezy Golden Gate Secrets trilogy by Tracie Peterson. After the deaths of her parents, Judith Gladstone travels to San Francisco with the hope of finding her aunt and possibly other family members as well.  Friend and lawyer Caleb Coulter does everything he can to assist her in the search.  What will she find?  Who will she find?  Will she find love in the process?  I won't tell you because that would spoil all of your fun!   If you're looking for a pleasant way to spend a weekend or several evenings with hot cups of tea I can recommend this book to you.  The plot is predictable, but enjoyable.  I felt relaxed and happy at the conclusion of this book.   Until next time...

This weekend provided a very natural and good excuse to stay indoors with a good book...or two!  It was snowy, windy, and bitterly cold, so my crazy little dog and I curled up with a blanket and some fun reading.  In Places Hidden by Tracie Peterson is the first book in a trilogy called Golden Gates Secrets.  Camri Coulter travels from Chicago to San Francisco in 1905 to find her brother Caleb from whom they haven't heard a word in about three months.  Along the way she meets two other young ladies also on a search for people and answers of their own.  Is Caleb still alive?  Will Camri find him?  Will she find love in San Francisco?  There's only one way to find out.  You need to read the book!  This was a light, breezy read that was a pleasant way to spend my time indoors with cups of tea and hours of classical or light jazz music (variety is the spice of life!). The Inheritance by Louisa May Alcott is the first novel she wrote ...

Freedom's Light by Colleen Coble A Daring Venture by Elizabeth Camden Two easy breezy reads for you to consider.  A Daring Venture is a sequel to the book A Dangerous Legacy, so you'll want to read that first.  With these two books it brings the final total to 97 books for the year.  I'm kind of excited by that! Until next time...

With all the comings and goings of my children for the holidays, I've been a little preoccupied.  My reading pace has slowed down a bit of late as well.  I know I'm not going to make it to my 100 book goal, but I'll be ending in the mid to high 90's this year.  Last year I read seventy-something books.  Stop Mass Hysteria by Michael Savage and Hit Makers by Derek Thompson To sum up what I learned from these two titles, we aren't as smart as we think we are.  Hit Makers describes the different media campaigns or perfect storm of circumstances that make people, music, art, etc popular.  So many times we like things because the right person at the right time comes along and tells us we do.  As far as Stop Mass Hysteria is concerned, we look around today and we see people frothing at the mouth over politics - from both sides of the aisle - again, this is nothing new.  We've had bouts of mass hysteria throughout our history (Salem witch tria...

I've been struggling with a cold lately.  I spent the weekend reading and drinking tea and hot cocoa with extra mini marshmallows.  This series is just what the doctor ordered for a lot of relaxation.  The first book, Treasured Grace begins in 1847.  The Flanagan sisters are on a wagon train headed to Oregon territory when illness strikes.  Oldest sister, Grace, loses her husband to illness, she and some of the travelers opt to winter at the Whitman mission.  Some local Cayuse attack the mission, because they're convinced Dr. Whitman is trying to poison them when he fails to cure their people of the measles.  Life for the sisters changes drastically.  Can they overcome?  Will they heal?  The next two books in the trilogy Blessed Hope and Cherished Mercy complete their story. This was a lovely way to spend recovery.  The main story about the Whitman mission attack is based on a historical event.  The Flanagan sisters are fi...

Oh dear!  I forgot to post about this book!  This is the third book in the Hawthorne series.   Lord Trent finds himself in a pickle when he must propose marriage to Lady Adelaide after being trapped in some ruins alone with her overnight.  He must do the honorable thing and save her reputation.  He had so hoped that he could, like his parents and sisters before him, marry for love.  Can this hasty match turn into a union built on love?  There's only one way to find out! Until next time...

I really didn't feel well Sunday.  I stayed home from church and stayed on the couch for the whole day.  I don't like feeling punky, but on the positive side I did finish this book that I had started a few days before.  An Inconvenient Beauty by Kristi Ann Hunter is the fourth and last in her series about the Hawthorne family.  Griffith Duke of Riverton is the last of the Hawthorne siblings to remain unmarried and is finally looking for a wife.  He is a thoughtful man and logically decides which of the available marriageable women should be his wife.  It's too bad another lady captures his heart!  It might spoil all of  his well thought out plans!  This was a pleasant way to spend my recovery day.  I now recommend it to you. Because I finished my other book early in the day, I started and finished My Name is Victoria by Lucy Worsley.  This is a Young Adult novel set during the girlhood of Queen Victoria.  It's a stor...

