Wonderful Wordy Wednesday

Hello, the really hot weather is back and also very humid so there is an excessive heat warning in place for a couple of days. Not doing much outside as I don't do well with this type of weather. The worst is supposed to be over by the weekend. Following that the extended forecast looks for more reasonable temperatures. I hope so!

So that means staying inside and reading, plus a bit of knitting as well. A friend gave me yarn that is too thick for hats, so knitting scarves instead. 

I did a serious scrub of my TBR list in the last week and dropped it from over 250 to about 190. I found multiple duplicates, books I had already read and I checked to see if the local library system had the books. For the books that were on the fence to keep on the list I read the plot synopsis and looked at the classification if it was fiction, non-fiction, mystery, thriller etc. That help weed out a few more books too.

The Lunar Housewife was inspired by the CIA's use of literary and arts publications to promote the US way of life. Based in 1953-1955 shows also the male dominance of publishing to the point even stories written by women were published with male bylines. A novel within a novel, Louise who is writing and trying to get her novel published feels like she and her editor boyfriend are being watched and manipulated by outside forces.

The Woman in the Library I couldn't get into this book. I tried to start it one evening and it wasn't gelling, so I tried again the next day when I wasn't tired. Still nothing for me. Basic plot is four people at the Boston Public Library reading room, friends, but one of them is a murderer.

The Death of Mrs Westaway another goodie from Ruth Ware. Harriet (Hal) Westaway is struggling to make ends meet when she gets a letter in regards to an inheritance. She doesn't think they have the correct party but figures maybe she could pretend and at least get a little bit of money. She gets a lot more than she expects.

Be My Baby is a memoir written by Ronnie Spector who was the lead singer for the Ronettes in the 1960s. Phil Spector had a huge impact on her career and life as they were also married. The bulk of the book covers her early performing life and relationship / marriage to Spector. Originally written in 1990 the book was updated with a postscript as of November 2021 and she died in January of 2022.