Familyhistorian’s Keeping Positive Thoughts for a Year of Change – Part 6

Hi my name is Meg. I’ve been a member of the mighty 75ers since 2013. In that time, I’ve been hit by many a Book Bullet (BB) so I can attest to the fact that this is a dangerous place. In 2020 I had trouble keeping up with the threads as we all moved more online. My hope to do better keeping up this year hasn’t been going that well. But as we know hope is a renewable resource as is the wish for positive change.

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In my blog, I’m currently doing a look back at WWII which had a lasting effect on my family. You can see my latest blog posts at: A Genealogist’s Path to History

Little Free Library

Books culled in 2021

January - 0

February - 6

March - 6

April - 5

May - 7

June - 7

July - 0

August - 4

Challenges

Reading Through Time

Quarterly

January-March 2021 - Renaissance/16th Century - The Serpent and the Pearl by Kate Quinn - DONE
April-June 2021 - 17th Century
July-September 2021 - 18th Century
October-December 2021 - Napoleonic Era

Monthly

January: Shakespeare's Children - The Daughter of Time by Josephine Tey - DONE
February: Fashion - The Dressmaker by Kate Alcott - DONE
March: Arggh, Matey - Pirate Latitudes by Michael Crichton - DONE
April: The Sun Never Sets - The Palace Tiger by Barbara Clevery - DONE
May: Meet the Press - The Ventriloquists by E. R. Ramzipoor - DONE
June: Rewriting the Past - The Dictionary of Lost Words by Pip Williams - DONE
July: Now We Are Free
August: Food - The Cafe by the Sea by Jenny Colgan - DONE
September: Time Travel/Prehistoric
October: Supernatural
November: Reader's Choice
December:

2021 Nonfiction Challenge

January: Prizewinners - Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents by Isabel Wilkerson - DONE
February: Minority Lives Matter
March: Comfort Reading - The Golden Age of Murder by Martin Edwards - DONE
April: The Ancient World - Blood of the Celts by Jean Manco - DONE
May: Animal, Vegetable, Mineral - The Potato: How the Humble Spud Rescued the Western World by Larry Zuckerman - DONE
June: Discoveries - Longitude by Dava Sobel - DONE
July: Cities
August: Transportation
September: Creativity
October: Heroes & Villains
November: Business, the Economy and Big Policy Questions
December: Go Anywhere

Books read in May 2021

The Last Detective by Peter Lovesey
Journey to a Star by Barbara Cartland
Murder Once Removed by S.C. Perkins
The Merry Devils by Edward Marston
Holy Terror in the Hebrides by Jeanne M. Dams
Sweet Tea Revenge by Laura Childs
The Potato: How the Humble Spud Rescued the Western World by Larry Zuckerman
The Blitz by Peter Doyle
Mrs. Jeffries Wins the Prize by Emily Brightwell
Crimson Lake by Candice Fox

Books read in June 2021

The Ventriloquists by E.R. Ramzipoor
How to Be an Antiracist by Ibram X. Kendi
The Dictionary of Lost Words by Pip Williams
The Courtship/The Duke and His Duchess by Grace Burrowes
Stamped From the Beginning by Ibram X. Kendi
Miss Seeton Plants Suspicion by Hamilton Crane
Longitude by Dava Sobel
Only a Kiss by Mary Balogh
Farthing by Jo Walton
World War Two: A Very Peculiar History by Jim Pipe
The Zig Zag Girl by Elly Griffiths

Books read in 2021

Books Acquired in 2021

Acquisitions for June 2021

Big Sky by Kate Atkinson
Dead Dead Girls by Nekesa Afia
Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo
The Bee's Kiss by Barbara Cleverly
Survivors: British Merchant Seamen in the Second World War by G.H. and R. Bennet
The Case of the Murderous Dr. Cream: The Hunt for a Victorian Era Serial Killer by Dean Jobb
Nothe Fort and Beyond: In Defence of Weymouth & Portland by Susan Hogben

Welcome

Hi Meg, happy new thread!

Happy new thread!

>12 mdoris: Hi Mary, that was fast! Thanks re the new thread. Are you enjoying the cooler weather today?

>13 quondame: Thanks Susan!

>14 Familyhistorian: Very nice to get back to more normal temperatures.

>16 mdoris: That's for sure. It was scary hot!

Happy new thread, Meg. I am so happy that our more normal temperatures are back. I actually did some reading outside today and enjoyed both the sunshine and the cool breeze.

>18 DeltaQueen50: It was deliciously cool, wasn't it, Judy? Such a nice change. Reading outside must have been pleasant today.

Happy new thread, Meg.

Sweet Thursday, Meg. Happy New Thread! I like that topper. I hope you are keeping cool and enjoying those books.

Happy Canada Day!

(and new thread)

Happy new thread, Meg. I'm glad the weather is cooling off for you.

Happy new thread, Meg! And Happy Canada Day! And happy end of the heat wave!

Happy new one!

