The Stack is Still Clearing (A What's On My Nightstand #WOMNS Post)

Hello friends and fellow bookworms! My last post on here went live on February 16th, and then it seems, just as in years past, despite starting out strong with my blogging goals, life took over. And while I continued to read through my list and follow my No Spend plans for February, I failed to blog about either topic (or anything else, for that matter). But since I had a moment this morning, I thought I'd at least give a quick update about what I've read since the last time I posted. 

As a reminder, here are the list of books that I started out with from the FRONT stack on my nightstand.

1. Boundaries with Teens - Read the Review
2. The Enchanted Hour
3. Agatha: The real life of Agatha Christie - Read the Review
4. Poirot and Me - Read Review Below 👇
5. Sugar Changed the World - Read the Review
6. To the Land of Long Lost Friends - Read the Review
7. Is God anti-gay?
8. The Girls of Atomic City - Read Review Below 👇
9. How to Raise an Elephant
10. Dear Mrs. Bird - Read Review Below 👇
11. The Feather Thief
12. SoulCare
13. Books, Baguettes & Bedbugs
14. What She Ate
15. Hank & Jim
16. Don't Overthink It
17. The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes (the only one I've read before, but not this version)
18. The Quotable Tozer
19. 7 Men

Over the last couple of months, in addition to reading the official books from my stack (which I'll get to in a minute), and completing Souvenir on my Kindle (you can read my review of it on Goodreads), I also read the following books to the kids: 

• Exploring According to Og the Frog - Read my Goodreads Review
• Haffertee's First Easter - Read my Goodreads Review
• Unbroken (Adapted for Young Adults) - Read my Goodreads Review
• The Hobbit (Illustrated by Michael Hague) - Read my Goodreads Review
• Elisabeth Elliot: Do the Next Thing - Read my Goodreads Review
• Where Is the Colosseum? - Read my Goodreads Review
• Operation Christmas Child: A Story of Simple Gifts - Read my Goodreads Review
• Adoniram Judson: Danger on the Streets of Gold - Read my Goodreads Review

So as you can see, I haven't been lagging on my reading for 2021, they just haven't all been part of my official stack that I'm still working through for the year. But if you're curious about the ones that I have marked off of the list, here's a brief rundown.

👍Poirot and Me by David Suchet has definitely been one of the more enjoyable books from my stack in 2021. As an avid fan of Agatha Christie since I was in junior high, with Poirot as my favorite sleuth, it should come as no surprise that I was also a fan of the British television show. 

Who better to write a book about the show and this lovable Belgian detective than the man who played him for more than two decades? David Suchet threw himself into this role, 110%, and his love for the fictional character comes through in his writing. I'm not even sure Christie herself liked Poirot as much Suchet did and does.

If you are a fan of the books or the show, this is a must read. Two thumbs up from me, and a big thanks to my sweet Hubs for his placement of this under our Christmas tree.

👎Dear Mrs. Bird by A.J. Pearce. I had high expectations for this book, based on the reviews that I had read on Goodreads. However, once I dug in, I found that I had a hard time getting into the story. I wanted to like the characters, I wanted to like the plot line, but I found that it dragged a bit, and I ended up just wanting the book to be done. 

That being said, I now see that it is planned out to be a series of books, and since the story took a bit of an unexpected upturn at the end, I might be willing to give book #2 a try, if I ever run out of books from my stack to read. The likelihood of that is slim to none, but there's always a chance (especially if I stumble across a used copy of it at some point in time). 

If you have read this book and liked it, I'd love to hear your thoughts!

I wasn't sure what to expect when I picked up The Girls of Atomic City by Denise Kiernan. Last year I had read her book about the Biltmore House (see my review), and felt that the idea was strong, but the writing could have used some work (and a good editor). Even so, when I saw that she had written a book about the women of Oak Ridge during WWII, it piqued my interest and I went about getting a copy for my stack.

The good news is that it gets a thumbs up 👍 from me. As with The Last Castle (her book on the Biltmore House in Asheville, NC), Oak Ridge is just down the road from me (the opposite direction of Asheville) and contains a fascinating, and often overlooked, part of history. 

