I love Amtrak (which is something I might have mentioned before)

I love riding the train to New York or Vermont or wherever* and making friends with my seatmates and the folks nearby. My most recent two adventures led to long discussions with: a professor of English Literature (the Romantic period) from Scotland; a professional rock-n-roll violinist; and a woman who lives less than a mile from my house.

My conversation with the English Literature professor involved us talking about Noel Streatfeild, Frances Hodgeson Burnett, Jane Austen (of course), Georgette Heyer, Josephine Tey*, The Bronte sisters, Agatha Christie, Ngaio Marsh, Dorothy Sayers, George Eliot, Reginald Hill, and World War One. She's not on Facebook or Twitter, but she said she'd check out my blog. So here, my dear new friend, is a post for you, with links galore. Thank you for talking with me on the train. I hope you have a terrific time visiting your friend!!!

*More links to related content contained therein

Banned books I own

 List of the top banned books from 2000-2009, courtesy of the American Library Association:

The ones I own (or my son owns) are bolded

1. Harry Potter (series), by J.K. Rowling
2. Alice series, by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor
3. The Chocolate War, by Robert Cormier
4. And Tango Makes Three, by Justin Richardson/Peter Parnell
5. Of Mice and Men, by John Steinbeck
6. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, by Maya Angelou
7. Scary Stories (series), by Alvin Schwartz
8. His Dark Materials (series), by Philip Pullman
9. ttyl; ttfn; l8r g8r (series), by Lauren Myracle
10. The Perks of Being a Wallflower, by Stephen Chbosky
11. Fallen Angels, by Walter Dean Myers
12. It’s Perfectly Normal, by Robie Harris
13. Captain Underpants (series), by Dav Pilkey
14. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, by Mark Twain
15. The Bluest Eye, by Toni Morrison
16. Forever, by Judy Blume
17. The Color Purple, by Alice Walker
18. Go Ask Alice, by Anonymous
19. Catcher in the Rye, by J.D. Salinger
20. King and King, by Linda de Haan
21. To Kill A Mockingbird, by Harper Lee
22. Gossip Girl (series), by Cecily von Ziegesar
23. The Giver, by Lois Lowry
24. In the Night Kitchen, by Maurice Sendak
25. Killing Mr. Griffen, by Lois Duncan
26. Beloved, by Toni Morrison
27. My Brother Sam Is Dead, by James Lincoln Collier
28. Bridge To Terabithia, by Katherine Paterson
29. The Face on the Milk Carton, by Caroline B. Cooney
30. We All Fall Down, by Robert Cormier
31. What My Mother Doesn’t Know, by Sonya Sones
32. Bless Me, Ultima, by Rudolfo Anaya
33. Snow Falling on Cedars, by David Guterson
34. The Earth, My Butt, and Other Big, Round Things, by Carolyn Mackler
35. Angus, Thongs, and Full Frontal Snogging, by Louise Rennison
36. Brave New World, by Aldous Huxley
37. It’s So Amazing, by Robie Harris
38. Arming America, by Michael Bellasiles
39. Kaffir Boy, by Mark Mathabane
40. Life is Funny, by E.R. Frank
41. Whale Talk, by Chris Crutcher
42. The Fighting Ground, by Avi
43. Blubber, by Judy Blume
44. Athletic Shorts, by Chris Crutcher
45. Crazy Lady, by Jane Leslie Conly
46. Slaughterhouse-Five, by Kurt Vonnegut
47. The Adventures of Super Diaper Baby: The First Graphic Novel by George Beard and Harold Hutchins, the creators of Captain Underpants, by Dav Pilkey
48. Rainbow Boys, by Alex Sanchez
49. One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, by Ken Kesey
50. The Kite Runner, by Khaled Hosseini
51. Daughters of Eve, by Lois Duncan
52. The Great Gilly Hopkins, by Katherine Paterson
53. You Hear Me?, by Betsy Franco
54. The Facts Speak for Themselves, by Brock Cole
55. Summer of My German Soldier, by Bette Green
56. When Dad Killed Mom, by Julius Lester
57. Blood and Chocolate, by Annette Curtis Klause
58. Fat Kid Rules the World, by K.L. Going
59. Olive’s Ocean, by Kevin Henkes
60. Speak, by Laurie Halse Anderson
61. Draw Me A Star, by Eric Carle
62. The Stupids (series), by Harry Allard
63. The Terrorist, by Caroline B. Cooney
64. Mick Harte Was Here, by Barbara Park
65. The Things They Carried, by Tim O’Brien
66. Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry, by Mildred Taylor
67. A Time to Kill, by John Grisham
68. Always Running, by Luis Rodriguez
69. Fahrenheit 451, by Ray Bradbury
70. Harris and Me, by Gary Paulsen
71. Junie B. Jones (series), by Barbara Park
72. Song of Solomon, by Toni Morrison
73. What’s Happening to My Body Book, by Lynda Madaras
74. The Lovely Bones, by Alice Sebold
75. Anastasia (series), by Lois Lowry
76. A Prayer for Owen Meany, by John Irving
77. Crazy: A Novel, by Benjamin Lebert
78. The Joy of Gay Sex, by Dr. Charles Silverstein
79. The Upstairs Room, by Johanna Reiss
80. A Day No Pigs Would Die, by Robert Newton Peck
81. Black Boy, by Richard Wright
82. Deal With It!, by Esther Drill
83. Detour for Emmy, by Marilyn Reynolds
84. So Far From the Bamboo Grove, by Yoko Watkins
85. Staying Fat for Sarah Byrnes, by Chris Crutcher
86. Cut, by Patricia McCormick
87. Tiger Eyes, by Judy Blume
88. The Handmaid’s Tale, by Margaret Atwood
89. Friday Night Lights, by H.G. Bissenger
90. A Wrinkle in Time, by Madeline L’Engle
91. Julie of the Wolves, by Jean Craighead George
92. The Boy Who Lost His Face, by Louis Sachar
93. Bumps in the Night, by Harry Allard
94. Goosebumps (series), by R.L. Stine
95. Shade’s Children, by Garth Nix
96. Grendel, by John Gardner
97. The House of the Spirits, by Isabel Allende
98. I Saw Esau, by Iona Opte
99. Are You There, God?  It’s Me, Margaret, by Judy Blume
100. America: A Novel, by E.R. Frank

