Saturday, December 20, 2014

Eight Amazing Shipwrecked Sisters Take Captive Dog

NonFiction

In Herriot's Shadow by Bill Stork, DVM. Lake Mills veterinarian writes neat stories about work. 

Eight Amazing Engineering Stories: using the elements to create extraordinary technologies by Bill Hammack, et al.  I ran across Hammack on YouTube and ordered the book. His videos are neat-o. But, without burrito.  Or, mosquito.  I like to eat Fritos. I would shoot Greedo.




Good Dog: true stories of love, loss and loyalty edited by David DiBenedetto and the editors of Garden and Gun.  My dog smells but she hates bathing and it's a real hassle to wash that dog in the winter. Includes stories by C.J. Chivers and Ace Atkins, I read books by those dudes.

Fiction

Red Moon by Benjamin Percy. I read this book, too. It made the 2014 notable list from the Wisconsin Library Association.

Good Luck Girls of Shipwreck Lane by Kelly Harms. I thought we had a copy of this. This also made the notable list. I read it.

Large Print

Nantucket Sisters by Nancy Thayer. Go swimming?

Take Me With You by Catherine Ryan Hyde. No, get your own ride.

Destiny's Captive by Beverly Jenkins. Destiny as fate, or Destiny as a woman who is a kidnapper?

Deadline by John Sandford. Deadline like this?

Full Force and Effect by Mark Greaney. Very effy title.

The Firelight Girls by Kaya McLaren. Smell like smoke.

A Quilt Like Christmas by Sandra Dallas. Would be a bad gift for a child.

The Missing Place by Sophie Littlefield. Well, where did you see it last?

Tyrants: an intimate history

DVD

The Maze Runner starring [teenagers]. Something about being lost in a killer maze.



The Roosevelts: an intimate history by Ken Burns.  14 hours of Roosevelts. Roosevelts, Roosevelts, Roosevelts. This is full of Roosevelts.




Poetry 

My Favorite Tyrants by Joanne Diaz.  Won the Brittingham Prize in Poetry. I don't know what the Brittingham is and I will research the prize. Back of the book says, "Diaz tries to understand what makes tyranny so compelling, even seductive.  These dynamic, funny, often poignant poems investigate the nature of tyranny in all of its forms - political, cultural, familial, and erotic." I tried touch typing that last section and had to back up and make multiple corrections. 

Diaz works at Illinois Wesleyan. I remember visiting there as a high school Junior. The admissions counselor mentioned how they have an early admission program and I thought, "Hey, cool." So I brought the application home, put it in the typewriter, got halfway through, got bored, and quit. Remind me later and I'll tell the story about Wartburg College. People always look at me weird when I tell that one.

Monday, December 15, 2014

Stack of DVDs

DVD

Railway Man starring Colin Firth and Nicole Kidman. Former British soldier was a POW under the Japanese. Englishman plans to murder the Japanese man responsible for the Englishman's treatment.


It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia: the complete season 7 starring [actors]. Awful people doing awful things.


It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia: the complete season 8 starring [actors]. Seriously, these people can be despicable and horribly selfish.


It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia: the complete season 9 starring [actors]. Try it out, it's a funny program.


Raise Some Bell: the ultimate kettlebell workout by Amy Dixon. It seems like kettlebells are supposed to be the next big thing for exercise. But, the exercise regime's popularity never quite took off like yoga did.


Blended by Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore. These flicks make money, I guess that's why they keep making them.


House of Cards: second season starring Kevin Spacey, Robin Wright. Political intrigue.


Rover starring Guy Pearce and Robert Pattinson.  Post-apocalyptic Australia without the Lord Humungus.


True Blood: the complete sixth season starring [hunky actors]. I have not watched this show. There are a bunch of shows I have not watched.

Bunch Of Novels By A Bunch of People

Fiction

Moriarty by Anthony Horowitz. Moriarty and Holmes are dead on Reichenbach Falls and the London underworld has a job vacancy. Two men try to catch the leading candidate for Moriarty's job. I think one of my kids read some of Horowitz's Alex Rider books.

Tagged For Death by Sherry Harris. This is a paperback, has a cat on the cover, and is a Garage Sale Mystery so you can safely bet this is a cozy mystery.

Hope to Die by James Patterson. Huh, no co-author. That is unusual.

Citizens Creek by Lalita Tademy.  Tademy? What is the etymology of that name, the only time I've seen it is on Tademy's novels.  Speaking of which, the audiobook of Red River checks out a lot. Tademy's author photo is too small.

Hello from the Gillespies by Monica McInerney. McInernery also has a small photo and since this is a paperback the photo is black-and-white. McInerney lives in Ireland.

For the Dead by Timothy Hallinan.  Travel writer living in Bangkok has more dangerous adventures. I recall listening to Hallinan's first Junior Bender novel while rowboating across the lake to where the Boy Scouts were building rafts. Going there wasn't so bad but the return trip was kinda miserable after being in the sun all afternoon and rowing back against the wind.

Hallinan's Afterword mentions his 2011 trip to Bouchercon in St. Louis. I went to that conference. I've written about it before but let me give a recap: I went to a party on Friday and that resulted in a complete wash-out on Saturday.

The Slap by Christos Tsiolkas.  "When a man slaps another couple's child at a neighborhood barbecue, the event sends unforeseeable shock waves through the lives of all who are witness to it."

The Killer Next Door by Alex Marwood.  Marwood won an Edgar Award. That's a big deal.

Betrayed by Lisa Scottoline. I'm not sure how you pronounce her name. Is the second part line or lean-ee?

The Day of Atonement by David Liss. Man returns to Portugal to avenge his parents punishment by an Inquisitor.

Mr. Penumbr'as 24-houor Bookstore by Robin Sloan.  "Rendered with irresistible brio" Brio? I had to look that one up: vigor and vivacity.

First Impressions by Charlie Lovett. Mystery of something about a modern bookshop employee who discovers Jane Austen may have stolen the story for Pride and Prejudice.

The Boston Girl by Anita Diamant. Girl grows up in 1915 Boston to immigrant parents.  Dang, Diamant has a small author photo, too. She's only written four other novels. I say only because Red Tent is always going out, I see Diamant's name so often I figured she has more published novels.