When Canadian Reader comes for a visit we swap a stack of books! First up this time is a mystery titled Aunt Bessie Assumes: an Isle of Man Cozy Mystery, by Diana Xarissa. It's a cold, wet, miserable morning when Aunt Bessie heads out for her daily walk so it came as rather a surprise when she trips over a body. This is the first in a series and I thought it quite good: quirky characters, and a nice small town feel. I also enjoyed that Aunt Bessie is a 'woman of a certain age' (or beyond). ;-) Sadly our visit is nearly over (they always go too fast) but at least we both have a stack of books to read ... and will start new piles to share at our next visit.

Author and musician Tim Rayborn thinks there is a better way to teach about the history of classical music ... add bits of mystery, mayhem, scandal, and wandering body parts. Beethoven's Skull: Dark, Strange, and Fascinating Tales from the World of Classical Music and Beyond, is all that and more. One reviewer, Tony Morris, put it this way "darkly humorous". :-)

Back to the old sf masters again: 50 Short Science Fiction Tales, edited, and with introductions, by Isaac Asimov and Groff Conklin. Again, this was one I read years ago, but enjoyed it just as much this time as I remember doing back then. Lots of familiar names, plus ones that weren't. Some stories feel dated, others don't and I think that can be the magic of science fiction. :-) Query: If a time traveler is plagiarizing your work, how to you prove it? (see Who's Cribbing, by Jack Lewis).

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I am a fan of HGTV and have been enjoying Fixer Upper for some time now. I knew that Chip and Joanna Gaines went to Baylor because a friend of mine shared the alumni magazine where they were featured with me, but it was a short article, so when I found The Magnolia Story by Chip and Joanna Gains, with Mark Dagostino, I snatched it right up! Here is how they met, and what they were doing before Fixer Upper. I like that they are just what we see ... a happy couple, a happy family, who work hard for their success.

Bellevue. Funny farm or nearby city? Well, both, of course, but for this blog, it's the hospital in New York. Bellevue: Three Centuries of Medicine and Mayhem at America's Most Storied Hospital, by David Oshinsky, is the history of an amazing institution. It's seen plagues, epidemics, disasters ... been on the cutting edge of medicine as well as behind the times ... it turns no one away (filling the hallways with beds, if necessary). The idea for the ambulance started here (and when the car took over, the horses were retired to a nice pasture, but the drivers to a low paying job). With so many people dying from Yellow Fever many bodies were going unclaimed, but the body could only be kept for so long, so photographs were taken ... these eventually led to mug shots. It boasts the first professional school of nursing, and the use of surgical gloves ... just so much! The book gets a bit intense, given the subject matter, but it's a good read.

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I was pleased to find a boy, a dog and a frog by mercer mayer when looking for something else ... I loved this book when it first came out ... and all the sequels that followed. They are wordless books, but with Mayer's marvelous drawings, they are not necessary! I still love this book!

Here's another title from long ago: And I Must Hurry for the Sea is Coming In, by George Mendoza and color photos by DeWayne Dalrymple. A young boy dreams of sailing a ship on the ocean, but the adventure is not what it seems. I remember wonderful images of great ships, and then the boy playing with his toy boat in a puddle on a street (I think). (It's been ages since I've seen this book, so my memories could be fuzzy). Wonderful!

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When I was a kid the neighbors had a ping-pong table covered with an equally large sheet of plywood and that was covered with an amazing train layout! Villages and crossing gates, cows and school children, it was a wonder to behold! I especially loved the bridge where one train could cross over the one beneath. Flash forward to a few weeks ago when I stumbled on Practical Garden Railways, by Peter Jones and those memories all came flooding back. Here are some amazing model train layouts, but outside! There are chapters on weather, plants, topography, design, what to do about pets (and pests) ... just about everything you need to design your own garden rail line. The author has a nice style that kept even this non-train hobbyist reading.

Dog ownership, it seems, includes a lot of us of, well, a certain age! The 50+ Dog Owner: Complete Dog Parenting for Baby Boomers and Beyond, by Mary Jane Chechen includes all the information you'd expect plus what to consider as an older member of society. Things such as where you live, or your activity level, or budget. I also liked suggestions for services such as dog walkers, pet sitters, and so forth. I'd partner this with Paws to Consider (see the April 15, 2014 post).