>20 jessibud2: Thanks Shelley!

>21 msf59: Thanks Mark. There are about 6 of those laughing men statues at that spot near Stanley Park. It's cloudy and cool today, quite a contrast to a few days ago.

>22 richardderus: Ooh pretty! Thanks Richard. It will probably be a subdued Canada Day here.

>23 BLBera: Thanks Beth on both counts!

>24 katiekrug: Thanks Katie! Hopefully its the last heatwave of the summer but they're predicting a warmer summer than usual.

>25 drneutron: Thanks Jim!

Happy new thread, Meg!

87. Interior Chinatown by Charles Yu



One of the blurbs on the cover of Interior Chinatown is a quote from The Washington Post calling it “A delicious, ambitious Hollywood satire.” My feeling was that it was much more than that. The use of the interchangeable Asian actors in the show that was in constant production throughout the novel script was an allegory for the Asian experience in North America. It was a powerful way to bring that story to public attention.

>29 PaulCranswick: Thanks Paul!

All my books are in the new apartment, Meg. Bookcases will follow tomorrow and I'll have everything sorted by Saturday.

Hi Meg my dear, Happy Canada Day and happy new thread dear friend.

>32 PaulCranswick: Sounds like you're making good progress, Paul. Books in the bookcases go a long way to making a new place into home.

>33 johnsimpson: Thanks for the new thread and Canada Day wishes, John!

Happy new thread, Meg, and happy Canada Day!

I'm glad to see you enjoyed Interior Chinatown. I thought it was an excellent read.

Happy new thread, Meg!

Lovely topper, both the statues and the geese :-)

>36 bell7: Thanks Mary. Charles Yu was one of the authors at the Vancouver Writers Festival last year and I've been waiting ever since to read Interior Chinatown. It was well done.

>37 FAMeulstee: Hi Anita, thanks re the topper, as I remember it was a warm day, probably why the geese were hanging around in the shade.

Interior Chinatown sounds great, Meg. One of these days...

>40 BLBera: It was a very interesting way to show the Asian experience in America, Beth. Somewhere in the threads I remember reading a rumour that you have a retirement date picked out. More reading then?

88. Not Dead Yet by Peter James



I picked up Not Dead Yet, a police procedural thriller somewhere along the way. Probably from the local Little Free Library. It was the story of a plot to murder a famous rock/movie star who had come to Brighton to star in a movie. The police were already investigating a strange murder of an unidentified dismembered man and protection detail for the star was added to DS Roy Grace’s load on top of that. He and his crew were stretched thin trying to cover all the bases.

This genre isn’t my usual fare, and I found it long with some plot threads which were not resolved. Maybe they are picked up in a later book in the series? It was good, but long so I don’t know if I will read any more of them.

>42 Familyhistorian: Apparently that is #8 in the series; and there's a TV show with John Simm as Insp. Grace. I'd say the dropped threads are there to give a through-line to the series, based on my experience reading them over the years.

They came out in the Aughties via a dead US publisher, Carroll & Graf, but they now seem to come to the whole continent from Pan.

Hoping for more agreeable reads in July's extensive remainder.

>43 richardderus: I saw that it was number 8 in the series when I finally got it entered in LT, Richard. It did seem like there was a lot of background stuff that I was missing. I'm not tempted to pick up the others though. They are not small books and I do have a few others to go on with.

89. The Left-handed Booksellers of London by Garth Nix



In the past, I avoided fantasy or anything else that might be classed as speculative fiction. But when I signed up for the writing program that I just finished, I was placed in a group with the writers of speculative and YA fiction. One of the requirements was to comment and give feedback on each others’ work. I guess reading all that speculative stuff has made that genre seem more accessible to me.

That’s the long way of saying that I really enjoyed The Left-handed booksellers of London a ripping adventure story which is definitely of the speculative genre. I think I read somewhere that there’s a sequel coming out. That will end up on my TBR list for sure.

I've been seeing this one pop up on several threads lately - piqued my interest!

the Peter James mysteries are curiously absent from my public library. I've noted this about some of the mysteries of that era, while older and much worse stuff remains. Grump.

>46 drneutron: It's one that I picked up as a BB from the threads, Jim. It's a good read.

>47 ffortsa: That could be due to the fact that the Peter James mysteries are published in Britain, Judy. Maybe the library thought they had enough of the same type of mysteries from US writers.

>1 Familyhistorian: Hi Meg. Do you know anything about the statues/sculptures and what they represent? I do remember them at English Bay but haven't been by there in ages. Used to always drive by on my way to Kits for a swim in that really long pool (Canada's longest at 137 m./ 150 yds). I loved that pool!

Meg,
Hope you are doing well. I'm falling way behind on threads this time of year. I haven't read any of the Peter James mysteries, but I have seen them (probably on Book Depository).

>50 mdoris: I remember reading something about the statues when they were unveiled, Mary. That was quite a while ago so it's gone from my memory. That was the first time I saw them in person.

