Tampa Bay Noir, edited by Colette Bancroft

Tampa Bay Noir by Colette Bancroft
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

There are short story collections that are mildly interesting, and there are collections that grab the reader's attention and won't turn loose until the last page. Tampa Bay Noir is definitely the latter.

Edited by Colette Bancroft (the book editor for the Tampa Bay Times since 2007), Tampa Bay Noir is one of two books representing Florida in publisher Akashic Books's noir series. (Miami is the other Florida city.) As with the other noir anthologies, this book has all new short stories; these are based in different areas of the Tampa Bay area, mainly Hillsborough and Pinellas Counties. Michael Connelly's "The Guardian," set in Hyde Park, opens the anthology; Tim Dorsey, Lisa Unger, and a host of others add stories/mysteries to this quirky, dark collection, ending with Colette Bancroft's "The Bite."

While some of the stories here may not be for the faint-of-heart, I found the book difficult to put down. Each story, each writer, took the book to another level that ensured that I will definitely put this into my rotation of books-to-reread-and-reread, year after year. It also left me with a list of writers who novels will soon be in my to-be-read pile.

For anyone who has lived in the Tampa Bay area, thought about living here, or just plain wants a book to keep one captivated, Tampa Bay Noir is definitely the book to pick up and read, cover to cover.

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Scout, Atticus, and Boo: A Celebration of Fifty Years of "To Kill a Mockingbird", by Mary McDonagh Murphy

Scout, Atticus, and Boo: A Celebration of Fifty Years of "To Kill a Mockingbird" by Mary McDonagh Murphy
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

When one considers how popular Harper Lee's To Kill A Mockingbird is, it makes sense that someone would write a book celebrating the fiftieth anniversary of its publication. Scout, Atticus, and Boo: A Celebration of Fifty Years of "To Kill A Mockingbird," by Mary McDonagh Murphy is that book.

Murphy explored To Kill A Mockingbird and asked others how Harper Lee's book affected them. While it might be tempting to compare the two books, this would be an injustice to Scout, Atticus, and Boo; it would be analogous to comparing an art appreciation book with DaVinci's work. But Murphy's book does help the reader understand how loved Lee's work is.

Definitely a must read for anyone who has loved To Kill A Mockingbird.

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This is a repost from July 14, 2013.

The Things We Keep, by Sally Hepworth

The Things We Keep by Sally Hepworth
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Some books are great fluff-reads, to be zoomed through (happily) while at the beach, or otherwise taking a "me"-day.

Then, there are the books that wrench one's heart-strings, while staying with you in its profound telling.

The Things We Keep, by Sally Hepworth, is definitely in the latter category.

Thirty-eight year old Anna Forster has been diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer's disease, leading to being admitted to an assisted living facility. There, she meets Luke, who, at 41, also is suffering from the disease. Anna and Luke soon fall in love. While both slowly lose themselves to the disease, Anna tries holding on to the few things she know; this includes her love for Luke.

Eve Bennett suddenly finds herself as a single parent, and takes a job at the assisted living facility that Anna and Luke are in. While she finds their situation sad, she also tries to help the two keep their relationship alive, even as their families try to keep them apart.

However, a tragedy causes the families to try keeping the two apart, and Eve must decide if she wants to help the two remain together. This, too, has consequences, leaving everyone affected in startling ways.

Definitely a must-read, though maybe not as a happy beach-read.

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HardBall, by Sara Paretsky

I've been a fan of Sara Paretsky's V. I. Warshawski series for years. Recently, I decided to read them all in order (or, rather, all of the ones I own; I'm missing Indemnity Only).

Hardball is one of Paretsky's best, up to this point. In this fast-paced novel, V. I. (Vic) Warshawski is hired by two elderly African-American sisters to find missing Lamont Gadsden. The son of one of the sisters, he has been missing for forty years.

Vic also meets her young cousin Petra, a recent college grad who has come to Chicago to work on the campaign of one of her father's friends' son. The likeable Petra wants to connect with Vic, and learn about the Warshawski family.

