Year: 2019

One of the best mysteries ever written. I thought I read this book but then I checked GoodReads for the date and this blog. I have read a lot less of Christie than I thought. It feels as if I’ve read more because I’ve watched several adaptations to her books including this one. I watched at least one version.

As a result, I was spoiled to the big twist. I had forgotten the finer details which includes all the character development Christie imbued. It’s a very well written and fun mystery. It took me a few days due to the holidays. It was fun and interesting. I was engrossed when I picked it up and I loved the setting.

My novel was a vintage one from the 1970s which used the North American title “Murder in the Calais Coach”.

Read December 23-27, 2019

Murder on the Orient Express (2017)

This is the recent adaptation from Kenneth Branagh. The novel was fresh from my mind so I was critically aware of the changes.

I did not mind Branagh’s Poirot. The cast had some gems but it feels like a lot of them were under-utilized. I liked Daisy Ridley and Michelle Pfeffier but I am biased towards them. The train was gorgeous and I loved the set design. The movie was good to look at and the screenplay kept most of the structure of the novel.

Now for the negatives. There were a number of changes to the characters’ backstories. The plot added more action and violence. These changes were sensationalist. There is a theme of racism in the movie which is not as heavily featured in the novel. The movie includes a non-white character which does not exist and a very racist Professor. I do not know if this was to add more diversity for movie audiences. It felt unnecessary just like the fact they made two of the characters substance abusers. Some of the changes felt strange and melodramatic. I was not a fan of but I guess this is what Hollywood wants.

It’s been many years since I’ve seen it but the David Suichet Poirot version was a better adaptation to the novel.

I will watch the next one after it comes out and after I read Death on the Nile. I like whodunit movies on the whole so I welcome the trend for movies.

Watched August 28, 2019.

Recently, I found three Agatha Christie novels that I had bought years ago.

Even though this was one of Christie’s most popular novels, I have managed to be unspoiled. It was well done and genuinely one of the better mysteries and twists I’ve read in a long time.

It is a suspenseful thriller and horror novel. Everyone in the novel is unlikeable and there is no one to truly root for. I usually would not be able to tolerate that. However, Christie makes the novel interesting and quickly develops all the unsavoury characters. I became engrossed in the plot and the whodunit.

This novel is also more gothic and horror filled. I read it before bed which was probably not the best idea. I felt there was more casual racism and misogyny in this novel than other Christie novels. There is a lot of it in general through her novels because she was of the time. This one felt more so especially considering the original title of the book. It has been awhile since I read Christie though.

It was a fast read and a classic in the mystery genre.

Read December 21, 2019.

Part of my spontaneous reading challenge to read children’s books. I have heard about this book growing up. I vaguely remember the 1997 movie but I never watched it. The only time I really became interested was when Studio Ghibli released Arrietty.

I like the descriptions and the world building but the book did not win me over until the last third. I think the movie is better than the book in this case.

I do become more invested in the book by the end and I intend to read the sequels. They are easy to read and I like the light fantasy of this book and others (Indian and the Cupboard was the same). It’s gentle fantasy fiction because it is for children. Fantasy for adults or young adults have become saturated and a bit too overwrought these days. I don’t find it as escapist anymore.

These books are working for me. I think I will try to rewatch Arrietty over the holidays and read the sequels to this book.

Read December 21, 2019

If you read my previous review on Hodgman’s Vacationaland, you would know I am a fan Hodgman. It’s a bit funny because like Hodgman admits in this book, he is not a typical celebrity or famous person. The Judge John Hodgman podcast is my absolute favourite podcast.

I really like Hodgman’s humanistic style. I liked Vacationland too. Hodgman admits that Meallion Status was harder to write and it does show. While I like some of the chapters and the writing style, I found there lacked some cohesion in these stories. It also didn’t help that I heard some of these stories via podcasts. I could tell the author was digging deep to tell these stories. Contrast to Vacationland which was breezier.

I still liked it. I think the stories in Hollywood proper and Maine worked the best. I listened to a few chapters via audiobook which was a pleasure. I will continue to support the author. I hope he keeps writing and finds the right level of fame to go to more secret rooms.

Read and listened to audiobook Dec 16-17, 2019.

