Review: Lilith

Lilith by Eric Rickstad
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Eric Rickstad missed the boat with this book. Elisabeth Ross, the main character, acts as a man may have acted in this totally illogical plot. Her solution to political inaction on gun control is the solution of a male mindset, not the creation of a new female paradigm that I had desired. I was very disappointed. Rickstad tries hard to think like a woman but doesn't seem to realize that we don't want to act within the same norms that the world has dictated forever. We don't need to be men in order to be respected as equals. We can create new and world-changing standards for tackling problems and for living our lives that are feminine and successful—and success is what we decide to define it. To watch Ross simply act violently without much thought (except justified grievance) was sad to read.

Rickstad has written two of my favorite novels: The Silent Girls and Reap. By far, Reap is the best. Both are set in the Northeast Kingdom of Vermont, where I live. Reap perfectly captures the isolation and poverty of the area. It is lyrical. These two books are another reason why Lilith is disappointing to me. Rickstad probably cannot forever set his books in the Kingdom and have them relevant to other readers in the country (which may be what a publisher thinks but is not true). However, he has lost his voice in Lilith and I barely recognized his writing.

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Review: Drowning

Drowning by T.J. Newman
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

From the book's publicity:

Six minutes after takeoff, Flight 1421 crashes into the Pacific Ocean. During the evacuation, an engine explodes and the plane is flooded. Those still alive are forced to close the doors—but it’s too late. The plane sinks to the bottom with twelve passengers trapped inside.

More than two hundred feet below the surface, engineer Will Kent and his eleven-year-old daughter Shannon are waist-deep in water and fighting for their lives.

Their only chance at survival is an elite rescue team on the surface led by professional diver Chris Kent—Shannon’s mother and Will’s soon-to-be ex-wife—who must work together with Will to find a way to save their daughter and rescue the passengers from the sealed airplane, which is now teetering on the edge of an undersea cliff.

There’s not much time.

There’s even less air.

Have you ever seen The Poseidon Adventure (1972)? If you have, there is no need for you to read this book. The same characters are here, updated, and the same plot unfolds deep in the ocean. The dialogue is just as predictable (even derivative) and the ending is the same. 

I was so disappointed in this book. The reviews and promotions are outrageously good, so I quickly grabbed a Kindle copy for my "summer read." That read took less than one day. Now I need a new summer read. 

I never fell in love with the characters because they were not fully developed. But the writing disappointed me the most. I like complicated prose that makes me pause and re-read and appreciate the beauty of a phrase. None of that was here. The book is a straightforward narrative that requires no thought by the reader—which is why it is such a fast read. The repetition and cliches also accelerated my reading. I didn't need to finish the novel because I knew how it ended. I did finish it, though, because I was hoping against hope that something original would happen.

I will give Ms. Newman credit for her research, though. It must have required months of study to learn the physics of the ocean, aircraft, and ships. 

I am absolutely sure this book will become a movie. Ms. Newman's first book, Falling, will be. So bide your time for the movie when it streams. Perhaps they will title it Poseidon 2024.

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Review: Spare

Spare by Prince Harry
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

If your birth family is or was dysfunctional, whether your life was one of privilege like the prince's or not, you will immediately identify and recognize the truth of this memoir. The book is honest emotion about a toxic family: there is tragedy, happiness, confusion . . . all the things that we know from our pasts. Prince Harry becomes a person here, while his brother and father become stereotypical British royals who may not know why they behave as they do, but damn it, they're gonna do it.

I recognized the toxicity of the Murdoch media machine. We have seen it in action here in the US with Trump's lies somehow becoming truth. Why is it surprising that his media business in the UK is any different? Probably the US Murdoch outlets copied the UK outlets because of the profitability of the actions and words of the reporters.

The story of Harry and Meghan's romance and family is wonderful, even though they are beset with unimaginable stress because of the media. Meghan has found strategies (with her career and in her life choices) to withstand those stresses and thrive. I doubt I would have survived. I wish them all well. Prince Harry is right: racism is racism. His family in the UK seems wedded to denials of that. They have to find their own way through that, if possible. I doubt that anything Harry and Meghan say will transform that family's defense into true apologies and amends.