>51 thornton37814: Hi Lori, I am further behind on the threads than I've ever been. I'm not sure how I used to keep up even half way. I'm doing well. I hope you are too.

I apologize to anyone who follows my blog. Blogger is not cooperating lately and didn't publish my post from last week even though it said it did. Technology, the bane and blessing of contemporary life!

90. Burma '44: The Battle That Turned Britain's War in the East by James Holland



As part of the research for my World War II blog posts, I read Burma ’44: The Battle That Turned Britain’s War in the East. This book gave me a better understanding of what happened during that time in the theatre of war where my father was stationed. As he served in the British forces, this book, which focused on Britain’s fighting in the area of Burma gave me a basic understanding of the war for that country and how India was affected too.

>90 PaulCranswick: Oh, that must have been tough.

>56 ffortsa: It was very tough, Judy. A much different war than that fought in Europe.

Yay, my blog post actually appeared for this week. Looks like Blogger was having issues with Firefox. It seems that the post appeared because I made a change and saved it on Chrome. Cue eerie music, I think that Google is trying to take control.

The blog post is available here: A Genealogist’s Path to History

>58 Familyhistorian: I take issue with using the conditional there..."Google is taking control."

I resent it, too.

>59 richardderus: I knew you'd have a comment about that, Richard. I trust Google about as far as I trust Facebook. They are taking control (there's some trying in there too.)

91. First Comes Scandal by Julia Quinn



Nicholas’s father summoned him from his studies in Edinburgh, after his childhood friend was abducted by a man after her dowry. She faces ruin even though nothing happened. At first reluctant to enter into his father’s scheme to save Georgina by marrying the girl, Nicholas grows fond of the scheme when she turns him down. Can Nicholas persuade her that marriage to him is preferrable to remaining a spinster for the rest of her life or marrying her abductor? The answer is written in First Comes Scandal which is billed as a Bridgerton Prequel.

It's nice to see things getting more sociable here. Last Wednesday I got together with former coworkers at a restaurant to celebrate the retirement of one of the crew.

Then on Saturday I went to visit a friend and she invited two other friends over. There was food and wine involved.

92. Dotter of her Father's Eyes by Mary M Talbot & Bryan Talbot



It was an interesting concept, Dotter of her Father's Eyes was the comparison of two daughters’ lives. One was the daughter of James Joyce who led a strangely circumscribed life. The other the daughter of a Joycean scholar who didn’t deal well with reality outside of his scholarship. It was different to see this kind of treatment of a subject/biography in a graphic novel.

>55 Familyhistorian: This book sounds fascinating. I'll see if my local library has this one. I'm doing a good job these last few months of not purchasing books and reading from my own library, or the local library which contains some very good books.

Hi, Meg. I hope things have cooled down for you at home. I am so glad to see that you also loved Interior Chinatown.

>64 Whisper1: It was an interesting read, Linda. Good for you for not buying books. I read a lot from my library as well but it hasn't stopped me from buying my own.

>65 msf59: It isn't the weather we're used to, Mark. It hasn't rained for weeks and everything is drying up but at least it isn't as hot as it was. I had to read Interior Chinatown after seeing Charles Yu at the Vancouver Writers Festival. It sounded like one I would like and I was right.

Hi Meg. I thought I'd swing by and see how you are doing. I can see that your reading adventures are continuing at the usual breakneck pace! I loved your brief comments about Interior Chinatown. I also thought it was a powerful and innovative way to approach the material.

As you know, we are also in the midst of a terrible drought and hot spell. Really, as I write that, I think "it's more than a "spell," it's the whole darn summer!" I know we saw that B.C. was hit so hard by that triple-digit heat a couple weeks ago and folx in your part of the world don't do A/C (shouldn't have to). Hang in there.

Hi Ellen, I was just thinking this morning that my reading numbers were down from last year. I've been concentrating on writing more than reading.

I didn't realize that the drought was affecting where you are as well. The worst part is that while there hasn't been any real rain, there have been lightning strikes. Forest fire season started early. I hope you are finding ways to cope with the heat and dryness.

93. Eight Detectives by Alex Pavesi



I read a lot of reviews on LT about Eight Detectives. I remember most as being laudatory so I had to have a read for myself. It was an interesting take on detective fiction, a series of stories within a story, told as though an editor was critiquing a writer’s short stories.

It was an innovative conceit, akin to the devices used in Magpie Murders but bringing in its own twists to the genre. I found it interesting but may not have liked it as much as other readers due to the fact that short stories are not my favourite reads.

>70 Familyhistorian: I was so ready to love it!

Then I Pearl-Ruled it on p29.

*sigh*

Happy Hump Day, Meg.

Today is shaping up as a day to get things done. First car wash, then doing write ups for my reads before taking some back to the downtown library. Then I plan on going to the Port Moody farmers market before the zoom meeting with my genealogy society.

>71 richardderus: I was expecting good things too, Richard. Maybe the hype killed it.

