What we are reading now for July, August and September 2020

Please add what you are reading and give it a rating and a description if you would like to do that!

I finished The Ballad of Black Tom and I really enjoyed it. It was a big improvement to Red Hook I think, but Red Hook was hardly Lovecraft's best. It was kind of weird to be reading a perspective that felt so unlike what I know.

Reading as much as I can of Survival: A Thematic Guide to Canadian Literature before Overdrive yanks it back tomorrow. I will also be dipping into Jan de Hartog's The Captain.

I am also flipping through a UK-published guide to rail travel in Canada: Trans-Canada Rail Guide, which my library ordered for some reason.

I'm about to start The Dutch House by Ann Patchett

I'm reading Catch and Kill: Lies, Spies, and a Conspiracy to Protect Predators by Ronan Farrow

I'm reading Trans-Sister Radio by Chris Bohjalian

I'm reading Beauty Mark: A Verse Novel of Marilyn Monroe by Carole Boston Weatherford

Just rattled through Murder in the Mill-Race, by E. C. R. Lorac.

Next up from the on-deck pile will be The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August, by Claire North.

I'm reading Nonsense: The Power of Not Knowing by Jamie Holmes

I couldn't sleep last night, so finished A Better Man by Louise Penny. I'm still a fan of this mystery/crime fiction series after all these years, though a few of the characters grate on my nerves sometimes.

Just finished Dr Bonnie Henry's Soap and Water & Common Sense. Now back to a couple of non-Canadian reads

I'm reading Racists by Kunal Basu

I'm about to start The Winemaker's Wife by Kristin Harmel for a book club.

In ebook form I am reading Chop Suey Nation, by Ann Hui.

The Great Halifax Explosion / John U. Bacon
4 stars

On Dec. 5, 1917, two ships collided in the Halifax Harbour. One of them was loaded down with explosives, meant to head to Europe for the war effort. Instead, with the collision, a good chunk of Halifax and neighbouring Richmond were wiped out in an instant, along with a couple thousand (likely a low estimate) people, and more thousands injured.

This was very well researched. It does include some discussion of the war, and a soldier from Nova Scotia who ended up helping out after the disaster, as he was back home after being severely injured. Also includes a detailed account of the ships and crew involved in the collision, as well as tidbits of time of some of the civilians on shore who were affected (lost family members, lost homes, injuries...).

I'm reading A Case for Dr. Palindrome by Colin Brezicki.

Continuing my food and drink theme with Brewed in the North: A History of Labatt's, by Matthew J. Bellamy.

>19 rabbitprincess: Brewed in the North was interesting and quite readable, and paired nicely with a Labatt 50.

Next up will probably be Beautiful Scars, by Tom Wilson.

I'm reading The Butterfly Sister by Amy Gail Hansen

Started and finished Thinking Inside the Box, by Adrienne Raphel, about crosswords and crossword enthusiasts. Naturally I had to take crossword breaks while reading.

Earlier today I finished The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August, by Claire North. A day off well spent.

Next book pulled off the on-deck pile: Sea Fever, by Sam Jefferson. I'm on a non-fiction kick apparently.

A sorrowful, but beautifully written book about the suicide of the author's only brother and his subsequent research into the topic of suicide. To the River: Losing My Brother by Don Gillmor

I've just started The Man Who Loved Books Too Much: The True Story of a Thief, a Detective, and a World of Literary Obsession by Allison Hoover Bartlett

I'm about to start Sweeter Than All the World by Rudy Wiebe

I'm reading The King's Speech by Mark Logue for a book club

Having a heat wave here right now so finished a rather humdrum and not at all suspensful "thriller": A Death Divided by Clare Francis

>27 ted74ca: I cannot function in a heat wave. I am a beach child and a mountain spirit! This weather is not for me! We're in a merge and purge right now, my mom and I (currently residing together with my older sister) so I've been unearthing things. Not a lot in the CanLit category though, but lots of local books on the Fraser Valley, Burnaby, or Van. Island. I had to go searching for an ISBN on one or two of them.

Still reading some of the same books I was reading a year or two again, and added Survival (probably already said that somewhere) to the list. Fangirl is still on it.

I'm in a heat wave, too. It's terrible. I miss my daily walks, but the temp feels like 30+ degrees even in the early morning.

I'm reading The Home for Unwanted Girls by Joanna Goodman

I'm about to start I Was Anastasia by Ariel Lawhon

Far too hot here to get to sleep at night, and I am completely out of library books (first time that's happened in decades-thanks Covid), so am reading some of my used book store purchases to while away the hours at night. I had high hopes for this crime fiction series, but wasn't overly impressed by the writing in Crime on the Fens by Joy Ellis. Like the characters and the storyline, but the writing....I did a lot of skimming.

