Books for January 2022

 Hi everyone. Happy  almost weekend.

It's time for my monthly book post for those of you who like books.

I can't say my new year started off with a big reading/listening list, but part of that had to do with my daughter being on vacation and being home for several days during the first couple of weeks of the month.  The other part had to do with cold dark nights and some interesting shows on Netflix. These books weren't going anywhere, so I enjoyed my non-reading distractions and gave my reading brain a little much needed rest. My reading brain enjoyed the time off, but that time off could only last so long with some tempting titles to lure me back.

Just like in 2020 and 2021, here's my monthly reading/listening list so read on if you're interested.

Listen number one for 2022 was this book, The Vagabonds, by Jeff Guinn. I decided to start the new year with something a little bit different from my usual mystery or fiction story.

I have never visited Fort Meyers, Florida, but my daughter has been there several times. I originally learned from her how Henry Ford and Thomas Edison had winter homes near each other in that area, and that was what piqued my interested to listen to this book when I saw it on Audible.

I think the title is a bit deceiving as these men didn't go on one long 10 year road trip, but developed a close friendship and did take lots of trips together, as well as sometimes taking their families along. They called themselves the Vagabonds. Also included in the Vagabonds along with Henry Ford and Thomas Edison  was Harvey Firestone who started Firestone Tires and John Burroughs who was an early environmentalist.

The title is also deceiving as the book is  mostly about Henry Ford and goes into many things other than these road trips (or what they called auto-camping). In fact the road trips make up maybe  half of the book. What I liked was how the author, when he wrote about events, also did a bit of history about each year or time period. For example, he wrote about how Ford's Model T made cars more accessible to general population  and with higher car ownership, these auto-camping trips became  more popular. At the same time the author  discussed about how motels and camping areas developed and grew.  I also didn't know that the Model T made car ownership levels in the US skyrocket in a very very short period of time. Nor did I realize the movie star like popularity that both Ford and Edison had either. 

Even though the title might not have been the best pick for this book, I still enjoyed listening to it.

The bad thing about listening to this book was that since it was January and this year January was cold and at times snowy, I also developed a burning urge to go on a long roadtrip myself. Smile. Too bad Omicron didn't allow that to happen. 

My next listen was another classic mystery.

At the end of the Moonflower Murders that I read last month,  there was a discussion of some classic mystery authors. One of them was Erle Stanley Gardner who wrote many mysteries starring the  lawyer Perry Mason. I remember bits and pieces from the Perry Mason TV show with Raymond Burr (it was my mother's all time favorite show), but I'd never read any of the books. It was time to change that and continue  my reading of some murder/mystery classics.

The Case of the Velvet Claws is the first Perry Mason book, published in 1933. I listened to the book, and I must say the narrator (Alexander Cendese) did a great job except he was not very good with women's voices. I think he had just too deep a voice. "Eva Griffin" comes to Perry Mason because she wants to keep her extra-marital affair with a well known man private from her husband. Of course that is easier said than done, especially when Perry finds out who "Eva Griffin" actually is. 

Perry Mason was a tough guy lawyer for sure, and Gardener's writing made this story easy to listen to. Mason might be a bit too tough guy for my taste, but I haven't decided if that's because of the story or because of the narrator. I guess I'll try another one of his stories in book form sometime to decide the answer to that question.

My first actual book of the month was Touring the West with Leaping Lena 1925. I didn't actually start reading any books until well in January, and I had just about finished my Ford and Edison listen at this point. I found this book on my bookshelf while looking for a 1915 cross country road trip book by Emily Post, (yes, Miss Manners herself), which I had read before and planned to reread.  Instead, I went with this one that I had never read.

Other than the introduction, this book is the journal of W.C. Clark that he wrote during a cross country trip he took with his wife and daughter in 1925. Clark was a journalist, and his story is easy to read as well as enjoyable. He talks a lot about the condition of roads, auto-camping, and the general environment whether it is agricultural or more city/suburban. It is interesting to note how many things have changed. For example, when they  visited the Black Hills and there was no mention of the yet to be carved and now  huge sightseeing draw of Mount Rushmore.  Another example is how tourists were encouraged to feed wildlife like bears in National Parks.  Somethings remain the same too, like not wanting to be around mosquitoes, dealing with traffic and not everything living up to what was hoped it would be. 

This book is a fascinating  glimpse into another time (almost 100 years ago) and the view points of people then. Some parts of the country were more "modern" than others.  I was amazed at how often tires went flat and how many accidents they witnessed, as well as the ever changing conditions of roads.

The editor if this journal, David Dary, included some old photos. These were not from the Clark family trip but ones that would be true for the time period (when the Clark family took their cross country road trip) as he could not trace down any actual family photos. Dary also included an informative little introduction which gives you a general background of the Clark family. 

For me, this book was the perfect follow up to my Ford and Edison listen, as it tied in many things I learned about road trips from that listen.

This next book, The Complete Birder by Jack Connor, has been on my book shelves for decades. An enthusiastic birding friend recommended it to me back in the 1980's when I was trying to improve my bird knowledge, especially when it came to hawks. For that same reason, I pulled it off the shelf this past month. My bookmark was still in the hawk chapter. I read that first, and then went back to a few other chapters. (There are some chapters that I plan to reread later when those birds are more "in season".) 

This book is not a bird identification guide, but more an informative look at types of birds, where you might discover them and how to identify them when you see them. I noticed on Amazon this book is still available in soft cover. I think that speaks a lot for the quality of work. For me it is a nice reference source  and a good reread (even if only partial) every few years.