Have a great day!

94. The Lost Family: How DNA Testing Is Upending Who We Are by Libby Copeland



I like reading books about the latest trends and discoveries in genealogy. The biggest innovation to come into its own in recent history is, of course, the proliferation of genetic genealogy. It is indeed upending the stories of belonging that people tell themselves. This was illustrated very persuasively in The Lost Family: How DNA Testing is Upending Who We Are.

In this book, the author very skillfully threads the stories of various seekers after their own genetic families throughout the narrative. Being able to put a “face” to the concepts brings the problems and challenges of the new findings that DNA testing uncovers down to the personal level. It was thoughtfully written and very readable.

Hi Meg. Did you read The Juggler's Children? I am reading it now. The author, Carolyn Abraham, was (maybe still is, I don't know) a science writer for the Globe and Mail. It's a DNA story, as well, as she tries to learn more about her great-grandfathers, but it was published in 2013 so it isn't all that up-to-date for now. She is a good writer, though, and it's an interesting read, so far.

>75 jessibud2: Hi Shelley. I read and liked The Juggler's Children. DNA for genetic genealogy wasn't as far along when that book came out as it is now. It's a quickly evolving field which seems kind of counter-intuitive as we're using it to look into the past.

>74 Familyhistorian: #94 is a little bit unnerving to me...so many ugly secrets could come out and ruin a lot of peoples' lives, but so many delightful things might come of the revelations, too. There is no unmixed blessing, is there.

>77 richardderus: It can be unnerving to those who are affected for sure. One of the stories given was for the daughter of a man who believed he was of Irish extraction for all of his life. Only it wasn't true, as she found out. It all pointed to the early days of hospital births when there were no effective ways of identifying which baby went to which mother.

DNA testing is bringing to light some of those family truths that were swept under the rug. It can be life changing but then again, in the majority of cases, nothing life altering shows up, although it can bring up some interesting connections.

95. Satellite Love by Genki Ferguson



Set in a crumbling forgotten city in Japan, Satellite Love centred around a teenage girl, Anna, who lived in a house with her grandfather who didn’t remember who she was. She was a misfit, made fun of by her classmates. With no real humans to connect to she developed a life of her own, fixating on a satellite orbiting the earth among other things.

It was a strange but compelling story. One that looked at the quirkiness of relationships, the tentative connections between us and what makes us fit in or not.

I'm currently trying to catch up with a number of things. I knew that I had to read the last book I posted about in a short amount of time because I could see there were a number of library holds on it. I was on top of that but when I went to renew two other books that didn't have any hold notifications on them I found out that they were requested as well and I had less than a week to read them in. Talk about focused reading!

Another thing I signed up for was The Genealogy Show which was live streamed at the end of June with 30 days access after that. The talks are short usually about 40 minutes or less but there are lots of them that sound interesting. Getting those all in are keeping me busy too.

>79 Familyhistorian: That sounds like an interesting one.

Hi Meg!

>72 Familyhistorian: I’m lazier than you, but I did send off an email to a guy who’ll come to the house to detail our cars. God knows they need it.

>78 Familyhistorian: My sister’s husband's wife's husband (therefore, not my brother-in-law's family) registered his DNA on Ancestry and it turns out that his father was … ah, seriously unfaithful to his mother… and at least a dozen half-siblings have turned up. Bobby doesn’t seem to mind at all, apparently.

>81 mdoris: It's an interesting one and by a Canadian author too, Mary.

>82 karenmarie: Ha, no Karen I just drove my car to the dealer and they ran it through the car wash. Not much effort on my part.

A dozen half siblings, that could be unfaithfulness or he could have been a sperm donor. There was a lot of that going around which was kept hush hush back in the day.

96. Two Trees Make a Forest: In Search of My Family's Past Among Taiwan's Mountains and Coasts by Jessica J. Lee



As a family historian and writer, books about peoples’ family histories are one of my interests. Two Trees Make a Forest was not a straight up telling of a family’s past. It was as much about the writer getting to know Taiwan as it was about her recounting her family story but they intertwine in the telling. I learned about present day Taiwan through the author’s lyrical descriptions of hikes through the mountains. At the same time, I became more familiar with the histories of China and Taiwan and how they affected this family’s lives.

>84 Familyhistorian: I called my sister to confirm or repudiate my memory of the situation, and the father cheated on the mother for pretty much the entirety of their marriage. She did tell me about a friend of hers in her 70s who couldn't have children with her first husband, so they used a sperm donor. This would have been 50 or more years ago, and like you said, things weren't talked about then. The children just found out recently and are furious with their mother for lying to them their whole lives. Each situation is unique.

>84 Familyhistorian: Yes, I have an old friend from high school days who has just discovered that he has twin daughters from being a sperm donor. It has been a huge impact, a very positive one, in his life. He is a writer, retired English prof so maybe will write about it. Wonder how many more offspring might be out there!

