Mary/Storeetllr Reads Through 2023-Ch. 4: Falling Toward Year's End

Wasn't I just making New Year's Resolutions and looking forward to Spring and planting seedlings in the garden? How in the world did it suddenly become Autumn? Well, one good thing about Q4 - it starts with October, better known around these parts as Spooktober and Deathtober (cr. Richard Derus). I get to read some of my old favorites: A Night in the Lonesome October, The Girl With All the Gifts, and Sparrow Hill Road, maybe discover some new favorite horror stories to add to the list.

Reading keeps me going, but my grandkids are my life!


Ruby's First Day of Pre-K (next year she starts kindergarten!)


Rowan's VERY First Day of Preschool!

Books Read

October

🎃 86. The Asylum Confessions: Family Matters by Jack Steen. 3.5 stars. Audio.

🎃 87. The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell. 5 stars. Kindle.

🎃 88. Murder Your Employer by Rupert Holmes. 4.5 stars. Audio.

🎃 89. The Green Mile by Stephen King. 4 stars. Audio. Reread.

90. Shawshank Redemption by Stephen King. 4 stars. Audio.

What's Up?

Currently Reading

A Night in the Lonesome October. Kindle.
Mars Adrift by Kathleen McFall. Dead-tree book. (!)
Foundation, the history of England from its earliest beginnings to the Tudors by Peter Ackroyd. Hardcover.

Up Next

In the Queue

Flatland by Edwin A. Abbott. Kindle.
The Heroine's Journey by Gail Carriger. Audio.
Hild by Nicola Griffin. Audio.

On My Holds List

System Collapse due 11/14/23
Last Ranger by Peter Heller. (Rec by Donna and Mark)

Wishlist

Cleopatra, a Life by Stacy Schiff. Audio.
The Twyford Code by Janice Hallett. Audio.
The Hands of the Emperor Kindle.
John Dies at the End
The Bullet that Missed
The Serpent Sea by Martha Wells. Kindle
It's a Wonderful Woof by Spencer Quinn. Audio.
City of Bones by Martha Wells
The Book of Paradise rec by Richard. Kindle. Started reading but ran out of time.

DNFs

Different Seasons by Stephen Kings. Audio. Rec by Joanne—only read Shawshank Redemption; hated Apt Pupil and didn’t get to the other two before the loan ended.
Thornhedge rec by Susan, I think. Audio. Just not much for retellings of fairy tales, I guess.
Dread Nation by Justina Ireland. Audio. Ugh, YA.
Everyone in my Family Has Killed Someone rec by DrNeutron, Audio. Just couldn’t get into it.
The Book of the Dead by E. Wallis Budge (Audio) - Terrible narrator.
Two Tales from Algernon Blackwood (Audio) - I listened to one of the stories: Ancient Lights. I couldn't finish the second, The Olive - terrible narrator.

Welcome to my last thread of 2023!

Happy new thread Mary!

Stunningly cute grand-littles.

Thanks, Susan!

Happy new one!

>2 Storeetllr: Adorable!

Happy new thread, Mary.

Hi Mary, Happy new thread and happy October! (It was 91 here yesterday and the roses are still blooming...whatever...)

>2 Storeetllr: They are both getting so big (and continue to be very cute)!

I started my reread of Lonesome October today. I was poking around for another spooky read for this month and kept saying "nah" to books on my shelf until I got to The Ghost and Mrs Muir. It's not spooky, just fun with a ghost theme, so I think I'll reread it this year. I've meant to for a while.

>10 figsfromthistle: Thanks, Anita! I think so too.

>11 PaulCranswick: Thank you, Paul!

>12 Copperskye: Hi, Joanne! If we had roses, I’d be checking them for mildew. It’s been a soggy summer here.

I haven’t read The Ghost and Mrs. Muir. Yet. Not sure if I’ll get to it this year. Enjoy your read of Lonesome October. I need to get the hardback from the library. I do love the illustrations.

Happy New Thread, Mary. I hope you had a good weekend. Looking forward to your thoughts on The Last Ranger once you get to it.

>2 Storeetllr: Love it! I can't wait for these years!

Happy new thread, Mary, and happy October. Your grands are adorable. I can't believe how big Ruby is! They grow up too fast.

Happy new thread, Mary! I love the pictures of the grands up top!!

New 🧵 orisons, Mary.

Happy new one, Mary!

>16 msf59: Thanks, Mark. Weekend was fine, though I was disappointed to miss out on Rowan’s birthday party at the zoo. I’m just not up to all that walking. Or any walking these days.

