Cave of Bones: A Leaphorn, Chee, and Manuelito Novel by Anne Hillerman

 

Reviewed by Jeanne

Officer Bernadette Manuelito does not like public speaking.  She’d much prefer working a case, but this time she’s roped into giving a talk to a group of “at risk” girls who are camping as part of a character-building program.  Once she arrives, though, Bernie finds that one of the girls has gone missing.  Bernie joins in the search after calling in reinforcements, and to everyone’s relief, the girl turns up.  Not so one of the camp counselors: the experienced outdoorsman seems to have vanished. Moreover, Bernie is sure there’s something the girl isn’t telling.

Meanwhile, Bernie’s husband, Jim Chee, is away attending a training session which, as it turns out, is close to the small college Bernie’s troubled sister, Darlene, is attending.  Jim contacts Darlene, but is left uneasy by some of the company she’s keeping.

Before it’s all over, Joe Leaphorn will become involved in trying to unravel more than one mystery on the Navajo reservation.

Anne Hillerman is the daughter of famed author Tony Hillerman, who created the Leaphorn and Chee mysteries set among the Navajo.  His books were something of a revelation at the time, vividly evoking the setting and the people.  After his death, Anne took over the series and has written nine books with a tenth due out next year. 

I was an avid reader of Tony Hillerman’s work, so I approached Anne’s books with a bit of trepidation.  While staying close to her father’s characters, Anne has introduced more socially oriented themes about life on the reservations: poverty, diabetes, lack of jobs, etc.  This isn’t to say that her father didn’t address some of the problems, but rather that in Anne’s books they are more likely to take center stage.  Bernie has a good deal of family drama with her sister and her mother, and is also struggling with her own health issues. 

For me, Anne’s books aren’t quite as satisfying as her father’s but I’m equally sure that for some people she provides more context for her characters, giving them fuller backstories.  I also had the feeling in this one that some plot threads were left dangling.

That said, I think both Hillermans are adept at depicting life among the modern Navajo and evoking the beauty of a place and its people.  Good mysteries, too.

Nevermore: Same Sun Here, Ghost Cat, Outside

 

Nevermore 10-15-24 Reported by Rita

Same Sun Here by Silas House

Bonding over commonalities in spite of disparate backgrounds, Meena, an Indian immigrant living in New York City's Chinatown, and River, the son of a Kentucky coal miner, become pen pals and overcome cultural misconceptions while sharing respective hardships.

This book is so good. Very enlightening.   – DC     5 stars

 

The Ghost Cat by Alex Howard

Follows a cat through his nine lives in Edinburgh, moving through the ever-changing city and its inhabitants over centuries.

Not a real literary feat, but fun and cute.    – VC     2 stars

 

Outside by Ragnar Jonasson

Stranded by a snowstorm in the Icelandic highlands, four friends seek shelter in an abandoned hunting lodge where they discover they are not alone, and must come to terms with their past to survive to see their future.

Very similar to Agatha Christie. Really good with a surprise ending.     – NH    5 stars

 

Other Books Mentioned

Dracula by Bram Stoker

Southernmost: a Novel by Silas  House

 Restless Spirits by Linda Dunning

Spirit Tailings by Ellen Baumler

The Lightness of Water & Other Stories by Rhonda Browning White

A Field Guide to the Apocalypse: a Mostly Serious Guide to Surviving Our Wild Times by Athena Aktipis

Roctogenarians by Mo Rocca

Blue-Eyed Butterfly by Sharon  Suskin

Crooked Hallelujah by Kelli Jo Ford

The Women by Kristin Hannah

The Story Collector by Evie Woods

We'll Prescribe You a Cat by Ishida Syou

The Cat Who Saved Books by Sosuke Natsukawa

The Secret, Book & Scone Society by Ellery Adams

 

New Books

The Marlow Murder Club by Robert Thorogood

The Connellys of County Down by Tracey Lange

Entitlement by Rumaan Alam

Guilty Creatures by Mikita Brottman

Shock and Paw by Cate Conte

 

Shock and Paw by Cate Conte

Reviewed by Jeanne

It’s Christmas time on Daybreak Island, Massachusetts,  and things are getting festive.  This year Maddie James is determined to stay out of all the holiday planning for the community events and just concentrate on her cat café, JJ’s House of Purrs, named for her ginger rescue cat.  (Who, by the way, is adorable.) Things are being done a bit differently this year, with a cash prize for the best decorated house, a handyman/ electrician on call to help residents do their best, and someone else in charge.

