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Hi! My name is Margot. My blog is about the things I love to do. That could be what I'm reading, places we visit, my family, food, or whatever else is happening. I hope you'll stay and visit a while.
Contact me by email: joyfullyretired (at) gmail (dot) com. What I’m Reading  Bury Your Dead
 Looking For Me
 Cottage at Glass Beach
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 Author: Michael Connelly
Publisher: Little, Brown, and Co., Nov. 2012
Genre: Mystery/Police Procedural
My Rating: A
The Black Box is Michael Connelly’s latest book featuring Harry Bosch. For those of you who don’t know him, Harry is a detective working for the Los Angeles Police Department. He’s not a super-macho cop who goes around shooting off his guns. Harry’s weapons are his understanding of human nature, a good memory and a good analytical brain.
Harry is working for the Cold Case unit. The case he’s on is a homicide case he first saw briefly back in the 1990s. It was during the LA riots when the whole police force had more than they could handle. Harry and his team were ordered to move on to other homicides and this one was handed to another unit and then went cold. Now twenty years later, Harry’s trying to find witnesses and evidence that can shed light on the case.
There are lots of elements to this story that make it an interesting puzzle. The victim was a journalist from Europe. Harry gradually learns she was not in LA to cover the riots. She seems to have been working on an expose connected to the war in Iraq. How Harry puts together a theory based on obscure details is truly amazing. I don’t want to spoil the story for you so I won’t tell you too much more. I think you’ll enjoy following all the various clues. That was as exciting as the finale that uncovers quite a conspiracy.
There were other elements to the novel I also enjoyed. I liked that we got to see more of Harry’s sixteen-year-old daughter. There is also a look at Harry’s mean-spirited boss and a self-serving police chief. But best of all, I thought this was a good close-up look at Harry himself. Now that he’s a “mature” man, he’s spending time evaluating himself, the things he’s done and the future. Very interesting.
Highly recommended, especially for Harry Bosch and Michael Conelly fans. Thanks to my sister for recommending this one. I’ll pass on her warning: Set aside plenty of time for this one. Once you start, you won’t want to put it down.
 Wondrous Words Wednesday is a fun meme I love to play each week. It keeps me looking for new words wherever I’m reading.
I found only two words this week. One was in the book review section of the New York Times and the other in a short story by Agatha Christie.
In an article titled Prize Writing by Amanda Foreman I found this word:
1. iconoclast: The Austrian iconoclast Thomas Bernhard was speaking for many writers when he raged: “I hated ceremonies, but I took part in them. I hated the prize-givers, but I took their money.”
I thought I knew this one but was hard-pressed to state the definition. Iconoclast is a noun meaning a person who attacks cherished beliefs or institutions.
I read the first story in Agatha Christie’s Listerdale Mystery and found a new word right away:
2. aspidistre: The room was typical of cheap furnished lodgings. A dusty aspidistra, showily ornamental furniture, a gaudy wallpaper faded in patches.
Aspidistre is a bulbous plant with broad tapering leaves, native to eastern Asia and often grown as a houseplant.
Wondrous Words Wednesday was created by Kathy at Bermuda Onion. Please visit her for more new words.
 Diane at Bibliophile By the Sea asks us to share the first paragraph of a book we are reading. As you can see it’s called First Chapter, First Paragraph Tuesday Intros. As readers we are often captivated or turned away by that first paragraph or two. Let’s see what you think about the first paragraph of my current read.
I’m reading Michael Connelly’s lastest Harry Bosch book, The Black Box. My sister warned me to make plenty of space for this book. She said once I start reading, I won’t get anything else done. She was so-o-o right. (I even forgot to finish this post.) I’ve come up from the pages long enough to share this first paragraph. I’ll tell you about the story later this week.
 They made him wait. The explanation was that Coleman was at chow and pulling him out would create a problem because after the interview they wouod have to reinsert him into the second meal block, where he might have enemies unknown to the guard staff. Someone could make a move against him and the guards wouldn’t see it coming. They didn’t want that, so they told Bosch to hang loose for forty minutes while Coleman finished his Salisbury steak and green beans, sitting at a picnic table in D yard in the comfort and safety of numbers. All the Rolling 60s at San Quentin shared the same food and rec blocks.
