Curious Cats and Fantastical Felines: Cats in Folklore, Myth and Legend by Willow Winsham

 

Reviewed by Jeanne

There are a lot of books out there about the folklore surrounding cats. I may even own one or ten myself. So I will confess I wasn’t too excited about seeing another one, but I thought I would give it a shot. At worst, it would be a rehash of things I’ve already read, but maybe there would be something new.

The book exceeded expectations.  Part of this is the tone, which is informative, friendly, entertaining, and seems authoritative. As expected, there were some things I knew already, but often with a fresh take. Puss in Boots is presented as Constantino and his Cat, with some slight changes in the story.  Most of the information took things I knew but gave more information or presented in a different light.  For example, the Yule Cat:  Winsham takes a deeper dive into the history, explaining that it may be of more recent vintage as the first printed reference was 1862 and may have arisen from a misunderstanding of a figure of speech.  Another example that hit home was the “patron saint of cats.” St. Gertrude is generally cited in that role, but again that may be a modern interpretation as the earliest found record linking her with cats only dates to the 1980s.

The book also mentions superstitions, sayings, and historical cats, such as Jenny the Titanic cat or Unsinkable Sam, the cat who is credited with surviving three different sinkings during World War II. Again, Winsham gently questions the veracity of the accounts but doesn’t spoil the story for those who want to believe.

There’s a whole section on cat gods and goddesses, again covering the familiar (Bast and Freya’s chariot cats) and the less familiar like the Aztec jaguar god Tezcatlipoca or the Hindu Narasimha.

One reason I like this book so much is that the author isn’t just regurgitating tales, but has put in research behind the reports.  I much prefer that to the simplistic retellings that sound as if they have just been gleaned from social media.  I like more substance to my tales.  Knowing that something isn’t an ancient tale but a modern take doesn’t ruin it for me in the slightest; in fact, it makes me feel much more informed. In several cases, I had already had some misgivings about the cat story, and it was nice to know my skepticism was valid. It’s handled in a low key way, so if you want to hang on to St. Gertrude you can—or you can substitute St. Jerome and his lion as the patron saint. 

I did learn new things, such as that cats are a symbol of spring in Russia and that March is often referred to as Cat Month.  There’s a Day of the Hermitage Cat, celebrated since 1998, that honors the cats who live and guard the Hermitage Museum. 

I was also enticed by the illustrations. The book has some stunning colored woodcuts that absolutely delighted me.  The artist, Joanna Lisoweic, has produced some amazing work.

In short, I thoroughly enjoyed this book to the point that I will buy my own copy. 

Dead Man Blues by S.D. House

 

Reviewed by Jeanne

Dave Hendricks had it all: mayor of a small town on the Tennessee/Kentucky border, he was a big fish in a small pond.  He had a beautiful wife, Janet, nice house, and Victor, a best friend he loved like a brother. And then he found out Janet was cheating on him with, of all people, Victor, and the next thing he knows he’s drunkenly driven a car into the courthouse.

That pretty much ended the political career.  The friendship and the marriage were already toast.

Nowadays Dave lives on a houseboat with his dog Shorty and helps Ray out at the marina.  Then a man is murdered at a nearby fishing camp, and Victor asks Dave’s help.  Victor is the sheriff, but Dave had been sheriff previously and has had experience with homicides.  It’s an uneasy partnership, but Dave finds that the thrill of investigation gives him a purpose he’d lacked since, well, the incident.

The victim, Esau Campbell, is a local man who had been in trouble before, and there are many people who had reason to dislike him, and to dislike his family.  The Campbells are one of the wealthiest families in the area, and most feel they came by their money dishonestly—cheating people out of their property. This means there are suspects galore, and Dave has his work cut out for him finding the guilty party.

S.D. House is Silas House, an award-winning Appalachian author who has decided to try his hand at a mystery.  As expected, the book is well-written, with vivid characters and a good sense of place: a rural area where people tend to have long memories.  A dam was constructed a few years back, uprooting families and changing some ways of life, leaving a sense of loss among some residents. The 1950s setting means that a lot of investigating is done without modern technology like DNA analysis, which I find more interesting than the high tech method.

House is good at red herrings; I thought I had spotted the murderer early on and was a bit disappointed but I was pleased to be proven wrong.  I will say a couple of things troubled me as not being true to the era but again, I might be mistaken.  I did enjoy the book and I hope House will try his hand at a mystery again.

