Reading list #5 2025

1. Chrysalis by Heather Terrell another book about art theft by the Nazis, story is told in 3 time periods present day lawyers in New York, WW2, and 1600’s Netherlands good story but names were not always capitalized and misspelled words.
2. The Search for God and Guinness by Stephan Mansfield on loan from my brother.  The House of Guinness on n…flic is not based on this book. This is a brief history of the Guinness family about the brewery and all the good the family did to improve living conditions of the time. Decent housing, educational opportunities, health care, pensions, orphanages etc.  The majority of the CEOs in America could take a lesson from the Guinness family. One of their advertising slogans was “Guinness is good for you”. 
3. The Wedding Dress Sewing Circle by Jennifer Ryan based on real sewing groups in England during WW2 interesting fictional characters the story is about starting over, friendship, community and what really is important in life. Good story.
4. Apostle’s Cove by William Kent Krueger another great mystery Cork reinvestigates his first murder with a different outcome.
5. The Round House by Louise Erdrich for book club takes place in 1988 on an Indian Reservation in North Dakota. 
6. Allied Flames by Jean Grainger book 6 of the Knocknashee series. 
7. Wednesday Club by Kristine Jensen the author was in my 4-H club! Delightful book takes place in South Dakota in the 1960’s about a teenage girl whose mother drops her off at he grandparents farm while she goes off to California to pursue her dreams. I’m going to read it again sometime.
8. A Fireproof Home for the Bride by Amy Scheibe for book club the story takes place in the Fargo / Moorhead North Dakota / Minnesota area in the 1950’s. A young woman has been promised to the neighbors son since she was 12 then things go sideways. The story has a little bit of everything family loyalty, secrets, immigrants, religion, abuse, a mystery from the past connected to recent crimes. The first couple chapters were really slow then the characters got more interesting.
9. The Blackest Time by Ken Tenarelli takes place mostly in Florence Italy in 1300’s about the rather ordinary life of a young man who works in an apothecary first there were two years of heavy rain ruined crops and starvation then the black plague creeps into Florence. 
10. Trouble’s Daughter by Katherine Kirkpatrick historical juvenile fiction the story of Susanna Hutchinson, Indian captive  in 1640’s. Very good story and quick to read the names of the characters were all real people. Interesting fact near the end of the story one of Susanna’s older sisters married a John Sanford, he could be my 6th or 7th great grandfather. 
11. The Keeper of Lost Art by Laura Morelli WW2 Italy paintings from the great museums of Florence are stored in villas in the country to keep them safe from the war.  A young girl is sent to live with an aunt and uncle they shelter the refugees, billet the Germans, support the resistance, then the New Zealanders come followed by Indians, Canadians and Americans and the art recovery crew.  Two of the paintings by Sandro Botticelli were Primavera and The Birth of Venus  were stored at the villa and touched the lives of those who studied them.  Good story. 
12. Starry Night by Debbie Macomber romantic fluff just for fun.
13. Something to Look Forward To by Fannie Flagg feel good short stories
14. Merry and Bright by Debbie Macomber more romantic fluff similar to You’ve Got Mail. 
15. Dark is the Grave by T. G. Reid murder mystery takes place in Scotland not great I kept falling asleep. 
16. Raising Hare by Chloe Dalton a woman leaves London during Covid to isolate on on her country home, she goes for a walk and finds a baby hare, she leaves it and comes back an hour later hoping the mother hare returned and took it. No such luck so she took the baby hare (called a leveret) home. It survived the night and thrived. 
17. Glad Tidings by Debbie Macomber two short books in one binding  There’s Something about Christmas a Christmas romance about fruitcake. And Here Comes Trouble two writers telling their daughters the story of their courtship. 
18. Black Hills Secret Santa by Deborah Salonen holiday romance short and sweet.
19. 25 Library Terrace by Natalie Fergie the story takes place in Edinburgh, Scotland from pre WWI through the Covid pandemic. It’s just ordinary life of the time, a family home eventually becomes a long term (2 year commitment) boarding house. There are generational connections to all of the characters in the end. Just a nice story. I thought about this later this story shares the importance of family stories and telling those stories to younger generations.

Wow I read a lot of books this year, my kindle app says I read 73 plus a few paper books makes 78. I think that’s the most books I have ever read in a year.  No record of all the kids books I read and occasionally no kids were present. I’ll never be too old for kids books. I think I was avoiding a lot of reality, so much bad news and bad behavior on tv.

Plans for 2026……. I have some travel ideas, there is yarn in the stash calling my needles, there is fabric calling remember me……..and there are lots of books on my kindle that I haven’t read. No goals, no resolutions just enjoy the moment.

Happy New Year   —Ann—

Waiting

Waiting for kids to come home…….waiting for the bread machine to finish mixing…….

Waiting for peace on earth and goodwill to all……

Merry Christmas—Ann—
 

Another finish

 

My second finished quilt of 2025. That is not like me at all. It’s a buggy barn pattern so was quick to sew and all fat quarters, nothing left for borders or binding ……….make do with what I have……..look in the box of binding bits for something that might work ah ha but not enough dig a little more……. that works and done!!—Ann—

Tadada done

 

A finish finally. This was fun to sew but took much longer than it should have— life happens with lots of distractions and interruptions.  My niece came over with a sewing project she wanted to make a boot bag for one of her roommates I got to work on this between helping her. She found a pattern on the internet but didn’t take the time to print but she did have the boots soooooooo I laid the boots on a large sheet of paper and drew around them we figured it out as we went. The boot bag has enough room for a six pack.  This quilt I think the little guy might like the back better than the front. I’m calling it Racoons in the Corn. —Ann—

Pausing

 I sat in my sunroom (however it is not a sunroom until afternoon and it’s overcast and snow is forecast) to drink my coffee I watched the squirrels in the trees. They have a nest in the spruce tree. They were not posing for my camera I wondered do they enjoy the Christmas lights or do they grumble that the lights keep them awake at night. I’m a night owl and always up until midnight so if the lights bother them they might have packed up and moved years ago. I think they enjoy the lights. Coffee finished I went downstairs to machine quilt and emptied my bobbin as it was winding I saw this rabbit in my shrubs and juncos and blue jays and the busy little squirrels in and under the trees. It’s always good to pause and take in nature. Back to machine quilting. —Ann—

First check off the list…..

 

The tree is decorated!! On to the Santas but first dust the shelves then remember where all the little display enhancements are……drink my coffee first……preparations……..—Ann—

Off the needles!!

 

Finished. This is the fastest I have ever knit an adult size sweater but when I’m using #10 needles it does go fast. I washed it twice because the first time it didn’t shrink in length the way my swatch did which was a scant half inch of a 4 inch swatch. So I threw it in the dryer for 5 minutes then 5 more minutes. The sleeves are still too long but I can fold up the cuffs. Maybe next time it’s washed it will shrink a little more. Always guessing with what the yarn will do. —Ann—