Love A Library

I love libraries.  I have ever since I turned five and was able to get my very own library card.  Now I love them even more because I can go on the Roanoke Library website and order any book I want.  I generally go to the Advanced Search page.  There I can just look at the newest Fiction or Non-Fiction published this year, or late last year.  I can also choose to look for only paperback books or hard covers.  The library lets me know when I have books and I just walk in and pick them up.

This last week I really scored.  I got a bunch of new books that I have had on request for some time.  They all came in at once.  Isn't that always the way?

Check these out!



I haven't really liked the most recent Stephanie Plum books.  It seems like Evanovich was just writing the same book over and over with just different names.  This one took the characters forward a bit and was better than the last few I have read. 



I ALWAYS like Robert Crais.  He writes several different characters and then combines them every once in awhile.  Elvis Cole and Joe Pike frequently share a book.  Both characters are equally appealing and for different reasons, but always because they do whatever it takes for Elvis to save the day in his role as private investigator.  These take place in Los Angeles and I like revisiting places I know, while I go along the exciting ride with these interesting characters.  In this book he brought in three different characters from previous books and that made it fun.  It works just fine as a stand alone novel, if you have never read him.  But I predict if you do, you will go back and read all his novels.  He's that good. 



Every once in a while you have to read some non-fiction.  I prefer novels, but this book sounded interesting.  It tells the story of the pirates along the Barbary Coast.  Some countries paid tribute so that their commercial vessels weren't attacked by pirates.  When the US gained freedom from Britain, we lost the protection from them for our ships and they were boarded, had their cargoes stolen and their crews enslaved.  The fledgling country had a limited amount of money available to pay these pirates and no Navy to protect them.  This book explains how the problem was solved with the Muslim pirates that had no respect for any non Muslim nation and felt they could enslave all captured sailors and torture, kill or hold them for ransom.  They could take tribute money and still take a ship or two.  We also would have had to make deals with, and pay tribute to, many of the groups along the Barbary Coast.

In this book you also understand why the Marine Hymn includes "to the shores of Tripoli".  It was a quick read and you might find you like history presented in this form, rather than the dates/battle form most history books use.



I ALWAYS like David Rosenfelt. He writes a series about an extremely wealthy lawyer, Andy Carpenter, who only works when backed into a corner.  And when he believes his client is innocent.  In addition, he runs a dog rescue and all of the titles involve dogs.  He is funny and interesting.  He also writes stand alone novels, but I prefer the Andy Carpenter ones.

After all, who doesn't like a murder mystery with dogs??  Look at that FACE!

Hounded by David Rosenfelt

I frequently go online and request a bunch of new books from the library.  When it is my turn, there is a program called Library Elf that sends me an email to let me know the book is waiting at the library.  Recently, I picked up 16 new books.  How did they all become available at once?  They are all 14 day books, which means I have to return them within that two week period.  I already had 7 books left at home that were due in a week.  Oh, my.

I've been reading like crazy.  But the best I can do is finish one book a day and part of a second.  I refuse to have late fees, so I may have to return some and get back in line on the request list.

 

I did jump the line of my books that are due to be read in order to read the latest David Rosenfelt book, Hounded.  This is the most recent book in his Andy Carpenter series.  Andy Carpenter is an attorney who inherited a lot of money and only takes cases that he can't escape.  He is very good at not working.  Usually this is because the client is a friend or a friend of a friend.

In this book,  police Lieutenant Pete Stanton, and good friend to Andy Carpenter,  is framed for murder, oh and some drug trafficking, just to make it serious.  Stanton was investigating some deaths that family members believed to be murder, rather than natural causes.  Andy Carpenter believes that this may have something to do with getting Stanton in a place where he can no longer investigate these deaths.  Someplace like prison.

As with all Andy Carpenter mysteries, there is a dog involved.  In this case a Bassett Hound and his boy, all of whom need a temporary home.  Andy Carpenter runs a dog rescue and he and his girlfriend, and investigator, Laurie Collins take on the boy, the hound and the case.

Andy is a funny, kind of bumbling guy, who absolutely adores his girlfriend and all dogs.  He seems kind of hapless until he takes on the rare case.  Then he gets to trial and you can see him becoming a fierce  protector of his client and his interests.  Because he only agrees to take on clients he presumes to be innocent, we can cheer for him without worrying if he will use his amazing talents to free a guilty man.

There are a lot of series where the premise begins to get stale over time. It seems like the author has signed a publishing contract and has a deadline, so he plugs in a few new situations, changes a few names and writes the same book.  People buy it hoping the much beloved character moves forward, but it never happens.  This is not the case with David Rosenfelt.  I have never been disappointed in a Andy Carpenter book.

   

So buy the first one, Unleashed, and get started.  Yes, I know I get my books from the library.  But I read a book a day, here.  I CAN'T buy all new books!  But David Rosenfelt runs a dog rescue just like his character Andy Carpenter.  He has a LOT of dogs to feed.  He takes on a lot of large, older dogs that will need medication for the rest of their soon-to-be-pampered lives (see his non-fiction book, Dogtripping).  These dogs are hard to find homes for and he knows they will not be kept long in a shelter.