I'm giving serious thought to abandoning Fangirl. It's just not to my tastes, I think.

>32 ted74ca: Have you tried Libby? A phone app for BC Libraries (and what ever library card you add in. I've got FVRL on mine) that allows ebook and audiobook rental via iphone and possibly more things. I've used it a fair bit this past while.

Spending Sunday with an art book (Helen McNicoll: Life & Work, by Samantha Burton) and an audiobook (The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, by Douglas Adams, read by Stephen Fry). I think the Hitchhiker's book is actually an Americanized edition: at one point, the word "flashlight" is used instead of "torch", and "pedestrian crossing" is used instead of "zebra crossing" :-/

I'm about to start Aria by Nazanine Hozar for a book club that isn't meeting during the pandemic.

Just started Witch Hunt, by Ian Rankin, part of an omnibus of Jack Harvey novels I borrowed from a friend.

>34 rabbitprincess: I've been reading fanfiction attached to a YA novel that's written by an american but is set in Britain, so now the term "Brit-pick" has made it into the fan fiction vernacular for Non-British writers that are looking for help verifying their slang and terms, etc. That, plus my mom and I watched large amounts of BBC has inserted some Britishisms into my casual speech.

>37 WeeTurtle: In this case I was more annoyed because those Americanisms came up in two of my favourite quotes of the entire book (the bit where Arthur describes where the plans for the bypass were put on display at the local planning department, and the bit where the Guide explains how the Babel fish proves the non-existence of God), and they totally changed the rhythm of the joke.

One of my friends made me smile when she said that she considered my use of the word "proper" to be very British. I'd used the word something like "I needed a proper cup of tea and the restaurant tea was likely to be terrible, so I waited till I got home." Otherwise I don't feel like I use too many Britishisms, despite inhaling vast amounts of books and drama from the various parts of the UK and Ireland.

I'm reading Master Georgie by Beryl Bainbridge

Now reading Any Night of the Week, by Jonny Dovercourt, which is a history of the Toronto music scene from 1957 to 2001.

I'm reading The Heart Goes Last by Margaret Atwood

>41 LynnB: Oh, I liked that one!

The Couple Next Door / Shari Lapena
4 stars

After the babysitter cancels last-minute, Marco convinces his wife Anne to leave their 6-month old baby home alone while they go (and take the baby monitor with them, plus a promise to check on the baby every half hour) to a dinner party at their neighbours’ place next door. When they arrive home an hour after they last checked on her (Anne trying to convince Marco to come home for that last half hour), the front door is open and their baby is gone!

This was really good. I wanted to keep reading. It turns out they both had secrets from each other. The neighbours were awful! I did figure out part of it at one point close to the end, but not all of it. And there was a twist (of course!). It was a fast read, and enjoyable.

I'm reading Disturbances in the Field by Lynn Sharon Schwartz

Finished Paths of Glory, by Jeffrey Archer, about the life of George Mallory. I read the audiobook narrated by Roger Allam. Fitting to have finished it today, because Season 7 of Endeavour, in which Roger Allam plays DI Thursday, premieres on PBS tonight :)

Next up in audio will be The Tenth Doctor Adventures, Volume 1, a Big Finish audio drama box set featuring David Tennant and Catherine Tate.

All the Wrong Places / Joy Fielding
4 stars

There is a serial killer choosing his victims via online dating sites, and he sets his eyes on Paige. Paige, meanwhile, is dealing with a lot of things, including the fact that her husband cheated on her with her cousin, and she has recently lost her job. She is also helping her friend Chloe deal with some things, and Paige’s mother seems to be having some health issues.

I listened to the audio, which was well done. This was less of a thriller than I’d expected, as much of the book focused on Paige and her family and their relationships, as well as Chloe. The POV changes often throughout the book. There were a lot of characters to hate in this book, including of course, the killer.

So, the ending. I’m trying to keep it really vague. The end was a surprise, but not the usual twist, then shock kind of fast surprise. It was a slower dawning of what happened, as characters continue about their business. Still a surprising ending, but it came on a bit differently, more slowly. Well done, I thought! I do wonder if there will be a sequel.

>33 WeeTurtle:. Yes, I looked into Libby last year actually, but I would apparently need to get a newer model of my Kobo e reader (I don't have an iphone and I don't want to read a book on my phone or my tablet anyway). As I don't really love reading on an e reader and I have sooo many used books unread in my house, it's really not much of an ordeal having to wait weeks inbetween one of my 50 library book requests becoming available. But thanks for the reminder about Libby.

I've been meaning to check out this crime fiction series based in Aberdeen Scotland for years now, and luckily discovered the 1st in the series in my shelves of TBR used books I've collected over the past few years. I quite enjoyed Cold Granite by Stuart Macbride.

I'm re-reading Spooner by Peter Dexter for a book club.