Nevermore: Yankee Sphinx, I Am Not a Robot, Truth in Advertising

 Nevermore 7-28-26

Reported by Rita

 

The Yankee Sphinx by Mark Frost

In 1934, Will Hassett is working as a journalist when he gets a call from an old friend who now works at the White House. He arrives expecting to catch up on old times but is instead brought right into the Oval Office to meet with Franklin D. Roosevelt. FDR needs help on his speeches; Will takes the job on the spot. For the next twelve years, Will is at FDR’s side through the worst of the Depression, three reelection campaigns, and World War II. The Yankee Sphinx, inspired by Will Hassett’s real diaries, focuses on the last few years of FDR’s life. The war is raging in Europe and FDR’s good friend, Winston Churchill, begs for America’s help. But Roosevelt knows he can’t bring the country in until it’s ready, an opportunity that won’t arise until the Japanese attack Pearl Harbor in 1941. From Will’s empathetic perspective, we witness FDR managing the Allied military campaign abroad and parrying shots from isolationist politicians at home―all while reckoning with his rapidly deteriorating health.

Suspenseful and haunting.      -AH      5 stars

 

 

I Am Not a Robot: My Year Using AI to Do (Almost) Everything by Joanna Stern

What occurs when intelligent machines are integrated into daily life—driving cars, making decisions, and managing household tasks? The hype suggests AI will enhance health, personalize education, and boost efficiency. To explore this, journalist Joanna Stern devoted a year to living with AI, using it for chores, health management, and travel. She conducted interviews with tech leaders and shared her humorous yet insightful experiences in "I Am Not a Robot." This book aims to clarify AI's impact on everyday life, moving beyond hype to present a realistic view of the AI revolution’s implications for ordinary people. 

This is very fun and readable. It's so good. I highly recommend it.      -PP     5 stars

 

 

Truth in Advertising by John Kenney

Finbar Dolan is lost and lonely. Except he doesn’t know it. Despite escaping his blue-collar Boston upbringing to carve out a mildly successful career at a Madison Avenue ad agency, he’s a bit of a mess and closing in on forty. He’s recently called off a wedding. Now, a few days before Christmas, he’s forced to cancel a long-postponed vacation in order to write, produce, and edit a Super Bowl commercial for his diaper account in record time. Fortunately, it gets worse. Fin learns that his long-estranged and once-abusive father has fallen ill. And that neither of his brothers or his sister intend to visit. It’s a wake-up call for Fin to reevaluate the choices he’s made, admit that he’s falling for his coworker Phoebe, question the importance of diapers in his life, and finally tell the truth about his past.

I enjoy this author and the satire. It's really funny.      –WJ   5 stars

 

 

Other Books Mentioned

Are You There God? It's Me Margaret by Judy Blume

Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt

A Mathematician's Lament by Paul Lockhart

The Wind in the Door by Madelein L'Engle

Lady Stuff: Secrets to Being a Woman by Loryn Brantz

Appalachian Mountain Girl: Coming of Age in Coal Mine Country by Rhoda Bailey Warren

History’s Most Bizarrely Entertaining Facts Explained by Gerald Burns

The Troubled Man by Henning Mankell

Great Big Beautiful Life by Emily Henry

Between a Clutch and a Hard Place by Gayle Trent

Into the Blue by Emma Brodie

 

New Books

 

Nobody's Baby by Olivia Waite

Into the Blue by Emma Brodie

The Reimagining of Thornwood House by Jaleigh Johnson

New in September!

 

September Fiction 

There are a LOT of new books due out in September, including a many big name authors like Jodi Picoult, John Grisham, James Patterson, John Green, Danielle Steel, Jeneva Rose, James Patterson, Alice Hoffman, Chloe Benjamin, James Patterson, Emily St. John Mandel, Alexander McCall Smith, and James Patterson.

Staff members are especially looking forward to books by Sarah Addison Allen, John Green, Chloe Benjamin, and Richar Osman.  Whatever genre you read, there is probably a new book for you in this list!

