D is for Deadbeat by Sue Grafton

 Still suffering from Covid AND laid up with a very painful left knee, I sought comfort in yet another lightweight mystery. It was not the most pleasant of milieus, however, and I was a little relieved to have it be done. This "deadbeat" is an alcoholic who killed people in a car crash. Kinsey's attempt to solve his murder by drowning when the police didn't even count it as a murder, took her into unsavory places and people. There is though, despite the seedy characters, Kinsey's usual humor and cynicism to enjoy. Her relationship with policeman Jonah Robb heats up, and she has a harrowing experience at the very end, at the top of a building trying to talk the murderer down. This is a story where her epilogues are too brief! I really wanted to know how she got down off that building. I wanted to know how the characters left behind dealt with this tragedy. But no, her epilogues are brief and to the point. They may be alluded to in the next installment, but maybe not. We shall see!

Atomic Habits by James Clear

 There are a million great ideas in this book!

I took it slowly because there is so much to digest. My biggest take-away, though, is that habits are best formed when they become a part of our identity. In other words, even if you don't work out, or only go to the gym for five minutes, and you do it every day, you begin to realize you are a person who goes to the gym. Your identity changes and pretty soon, your consistency helps you change your self-perception. There are many other great ideas here.

Here's another one. If you want to start a new habit, link it to an existing one. 

And another--you must create a system in order to succeed. In other words, create the environment for your success. Put your chairs in a conversational circle, not facing the TV if you want to spend more time talking with your family, for example. This is reminding me that I need to reread this again and get more nuggets out of here! 

This book is also richly infused with motivating and interesting vignettes of real people and examples. It's a very enjoyable read! But I need to read it more intentionally, and not in bed when I'm ready to go to sleep! It's more valuable than that...

C is for Corpse by Sue Grafton

 While reading this engaging little mystery, I suffered, and I do mean suffered, from my first case of COVID. It was nice to have such a fun diversion. I'm still in the throes of it, but can at least function and while I'm confined to home, I'm determined to keep up with this documentation.

Like the first two in the series which I read in the 80s, I had practically no memory of this story. It was like reading it for the first time, although Jonah and Henry are familiar characters. In this installment in Kinsey's life, a young man named Bobby hires her to find out who tried to murder him. And soon after getting to know and like him, he is murdered. The setting is more enjoyable than most, because it turns out that Bobby's family is RICH, and some of the action takes place in his beautiful home.

All is not pretty in the family, however, and the scenes with Bobby's stepsister, Kitty, are very depressing. Yet they are real, as she suffers from anorexia and drug addiction. The level of dysfunction in the family is high, and Kinsey's feelings of shock and dismay are relatable. 

A side story is a bittersweet one, where Henry has fallen for a very attractive and hilariously described (by Kinsey, of course) shyster. It's satisfying that Kinsey caught her and got Henry's money back, but the disappointment in Henry is touching. All in all, a good diversion, good laughs, and not too much gore. 

B is for Burglar by Sue Grafton

 This one was a fun one, but also kind of depressing. Not one of my favorites, although I did literally laugh out loud several times. What was depressing was the story; a missing woman that Kinsey has to fly to Florida several times to track down, and then has to investigate an older Santa Teresa murder to dig up some evidence on the missing woman. The housing and situation of the people is dark and dank and not a fun world to inhabit. Still, Kinsey's humor shines through.

A significant introduction in this story is that of Jonah Robb, who becomes a good help to her in solving this case and in later ones as well. One thread from A is for Alibi that shows up in this one is that crusty old Lt. Dolan asks Kinsey how she's coping with the aftermath of shooting in self-defense. 

Again, moments in this story had me laughing out loud. I'll have to mark them sometime so I can remember some examples. Right now (Covid brain?) I can't even exactly remember how the case all came together and who was whom. Sheesh. But it was a fun read, that I DO remember!

A is for Alibi by Sue Grafton

I enjoyed this author so much when I read it in the 1980s, that I decided to start at the beginning again and see where it leads. I love the wit, don't mind the violence too much, and really enjoy the colorful characters. This one is the first in the series, and it seems Grafton was already fully developed in her ideas and writing. I wonder if I'll notice any progression this time through?

This is the story of a woman out of prison who was accused of murdering her husband. She hires Kinsey to find the real killer. Through this story, we are introduced to her landlord Henry and some of her business associates. I didn't remember much about this novel at all, and was horrified that Kinsey was dumb enough to sleep with one of her suspects. The folly of that was borne out when he chased her down, and in high drama, attempted to kill her as she crouched in a garbage can on the beach. Instead, she shot him. What became a pattern in all of the novels is that there is an exciting ending, and then a very brief epilogue. We aren't told very much about how things unwound or came out, which makes the reader curious about the next installment. Threads of the previous stories are woven through later novels, so it will be interesting to see if any of these characters are referred back to later.

The Grafton/Milhone wit was fresh and funny and in full splendor in this beginning book of the series. It was good to be back in Santa Teresa, a place she describes really well. What I also noticed this time around is the absence of technology and how that affects her detective work. She's using phone books and libraries to get the job done. It's like a time capsule. 

Brian's Winter by Gary Paulsen

 In an interesting departure from a series, Paulsen kind of negates the ending of the first book and the second book in the series (The River) by back tracking and speculating on what would have happened if Brian, the 13-year old who was the central figure in The Hatchet had not been rescued. What if he had had to have stayed through the winter? This book answers that question.

I enjoyed this one much more than The River because it was more like the first book, with details about exactly HOW Brian managed his resources and was able to survive. I liked how Paulsen continued to show us Brian's thinking and analyzing throughout the story so we could figure things out along with him. And, he had an interesting rescue experience that was unexpected as he found a trapper's family who took him in. It would have been interesting to read more about that experience, but maybe youth lit has to end before too many pages? Whatever. At any rate, this one is good, with beautiful descriptions of winter's beauty in the wild. I'll take it with me to Rapid at the end of the month for John and Henry to enjoy. 

Seven at Sea by Erik & Emily Orton

 I saw this book on a list somewhere that praised the writing of this husband/wife team who take their family of five children on a months-long sailing adventure. It sounded like an interesting read and it was.

This family is LDS, although it's not overtly stated. You can just tell by some of their practices, and their desire to be a strong family comes through. What is most emphasized, though, is the struggle. The struggle to learn what they need to learn to make their dream come true.

There are other struggles. Erik and Emily take turns writing the chapters that tell the story. It's obviously Erik's dream to sail and take the family off on a long sailing adventure. We learn about Emily's struggle to keep her family safe AND support Erik's dream. She does a good job of making it her dream too, by enjoying the closeness that this potential lifestyle will afford their family.

It's not a sugar-coated story. We learn how hard it is to manage five children, the youngest with Down Syndrome, on a sailboat. We learn how husbands and wives can have communication problems. We see how ego can stand in the way of learning. We learn about all sorts of boat engine problems, as well as safety issues. We learn how hard it is to manage a family's needs for water and food and finding and stowing the supplies. It was often a very exhausting read for me, as I pictured what all went into this adventure. 

Yet, despite the hardships and the struggles to learn, we also see the resulting growth in individuals in the family. We also learn about the kindness of strangers and the support of friends and extended family. It's good to see how much help is given and especially how help is given freely. Overall the learning and the rewards are worth it, at least in the eyes of the authors. The epilogue describes their ongoing adventures, although they are not cruisers, per se, any longer. 

I enjoyed the descriptions of the weather and the challenges it brought, and how close living that way brings out one's character. Erik, in particular, as captain of the boat, had to rise to every challenge to save his family. It was good to watch him learn as he went, the hard lessons of leadership.