Life: It Goes On - November 22

Happy Sunday! What a strange Thanksgiving week we are entering. None of my siblings are coming, none of their kids, and only, maybe, one of our kids will be with us at my parents' on Thursday. Assuming neither my mom nor I balk at the last minute and decide we can't risk their health by being together. My mom has everything she would need to put a holiday meal on the table and so do I, just in case. We tried to buy a half ham or a small turkey but there are none to be found in Omaha (or at least not in any grocery store near us); it no one is planning the usual big event. Could that mean enough people are starting to take this seriously enough that we might be able to avoid completely overwhelming our healthcare system? I certainly hope so.

Last Week I: 

 Listened To: I finished Tana French's The Searchers Thursday and started Yaa Gyasi's latest, Transcendent Kingdom, Friday. In between, I listened to some podcasts, including Root of Evil, Singing Bones, and The History Chicks. 

Watched: Football (still in mourning about our Huskers), The Voice, Grace and Frankie, and a couple of episodes of The Queen's Gambit. 

Read: I finished Where The Crawdads Sing just before my bookclub met to discuss it on Tuesday and then I went back to Dark Tides. I discovered that Dark Tides is the second in a series when I was about 100 pages in and was impressed that I hadn't been able to tell earlier. Now I'm really feeling like the books should be read in order; there are dual story lines and they hardly intersect which I'm sure makes more sense if you've read the first book.

Made: Tried something new this week - chicken florentine which we both liked a lot. I always hew to the new recipes pretty closely the first time I try something but when I saw it called for only a "pinch" of seasoning, I laughed and tossed in a tablespoon or so. Next time I may add even more and (here's something I thought I'd never hear myself say) more spinach. 

Enjoyed: A record warm day Thursday. I took off work a couple of hours early and used the time to paint a chair for my office (once upon a time it was in Miss H's room, hence the hot pink). Earlier in the week, The Big Guy and I worked on the garage, which you wouldn't think would be enjoyable, but is for me, especially when it looked so much better when we finished. 

This Week I’m:  

Planning: To start making Christmas gifts this week. Yea me, for not waiting until the last minute this year! I'm going to try my hand at some bookish crafts but if they turn out, I won't be able to show them to you until after Christmas. 

Thinking About: I'll start taking down Thanksgiving this week (although I'll leave the dining room decorated since we'll celebrate with Miss H on Saturday) and then Friday I'll bring up the Christmas bins. I'm torn between keeping it really low key (since we can't entertain in December) and going all out because we need to be festive where we can. We'll see where my brain is at next weekend!

Feeling: I'm pretty sure that you can tell that the stress of this virus is wearing on me this week. Mini-him has been exposed again for the second time in two weeks through work and now we are waiting again for him to be able to get in and get tested. My family has been very careful through all of this but when you have to work, there's only so much you can do. 

Looking forward to: Seeing my parents this week, even if we will be eating in an entirely different room and having to shout to talk to each other!

Question of the week: Have you tried any new recipes lately? Anything I should try?

The Searcher by Tana French

The Searcher by Tana French

Read by Roger Clark

Published October 2020 by Penguin Publishing Group

Source: checked out audiobook from my local library

Publisher's Summary:

Cal Hooper thought a fixer-upper in a bucolic Irish village would be the perfect escape. After twenty-five years in the Chicago police force and a bruising divorce, he just wants to build a new life in a pretty spot with a good pub where nothing much happens. But when a local kid whose brother has gone missing arm-twists him into investigating, Cal uncovers layers of darkness beneath his picturesque retreat, and starts to realize that even small towns shelter dangerous secrets.

My Thoughts:

I'm pretty sure I've made it clear that I'm a big fan of Tana French; her Dublin Murder Series never disappoints. The Searcher is not part of that series and I was eager to see if I would like a stand alone book by French as much. 

Janet Maslin, of the New York Times, says that French doesn't write genres or thrillers..."She writes full-bodied novels in which crimes happen to have been committed." The Searcher is very different than French's other books but Maslin's assertion seems to be even more true in this book than in her others. Cal Hooper may have been looking more at location, location, location when he bought his house but what French gives us is atmosphere, atmosphere, atmosphere. The setting is vivid.