Kate Quinn has been on my reading radar for awhile. She's written several historical novels about various time periods, and this is (I believe) her third World War 2 book as well as her latest release. This one is set in England, and the main characters are 3 women who  work as Nazi code breakers at Bletchley Park. This story also  jumps  forward to 1947 in several places to the wedding of Queen Elizabeth and Prince Phillip. The reason the wedding is included  is that one of the code breaker women in the story is Osla, who according to the author in her notes chapter, is  a lightly fictionalized version of a real woman named Osla Benning who dated Prince Phillip during the war years. 

I very much enjoyed listening to this book. It sucked me right in, and the story moved  along at a good pace. I read a few reviews on the book after I finished it, and yes, the beginning does start off a bit choppy, but I thought it didn't take very long for the story to get moving.  The ending was good, not quite what I'd hoped, but still very satisfactory. And yes, the Osla connection is probably very fictionalized later in the story, but it is fun fiction, the key word being fiction.

I learned many things about the lives of the British code breakers,  and I enjoyed getting to know these 3 very different (fictional) women who were the main characters in this story. If the details of being a code breaker are completely true (as the author mentioned in her notes chapter at the end),  the real men and women who were code breakers certainly did a lot for their country and did not get much back for it in the long run. It was so top secret the general public couldn't know what they were doing. Male code breakers were harassed by the general public for not joining the military. All of these code breakers worked with little time off and long shifts. It must have fulfilled them (especially the women) that they were doing something useful, but for some of them,  the secrecy must have also been overwhelming. 

If historical World War 2 novels are something you like, then I definitely recommend this book. 

I've had this book, Long Ago in France,  sitting on my bookshelf since back in 2020.  I had ordered it and a few other books off of Amazon  when we were in lock down. I hadn't read any MFK Fisher, but I knew some things about her from other books. I thought an  autobiographical book of hers would be a good place to start.

It is 1929, and 21 year old MFK Fisher and her husband have moved to Dijon, France where her husband is a student at the university.  This book made me want to be 21 again and to go off with those youthful and carefree eyes to see a foreign place for a few years. Yes the world has definitely changed since 1929, but this is a very fascinating look back. Fisher was a very good writer. I  enjoyed the escape of being taken back in time and living the student life vicariously though this book in Dijon.  As Fisher also wrote a lot about food since this is what she is most famous for, there were delicious moments (apple tarts with custard jumps to my mind) and some parts that weren't so appealing (like preparing the snails for dinner).

I can't stay away from mysteries for too long, so my next book, A Test of Wills, is a book in that genre. I believe it was Nita over at Divers and Sundry who had mentioned this series. I started with book 1, as I was not sure if this is a series you need to read in order. 

Ian Rutledge works for Scotland Yard after returning from the Great War.  He is emotionally battle scarred, and to make matters worse, this case is dealing with the death of a fellow soldier who was murdered. The obvious murder suspect is a decorated war hero. Rutledge is sent by Scotland Yard out to a quiet part of Warwickshire to solve the murder of Colonial Harris.  It is believed to be a no win situation for him.

I just finished this book last night after I'd finished writing this post. ( I wrote this with about 50 pages left in the book, so hopefully won't want to change much about it.) I very much enjoyed it. It is a well written traditional style mystery. I also don't know much about World War I, or the Great War, and so the details of this book were really interesting.  I also want to know if Inspector Rutledge ever gets control over his own war demons. I definitely plan to read more in this series. Also thanks Nita for mentioning it.

And here's my last book/ listen for January.

A few years back I found a list of the best selling fiction books of the twentieth century by decade and year in the US. I decided I was going to try to read a few of those books over time.  If you read my book posts you might able to tell I enjoy reading books that have stood a test of time. Giant was part of an Audible sale during January, and I hadn't read any Edna Ferber, so I decided to give it listen.

This book, published in and also on the best seller list in 1952, is set in Texas. Most of the story takes place starting in the 1920's when Calvin Coolidge was president. It took me awhile to get into the swing of this story. One was because of the narrator (Courtney Patterson) who reads this novel.   Patterson was an excellent reader, but some of the  voices she used  were quite jarring at first, especially since I'm not used to hearing the Texas "twang" on a regular basis.  The other reason  it took a bit to get into the swing of this novel was  because Ferber wrote with lots of adjective strings when she describes details. The descriptions are fantastic;  it just took me a bit catch onto that style. Like many books, I decided it was best not to quit too early on, and before I knew it I was invested in the story. And I must say, loving it. 

 Lesley Lynnton is now Mrs. Jordan "Bick" Benedict. This educated, socially conscious, and curious Virginia lady is new to Texas and ranch life as Bick is the owner of one of the largest ranches in the state. This novel tells the saga of the Benedict family, their  life on the ranch in the early part of 20th century Texas,  and also  of Lesley's life as a new Texan and wife. I really enjoyed this book, and now I want to read more of Edna Ferber. She was a talented author, and even when the story isn't moving at break-neck speed, the details she included put you right in the middle of cattle ranching on the wide open Texas plains.

I also watched the 1956 movie Giant as I hadn't seen it for years. It's a good one and captures the essence of the book, but like most movies based on books, there are a few differences between the book and film. And although it's a well made film, the book is still better. 

That's my list for the first month of 2022. 

As always, if you have any recommendations I would love to hear them. 

Enjoy your weekend also.