Middle Sister's October Reads

Wow, did I get a lot read in October! Here are four more books I read this month, both fiction and nonfiction, including one of the best books I've read in years.

The Knitter's Dictionary by Kate Atherly Atherly is an editor of the online knitting magazine Knitty, which I love and was part of the reason I wanted to review this book. The book is exactly what the title says, an alphabetical dictionary of knitting which should be a welcome reference to many. The field is crowded as there are many such books out there, but this one does provide some benefits other, older books may not: the writing style is conversational, and references are made to things new knitters will probably already be aware of (e.g., the knitting and social media site Ravelry; popular designers such as Amy Herzog). The line drawings are large and clear. My one complaint? The usual knitter dismissiveness of acrylic yarn (which many charity organizations require their donated knit and crochet items be made from) was irritating. Acrylic yarn has its uses and is budget friendly, and it irks me when these self-styled encyclopedias of knitting dismiss it. Otherwise, this is a useful book for new knitters, and for those who want clear explanations of more advanced techniques such as kitchener stitch. Recommended (Net Galley)

Charlie Chan Carries On by Earl Derr Biggers The Charlie Chan series disappeared from publication for several decades, dismissed because of the racist depictions of Chinese people, including Chan himself. While he's portrayed as smart and honorable, a far superior detective to all around him, some found objectionable that his dialogue was not perfect English and he's been descried as subservient and a stereotype. This was my first exposure to printed Charlie, and my honest opinion, as the daughter of an immigrant, was that while he 'sounded' like a stereotype, lots of the people I grew up around spoke imperfect stilted English, very similarly to Charlie. We weren't told in this story how long Charlie has been in Hawaii, so I decided that like many of the people I knew, he grew up in China and learned English as an adult and thus his stilted style of speaking. The warm regard and very clear appreciation of Charlie's skill by Scotland Yard's Inspector Duff belied any internal racism. The story itself was well written and the pace was maintained. The round the world mystery was unique and interesting, and I enjoyed the book, and the ending, very much. Imperfect by today's standards re: characterization, the writing and plot stand up well. Recommended (audio book)

Murder at the Mill by M. B. Shaw Set in the wintry English countryside, this book opens with the murder, and then backtracks for a large part of the middle section to set up the murder. I have mixed feelings about this book. I didn't like the main character, Iris, even though I tried to be sympathetic to her personal crises, and I need to like my main characters. I loved how Lorcan was depicted and treated by his family and the book, and how the complicated family relationship was described. I loved the setting. But the mystery wasn't mysterious--I spied the murderer as soon as they appeared, and also nailed the issues behind several of the characters. Iris has changed a lot over the course of the novel, however, and has emerged a stronger person, so if this is a series, I might give the second one a chance. I'm going to recommend the book, although I'd probably give it a B/C borderline grade. (Net Galley)

Spying onWhales by Nick Pyenson It was a lark that I chose to read this book. I like to intersperse nonfiction after every few novels, and although I have no great affinity for whales or the ocean (in fact, I'm a horrible swimmer), I thought "Why not? I love nature and I love sitting by the ocean and I know nothing about whales." I am so glad I did. I loved this book! It was incredibly informative and very well written. Organized logically, it presented scientific and historical data in an easy, breezy manner. I read the entire book in 4 days. I learned so much, I recommended it when I was only halfway done, and I was sorry when it was over. It is the perfect example of how scientists can and should present science and data in easily digestible, understandable, and, importantly, entertaining ways to a public audience. Kudos, Dr. Pyenson. This isn't an easy accomplishment and he nailed it.  Highly recommended. (Net Galley)

Middle Sister's August Books

Not so many books read this month, as I was reading some textbooks and rewriting lectures for this semester's class. Here are the few books on the fiction/nonfiction front I managed to squeeze in.

