Tons of rain yesterday and then the wind came. It’s still a little windy out there and, though we were supposed to have no rain today, we might have some this morning. Don just went out to work on the trails, where he has been raking and cleaning things up. I’ll wait to see if it rains around 10 am. If it does, I’ll have to wait until tomorrow to get some work done.
Dear little Imogen. I hadn’t pulled her off the shelf in a while, so I remedied that the other day. She was one of my first Blythes. The third, I believe. She arrived at the house just before I took off for 6 weeks in Brooklyn when I was working on the movie.
In fact, here she is with Sophie the day I moved into the apartment in Brooklyn. (Maeve, though the second Blythe, hadn’t arrived yet – she had a very long trip from Russia.)
She was customized by Torry Dolls who lives in Belarus. Love the dimple in her chin.
The puzzle is driving me mad, but I think I managed to correctly insert about 10 pieces yesterday. Nothing else is new, my friends.
Since that is the case, this post will be relatively brief. But, I do have a question: What are you reading?
Stay safe.
Happy Saturday.
For fun I am reading all the Charlotte and Thomas Pitt mysteries by Anne Perry. For my book groups I have recently read March by Geraldine Brooks, The Alice Network by Kate Quinn. Currently my book is The Women by Kristin Hannah.
Sue+Matile: I loved “March,” by Geraldine Brooks and all her other books so far, though I have several more of hers on my shelf TBR. Her stories are compelling.
I’m reading the Richard Jury series by Martha Grimes. He’s a New Scotland Yard superintendent and it’s set in the countryside outside London. Some of the books are good but some are a bit confusing to me and I have trouble keeping track of who’s who and where we are! But I always want to find out who did it so I keep reading!
dear Claudia/Don — we have also had wind w/4 or 6 cloudy, very rainy days in a row, a real downer for sure — today, bright sun, no clouds w/warming temps until next wkend. so much enjoy pixs of these “little girls” — every one is special. also have an “ongoing” puzzle (since Christmas 2022, ha!) on dining table w/little activity on it — have gotten really good at balancing plates w/food, cups, glasses, etc, without table, haha!! hope your wkend is a good one. stay safe/healthy
My current mindless entertainment reading is Mike Lawson’s series about Joe DeMarco – takes place in my home town, which the author seems to know well enough not to be irritating and the plots are fun with interesting characters. Nothing that will challenge your intellect.
Here south of you we are having a bright sunny day with a steady breeze – would dry out your garden for pruning etc nicely!
Ceci
The Year of Wonders by Geraldine Brooks. It’s about the plague which was mind boggling and has the most glorious ending! Hoping the sun can beat the clouds today right now it’s 75% clouds winning.
Betsy, This is one of my all-time favorite books by a favorite author. Geraldine Brooks is brilliant.
It was amazing! I had only read “Horse” by her. I loved it so much I’m on a Geraldine Brooks roll!
Betsy – I have a copy of this book in my To Be Read pile. Many years ago I accompanied my son’s class of ten year olds to Eyam, the plague village on which the novel is based. It’s under 50 miles away from where I live and like stepping back in time.
As part of their history lesson, the children were shown around one of the cottages whose interior would have changed little since the 1660s.
The guide asked if the children had any questions and I remember one little girl having for the first time, seen like the others, a four poster bed with a canopy, asked did the beds have the overhead canopy so that the people had somewhere to put their pyjamas! It was such a sweet thing to say!
The Accidental Further Adventures of the Hundred-Year-Old Man: A Novel by Jonas Jonasson
The hysterical sequel to The Hundred-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out of the Window and Disappeared. If you just finished reading a serious novel and you need something funny and off the wall, both these books fit the bill. The sequel can stand on it’s own, but I suggest reading the first .
Thankfully it’s a bright sunny day here, so I’m on my way outside to do a bit of yard work.
I’m currently reading an action, adventure novel, Fire Strike, part of the ongoing Oregon Files series that was started by Clive Cussler, and since his passing is written by Mike Maden. Those novels always take me away to far away places and imaginative adventures. Always a fun read.
Enjoy your weekend! ;)
I am working my way through Agatha Christie and just finished Five Little Pigs. I went to my little local library today and was so excited because I found The Book of Lost Names by Kristin Harmel, which I have on my Want to Read list on Goodreads.