“The air is rich as fruitcake, like you should do more with it than just breathe it; bite off a big mouthful, maybe, or rub handfuls of it over your face.”

French could have made this nothing more than the story of a stranger in a new land finding a way to fit in to his new surrounding and it would have worked for me. Her characters are so interesting - you will feel that you know them but also that there is something that there are secrets they are keeping. That's where the mystery of this book comes in. What has become of Brendan Reddy, the son of a ne'er-do-well and a part of a family the people of Arknakelty would like to ignore? No one much seems to be concerned, except his sibling, Trey who finds out that Cal used to be a police officer and won't leave Cal alone until he agrees to help find Brendan. Finding Brendan is a slow-burn part of the plot, often feeling like it's almost part of the background. Until it isn't and suddenly readers are put on edge wondering where the danger is coming from. Along the way, though, the real strength of this book is the relationships Cal forms with several of the villagers - with his nosy neighbor, Mart; with the woman the town is trying to set him up with, Lana; but most importantly, with Trey. 

French has said this book is an homage to the American Western and you can certainly see that in much of the story line. Cal is the John Wayne of this novel. His back story is a bit clunky and French might well have cut part of it out without losing a thing; all of it results in a lot of introspection on Cal's part, which can also be a bit of a drag on the book. 

Some reviewers are calling this book one of French's strongest novels, others one of her weakest. As for me, I was utterly immersed in it. Roger Clark does a wonderful job of reading the book; periodically his Irish accent break through into his "American" narrator's voice, but that's a small complaint. I liked Cal and I enjoyed watching him try to work out his own issues, figure out what's what in his new home, and deal with an angry teenager. Once again, French did not disappoint. 

Where The Crawdads Sing by Della Owens

Where The Crawdads Sing by Della Owens

Published August 2018 by Penguin Publishing Group

Source: good question - did I buy it or did my mom loan me her copy?

Publisher's Summary:

For years, rumors of the "Marsh Girl" have haunted Barkley Cove, a quiet town on the North Carolina coast. So in late 1969, when handsome Chase Andrews is found dead, the locals immediately suspect Kya Clark, the so-called Marsh Girl. But Kya is not what they say. Sensitive and intelligent, she has survived for years alone in the marsh that she calls home, finding friends in the gulls and lessons in the sand. Then the time comes when she yearns to be touched and loved. When two young men from town become intrigued by her wild beauty, Kya opens herself to a new life—until the unthinkable happens. 

Where the Crawdads Sing is at once an exquisite ode to the natural world, a heartbreaking coming-of-age story, and a surprising tale of possible murder. Owens reminds us that we are forever shaped by the children we once were, and that we are all subject to the beautiful and violent secrets that nature keeps.

My Thoughts:

My book club, like so many others, wanted to read this book so I added it to our list for 2020 and requested the book club bag from the library at the beginning of October of 2019. When Covid shut down the library, we were were still several months from getting the bag. We finally gave up in November and we all had to find our own copies. Which is all a long way to say that I've inadvertently put off reading this book until the giant buzz around it died down. That's usually a good thing for me and this book was no exception. 

Owens writes about the North Carolina coastal area beautifully and I would really enjoy reading a nonfiction book by her about the area. The setting may well be the most interesting character in this book.

“Marsh is not swamp. Marsh is a space of light, where grass grows in water, and water flows into the sky. Slow-moving creeks wander, carrying the orb of the sun with them to the sea, and long-legged birds lift with unexpected grace—as though not built to fly—against the roar of a thousand snow geese. Then within the marsh, here and there, true swamp crawls into low-lying bogs, hidden in clammy forests. Swamp water is still and dark, having swallowed the light in its muddy throat. Even night crawlers are diurnal in this lair. There are sounds, of course, but compared to the marsh, the swamp is quiet because decomposition is cellular work. Life decays and reeks and returns to the rotted duff; a poignant wallow of death begetting life.”

Not only does Owens do a lovely job of showing us this part of the country she clearly loves, but she uses her knowledge of it to give us clues to what will happen in the book. If, by some chance, you have not already read this book, I certainly recommend that you pay attention to these parts of the book, not just because they are well written, but because if you don't, later you will absolutely wonder what you missed. 