1. The Agony Column by Earl Derr Biggers Fun historical mystery from 1916, Biggers is best remembered for his Charlie Chan novels, but he also wrote stand alones, including this and Seven Keys to Baldpate (one of my favorite classic films). Our narrator is a young man about the town drawn into a mystery in London when he decides to pursue a chance acquaintance. The plot twist is key: he falls madly in love with a woman he sees in a restaurant, writes a note to her via the newspaper's agony column (today's personals), and then writes her a series of letters describing the perilous mystery swirling around him. Extremely enjoyable! I recommend this one highly.
2.  Lye in Wait by Cricket McRae (2007) First in the Home Crafting mystery series, this cozy introduces us to Sophie Mae Reynolds, her friend Meghan, and Meghan's daughter Erin, all sharing a house outside Seattle. When the neighborhood handyman is killed in Sophie Mae's soap making workroom, she's drawn into a mystery that threatens everyone she loves. Naturally, the investigating officer becomes her love interest (really, authors, this is getting to be a boring cliche), and the coincidences that come with the identification of the murderer are a little farfetched, this is not a bad introduction to the series and the characters. 
3. The Knitter's Life List by Gwen W. Stenge (2011) Nicely illustrated and laid out introductory guide for new knitters, this books stakes its own claim to the over-saturated knitting book market by providing life lists to introduce each chapter. These life lists include yarn goals, pattern goals, and other bucket list entries (Who came up with the silly term bucket list anyway?). Honestly, this was the part of the book I disliked. I am not less of a knitter because I have no inclination to learn to knit socks; I only wear socks out here for about 3 weeks of the year. Heavy on Internet-promoted designers, with only a few of the older, pre-web designers mentioned. Limited in the kinds of patterns it discusses (scarves, sweaters,socks,, gloves, and bags) when there are tons of other things one can knit.  But, great photos, great hand drawings illustrating the different kinds of sweaters and how their constructions differ (surely a big help to new knitters or those who've never tried a wearable), and hooray for the discussion on various knitting styles and how they are all the right way to knit if it's comfortable to you.Nice bibliography.
4. The Fleece and Fiber Sourcebook by Deborah Robson and Carol Ekarius (2011) Great guide to all animals that provide fleece that can be carded and processed into yarn. This is a unique addition to the knitting literature out there. While it's for serious spinners and weavers out to expand their horizons, knitters with a passing interest in what they are working with will find the book useful for its easy to follow, well executed layout, great photography, and inclusion of more breeds of sheep than I knew existed. The authors included chiengora (spinning dog fur, and yes, they include a photo of a gorgeous Samoyed!), rabbit fur, and other unusual fiber options. Love the photo spreads showing the unprocessed raw fleece, the spun fiber, and gauge swatches for each fiber source. I don't harbor secret fantasies of living on a sheep farm to get all the yarn I want, but maybe some knitters and crocheters do, and if so, this is the book for them. To the rest of us, it's a handy reference to what a qiviut really is.
5. All Wound Up by Stephanie Pearl-McPhee (2011) Latest collection of essays by the Yarn Harlot of blog fame. Pearl-McPhee muses on yarn, stashes thereof, and other mysteries of life. Fans of the Yarn Harlot will love this latest collection. Enjoyable light read. I was only disturbed to find that Pearl-McPhee can't even have dinner with her husband and children without knitting. Really, Stephanie, it's okay to let the needles lay and enjoy the moment. Those girls will be all grown up soon, and gone, and you'll wish you remembered more more about restaurant dinners with them than what socks you were working on. Hopefully, the socks will trigger a memory of the jokes they told, the food they ate, they way their eyes twinkled. But too many new knitters take the words of Serious Knitters like Pearl-McPhee to heart and think it's okay to knit anywhere, including church services, concerts, and anywhere they want to. It's just knitting, folks. You won't die taking an hour off from your current WIP.