Adler-Olsen, Jussi  No Song for the Dead (Dept. Q)

Alderman, Naomi  The Strangers

Alexander, Tasha  Murder on the Sacred River  (Lady Emily Mystery)

Allen, Sarah Addison  Paper Ghosts

Bardugo, Leigh Dead Beat (9^th House)

Barrett, Lorna   A Critical Conjunction                           

Benjamin, Chloe Under Story

Bentley, Don Double Tap:  A Mitch Rapp Novel

Cahn, Jonathan  The Altar of Pergamon: the Mystery of the Dark Angel & the Future of the World

Cleeves, Ann The Dying Light (Matthew Venn)

Cline, Emma Switzy

Diaz, Hernan  Ply

Due, Tananarive  Mazywood

Foley, Lucy  Murder at the Grand Alpine Hotel: The New Miss Marple Mystery

Francis, Felix  The Chase: A Dick Francis Novel

Green, John  Hollywood Ending

Grisham, John  The French Illusion

Hale, Shannon  Christmas in Austenland

Harris, Robert  Agrippa: A Novel of Ancient Rome’s Descent into Dictatorship

Hoffman, Alice  The Witches of Cambridge

Ishida, Syou  Welcome to the Kokoro Cat Clinic (We’ll Prescribe You a Cat)

King, Laurie R. Those Who Are Gone (Raquel Laing)

Koryta, Michael  Die Famous

Kuang, R.F. Taipei Story

Lawhon, Ariel  The Pirate Queen

Lee, Min Jin  American Hagwon

Mackintosh, Clare It’s Not What You Think

Mandel, Emily St. John Exit Party

Mason, Meg  Sophie, Standing There

McCall Smith, Alexander  The Big Cats Dance Party (No. 1 Ladies

Michaels, Fern A Season of Secrets

Mizushima, Margaret Fighting Edge (Timber Creek K-9)

MrBeast and James Patterson  The Most Dangerous Games

Osman, Richard We Chase Shadows (We Solve Murders)

Patterson, James  The Munich Affair

Peters, Amanda  The Birthing Tree

Picoult, Jodi Hollow Bones

Robb, J.D.  Fury in Death

Rose, Jeneva Sometimes I Scare Myself:  A Collection of Horror

Snelling, Lauraine  Fair Are the Meadows (Home to Green Creek)

Steel, Danielle Ruthless

Stewart, Jack  Tom Clancy Pressure Depth (Jack Ryan, Jr.)

Remembering Dolly Parton

 

There are some people who transcend a single role in life.  Dolly Parton was one of those people.

She was known for her music, her style, her movies, and her songwriting, but she was also a shrewd businesswoman and a philanthropist who cared about helping people. For example, she invested in an old amusement park to help bring jobs to the county where she grew up, a move that some found laughable. It became Dollywood, an economic engine that was voted the #1 amusement park in the nation in a 2025 TripAdvisor poll.

Dolly did more than write songs, amazing as those are. (And every mention of Dolly starts a new soundtrack in my head!) She wrote books as well, including her autobiography Dolly: My Life and Other Unfinished Business, co-authored a cookbook with her sister Rachel called Good Lookin' Cookin', and co-authored a novel with James Patterson called Run Rose Run. Dolly also recorded a music CD by the same name with 12 songs inspired by the book.

One thing is mentioned over and over again in the tributes:  Dolly's Imagination Library.  Her dream of sending books to children from birth to age five was inspired by her father, whose inability to read or write limited his ability to achieve what he wanted.  The Imagination Library started in our region and quickly spread across the nation.  It's now even international, with Imagination Library branches in Australia, Canada, Ireland, and the UK. 

Dolly knew the power that reading can bestow.  She wanted to give that power to every child. Her family has requested that people who want to remember Dolly donate to her Imagination Library. 

Dolly Parton, we will always love you.

The library set up a display which includes a Dolly coloring sheet designed by IG @toylibrarian who gave permission for it to be copied and distributed. 

Nevermore: I See You've Called in Dead, The Cause, Fabulous Thru-Hike

 

Nevermore 7-21-26

 

Reported by Rita

I See You've Called in Dead by John Kenney

Bud Stanley is an obituary writer who is afraid to live. Yes, his wife recently left him for a “far more interesting” man. Yes, he goes on a particularly awful blind date with a woman who brings her ex. And yes, he has too many glasses of Scotch one night and proceeds to pen and publish his own obituary. The newspaper wants to fire him. But now the company’s system has him listed as dead. And the company can’t fire a dead person. The ensuing fallout forces him to realize that life may be actually worth living. As Bud awaits his fate at work, his life hangs in the balance. Given another shot by his boss and encouraged by his best friend, Tim, a worldly and wise former art dealer, Bud starts to attend the wakes and funerals of strangers to learn how to live.