I picked up this book in print and discovered that holding a book was just what I needed after so many audio and e-books. It certainly enhanced my experience of the book. I will admit that, because I started the book too close to my book club meeting, I will admit that I did skip almost all of the poetry Owens included in it (which, as it turned out, also held clues). 

As for the story, I have mixed feelings. It required a tremendous amount of suspension of disbelief and I wasn't able to quite muster up as much of that as it would have required to love the book. There was some dialogue that felt stiff to me and many of the characters felt like stereotypes to me. Some were too good to be true, some had almost no redeeming characteristics. It also brought to mind other books I've read that took place in the same or similar setting (such as those by Pat Conroy, Sarah Addison Allen, and Jesmyn Ward's Salvage The Bones); periodically I had the feeling I'd read this book before. 

So, in the end, I didn't love it. But then I wasn't expecting to love it. Despite those shortcomings, I did still enjoy this book. Despite almost unceasing sadness, it was a good break for me from all of the heavy nonfiction reading I've been doing and I found myself racing through it. 

Life: It Goes On - November 15

Happy Sunday! The sun is shining and it's supposed to be warmer today than yesterday so we're hoping to get some outdoor time in with friends this afternoon. I wish I could say that it still looked as beautiful outside as this picture but we have almost no leaves left clinging to trees and the wind is working to take care of the rest. 

We're entering the season of brown, once of the reasons I dislike the winter months. Perhaps that's why I'm starting to think about pulling out the Christmas things ahead of Thanksgiving, something I never do. Perhaps I'm just trying to push time along; the faster we get through these next few months, the better. I might start planning my gardens come January!

Last Week I: 

 Listened To: I'm racing through Tana French's The Searcher, which I'm enjoying a lot because the reader, Roger Clark, is so good. 

Watched: We started watching The Queen's Gambit (boy, is that not what I was expecting!), I watched some Grace and Frankie (I'm sad to say that I think that is on its last season; they seem to be running out of material), and, of course, football. 

Read: Guys, I am struggling here. I'm reading, but I'm having to force myself to do it because I have books that are due back at the library, scheduled for a review, or it's book club meeting time. I really thought that after the election my brain would be able to focus better. The good thing is that I know this will pass; there will come a time when I find a book I can't put down and it will pull me back in. 

Made: Yesterday I made a cream of green bean soup. The Big Guy was telling Miss H about it last night, as though she might be jealous she missed it. Evidently he'd forgotten two things: she really doesn't like soups and she hates green beans. It's definitely not a soup everyone would like but we'll probably make it again. I'd post a picture but I think you can all imagine what cream of green bean soup looks like and know that it's not a soup you look at and think, "that looks delicious!"

Enjoyed: Calls with all of my out-of-town kids. I love that Miss H wanted to spend her Saturday night Facetiming with her parents. Even if I am fully aware that the only reason that she's home to do that is because of CoVid and I really wish that she were able to go out and do the kinds of things 25-year-olds young women should be doing. 

This Week I’m: 

Planning: On finishing my office this week. A several days migraine early this week meant I didn't get the painting done and there's still more organizing to be done. It's finally making me happy to be in that room. 

Thinking About: How sad I am that we won't be able to enjoy dinners around the dining room table for months yet. I finished up the chairs I was working on and I love them around the table. I so wish we could have people in all of those chairs, enjoying great food and even better company. 

Feeling: Pleased that my parents enjoyed their early Christmas presents. Their children all went together to make a donation to the Husker athletic program that allowed my mom and dad to be cutouts at all of the home games. Did they need it? No. Is it useful? No. But it was so fun to see them "at the game" yesterday!

Looking forward to: Book club this week, even if we have to do a Zoom meeting. Guess I should probably start the book, right?

Question of the week: There may only be four of us at my parents this year for Thanksgiving dinner and we may be sitting at two different tables in two different rooms. It's going to be weird and quiet and sad. How is your family planning to celebrate this year?