Of course, this is all too good to be true, so when the substandard handyman’s work causes Maddie’s grandfather to fall and hurt his ankle, the decorating is going to fall on Maddie. Then of course, other things start going wrong and Maddie’s mother calls her in desperation.  Maddie is not going to get involved—

But who are we kidding?  Maddie lives for this sort of thing!

It’s just that there’s a lot going on in general. Oh, the café is doing great and the rescued cats are getting adopted, Maddie’s romance is on solid ground, but someone is posting advertisements for pricy designer cats.  There’s even a poster outside of Maddie’s cat café. The Christmas decorating contest has a cash prize this year, and tempers are flaring.  Then a prominent citizen is found dead under unusual circumstances and one of Maddie’s best friends is the prime suspect.  Can Maddie tie up all these loose ends into one big Christmas bow?

This is the eighth in the Cat Café Mystery series, but they don’t need to be read in order.  The series has had its ups and downs, but for the most part I find it entertaining.  I’d saved this one for December because of the holiday setting, and it certainly has helped set the mood.  The plot is competent with a few twists thrown in for good measure.  There’s not a lot of character development and there were a few times when I wanted to give Maddie a good shake, but I give the author credit for introducing an important theme: designer pets created by unscrupulous breeders. (I also liked that for the most part  she avoided listing specific exotic breeds just in case readers decided that it might be nifty to own one.)

If you’re in the market for a light cozy read in between holiday activities, this might be the book for you.

The Cat Who Saved Books by Sosuke Natsukawa

Reviewed by Jeanne

Rintaro Natsuki is a shy, introverted high school student who lives with his grandfather. Now, however, his grandfather has died, leaving Rintaro his shop, Natsuki Books. As Rintaro notes, it isn’t much of an inheritance: the shop doesn’t make much money.  It seems the only thing to do is to sell the shop and move in with his aunt.

Rintaro’s plans are sidetracked by the appearance of a talking cat.  More specifically, an orange cat who says his name is Tiger the Tabby and who also informs Rintaro that he needs the boy to rescue books.  This all seems too odd for Rintaro—or “Mr. Proprietor” as the cat insists on calling him, as if he is going to take over the bookshop. He asks the cat if he can refuse to help and the cat says that he can, but the cat will be bitterly disappointed.

So Rintaro agrees to follow the cat. Rintaro embarks on a series of quests that will help define what it really means to love books and to be a reader.  He encounters a series of folk who claim to love books and present arguments for what they do, and it’s up to Rintaro to see if there is a flaw in their logic.

This may not sound very exciting but as a reader, I loved it.  It made me stop and think about why I read and how I read.  The arguments all sound quite good—for example, one man wants to encourage people to read classic literature so he is trying to make books more accessible and easier to read.  Sounds good, right?  What’s wrong with that?  It’s up to Rintaro to see if there’s a problem.

Rintaro is a sweet protagonist, if a bit defeatist at the start.  He doesn’t really feel connected to anyone but his grandfather.  In finding who he is as a reader, he’ll also find that he has people he cares about and who care about him. I found the book to be inventive and playful, with well-described fantasy scenes and a sense of playfulness along with the serious topics under discussion.

Of course, I loved all the literature references, most of which were to Western books like The Three Musketeers and Chronicles of Narnia.  I found the book to be most inspiring; sometimes I do get in a reading rut and this was the perfect tonic. Now I really want to pick up one of those classics I’ve put off reading and give it my full attention. Mansfield Park, you may be next!

Note:  I recommend reading the translator’s message at the end of the book before reading the book.  I found it most helpful.  For example, Rintaro is described several times as a hikikomori, a term I didn’t know. Translator Louise Heal Kawai explains that it is a Japanese term that means people who “have consciously decided to shut themselves away from society” and who rarely go out.  She goes on to say the term appeared in the Oxford English Dictionary in 2010 so she thought it was in wide enough usage in English that it didn’t need translation.  Gee, I must have missed that update!  Still, I was able to gather some of the meaning.  I mention it here because I think it would have helped as I read if I had known more about the term.  You’re welcome. 