Maisie Dobbs is my new obsession

Just finished book 5 this morning. If you haven't read this series, WHY NOT???

What I've been reading, OMG I love my Kindle edition

The latest books in several series came out, and I got 'em that very day sent to my lovely lovely Kindle,

• Nancy Atherton's Aunt Dimity and the Village Witch, which had less Aunt Dimity than usual, but more of the Village, and I think is one of the best entries in this long-running and delightfully cozy series. If you haven't read any of the books yet, start with Aunt Dimity's Death.
• I was super thrilled with the latest books by Margaret Maron and Dana Stabenow, two of my favorite contemporary Mystery authors both had a similar idea: they each write two series and they had the detectives from both series meet and work together! I was particularly happy with how Maron brought together Judge Deborah Knott and Lt. Sigrid Harald in Three Day Town. She hadn't written about Sigrid in a long time, but she was able to interact while still being true to their characters. Stabenow has Sgt. Liam Campbell hire Kate Shugak in Restless in the Grave to investigate a sensitive case that may or may not be murder. Such fun to read while she points up the similarities in their lives.
•  The newest book in the Sookie Stackhouse series by Charlaine Harris, Deadlocked, is good, but not the best in the series. I get the feeling that Harris needs to take a break from these characters so that she can come back to them fresh.
• Insurgent, the sequel to Veronica Roth's dystopian young adult novel, Divergent, came out last week. And it is very good, though less strong than her first book. Very sincere, written in the first-person present, which can be jarring at times, but definitely worth a read.
• Out of the Deep I Cry, the latest in the Clare Fergusson and Russ Van Alstyne series by Julia Spencer-Fleming, satisfyingly solves two mysteries at once. One from the present, and one from the Prohibition Era past. Includes a reminder of why vaccinations are important.