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Review: The Man Who Died Twice

The Man Who Died Twice by Richard Osman
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Elizabeth's favors that she obtained from colleagues in the first Thursday Murder Club mystery are being traded for favors in return in this second book of the series. Steven, her husband, is sinking further into dementia. Joyce is as buoyant as ever and is developing new interests and activities. Bogdan is as hot as ever and more valuable than ever to helping the club solve several more murders. Donna succumbs to depression. Ron advances in importance as a character. David and Patrice continue their relationship. The characters are more fully developed in this book. One new character, Poppy, shares the name (and sweet personality) of my new cat! MI5 and MI6 are also involved in the escapades this time around.

I think that the character's thoughts and discussions of mortality, relationships, families and friendship make this series important to me. They remind me of the things I need to be reminded of. The mysteries are, for me, secondary to the relationships of the main characters. The new characters, why and how they exist in the lives of the main characters, why they left those lives and then returned, give us more insight to the residents of the retirement living complex. They enrich the commentary and back story of each person and are important for motivation.

“You must die before your children, of course, because you have taught them to live without you. But not your dog. You teach your dog only to live with you.”

I think of this so often because of Lucy, my beloved Lab. Too often, probably. It was jarring to have my fears clarified for me.

"What was it about him? The sense of extreme danger and absolute safety in the same man?"

This is precisely what attracted me to my late husband.

"People love to sleep, and yet they are so frightened of death."

Is the author inside my head? How often have I thought this of death? It is oddly comforting.

I only have one book more in the series, #3, The Bullet That Missed, until #4 is released in September.

Mr. Osman, please write faster.

Oh, and thank you for reminding me:

"If you don’t love yourself, who’s going to love you?"

My notes from this book.

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Review: Unidentified

Unidentified by Douglas E. Richards
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This was a light, fun book to read when I couldn't get out of the house because of the weather. It was derivative and often cliche, but still fun. UFOs and aliens are real and have been with us for a very long time and Jason Ramsey, a former non-believer, learns all about the alien activity and conspiracies on earth. He, and his gorgeous love, Tessa, also manage to save the earth…if only for this millenia. 

Once again, I could see this being made into a movie (it will require lots of CGI, though) because it is a love story, an alien story, an action novel. The book invokes Dr. Who, Ender's Game, and Star Trek but only Star Trek is mentioned by name. I'm sure there were other inspirations embedded in the book that I didn't recognize.

The plot relies, perhaps too heavily, on the same self-analysis of humans that existed in Star Trek and other novels throughout time: that humans are deeply flawed and violent but also passionate, loyal and loving. This novel takes that hypothesis to the extreme so that these are the qualities that save the planet and humankind when alien rational thought and AI could not.

Even though I was not impressed with the quality of writing or the narrative, I had to find out what happened in the end. Maybe you will want to find out, also.

My notes and highlights for this book

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Review: The Thursday Murder Club

The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The characters in The Thursday Murder Club are so real to me that whenever I took a break from reading I wondered what they were doing when I wasn't looking. Unfortunately, they are all as elderly as I am, so I expect that sooner or later that at least one of them will pass on. But they are vigorous now and we celebrate that.

There were an unfortunate number of murders and suicides in the book. Not even Midsomer County can boast as many! But by the end of the book, they were all resolved. Osman supplied so many details that I actually kept careful track of them in my Kindle. And like a Russian novel, I also had to keep close track of the characters. There are many and at least twice I searched the text to remember where the character first popped up. I tried to use the clues to solve one murder myself, but I was wrong. It sure was fun trying, though!

The setting is the present, in the UK, in a modern independent-living retirement community. It seemed so pleasant that I may have considered leaving my woods and fields for a community as nice here, in Vermont. The victims of the homicides fortunately did not reside in this community. But the suicides did. That gives one pause.

This is the first in the Thursday Murder Club series. I have tried my best to stay away from series but it has been a fruitless battle. This is a high quality series. At this time, there are two others in the series and a fourth coming in September. May Osman write many more! You must read this book.

