The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman

 I happened to be in St. George's Barnes & Noble shortly before a trip to Rapid City. I realized I could use a light, fun read on the flights. As I picked this book up, the cover and font spoke "fun" and "intelligent" to me. I read the blurbs and they reflected my first impression. Was it worth the risk to pay full price? I decided it was!

I'm so happy I did! It's a fun read with many wise and serious overtones about growing older, about being needed, and about happiness and loneliness. Along the way there are fun and interesting characters and a complicated plot with several murders. The writing is intelligent and intriguing. I found it took all my concentration to keep the characters straight, but I did!

The winding up chapters resolved the many issues and questions raised, and cemented the fact that the police investigators and the elderly detectives would go on to solve more cases. Watching their trusting relationship grow was one of the delightful aspects of this book.

I also enjoyed the fact that even though the content dealt with several murders, there was little gore or violence that I often see in the mystery genre. This was a like a "comfort mystery"... I seem to be drawn to British authors and settings and this was one of the more enjoyable ones. Now I'm torn between reading it again since I enjoyed it so much or immediately shipping it off to Leslie Polson who shares my taste in humorous stories and characters. Actually this is humor of the best kind; poignant and humane. I enjoyed it so much that even my five and a half hour delay at the Rapid City Airport was not a problem. I just read and enjoyed and waited for the next announcement! That's a good test of holding my interest, for sure! I wasn't even worried and decided if we went, great, and if not, I would enjoy another day or three with Sierra's family. As it turned out, we went, and I got to finish the book in flight. 

Blue Shoe by Anne Lamott

 I read Bird by Bird by this author years ago, and really enjoyed it. When Len and I were at D.I. this week, I looked for something interesting to read and found this one for $1.00 and decided to give it a try. Lamott's writing is wonderfully vulnerable, introspective, and insightful. These little sparks of beauty keep popping up, and are so enjoyable. And her similes are always simple and powerful. Her writing is just GREAT! 

This story is somewhat seedy, though. Lots of sexual malfunctioning resulting in pedophilia, dark secrets, and various other mental maladies. Yet there is a faith and hope that shines through, probably because Lamott's faith is strong. She shows her characters' real selves, warts and all, and they are rendered with compassion. Hurt people hurt people is evident here; that kind of compassion.

Occasionally the main character, Mattie, seeks divine help. I really liked the natural way that she asks for help and in turn follows the promptings given, even when difficult. At the end of the book, when she doesn't want to wash someone's filthy feet, she struggles, and she does it. She renders her faith beautifully and strongly. It's also kind of unusual for a story to elucidate some of the devotion and preaching that the characters hear in church, but it's shared here to great and direct effect. We can see the desire to be in church to become better; to believe and act better. There's a purity here that is refreshing. There is no judgment or self-righteousness.

The characters are real and interesting and heart-breaking. In particular, Mattie's relationship with her mother is multi-faceted and mysterious. The mental decline is described in very real yet compassionate terms. Mattie's quest to get to know her dead father and to know what her mother knows about him is the thread that the story hangs on. I could tell it wasn't going to end well, yet the story is told with compassion and even beauty. 

What we really get here is a story of human frailty, of human pain, and of human goodness. The agony that Mattie's children suffer because of her divorce is alternately funny and tragic. Lamott does a good job of keeping the pain light sometimes, so we don't drown in it. The real feelings and real suffering in a family, especially a divorced family is beautifully shown here. 

Lamott seems to know what makes people tick and reveals it sympathetically. Mattie's goodness and generosity is simple and powerful. I especially liked the part when she decides to simply tell the truth about all the complicated relationships swirling around her. She follows her good instincts, too, about not sharing her feelings with Daniel before its time. I enjoyed reading about her inner struggles and could definitely relate to them. Her closeness to and acceptance of her children were inspiring. More than once, I thought, I'd like a "do-over" with my children. 

Another aspect of this book I enjoyed was the northern California, Marin County, setting. The weather and garden were often described in beautiful terms...