The History Book Club discussion

Doris, this is your thread for 2018. I have included the link to the required format thread and an example. If you had a 2017 thread - it will be archived so when you get the opportunity move over your completed books and formats to the 2018 thread - but we will allow time for you to do that.

Please follow the standard required format below - I hope you enjoy your reading in 2018. Here is also a link for assistance with the required guidelines:

Link: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

Our Required Format:

JANUARY

1. by Winston S. Churchill
Finish date: January 2018
Genre: (whatever genre the book happens to be)
Rating: A
Review: You can add text from a review you have written but no links to any review elsewhere even goodreads. And that is about it. Just make sure to number consecutively and just add the months.

IMPORTANT - THE REVIEW SHOULD BE SHORT AND SWEET - THERE ARE NO LINKS OF ANY KIND IN THE BODY OF THE REVIEW ALLOWED. NONE. DO NOT REFER TO ANY OTHER BOOK IN YOUR BRIEF REVIEW. THE ONLY BOOK CITED IN YOUR REVIEW IS THE ONE YOU ARE REVIEWING - NO OTHERS. ALL LINKS TO OTHER THREADS OR REVIEWS ARE DELETED IMMEDIATELY - THERE WILL BE NO WARNING. WE CONSIDER THIS SELF PROMOTION AND IT IS NOT ALLOWED AND IS IN VIOLATION OF OUR RULES AND GUIDELINES.

Doris, I believe you are new to these threads - we are here to help you with the standard format which once you get it under your belt is extremely easy. Check out the How To thread because it gives you all of the details you need to be successful. It takes everybody a couple of entries to get the knack and you can always rely on looking back at the example in comment box one if you forget.

We are here to help and hope you enjoy your thread in 2018.

Regards,

Bentley

Thanks, Bentley.

JANUARY

1. by Georgette Heyer
Finish date: January 2, 2018
Genre: Mystery
Rating: A-
Review: An entertaining mystery, with a cordially disliked victim. I do wish that Heyer didn't always feel obliged to build a romance into her mysteries, though

2. by Ernest Hemingway
Finish date: January 3, 2018
Genre: Memoir
Rating: B
Review: First time I've read anything by Hemingway: if this is typical, I don't think I've missed much. His (and his editor's) disdain for punctuation definitely grated on me, and I found his writing choppy and repetitive.

I did enjoy hearing about Paris of that era, and about Gertrude Stein and F. Scott Fitzgerald, so it wasn't a complete waste.

3. by Ngaio Marsh
Finish Date: January 4, 2018
Genre: Mystery
Rating: B
Review: Classic English country house murder, (view spoiler)[with a thoroughly implausible murder method (hide spoiler)]. First in Marsh's Roderick Alleyn series (indeed, I believe it's her first published book): I've heard she gets better.

4. by Rita Mae Brown
Finish date: January 6, 2018
Genre: Mystery
Rating: D
Review: Number 14 in Brown's Mrs. Murphy mysteries (Mrs. Murphy being a cat).

This... just didn't make sense.
(view spoiler)[
Harry's ex decides to kill not just one, but two people, for not better reason than that he wants to frame Fair and presumably drive Harry back into his arms? And then decides to come after her instead when he realizes that his plan has failed? I don't think so.

And what about the first murder? That is just brushed under the carpet, with no real motive given. And how did the murderer come to bury the body in Harry's peach orchard?
(hide spoiler)]

5. by Jean de Brunhoff (no photo)
Finish date: January 10, 2018
Genre: Children's classic
Rating: A
Review: Charming, and a gentle workout for my French.
Incidentally, I'm not in the habit of reading children's picture books (not even to keep my French up to snuff), but this was to satisfy one of the tasks in Book Riot's Read Harder Challenge.

6. by Jacqueline Winspear
Finish date: January 11, 2018
Genre: Historical mystery
Rating: B-
Review: Number 10 in the Maisie Dobbs series. This is a very uneven series, and this was one of the less satisfying entries, although I've already forgotten why.

