Ah yes, the heat continues, record heat throughout the western US. No better way to escape the heat than to escape in a book.
Good Dog by Kate Leaver Truly heartwarming book about the invaluable jobs our dogs can do for us humans. Full disclosure: my dogs and I have been Pet Partner (formerly Delta Society) volunteers since 2003, and I am a team evaluator, too. So I know the good that therapy dogs can do firsthand. I also help my friend occasionally; she is the best service dog trainer out there. But this enchanting book will help spread the word about what our dogs can do for those whose need may not be visible: autistic children (don't even get me started on how the ability for autistic children to bring their assistance dogs with them to school has been curtailed), veterans or anyone with PTSD, those living with depression. Ms. Leaver writes very eloquently, so movingly, about what her own depression feels like, and how her dog pulls her through the times when she simply cannot. Wonderful book, highly recommended for dog lovers, anyone who cares for someone with PTSD or depression, and legislators who think that autistic children don't need their dogs. (Net Galley)
All Creatures Great and Small by James Herriot Everyone knows I love animals. I loved the original television show, and I loved the recent remake. The bookstore I worked in always sold out of this series as soon as they arrived. I've been wanting to read it for decades. Then, suddenly, there it was--the audiobook, read by the actor Christopher Timothy (yes, actor of James himself). A delightful listen, punctuated with some lovely music. A terrific summer read (or listen) that I highly recommend.
Murder for Christmas by Francis Duncan Another Mordecai Tremayne mystery republished to this reader's great delight. A snowy Christmas, a motley assortment of people staying at an English country house--perfect, perfect, perfect. I enjoyed this book as much as the first Mordecai Tremayne I read, and I'm seeking out the others in series. Mordecai is an excellent detective, but not without sympathy for the people confronted by sudden, murderous death. His adorable quirks (a middle-aged man who reads romantic magazines and falls into mad crushes with most of the women he meets, regardless of age or appearance) make me like him even more. He is quickly ascending my list of fictional crushes, where Homer Kelly and Roderick Alleyn and a few others reign. The two books I've read have not had any of the cringiness that 80-year-old books can often have regarding language or attitudes. The Mordecai Tremayne series is my current secret pleasure, and I highly recommend the series to mystery lovers.
A Deadly Edition by Victoria Gilbert Although I had mixed feelings about the first book I read in this Blue Ridge Library mystery series, it was pleasant enough that I read this one. Amy and Richard are preparing for their upcoming nuptials and happiness abounds, until someone is killed at their wedding shower. Amy's brother Scott has come home for the wedding, but his mysterious job is somehow intertwined with Kurt Kendrick, whose own background holds many secrets and possible crimes only thinly masked by his outwardly convivial appearance. The mystery centers around a rare illustrated volume with a murky provenance that people are willing to kill for. As in the last novel, some of Amy's habits were very annoying to me, but I greatly appreciate that Scott's homosexuality and Jessica's asexuality are not utilized for shock or preaching; its just part of them (although I cannot imagine telling a complete stranger at our first meeting anything about my sexual orientation or habits or lack thereof, as Jessica does). I was puzzled by reference to some photographs; I read this galley on my Kindle, so I searched on both 'photographs' and 'Honor' and couldn't find anything pertinent to this plot device. A pleasant enough read, certainly not brain taxing, so a good vacation book, with a sappy ending at the wedding. Net Galley
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