Bronte's Mistress by Finola Austin

Bronte's Mistress by Finola Austin

Published August 2020 by Atria Books

Source: my copy courtesy of the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review

Publisher's Summary:

Yorkshire, 1843: Lydia Robinson—mistress of Thorp Green Hall—has lost her precious young daughter and her mother within the same year. She returns to her bleak home, grief-stricken and unmoored. With her teenage daughters rebelling, her testy mother-in-law scrutinizing her every move, and her marriage grown cold, Lydia is restless and yearning for something more. 

All of that changes with the arrival of her son’s tutor, Branwell Brontë, brother of her daughters’ governess, Miss Anne Brontë and those other writerly sisters, Charlotte and Emily. Branwell has his own demons to contend with—including living up to the ideals of his intelligent family—but his presence is a breath of fresh air for Lydia. Handsome, passionate, and uninhibited by social conventions, he’s also twenty-five to her forty-three. A love of poetry, music, and theatre bring mistress and tutor together, and Branwell’s colorful tales of his sisters’ elaborate play-acting and made-up worlds form the backdrop for seduction. 

But Lydia’s new taste of passion comes with consequences. As Branwell’s inner turmoil rises to the surface, his behavior grows erratic and dangerous, and whispers of their passionate relationship spout from her servants’ lips, reaching all three protective Brontë sisters. Soon, it falls on Lydia to save not just her reputation, but her way of life, before those clever girls reveal all her secrets in their novels. Unfortunately, she might be too late. 

Meticulously researched and deliciously told, Brontë’s Mistress is a captivating reimagining of the scandalous affair that has divided Brontë enthusiasts for generations and an illuminating portrait of a courageous, sharp-witted woman who fights to emerge with her dignity intact.

My Thoughts:

I'm a huge fan of the writings of the Bronte sisters - Emily, Anne, and Charlotte left their marks on the world. Their only brother, Branwell, did not. He floundered through his life, unable to find his path and a victim of his addictions. What Branwell did leave, though, were letters intimating that he may have had an affair with one of his employer's wives, Lydia Robinson. 

Austin took what is known about their relationship and crafted it into a novel that explores Lydia's side of the relationship. In Austin's hands, Lydia is a complicated character and I had mixed feelings about her. It's a fact that Lydia was married to an older man, in a time period where a woman's security depended on men. It's also a fact that she had only recently lost a child when Branwell began working for the family. Austin takes all of those facts and takes things up a notch making Lydia a woman who wasn't necessarily a fan of being a mother, particuarly not of her surviving daughters, viewing them more as burdens to be unloaded onto the best match she could make than as cherished parts of her heart. Edmund Robinson is portrayed as a man who has lost whatever passion he might once have felt for his wife, whose mother matters more to him than his wife, and whose gambling habit will eventually leave Lydia in a position where she must rely on others to survive after Edmund's death. 

It was easy to imagine why Lydia might be attracted to a handsome young man who shows her attention and there was certainly a part of me that cheered for Lydia to find some happiness. And then a part of me that grew increasingly frustrated with her recklessness, especially as it became clear that Branwell could not be relied upon to be cautious nor quiet about their affair. Once things really changed for Lydia, though, at a time where I should have felt sorry for her, I found her increasingly irritating and annoyed with the choices she made. It was hard to feel sorry for her. And then it occured to me that Lydia reminded me very much of Becky Sharpe in William Thackeray's Vanity Fair; another woman whose passion undid her and who did whatever it took to survive. It didn't make me like Lydia any more. She was still a woman who Austin portrays as jealous of the relationship between her daughters and their governess but more angry at her daughters for not trying harder to be close to her than she was willing to make that effort. But I could see better what Austin was doing. 

Ms. Austin has clearly done her research and does a fine job of painting a picture of what life was like in that time and place. I would have liked to see a little more character development. Only Lydia felt like she was fully developed; Edmund, their daughters, and other family members and friends often felt like caricatures. The book might actually have benefited from more development of Lydia's other relationships as well. Overall, if I were to put a grade on this one, I'd give it a C, an average book that has good moments and I don't regret reading. Other reviewers on Goodreads gave it much higher marks. I'd recommend you look at a few reviews before you make your decision if you're thinking of picking this one up.