Actually, I found all of the translator’s notes very interesting. I felt it explained the sometimes stilted feel to some of the other translated books I’ve read.  

Nevermore: William Trevor, Bram Stoker, Alexandra David-Neel

 

Nevermore 10-15-24 Reported by Rita

Selected Stories by William Trevor

Collects forty-eight short stories by the author that span more than half a century, illuminating the human condition.

 I couldn’t put it down. Absolutely beautiful.   – MD      5 stars

 

Dracula by Bram Stoker

When Jonathan Harker visits Transylvania to help Count Dracula with the purchase of a London house, he makes a series of terrifying discoveries about his client.

I was surprised by the writing style. I found it very prudish and not extremely scary, but I loved it and highly recommend it.    – VC       5 stars

 

My Journey to  Lhasa by Alexandra David-Neel

First published in 1927, a memoir by the first Western woman to reach the Tibetan city of Lhasa describes her journey to the remote and forbidden region, her travels throughout the continent of Asia, her meeting with the Dalai Lama, and her remarkable encounters with and understanding of Asian culture.

A beautiful exhibition of strength and resilience.    – CD      5 stars

 

Other Books Mentioned

Suffrage Song: the Haunted History of Gender, Race and Voting Rights in the United States of America by Caitlin Cass

Excuse Me While I Disappear by Laurie Notaro

Fall on Your Knees by Ann-Marie MacDonald

River, Cross My Heart by Breena Clarke

Cave of Bones by Anne Hillerman

Holy City by Henry Wise

Dumpty by John Lithgow

Let's Read Our Feet by Jane Sheehan

Serena : a novel by Ron Rash

Telltale Hearts: A Public Health Doctor, His Patients, and the Power of Story by Dean-david Schillinger

Long Haul by Figliuzzi,  Frank

Olive Kitteridge by Strout, Elizabeth

New Books

On Freedom by Timothy Snyder

Keeping the Faith by Brenda Wineapple

Death at the Sanatorium by Ragnar Jonasson

Lula Dean's Little Library of Banned Books by Kirsten Miller

 

           

Reviewed by Christy

Lula Dean is out to cleanse her small Georgia town of “filth” and protect young, impressionable minds while doing so. She has ignited a campaign against questionable material in the school and public libraries, and if she gets a little much deserved attention while doing so - well, what’s wrong with that? Lula sets up her own little free library in her front yard, filled only with wholesome, Lula-approved books. But a prankster has switched out the book jackets. Instead of the Nancy Drew series or The Art of Crochet, readers are really getting Gender Queer or Are You There, God? It’s Me, Margaret. Chaos ensues.

            I’m not sure I’ve ever read a book before that was simultaneously fun and enraging. There are some seriously heavy topics discussed in this book as well as general small-town wackiness. Kirsten Miller balances them well. It’s also a book with an “ensemble cast”, so to speak. You get to know a little bit about all the townspeople, and I love books like that. A woman finds out her husband is cheating so she leaves him and becomes a witch? Love it. Discovering Lula’s desperate need for attention and acclaim ramped up after she failed to make the high school cheerleading team? Love it. The local florist blackmailing the bank manager into giving her a loan simply by sending his mistress a bouquet of flowers? Love it. Ok, I’m realizing maybe I just love small-town gossip. But it’s so fun!

While I really enjoyed this book, it does have an After School Special quality to it. The Good Guys have long, righteous rants that are scathing but still eloquent. The Bad Guys get their comeuppance (or even more surprising - see the error of their ways). It’s all tied up very neatly with a bow at the end. And you know what? I love that, too. I get the sense that Miller was not trying to write a totally realistic depiction of these matters. Instead, she was more interested in the idealistic version – a version of life where (most) people react with love and understanding instead of hatred and fear. Sometimes that's just the kind of story you want to read.