What do you think?
Would you keep reading?
 Author: Ann B. Ross
Publisher: Viking Books, 2008
Genre:
My Rating: C-
One of the people who works at the library, not my favorite librarian, handed me this book. She said, “This book is wildly popular among the older ladies.” That was my first clue. I thought I read only books I picked myself. I don’t like being classified as someone who only reads the “wildly popular” books. I’m sure you can figure out my reaction to the “older ladies” comment. Who wants to be lumped in that category. However, I took the audiobook home anyway.
As it turns out Miss Julia Paints the Town is the ninth novel in a series of fourteen “Miss Julia” books. Miss Julia is a wealthy widow, now remarried, living in a small town in the south. She seems to know everything that is going on in town and feels the need to meddle as well.
The story opens with Miss Julia learning that several husbands are missing, one of them an investment manager she has given money to. At the same time she learns there is a developer in town who wants to raze the old courthouse and build condominiums for wealthy outsiders.
Miss Julia handles each of her friends, the wives whose husbands have disappeared. Frankly, this is where the story turned me off. The women were all so ditzy I was embarrased for them. In my long life I’ve never known women like this. They are stereotypical brainless females. I finished the book but I didn’t like the people I was spending time with.
Part of what I didn’t like was the voice of Miss Julia in my ears. The audiobook was read by XX. Her version of Miss Julia was often snippy, sarcastic and rude. It’s a shame because the plot itself wasn’t bad. As you can imagine, I won’t be reading any more of Miss Julia’s adventures. And, hopefully, no one else in the future will convince me to read something “wildly popular among older ladies.”
As you can see from the number in the title above, I have been playing Wondrous Words Wednesday every week for about four years. That’s a lot of words! I usually find two to three words every week, so that’s probably close to 1000 new-to-me words total.
To celebrate this milestone I decided to repost this cartoon my daughter found. I first ran it on a Wondrous Words Wednesday post in 2011. (Thanks Cerrin) It reflects my attitude toward words and the fun I’ve had searching out new words every week. There’s no boredom in my retired life. That’s for sure.
Wondrous Words Wednesday was created by Kathy at Bermuda Onion. Thanks Kathy for initiating this great meme, and thanks for keeping it going,
Diane at Bibliophile By the Sea asks us to share the first paragraph of a book we are reading. As you can see it’s called First Chapter, First Paragraph Tuesday Intros. As readers we are often captivated or turned away by that first paragraph or two. Let’s see what you think about the first paragraph of my current read.
A worker at the library thought I’d enjoy this book so I brought it home. I’ll tell you about how that turned out when I review the book on Thursday. In the meantime, here’s the first paragraph:
Running my hand down the placket of my dress to make sure I hadn’t missed a button, I walked down the hall, through the living room and, at the sight of Sam, came to an abrupt stop in the dining room archway.
“What are you doing?”
Sam lowered the Abbotsville Times and looied at me over his glasses. “Having breakfast and good morning to you, Mrs. Murdoch.”
My eyes swept the table where another place was set and the sideboard where chafing dishes steamed from the sterno flames under them. “Yes,” I said with a distracted wave of my hand, “and good morning to you too. Why are we eating in here?”
“I don’t know, Julia. Lillian told me to sit in here, so here I am.” He gave the paper a quick snap and turned a page. “I always do as I’m told.” I rolled my eyes.
What do you think?
Would you keep reading?
 Author: John Grisham
Publisher: Doubleday, 2008
Genre: Legal Thriller
My Rating: A
I set a goal for myself for 2013. I promised myself I would try to write my own summary of every book I review this year. When it came to this book, The Appeal, I really did try. The plot is very complicated and, in my summary, I failed to make it coherent and concise. So, here’s the story’s description via the publisher:
In a crowded courtroom in Mississippi, a jury returns a shocking verdict against a chemical company accused of dumping toxic waste into a small town’s water supply, causing the worst “cancer cluster” in history. The company appeals to the Mississippi Supreme Court, whose nine justices will one day either approve the verdict—or reverse it.
