Monday Malarkey - Recent reads, some arrivals and a bird butt photo

I was getting all set to skip the malarkey and dive into reviews, again, then I realized I've lost my light and can't take interior photos of either of the books I planned to review.  So, malarkey it is.

Bird butts seem like a good place to start.  The mosquitoes are out, now, but I'm still occasionally finding the time to go outside to try to snap bird photos and simultaneously get munched upon.  Above is the first bluejay I've managed to photograph, haha.  Oh, well.  Some days I think bird butts are my specialty.  

Reading-wise . . . 

I had a sick weekend so I pretty much just lolled around in bed, reading till my eyes crossed or I fell asleep. I finished two books, this weekend:

Thinking of You by Jill Mansell - because there's nothing like a little sweetness and light after a week like last week.
What a Mother Knows by Leslie Lehr - about which I have mixed feelings.  It'll be rough reviewing this one.

I also sat on the porch reading Food by Mary McCartney and discussing recipes with the husband whilst sipping coffee and occasionally stopping to admire the birds, last night.  That was fun.  I haven't bothered putting Food in my sidebar but it's really popular in this house. I'm amazed that fights haven't broken out over who gets a turn with the cookbook.

Just walked in:

There have been a few new arrivals but now that I've got a new system for organizing ARCs, I keep hauling them off to put them in the correct stacks so I can't photograph them. However, these are the only two ARCs that arrived.

The Firebird by Susanna Kearsley - for review from Sourcebooks:

A time-slip romance adventure.

Nicola Marter was born with a gift.  When she touches an object, she sometimes glimpses those who have owned it before.  When a woman arrives with a small wooden carving at the gallery where Nicola works, she can see the object's history and knows that it was named after the Firebird--the mythical creature from an old Russian fable.  Compelled to know more, Nicola follows a young girl named Anna into the past.  Anna leads her on a quest through the glittering backdrops of the Jacobites and Russian courts, unearthing a tale of love, courage and redemption.

She Rises by Kate Worsley - for TLC tour:

A panoramic historical novel of love, adventure, and identity—with an astonishing twist.

It is 1740 and Louise Fletcher, a young maid, has been warned of the lure of the sea for as long as she can remember—after all, it stole away her father and brother. But when she is offered work in the bustling naval port of Harwich serving a wealthy captain’s daughter, she leaps at the chance to see more of the world. There she meets Rebecca, her haughty and fascinating mistress.

Intertwined with Louise’s story is that of fifteen-year-old Luke, who is beaten and press ganged, sent to sea against his will on board the warship Essex in the service of His Majesty’s Navy. He must learn fast and choose his friends well if he is to survive the brutal hardships of a sailor’s life and its many dangers, both up high in the rigging and in the dark decks down below.
She Rises brings to vivid life both land and sea in Georgian England, but explores a thoroughly modern and complex love story. Bold, brilliant, and utterly original, She Rises is an accomplished and gripping search for identity and survival.


I've gotten a few books from PBS, as well, but they're scattered.  I've got some major housework to do.

Reading:

I've just started Have Mother, Will Travel by Claire and Mia Fontaine and I'm not far but I have a feeling I'm going to love this mother-daughter travel memoir.

Bad language warning:

I know the language is awful (skip if you're sensitive to bad language) but I loved article from The Onion because it was just so accurate to how I felt about last week:  Jesus, This Week. It was, indeed, a rough week for America but I am pleased to say that I found more positive, uplifting tweets on my twitter feed than . . . you know, conspiracy theories or articles about racists coming out of the woodwork, which was pleasing, although I personally felt like curling up in a ball and wailing when our Congress fell through on background checks.

In case you're an American who thinks the government is trying to mess with your 2nd Amendment rights, please read this article on Amending the Constitution. It's a lot more complex than some people would lead us to believe.

Isabel obviously wants something

She keeps chirping at me, tapping my arm with her paw (I love it when she stretches up on her hind legs and gives me a gentle, "Hey, pay attention to me!" tap) and winding around my legs.  So, I'll leave you with a Doctor Who Revisited trailer .  Tom Baker is our all-time favorite, the Doctor we watched on husband's black-and-white TV in rerun form, Saturday evenings in the dorm.  I am that old.  Unfortunately, we don't have access to BBC America, so someone out there will just have to watch it for me.

Happy Monday!

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