7. by Mary Healy
Finish date: January 14, 2018
Genre: Scripture
Rating: A+
Review: Excellent commentary: Healy addresses historical and social context and translation issues as well as situating the text in the full context of Catholic teaching and liturgy.

8. by Clara Benson (no photo)
Finish date: January 14, 2018
Genre: Historical mystery
Rating: C
Review: Awfully transparent: I could tell right away who the murderer had been.
(view spoiler)[In fact, it was *so* very transparent that I thought I must be wrong and that the author was going for a 'Murder of Roger Ackroyd' solution.

The ending was also a let down: I was also rather disappointed that MacMurray and wife were going to end up with Sissingham Hall & Sir Neville's fortune immediately rather than later. And whatever happened with Joan and Simon Gale?
(hide spoiler)]

9. by Paul Roberts
Finish date: January 21, 2018
Genre: Agriculture, public policy
Rating: B+
Review; A detailed and frequently frightening examination of the modern industrialized food chain.

10. by Jung Chang
Finish date: January 24, 2018
Genre: Biography
Rating: B-
Review: Less a biography and more a compendium of Mao's greatest atrocities. The only redeeming characteristic which is attributed to Mao is that he loved his mommy, and even that was apparently included just so that the authors could subsequently tell us that, despite this love, Mao declined to visit his mother while she was dying so that he could remember her as young and beautiful. The authors' unmistakeable bias makes it hard for me to take this entirely seriously, and I find myself wanting a more balanced view. This Mao has no friends, only reluctant and/or fearful allies, and it's not at all clear why anyone would have loved him (although we're assured that his daughters and at least two of his four wives did).

That said, it *is* a detailed picture of modern Chinese history and it's fascinating to watch Mao manipulate people and events for his own purposes, which is why I've rated it as highly as I did.

11. by Jacqueline Winspear
Finish date: January 26, 2018
Genre: Historical mystery
Rating: B+
Review: Number 11 in the wildly uneven Maisie Dobbs series.

This was very much a departure in the series: it takes place (well-)outside London and with the usual supporting cast; e.g., Billy, Frankie, Priscilla; conspicuous by their absence. The political atmosphere is also kicking up: while previous books have alluded to the rises of both Communism and Fascism, this one, confronting the Spanish Civil War, plunges headlong into the politics. It also played up very strongly for me my near-complete ignorance about the Spanish Civil War.

My main problem with this one is Maisie herself: roughly 1 1/2 years later, she's still mourning James's death and the death of their unborn child, and frankly, she's being pretty goopy about it. Some of my problem here stems from the fact that I never quite bought her 'romance' with James Compton: it always sounded to me more like a 'friends with benefits' arrangement, at least from Maisie's point of view (and yes, I realize how thoroughly anachronistic that is). It doesn't help that the marriage itself, as well as James's death and the resulting miscarriage (still-birth?) happen basically 'off-screen'.

Maisie's goopiness aside, though, I was held by the story, and it bodes well for future episodes.

12. by Christianna Brand
Finish date: January 27, 2018
Genre: Mystery
Rating: C-
Review: I managed to read half of this without realizing that I had read it before: that's how memorable it is. (I only caught on when I was adding it to my 'currently reading' list.)

An implausible mystery; (view spoiler)[ we are asked to believe that someone can suddenly become a homicidal maniac without being aware of the fact. (hide spoiler)]

13. by Robin LaFevers
Finish date: January 29, 2018
Genre: historical fiction, fantasy
Rating: B-
Review: The third book in the My Fair Assassin trilogy, set in medieval Brittany.

This was very slow to get started, and the ending, when it finally came, was far too pat.

My goodness - what a start - great job with the format

Bentley wrote: "My goodness - what a start - great job with the format"

Thanks, Bentley. I had some catching up to do, as you can see!