I just recently discovered the Daniel Silva books, and I am completely lost in them, but I do want to save some for the future. ‘George Washington’s Secret Six’ is also great…this is about his spy ring that saved the American Revolution; I had never heard about this before. On my Kindle, I have almost completed a mystery by Donna Leon. I just finished Lisa Jewell’s ‘The Family Remains’ which is a psych thriller. I love mysteries, but not this type of thriller, so I won’t read any of her other books. I am so looking forward to October 29 for the next Louise Penny book to be released!
Nice to see the Blythe, Claudia.
I just finished Everyone in my Family Has Killed Someone. It’s a different take on the locked room mystery. The book is told by one of the family members, and though what he tells the reader is the truth, there are so many interpretations of what he said that sometimes the truth doesn’t help solve the mystery.
I’m going to start on Donna Leon’s Wandering Through Life. I enjoy her Brunetti series and am trying to find the Brunetti cookbook she wrote.
We had pounding rain about 4 am…it woke me up and I couldn’t get back to sleep. So, I got up and watched an old Jack Benny show…it was fun. I recently finished The Women and I’m now reading The Golden Doves by Martha Hall Kelly, about two female spies hunting down an infamous Nazi doctor from the concentration camps during World War II. It really helps me to first read the author’s notes at the back of the book to read about the actual people and events that inspired and motivated the author.
So cute, especially the red checked dress! I have picked up some books at resale shops, so not current releases. I just finished The Piano Teacher (a NYT bestseller at the time) that was a good read. Now starting Amsterdam (McEwan) and still on the shelf, Our Kind of Traitor (le Carré, one of my favorite authors).
Have a nice weekend!
Happy Saturday, Claudia. I’ve just finished The Collector by Daniel Silva and liked it, so I also got another one of his, The Mark of the Assassin. I found a Mickey Haller by Michael Connelly that I missed somehow or didn’t remember reading it. I’ll start that one first.
Camino Island by John Grisham.
hej, regula.
will you please let me know what you think about “camino island” once you’re done reading it? thanks. it’s one of very few books mentioned here that i’ve actually read and i have an opinion about it (ha)!
hope you have a great weekend and stay safe.
kathy
missed yesterday here due to an entirely-preventable second appointment of many hours to get my car’s rear brakes replaced, but the service department made it better by honoring the quote they gave me last november … wasn’t charged the price increase of $250 … but i had to remind them of that quote … the least they could do. anyway, it’s done and then i took my car to get washed so it looks and feels better, too.
sorry for the other car problem you’re having, claudia and don. glad you have a second car, but still it’s a problem for you to deal with. ugh.
and the chomped-off flowers. hopefully they were enjoyed by someone who will show their beauty and sweetness to you as thanks.
hope your weather turns as you want/need. after weeks of very windy weather, it’s slowed down here and is sunny, 79 degrees now. we will definitely be walking outside today. :)
do you recommend reading the daniel silva books in the order they were written?
love imogen’s dress of big red checks (a favorite of mine).
i read the Bible, am grateful for it. finished “war and peace” a couple weeks ago and loved it. my sister-in-law has it now. i thought i’d next be reading “a gentleman in moscow”, but decided to instead read “the happiness project” by gretchen rubin. it’s a memoir of sorts, with the author explaining things she did to feel happier. too soon to tell if i will like it, but as someone who fights depression (who believes in seeking medical assistance if needed for such things and who also benefits from other actions), i am going to give it a try. will then finally read “a gentleman in moscow”.
working on a couple small projects at my apartment and that feels good, too.
hope you all are feeling well, staying safe, enjoying today and having a nice easy weekend.
kathy
I love to see what others are reading. I always find something to put on my list.
I am just finishing “The Lantern Men” by Elly Griffiths. I have been taking it slow because the end is near. Next to be read is a non fiction book, “A wood of Ones Own” by Ruth Pavey. She is British.
Take Care and I hope you have sun so you can work in your beautiful yard.
Kaye
Just finished Benjamin Stevenson’s “Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone” but read it on my phone. Think I would have enjoyed it much more if I had read it in a hardcover book so I could have easily flipped the pages back and forth to figure out what was going on.
