February 2026

 

February was a very cold (and snowy) month. Perfect for a comfy chair and a book or two. And I read a book or two, or three, or....

 

As usual a mixed bag. Some were good, some meh, some excellent, A few (less than usual) rejects which I'm not bothering to list. 

 

There are two entries in my personal prompt  "books with the word 'last' in the title." This has now been going for a year and I see no end.

 

Fiction: 

Departure by Barnes, Julian

Really liked this one 

The Old Fire by Dusapin, Elisa Shua; translated from the French by Higgins, Aneesa Abbas 

Excellent! 

The Infamous Gilberts by Tomaski, Angela 

A good read about a seriously dysfunctional family.

Meredith, Alone by Alexander, Claire 

It's been over three years since Meredith left her house.

Murder Will Out by Breedlove, Jennifer K. 

Not just murder; ghosts too. Nice debut mystery. 

What a Way to Go by Mackie, Bella

What a fun romp!  

A Family Matter by Lynch, Claire 

Dual time line (1982-2022) Family breaks up in 1982 when wife leaves husband for a woman. Husband gains custody of their only child (a three year old girl) because of wife's lesbian relationship.

We Run the Tides by Vida, Vendela

So-so coming of age, San Francisco, 1980s,   

Listen by Bronwasser, Sacha; translated from the Dutch by Colmer, David

An awful use of the second person narrative style.  

The Land in Winter by Miller, Andrew 

Not bad, but I wish I'd skipped this one. 

In the Shadow of the Greenbrier by Matchar, Emily 

Another one I wish I'd skipped. Not bad, but...not good. meh

Fireflies in Winter by Shearer, Eleanor 

This historical novel about Jamaican Maroons in Nova Scotia should have been interesting but I was bored.  

  

Her Last Breath  by Adams, Taylor

A well paced thriller with as many twists and turns as the cave it is set in. 

Her Last Flight by Williams, Beatriz  

An OK read.  

 

Nonfiction:

Turtle Island: Foods and Traditions of the Indigenous Peoples of North America by Sherman, Sean

In addition to the information about food and the recipes there is historical and geographical background. An excellent resource. 

Cocina Puerto Rico: Recipes from My Abuela’s Kitchen to Yours by Castro, Mia 

Another beautiful cookbook.

The Greek House: The Story of a Painter's Love Affair with the Island of Sifnos by Brechneff, Christian  

I really enjoyed this.  

 

Talkies by Eddie Cantor; Illustrated by L. T. Holton

Essay in Redbook (magazine) February 1930. 

  

January 2026

  

One of my October birthday gifts. I loved it!

A really good reading month - or should I say "months" as it took me over two months to read one of my gifts. Fortunately it isn't something that has to be read straight through and I was able to set it aside now and then to read some library books. Most of them were very good. 

Non-fiction was a mix. The two WW2 (one from the ETO and one from the PTO) were both very good. Strata was disappointing.  

Fiction:

The Crimson Petal and the White by Faber, Michel 

900 marvelous pages  

Cursed Daughters by Braithwaite, Oyinkan 

Multi-generational tale of a Nigerian family.

The Book of I by Greig, David

"I" doesn't refer to the first person singular, it refers to the Isle of Iona. A place I tried to visit years ago but could only view across a narrow strip of extremely rough water. (The ferryman refused to make the crossing.) 
The Weekend Crashers by Brenner, Jamie

Are the guys crashing the knitters' retreat, or are the women crashing the bachelor party? Whichever, high-jinks ensue.
The Rest of Our Lives by Markovits, Benjamin

An impromptu road trip by an ailing man.
The City in Glass by Vo, Nghi

Back in November I wondered if I might start a new theme - Books with "city" in the title. So I picked out a few. I decided not to vigorously pursue the theme, but I glad I considered it because it led me to this great story!
Beasts of the Sea by Turpeinen, Iida; translated from the Finnish by Hackston, David

A fine fictional account of Bearing sea explorations the led to the discovery of  Steller’s sea cow..

Is This a Cry for Help? by Austin, Emily 

A librarian's struggle with mental illness...
The Last Language by duBois, Jennifer

Meh. Maybe, after a year, it's time to let the "Books with 'last' in the title fade out. I seem to be rejecting or reluctantly reading a lot of them. (see February 2025 post.) No, I'll stick with it since there are five of them on my holds list!

 

Heart Lamp: Selected Stories by Mushtaq, Banu; translated from the Kannada by Bhasthi, Deepa

A disappointing collection. Maybe something is missing in the translation? It seemed like I  was reading the same story over and over. 

Contents: Stone slabs for Shaista Mahal - Fire rain - Black cobras - A decision of the heart - Red lungi - Heart lamp - High-heeled shoe - Soft whispers - A taste of heaven - The shroud - The Arabic teacher and Gobi Manchuri - Be a woman once, oh lord!

  

Nonfiction:

Matisse at War: Art and Resistance in Nazi-Occupied France by Gorham, Christopher C. 

Midnight in Broad Daylight: A Japanese American Family Caught Between Two Worlds by Sakamoto, Pamela Rotner 

 

Veteran Who Served for Both Japanese and US Forces Turns 100  by Damask, Kevin

Serendipity. I ran across this news story shortly after I finished reading Midnight in Broad Daylight.  

Strata: Stories from Deep Time by Poppick, Laura  

This really should have some visuals: photos, charts, timelines, etc. And I don't care what everyone she interview was wearing or how long their hair is.   

Ladies' old-fashioned shoes by Greig, T. Watson

Love these shoes! 

 

  

Checked out from library but decided not to read:

One Last Shot by Cayouette, Betty 

I was put off by the writer's introduction TMI! Then the awful characters. 

6:40 to Montreal by Jurczyk, Eva 

Boring, made it to p. 65 

Blue Ticket by Mackintosh, Sophie