14. by Barbara Euphan Todd (no photo)
Finish date: January 30, 2018
Genre: Fiction
Rating: A-
Review: Miss Ranskill went on a cruise to celebrate 'peace in our time' and ended up falling overboard and washing up on a (nearly) deserted island where she was rescued by The Carpenter. At the start of the book, some 3-4 years after she arrived on the island, The Carpenter (whose name is actually Reid) has just died. Miss Ranskill sets out in the ship they had built and is rescued by a convoy that returns her to blitz-ridden England.

She has come home to rationing of both clothes and food, blackout shades, air raids, and all the general paranoia and upheaval of war. Her initial disorientation is both slyly funny and rather sad, and in her gradual reorientation, she reveals her impatience with self-martyrdom that rationing has created in her fellow Englishmen and women. E.g., rather than painstakingly doling out her week's butter ration in transparent scrapings, she prefers to enjoy it all at one sitting and then go without for the rest of the week. She also delights in going shoe-less whenever she can get away with it.

I'm a little disappointed that we see The Carpenter only in flash-backs: he's a much more interesting character than most of the other people we see Miss Ranskill deal with in England.

You are off to a good start

Thanks for fixing the format

Bentley wrote: "Message 18 - Place the Review: line right underneath the Rating: one - no blank line between the two.

You are off to a good start"
Whoops! Fixed

FEBRUARY

15. by Cary Elwes
Finish date: February 2, 2018
Genre: memoir, movies
Rating: A-
Review: Gossipy and sweet. There is no dirt being dished here: everyone involved was uniformly even-tempered, smart, talented, funny....
Now I need to go watch the movie again.

16. by Giovannino Guareschi
Finish date: February 3, 2018
Genre: fiction, humor
Rating: A
Review: Don Camillo is the parish priest in a small village in the hills of Italy in the years after WWII; Peppone is the Communist mayor and Camillo's frenemy. This series, a collection of linked short stories and vignettes, was a great favorite of my mother's, and I read the books for the first time back in the 60s.

I love the depiction of village life and the relationship between Camillo and Peppone, who, though ideologically at opposite ends of the spectrum, nonetheless are similar in their ideals and wishes for the village.

I also love Camillo's relationship with Christ: Camillo talks with the crucified Jesus on the altar, and Jesus replies. (Mostly to gently chide Camillo and remind him of what he already knows.)

Good progress Doris.

17. by Georgette Heyer
Finish date: February 5, 2018
Genre: romance, historical fiction
Rating: C
Review: I'm a great fan of Heyer's Regency romances and her mysteries: many of them I've read upwards of a half-dozen times. This one, though, while still a romance, skews more towards straight-up historical fiction. In my view, it's less than successful; certainly, it's not destined to join the ranks of the re-read.

The first chapter sets the stage: more than a dozen names are thrown at us, without much context or identification. As the novel goes on, we start to find out who (some of) these people are, but even towards the end, there were names that had me thinking, "Wait! Who is this again?" It may be the case that the people (and place names) would have been more familiar to me if I were British and had learned about Waterloo in school. As it was, though, I was baffled.

The description of the actual battle at Waterloo was obviously exhaustively researched: Heyer was in fact quite ostentatious in displaying her erudition. She learned a lighter touch in subsequent books. But even here, I was frequently at a loss. I don't speak 'military'. What, for instance, is the distinction that the hero, Charles Audley, is making when he says of himself, "my army rank lieutenant-colonel; my regimental rank, major"? And what about all these regiments and corps and battalions? After a while, I started to just skim.

As for the romance, there, too, I was less than enthralled. Barbara Childe, the putative heroine, is a overgrown spoiled brat, and Charles Audley deserves far better. I did not at all enjoy watching Barbara toying with him, and I was impatient with Charles for playing doormat.

I did enjoy re-encountering Judith and Worth, and Perry and Harriet, though there seemed to have been little growth in their characters.

18. by Jacqueline Winspear
Finish date: February 6, 2018
Genre: historical mystery
Rating: C-
Review: I've been finding this to be a very uneven series. However, the previous book in the series (see message #11 above) was a promising entry, so I approached this one with optimism, only to be disappointed.

