Time for the Mid-Week +1 Day Shuffle..

It's hard to believe that this week has passed so quickly. Already Thursday. I think I've been pretty good about book buying this year. Having said that in the past two days I've acquired 7. On Tuesday I dropped off a couple of books at my local used book store, Nearly New Books, and found a couple more. Then yesterday the pups and I went for a drive around the four Little Free Libraries in our local area that folks have outside their homes and I traded two books. Then lo and behold, a book order arrived, slightly overdue but welcome. So these are the books -

Nearly New Books

1. Shotgun by Ed McBain. This is one of the 87th Precinct books. I've enjoyed the first two so far. Number 3 is on the docks awaiting my attention. This is slightly further down the list.

"Detective Kling looked at the pair of faceless bodies and threw up...
A shotgun fired at long range can really do a job on you. But when it's fired point-blank in your face, what's left is sickening enough to make anyone puke ... even a cop.
A psycho had butchered a nice young couple - and he was loose somewhere in the 87th Precinct. He had a name, an address, an identity: Walter Damascus, a third-rate lothario who liked his women well-off, well-built, and - apparently - dead, along with their husbands. Sooner or later he would surface and the men of the 87th would be waiting - for the biggest shocks of their careers."

2. Fatal Pursuit by Martin Walker. Somewhat less gritty fare than the 87th Precinct book, this is part of the Bruno, Chief of Police series, set in the French countryside, one of my favourite series.

"It's the start of summer, and Bruno's found himself the last-minute replacement navigator in a car rally race. The event has attracted a spate of outsiders with deep pockets, big egos, and, in the case of one young Englishman, an intriguing story about a lost Bugatti Type 57C. Having disappeared somewhere in France during WWII, and worth millions of dollars, it's among the most beautiful cars ever made, driving its pursuers mad with greed.
When a local scholar turns up dead, Bruno suspects unnatural causes. Still, while life may offer its challenges - often in the form of distractingly comely Parisiennes - there is always time for a good bottle and a home-cooked meal."

Little Free Libraries

3. Second Wind by Dick Francis. Francis is an author I've not tried yet but I'm interested in checking him out.

"For a few precious seconds, the shrieking wind dies down and the colossal waves lie flat. Airborne in the heart of the storm, TV weather forecaster Perry Stuart braces himself for impact. Then suddenly all is blackness as the small aircraft plunges out of control...
It takes a truly frightening accident for Stuart to discover the secret of Trox Island - and plenty of things about the human race that he would rather he didn't know. He came as a half-drowned hurricane victim lucky to be spared from the ocean. He left with information that would bring down an evil worldwide conspiracy - if they didn't kill him first."

4. Winter Prey by John Sanford. I've read the first two Lucas Davenport thriller mysteries and have enjoyed them both. This is the fifth book in the series.

"The Iceman crept up to the house on the edge of the lake. He killed the father first. Then the mother and child. And when his work was done, he set the house on fire...
Lucas Davenport had tracked killers in cities across America. But the woods of rural Wisconsin are as dark and primal as evil itself. The winters are harsher and colder. And in the heart of every mother and father, there is fear...
Because tonight, the Iceman cometh."

Better World Books, Dunfermline UK

5. The Goblin Reservation by Clifford D. Simak. I've read a few of Simak's science fiction offerings in the past couple of years. Each story is unique and interesting.

"There was Maxwell - he had just returned from discovering a new planet ... and Sylvester, the sabre-toothed tiger ... and Mr. O'Toole, the goblin ... and Ghost, who didn't know who he was ... And Alley Oop who had been brought back from Neanderthal times.
Just an ordinary bunch of everyday galactic folk - who got caught into something sinister - something concerning a big, black, impenetrable block of stone - and a mysterious crystal planet - and the life-form known as the Wheeler - the Wheeler, a bulging sack of writhing worms suspended between two wheels - the Wheeler, whose intentions were evil, and whose appearance was revolting..."

6. The Quiller Memorandum/ Quiller in Berlin by Adam Hall. I became interested in this series in my Birth Date thing. Hall won the Edgar award for one of the Quiller books. It turns out that Hall is actually Elleston Trevor who wrote The Flight of the Phoenix.

"You are a secret agent working for the British in Berlin. You are due to go home on leave, but you are being followed-by your own people, or by the enemy. A man meets you in the theatre and briefs you on a plot to revive the power of Nazi Germany. You do not believe him, but you remember that one of the suspects mentioned was a senior SS officer you met with in the days when you were working as a spy in Nazi Germany. The next day you make contact with a beautiful girl who may know something. Someone tries to kill both of you.
Your name is Quiller. You are the hero of an extraordinary novel which shows how a spy works, how messages are coded and decoded, how contacts are made, how a man reacts under the influence of truth drugs-and which traces the story of a vastly complex, entertaining, convincing, and sinister plot."

and....