I'm hesitant to include the next title, which sucked up several nights of precious reading time. It's one of the few books I've ever stopped reading. Cooking the Books by Bonnie S. Calhoun has a great premise: woman's mother dies, leaves her a bookstore (love that location for a mystery), and as daughter is looking to restart her life, she decides to at least give running the bookstore a try, despite not knowing anything about the business nor being interested in it.This backstory takes place before the book opens. When the story starts, Sloane has already been at the bookstore for a few months, has met a doctor she's romantically interested in, and is trying to figure out what to do with the bookstore. Some developers are trying to buy out the local small business owners to turn this block of Brooklyn into a high rise development, and Sloane is determined not to sell when she knows her mother would have resisted. Sounds great, right? But the book was in need of serious editorial help. After having read one-quarter of the the book, the most mystery we've had is two threatening emails. The author spends an inordinate amount of time trying to develop her characters into quirky, one-of-a-kind eccentrics but failed. Typos, grammatical errors, and ridiculous copy--no thirty-four-year old, even one who doesn't cuss, is going to use the phrase "great googa-mooga!" repeatedly. I stopped reading this galley, the first I've had to decline from NetGalley. As a first draft, this showed some promise, but it needs a lot of editing. A lot.

Middle Sis' August Books

Revolutionaries: A New History of the Invention of America by Jack Rakove (2010). Excellent history of several of the founding fathers, some famous, some not. The first half of the book looks at what changes led to the acceptance of an inevitable war for revolution, while the second half focuses on how the Constitution was devised. Rakove's analysis of the various regional differences in attitudes towards revolution was a new understanding to me, and fascinating. A hearty recommendation to read this book is offered.

Nature's Wrapture and Get Hooked on Tunisian Crochet, both by Sheryl Thies. Excellent pattern books, with good photos, charts, and written patterns. The Tunisian book in particular is stunning, with every pattern a winner.

King Solomon's Mines by H. Rider Haggard (1885). The summer choice of my 19th century literature group, this rollicking good tale was perfect for the summer--lots of adventure, mysterious people, a hidden treasure, and quite a bit of humor. And no, the movie is very different. Yes, there are a few slightly uncomfortable moments and words for a 21st-century reader, but the evolution of Allan Quatermain's views of the Kukuana, while not perfect and far from satisfying in today's world, was probably quite dramatic and unusual for his time and place.

The Agony Column by Earl Derr Biggers (1916) A classic mystery from the writer of Charlie Chan. The agony column, what we call the personals, is the lynchpin for the mystery and the romance. Cheesy mystery lover that I am, I thought I had guessed who the murderer was. Then I thought I was wrong. Then I thought I was right. And then I found out I was wrong! Deliciously, decidedly wrong! This short story, just 9 chapters long, is worth a read for the author's fantastic descriptions of London, the atmosphere before the outbreak of World War I, and a murder than will keep you guessing.

The Return of Captain John Emmett by Elizabeth Speller (2011) Another post WWI mystery (I told you in the last review column that there are a slew of them out now), this takes place in, you guessed it, 1920 London. Our hero is another returned soldier, damaged, trying to find his way in a world that no longer makes sense to him. The mystery is good, although a little drawn out; tighter editing and compression of timescales may have made this a more enjoyable read. There are two strong female protagonists that will appeal to a modern female reader. The author lists reference works at the end, something I always enjoy and approve of, especially in a historical setting as detailed as this. I had no idea who the murder was, but once this person was revealed, the entire M.O. was obvious without reading another paragraph, so don't expect anything unusual in the murder mystery itself. Read the book for a well-researched depiction of London in 1920 and a fairly good, although at times slightly tedious, mystery.

Dandy Detects, a Victorian San Francisco Story by M. Louisa Locke (2010) Novelette featuring Ms. Locke's protagonists from her Victorian San Francisco series--except the detective is Dandy, a small terrier owned by the son of a teacher. The short story is well drawn; the characters are finely etched and sympathetic with just a few short lines of description, and the murder mystery, while predictable, is believable. Nice introduction to this series. Award winner? No, but a pleasant hour's read.

The Amersham Rubies by Rhys Bowen (2011) Novelette that tells how Molly Murphy, the plucky Irish immigrant solving murder mysteries in 1900-era New York, solved her first mystery in Ireland. Enjoyable, and the backstory is a perfectly light summer's brunch book.