Maisie has finally returned to England and in short order is recruited by Special Services to go to Munich disguised as the daughter of a Nazi-imprisoned industrialist/inventor named Donat to bring him back to England. So far, so good. (view spoiler)[But Otterburn, whom she holds responsible for the death of a friend from a few books back, finds out about this highly secret and delicate operation, and corners her to ask her to find his daughter, who oh so conveniently just happens to have abandoned husband and child to decamp to Munich. Said daughter, Elaine, is not a favorite of Maisie's, either. And, despite the fact that Maisie has been insistently told how precarious her mission is and how important it is that it be carried out promptly, she lies to her handlers about this request, and once in Munich, she breaks her cover to meet with Elaine. That this has little by way of repercussion doesn't change the fact that it was a blindingly stupid thing to have done. Travelling with her passport in her real name wasn't a bright move, either. Maurice should be ashamed of how badly he trained her. (hide spoiler)]

It's hardly a spoiler to observe that all turns out well in the end, and both Donat and Maisie make it back to England. I didn't find much to like in this book, and I'm starting to wonder if C- isn't too generous.

19. by O.Z. Livaneli
Finish date: February 7, 2018
Genre: biographical fiction
Rating: A-
Review: Yay! I've finished my second book in Turkish!

This is a biographical novel about Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, putatively narrated by his lifelong friend, Salih Bozok. Bozok, unfortunately, is really a jerk. At the start of the book, he's in Dolmabahçe Sarayı and Atatürk is on his deathbed. Bozok has decided that he will kill himself as soon as Atatürk dies, so he has his son taken out of school and brought to him, he tells his son of his impending suicide, and then sends the kid back to school! The rest of the book is framed as his extended suicide note to his son, explaining why Atatürk is so important to him that he feels he can't go on after Atatürk dies.

The story of their first meeting reinforces the impression of Bozok as a jerk. He and Mustafa are students at the same religious school, and one day, before class, the students are roughhousing and Bozok knocks over the stand where the Qur'an resides, sending it to the floor. Before things can be set aright, the teacher enters. Not unreasonably, the teacher demands to know who's responsible for this sacrilege. Bozok, cowardly twerp that he is, remains silent, and instead, Mustafa steps forward to take the blame, explaining that it was an accident. The teacher apparently knows he's being lied to, and questions this account. No one else speaks up, however, so the teacher takes Mustafa off for his punishment: caning the bare soles of his feet. Mustafa has to be carried home, and is seemingly bedridden for several days. Bozok? Still doesn't say anything, at least not to the teacher, but shows up at Mustafa's home with a peace offering of herbs to help the healing. Why Mustafa befriends this little dweeb is beyond me.

The book follows the friends through military school to military service to the founding of the Turkish Republic right up to Atatürk's death. As a biography, it's rather sketchy. And since it's written for children, it's been sanitized and skews a little hagiographic: there's virtually no mention of Atatürk's drinking or (alleged?) womanizing.

The author is a noted writer, and the language is at times more sophisticated that you'd expect in a book for children. As a student of Turkish, I appreciated that, although there were passages that left me thoroughly baffled. Even when I understood the general sense, I couldn't untangle the grammar.

A good book for an intermediate student of Turkish, or a Turkish-speaker wanting a quick introduction to Atatürk.

P.S. In real life, Bozok does pull the trigger, but his injury is not immediately fatal. He dies 2 1/2 years later as a result of his injuries.

Doris wrote: "FEBRUARY

15. by Cary Elwes
Finish date: February 2, 20..."

I just bought this book to read this year. Looking forward to it. I've seen the movie countless times. I'm glad that you liked it.

David wrote: "Doris wrote: ..."
I just bought this book to read this year. Looking forward to it. I've seen the movie countless times. I'm glad that you liked it.

I expect you'll enjoy it, David.