Several problems arise when it is discovered that Lamont may have been murdered, and that it somehow has connections with local gangs, a murder of a civil rights volunteer, police, politicos, and a nun. At every turn, as Vic struggles to find the truth all the connections, Petra also disappears, and Vic's life almost ends.

Will Vic survive? Will she find Petra, Lamont, and who has left a trail of dead bodies while trying to silence Vic? Read it and find out.

The Divide: a 2700 Mile Search for Answers, by Nathan Doneen

The Divide: a 2700 mile search for answers by Nathan Doneen
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Several years ago, I got hooked on reading about hiking the Appalachian Trail. I had wanted to hike the AP ever since I'd heard about it in my early teens, to the point of mentioning it to my parents.

Fast forward more than two or three decades: Life happened, and, of course, I never got around to that grand hike. Even now, it would be a splendid idea, except...well, you get the idea.

(And for the record, I have read Ben Montgomery's wonderful book, Grandma Gatewood's Walk: The Inspiring Story of the Woman Who Saved the Appalachian Trail, so while I'm quite a bit younger than Grandma Gatewood was when she made her walk, I realize that age is no excuse.)

Recently, I stumbled across The Divide: a 2700 mile search for answers by Nathan Doneen. While it was somewhat different from hiking the AT books (it involves biking the Continental Divide), I was still intrigued. Then I made the mistake of starting to read, and was hooked from the start.

After finishing college, Nathan decided to bike the Continental Divide from Alberta, Canada to Mexico before settling down. The Divide describes his trip, beginning with the first major problem, two miles into the trek. He intersperses his ride with an occasional flash-back to his college studies, and other scenes from his past. While this could have been a distraction, he does it so that it rounds out his story, showing us glimpses of how he got to deciding to ride.

There were only a couple of things here that I found a little distracting. Early on, the word "here" was used for "hear;" however, this may have simply been a glitch, as I was reading this on a Kindle. (I've noticed glitches of wrong words in other books on e-readers, knowing full well that the correct word was used in the hard copy of the same books.) The other was using "that" instead of "who/whom:" "She was someone that loved books;" "He was someone that thought..." I'm sure someone would say that I'm being picky here, and that's fine. But when these are basically the only two things that detract from the book, I can hardly complain.

If you're looking for your next good read, I definitely recommend Nathan Doneen's The Divide: a 2700 mile search for answers.

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Caught, by Jane Schwartz

Caught by Jane Schwartz
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Interesting book that, on the surface, deals with the world of pigeon chasers in Brooklyn during the 1950s. Louie is a young girl who is introduced to pigeons on roof-tops through her brother and brother's friend. When the group is found stealing birds from a man who stole from them, Louie is the only one officially caught, then dragged to the local pigeon store. After this trip, Louie meets up with Casey, who owns a large flock in the neighborhood. The late-30s Casey needs a chaser, and hires Louie on.

The surface story deals strictly with the birds, Louie and Casey's relationship on the roof, and Louie's family's concern about Louie's time on the roof. As with any decent story, though, there are various layers to sift through.

While the ending may be inevitable, the events leading up to the last page will stick with the reader, making this a book to read, set aside, and read again at a later time.

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I originally posted this in 2013. However, the book is definitely worth rereading.

Fire Sale, by Sara Paretsky

Fire Sale by Sara Paretsky

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I had tried reading Fire Sale by Sara Paretsky several years ago. At that time, I didn't get far with the book.

Fast forward to this year when I decided to give it another try; I'm glad I did.

When the girls' high school coach at her old high school has to retire due to illness, V.I. agrees to coach the team. This, in turn, leads her to retail conglomerate By-Smart's headquarters in the hopes of getting funding for her team.

It doesn't take long for Vic to stumble upon shady dealings and dirty actions by the family running By-Smart, causing the family's grandson to go into hiding with one of V.I.'s basketball players.

The twists, turns and backstabbing contribute to the deaths of several people, including the father of one of the players, and putting Marcie Love, Vic's lover ex-lover, in the hospital. Vic also nearly meets her end to keep her silent.

With more twists and turns than a Slinky (or a country road), Fire Sale is definitely must read.

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