June and July, 2021: Lyin’ in the sun with your radio

I really think there's nothin' quite so fine
As lettin' the sun rejuvenate your mind
Don't get me wrong, I really dig the moon
But it was four in the afternoon when I wrote this tune

Classic CanCon, lyrics from “Sunny Days” by Lighthouse in case you don’t recognize it. It makes me smile every time I hear it – which, admittedly, is more often in my mind’s soundtrack than in the real world. It’s not deep, there are no hidden meanings I can detect. It’s just pure gratitude in a moment where all is right with the world. Sums up my feelings perfectly on this beautiful early August day in my little corner. 

It’s been a hard go the last bunch of months. The pandemic has not quite run its course, but people’s patience with it has. A family of four was murdered in June in my hometown because of their religion. And across Canada, thousands of unmarked graves of kidnapped indigenous children at government-run schools are finally being found, and a long overdue recognition of our country’s genocide against the First Nations is rippling out into our collective conscious. All this has been weighing on my mind and heart through the past couple of months. 

Today, halfway through a week-long vacation, I felt the sun on my skin and just savoured it. Let it soak in and work its way through all my nerve endings. As the waves lapped and birds chirped, I was nourished by the oasis of peace. I feel grateful for all that is right amongst the ills. It’s good to reflect on the good. I also recognize the incredible luxury and privilege that I have the option to do so. 

Worth reflecting on as well are the many wonderful books I’ve lived in in the last several weeks, whether from the library (such a gift!), borrowed from friends or bought for myself. I’m a lucky, lucky human.

A Murder in Paris  by Blake Pierce. Not starting strong here. Mature lady self-discovery chick-lit meets A Year in Provence meets Murder, She Wrote – but not in a super compelling way. 

The Judas Murders by Ken Oder. Another bit of a clunker but the names in it killed me. The first two characters we meet have the last names Grundy and Mundy.  It’s fiction. The author could choose any names. There is no plot point that it serves. I mean, it just seems careless. Yes, I do get hung up on nonsense like that. 

After You by Jojo Moyes. The sequel to Me Before You and, oh, it’s lovely. I heard that there is a movie coming out; it better treat these precious characters right! 

Recipe for a Perfect Wife by Karma Brown. A NYC career woman leaves her job to write a novel and moves with her husband to suburbia. As she struggles to adjust to this life she’d never intended, she comes across the letters of the home’s former occupant – an ostensibly picture-perfect ‘50s housewife. We then follow both timelines into domestic struggles and dark suspense. Excellent.  

The Couple Next Door by Shari Lapena. Another very good suspense novel, and no – I didn’t really crack whodunnit (or why) until the big reveal. 

Small Game Hunting at the Local Coward Gun Club by Megan Gail Coles. By times, I found this novel hard to follow, requiring a couple of flip backs to keep things straight, but it was absolutely worth it.

Real Men Knit by Kwana Jackson. A delightful knitting cozy.

All the Devils Are Here by Louise Penny. The latest Armand Gamache novel by Louise Penny - as her fans will know, there’s no need to say more. 

Big Summer by Jennifer Weiner. A heckuva good vacation read. 

 Arson at the Art Gallery by Catherine Lee. The promising first instalment of a new cozy series. I’ll definitely read more as they cross my path. 

 Egg Drop Dead by Laura Childs.  Meh. An extremely formulaic cozy, pushing up against my tolerance level.  

 The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins. The prequel to the Hunger Games trilogy. I’d forgotten what a compelling storyteller Suzanne Collins is. I flew through it. 

Murder in the Locked Library by Ellery Adams. I quite enjoy this series, which has a bigger concept than most cozy mysteries. The protagonist is a “Guardian” – owner and steward of a secret, massive and priceless library of books that have survived censorship and the ages – and also runs a hotel retreat for book lovers. Naturally, murders happen, and she and her trusted team solve them. 

Trickster Drift by Eden Robinson. The follow-up to Son of a Trickster, this novel sees Jared get clean and fight to stay on track and away from all forms of supernatural. Because of who he is – and all the magic he’s surrounded by plus his mom’s violent stalker ex – he can’t avoid it forever. 

 Five Little Indians by Michelle Good – Fiction that is so painfully true, this novel should be required reading for every single non-Indigenous Canadian adult. Wrenching and beautifully written. Unforgettable. 

A Lady's Guide to Gossip and Murder by Dianne Freeman. Utterly forgettable. A good rebound novel. 

Resurrection Row by Anne Perry. Turns out, I needed two rebounds after Five Little Indians.

On the Pod:

An actual fresh podcast reco! I know, it’s exciting. I’m starting to leave my neighbourhood again. It’s wild. Anyway, I’ve been getting a huge kick out of – and learning stuff from – Sawbones: A Marital Tour of Misguided Medicine. Hosted by Dr. Sydnee McElroy and her husband, Justin, this podcast takes listeners “on a marital tour of misguided medicine as they discuss the weird, gross, and sometimes downright dangerous ways we tried to solve our medical woes through the ages.” Good stuff!