Meg, a bookcrossing friend just posted this and I wonder if you know about it:

"Genealogy webinar (free through July 27/2021) featuring the 1854 cholera epidemic in London:
A genealogist friend of mine recommended this one, and I found it quite fascinating:

https://familytreewebinars.com/download.php?...

It's a slide-presentation-with-voiceover about the author's research into one of her own ancestors, who'd died in 1854 of cholera. (This epidemic is treated in detail in the book The Ghost Map ( https://www.bookcrossing.com/---/11972460/ ).) The presentation includes some of Snow's own research as it pertains to the individuals in the area, and includes examples of the many different source documents used to match names to dates and addresses - poor-tax rolls, census documents, individual death certificates (where she could afford them; the author of the webinar points out the frustration of having to consider a budget when deciding which of these fascinating primary documents to acquire), and more. The research aspects were of interest to me even though I don't do much in the genealogical way myself, and I enjoyed seeing the gradual construction of a detailed look at the residents of the street on which the author's ancestor lived - and the increasingly harrowing death toll among the neighboring households."

>88 jessibud2: I listened to that one the other night. It was excellent. I have a subscription to Family Tree Webinars and plan to listen to it again before long. I was so tired that I know I missed some things. I want to listen when I'm more alert.

>85 Familyhistorian: That one caught my eye, Meg. Taiwan is a place I know so little about and I really ought to go there before the dastardly Chinese go and overrun the place.

>86 karenmarie: It's always good to find out from someone who knows, Karen. All kinds of things about paternity are coming to light now causing many mixed emotions.

>87 mdoris: Nice that reveal had a positive outcome, Mary. It would be nice if he wrote about it to give a different slant on the story.

>88 jessibud2: Thanks for reminding me of that webinar, Shelley. I saw a plug for that particular webinar on Genealogy a la carte, a blog that I subscribe to. I couldn't watch the live version as I had something else on at the time. You've reminded me to go back and have a look.

>89 thornton37814: I have a subscription to Family Tree Webinars too, Lori, but I haven't been using it much lately. There are too many other things catching my attention.

>90 PaulCranswick: Well it wouldn't be the first time that the Chinese overran Taiwan, Paul. The author's family were actually Chinese who fled to Taiwan when the communists took over.

97. Hench by Natalie Zina Walschots



Comic book heroes were one of the guilty pleasures of my youth which I brought forward into adult life. But it’s true, there is usually a lot of collateral damage when they’re on the scene. The protagonist of Hench, Anna, a temp for a hench agency, worked when she could for whichever villain was hiring. She was just there to pretty up the scene for one particular villain when she ended up injured by a slap from the hero Supercollider. The termination of her employment and a long recovery followed. It was then that she started looking into the cost and collateral damage caused by superheroes and resolved to do something about it.

The story was based on such a great premise and written in action driven prose that had me turning the pages. I’ll never look at superheroes in the same way again.

>96 Familyhistorian: Yay! You liked it! Whoopee!

Just dropping by to say 'Hi", Meg. It looks like you have been getting plenty of reading done. I've been working on a little project to synch my Kindle books with my LT listed books - it's amazing how many times I've forgotten to add a new book to LT.

>1 Familyhistorian: Near the Sylvia ~ our favourite Vancouver hotel!
My granddaughter loved these figures when we all stayed there together (some 7 or 8 years ago now)!

>74 Familyhistorian: Looks like a compelling book. I would venture there myself, since I am interested in our genomic relationships across the family. One has to have high-grade DNA techniques, however ~ so many of these kits that ancestry organizations offer are too cheap to be accurate. So I've been cautious about reading associated books on the topic.

You can tell I've simply been skimming the threads to get a little caught up on everything. Been preoccupied (as you perhaps saw on my thread) with family drama on the coast during that terrible heat wave in June.

>97 richardderus: It was a good one, Richard. I saw that you plugged it on your thread and knew you were right about it because I was already half way through by the time I saw your post.

>98 DeltaQueen50: I always try to keep my catalogue of books up to date but some always slip through. It's very hard to remember to add e-books especially. Good luck with your project, Judy.

>99 SandyAMcPherson: Yes, near the Sylvia. I've never stayed there but I've checked out the bar.

That book was about unanticipated consequences of DNA tests, Sandy. If you want to know more about techniques to use to research your own genetic matches there are a number of good books on the subject.

I saw your posts about the family drama as a result of the heat wave in June. Sorry to see that your family members were so adversely affected. Our temperatures may not be so extreme now but the heat wave continues. We haven't had any rain for 40 days now.

Hi, Meg. Just checking in. I hope all is well. I like that cover of Two Trees Make a Forest. It sounds interesting too.

>103 msf59: Hi Mark, I'm doing well just not spending much time on LT lately. I'm trying to get back to posting and reading threads.

Dropping in to say hello. I have also a lot of catching up to do :)

>105 figsfromthistle: Hi Anita, thanks for the visit. It's surprising how quickly the threads get away from you, isn't it?