I've also read several non-series books:

• 7th Sigma by Steven Gould - very richly written YA novel about the future old west when a species of metal eating bug makes it impossible for people to use technology in the infested areas.
• I generally love Walter Jon Williams' work, but The Fourth Wall was a difficult read for me. The main character is deeply unpleasant. But it is worth powering through it, because the story is imaginative, intricate, and the unpleasantness of the main character is crucial to the story. Nonetheless, it wasn't a book I think I'll read again anytime soon. Unlike his House of Shards, which I've read several times since I first found it in college.
• And I don't remember if I told you all about One Thousand White Women. It's an historical novel about an historical event that never occured. Written in diary form, it is fascinating, engrossing, and believable. 
• Also, Reginald Hill died recently, and I've been reading and re-reading everything he ever wrote. I can't recommend his work enough. The Woodcutter is his latest, and it was awesome.

Such a cozy room

We've switched things around at Chez Mystere. Last time we were in this house, Mr. Spock had the front room under the eaves for his office. When we were planning our move back, I suggested he use the MUCH LARGER master bedroom for his office instead, so that he could get work done in a large, bright, sunny environment.

The switch has been made and now I sleep in the front room under the eaves, with the bookshelves Mr. Spock built for me (custom-made to fit the sunny alcove in the master bedroom, but they're mine and I'm keeping 'em). I like how when they're stacked like they are, they mimic the shape of the room.

On the shelves are my books (natch); some pictures of me and the family; lotion my mom gave me that I use frequently; a notice about my promotion from a job I no longer have; typewriter bookends my SIL gave us for Christmas a couple of years ago; a Christmas ornament; a set of salt-and-pepper shakers; and a glass owl I inherited from my grandfather. Can you spot the owl?

On the bed are my two quilts (one made by my mom); a picture of Muffin Man; and at least 40 more books. What, you say you can't see the books? Look closely. Still no? They're in the Kindle on the right-most headboard shelf.

Mystery Mommy has a new wardrobe!!

Mr. Spock made the spiffy new header for me. It isn't even my birthday!

We went camping.

Perfect weather. 75 and sunny. Not humid. It rained in the middle of the night. Poured, actually. We stayed snug and dry in the tent. The sun was out and the tent dried completely before we packed it up.

Hotdogs, hamburgers, s'mores for dinner.

Bacon, eggs, and toast for breakfast. And french-pressed coffee. We're not savages.

Farm stands, and diners, and ice cream, and inexpensive gasoline.

Badminton, and batting practice, and Rummy 500, and Labyrinth.

And the views. HOLY GUACAMOLE, the views. Turns out, the Shenandoahs have good reason to be such a big deal, who knew?

Pictures coming later. Both MS and MM took some.

I took along an appropriate book, but I didn't get much chance to read it at the campsite.

I did read some more of The Magician's Nephew to MM.

Neither book I've linked to is the edition I own.

What did you do over the weekend?

Encyclopedia Brown and the Case of the Mysteriously Knowledgeable 8-year-old

I would accuse him of reading ahead, but MY SON would NEVER do THAT.

The Shuttle is available as a free download!!!

Girlie books has it! YAY!!

You may remember that I reviewed The Shuttle two years ago in this space.

It is one of my favorite books of all time, read and re-read and re-re-read. Download it!

The Amazon.com meme

My first order with Amazon.com was placed May 10, 1999. I ordered $102.39 worth of books and cds. Just enough to qualify for free shipping.

In the order was:

• Field of Thirteen by Dick Francis (Hardcover)
• Pete Seeger's Children's Concert at Town Hall
• Steeleye Span's All Around My Hat
• 4 non-Narnia C.S. Lewis books
• The Kinks Lola vs. Powerman and the Money-go-Round
• and Flower Fairies by Louisa May Alcott.

Links will be added later.

It's funny, I didn't remember that these things were in that first order. I still have them all, of course, but I didn't remember that that's when and how I got them. What I DID remember about that order was the bookmark that came with it.

It was a plain cardstock bookmark with a quote from Mark Twain. You know the one:

"Outside a dog, a book is Man's best friend. Inside a dog, it's too dark to read."

Voldemort? That dude is going DOWN!

Demonstrating both a sartorial sense of style and an increasingly evident desire record his silliness for posterity.

Question for you folks

Should I change the name of the blog from Mystery Mommy to Doorbell Queen?

It's been much more politicky here than bookish for a long, long, long time.

What do you think?

You swine!

No, I haven't got it, but many of my friends do, so here is a list of books to read while feeling swinish.

