Category Archives: Books

A Series of Fortunate Events

Posted on November 19, 2023 by Risa

Night Owl Night, by Susan Edwards Richmond, Illustrated by Maribel Lechuga I have set myself a challenge to write 8 blog posts this month. This amounts to 8 times more than my current running average*. I have a couple of … Continue reading →

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What It’s Like to be a Bird, By David Allen Sibley

Posted on November 19, 2023 by Risa

Back in June I made the excellent decision to retire – good god I’m old – from the best job I’ve had in my entire 30+ year career. I have many things to say about not working in shitty jobs … Continue reading →

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What an Owl Knows, by Jennifer Ackerman

Posted on November 14, 2023 by Risa

In my mind, this book was stacking up to be a dry treatise on the scientific orders* of owls (Tytonidae, the barn owls, and Strigidae, all the other owls). Case in point, it is subtitled “The New Science of the … Continue reading →

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Atlas of the Heart, by Brene Brown

Posted on November 8, 2023 by Risa

My friend CP gives thoughtful gifts. Not everyone fully appreciates the thought behind these gifts, and that’s ok. But if you are looking to build meaningful connection, and you’re not sure about the gift you’ve been given, you may want … Continue reading →

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September 2023 – Hits and Misses

Posted on October 16, 2023 by Risa

Better Living Through Plastic Explosives, by Zsuzsi Gartner Has anyone actually read this book? If so, what is it about???? What I know for … sure? It’s a collection of short stories. Although there is a cross-over scene involving a … Continue reading →

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August 2023 – Checking off items on my reading challenge list

Posted on September 6, 2023 by Risa

It’s a bit late in the year for this, but in order to confirm that I’ve checked items off my 2023 reading challenge, I should probably share what the challenge was that I set for myself! With credit to the … Continue reading →

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July 2023 – Maybe Astronomical End Times will distract me from Contemporary End Times

Posted on August 10, 2023 by Risa

Well, I am still largely favouring fun murder mysteries, however July did see a bit of branching out into adventure, a First Nations reckoning, and the annihilation of the universe! Cool! Furbidden Fatality, by Deborah Blake According to the fun, … Continue reading →

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June 2023 – More murder books? I really need to branch out.

Posted on July 14, 2023 by Risa

Where the Crawdads Sing, by Delia Owens This book is nothing like I expected. Somewhere between the title and the book jacket summary (“for years, rumors of the “Marsh Girl” have haunted Barkley Cove … she has survived for years … Continue reading →

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April & May 2023 books

Posted on June 16, 2023 by Risa

April was a slow reading month so I combined it with May to appear more impressive. Also because I’m a procrastinator. Ottawa Rewind 2: More Curios and Mysteries, by Andrew King Andrew King is an avid amateur historian, whose obsession … Continue reading →

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Mar 2023 books – Quiet, Tranquil, Delicious, and Deadly

Posted on April 13, 2023 by Risa

An eclectic month, in which I surprise myself by reading four books, all very different! Such a Quiet Place, by Megan Miranda Megan Miranda has a style. Her stories often (or even always?) take place in an isolated, sort-of-close-knit community … Continue reading →

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