The Best Christmas Pageant Ever by Barbara Robinson

 

Reviewed by Jeanne

With the release of the new movie, I decided it was time to re-read this children’s classic tale of “the worst kids in the world”—aka the Herdmans. 

Although it’s only 80 pages, Robinson packs a lot into those pages.  Told from the wide-eyed perspective of schoolgirl Beth, we are introduced to the six Herdman children who Beth says are the worst kids in the world.  She then proceeds to list some of things the Herdmans do:  they cuss teachers, steal other kids’ lunches, set fires, and smoke cigars, even the girls.

Yep, those Herdmans are a handful. The one place they haven’t been trouble is in Sunday School, but that’s just because they don’t attend.  In fact, Beth’s brother Charlie lists “No Herdmans” as his favorite thing about Sunday School, which was not really the answer the teacher was looking for, even though it is true.

That’s about to change, and ironically it’s Charlie who causes it by bragging that he doesn’t need his dessert because he gets all the dessert he wants at church: pie, cake, cookies….

The Herdmans are intrigued.  So much so that they turn up for Sunday School just as Beth’s mother is trying to put together the annual Christmas pageant—and the Herdmans take all the roles, even though they have never heard the story of the Nativity.

Will the Wise Men and Joseph get in a fight? Will Mary hit someone with Baby Jesus?  Will the Angel of the Lord whack the Shepherds with her halo?  It seems as if everyone in town can hardly wait to find out.

I had fond memories of this book and I’m happy to say that I found this book just as charming the second time around.  Even better, I discovered there are two sequels:  The Best Halloween Ever (only the Herdmans could get Halloween cancelled) and The Best School Year Ever.

Note:  This is actually the second time this book has been filmed.  It was also done as a TV movie with Loretta Swit and the library does own a DVD of that version.  Both films are very good, but there's nothing like a book.  

Nevermore: Golden Age Whodunits, Changeling, River Cross My Heart

 Nevermore 10-8-24        Reported by Rita

 

Golden Age Whodunits by Otto Penzler

Fifteen puzzling mysteries from the masters of the form.

This book may be good for mystery fans, but it wasn’t my cup of tea.   –WJ     2 stars

 

Changing by Liv Ullmann

Impressions gathered from the experience of living and working with Bergman are predominant in Liv Ullmann's candid discussion of her life as actor and woman.

A beautiful and intense book written from the heart.   –PP      4 stars

 

River, Cross My Heart by Breena Clarke

Following her younger sister's drowning, Johnnie Mae struggles with guilt over her death and coping with family expectations and the recent move to Georgetown.

The ending is stunning. Definitely worth reading.   –CW      5 stars

 

Other Books Mentioned

Serena: a Novel by Ron Rash

James: a Novel by Percival Everett

 Bury Your Gays by Chuck Tingle

Finding Mr. Write by Kelley Armstrong

Mountain Sisters by Helen Matthews Lewis 

The Clockwork Universe by Edward Dolnick

December New Books

 

Adler-Olsen, Jussi  Locked In (Department Q)

Andrews & Wilson  Tom Clancy Defense Protocol

Armstrong, Jess The Secret of the Three Fates

Battles, Brett Stuart Woods’ Golden Hour  (Teddy Fay)

Brannigan, Ellie  Death at an Irish Wedding

Cook, Robin  Bellevue

Ferguson, Lana  Under Loch and Key

Hendrix, Grady  Witchcraft for Wayward Girls

Hurston, Zora Neale  The Life of Herod the Great

Kane, Darby  What the Wife Knew

Klassen, Julie  The Seaside Homecoming

Miller, Linda Lael  Where the Creek Bends

Sanderson, Brandon  Wind and Truth (Stormlight Archive)

Shelton, Paige Perfect Storm

Non-fiction

Banta, Connie This Book is Free and Yours to Keep:  Notes from the Appalachia Prison Book Project

Clark, Marcia  Trial by Ambush:  Murder, Injustice and the Truth about the Case of Barbara Graham

Hasegawa, Tsuyoshi  The Last Tsar:  The Abdication of Nicholas II and the Fall of the Romanovs

Baking Spirits Bright by Sarah Fox

 

Reviewed by Jeanne

Moving back home to Larch Haven, Vermont has turned out to be good for actress turned chocolatier Rebecca Ransom.  Sure, California had its charms, but so does Larch Haven: the small village has canals running through it, which are quite the tourist attraction.  In summer, there are boat rides in gondolas; in winter, the canals freeze so solid that Becca can skate to work at her family’s sweet shop, True Confections. You might even say that life is sweet for Becca.