Jackson is about the same age as Rowan, so it won’t be long. TBH, Rowan isn’t happy to go to preschool, even tho it’s only a couple of hours 2 days a week, not like his sister was. My daughter pretty much has to stay with him. Separation anxiety.

>17 BLBera: Thanks, Beth! They do grow up too fast. Seems like my daughter was just going into kindergarten, and now her kid will be going into kindergarten. Crazy.

>18 alcottacre: Thanks, Stasia! I’m glad you like the pics, because I love posting them!

>19 richardderus: ❤️

>20 drneutron: Thanks, Jim!

Yesterday was a nightmare. My daughter’s work schedule for the week was changed due to covid, so I had the kids all day yesterday—a Monday. Though I’ve been retired now for 10 years, I still hate Mondays. And Sunday nights are rough too. I wasn’t able to get to sleep till after 1 am, so I ended up with only 5 hours. It would have been impossible if their grandpa hadn’t stepped up and stayed with Rowan after I got Ruby to school so I could take an hour nap. Then we took him to the playground before lunch and his nap. It was a busy day.



Anyway, I managed to get through it and went to sleep last night before 8 pm. Slept till around 8:30 this morning, with only one bathroom break in the middle of the night. Whew!

Did pretty good with my puzzles this morning. Guess the extra long sleep helped.

Connections
Puzzle #114
🟩🟩🟩🟩
🟨🟨🟨🟨
🟦🟦🟦🟦
🟪🟪🟪🟪

🦎 Animal #64 🐹
I figured it out in 9 guesses!
🟨🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩
🔥 1 | Avg. Guesses: 9

https://metazooa.com
#metazooa

>26 Storeetllr: I am glad to hear that you got some extra rest last night, Mary!

Happy new thread, Mary! Boy, the grands are growing up fast :D

>27 alcottacre: Thank you, Stasia. Me too!

>28 bell7: Hi, Mary! Yes, they are! It isn’t only physically, either. The changes in their comprehension and communication skills is boggling.

Happy new thread, Mary!

Indeed, time flies, I don't know either how it can be October now ;-)
Your grandkids are adorable.

>26 Storeetllr: That was a tough Monday, good you got better sleep the next night.

Thanks, Anita! They are adorable, and I love being with them.

I had a similar experience last night, though I was able to get about 7 hours of sleep. I’m just glad I didn’t have to watch the kids today. There’s just something about Sunday nights that make it hard for me to sleep.

Bwahahaha! 👻 Welcome to my first Spooktober (or 💀 Deathtober, as you prefer) reading update. 🎃



86. The Asylum Confessions: Family Matters by Jack Steen. 3.5 stars. Audio. Creepy as hell. Three “confessions” of serial killers on their deathbeds at an institution for the criminally insane. Sordid and gruesome, and the prose is a bit rough, as if written by the nurse-narrator, but I couldn’t stop reading, sort of like rubbernecking at the aftermath of a fatal car pileup. Qualifies as a Deathtober read.



87. The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell. 5 stars. Kindle. Okay, this isn’t spooky, though what happened is truly horrifying, but a question on FB (what fictional character’s death has effected you most) made me think of two of the characters in the book, and I couldn’t remember one of their names (Ann Edwards and D. W. Yarbrough, J.S.), so I borrowed the eBook and, once I started it, I couldn’t put it down. It’s been years since I read it in text format. (Last couple times, I listened to the audiobook.) It is still as stunningly good as it was the first time I read it, back at the dawn of time (probably not long after it was published, so 1999 or 2000), even though, unlike then, I am an agnostic, if not an outright atheist. I loved it as an audiobook, but I really think it is best in book form.



88. Murder Your Employer by Rupert Holmes. 4.5 stars. Audio. Because who hasn’t worked for someone whose absence would make the world a better place? This is both a dark thriller and the most “fiendishly funny” (Booklist)—and highly original—story about murder I’ve ever read. It’s been awhile since I’ve enjoyed a novel so much. It really was a lot of fun. Rec. by drneutron.

Glad you liked it!

>33 Storeetllr: I love The Sparrow! I really need to give it a re-read. I have seen Murder Your Employer recommended elsewhere. I really must track down a copy.

>33 Storeetllr: is #86 a novel, or non-fiction? Either way it sounds hair-raising.

#87 was a favorite of mine in 1996. I wonder if I'd love it so much now...

#88 is one I think falls outside my taste-range though it sounds like y'all really liked the humor.