The chemical company is owned by a Wall Street predator named Carl Trudeau, and Mr. Trudeau is convinced the Court is not friendly enough to his interests. With judicial elections looming, he decides to try to purchase himself a seat on the Court. The cost is a few million dollars, a drop in the bucket for a billionaire like Mr. Trudeau. Through an intricate web of conspiracy and deceit, his political operatives recruit a young, unsuspecting candidate. They finance him, manipulate him, market him, and mold him into a potential Supreme Court justice. Their Supreme Court justice.
There are many things I always enjoy in a John Grisham’s legal thrillers:
- I always learn something new about the law and the variety of ways it affects ordinary people.
- The legal system is as flawed as the people who create it, often by people with power and for their own self-interest.
- All the characters involved are usually not all bad nor all good. In The Appeal, however, there was one really Evil guy. (Yes, evil with a capital E.)
- Politics are usually intricate to the story, but seldom comes off honest.
- The good guys don’t always win. Many people don’t experience justice or happily-ever-after.
- There are numerous sides to every legal problem. John Grisham will introduce the reader to every side.
The Appeal is one of John Grisham’s best stories. He’s written twenty-five novels now, and this one has joined my list of Grisham Favorites. Other favorites are The Firm, Pelican Brief, Runaway Jury, The Brethren, and A Time to Kill. If you are a John Grisham or a legal thriller fan, give The Appeal a try. Don’t expect a happy ending. A happy ending wouldn’t have fit. This way the reader (me) closes the last page knowing that this is how things often work. It’s maddening and frustrating.
I just picked up The Racketeer, Grisham’s latest. I can’t wait to get going on it. I think the adrenaline in legal thrillers is addictive. How about you – are you addicted to legal thrillers? Have you read this one?
Wednesday is the day I participate in Wondrous Words Wednesday. It’s the day we celebrate new words we find as we read. It still amazes me that I keep finding new words every week.
This week I’m sharing some words I found while reading The Missing File.
1. elegiac: “. . . and Ze’ev opened Ian MvEwan’s On Chesil Beach, an elegiac novel, very short, about missing out on love in an instance owing to reticence.”
Elegiac is an adjective used when talking about a work of art having a mournful quality.
2. finjan: “The daylight shining in from the kitchen window was too strong. He placed a finjan with water and enough Turkish coffee to make two cups on the gas stove . . .”
In the countries of the Middle East, a finjan is a small coffee cup without a handle, such as is held in a cup or stand called a zarf.
Wondrous Words Wednesday was created by Kathy at Bermuda Onion. Visit her for more new words.
Diane at Bibliophile By the Sea asks us to share the first paragraph of a book we are reading. As you can see it’s called First Chapter, First Paragraph Tuesday Intros. As readers we are often captivated or turned away by that first paragraph or two. Let’s see what you think about the first paragraph of my current read.
Nothing beats a legal thriller from John Grisham when I’m looking for a challenging plot twist. This book was no exception. Here’s the first paragraph:
 The foreman knocked on the door and rustled Uncle Joe from his slumbers. Uncle Joe, the ancient bailiff, had guarded them while he also arranged their meals, heard their complaints, and quietly slipped their messages to the judge. In his younger years, back when his hearing was better, Uncle Joe was rumored to also eavesdrop on his juries through a flimsy pine door he and he alone had selected and installed. But his listening days were over, and, as he had confided to no one but his wife, after the ordeal of this particular threal, he might just hang up his old pistol once and for all. The strain of controlling justice was wearing him down.
What do you think?
Would you keep reading?
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A Favorite Quote "A peasant that reads is a prince in waiting.”
― Walter Mosley
Goal: 28/93
 Goal: 19/36
What's In a Name?6
Goal: 1/6
My Perpetual Challenges  Goal: 33/87
Goal: 7/50
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