When I finished Voracious a few months ago, I was inspired to put a few children’s books on hold. As a kid, most of my non-school book discoveries were self-initiated so I missed out on some of the books below.

Home Price by Richard McClostky

This was a cute one to start off with. It was published in 1943 and has all the references and illustrations from that time. Homer is an industrious young protagonist. I liked that he tamed and kept a pet skunk. The best story in the book is the one about the doughnuts.

Read October 15, 2019

The Boxcar Children by Gertrude Chandler Warner

This was very sweet and nice. It was written in the 1930s. I found it relaxing as the characters were so nice. It may be a bit too cute and idyllic but there is something classically about this children’s book. This was the first one I really wished I had read when I was a kid.

Read October 20-21, 2019

The Indian in the Cupboard by Lynne Reid Banks

I really enjoyed this. It may have even been worth a standalone post. It has a lot of heart and outside from some dated concepts; I actually thought the writer was thoughtful about the character development. Now I’m really curious about the adaptation and the sequels.

Read November 13, 2019

Pippi Longstocking by Astrid Lindgren

I have mixed feelings on this book. It’s not that I did not like it or the characters, but there were times where as an adult, I did not have much patience with Pippi. On the other hand, I do like her. She’s a true rebel and nonconformist. It took me longer to read this book because of it. I think this is a good children’s book but it did not work for as well as the others.

Read November 27, 2019 – December 5, 2019


Overall, I’ve found reading children’s literature really enjoyable as compared to other books. The stories are straight forward and they don’t take as much time. Philosophically, I like the optimism of these books which can be sometimes missing in adult day to day life. I have put more children’s books on hold.

This post contains one spoiler.

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I started this book so I could get rid of it. I bought the book years ago at a used book sale. The paperback is from around 1986. Its pages are all yellow and the spine had already started to come apart. I dug this up from my book stash after dinner at my parents’ home. I am glad I did as the book proved to be engaging.

It moves along at a very steady pace with lots of details of prehistoric times. I liked most of the Clan characters. I even got use to Ayla being basically perfect by prehistoric and modern terms. I liked that with the exception of the villain Broud, the books characters seemed reasonable and human. Like Ayla, I began to love Iza and Creb. I thought those relationships were sweet and real. Ayla’s coming of age, learning, and her trials were decently written and even believable. The pacing is quite good. I read this book once on a weekday night then picked it up before bed on a weekend. I found it hard to put down and finished it in the middle of the night. I actually have not read a book late into the night for awhile. I really shouldn’t read novels like this before bed. It did give me that pleasure of reading a novel that makes you forget your problems and your world.

There was a lot to like about this novel and I look forward to the next book. When it came to how I would rate it, I just couldn’t give it a full four stars. The writing had some deficiencies that I couldn’t ignore. For example, there was a lot of repetition. Ayla is constantly referenced as being “ugly” because she is “Other”/ Cro-Magnon. This is irony as we know Ayla’s blonde and blue-eyed looks are not ugly by modern terms. The author kept hammering that detail. The villain of this novel is a cartoonishly grotesque sociopath who is obsessed with hating Ayla. While there were small attempts to give him more depth, he was just too broadly drawn and lacking rationality in everything. I think it may have been an intentional choice by the author to make him that “backward” but it makes you wonder how the other Clan members could sustain it throughout the years.

The novel had some moments where the omniscient narrator waxed a little too much about how intelligent Ayla is because of her “frontal lobe” and her birth as an Other. That was a bit too modern and superimposed. I did not mind the supernatural or ritualistic aspects, but the science interjections were incongruous to the story especially when it was basically tacked in after one of the character’s point of view.

All in all, these were minor issues. I wouldn’t say this novel is essential reading, but there was a lot of research and effort. I liked the characters and the pacing and setting were relatively well done. I will read the next book, but I may not finish the series as I’ve read the series becomes more of a romance drama with even more anachronistic elements.

Read October 15, 19 into the morning of the 20, 2019.

I think I am going to give up looking for an alternative to Georgette Heyer. Reading this book only made me want to reread Heyer.

This is the second in a series and my library did not have the first. The books seem fairly stand alone and share a cast of central supporting characters.