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Review: Broadsides from the Other Orders: A Book of Bugs

Broadsides from the Other Orders: A Book of Bugs by Sue Hubbell
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This classic book about bugs is so much fun! I have to admit that if I had read it ten years ago, it would have been over my head. Now I understand taxonomy and understand how Hubbell organized the book. She took each major order of insects: flies, beetles, true bugs, etc., and detailed the life story of a species or genus. She chose those bugs with which she was familiar in her life.

The chapter on lady beetles detailed how they are captured in the wild for dispersal to gardeners who insist on buying them for their aphid eating abilities, even though there are other insects, like lacewings, which would do a better job. The lady beetle harvest is cutthroat: harvesters steal territories, and lady beetles are mistreated. All for the almighty dollar.

Hubbell is known for her cave cricket "hobby." It was more than a hobby and has inspired many people to raise them. I have seriously considered raising them, but it is more involved than raising lepidoptera, so I have decided against it. 

My favorite chapter, I suppose, was about the spongy moth, Lymantria dispar. The moth that is infamous for defoliating the northeast at various times (and sections of Europe, also) was deliberately imported to Massachusetts for the silk trade. It was known even then, in the 1800s, how devastating the consequences could be if the moth escaped. And it did. The social history after its inevitable escape is fascinating. 

The book is engaging and even humorous. I laughed out loud when Hubbell wrote about a geological age that ended five million years ago "next Tuesday." I wish I had met the lady. Sadly, she passed away in 2018 at the age of 83. As soon as I can, I am going to read her personal and famous memoir, A Country Year: Living the Questions. I will, however, read the Kindle edition to enjoy her language and hear her true voice.

Jody's photo of Lymantria dispar

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Review: How Chefs Holiday

How Chefs Holiday by Dana Cowin
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This is not a book. It's a wannabe NPR radio program. It is interesting if you follow Food Network chefs. The Carla Hall and Marcus Samuelsson segments were the most enjoyable for me. I'm too much of a New Englander to try new holiday recipes, but they are available as a PDF file with the audiobook.

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Review: ALOHA Where You Like Go? Driving to Satisfaction in a Honolulu Taxi

ALOHA Where You Like Go? Driving to Satisfaction in a Honolulu Taxi by Cloudia Charters
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This is an unusual novel that feels like a memoir. It chronicles a young woman's move from Pennsylvania to Hawaii and her growth from anger and despair to hope and love for others. June meets many characters as she transitions from an exotic dancer to a taxi driver to a social worker. I assumed her life bottomed out when she was a dancer and experimented with meth, but I was wrong. When she was a taxi driver, she experienced hopelessness and anger that threatened to consume her life. But she met another woman, older than herself, and wise beyond description. The woman, Aunty Nan, gently taught June how to uncover her true self and be re-born. 

The novel is given to travelers on the plane to Hawaii to acquaint them with the real life on the islands, not the life that tourists only see in hotels and beaches. It is filled with the language of the islands and even has a glossary and introduction to explain the language. The language ended being an important part of the book because it added reality and gave it flavor and depth.

I finished this book during a week of chaos and doubt in my own life. It genuinely helped me re-center and calm down and to put my trust in my choices. I envy Ms. Charters' sense of self and her outlook on life. It's a lovely book that I highly recommend.

Ms Charters blogs at Comfort Spiral. 

She is also on Twitter as @iCloudia_.

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Review: Arthur & George

Arthur & George by Julian Barnes
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This novel enthralled me (and has begun another compulsion to learn as much about Arthur Conan Doyle as possible). The writing is clear and riveting. The history cited is accurate as far as I can determine in my quick Google and Wikipedia searches for information and images. The setting is the Edwardian era, one of the fascinating eras in Great Britain. Barnes kept me thoroughly engaged in the lives of Doyle and Edalji. He carefully scripted the irony of Doyle's case in defense of Edalji, and showed how Edalji was more logical and methodical than Doyle (and Holmes?). But Doyle is passionate and honest. I admire both men greatly.