*smooch*

Happy Wednesday, Mary. Glad to see that Rowan likes the swings too. Jackson Day tomorrow. Ooh, I am jealous that you did a reread of The Sparrow. I might consider doing that too. 2024? Love me some MDR!!

>33 Storeetllr: The Sparrow is one of the books (along with Grunts and Xenocide) Jo Walton refuses to re-read, but which I liked rather more than she did. I've re-read all 3 of those.

Hi Mary and Happy Spooktober! I have been listening to a creepy vampire story entitled The Suicide Motor Club by Christopher Buehlman and I finished a zombie story with Devil's Wake by Steven Barnes. I have a couple more horror reads planned but I am saving them for later in the month.

>34 drneutron: I did, Jim! A lot. Wish I could say the same about the other BB you caught me with. I ended up DNFing Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone. Just couldn’t get into it. Still, Murder Your Employer more than made up for that.

>35 alcottacre: The Sparrow is one of the first and only books I picked up strictly on the basis of loving the cover art, and is also one of the few books I’ve ever bought multiple copies of so I could give them away.

I look forward to reading your thoughts on Murder Your Employer once you’ve read it.

>36 richardderus: #86 Ya know, it’s hard to be sure. It reads like a “True Confessions” type story, but it’s got to be fiction.

#87 I admit, the last time I listened to The Sparrow, maybe 2-3 years ago, I didn’t like it as much as I did when I first read it, but this time, reading it on Kindle, I liked it as much. Yes, it is a bit dated, but the story itself hasn’t lost its power.

#88 Not everyone’s gonna love the same books!

*smooches*

>37 msf59: Hi, Mark! The playground is Rowan’s favorite place. Hope you had a blast with Jackson on Thursday. I reread a couple of MDR’s novels on a regular basis: The Sparrow and Doc. Those are my absolute favorites of hers. I’m thinking of rereading Dreamers if the Day due to what’s happening in the Middle East. Trying to make sense of the senseless, maybe.

>38 quondame: Not sure how she can lump The Sparrow with the other two books, but to each their own, I guess, especially when it comes to literature.

>39 DeltaQueen50: Hey, Judy! Nice to “see” you! Buehlman is an author whose horror I enjoy. I’ll have to check that one out. Not a huge fan of zombie horror, with the exception of The Girl With All the Gifts. I’ll take a look at Devil’s Wake though, ‘cause ya never know!

It was a delight to come back to my thread after a couple day’s absence and find so many friends had stopped by and left comments! It made me feel special, and happy.

Had another rough week—a few appointments and, of course, granny-nannying a couple of days, all on top of being sick. It’s not Covid, thank the Universe, but it’s nasty nonetheless: a bad cough, congestion, laryngitis, slight headache, tummy bug. No fever, though, and my covid tests were negative, so just a bug I picked up from the kids. I’m back at Physical Therapy, so that’s one good thing to report.

I think I’ve mentioned before that I like to do puzzles with breakfast. (I’m currently up to 8: Wordle, Dordle, Quordle, Phoodle, Phrazzle, Metazooa, Connections, and Chrono.) Today’s Connections made me smile—whoever made it definitely had us old timers in mind. Check out the crazy color order.

Connections
Puzzle #125
🟪🟪🟪🟪
🟦🟦🟦🟦
🟩🟩🟩🟩
🟨🟨🟨🟨

Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!

89. The Green Mile by Stephen King. 4 stars. Audio. Reread. King is the master when it comes to evoking the strange, the horrific, and the wondrous, as The Green Mile evidences. Definitely qualifies for Spooktober. Having said that, I think the film adaptation is actually a bit better, though it’s been awhile since I watched it. Tighter and more cohesive, if you will, which, if you’ve read much King, you’ll understand. Even so, it’s a heck of a story. As for this particular audio adaptation, which is based on the serial publication of the book, I wasn’t thrilled with the long pauses between portions that were meant to mimic the serialization.

Hi, Mary. Glad you are enjoying your rereads of MDR and Mr. King. Very fine idea. I have got behind on King's last few novels. I should pick one up but they are so damn big.

Bree dropped off Jack yesterday afternoon, so we got to hang out with him for a few hours.

Monday *smooch*

>48 msf59: Hi, Mark! They are definitely big. It’s how King writes. Sometimes it’s a good thing. Often I think he really could use a good editor. Took me a few tries, but I eventually really enjoyed Mr. Mercedes and its sequels. I’m currently looking forward to Holly.

Isn’t being a grand great?!?

>49 richardderus: Thanks, Richard. I love them Monday smooches! Tuesday *smooch* back atcha.