7.  The German Agent by J. Sidney Jones. Jones wrote a series called the Vienna mysteries. I've been trying to find them but haven't had any luck so far. But this standalone thriller sounded interesting. It's set in 1917 when the Germans were making every effort to keep the US out of the war. They tried to involve Mexico to keep the US occupied on its southern border. The Zimmerman telegram contained news which was sure to bring the US in to the war on the side of Britain. That is the premise for this book about a German agent trying to prevent  the British from delivering the telegram to the US.

The Missus's Pop Culture Challenge

Today Jo put out the last challenge, which will finish it. We've had 90 days of fun with her challenges. I'll be checking on Days 25 - 27 today.

Day 25 - Your favourite TV quiz show, current or old. I chose Jeopardy, a long-time favourite of mine and of Jo. We do like to sit down before supper and watch. She chose A Question of Sport, which I've also enjoyed. Other shows included Only Connect (another favourite of ours), Pyramid), Blockbuster, Hollywood Game Night, etc. We do like a good game show.

Day 26 - What's your favourite movie Musical. I don't often watch musicals more than once, but I do enjoy. I chose Cabaret, although I did consider The Music Man. Jo's pick, which did not surprise me was West Side Story. Other choices included Oliver (sis-in-law Sue's pick), High Society, Fiddler on the Roof, The Sound of Music, etc.

Day 27 - Who is your favourite Movie or TV Villain. I chose Julie Newmar as TV's Catwoman. Loved her. Jo chose Sue Sylvester from Glee, a villain with a heart. Great character. Other choices included Mrs. Danvers from Rebecca, Thomas Barrow from Downton Abbey, Norman Bates from Psycho, etc. So many excellent villains.


So there you go for today. I'll finish the last 4 days next entry. That will end the quizzes which have been lots of fun. Many of the people playing have pleaded with my wife to start a new quiz. We'll see. :)


I'm going to pass the Great History events and Science portions of the BLog for today and move right along to the Birth Date Thing..

The Birth Date Thing 10 November 2006

The music selections are getting to songs I'm not familiar with and don't really care for. But I shall continue!

US Bill Board #1 Single 10 November 2006

Money Maker by Ludacris ft. Pharrell. Born in 1977, Ludacris is an American rapper and actor. Money Maker, written by Pharrell Williams was his second US #1 single.

UK #1 Single 10 November 2006

Star Girl by McFly. McFly are an English band formed in London in 2003. Star Girl was their 6th #1 UK single.

New York Times #1 Fiction Best Seller 10 November 2006

For One More Day by Mitch Albom. Albom had the #1 best seller as well in 2003. "The book tells the story of a troubled man and his mother, and explores how people might use the opportunity to spend a day with a lost relative."









Pulitzer Prize Winner 2006

March by Geraldine Brooks. This book retells the story of Louisa May Alcott's Little Women from the point of view of the family's absent father. The book was Australian / American author Brooks' 2nd novel.









Nobel Prize Laureate 2006

Orhan Pamuk (Turkey). Born in 1952 in Istanbul, Pamuk is a Turkish novelist and screenwriter. The Nobel Prize citation read, "In the quest for the melancholic soul of his native city, Pamuk has discovered new symbols for the clash and interlacing of cultures."

Hugo Award Winner 2006

Spin by Robert Charles Wilson. Spin is the first novel by American author in his Spin trilogy, which was followed by Axis and Vortex. (This is another book and author with which I'm unfamiliar.)









Edgar Award Winner 2006

Citizen Vince by Jess Walter. This is American author Jess Walter's fourth of five books.

"At 1:59 a.m. in Spokane, Washington—eight days before the 1980 presidential election—Vince Camden pockets his stash of stolen credit cards and drops by an all-night poker game before heading to his witness-protection job dusting crullers at Donut Make You Hungry. Along with a neurotic hooker girlfriend, this is the total sum of Vince's new life. But when a familiar face shows up in town, Vince realises his sordid past is still too close behind him. During the next unforgettable week, he'll negotiate a coast-to-coast maze of obsessive cops, eager politicians, and assorted mobsters—only to find that redemption might exist, of all places, in the voting booth."

Man Booker Award Winner 2006

The Inheritance of Loss by Kiran Desai. This is the 2nd book by Indian writer Desai. Among its main themes are migration, living between two worlds, and between past and present.









Giller Prize Winner 2006

Bloodletting and Miraculous Cures by Vincent Lam. This is a collection of short stories inspired by Lam's experiences in Medical School following the lives of four young medical students in Toronto.









Well, there you go, finished for another day. I did take a break mid-preparation to do some yard work.. How multi-talented.. :)

The weekend is almost here. Enjoy!