• Josephine Tey, The Franchise Affair. Also, Daughter of Time.
• Georgette Heyer, A Lady of Quality, also Frederica
• Charlaine Harris, Shakespeare's Champion
• Reginald Hill, The Wood Beyond
• J.F. Federspiel, The Ballad of Typhoid Mary
• Laurie Colwin, Home Cooking

Four Years Ago Today

I posted my first blog post. I have loved being here. I love this community and feel like you are all my friends, friends I feel lonely without.



Thank you so much for letting me join you, and making me feel so welcome.

Things that have changed in those 4 years:

• MM is 7! Not 3! He is a fully actualized human being who doesn't need me to wipe his tushy anymore!
• I started a different job, then left work to go back to school, then graduated school and went back to work.
• We moved houses.
• Mr. Spock went from being a community activist to being a candidate to being an elected official and now is an elected official AND a candidate.

Things that have NOT changed:

• I still chew on my fingers.
• Still short!
• MM is still an artistic genius.
• I'm still reading a lot.
• I still am working on that same pair of socks.
• Still loving to visit with you all.

What I wanted to be when I grew up: the first half of a two part question

Gary (AKA Dr. Corndog) asks what I wanted to be when I grew up. Well, for a while there, my dearest ambition was to be taller than my sister. That's the career I wanted, and I wanted it desperately.

I went through a Librarian phase. I still think the librarians at the main branch of the Brooklyn Public Library were the epitome of class and distinction. They could quell you with a look, had an encyclopedic knowledge of all the books on their shelves, and (remembering your likes and dislikes) could unerringly point out the 5 books you should take out this time. Plus, they had those stamps! I remember being taught how to use the card catalog and the disappointment on my favorite librarian's face when I asked her for help finding something if I hadn't used the catalog first. And, of course, Aunt SoLittleAndCute was a librarian. I'd say I only let go of this for real when it was killed off by the disappearance of the card catalog and the stampable cards in the back of the books. So I worked at Murder Ink instead.

Architect was an ambition that lasted a few years until I found out that it was heavy on geometry, which I only passed because my Grandpa tutored me twice a week. My BIL is getting his Master's in Architecture this May. Hooray!

Veterinarian lasted until we had our cat, Meetz, put to sleep. He had a tumor the size of his head in the bone of his shoulder. "When the day comes that he doesn't get up out of bed for food when you run the can opener, it'll be time." said our vet. It was the right thing to do, but I didn't want to have to do it as part of my job. Plus...the whole blood thing. Not so much for me.

Tomorrow, comes part 2 in this 2 part series of "Gary Asks"

If you've got a blog post request, donate to Mr. Spock's campaign and leave a comment here!

Dame Agatha - part 4 in the Genevieve Asks series

Christie was a phenomenally prolific writer: 80 mystery novels! Not to mention plays! Short stories! Romances under a pseudonym! The Guinness Book of World Records calls her the best-selling author of all time - outselling everyone except the Bible 1.

I have read everything she wrote. And I will talk to you here about my favorites.

First, because it's not as well known, Rosemary is for Remembrance (also known as Remembered Death) in which, a year after Rosemary killed herself at her birthday party ("depressed after a bout of 'flu"), the people who were at the party are remembering her death. Her husband decides that he's going to have another party, this time for Rosemary's sister, at the same restaurant...
I have to say that Christie cheats just the squinchiest bit in this book, but I looooove the book very very much.

Another one that is less well known is Death Comes as the End, which takes place in ancient Egypt. Renisenb, newly widowed, has returned to live in her father's house where everything seems just the same...except...does everything stay the same for 8 years? And then her father Imhotep returns from a journey with a new concubine, Nophret, and then it is clear that things have changed quite a bit.

4.50 From Paddington (or What Mrs. McGillicuddy Saw!) is another favorite. What Mrs. McGillicuddy saw on the 4.50 from Paddington was a murder on a train that ran alongside for a few moments. She reports it to some officials, who don't believe her, and then she tells Miss Marple, who does. The best part of this book is Lucy Eylesbarrow. I love her.

N or M? Is a Tommy and Tuppence book that I love.

Please note that while I'm not talking about her most famous stuff, it's not because I didn't love Death on the Nile or Murder on the Orient Express, it's because I'm expecting you to either have read them, seen the movies, or already know about them.