Hi Meg. Congratulations on nearing book #100!

>107 Whisper1: Thanks Linda, although I've probably read 100 already because I'm behind in writing about my reads again.

98. Fair Warning by Michael Connelly



Jack McEvoy had come down in the world by the time he ended up as a journalist of sorts working for an online site called Fair Warning. It was a site that issued warnings about things that consumers should be made aware of. It was also a come down from when he was an investigative reporter on the crime beat. Those investigative skills hadn’t been lost, however, and when he found himself a suspect in the murder of a young woman he dug deeper. What he found was a connection between similar murders that led back to bargain priced DNA tests whose data was sold on to medical testing facilities. The problem being that there was little oversight on the facilities that received the data.

The premise of the plot was a scarily plausible take on the possibilities of our current online world and its dangers. It was quite a page turner.

I'm way behind in posting about my reads and about what I've been up to lately. I have a bunch of books due at the library tomorrow so there will be a flurry of reviews.

99. The Defense by Steve Cavanagh



I got to know Steve Cavanagh through the Two Crime Writers and a Microphone online events which were fun but, unfortunately, as of the last event Steve left the partnership. His online persona intrigued me enough that I thought I should actually read one of his books. Besides which he spelt Cavanagh the right way. (It was my name for the longest time and can be spelled many ways.)

The Defense his debut novel was about a conman turned lawyer (similar but one has a degree) whose daughter was kidnapped by the Russian mob because they need a lawyer to do their bidding at their boss’s trial. The mobsters thought they had a regular lawyer not one with aces up his sleeve and allies in strange places. It was a fast moving race to the finish for this story.

I recently finished the first draft of my novel and I'm now letting it sit. Which means that I can catch up on other things that I let slide. Well, some of the other things, let's not get too carried away here.

>100 Familyhistorian: The Madness of Crowds: Gender, Race and Identity by Douglas Murray



In the race to keep up with current trends we seem to have left sanity somewhere in the dust. In The Madness of Crowds: Gender, Race and Identity, Douglas Murray looked at how we are expected to think about gender, race and identity through the lens of social media, where the all-seeing public is ready to call out anyone not agreeing with the agreed upon stance on being gay, not white, women, or trans. As he explained it and brought all of these issues together, it truly did seem to be madness.

>112 Familyhistorian: Oh that sounds satisfying. I hope you catch up and pick it up to carry it to whatever goal you want.

>113 Familyhistorian: Or the first steps toward sanity. Every change of perspective is disorienting.

On Wednesday I met a friend by the laughing men statues for a walk along the seawall at Stanley Park and a meal at the Sylvia.

>114 quondame: I want to let it sit for a bit but I intend to pick it up again soon.

It is disorienting and often changes while you are just getting used to the last change.

101. Naked in Death by J.D. Robb



I lent my copy of Naked in Death, the first in the In Death series to a friend who returned it. It was just sitting there so I picked up and read it again. I enjoyed it and I now have the next in the series on hold at the library. Not sure if I’ll read the whole series again but we’ll see.

Congrats on finishing your first draft! That's a great accomplishment.

>113 Familyhistorian:
Congratulations on breaching triple digits!

>112 Familyhistorian: That is a huge achievement, Meg, and I hope you're extremely proud of making it to "The End."

>118 katiekrug: Thanks Katie. I'm taking a sort of rest before I start the first of the edits.

>119 richardderus: Thanks Richard. I'm still far behind in my write ups but it was good to post the 100th one.

I was proud to make it to the end by finishing the first draft but most of the rest of my cohort already reached that milestone so I feeling like I'm just catching up.

102. The Wallflower Wager by Tessa Dare



Looking for a light read after some of the library holds, I’ve needed to get through quickly because of short turn around times, I picked up The Wallflower Wager. A fun fast romance must have been just what I was looking for. It was read and enjoyed in a day. That doesn’t happen to me very often and was quite refreshing.

I'm struggling to keep up with reading challenges. I still haven't finished the books this month for the non-fiction challenge and the reading through time challenge. I really have to stop hitting the library hold button. I did well today, there was only one hold waiting for me when I took my books back to the library.

103. The 1940s Home by Paul Evans and Peter Doyle



As part of the research for my WWII stories about my family, I’ve started reading the books in my personal library which are about the war period. Many of them are about social history like The 1940s Home which showed how wartime restrictions affected British homes particularly around housing and household goods.

104. The Women's Land Army 1939-1940



My blog posts are currently about the Land Army as my mother was in that service. The latest book I read on the subject was The Women’s Land Army 1939-1950. Besides the interesting photos there were write-ups about the various jobs that the women got to do during their time on the land. Good info but not directly related to my mum as there were no pictures from Hertfordshire where she was located.

You can see my latest blog posts at: A Genealogist’s Path to History

Congrats on finishing your novel. That is an amazing accomplishment!

>125 Familyhistorian: There is a Women's Land Army story in Compulsory Games. But like all those stories, strangely horrific.