I began reading this book because we began to watch Arthur and George on Amazon Prime. As soon as I learned that this was a well-reviewed novel, I borrowed it from the online Vermont library, stopped watching the videos, and read the book. I made an excellent decision and I look forward now to seeing the videos.

I see my folly of giving five stars to just about any book I read from beginning to end. I had thought that if I finish a book and not put it away in boredom, then it was worth five stars. By that standard, I would give this book ten stars. Or more.

A curious note: Doyle may have been the person who introduced skiing to Vermont when he brought skis when he visited Rudyard Kipling at Kipling's Vermont home.

I read this book a few years back, so why publish my review now?

This book.

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Review: The Real Sherlock

The Real Sherlock by Lucinda Hawksley
My rating: 1 of 5 stars

Another disappointment! Doyle is such a fascinating figure with connections to other famous figures of his time, but this book was like the Cliff Notes of his life. It was a very sparse "this happened then that happened and then the other happened" type of book. Thank goodness it was free. 

Besides the lack of depth of information, the background music must have been composed by the same composer of the Great British Baking Show. That interfered with my listening because once I actually thought the narrator was going to bust out with recipes (OK, it was early in the morning so I was a bit slow). 

There were several segments where the narrator visited the keepsakes of Doyle's life, such as his pen, the nightshirt in which he died, and other things. Museum curators describe the articles but an audiobook is not where you have segments like this. They belong in a video. 

Finally, the author continued to ask actors who had played Holmes or Watson their ideas of Doyle. They mostly talked of themselves. Give me some facts and new information; some new insights!

There was one new piece of information: Doyle had all of his teeth pulled at an early age to avoid toothache and lived with dentures the rest of his life. That was it for me for the entire two plus hours of this Audible Original.

Move on and read Arthur & George by Julian Barnes, a brilliant book and wonderful series that I saw on PBS.

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Review: Never Home Alone

Never Home Alone: by Rob Dunn
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

What an awesome book! It is about the life that is either invisible or nearly invisible in our homes. Most of the unseen creatures in our homes and on our bodies are benign. Some are dangerous, but not many.

Breadmakers have the most unusual microbiomes on their hands than other humans on earth (I would like to think of myself as one of those people). I don't bake with sourdough because it requires too much care and fuss (so I'm probably not one of those people). But I may try again because of this book. Even with the same recipe and the same ingredients for a starter, each baker's starter will flavor their bread differently because of yeasts, bacteria, and other items on the baker and in their environment. That is just amazing.

Cats and dogs increase, in a positive way, the biodiversity in our homes. Spiders are so important to controlling flies that may carry diseases that many areas on earth have spider homes that are transported from place to place to control the flies. Spiders only eat arthropods, not people. Dunn talked about the MRSA / spider bite problem that doctors have, that I have blogged about before.

The book clarified a lot of science for me. It can be quite technical but Dunn helps the reader through tough sections with repetition (which helps retention). I will be looking into more of Dunn's fascinating books soon.

In the meantime, he reacquainted me with Sue Hubbell, author of Broadsides from the Other Orders. I own the audiobook but had forgotten it. Now, it's next in my queue. I want to find drain flies in my house (he speaks of them frequently and we all have them). I want to raise cave crickets as an Internet friend on Martha's Vineyard has done; as Sue Hubbell has done. And I want to overcome farsighted ecologist syndrome, which means that we often don't see what is right in front of us (like drain flies). This book has inspired me in so many ways.

"The species in our homes is a measure of our lives."

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Review: Sweet Land of Liberty: A History of America in 11 Pies

Sweet Land of Liberty: A History of America in 11 Pies by Rossi Anastopoulo
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Despite the casualness of the writing, I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It was hard-hitting, especially in the chapters about sweet potato pie, pumpkin pie, and bean pie. It was often funny, as in the Jell-O pie chapter. Apple pie provided the overarching theme for this book that tells each pie's history based on the time in society in which it was created. As a white Anglo-Saxon protestant born and raised in New England and raised with families descended from the Mayflower, I revere apple pie; not only for it's culinary artistry but because of the depth of its hold on our lives and traditions.