In my opinion, Christie's talent shines best in her short stories. Parker Pyne, Detective is a set of short stories featuring that very remarkable man. The Mysterious Mr. Quin features Mr. Satterthwaite and Harley Quin. The Labours of Hercules is a set of 12 short stories about a challenge Hercule Poirot sets himself. The Tuesday Club Murders is a fun set of stories featuring Miss Marple. And The Golden Ball is a set of stories that have nothing to do with any of those folks.

So pour yourself a nice cup of tea, and pick up a Christie (if it's a used copy from the '50's all the better), and start reading.

And if you've got something you'd like me to post about - donate to MS's campaign and leave me a comment here!

1. Wikipedia (I know, I know, but I gave away my Hubin).

Hello, Ducky! Would you like a cuppa Tey?

And finally, The Singing Sands. Discovered after Tey's death, this is not as strong a book as it might have been had she lived to polish it. Nevertheless, it's a fun book. Grant is going to Scotland to recuperate and finds a dead man on the train. All that is known about the man is that he wrote a scrap of a poem in the margin of his newspaper: "The singing sands that guard the way to paradise". The words haunt Inspector Grant and, instead of spending his vacation fishing with his godson as he had planned, he follows the pull of the poem to discover who killed the man in the train...and why.


Now, about Dorothy Sayers. To be honest, she never grabbed me. I read the series once (while working at Murder Ink) and have never revisited them...Seems like it's time to give her another try. I'm much fonder of her short stories than of her novels and, highly recommend English Country House Murders for an example of a good one. In fact, that whole book is lovely.

Ngaio Marsh, is a great series writer. Her detective, Roderick Alleyn, develops through the series. We see him meet Agatha Troy, fall in love with her, marry her, and become a father. Troy and their son figure heavily in many of the books, including one where there's a bit of "The Man Who Knew Too Much" in the plot. The books take place mostly in England, though Alleyn travels to New Zealand a few times during the series, to the Continent, and also solves a murder on a cruise. One downer note to mention: some of her books have a level of racism that stands out jarringly to a 21st century reader.

Christie tomorrow! Four posts from one question!

Do you have something you'd like me to write about? Donate to the campaign and leave a comment!

How Do I Love Thee? Let Me Count the Teys.

One-one-thousand! Two-one-thousand! Three-one-thousand! Four-one-thousand! Five-one-thousand! Six-one-thousand!

Josephine Tey (AKA Elizabeth Mackintosh) wrote eight books, all of which are just fabulous. I'm unable to pick a favorite, they are all so good and different in their own ways.

The Man in the Queue, her first novel, starts with a killing more mysterious than a locked-room killing. A man is stabbed to death while waiting in line for theatre tickets and, though hundreds of people were around him, no one saw a thing. What follows is a police procedural as fun and well-paced as a vintage episode of Law & Order. Which, if you think about the fact that The Man in the Queue was written in '29, is pretty fireplacing amazing.

I'm not going to talk about A Shilling for Candles because, well, it's her weakest book, and I've only read it twice. Don't start with this one.

My copy of Miss Pym Disposes is falling apart because I've read it so often. Miss Pym has written a very popular book on psychology and has been invited by an old school chum to speak at a women's physical education and physical therapy college. Planning to stay only one night, she finds herself drawn in to the college, covering for a professor on leave, and so is present when one of the students is killed. I love this book. I love Miss Pym. I love the students. I love the other teachers. Tey writes these characters so that they live and breathe.

The Franchise Affair. 'Nuff said.

Brat Farrar. Oh My God. This is just an amazing book. Brat is hailed on the street by a man who has mistaken him for someone else, whom he looks enough alike to be twins. It so happens that the man he looks like lost a twin (probably through suicide, but they never found the body) several years before, and he's very very rich. The lost twin was the elder...can Brat take his place? Even though I know all the twists by heart, I love re-reading this book. LOVE. The by-play, the characters. And you fall in love with Brat, with his sense of adventure and his coming to champion the twin whose place he's taking. READ THIS BOOK.

To Love and Be Wise. A famous radio journalist goes on a trek with a famous artist. The painter disappears. The journalist is suspected. These bare bones become nicely fleshed out under Tey's handling. F'rinstance, one clue that puzzles Inspector Alan Grant is that there is something missing from the artist's paint box. What was it? What would have that size and shape? This is just a lovely book.