 

That has go to be in the top end of expensive.  I don't hear him asking for money to fund this adventure, so I presume he uses his own money. 

 

I don't know how much money he has amassed over his years working in the movie industry.  So my theory, based on nothing but my imagination,  is that he lives on that money and spends all his book money on the dogs.  Therefore, it in incumbent on all animal lovers to buy his books.  You get a great read and you save the life of a sweet dog.  Charity AND self interest!  How can you go wrong?

Dogtripping by David Rosenfelt

I need to start this off my saying that I love David Rosenfelt.  I have read all of his books and his Andy Carpenter series is amazing.  When I worked at the Fincastle Library I used to pick an author each month that I thought was wonderful, but wasn't as popular as, say, Patterson or Grisham.  David Rosenfelt was so good and so funny that I went to his web page.  Then I discovered that the Tara Foundation he writes about in the Carpenter series is a real foundation that he and his wife started in California to rescue and adopt out Golden Retrievers...or basically any dog that he can fit in at the veterinary office he uses and his house.

After one of the California fires that almost burned his house and MANY dogs, and I grew up in California and know how devastating they can be, he and his wife decided to get out of the state and move to Maine.  We also left California to get to the east where people are friendly and less concerned with the superficial and to have seasons.  This winter has not made us rethink that decision...much.

When I featured Mr. Rosenfelt, I sent him an email.  I figured if he put an email address in his books, he must want people to write him.  I also assumed that I would get a form letter back thanking me for my interest, like I would get from a politician.  But, no.  I got a real email wanting to know where in the heck was Fincastle?  We were thrilled and told everyone who came in to read his books.  Sadly this won't help him pay for his dog food, being a library and all, but maybe the patrons will recommend the book or get impatient waiting on the list to get the new issue and go BUY one.  It could happen!

When he decided to move cross country with all the dogs they were keeping, the old, sick or unadoptable ( this included many they kept just because they loved them and couldn't bring themselves to let them go),  he asked for suggestions.  I suggested an all pet airline,  thinking they could fill a plane and just go from point A to point B, but this is not how it works and Mr. Rosenfelt thanked me for the idea and went on to decide to drive them all across country.

We had recently driven from California to Virginia with 2 cats and knew how hard that would be.  Each time you stop you have to put them back in a carrier and that is just to get gas or a meal.  Then you have to find a motel that will take pets and pay the extra cleaning fee...per pet.  Imagine that times many drivers and 25 dogs!   Remember these are mostly old or ill pets.  Don't forget the pills and feeding 25 dogs.  And the potty breaks.

When we lived in Orange County and walked our Golden Retriever we had to get used to carrying plastic bags to pick up after them.  Now we live on 57 acres and have no idea where our dog goes.  We also used to have 2 very large horses who processed a massive amount of grass and hay.  This filled two buckets a day, every day.  I imagine 25 dogs could do that, too.  But dogs don't eat hay and what they process has an olfactory issue that I am sure we can't imagine.  The Rosenfelts don't have to imagine anything.

I started reading the book that chronicles his journey called Dogtripping  25 rescues, 11 volunteers, and 3 RVs on Our Canine Cross-Country Adventure.  I got to page 13 where he explains about their precious dog, Tara, the impetus of the Foundation.  I'm crying and write him another email.  I thought this book would be a funny account of his cross-country adventure and didn't want to read a SAD story.  The following is part of what I wrote:

Message Body:
Thanks a lot.  I just finished page 13 and I'm crying like a baby.  We have had
2 Goldens and each only lived until 10.  Ten years of complete love and devotion
to our family and amazing dogs for our children. 

I intend to finish this book, but I better not cry any more.

He unexpectedly wrote back within just a few hours.

On Sunday, February 23, 2014 2:54 PM, "davidrosenfelt@aol.com" wrote:

My goal is to bring misery into as many lives as possible.

(I don't think you'll find the rest of the book nearly as sad as the Tara part).

Hope you like it…)

David

Now do you see why I love this man?  He has an entire kennel living in his house and on his furniture in order to give them a few good years or even months.  He goes to the massive trouble of transporting them across country.  He only whines and moans just a little when he is required to take one to the vet or his wife goes "shopping" at a shelter and brings home 3 or 4 more old or sick dogs.  He's a prince.  And he writes BACK, something my own cousin rarely does.

I called another cousin to tell her to go out and get this book.  She is on her second Great Pyrenees rescue.  The most recent one is a Golden Retriever mix who sheds white and golden hair at a prodigious rate.   She also has a poodle mix from a puppy mill with a lot of digestive issues.  She will be able to relate.  I told her the book was guaranteed to give her sniffles and giggles. 

Interspersed with the trials and tribulations of their travels, the book details some of their most poignant or funny or just plain interesting rescue stories.  I highly recommend this book.  As I do all of Mr. Rosenfelt's books, particularly the Andy Carpenter series. 

And while I freely admit I love this man and his wife, based entirely on his writings, I do not want to come stay at his house for a visit or a meal.  I have a rescue dog and two rescue cats and entirely too much pet hair on my floor and furniture.  I don't need to have a good imagination to have an idea of the potential hairy abode from 25 mostly large dogs.

