It would have been fun to have posted this book with the one on banned books as, I've learned, blurbs about books started 'way back', too. :-) If you've ever wondered about who writes the blurbs on books (the uncredited ones), you fill find out in Blurb Your Enthusiasm: an A - Z of Literary Persuasion, by Louise Wilder. Learn about the earliest blurb, and how they've changed over the years (longer, in the past, and often with a spoiler, even to the point of telling the ending!). Learn about the language used, and which words are best, and the ones that are not so good. Learn about blurbs for books written by women (there is a difference) ... and much, much more. Love the author's sense of humor, er humour. :-)

Literary Miscellany: Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Literature, by Alex Palmer was a mostly enjoyable quick read one rainy afternoon. Title probably stretches things a bit ;-) but there were lots of fun things here ... like how books for children changed, who might be the worst villian (and who might be the first), that sort of thing.

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Tall Reader raised readers ... and now those readers are raising readers ... and those readers (10 and 12) are sharing books with Tall Reader ... who shares them with me! Book share at it's best! So, the book this time was The Wild Robot by Peter Brown. There's a storm, and a cargo ship sinks. Some of that cargo (robots) washes ashore on a remote island, but most of it is damaged on the rocks. One robot, however, survives. This is an AI robot and can learn once she is activated. This is how she survives and adapts, and even makes friends. LOVED this book! And the short chapters made it easy to read far into the night. :-)

I picked up The Book of Rules, by Gail Noble-Sanderson, because the author lives here in Washington State. It takes place in Wales, in 1946, in a small town named Mumbles (love that name). The local vicar has died, Drew finds the body when she comes to clean. This, of course, opens up all kinds of secrets ... there's a room in the attic (with an unusual means of access) with old radio equipment. And letters with signatures that don't look quite right, and then there's the train ... in fact that's where the title is from, it has to do with railroads, and, this is the first in the author's Drew Davies Railway Mystery series.

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There seems to be a trend these days to write stories with 'women of a certain age' (or past that, in some cases) as the main character(s). That's true for The Marlow Murder Club, by Robert Thorogood (who created the BBC series Death in Paradise). Judith is 77, is happy in her old mansion, drinks whiskey, and creates crosswords for national newspapers. When out swimming one evening, she hears a gunshot. The police thinks it's suicide, but Judith thinks otherwise. This is the start of the Marlow Murder club ... an interesting group of three who end up investigating when the police won't. Soon there is another body. I like how the author uses the different talents/skills of each woman for the search for the killer.

I had to jump from book three to book five in the Miss Fortune Mystery series, book four is 'unavailable at this time' ... so ... what I can glean from reading Gator Bait is that there has been a fire (Fortune now has a housemate ... one that can cook), that someone obnoxious has decided to run for mayor, and Fortune and Carter have planned their first date. Author Jana Deleon takes the reader on another crazy romp with Swamp Team 3 (that must have been decided on in book four, too). A call from Carter, reporting shots fired and a sinking boat results in an amazing rescue ... what they will learn from the investigation becomes a case involving the ATF, a missing man from some years back, and more.

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 Murder by the Book: Mysteries for Bibliophiles, edited by Martin Edwards, is one of those nice books from British Library Crime Classics. As the title implies, every story involves books, authors, or the book industry in some way. There are authors you'll recognize, some you might not, and one surprise (at least for me) ... A.A. Milne! I had no idea he wrote detective stories! There are some good twists to tales here! One was very easy to figure out, and you might wonder why it the author did this (it will seem very obvious), but be sure to keep in the mind of when the story was written.

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There are several laugh out loud moments in Swamp Sniper, the third in the Miss Fortune Mystery series by Jana Deleon. The race for mayor is on: Ida May (local) and Ted Williams (a Yankee) have both made speeches (it's early in the race), but then Ted is murdered ... with poison found in Ida May's shed ... the pressure is on Deputy LaBlanc to arrest her and consider the case solved. Fortune and Gertie know Ida May is no murderer and take it upon themselves to investigate. Along the way they break into a house and actually find some decent evidence (which cannot be used) only to be followed by some mysterious (newcomers) men. This will happen more than once, just who are they, and why are they interested in Ted's death? Now, the women break in by picking locks, then relocking doors and so on, the men, they just break a window, often setting off alarms. Then there's the escape (under gun fire) in a leaking boat. Not to mention a foot caught in a toilet ... just a hoot of a read!

Christopher is studying for exams when he is whisked away from school by his grandfather, Lord Edgington, who has received a letter warning of a pending murder. The author of said letter the is elderly, infirm (and rich) Hugo Templeton-Swift. Present at the manor are Hugo, his much younger wife, his three estranged children, and an unusual group of servants. (And don't discount the doctor). Hugo is indeed murdered, but figuring out who will take some serious sleuthing. The Curious Case of the Templeton-Swifts is the sixth Lord Edgington Investigates book by Benedict Brown.

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As if the team of Lady Hardcastle and her "maid" Flo aren't amusing enough, this time there's a twin! Flo has a sister ... a twin sister ... an identical twin sister! Imagine the possibilities here! This time, in An Act of Foul Play, a murder takes place (of course), on stage. So many folks with motive, too. A, er, less than efficient officer has been assigned the case so Inspector Sunderland asks Lady Hardcastle and Flo to sort of keep an eye on things. They are happy to help out, of course. And then there's the theft of wine (and other spirits) from a nearby pub. Great characters! This is the tenth of the Lady Hardcastle Mystery books by T E Kinsey.

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Here's an interesting and unique history book that I'd like to think Mom would have used in her classes: A Short History of the World in 50 Animals, by Dr. Jacob F. Field. From animals that are extinct (and some that will be soon), to large and small (including fleas) this is all about the effect they had on our world. Included are how and when some became domesticated, ones used in research and so on. One of those books you can read during commercials. :-)

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Once again Aunt Bessie and the Cold Case gang are hard at work. This time it's a thirty year old murder. A man was stabbed in a pub. He was there with a few friends (they were the only ones there) and was stabbed while sitting at the bar waiting for his next drink. No one has admitted to anything, even though they've been re-interviewed several times over the years. Follow along as they re-create the death scene, track the movements of these friends over the years ... and have a lovely dinner together .... discussing serial killers! The Howard File: an Aunt Bessie Cold Case Mystery was another great entry in this series by Diana Xarissa.

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I have come to the conclusion that Kiwi likes dense, detailed books! Proof of that is Pipe Dreams: the Urgent Global Quest to Transform the Toilet, by Chelsea Wald. There are a lot of humans on this planet and many (and I do mean many) do not live where there are adequate, or even any, means to dispose of our waste. What is the answer? How can it be managed? Lots of ideas here, along with some witty writing, you'll have a lot to think about!

I enjoy movies, I enjoy trivia, I've enjoyed reading the Mental Floss magazine, so this book, The Curious Movie Buff: a Miscellany of Fantastic Films from the Past Fifty Years, by Jennifer M. Wood and the team at Mental Floss, was an easy pick for me. I'll admit to skimming some of the chapters (horror movies, for one) but overall, this was a good read. Lots of fun facts here, and behind the scenes information, too ... comments on why a film became a cult classic, what makes for a block buster, what movies were turned down and then went on to be a smash at the box office and so on. If you like movies, you should enjoy this book.

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