>109 Familyhistorian: That Connelly book sounds really gripping. And as you say, very plausible.
He's a really good author for turning out thrillers.
I read The Scarecrow ages ago (before I joined LT) and noted that there were too many flaws and improbabilities. However, Fair Warning sounds better.

>126 mdoris: I wish I had finished my novel, Mary. The first draft is finished next will come umpteen edits of the whole thing.

>127 quondame: That must be a different take on a Land Girl story, Susan. Although, that is probably a good time to set a story of speculative fiction with so many people out of their usual routines and facing the horrific everyday.

>128 SandyAMcPherson: I didn't read the previous books in the Jack McEvoy series, Sandy. Just caught this one as a BB somewhere on the threads which maybe was a good thing.

>131 Familyhistorian: Indeed, "a good thing".
Maybe that's why I've been noticing the Fair Warning title and also why I didn't pick up another Connelly book.

>129 Familyhistorian: I understand but you did finish it in a way that you have the story down and now you will polish it up. It is still a very BIG accomplishment! Well done!

>130 Familyhistorian: The author died in the 80s, so it is a reflection from an older mirror.

105. The Secret Starling by Judith Eagle





Clara Starling was a young girl who lived in a mansion but her life was not happy, bounded in as it was by strict rules with the only affection coming from the servants. Her guardian, her uncle, didn’t even seem to like her. Things went from bad to worse when her uncle tried to get rid of her and sell the house.

That’s when the story in The Secret Starling, really came to life as Clara camped out in the mansion and other children came. Eventually she and her new friend Peter stumbled across a mystery to solve, one that brought them even closer together. It was a heartwarming tale about finding a place of belonging

>132 SandyAMcPherson: Sometimes it just takes a plot that is more plausible and better thought out for a writer to get back in the game. Maybe Connelly's books are worth a second look.

>133 mdoris: Thanks Mary. It does feel like an accomplishment to get to the end of that part. Now I need to get up the energy to get back to the editing.

>134 quondame: Yes, the '80s and the times before when the author was alive offered a different lens on which to look at society.

106. Death Comes to Bath by Catherine Lloyd



Sir Robert needed to recuperate from further problems with his leg so Lucy talked him into going to Bath. Of course, the inevitable happened and the duo end up investigating a murder.

It was interesting to see them outside of their home in Death Comes to Bath and gave the author a chance to introduce another interesting and fractious family. I enjoyed this entry in the series.

I'm supposed to be doing other things so, of course, I'm posting on LT instead. Last night was one of the final meetings for "Emerge", the anthology that The Writers Studio puts out every year to showcase the work of the students. I volunteered to help out hoping to get to work on the cover. Instead I got to do editing. I do enough editing as it is and hoped to learn something different so that was a disappointment but maybe turned out for the best because I really don't like the cover that was picked, so oh well.

For the meeting last night we proofread the stories (max of 5 pages per story). I'm supposed to be sending back the errors I found by the end of the day which is why I'm on here. All I can say is that it was much easier than when I had a job as a proofreader. Then I got to work on much stranger stuff - like manuals for the military (nothing interesting, just tedious and boring directions for things everyone should know) and proofreading Russian (just making sure the copy looked like the master in a language of which I had no knowledge.)

106. The Cafe by the Sea by Jenny Colgan



Flora tried to fool herself that she was fitting in to the London work scene, just like she tried to ignore the huge crush she had on her boss, a guy with relationship issues. Joel didn’t have relationships, just one-night stands. It was safer that way and didn’t interfere with his work as a hot shot lawyer. That was before one of the firm’s largest clients wants them to work on his behalf to stop a wind farm being built close enough to be visible from his destination hotel on the same small island Flora was from. Which meant, of course, that Flora was the ideal person to send there to represent the firm even if she had burnt all her bridges when she had left.

The descriptions of the island and the food were delightful fictions and the story of how Flora finds confidence and ends up running The Café by the Sea grew naturally in the story. The relationship between Flora and Joel was suitably rocky and the book was a quick and entertaining read.

On a walk last week I took this picture of the skyline. Although the sky was clear there were still indications that fire was an issue.

Death Comes to Bath and The Cafe by the Sea -- both books I enjoyed from two favorite series.

>143 RebaRelishesReading: I didn't realize that The Cafe by the Sea was part of a series, Reba. Which other ones have you read?

107. Snap by Belinda Bauer



Jack and his two young sisters were left in his mother’s car by the side of the road while she went to get help only, she never came back. After her body was found there was a hunt for the murderer but everyone forgot about the family left behind. Then their father went out one day to get milk and never came back leaving 12-year-old Jack in charge. Leaving Jack to support them the only way he could.

What a mixed-up crew the kids were, especially Jack, the thief that I couldn’t help but root for. He had a lot more going for him than the dysfunctional police force. Snap was an edge of the seat type of story with quirky characters that just drew me in so I couldn’t stop until I found out what happened in the end.