20. by Anne Fadiman
Finish date: February 11, 2019
Genre: Essays
Rating: C+
Review: I loved the concept, and I'm an admirer of the collection's editor, Anne Fadiman, but alas, the execution fell short for me. I'm not familiar with any of the contributors, so that diminished my interest. Fadiman's introduction was my favorite essay. Beyond that, it was largely the case that the essays I most enjoyed were those for books that I had read myself. I was sufficiently intrigued by a couple of essays that I'm considering adding a couple of books described here to my TBR list (where they'd undoubtedly languish unread)

21. by Fannie Flagg
Finish date: February 21, 2018
Genre: Fiction
Rating: A+
Review: Oh, I *adored* this one.

Ninnie Threadgood, resident in a nursing home, tells her new-found friend, Evelyn, of her life in Whistle Stop; her tales of Whistle Stop are fleshed out by the omniscient narrator. The central characters in Whistle Stop are the owners and operators of the Whistle Stop Cafe, Idgie and Ruth. Evelyn is inspired by Ninnie's stories to take control of her own life.

This isn't a book that lends itself easily to summarization. It deals in friendship, grief, war, food, murder, race, and love and is, at different times, laugh-out-loud funny and heartbreakingly sad.

22. by Timothy Snyder
Finish date: February 16, 2018
Genre: Political science, history
Rating: B
Review: Short and (IMHO) largely self-evident, but cogently presented. The author signs and symptoms of tyranny and authoritarianism. He also gives advice on how to respond, even if the worst happens.

23. by Pam Johnson-Bennett
Finish date: February 22, 2018
Genre:: Reference, cats
Rating: B+
Review: Encyclopedic, and probably overwhelming for first-time cat companions. As a long-time cat roommate, I wasn't overwhelmed, but some of the author's assertions are belied by my own experience. Still, it's a useful and comprehensive reference.

24. by John Scalzi
Finish date: February 26, 2018
Genre: Science fiction, mystery
Rating: A-
Review: Twenty five years after a global epidemic leaves some of its survivors in a 'locked-in' state (i.e., conscious and aware, but incapable of movement or voluntary action), the world has changed, and in the US, at least, is about to change again as the government decides to cut social services to the so-called 'Hadens'.

This is when a murder (or is it suicide) occurs that calls for the services of two FBI agents, one of whom is a newly minted agent who just happens to be one of the best-known Hadens. The story that follows is enormously complex, and I occasionally had trouble keeping track of who all these people were. I was thoroughly engrossed, but a little disappointed by the ending, which came a little too quickly and was too pat. (view spoiler)[Seriously, all those deaths, destruction, and mayhem just because a multi-billionaire wanted to become richer still? (hide spoiler)]

I also read the 'prequel', a novella called Unlocked: An Oral History of Haden's Syndrome, but it's not really necessary to understand the novel, nor is it long enough to warrant its own listing here.

25. by Dana Simpson
Finish date: February 26, 2018
Genre: Comic
Rating: C-
Review: Now, to be fair, I'm definitely not the target audience for this; I'm pretty sure that when I was 10 years old, I would have enjoyed this. As it is, I found both Phoebe and Marigold (the unicorn) annoying, the humor was forced, and the story line didn't hold together well.

OTOH, I've completed yet another task in the Book Riot Read Harder Challenge.

26. by Alyssa Cole
Finish date: February 27, 2018
Genre: Romance
Rating: C+
Review: Little orphan girl grows up dreaming she's really a princess, only to find out when she grows up that it's true.

Blindingly predictable, but the fact that our heroine is an African American in STEM (budding epidemiologist) is a nice touch, as is the way in which the author plays with the 'Nigerian prince' email scam. Not *bad* at all; a quick, entertaining read.

(view spoiler)[What I don't get at all is why it took so long for them to figure out that good ole Uncle Alekh was a bad guy: I had that one pegged almost from the first mention. (hide spoiler)]

And yet another Book Riot Read Harder Challenge is crossed off my list.