The only thing giving her some pause is being entered in the annual Baking Spirits Bright contest: it’s set up like many of the popular baking shows, where a group of bakers have to create confections in a group setting with a time limit. Contestants are eliminated until one is selected as the grand prize winner.  While the prize isn’t life changing, the competition is fierce. But when a contestant ends up dead, the question is, was it worth killing for?

This is the second in the series, but you don’t need to have read the first in order to enjoy this one.  Becca is a likeable character, and is firmly in the inquisitive amateur sleuth category, despite warnings from her police officer friend about the dangers of asking the wrong person the wrong question.  The plot is handled well, with plenty of suspects and motives, as well as a few red herrings.  There’s a bit of romance in the offing as well. In addition, Becca has two cats, which is always a selling point for me! I especially liked the setting in this one. While Larch Haven is fiction, it’s so lovingly described that it feels real.  It’s a place I would love to visit—minus the murders, of course!

Nevermore: The Women; The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse; Ethan Frome

 

Reported by Rita

The Women by Kristin Hannah

In 1965, nursing student Frankie McGrath, after hearing the words “Women can be heroes, too,” impulsively joins the Army Nurse Corps and follows her brother to Vietnam where she is overwhelmed by the destruction of war, as well as the unexpected trauma of coming home to a changed and politically divided America.

I thought it was too formulaic and not realistic. I didn’t enjoy it.  – CD     3 stars

 

The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse by Charlie Mackesy

A  modern, illustrated fable for readers of all ages that explores life's universal lessons from British illustrator Charlie Mackesy.

The most beautiful book I’ve ever read. The art is fantastic. It’s full of hope, love, and promise. Uplifting.  – NH    5 stars

 

Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton

A New England farmer must choose between his duty to care for his invalid wife and his love for her cousin.

It’s a very sad story, but worth reading. It was a quick, easy read. I loved it.  – DC      5 stars

 

Other Books Mentioned

Suffrage Song: the Haunted History of Gender, Race and Voting Rights in the United States of America by Caitlin Cass

Katharine, the Wright Sister by Tracey Enerson Wood

The Life Impossible by Matt Haig

The Paris Secret by Karen Swan

Selected Stories by William Trevor

Unbelievable Crimes Volume One: Macabre Yet Unknown True Crime Stories by Daniela Airlie

Unbelievable Crimes Volume Two: Macabre Yet Unknown True Crime Stories by Daniela Airlie

These Tangled Threads by Sarah Loudin Thomas

The Art of the English Murder by Lucy Worsley

The Drowning Kind by Jennifer McMahon

 

New Books

At War With Ourselves by H. R. McMaster

That Librarian by Amanda Jones

The Art of Gothic Living by Paul Gambino

Cat Pictures, Please: And Other Stories by Naomi Kritzer

 

Reviewed by Jeanne

With a title like that, how could I pass this book up?  Although I was not familiar with multi-award winning author Kritzer’s work, it didn’t take more than a story or two to convince me that all those Hugo, Locus, and Nebula nominations and awards were well deserved. While the trappings may vary—an alternate world where dragons live with Native Americans in the Old West or a town in Nazi Germany or a witch’s hut in a wood—the stories have realistic characters facing realistic problems. There’s also a gentle sweetness, even if the stories don’t end as I might have liked.

The title story, Cat Pictures, Please, is about a sentient AI who, well, likes to look at cat pictures.  But while looking at the pictures, it becomes interested in the lives of the people who post them and believes that it can help the people with their problems.  The trouble is that some people will just NOT take a hint. They’d rather moan about their current job that look at all the helpful job postings that are appearing in their online feed or the offers of free resume help.  It’s most frustrating.  This is a delightful tale that really carries the ring of truth.

