Books I've Read
Books Listed by Author
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McNally's Puzzle
Archy McNally, #6.
The owner of a parrot store, called Parrots Unlimited (imagine that), thinks someone wants to harm him. Well, he was right. But who did it?
Quote:
"Thanks you so much, Professor," he said. "I learn a lot when I talk to you. It takes weeks of hard work to forget it."Quote:
I took along my cellular phone -- See, he DOES have one!!! Quote:
The schlub stared at him. "You got a search warrant?" he demanded.
"No," Al said, "I haven't got a search warrant. You got an operating sprinkler system? You got working smoke alarms? You got emergency exits clearly marked and lighted? You got garbage cans tightly lidded? You got rodents and vermin on the premises? I don't have a search warrant. How much you got?"
The super turned wordlessly and unlocked the inner door for us.Read:
6/2025
McNally's Risk
Archy McNally, #3. Archy meets a woman with a butterfly tattoo. Also, he has new (his first?) cellular phone now.
Quote:
Why, the man was a veritable polymath, and I wouldn't be a bit surprised if my next interviewee claimed that Hector was a master bialy maker. -- Sure could use him in THIS burg! Quote:
I had never been tempted to visit since the idea of sipping an overpriced aperitif while a naked young woman gyrated on my table seemed to me a betrayal of Western Civilization.Quote:
a jeroboam of annelids -- What an unpleasant image. Quote:
When I saw the muzzle I realized it wasn't a .38; it was the entrance to the Lincoln Tunnel.Read:
5/2025
McNally's Secret
Archy McNally, #1. Archy works for his lawyer father in the "discreet inquiries" department. A client had her rare stamps stolen. Archy figures out what's what and just who is who. Good story, I MUST have these back in the 90s, before I started keeping track.
Quote:
A Palm Beach music critic wrote of one of our recitals, "Words fail me." You couldn't ask for a better review than that.Quote:
Lady Cynthia had two built-in saunas, dry and wet (if you're going to do it, do it right),Read:
5/2025
McNally's Trial
Archy McNally, #5.
An awful lot of caskets are being shipped north from Florida. And it takes Archy an awful long time to figure out what is in them.
Quote:
I had many sharp, jagged impressions of that MTV evening -- What does that even mean? Quote:
No f&g with Sunny Fogarty on Friday night. No f&g with Connie Garcia on Saturday night. -- What does THAT even mean?? Quote:
"Kissy," she said. -- I may have teared up a little here. Quote:
"Yeah," she said determinedly. "I've got to keep thinking better times are coming. Thanks, Arky." -- Yeah, she's gonna die--in 41 pages. Quote:
"You must eat your oatmeal," I admonished.Read:
6/2025
The Case Of The Missing Books
A Mobile Library Mystery. I wasn't much interested in this book, except for the library stuff, but as things proceeded to an end I found myself pleased with the ending. Rather witty in parts. I shall have to find the next book.
Quote:
Sometimes it felt good to be a librarian.Read:
9/2007
Miles From Nowhere
One of my favorite books, I actually PURCHASED after reading twice from the library so I could share it with others. Barbara and her husband bicycle around the world. Read--several times and more to come.
Read:
No dateRead:
5/2006Read:
10/2016
The Moon Bridge
Ruthie makes a new friend at school. They become best friends, then Mitzi and her family are sent away because it's World War II and they are Japanese-American. A really good story, I liked it very much.
Read:
10/2014
Roller Skates
Lucinda is a ten-year-old living in "orphanage" with her aunts while her parents are in Italy for a year because of her mother's health issues. Lucinda is quite outgoing, and reminded me much of Anne Shirley. She loves to meet people, and is totally unconscious of "class". I thought this would be a "nice" story, but there were two deaths that came as quite a shock. Awarded the Newbery in 1937.
Words I Had To Look Up:
story of Diamond (pg. 21) -- the quote in the book is from At The Back Of The North Wind, by George MacDonald, a children's book published in 1871.