This is new to me author recommended to me by my 85 year old friend who enthusiastically told me, "Oh! I think you'll like this one!"  Who was I to argue with a recommendation like that? She was right.  I did enjoy this new to me author.  The book is set in Williamsburg, Virginia right before the Revolutionary War began.  A young Tory woman is preparing for her arranged marriage; she finds herself left behind when her father, the lieutenant governor, flees the city to save his own skin.  She, like her mother, has patriot leanings, which are solidified when the only person who comes to her aid is a patriot.  The story itself is fictional, but the setting is accurate to the time.  It was not only an enjoyable read, but a plausible story.  Many families did find themselves divided because of politics, some never to be reconciled.  This was a good read.  It was both relaxing and able to hold my attention.  I recommend that you h...

Yes, I did read another mind candy book.  Do I feel guilty?  Um, maybe a little bit.  I have a heftier line up to follow the four mind candy books I shared with you.  I really did need the break.  I've loved what I've read so far this year, but I was tired from all of the thinking.  The best way that I can describe how these volumes of light fare reading have served me is to say, "think of taking a really great nap."  You know when you're over-tired or feeling unwell and you take a nap and wake up feeling like you can take on the world....or at least the laundry pile?  That's how I feel now.  I have a book on joy and another about the history of leadership in the US.  I'm also part way through The Confessions of St. Augustine.  As you can see, meatier fare is on the way. About this book, it takes place in Michigan in the late 1800's.  A widowed lighthouse keeper with a young son rescues a woman when the steamboat she's ...

Why?  Because I had some lovely lazy time this Saturday morning and I needed to know what happened next!  I enjoyed this light, breezy story just as much as I did the first book in the series.  Because there weren't any major surprises, I found it very restful reading.  I'm finding great value in rest right now since both of us are struggling with colds and the lack of energy that goes with them.  I can absolutely recommend this book to you.  Enjoy! Until next time...

Are any of you runners?  I don't mean fitness runners, I mean marathon runners?  There's an expression used by marathon runners "hitting the wall."  It means when they get to that point in the race when their body says, "no, I can't go any further" and they have to talk themselves into completing the course.  I've felt lately like I've hit a literary wall of sorts.  My goal for the year is to read two books a week so that I will have read 104 books at the close of 2018.  I'm a librarian for crying out loud, this should be a piece of cake, right?!  I'm not sorry that I set the goal.  So far this year I've read more books than I read all of last year (in 2017 I read between 60 and 70 books, in 2018 I've read 72 so far), but I'm four books behind if I'm going to meet my goal.  I've read a number of stretching books.  They've stretched my thought life spiritually, culturally, and emotionally and I'm thankful....

It was a long week.  A. really. long. week.  By Sunday I was exhausted.  I limped home after church and took a great nap.  The rest of my afternoon and evening consisted of drinking tea and reading this book, Across the Blue by Carrie Turansky. It was just what the doctor ordered.  It was pleasant and breezy.  There weren't any major surprises.  It was a restful way to spend my Sunday afternoon.  The story revolves around the race to be the first aviator to fly across the English Channel.  A newspaper has offered a financial reward to the first pilot to complete the task.  Of course the newspaper owner has a daughter who falls in love with one of the pilots!  Would we have it any other way? The one thing I did learn (actually it was more that I was reminded of it) was how few years there were between the beginnings of aviation and World War I.  Airplanes were in their infancy when war broke out.  It's a little surp...

I admit out loud that until now I have never read an Agatha Christie novel.  Ever.  It wasn't because I had anything against her or her writing, I had just never got around to reading her work.  I'm glad for the push that the reading challenge gave me to read a classic novel.  I had debated about rereading a Jane Austen novel, but decided instead that I needed to branch out.  I still need to read a book that I've read before as part of the challenge, so Ms. Austen isn't out of the running yet! I really enjoyed Murder on the Orient Express.  It's different from other "whodunnits" I've read before.  The story is really all about the events and the dialogue.  If you want to know what color dress someone was wearing and whether or not there was lace, you'll be disappointed.  I didn't see the ending coming (I was blinded by my belief about who committed the crime).  I can also say that I will be reading more Agatha Christie novels....