The Wall is another intriguing story about a college student faced with an alleged time traveller who is trying to talk her into an impromptu trip to Germany for some reason.  The woman seems to know a lot about her, but is this some sort of scam?

What Happened at Blessing Creek is one of the grittiest stories, in which a group of pioneers are looking for a place to settle on Osage lands.  One of the group is a young girl who has some psychic powers and who is faced with a difficult choice, one which will have devastating consequences. 

The Good Son is the story of an Irish fae who is attracted to a mortal woman and who follows her to her home in Minnesota.  He soon finds out that the mortal world can be more complicated than he anticipated—especially in matters of the heart.

There are seventeen stories in all, and there’s not a clunker in the bunch.  This collection is highly recommended.  And don't let the cover put you off--this book is more about humans than technology.

Good Lookin’ Cookin’: A Year of Meals by Dolly Parton and Rachel Parton George

Reviewed by Jeanne

“Hey, good lookin’—what ya got cookin’?” comes from a Hank Williams song, but it’s the very apt phrase Dolly and her sister say or sing when they enter a kitchen.  Food is a love language, and both sisters and many of their relatives speak it well.  Each sister writes a separate introduction about what food means to them, and then one together which gives their philosophy of cooking, as it were. They believe in planning ahead but being able to improvise; in timing the preparation so that the cook is with the family and not hidden away in the kitchen; and in the treasured memories that come from cooking and eating with those you love.

The cookbook is divided up by months, with one meal for each month: an “Opening Act” appetizer, the main courses, including meat and vegetables, and then the “Encore” dessert.  Some of the meals are tied to celebrations, so of course November features dishes for Thanksgiving, while July has food more suited for a cookout.  However, the sisters take pains to explain that these dishes can be made for any occasion (though you might want to leave the licorice legs off the spider cake for a non-October treat).  The idea is to have certain recipes that you can use any time in any combination to come up with a winning meal. As a bonus, there are festive pictures of the Parton sisters and various family members scattered throughout.

Each recipe lists prep time, cooking time, and additional time if needed (such as chilling dough), offers tips on ingredients, and has a glorious color photo of the finished product. They do give some of their favorite brands for ingredients for that particular recipe, such as Hellmann’s mayonnaise or King Arthur flour, and give a good amount of detail on some of the prep (greens need to be washed four times to get rid of all the grit).

And just in case you didn’t remember which holiday featured corn bread in a cast iron skillet, there’s a handy index.

For someone who doesn’t cook, I seem to pick up a lot of cookbooks.  I certainly don’t do anything but look, but I do enjoy that.  This one has several recipes that I might even be able to do, should I ever be properly motivated.  As promised there are a lot of staples like Dressed Eggs (deviled eggs, but the “dressed” refers to the many types of garnish that can be added, including olives, sweet pickles, or bacon), Country Potato Salad, Oven Roasted Broccoli, Mac and Cheese, and so on. 

If you’re looking for a new recipe for Thanksgiving or just want to see what spin the Partons put on an old favorite, this might just be the book for you.

Nevermore: Serena, Ministry of Time, Tell Me Everything

 

Nevermore 9-24-24

Reported by Rita

Serena: a Novel by Ron Rash

Traveling to the mountains of 1929 North Carolina to forge a timber business with her new husband, Serena Pemberton champions her mastery of harsh natural and working conditions but turns murderous when she learns she cannot bear children.

Beautifully articulated, thought-provoking, and powerful. I loved it.  – KN  5 stars

 

The Ministry of Time by Kaliane Bradley

To establish whether time travel is feasible—for the body, but also the fabric of space-time, a “bridge” who lives with, assists, and monitors the expat known as“1847” or Commander Graham Gore falls fervently in love with consequences she never could've imagined—ones that could change the future.

Funny at times, this was good escapism.    – MH     4 stars

 

Tell Me Everything: a Novel by Elizabeth Strout

While defending a lonely, isolated man accused of killing his mother, town lawyer Bob Burgess falls into a deep and abiding friendship with acclaimed writer Lucy Barton. Together, they meet the iconic Olive Kitteridge and spend afternoons in Olive's apartment, telling each other stories, which imbue their lives with meaning.