Anton Seidl (pg. 92) -- Hugarian-born conductor who became conductor of the New York Philharmonic in 1891. He died in 1898.
Robert Ingersoll (pg. 92) -- Lucinda notes that Aunt Emily said he didn't believe in God. Lucinda wonders "a great deal" why, but never finds out. A very interesting Wikipedia article I perused said he was a great orator and spoke on many topics, including agnosticism.
guimp (pg. 142) -- A narrow flat braid used for trimming. Also spelled gimp.
Cornelius Nepos (pg. 131) -- A Roman biographer.
gertrude (pg. 178) -- A type of clothing for infants. More information is online in The Care Of The Baby, by J. P. Crozer Griffith, published 1900.
Smoke Quote:
The princess brought out a lacquered box, and out of this some cigarettes. She lighted one, lay back on the cushions, and smoked. Lucinda had never seen, had never dreamed it even possible that a woman could smoke. It only made the whole ending of that day appear more unbelievable. (pg. 100)
Read:
3/2009
Agent to the stars
An alien race of Jello-like creatures decide they need an agent to fix up their image before revealing themselves to humans. Very good.
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3/2006Factoid:
This book is available on the author's website as a free download.
Fuzzy Nation
I'm sure I read H. Beam Piper's book back in the 60s, but I don't remember it. I'll have to find it! This one was pretty good, I liked it much more than Redshirts, even though I didn't weep at this one.
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7/2014Read Again:
9/2017Read:
5/2021
Head On
Very readable, I couldn't put it down. A sequel to Lock In. Lots of snappy repartee.
Quote:
"But then again I self-medicate." -- pg. 57Read:
5/2018
Lock In
A new FBI agent's first day on the job. I really enjoyed this one!
Read:
11/2014
Old man's war
A 75 year old man joins the Colonial Defense Force, gets a new body. I was in tears by the top of the third page. I really enjoyed this book, very Heinelinesque, couldn't put it down. EDIT 20016: This time around I cried a lot more.
Read:
3/2006Read Again:
3/2016
Redshirts
I was pretty ho-hum til the codas started, then it was all laughter and tears.
Read:
7/2014
Starter Villain
Super villain story with cats and dolphins. Snappy patter. I liked it!
Quote:
"We're on Google Maps, Charlie. There is only so clandestine we can be..." Quote:
"We're going to have a talk, you and I," I said to my cat.Read:
3/2024
The Android's Dream
I've heard of sheeple, but this is ridiculous! Good story, interesting to me, quotable quotes, and moves right along.
Read:
12/2013
The B-Team
Human Division #1. e-ISBN 978-1-4668-3051-6
I really really like this story very much. The good ship Clarke is sent on an important diplomatic mission that must not fail!
Read:
1/2023
The Collapsing Empire
Book One of a series, the name of which I don't know. Some snappy repartee, several memorable characters. My immediate favorite character gets killed pretty early, so I am VERY displeased by that. I just KNOW I am not going to remember any of the story or characters by the time the next book comes out. I rate this: A Promising OK.
Read:
5/2017
The Consuming Fire
I guess this is book two in the Interdependency Sequence. The author should maybe include a Glossary, I was unfamiliar with some of the words used, especially that one that started with "F"... Who talks like that? Well, except for my friend. Good story as I got more engaged with it in the second half. Laughed out loud a couple of times, even. Hope I remember the story when the next one comes out!
Read:
4/2019
The End Of All Things
I find that in a series I often forget what went on in previous volumes. So to with this one, but I still enjoyed it about 75%.
Read:
9/2015Read Again:
3/2016
20 books displayed
[Saberhage - Sanders] [Sanders - Scalzi] [Scalzi - Science Fiction DAW 30th Anniversary] [Scieszka - Scottoline] [Scottoline - Sharenow] [Shea - Silverberg] [Silverberg - Smith] [Smith - Spinelli] [Spinelli - Stead] [Stead - Stewart] [Stockett - Stross] [Stross - Swanson] [Swee - Sweeney]