Here is a book that is both tour book and history book: the Bowery Boys Adventures in Old New York: an Unconventional Exploration of Manhattan’s Historic Neighborhoods, Secret Spots and Colorful Characters by Greg Young and Tom Meyers. As neither a tourist or a New Yorker I'm not sure how it ended up in my stack of books, but I'm glad it did! Who settled the area, and when, what they built, what has lasted (and what hasn't). The good guys (and gals), the crooks, battles, fires, strikes... this is an amazing collection of historical tidbits. The authors have a great sense of humor, too, don't miss the footnotes! And it all started with a podcast. :-)

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The year is 1922 and Dandy Gilver (a member of the upper class) is bored. When she is offered the chance to 'look around' for some missing diamonds, it sounds like a bit of fun. Until the death of a young woman, that is. It's dismissed as an accident, but this is a mystery so we all know that's not true. ;-) How are the diamonds and the murder connected? Who in society is hiding something? A nice way to start to what, I've been told, is a good series: After the Armistice Ball, by Catriona McPherson is the introduction to Dandy Gilver, society sleuth.

April Henry is the author of a nice mystery series featuring Claire Montrose. Set in Portland, I enjoyed the descriptions of the area that were so familiar. :-) Ms. Montrose worked in the Oregon State License Plate Division approving or denying those vanity plates you see every so often. (Something happens in the first book, Circles of Confusion, which allows her to leave her job). It's been years since these books came out I was unable to find a copy of the first book, but I did find the second: Square in the Face, and recently reread it. Claire has promised to help a friend find her first born, a child that had been put up for adoption in the hopes she will be a match for a bone marrow transplant. Lots of interesting (but sad) twists. As with all the Claire Montrose mysteries, there are lots of vanity plates to decipher. :-) Third in the series is: Heart-Shaped Box.

In Small Plates: Short Fiction, Katherine Hall Page, author of The Faith Fairchild Mysteries has gathered together a collection of her shorter stories. Some feature Ms. Fairchild, some do not, but all were fun to read. Don't miss the one about the Christmas pudding!

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Mother Earth wakes her daughters (March, April, and May) so they can bring spring time to the world. Instead, they fight, and compete for her attention. (I'm sure this sounds familiar to those with kids, yes)? Will spring ever come? Spring's Sprung, by Lynn Plourde, illustrated by Greg Couch will give you the answer.

There have been gatherings where those of use at the table have made music on our glasses. And Benjamin Franklin figured out a way to spin several at a time with his "glass 'armonica" so one person could play a tune. In Rainy-day Music, by Judith Jensen Hyde and Jason Abbott, a father shows his son how to make music this way one rainy day. A personal observation here ... not just any glass will work, some have sides that are too thick (or maybe that's just me)! The ones in the book look a little thick to make music. Maybe. ;-)

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I must be on a nostalgia kick again because I've been looking up books from my past. Mostly picture books until now, but then I remembered how much I enjoyed The Boxcar Children, by Gertrude Chandler Warner. :-) Oddly enough, this was the only one of her books I read ... given my age, it probably had something to do with the lack of horses! Still a good read, even after all these years. And, it fits with a repeat trail I find myself on ... trains. ;-)

More from times past here: Pugetopolis: a Mossback Takes on Growth Addicts, Weather Wimps, and the Myth of Seattle Nice, by Knute Berger. I found the essays good then, and they still are now, if a bit dated. Some of the same issues are still with us: cruise ships are even bigger, public transportation (light rail) is still a concern, and news/weather is still made to sound worse than it is. And, my favorite is still the one about a latte tax. :-)

This past weekend I finished a Masie Dobbs book by Jacqueline Winspear, and watched The King's Speech again. Actually, the first inspired the second as In This Grave Hour takes place right around the time of the film. (The title comes from one of the speeches made by the king). Once again London is facing a war: sandbags reappear, citizens are carrying gas masks again, and the common thought is "we know what's coming ... we've been through this before". A good mystery here (a most interesting connection between the bodies that are found) but an overall sense of sadness, too. Nice job on the part of the author, I thought.

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The pacific northwest is a beautiful region and Art Wolfe captures that in his amazing photography. For some of the best pictures of this area take a look at On Puget Sound by Art Wolfe (with Philip Kramer and text by William Dietrich).

This will date me, for sure, and probably some of you, too ... remember Paul Harvey? (!) I used to enjoy his radio broadcast where he'd tell some interesting story and then tie it all up at the end with something often unexpected. The show and the book have the same name: Paul Harvey's the Rest of the Story, by Paul Aurandt (his actual last name). Lot's of fun stuff here! I like to cover up the last couple of paragraphs and see if I can figure out the ending before I read it.

Just what does a president do to have fun? To relax or unwind from the stress of the job? Find out in Presidential Diversions: Presidents at Play from George Washington to George W. Bush, by Paul F. Boller, Jr. Seems a lot of them played golf! Many enjoyed music, some even played an instrument or two. Many rode, many read. A most interesting read. :-)

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Float is a charming wordless book by Daniel Miyares. Follow a boy and his paper boat on an adventure on a rainy day. There are instructions for making the boat, too! Loved the yellow rain coat, and the dark clouds. The ending was pretty good, too! ;-)

The seasons arrive at different times across the country. There's a different look, too. In some places there are singing frogs, flowering cactus, insects, or flowers. Spring Across America, by Seymour Simon is full of wonderful pictures about coast to coast, across the plains and up mountains.