27. by Vincent Price
Finish date: February 28, 2018
Genre: Autobiograhy
Rating: B-
Review: An autobiography, not so much about his acting career, but about his avocation as an art collector. It's an unexpected view of the actor. I rather enjoyed it, but as I have little interest in the visual arts, I wasn't entirely engrossed by it.

MARCH
28. by Amanda Hesser
Finish date: March 3, 2018
Genre: Cookbook
Rating: B
Review: A novel approach: four weeks worth of menus for each of the four seasons, with the recipes, shopping lists, and advice for batch cooking the previous weekend. Repurposing leftovers for lunch is also covered, as well as tips for streamlining even further the weekend batch cooking. The recipes themselves are mostly tasty sounding, though I have yet to try any of them.
Realistically, though, I can't see adopting any of these menus even in part, so its value on that score is more that of a model.

29. by Harold Schechter
Finish date: March 4, 2018
Genre: True crime
Rating: B
Review: The 20's and 30's in the US seems to have been a heyday for flashy murders - cf Leopold & Loeb, the Lindberg baby kidnapping, the 'double indemnity' murder of Ruth Snyder and Henry Judd Gray... This is one of the lesser known ones. Robert Irwin, the 'mad sculptor' of the title, murdered the mother and sister of a woman with whom he was obsessed; he also murdered a boarder of the mother and sister.

Schechter does an excellent job of situating these murders in their time and place: the neighborhood had been earlier the site of two other notorious murders. He also does an excellent job of describing (though not accounting for) Irwin's progressing insanity. The book falls a little short at the end, although I suppose it's not fair to blame real life for failing in dramatic potential. Irwin pled guilty to second degree murder (rather than pleading not guilty by reason of insanity) and was sentenced, effectively, to life in prison. And then the story just drops off. I would have liked to know a little more about his life in prison (he lived about 40 years after sentencing). I'm also left wondering what became of Ethel (the woman with whom he had been obsessed) and her father, the surviving family members.

Good progress Doris.

30. by Tim Farrington
Finish date: March 8, 2018
Genre: Fiction
Rating: B+
Review: The 'monk' of the title is Michael Christopher, who has just left the monastery after some 20 years and becomes the tenant in the downstairs 'in-law' apartment belonging to Rebecca Martin, divorced mother of 6-year old Mary Martha.

That a romance shall result is predictable from the start. Michael is a little too good to be true: nothing ever seems to anger or even disturb him. Rebecca, on the other hand, is a little too prickly. Mary Martha, though, seems dead-on, and the other supporting characters are well written and engaging.

Engaging and easy to read.

31. by D.E. Stevenson
Finish date: March 9, 2018
Genre: Fiction
Rating: A
Review: Charming novel about a woman who writes a novel (solely in the hopes of making money) about the inhabitants of her hometown. When the book is published and read by her neighbors, some of them take pronounced exception to their depiction. And then, life starts to imitate art, making it funnier and funnier.

The book sounds like an enjoyable read. Good review Doris.

32. by Gary Kamiya (no photo)
Finish date: March 10, 2018
Genre: History, travel
Rating: A
Review: It's hard to assign a genre to this: it's really a collection of 49 love letters to San Francisco. It covers history, paleontology, race relations, seismology, topology, environmentalism, labor relations, literature, architecture, and so much more.

Some of my favorite quotes from this one include:
'(In the 1840s, a colony of thieves, escaped convicts, and international desperadoes built a shantytown in a hidden hollow atop this hill, near the southwest corner of Bush and Sansome, from which they would descend at night in search of victims. The derivatives traders and investment bankers who now occupy this part of town have much better digs and work in broad daylight.)'

'Prostitution helped inaugurate the proud San Francisco tradition of cosmopolitanism. By the end of 1852, it was said that there was not a single country in the world that was not represented in San Francisco by at least one prostitute—a fitting start for the city in which the United Nations charter was signed.'