I really liked Snap, too, Meg. But I've liked all of Bauer's books that I've read :)

>146 katiekrug: I've liked all the Bauer books I've read, Katie, but I've only read two. Are there others you would recommend?

We had rain for most of the day. I almost forgot what to wear it had been so long.

Hi Meg!

>96 Familyhistorian: I read RichardDerus’s review and bought it. Alas, comic book heroes were not one of the guilty pleasures of my youth and I abandoned it, but I did find the concept of collateral damage because of their actions intriguing.

>112 Familyhistorian: Wow. Congrats. And this is in addition to your genealogical work and reading over 100 books so far this year.

>145 Familyhistorian: Intriguing. I do not know Bauer, and now I must remedy that. Your description of Snap reminds me a bit of Willy Vlautin's Lean on Pete, which was another terrific story of a young boy making it on his own.

>147 Familyhistorian: - The first of hers I read was Blacklands and it remains my favorite. After that, Darkside, which I read this year. Rubbernecker was also good. I think that covers the 4 I've read. I have a few more on my shelf/Kindle.

>145 Familyhistorian: Well, that sounds like a cheery bagatelle for one's summer jollification!

You've had some reasonably good reading mojo, Meg, always a good thing to know, possibly emulate.

>149 karenmarie: Yeah, a misspent youth between the covers of comic books would make Hench a much more delicious experience. Too bad it didn't work for you without the background.

Thanks re the first draft. Retirement does seem pretty busy, at least the way mine is panning out.

>150 laytonwoman3rd: This was the second book I read by Bauer, Linda. I can also recommend Blacklands. I haven't read Lean on Pete, I'll have to have a look for it.

>151 katiekrug: I read Blacklands too, which was my introduction to Bauer. Thanks for the info on the other two, Katie. I'll have to track them down.

ETA. I already have Darkside on hold at the library.

>148 Familyhistorian: Can't believe you had rain all day. Ours was just at night and not a soaker. Plants still very parched and desperate.

>152 richardderus: Well, when one's reading taste skews to crime, cheery is not the usual outlook, Richard.

I bask in your tepid praise for my reading mojo.

>156 mdoris: Well, maybe not all day, Mary but I needed an umbrella in the morning and it wasn't the all out sunshine we've become used to. It was kind of startling to look out the window of the Skytrain and see the condo towers lurking in the misty skies.

>136 Familyhistorian: I liked that perspective (on Connelly's books). Thanks for your your thoughts on writing and plotting stories. I will add Fair Warning to my WL.

>135 Familyhistorian: I also caught a BB with The Secret Starling. It sounds really good for middle grade reading. Is it kind of grim or scary? I have in mind a sensitive 10 yo who might like the book as a gift, but not if it is dark for too much of the story.

Just read the Kirkus review this morning, so edited to add that The Secret Starling is a no go in this instance.

>140 Familyhistorian: I am pleased to see that you got persistent rainfall, Meg, especially given the fire warnings.

I am really worried by the pictures coming out of Greece at the moment and I hope the people there will be safe.

Some fun reading going on here!

Hi Meg my dear, i am getting back around the threads again, we are both doing fine considering the situation, we are taking things day by day and this is helping. Sending love and hugs from both of us dear friend.

>159 SandyAMcPherson: I hope you like Fair Warning, Sandy. I was surprised about The Secret Starling being considered dark. I thought it positive as the main character always made it through her dilemmas.

>160 PaulCranswick: Well, not that persistent as far as rainfalls go, Paul. Not as much as we're used to anyway. There is now a warning that we're about to go into our third heat wave of the summer which is not normal for us. There are currently 167 active wildfires in BC but that will probably increase as the heat ramps up.

>161 thornton37814: Some fun reading to get me through the less fun reads, Lori. Some hefty tomes coming up.

>162 johnsimpson: Good to see you here, John. I hope that things at your end resolve in a positive way soon.

>166 Familyhistorian:, Fingers crossed Meg my dear.

>167 johnsimpson: Best of luck, John.

>168 Familyhistorian:, Thank you my dear friend.

Hi Meg, are you all set for this new heat wave we seem to be having? Yuck! I love Belinda Bauer and I have Snap so I will push it up a few notches on the TBR. Blacklands is also my favorite of hers, but all her books are excellent. Your mention of the Sylvia Hotel brought back some memories. When I worked downtown, we would sometimes go to the bar at the Sylvia after work. There was also a restaurant nearby that we loved. If I remember correctly it was called The English Bay Cafe, but unfortunately, it's long gone. :(

>170 DeltaQueen50: Hi Judy, the heat doesn't bother me much as long as it doesn't head too close to 40 C.

That's a nice memory to have of the Sylvia. I didn't frequent it in my younger days and, part of the time that I worked downtown, I worked the graveyard shift at the Post Office. My memories are more of having to leave a fun venue to make my way to work.

Bear with me while I start up a new thread. Hopefully it won't take too long but it's technology so who knows what will happen.