Many characters from other books make appearances. LOVE, LOVE, LOVED IT!  Two thumbs up!  - CD    5 stars

 

Other Books Mentioned

A People's History of the United States by Howard Zinn

By Any Other Name  by Jodi Picoult

 The Moonflowers by Abigail Rose-marie

The Cider House Rules by John Irving

The Maid : a Novel by Nita Prose

Lovely in Her Bones by Sharyn McCrumb

Staggerford by Jon Hassler

A Green Journey by Jon Hassler

Dear James by Jon Hassler

Holy City : a Novel by Henry Wise

You Will Never Be Me by Jesse Q. Sutanto

New Books

A Pair of Wings by Carole Hopson

Foul Days by Genoveva Dimova

Katharine, the Wright Sister by Tracey Enerson Wood

Suffrage Song : the Haunted History of Gender, Race and Voting Rights in the United States of America by Caitlin Cass

The Little Old Lady Who Broke All the Rules by Catharina Ingelman-Sundberg

 

Reviewed by Kristin

Martha Andersson has had a good life, but is having a little trouble adjusting to conditions at Diamond House, a Swedish old age pensioners’ home. The problem is that Nurse Barbara is cutting corners. Profits are down, or at least not as high as the new director desires, and suddenly sticky buns and cake are no longer in the budget. Other amenities are likewise limited, and Martha and her friends are chafing a bit in the sparse accommodations.

Martha hatches a plan with Christina, Anna-Gretta, and the men—nicknamed Brains and Rake. They are going to become art thieves. After all, no one would suspect a group of oldies walking with the aid of Zimmer frames to be the ones kidnapping art from the National Museum. “The League of Pensioners” is born, and they are stomping their orthopedic shoes on their way to riches.

The pensioners hone their skills with a small robbery at a nearby hotel, then move on to the big times. The police have no idea how those paintings (Monet and Renoir!) disappeared or who tried to ransom them. They dismiss the old people as dithering fuss-budgets who are just confused, bless their hearts.

Told with humor, The Little Old Lady Who Broke All the Rules is achingly clever, and funny even to those of us who haven’t reached retirement age yet. This book reminded me of the Elderly Lady series by Helene Tursten. Those short volumes (An Elderly Lady Is Up to No Good and An Elderly Lady Must Not Be Crossed) are also set in Sweden and are laugh out loud funny.

This is the first book in the series.

We’ll Prescribe You a Cat by Syou Ishida, translated by E. Madison Shimoda

 

Reviewed by Jeanne

Shuta Kawaga is struggling with his job.  It’s a prestigious company and he should be happy but the long hours, callous treatment of employees, and a horrible boss are weighing him down. He’s having trouble sleeping, he doesn’t want to eat, he’s miserable and yet he can’t bring himself to quit.  What he needs, he thinks, is some counseling to help him cope. That’s how he ends up at the odd little clinic in a narrow alleyway.  It definitely doesn’t fit his view of a highly recommended doctor’s office, but he’s already run through all the local clinics and none have helped.  He’s feeling a little desperate and ready to try something different.

This place turns out to be a little more different than he anticipated.

For one thing, the doctor prescribes him a cat. 

A real cat.

Bewildered, Shuta heads home with his furry medication, only to find out that the instructions for use are not as thorough as he would have liked. . . .

We’ll Prescribe You a Cat is a series of stories about different people who seek help from the “Clinic for the Soul” from a frustrated office worker to a designer at an upscale store.  All are struggling with both their personal and professional lives.  All end up at the mysterious clinic with a rather sullen nurse and off-beat doctor. I’ve read and enjoyed several of these episodic Japanese novels, many of which have similar themes of sorting out what one thinks one wants as opposed to what one really wants.  In some ways, this book does follow that theme, providing attitude adjustments in the best sense of the phrase, but it does something a bit different with an overall story line that is gradually revealed.  I hesitate to say more because I don’t want to spoil it, but I was charmed and a bit teary-eyed at the end.  While Travelling Cat Chronicles by Hiro Arikawa remains my favorite, I have to say that this book is a very strong second.  It is an absolute delight.  I am buying my own copy, which is my highest recommendation.