My pumpkin and apple pies (apple way in the back)
My own crust

That reverence is now less than it was, but I doubt I will ever shake it completely. Even though I basically knew all there was about apple pie and probably knew that it did not deserve such reverence, I ignored the knowledge until it bludgeoned me over the head in this book. And pumpkin pie? My personal favorite? I will never be able to appreciate it as much as I have in the past. I will bake the original sweet potato pie recipe of the enslaved people. I may even bake a bean pie. I have made chiffon pies and sugar pies already but probably will not ever do so again.

My blueberry pie with berries we picked.
Frozen store crust.

Each year in school we make no-bake pies (Jell-O pies) for Pi Day. I thank the white patriarchy for creating these pies (but not for much else). They make Pi Day more fun and much easier and give the kids a chance to "bake" when they have never cooked before. So yes, I am contributing to mass consumerism in this country, just like the patriarchs from the fifties wanted me to do.

I had two disappointments when reading: Anastopoulo never mentioned Pi Day or gave us the low-down on Johnny Appleseed. 

Strawberry Chiffon Pie
KAF recipe
Every inch of it from scratch

This is an important look at the social history of pie in our culture in the US. If you bake, read it.

Chocolate Cream Pie
KAF recipe
Every inch from scratch on a snow day

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Review: Super Fly: The Unexpected Lives of the World's Most Successful Insects

Super Fly: The Unexpected Lives of the World's Most Successful Insects by Jonathan Balcombe
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I think that if you read the 436 highlights and ten notes that I made while reading this book, you will have a pretty good idea of what is inside. The first third of the book was disappointing to me because it read like a term paper. But once the author got into the science, cultural history of our human life with flies, and the life histories of specific species my interest rose exponentially. 

As I photograph more flies, I learn that there are more species than I ever imagined. Reading about the genera that I have shot helps me understand where I live better than knowing the bees that live here. Sadly, I'm also learning that my observations on iNaturalist may never be research grade because identifying an individual fly down to species is difficult, sometimes impossible, with so many species.

I enjoyed a romp with anthropomorphization and with the words "pest" and its companion, "weed." Even my recent interest in phobias was whetted: which phobias are innate? Spider and snake phobias are, apparently. This is the second book in which I have read this claim. Humans are not born afraid of insects. We are taught to fear them. 

For those who fear them and cannot recover, consider this quotation before you kill them:

Gail Anderson shared with me a blunt perspective uniquely fitting a forensic entomologist: “Without carrion insects we’d be dead. The Earth would have used up its nutrients a long time ago. We are all bags of nutrients, and flies recycle those nutrients back to the Earth. This not only stops disease from lingering, but it provides plants with their food. Life continues.”

I'm now looking forward to photographing and documenting as many fly genera as possible on my land. And not just the beautiful long-legged flies, deer flies, dance flies, tiger flies, flower flies, and gruesome tachinid flies. I'll try to document any that I see. Thank you, Mr. Balcombe.

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A long-legged fly from the past season

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Review: Rivals 2! More Frenemies Who Changed the World

Rivals 2! More Frenemies Who Changed the World by Scott McCormick
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

This sequel to Rivals was disappointing and even, at times, offensive. The sound levels were poor so that at times I could not hear what was being said. The skits performed were too long and too unfunny. There are four episodes in this book:

• Edison and Tesla
• Chanel and Schiaparelli
• Something about chariot racing teams in ancient Rome
• Ali and Frazier

All would have been dynamite stories. Except they weren't. I'm glad this production was free to me as an Audible subscriber.

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Review: Upgrade

Upgrade by Blake Crouch
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Vermont Public Radio carries Science Friday and Science Friday has a book club. They meet virtually and discuss topics relevant to the book being read. I usually miss all of the meetings. I debated reading this book: it simply didn't ping me. But I did, and I'm glad. It was like reading a book while watching the movie in your head. Sure enough, Steven Spielberg is making a movie on this book. 