>47 ted74ca: Ted, I have a Kobo Touch (2nd generation Kobo). I am able to use Overdrive library ebooks on it (but not via Libby). Do you also have a PC or laptop? If you do, you can download the Overdrive ebook to Adobe Digital Editions (after downloading it and setting it up the first time), then transfer it on to your older model Kobo.

It sounds like you're fine not reading ebooks, anyway, but wanted to make sure you know it could work with Overdrive.

I'm reading The World in Six Songs: How the Musical Brain Created Human Nature by Daniel J. Levitin

>51 LynnB: Ooh this is on my list of books to read this month! I also plan to read This Is Your Brain on Music.

Today I started and made decent progress in Ridgerunner, by Gil Adamson.

So far on my vacation I have finished two books:

Ridgerunner, by Gil Adamson
Say Nothing: A True Story of Murder and Memory in Northern Ireland, by Patrick Radden Keefe

In the interests of alternating fiction and non-fiction, I’m now reading Shroud for a Nightingale, by P. D. James.

I'm re-reading Not Wanted on the Voyage by Timothy Findley.

>50 LibraryCin:. Thanks for the clarification. I have a Kobo Aura, at least 7 or 8 years old. I very briefly looked into Libby as I find the Overdrive option rather cumbersome (I do have Adobe Digital Editions on my laptop for the rare occasion I can only find the book I want to read in the e book format.). I used to just use my Kobo for reading when travelling (back in historical times!) or sometimes on my break at work. Now we're so overloaded at work, we often don't get breaks and I'm too worn out to attempt to read when I do! My local library seems to have picked up the pace when it comes to requests, so I think I'm fine for now with print books. Thanks again.

I finished a psychological thriller last night. It had a few too many twists and turns for late night reading, so I got a tad confused at the end, but all in all it was an OK read. Sometimes I Lie by Alice Feeney.

I don't seem to be receiving any books anymore. I prefer actual books, not e-books or audio-books.

>55 ted74ca: No worries! I'm glad you do know how it works if you ever do want to try it again. :-)

Back into non-fiction: This Is Your Brain on Music, by Daniel J. Levitin.

More easy reading for me-another thriller. I quite liked this one: Behind Closed Doors by B. A. Paris

I'm reading a Young Adult novel, The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin

Getting ready to dive into Deep Waters, a British Library Crime Classics collection edited by Martin Edwards.

I'm starting SPQR: A History of Ancient Rome by Mary Beard

Zipped through another thriller this week: The Woman in Cabin 10 by Ruth Ware. Thought it mediocre at best.

Continuing to juggle music and mystery: How Music Works, by David Byrne (best read with Talking Heads in the background); and Blue Lightning, by Ann Cleeves.

Found an older paperback-crime fiction of course- on my shelves of TBR books and thoroughly enjoyed it. Dated ( the lack of cell phones is glaringly obvious in this story) but really well written. I'll have to seek out other books in this series. Shadow Play by Frances Fyfield

I'm reading The Good Liar by Catherine McKenzie.

I'm reading The Patriots by Sana Krasikov.

Took a break from crime fiction reading and really enjoyed Akin by Emma Donoghue

This morning I started a Doctor Who novel: Plague City, by Jonathan Morris. It may be rather on-the-nose for our current times, but Twelve, Bill and Nardole are cheering me up immensely.

I had to read Doctor Who this morning because I thought The Periodic Table: A Very Short Introduction, by Eric R. Scerri, might put me back to sleep.

I'm reading Perilous Trade: Book Publishing in Canada 1946-2006 by Roy MacSkimming

I'm reading The Cunning Man by Robertson Davies

Finished Confessions of a Bookseller, by Shaun Bythell.

Now working on Remain in Love, by Chris Frantz, and listening to lots of Talking Heads to go with it.

Once Every Never / Lesley Livingston
3 stars

Clare is in England with her aunt when, at a museum, she touches an artifact and it transported to another time. Clare’s best friend Al is with her and they figure out that she was transported back to when a woman led her tribe against the invading Romans. Of course, there is a hot warrior to help keep things interesting... and a kidnapping in Clare’s current timeline.

It was ok. For some reason, I just didn’t get into it as much as this type of story might normally grab me; I’m not sure why that is. I guess I didn’t really “connect” with the characters. Not sure what else it might have been. I believe this is the first in a series, but at this point, I don’t plan to continue.

The Gown / Jennifer Robson
4 stars

It’s 1947. Ann is working as an embroiderer for Hartnell, who designed Princess (now Queen) Elizabeth’s wedding gown. Miriam has just come to England from France and also finds work as an embroiderer for Hartnell. The two soon become friends and roommates. In 2016, Heather’s grandmother has just died, and she is left a box with her name on it and embroidery inside it. Her grandmother never talked about her life in England before she emigrated to Canada, and Heather wants to find out more.