Maurice is excited about seeing spring for the first time. His mother tells him they must hibernate first, but he just can't sleep so he goes out looking for spring by himself. What does he find? And is it spring? The illustrations for Finding Spring, by Carin Berger, are a combination of paper and fabric that add a nice touch to Maurice's quest.

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Here's yet another variation on Sherlock Holmes: A Study in Scarlet Women, by Sherry Thomas. This recommendation came from County Reader, who said it was excellent, and it was! There were many nice tie-ins with the original, wonderful characters, and the promise of more to come! Lovely details, interesting settings, I am suggesting this to fans of both mysteries and Sherlock Holmes, it would also fit nicely with other books about strong women. :-)

For a quicker, easier read try Shakespeare's Secret, by Elise Broach. This is a tween read about a young girl with an unusual name (from a Shakespeare play) starting a new school. There is a mystery in the house she and her family have moved into, and an equally mysterious neighbor. The mystery is based on some of the newer findings as to just who was Shakespeare. Fun!

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Seattle Reader asked me if I would consider reading more science fiction and I said I had tried, but I just wasn't finding that the modern sf captured my attention. That, however, took me back to The Science Fiction Hall of Fame: Volume One, 1929 - 1964, edited by Robert Silverberg. I have been enjoying past favorites such as Nightfall (Isaac Asimov), Mars is Heaven (Ray Bradbury), Nine Billion Names of God (Arthur C. Clarke), Flowers for Algernon (Daniel Keyes) ... and the list goes on. :-)

Some how, looking for old sf favorites brought up this: The Dragon Done It, edited by Eric Flint and Mike Resnick ... fantasy mystery! A combination I could not pass up! As with many collections of short stories there were some I skipped after reading a few pages, but what a fun bunch of tales this was! Pay special attention to The Case of Four and Twenty Blackbirds, by Neil Gaiman, and Alimentary, My Dear Watson, by Lawrence Schimel.

Short mysteries of a more traditional nature may be found in The Regatta Mystery and Other Stories, by Agatha Christie. There's a reason why she's still so popular, she's good! I thoroughly enjoyed this collection of 'cozies'. With or without a cup of tea. :-)

More mysteries with a common theme now: Death By Horoscope, edited by Anne Perry. Whether the characters believed or scoffed at astrology, it affects every mystery here ... sometimes in unexpected ways. It was fun reading how familiar authors brought the signs of the zodiac into a story.

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The day starts out clear with just a few clouds. They get darker and the wind picks up. Then the rain starts. Sound familiar? Blue on Blue, by Dianne White with illustrations by Beth Krommers is a wonderful story about a stormy say. Perfect for this area!

Life imitates art in Puddle, by Hyewon Yum. A mother entertains her young son with a drawing when it is raining outside and they are stuck inside. She draws a rainy day picture about a walk, and, of course, a puddle. Later when they go outside ... well, go get the book to find out! :-)

Where is Spring? by Yang-Huan and H.Y. Huang & A. Yang is a poem and illustrations about how spring looks from a kite. Wonderful pictures and descriptions of the season from aloft.

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This came as a recommendation from Constant Reader: Whatcom Fish Tales: a Historical Look at the County's Seafood Industry, by Joshua Stilts. Fishing has been important to the area for a long, long time, and this is a nice history of just that. There are personal memories here, the author interviewed members of local fishing families, and, wonderful photographs from Gordy Tweit and collections in area archives.

When Keith Billington and his wife were working as nurses in the Canadian North he became interested in the story of the Lost Patrol .... mounties who had left for Dawson City in the Yukon in December of 1910 and never arrived. Sixty years later he, along with nine others, retraced that route. Unlike the Mounties, who left without ceremony, this was a media event and it is described in The Last Patrol: Following the Trail of the Royal Northwest Mounted Police's Legendary Lost Patrol. A journal was found with the bodies and entries from that offer a grim report as to what happened to the men of that lost patrol. As with House Calls By Dog Sled (March 14, 2017 post), Billington's writing can make you cold! ;-)

Death, destruction, explosions, fires, crashes ... the railway had a rough start! From a series called Horrible Histories comes Dangerous Days on the Victorian Railways, by Terry Deary. And don't forget theft, shoddy workmanship, lies and feuds ... ! Not a bad little history of a specific era. A heads up here, there are reports from a doctor as to various injuries which are vivid in the details!

Reading Hermit With Dog