Dreaming about getting my hands on “The French Ingredient: Making a Life in Paris One Lesson at a Time” by Jane Bertch. I love memoirs about expats who’ve moved to France. But can’t justify at the moment spending one something that I just want to read and not keep. Try to limit that to knitting books, or items I know I’ll consult in the future. So will suggest for my local library for purchase.
Also want to read “The Boys and Me: My Life in the Country Music Supergroup Sawyer Brown” by Mark Miller (the band’s lead singer). I started listening to the group years ago when my Mom bumped into the Jim, original bass player’s Mom, Mrs Scholten, on Main St in Midland, MI. My Mom told his Mom that I was a big fan. I hadn’t even heard of the group at the time, LOL. So as not to make a liar out of my fun I figured I’d better check the group out. They were the Vocal Group who won the the first Star Search competition though I didn’t watch the series at the time.
They have a new song that I’d recommend that I think Don would like. Its called “Desperado Troubadours” and it’s available to listen to on YouTube. Which reminds me I need to catch up–I’m a little behind listening to Don’s songs posted on YouTube. Been battling a bad back to my attention span has been great. But alway look forward to them–it’s like having a mini private concert!
I’m finishing up the first of the Call the Midwife books. A good read.
Imogen and Sophie – so sweet together. You have a knack for choosing cute dresses, stockings and shoes. Persevere with the jigsaw. You’ll be so proud you did when it is finished. My husband just picked me some daffodils from the garden. Such cheerful flowers. Hugs, Elaine
I am reading Has Anyone Seen Charlotte Salter? By Nicci French. This is a new author for me and so far it’s quite good.
I enjoyed seeing the girls today!
It’s very windy and gray here today in North Jersey. I’ve hardly left the couch.
I’m reading “Lucy by the Sea” by Elizabeth Strout. My first book of hers. I would’ve avoided it except for it being my book club’s choice this month. I’m so glad I did. I now plan to read the rest of Elizabeth Strout’s books.
I couldn’t be more boring. The only things I’m reading are about how to deal with identity theft since my info appeared on the dark web per my watchdog agency. All because of that stupid AT&T breach with some 70(?) million of us affected (at least, now, my husband and I know the source, of what went to the dark web exactly from whom [as I’d said, we’ve been notified before of the POSSIBILITY of stolen info from other companies who had data leaks, but never {for us} to this degree]). It’s a lot of phone calls, a lot of stuff to do, a lot to have to figure out; very complicated. Hours and hours of research and action (because we’re novices and haven’t known what to do; besides which, my husband is gone untold hours on his job and never even home enough to where the two of us can sit down and do the work). My stress level is ‘way too high and I’m having difficulty calming it down. It’s not like there’s not other problems of life, because there are; as would be the case with anybody, I don’t need one more problem. And this is a doozy.
Dark and rainy here in Southern Calif all afternoon on Saturday and this morning, Sunday. It really poured at 5am. I know I will feel better once the sun appears again.
Imogen really does have the sweetest face with those expressive green eyes of hers. The set of her mouth and nose is so ‘human’.
The Girls definitely looked like they could have been conspiring in your photo! I have just finished The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah and The Pearl Sister by Lucinda Riley. Both novels had an interesting sense of place and an easy going pace.
Yesterday, I went to my favourite theatre, The Royal Exchange in Manchester to see A Taste of Honey by Shelagh Delaney. It was excellent.
Last week my local village Amateur Dramatic Company did Jane Eyre by Willis Hall. Again, this was really well done. Over the years, a couple of members have been able to turn professional. I thought about you vocal coaching this play last year. Apologies if it isn’t the same one.
Happy Weekend
I’m reading Atul Gawande’s “Being Mortal.” Not new, not fiction. But very timely for our generation (and really, probably for anyone’s if you’re ready to deal with the hard stuff.) Have a good evening!
Hi, Claudia. I am so sorry you continue to get so much rain. We are still in a drought situation here. I so hope that we WILL have more rain this season.
Just finished Tom Lake, It had tinges of Marjorie Morningstar in my most humble opinion. Took place in Michigan and a fun premise to hear of her life as she tells it to her 3 daughters while they pick cherries on their family farm. Not sure what I am up for next.
Hope you are able to get some yard work done when the rain ceases. Tomorrow we are planting seeds. I did a few last year, and it was so successful that we are going to go for it once again! Take care.
I’m reading magazines and watching TV. I have always loved your dear Imogen! Stay safe, chin up.