I thought this was good. The story was interesting and humorous, but also sad. I recommend it.     -WJ      5 stars

 

The Cause: The American Revolution and its Discontents, 1773-1783 by Joseph J. Ellis

Ellis explores the complexities of the American Revolution, challenging romanticized narratives and highlighting the diverse motivations behind the conflict.

This was well-written. It's less about the making of America and more about the money problems in Europe.      -AH      5 stars

  

A Fabulous Thru-Hike: 3,100 Miles on the Continental Divide Trail by Derick Lugo

New York City native Derick Lugo’s life changed in 2012 when he spontaneously decided to thru-hike the Appalachian Trail. In the years that followed, he became an advocate for the outdoors and eventually set out on his second thru-hike--this time on the Continental Divide Trail, one of the most challenging long trails in the world.

It's good and quite funny.      -CD      4 stars

 

 

Other Books Mentioned

 

King's Mountain by Sharyn McCrumb

Death on the Lanai by Rachel Ekstrom Courage

Hamnet by Maggie O'Farrell

Close to Home by John McPherson

Tough Guy by Rachel Reid

Upon a Starlit Tide by Nell Woods

10 to 25: The Science of Motivating Young People: A Groundbreaking Approach to Leading the Next Generation―And Making Your Own Life Easier by David Yeager

 

 

New Books

 

The Family Dynamic by Susan Dominus

The Yankee Sphinx by Mark Frost

I Am Not a Robot by Joanna Stern

Ms. Mebel Goes Back to the Chopping Block by Jesse Q. Sutanto

Murder by Memory by Olivia Waite

Tricks of Fortune by Lina Chern

 

Reviewed by Jeanne

When Katie True was a baby, her life was saved after a car crash by a policeman who rushed her to a hospital just in time.  Officer Pete became the hometown hero, the gallant cop who saved a baby and Katie.  . . well, she was the savee.  Her parents felt that meant she had been saved for a greater purpose and that her life was going to be amazing.

Flash forward a few decades and Katie is working for her younger sister in return for office space in which to ply her trade as a tarot card reader. The card business isn’t exactly booming and to make matters worse, Katie is not in the running for employee of the month at her sister’s real estate business even as the only employee. Let’s just say that Katie’s attention span may be limited.

Still, things could be worse. 

And then they get worse.

Officer Pete is found shot to death and the police are desperate to find the killer.  Their prime suspect is Gina, an ex-cop who is one of Katie’s only friends.  She’d be Gina’s friend, too, if Gina had friends but Gina is very much a law unto herself. Katie doesn’t know much about Gina’s past but she feels strongly that Gina didn’t murder Officer Pete and Katie is going to find out who did.

Following Katie True is sort of like going down a rabbit hole. Some people think she’s a total flake, but she’s not.  She can be stubborn and fixated, interpreting things through her cards. The cards aren’t exactly fortune telling but more revealing of character and personality, showing things in a person’s life that may not be obvious. This lets Kate see threads no one else does, make connections that no one else does, but most don’t take her seriously.

I found Katie to be a fascinating character.  Sure, she’s scattered, easily distracted, and a more than a bit socially awkward but she has that something, an otherworldliness and a caring heart even if she sees herself as always doomed to disappoint. The other characters were also intriguing and none are run-of-the mill.  Her brother Owen is even more neurodivergent, but brilliant in his field.  Jamie the cop is her near-opposite, hyper-focused but also dedicated to the truth.

Most of all, I was intrigued by the way she sees the stories in the cards.  The way she described them made me want to go find a deck and take a look for myself.

Definitely not your usual cozy mystery, but one I found enchanting nevertheless.  While the cards play a role, it isn't that there is supernatural intervention in this story.  They are used to hint at relationships and situations but are open to interpretation.  Katie also sometimes lets her own feelings cloud her judgment as well, letting the cards offer a suggestion of clarity.  I certainly didn’t see the ending coming but it felt entirely believable.

I don’t know that there will be a third one in this series, but I can hope!