I really liked this. I wasn’t sure what I was going to think, as I’m not much for fashion, so I think if there had been more focus on the gown than there was (and all the details in creating it), I might not have liked it as much. But, I liked all the additional stories of Ann, Miriam, and Heather. They all had a romantic interest, and as Miriam got to know Ann better, more of her own past in France was revealed. I did, at one point, stop to look up a photo of the gown itself, and even looked for a video of Princess Elizabeth’s and Prince Philip’s wedding.

Finished Remain in Love and am thinking of shifting gears to fiction with Five Little Indians, by Michelle Good.

I really this rather gritty and dark crime fiction series set in Galway, Ireland, the Jack Taylor novels. I just finished Sanctuary by Ken Bruen

I've read Five Little Indians (longlisted for the Giller Prize) and finished Bloody Murder, by Julian Symons. Next up I think will be The Scheme for Full Employment, by Magnus Mills.

I've just finished my ER book, Blood Moon by Lucy Cuthew and I'm about to start Bush Runner: The Adventures of Pierre-Esprit Radisson by Mark Bourrie.

>79 LynnB: I liked Bush Runner! Hope you do too.

Today I finished The Scheme for Full Employment, by Magnus Mills. Next up will probably be a library book, but I haven't decided which one yet.

More crime fiction for me: Perfect Kill by Helen Fields

I am most actively reading Gideon's Night, by J. J. Marric, but I might pick up some non-fiction as well: User Friendly, by Cliff Kuang.

I'm reading Watching You Without Me by Lynn Coady.

>82 rabbitprincess:, User Friendly looks interesting. Let me know what you think!

>84 LynnB: Interesting so far!

I'm about to start A Piece of the World by Christina Baker Kline

I was awake most of the night with a toothache, so finished the latest in one of my favourite crime series: A Bitter Feast by Deborah Crombie. I always like her books-not exactly a "cozy" mystery but not dark or graphic either.

I'm reading The Hundred Secret Senses by Amy Tan

The Secret Lives of Saints / Daphne Bramham
4 stars

“Saints” in the title refers to the religion, “Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints” (LDS), or more specifically, fundamentalist LDS (FLDS) – that is, the polygamous branch of the LDS/Mormons. This book includes info from various, mostly former, FLDS – that is, it includes some memoir-type info with regard to some people (again, mostly those who have left), but the second part talks about the law, courts, trials, and even that some governments look the other way (British Columbia in Canada seems the worst for that).

This book does focus more on the Canadian FLDS (and leader/prophet Winston Blackmore) than any other I’ve read, so that was interesting to me. I’m in Calgary, Alberta, and though I knew about Bountiful, BC (actually called Lister, which I didn’t know), I did not know that there is a small population of FLDS in Alberta, as well, mostly in/around Cardston. The FLDS is so intertwined, though, that it started with a history, and there is also much about the communities in Utah and Arizona, and of course, about Warren Jeffs.

I have read quite a bit about the FLDS so many names are already familiar to me in that I’ve read some of those memoirs. I know that a few of the Canadian FLDS had a trial wrap up in BC last year, so I’m going to look that up to refresh my memory on what happened there. This book was published in 2008, so things have happened since then (like the trial in BC). I found the second part of the book – the legal stuff – much more interesting than I expected, and found myself even more interested than in the first half of the book; I guess much of that was exasperation and frustration at all the laws they are breaking... and in some cases, flaunting (in addition to polygamy, there is, of course, all kinds of abuse, plus bilking the government (i.e. taxpayers) out of as much money as possible – they need all that extra income to feed their 15+ wives and 70+ children (ok, that might just be Blackmore with that many, but you get the picture)).

I'm just starting The Good Life by Jay McInerney

>84 LynnB: User Friendly was great! I do recommend it.

Just finished Indians on Vacation, by Thomas King.

Next up from the library will be Sixty Degrees North, by Malachy Tallack.

>91 rabbitprincess: Great! I've added it to my wish list.....my birthday is coming up.

I'm reading Break in Case of Emergency by Brian Francis.

After finishing Sixty Degrees North, I will honour the author's Shetland roots by reading the next up in the Shetland series for me: Dead Water, by Ann Cleeves.

I'm about to start Neverhome by Laird Hunt.

Started reading the timely, 2020-updated edition of Soap & Water & Common Sense, by Dr. Bonnie Henry.

I got 12 books for my birthday, but have decided to continue to finish reading the 80-odd books I had on the TBR shelves on January 1st before reading new ones (except for book clubs). So, I'm about to start Lydia's Party by Margaret Hawkins. Then just 7 more to go until I get at my birthday loot.

I'm going to start The Lost Highway by David Adams Richards

https://www.librarything.com/topic/324956
The October, November and December thread is now up!