This book was ok. It wasn’t bad exactly, but it seemed just too frivolous and superificial. I didn’t really like most of the characters and there were too many schemes and comedic elements. Heyer has her faults, but she’s actually good at rounding her characters out quickly. Chesney has too many characters and most of them are jerks or idiots.

I didn’t even care about the central romance in it as I didn’t really like how things kept happening to most of the women. I will say that the novel is short and some of the characters are not bad. As the book was written in the early 1990s, the language and interactions are a little more adult than Heyer’s writings which I appreciated.

I’d give Chesney a try if you are into the comedic Heyer bent. Some Heyer fans will like it. It didn’t work for me.

Read September 24-25, 2019.

Relish

A graphic novel and food memoirs growing up in NYC, Hudson Valley, and Chicago. It includes illustrated recipes and tips. I really enjoyed this little piece especially after I read Bullshit Jobs (which was more intense). I like the artist’s style and storytelling. I will be reading more from her.

Read August 15, 2019

After Relish, I realized that my library had a number of her graphic memoirs so I requested a few and read them during a busy work week time. I had taken a break from the nonfiction I was reading and needed some easy read.

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Avengers: Endgame (04-05 08 2019) – I was thoroughly spoiled, but I haven’t been able to watch it since the release. It was a bit long and it had a bit too much fan service, but it was good for the most part. I think the endings fit for most of the characters except I was not satisfied with two of the most important ones. Oh well. I have my favourites from this series and will follow them through.

TV

“Jack Ryan” Season 1 – I watched most of these episodes as my partner got a Prime trial. We both like John Krasinski and it was a nice to see Abbie Cornish.

What We Do in the Shadows” Season 1 – Funny. Nadja is my favourite. There is some good character work as well in this for a an unconventional comedy. I really enjoyed and am looking forward to the next series. Lately, Taika Waititi can’t do wrong.
Plot, characters, perfect sitcom

This project took me nine years to finish. I knew that it would take awhile going in as it’s made completely from scrap sock yarn that I either used myself, were gifted, or samples.

I made 57 squares for this blanket. I used 54 in a 9×6 quilt. Many of the squares were doubles and they are represented twice on the quilt. All of the yarn had a wool or alpaca percentage at 75% or higher. It weighs almost 1kg.

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I have been due to read a Sandor Katz book for awhile now. I am glad I was able to get the revised edition of this book.

Fermentation has become a hobby of mine for the last few years. I’ve made sourdough, kombucha, milk kefir, water kefir, jun kombucha, sauerkraut, kimchi, and recently started lacto-fermentation of pickles and garlic. On a regular basis, I make jun kombucha at least twice a week and sourdough almost weekly during the cooler months. I drink the kombucha almost daily and when I am not making sourdough regularly, I do buy it from my local bakery.

A few years ago, I noticed that after a morning of drinking kefir, eating sauerkraut, and sourdough bread, my stomach felt great. Not heavy and things felt easy to digest. While I have never been diagnosed with an autoimmune disorder, IBS, digestion issues, etc. I have always had some digestive problems since I was a kid. My father has similar ones and is even more restricted by lactose intolerance. It’s not chronic nor is it persistent on a weekly or monthly basis, but I am the kind of person who gets digestion issues while travelling. At least a couple times of year, I get painful indigestion or food poisoning from eating something that did not agree with me. I guess the microbiome that Dad gave me is not the best. However, I generally eat pretty well and I find that fermented drinks and foods digest well. They do not give me problems.

I liked Katz’s style and ethos about fermentation. He emphasizes that you should keep clean but not sterilized and unlike a lot of other food or beverage books, he does not give you a mandatory list of what you need to get started. I found the book really interesting. There were lots of things I wanted to try and it was very accessible. The book has recipes but there is an emphasis on process rather than strict guidelines. Even the process can be adjusted.

The book has a lot of references and tips from lots of sources. I also really like the reflection about how microbes and bacteria and yeast are all around us. That this biodiversity in our food is important for sustainability in the long run.

I would really like to do a proper full cookbook review where I evaluate some of the recipes, but I do not own this book in book form. I do have an ebook version and will experiment with some recipes.

Read August 27-28, 2019.