Have you heard of space archaeology? I had not, until I came across Dr. Space Junk vs the Universe: Archaeology and the Future, by Alice Gorman. Raised on a large ranch in Australia, the author's father taught her how to look for evidence of Aboriginal settlements by looking down. He also taught her to look up, into the night sky and find various constellations and planets. She started out as the more traditional archaeologist, but kept her love of the stars and space until she had the light bulb moment that she could combine the two! There's lots of evidence of our exploration into space ... in orbit, on the moon, on and around other planets, heading far out into the universe ... There's evidence here on earth, too ... bits of satellites that have dropped out of orbit to rocket themed playgrounds. All in all a fascinating read!

Another loan from Tall Reader was Patriarchy Blues, poems by Rena Priest. She is the new Washington State Poet Laureate, and the first Native American to be so honored. I wasn't sure I was going to use her book as I found that, like my music, I like my poetry to be more .... traditional, as in it rhymes and has a definite structure. When I mentioned that to Canadian Reader, however, the suggestion was made that it was more like the poems from early, medieval times, when it would have been read out loud to a gathering of people. So, I read several of the poems to my only audience, my dog, but even so, they did sound better! At any rate, this is a nice collection of work, so give it a try. :-)

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Grace Bennett has moved to London to look for work, but it's 1939 and the city is preparing for war. She finds a job in a small bookstore off the beaten path, as the saying goes, and that will make all the difference. What starts as 'the bore war' ... air raids are false alarms, rationing hasn't really started yet ... in other words, nothing is happening except that life isn't quite what it was. And then comes the Blitz and everything changes. One afternoon, in a shelter, someone who recognizes Grace from the book store asks her to read her book out loud. Soon there is a crowd of listeners each time, who, when there is no air raid, seek her out at the book store for the next chapter! I cannot really do benefit here without saying too much, but The Last Bookshop in London, by Madeline Martin, is what I call a quiet gem of a book.

A word of caution here ... three of us have read this in one day. You've been warned!

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After reading a rather dark book (which will not make it into my blog) I needed something light so I opted for The Young Case, one of the Markham Sisters novellas by Diana Xarissa. It was just what I needed ... people like each other and it all ends well! :-) Janet is feeling a bit 'crowded'. Doveby House is pretty much full up: her sister and new hubby are home from their honeymoon and while the original plan was for them to stay across the street at his semi-attached town house, that can't happen because the other unit was burned down .. and that home owner (also their gardener and friend is staying at Doveby as well). There have been some break-ins lately, but nothing seems to have been taken, it gets personal when it is the Doveby Carriage house with the broken lock. Janet steps in to figure out the connection. These are delightful, short (quick to read) stories. I hope the author has more in the works as I now only have 'Z' left!

Tall Reader loaned me the seventeenth Maisie Dobbs novel: The Consequences of Fear, by Jacqueline Winspear. Like the ones before, it is a well written and captivating story that kept me up late at night. Don't miss the author's note at the end which explains the influence of her father on this book. It's 1941, London, and a young runner (fleet of foot young men, well, boys, who delivered messages, often times during bombings) thinks he has witnessed a murder. The police don't want to pursue the matter, so he goes to Maisie Dobbs for help. She encounters a reluctance on their part, too (think 'connections' and 'higher ups'). She is also part of a team that trains young men and women for undercover work in France, working with the resistance. How does this all fit together?

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I enjoy reading trivia books, and Canadian history books (well, some of them), so All 'Bout Canada: a Compendium of Canadiana by Elizabeth F. Hill with art by Alex Macaskill was a natural! Full of fun tidbits about inventions (the zipper!), words from so many different languages,(learn when to use 'eh'!), jokes, poems, as well as short biographies of men and women of Canada and it's history, this was an enjoyable read.

A fun (and somewhat silly) email conversation with Constant Reader led me to one of the Imponderables books by David Feldman. If you've not read any of these yet, do give them a try, they are great fun and strive to answer some of those strange questions in life. (Do fish sleep?) Since our emails dealt with knees (I said it was silly!) I went with Do Penguins Have Knees? Lots of fun things here, such as why peanuts are listed in the ingredient of plain M&M's, why is the home plate in baseball such an odd shape, and, of course, the answer to do penguins have knees.

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Bryant & May: England's Finest: More Lost Cases From the Peculiar Crimes Unit is the second collection of short stories by Christopher Fowler. There is a corner in London that is prone to odd accidents, a missing reindeer (display, not real), footsteps, and a possible connection with Dracula ... just another fun collection of crimes and mysteries solved but these two most unusual detectives. Be sure to read the brief history of the PCU at the start!

In World War I the main means of communication was a letter, letters which could be censored, letters which could take weeks or even months to reach their destination. For an interesting (and sometimes sad and/or frustrating) look at that war read Dear Miss Kopp, by Amy Stewart, one of the Kopp Sisters novels. One has worked hard to provide the pigeons that could carry messages for the troops, only to be thwarted by someone higher up, and male. One is traveling to entertain the troops and is arrested one night by the Moral Police while walking home after dark. With a soldier. (He said he had volunteered to see her safely home, but he was sent on his way and she was taken into custody). When meds go missing at the Field Hospital where the third sister is a nurse, it's the nurses that are accused of the theft. These stories are all as historically accurate as possible, don't miss the author's notes.

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Do you like to swim? Why We Swim, by Bonnie Tsui was one of those curious little books you pick up but aren't sure why. It proved a most interesting read! From prehistoric times to present day all types of swimming are discussed: open swims, pool swims, challenging swims (in the Arctic!), as well as competition and races. What makes someone want to do, well, whatever type of swimming they prefer? And at first, when it was considered 'public bathing' anyone was welcome (although men and women had to come on different days) it wasn't until they became public 'pools' that only whites were allowed. Just one of those nicely written social history books.

Blooming Flowers: a Seasonal History of Plants and People, by Kasia Boddy, was an interesting (but sometimes a bit dry) read. I loved the idea of combining the history of flowers, what they meant in the past and present, with artwork and poetry, how they are used in the design of clothing and buildings, and of course, names! The illustrations were a great help, but I wish songs had been included as well.

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The Spice Shop Mystery series, by Leslie Budewitz, is new to me, and I seem to be jumping into it about five books in with The Solace of Bay Leaves. It's set in Seattle, and that's what caught my attention. Main character, Pepper Reece owns a spice shop in the Pike Street Market, and lives not too far away. She is known for her spice blends (which cannot be trademarked, it seems, which is the basis for one of the mysteries), and her dog 'Arf'. Wonderful descriptions of the market, and the area (hills, rain, clouds), and the views now available that the Seattle Way Viaduct is gone. Nice sense of history and community and a good mystery, too. :-)

The Bodies in the Library is a nod to Agatha Christie, and the traditional 'locked room' mystery (and possibly others that I missed). It's the first in a new series by Marty Wingate, A First Edition Library Mystery. It was fun! New to her job, and with a literary background, but not one involving mystery books, (something she's trying to keep a secret for now), Hayley is working to make The First Edition Society a success. She's not off to a good start as a body is found ... in the library ... behind a locked door. This was a fun read, keep an eye on the cat.

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