Some Miscellaneous Favorite Books & Authors....
in no particular order....
for no particular reason....
Seeing Trees: After reading this book, you will want to look closely at trees and all nature.
By Nancy Ross Hugo
Waiting for the Biblioburro: First saw a short film on PBS; inspiring story of delivering books in rural Columbia. (Children’s book) By Monica Brown
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Alexander McCall Smith --- I like all his series: #1 Ladies Detective Agency; Isabel Dalhousie; 44 Scotland Street; Corduroy Mansions; the stand alone title, La’s Orchestra Saves the World is a delight.
Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day by Winifred Watson (reprint of 1938 title; also a film) -- Due to mistaken identity a dowdy, incompetent nanny gets a taste of the glamourous life as an assistant to a nightclub performer.
Two other earlier writers I enjoy are E. F. Benson, who wrote the very amusing Lucia series; and Dornford Yates who wrote both humorous tales (Berry & Co) as well as mild thrillers (Blind Corner). These are periodically re-issued or may turn up among used books.
Major Pettigrew’s Last Stand by Helen Simonson In an English village an unlikely friendship develops between a widowed retired Major and the Pakistani proprietor of a village shop.
Sound of a Wild Snail Eating by Elisabeth Tova Baily -- nonfiction; the gift of a wild snail becomes an object of great interest to the bedridden author.
Anita Brookner -- I like all of hers but especially Hotel du Lac -- a young woman runs out on her wedding just before the ceremony. Brookner’s books are character studies more than plot oriented books.
Mary Wesley -- British author’s debut novel published when she was 70; most well-known title is Camomile Lawn, set in the summer before WWII; made into a film.
Barbara Pym -- gentle, yet penetrating, character studies.
Joanne Harris -- favorites are Chocolat ; and Five Quarters of the Orange in which a woman recalls her childhood during the Nazi occupation when her mother was accused of collaboration.
Joanna Trollope -- her books revolve around changing family relationships, but she avoids the blatantly dysfunctional cliches; she writes believably and sympathetically of children who are caught up in the changes. Favorites: The Rector’s Wife; Marrying the Mistress; A Spanish Lover
Penelope Lively -- Short books, that tell a memorable story. Favorites: Consequences; Making it Up; How it all Began
Cory Doctorow -- I’ve read a couple of his young adult novels -- Little Brother which is about teens fighting back against constant surveillance; For the Win about online gaming and gold-mining -- fast-paced, engrossing, and thought-provoking
Neal Stephenson -- science fiction, and not so-far-in-the-future fiction Favorites: Diamond Age; Cryptonomicon; Reamde
William Gibson -- science fiction, especially the related titles Pattern Recognition; Spook Country; and Zero History which show a society built around marketing
Mystery Writers / Series
Kerry Greenwood -- Phyrne Fisher - set in 1920’s Melbourne
Corinna Chapman - set in contemporary Melbourne
Elizabeth George -- getting back on track with the Lynley series after Helen’s death
Martha Grimes -- Richard Jury -- last couple with Johnson are a bit odd but Jury and his neighbors are still interesting
Good Thief’s guide to... series by Chris Ewan -- reformed thief, now mystery writer, finds himself in situations as dire as those he creates for his main character.
Mrs Pargeter mysteries by Simon Brett -- Mrs P. is a widow who, fortunately, never inquired too deeply into her husband’s business affairs; his former associates are only too happy to assist her when necessary.
Cottage Tales of Beatrix Potter by Susan Albert Wittig -- the author of Peter Rabbit appears as a character in these gentle mysteries, but the other characters and the stories are fictional. The animals can communicate with each other and are distinct characters.
Robert Barnard -- author of short mysteries that read quickly and effortlessly.
Henning Mankell -- Kurt Wallander series; but he also writes stand alone novels such as Man from Beijing which has a riveting beginning, and Italian Shoes, which is not a crime novel at all.
Three Bags Full; a Sheep Detective Story by Leonie Swann -- unique mystery in which a flock of sheep try to unravel the mysterious death of their shepherd.