But I'm glad they are the kind of crazy nutjobs that enjoy this type of work.  I wish there were more like him (not next door).  Even more, I wish there was no need for this kind of work.  Makes me sad.

Reading and Stitching

I requested a bunch of new books from the library.  Yes, I prefer paperbacks, but with some books I can't wait for the paperbacks to come out.  So I have to risk carpal tunnel or some other problem to read them.  Is there a reason they make the hardbacks so much bigger and heavier than they used to?  The only reason I can think of is to justify the increasing prices.  You gotta love the library.

Usually when you place a long list of requests, it takes quite a while to get all the books. They tend to come in a few at a time.   This week a whole bunch came in all at once.  I read pretty fast, but I am leaving soon to go visit my mother so it has been necessary, a requirement, really, to do tons of reading every day! : )  It is a crime to have a late library book.  Well, not really, but I hate that.

 

This means I can't get to the stocking that I am STILL working on.  It is taking forever!  That's OK.  It is for my favorite son-in-law and he is worth it.

 

I only have a small patch of the background to finish filling in.  Then I can begin working on the details. This is from the package. 

 

This is where I need to finish.  That is when it is really fun and you can see results much faster.

 

The books I have been reading are really great and I recommend them highly.

Catherine Coulter's FBI series is always good.  Bomb Shell continues her tradition of giving you details of characters from the earlier books in the series, so I suggest reading this series in chronological order.  This book has two different story lines going and at the end she tells you that there will be a new series coming soon, A Brit in the FBI.  That is always a plus with Coulter.  She never disappoints.

 

I am currently reading the Karin Slaughter book, Unseen. It is a mystery with cops and bad guys and it was hard to put it down to go to bed.  I woke up at 5:30 and started thinking about it.  I had to get up and get started reading.  I will finish it today.

Dorothea Benton Frank writes Lowcountry stories.  They are always engaging, emotional reads and make me want to go to Charleston, South Carolina and all the nearby islands.  That is my plan for the Fall.  Do you have a favorite place I HAVE to see?   The Last Original Wife is just what it says.  A woman finds herself that last original wife in her group of friends.  One passed away, but all of her other friends have been replaced by newer and younger trophy wives.  She begins to reassess her life and marriage.

 

Susan Wiggs is another favorite author.  In The Apple Orchard she writes about a family separated by events that go all the way back to war torn Denmark.  Through the book you get to travel to Sonoma and de-stress along with the protagonist.  Maybe we should all buy an apple orchard.  I love a book with recipes, as this one does, and I intend to try some of them.

 

Another great choice is David Rosenfelt's Unleashed.  Any book with a Golden Retriever on the cover can't be bad!  His Andy Carpenter series is great.  This one not only uses Carpenter's legal expertise, but he ends up trying to fend off a potential terror attack.  Rosenfelt always writes with humor, has clever plots and is one of my all time favorite authors.

So go read a great book.  But don't check out too many at one time.  Reading books should not add to your stress!

Suspect by Robert Crais

   
   

I love Robert Crais.  I believe I have mentioned that here before, but it bears repeating.  I love Robert Crais.  Not in a romantic way. I am happily married.  And after all, he could be creepy and weird and stay hunched over a typewriter all day long shouting for his wife and kids (assuming he has those) to bring him coffee or beer or cursing them when they interrupt. 

Robert Crais is a phenomenal writer and I love him in the way that when I get one of his books I stay up late reading it and then get up early to finish it.  Suspect is one of those books.

I first read Robert Crais in the late eighties and have continued to read him.  His funny, yet highly competent private detective, Elvis Cole, is a hoot and grabs you by the throat and keeps you hanging until he solves the mystery.  I always like a good Elvis Cole mystery.  The Joe Pike novels are equally good, but you aren't allowed to know Joe as well as Elvis.  You would probably like to invite Elvis Cole over for dinner.  You might be too afraid the have Joe Pike over, but if you had a serious problem, he could be your best friend.

I hate when I love an author for a particular series and then they write a stand alone novel and they let you down. Or it is good, but not as good as you were hoping or expecting. That is not the case here.  If you like a good mystery or police procedural you will like this novel.

Suspect starts with introducing you to Maggie, a Marine dog in Afghanistan. She proves heroic, but loses her handler in a terrible way and comes home with canine PTSD.  Then the lead human protagonist, Scott James, has an equally horrific event where he is severely wounded, loses HIS LAPD partner and also develops a case of PTSD.  These two find each other when James joins the police K-9 unit and gets Maggie for his dog.  They each seek to connect and heal and then solve the case that injured James.

Dog in jeopardy, partner in jeopardy, a buddy story, loyalty even after death and revenge against evil.  How can you not love that?  There were parts towards the end that were so suspenseful that I had to put down the book and pet the cat to calm myself before I could continue.  Of course, part of that is that I didn't want the book to end and by stopping I put off the inevitable. This was a great book.  Go get it.

The only thing that is keeping me from being upset that the book isn't longer or part of a new series is that I have a new David Rosenfelt book waiting in the wings and I am about to dive in.