The Daughter of Time. Inspector Alan Grant is sick in the hospital, and his friend brings him portraits of famous criminals of history. One face stands out to him as being wrong for the crime he was accused of. And thus Inspector Alan Grant sets out to prove that King Richard the Third did NOT kill the princes in the tower. In this book, Alan Grant, like Nero Wolfe, has all the information brought to him, because he can't leave his bed. Delicious.

The Singing Sands. I'll talk about this one more tomorrow!

Blogging for Donations: Murder Ink

Genevieve asks:

Please post about how you ended up working in the mystery bookstore, and your time there, including any specific ruminations on Josephine Tey, Dorothy L. Sayers, Ngaio Marsh, and maybe Agatha Christie - Tey and Sayers thoughts appreciated most, so if more detail on them means nothing on Marsh and Christie, that'd be fine.

I was working at a bookstore in Park Slope (Booklink, now defunct), and was the mystery, science fiction, and children's literature maven. I wrote little recommendations and put them up on the shelves. My co-workers were more into poetry and non-fiction with the occasional foray into serious literature. They wrote little recommendations, too. We sold books to Paul Auster and Andrea Dworkin...they lived in the neighborhood.

One day, I was headed up town to the movie theatre I used to work at, Loews 84th Street, to say hi to my former co-workers and maybe catch a movie. I missed my stop at 72nd (reading!) and stayed on the train to 96th to walk back downtown. And then...I saw it...

(Picture from The Gothamist) *

What is Ivy Books in this picture was a liquor store then. The red awning of Murder Ink stood out between the liquor store and a laundry. I never knew such a thing existed. A whole store of nothing but mysteries. I was in heaven.

I walked in right then and asked for a job. And bought 5 books. From Ann Romeo, who's read everything and is a walking encyclopedia of crime fiction.

I was hired a few weeks later. Jay Pearsall didn't have enough hours for me to be full-time, so I also worked for Murder Ink's sister store, The Traveler's Bookstore, down in Rockefeller Center. That was fun, but not as fun as Murder Ink.

God, I loved working there.

Eventually, I got the manager's slot at Murder Ink and began to work there full-time. I flirted with Leon, the UPS man. I wrote reviews for the catalog, I shelved books, and read more than I ever have before or since - discovering authors I'd never heard of before. I sold books to movie stars (actually, that last one was at Traveler's), and schmoozed with authors. But the best part (aside from meeting Mr. Spock) was recommending new authors to people....

And I will talk more about those authors tomorrow night, in the next chapter of Genevieve Asks About Murder Ink.

*If you watched Law & Order in the '90's and saw the episode called "Mayhem" you would have seen Murder Ink playing the part of a gay bookstore. You can spot the gun logo on signs in the background while Briscoe and Logan are interviewing Mr. Hexter's boyfriend.

To the tune of "What shall we do with the drunken sailor"

What shall we do for MM's birthday?
What shall we do for MM's birthday?
What shall we do for MM's birthday?
That isn't too expensive

Ooh! Hey! That's a doozy
Ooh! Hey! That's a doozy
Ooh! Hey! That's a doozy
For a kid with thirty buddies

Take a small group to go skating
Take a small group to go skating
Take a small group to go skating
But he has thirty buddies

Take a small group to build with Lego
Take a small group to build with Lego
Take a small group to build with Lego
But he has thirty buddies

We could take a small group to go swimming
We could take a small group to go swimming
We could take a small group to go swimming
But WOW, that's kinda pricey

Alas, the laser tag place went bankrupt
Alas, the laser tag place went bankrupt
Alas, the laser tag place went bankrupt
Oh! Hey! They re-opened! (higher prices tho)

We could do it in the house if I cleaned it
We could do it in the house if I cleaned it
We could do it in the house if I cleaned it
But, I'd have to clean up again after*

His birthday is in 3 weeks, so the park is out
His birthday is in 3 weeks, so the park is out
His birthday is in 3 weeks, so the park is out
Alas for winter birthdays

So, what shall we do for MM's birthday?
What shall we do for MM's birthday?
What shall we do for MM's birthday?
That isn't too expensive