'Chinatown is a living demonstration that crowded and squalid conditions cannot defeat determined and hardworking people. In that sense, its 16 blocks contain nothing less than the entire American immigrant experience, played out anew with each generation. That experience has not been easy. Like many other immigrants, more than most, the Chinese have faced racism and prejudice. But, also like other immigrants, they have overcome them to make a better life for their children. By night, the streets of Chinatown are magical; by day, they are crowded and dirty. But to walk them, by day or by night, is to walk the history of America.'

'“San Francisco is starting to be like Paris before the revolution—only the very rich and the very poor live here.”'

33. by Mercedes Lackey
Finish date: March 14, 2018
Genre: Urban fantasy
Rating: B
Review: What if the spirit of a long-ago Aztec god were to reanimate himself and possess a 20th century man? And then re-enact the series of increasingly brutal and gory sacrifices intended to bring said god to full power in modern day Dallas? And then the Dallas police were to bring in as a 'consultant' a witch to identify just what all is going on with all these dead bodies cropping up all over the place? If you're able to suspend disbelief long enough to go along with all that, you'll probably enjoy this one; I did. But it helps not to think too hard about it.

34. by Erin Hunter
Finish date: March 18, 2018
Genre: Fantasy, cats
Rating: C-
Review: I can't be bothered with composing my own synopsis for this, so I'll just copy and paste the GR description:
'For generations, four Clans of wild cats have shared the forest according to the laws laid down by the powerful ancestors. But the warrior code is threatened, and the ThunderClan cats are in grave danger. The sinister ShadowClan grows stronger every day. Noble warriors are dying -- and some deaths are more mysterious than others.
In the midst of this turmoil appears an ordinary housecat named Rusty... Who may yet turn out to be the bravest warrior of them all. '

I don't understand the adulatory reviews for this one, although the fact that I'm a good deal older than the target audience may have something to do with that. However, these cats just don't *act* like cats and that annoys me.

35. by Amy Stewart
Finish date: March 23, 2018
Genre: Botany
Rating: B+
Review:As the subtitle says, this is about the plants behind (alcoholic) beverages. Besides the obvious candidates, such as barley, grapes, rice, agave, etc. that form the backbone of drinks, the author also covers various flavoring agents, so that we hear about vanilla and cocoa and allspice and cinchona... The author is at pains to tell us that her coverage is by no means exhaustive, but it is comprehensive. She delves into the botany of the plants and how different species can contribute different flavors (or must be eschewed entirely due to toxicity or simply unpleasant tastes), the history of the plants and their mutations over the centuries, archeological findings supporting speculations about the origins of some favorite beverages, recipes for DIY, and growing tips for would-be gardeners.

Through all this, her writing is approachable and entertaining. Another reviewer compared her to Mary Roach, and I agree that's a fair comparison.

The book is also replete with fascinating trivia, e.g.:
'When Coca-Cola made its ill-fated switch to New Coke, the Wall Street Journal reported that the economy of Madagascar nearly collapsed because of the sudden drop in demand for vanilla. The company refused, as always, to comment on its secret formula, but the inference was that the original Coke recipe called for vanilla and the new version did not.'

It was perhaps more than I ever needed, or even wanted, to know, but I'm glad that I read it.

Bentley wrote: "The book sounds like an enjoyable read. Good review Doris."

Thanks, Bentley.

You are welcome and thank you for your cooperation.

Doris, you are a reading machine! I'm wondering if you even have time to sleep. :-)

36. by C.S. Harris
Finish date: March 27, 2018
Genre: Historical mystery
Rating: B+
Review: Number 11 in the Sebastian St. Cyr series, set in Regency England. St. Cyr is in a remote village, pursuing his own mystery, when he's asked by the local magistrate to assist with an apparent suicide, or is it murder? (That it is indeed murder is not a spoiler.)

The nearby presence of Napoleon's brother, in voluntary exile, raises the specter of espionage, while an examination into the past reveals abuses on the part of the local gentry. (The Enclosure Laws, which I understand only vaguely, are a particular bete-noire here.)

The story gets quite convoluted and I came close to losing patience with it. I stuck with it because I like St. Cyr (and his family), but I was glad when it came to an end.