The hero, Logan Ramsay, and his sister were genetically upgraded to become super intelligent and strong. But who did that to them? Why? And why them? There is real science, lots of violence, and huge explosions: all the ingredients of a good movie that should be lots of fun to watch. It's a fairly fast read that kept me up too late after I passed the halfway point. I have made my Kindle notes public.

Articles on the SciFri Book Club site about Upgrade:

• A Future Where Gene Editing Is A Federal Crime
• Read Blake Crouch’s ‘Upgrade’ With The SciFri Book Club
• Gene Editing Is Easy—And A Crime—In This New Techno Thriller Book

I have read three other SciFri Book Club books, only one of which I have reviewed. I have at least one more to read very soon. 

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Review: Fox and I: An Uncommon Friendship

Fox and I: An Uncommon Friendship by Catherine Raven
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This is not a feel good, nature-as-meditation book you may expect from nature books. I think it is about anthropomorphizing. Raven comes from an unrevealed traumatic past. She hides within nature and away from people. She reads Antoine Saint-Exupéry, Shelley, and Melville, as guides for her life. But she also uses them to rationalize her life. 

Throughout the book, I wished she had chosen female role models (Shelley was female, but her monster was male). I wished she did not feel a need to defend and hide who she truly was. For too long, males have dictated how we are supposed to interact with the world. We shall not anthropomorphize. And we shall not interfere with wildlife even if it saves an animal from suffering. Raven, like me, disagrees with both of those tenets. But I think by the end of the book she shows signs of growing into knowing that her ideas are as worthy as any other person's.

It is a wonderful book and worthy of the awards that it has won. The forest fire, her conflicts with teaching, and insights into nature are valuable. The history of fox hunting is brutal but worthwhile because I learned the British deliberately whitewashed this non-sporting event.

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Review: Rivals! Frenemies Who Changed the World

Rivals! Frenemies Who Changed the World by Scott McCormick
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This was a fun listen and I learned a lot of little details of history that I never knew. My favorite section was about Cope and Marsh, the nineteenth century paleontologists that started the brontosaurus debacle.  I have to say, though, that while McCormick is a great reader, the sound effects were not funny. They were distracting. But my sense of humor is pretty much nonexistent. This series of two audiobooks is free with Audible membership. I have already downloaded the second volume. 

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Review: The Road Taken: A Memoir

The Road Taken: A Memoir by Patrick Leahy
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Reading this memoir was like reviewing my own life. I re-experienced both of the Kennedy assassinations, the Nixon resignation, 9/11, the reopening of Cuba, the day that marriage was declared equal for all, Vietnam, the joy and pride on Obama's election night…the list is long. There were no surprising revelations. In essence, this book is about ethics and being honest, sincere, and honorable. 

I most enjoyed the sections about his personal life: his childhood, marriage, and family life. His law career as a prosecutor was very interesting. His conversations with Vermonters and his tales from different parts of the state were very familiar. He always established and maintained open communications between legal and political opponents and himself. 

The book ends on a scary note, however: the insurrection of January 6, 2021. Leahy is clear about what happened before and after that day. The nation is having serious problems, but somehow Leahy, by just being himself, reassured me that we can make it through to the other side with a secure democracy — if we are vigilant and truthful with ourselves and value our country. There are other Leahys out there; he is not the only honorable person in Washington or the country, so it is possible that we will be okay in the end. 

We are proud of Senator Leahy in Vermont. I have never met the senator, but his soft-spoken voice is as familiar as my own father's. It is a shame that he is retiring now when the country needs his high character and calm demeanor. 

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Review: Egg Drop

Egg Drop by Mini Grey
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

We read this book in the K class for our aeronautics unit. It was fun, and sparked a lot of conversation and imaginations. But not even I was prepared for the sad ending. Yes, a sad ending in a picture book. But after that, we talked about how air can help you come down slowly if you can capture it in some manner. The class remembered the parachutist that they saw jumping out of a hot air balloon basket in their last section of the unit and engineered parachutes of their own. It was a great time!

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