Although I was aware that Oak Ridge played a role in the creation of the atomic bomb that eventually brought an end to WWII, I was unaware of the extent of the secrecy surrounding the work and workers during the dark days of the war. This book makes me want to road trip down there one of these days and see what remains of that history before it's completely gone.

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That's what's been going on with my stack of 2021 books. I'll do my best to report in a little more regularly going forward, but...with five kids and homeschooling and working freelance jobs and summer coming...I'm making no promises. 😄

👉 If you haven't already connected with me on Goodreads, I recommend following along there, as I do write reviews as soon as I complete whatever book I'm reading at the moment.

What have YOU been reading?

Notes from The Stack (A "What's On My Night Stand" #WOMNS Post)

This week in the update from The Stack, we feature one book from the actual stack, and one from my virtual shelves, as I work my way through Kindle downloads as well. I resisted ebooks for years, and even after purchasing an actual Kindle several years ago, I never used it for reading books, just for watching BritBox through Amazon Prime. But when the kids came along, I suddenly found myself sitting in car lines, medical offices, and on soccer sidelines, with plenty of time on my hands and no book at the ready. And that's when the Kindle app on my phone became my go to option for all those minutes of unanticipated reading time. 

Photo by Mel Poole on Unsplash

These days, I still rely on the phone app for reading ebooks, and my Kindle is still primarily used for music and shows, but I've come to recognize there are benefits to the ebook, specifically price, especially when it's a book I'm not sure I'll want to ever read again, and Amazon loves to throw "$2 digital credits" my way when I opt for a slower shipping time on regular purchases. Many of the books I've got waiting in my Kindle lineup I got for free or pennies on the dollar, which is definitely a price I can get behind! The one downside I've found is that I cannot loan books when I find one I like, and before you tell me that you can, yes, I know. Technically there is a way to do it, but Amazon has definitely NOT made it user friendly! And it will never be the same as pulling a paperback off my shelf and handing it to a friend or family member, after telling them all about how I loved it and they would too. 

Whatever your preference, paperback or ebook, I've got you covered with both today! And my recent Kindle read happens to currently (as of the time of this writing, the first week of February 2021) be available for FREE with Amazon Prime (although it's only getting two stars from me, so do with that what you will). 

Book number one today, the aforementioned freebie on Kindle, is The Little Book of Lykke by Meik Wiking (who, you may recall, also wrote The Little Book of Hygge). Now, considering my take on his first book (read the review if you don't remember), you might be surprised to see him in my Stack again, ebook or not. The key to this one is the FREE aspect, mentioned above. If it's free, I'll occasionally give it a shot, which is what happened in this case. 

Reviewed in a sentence: it's a profanity-laced love letter to Denmark and socialism. 

A slightly longer review of it would include the following positives: I appreciated his take on looking for ways to show kindness to strangers (something that I can get behind as a Christian), and I've even been pondering the idea of planting a neighborhood garden in our side yard this spring, as a way to develop and build community. I also loved that little ol' Knoxville, Tennessee (up in my neck of the woods, as we'd say around here) hit the top of the list in U.S. cities where citizens would go out of their way to help someone they didn't know. But outside of that, I couldn't get over his use of profanity and his deeply held views that socialism is the key to Utopia. Two stars...but if you want to read it and decide for yourself...it's free right now if you have Amazon Prime, so that's right up there in the Utopian world for bookworms. 

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Now the second book of the week came directly off The Stack from my nightstand, and was just one of those "easy read" books that I was looking forward to diving into, and it didn't disappoint. To the Land of Long Lost Friends took me right back to the sunny skies of Botswana, and recalled memories of places I haven't thought of since we lived there (briefly), some 16 years ago. You can't go wrong (most of the time) with the adventures of the Number 1 ladies and their assistant detective in training, Charlie. Poor Charlie, who is always so picked on and never seems to catch a break...got the happy ending in this book, and I couldn't have been happier about that. 

Photo by C.G. Koens, Botswana, Africa

And that's what I've been reading since last week, in addition to continuing to work through Dear Mrs. Bird (which I'm a bit stuck on, as I don't like the direction it's heading), Poirot and Me (currently $3.99 on Kindle, if you're interested in giving it a try), and I just started The Girls of Atomic City, which has been fascinating so far, and I look forward to digging into that more in the coming weeks. On my Kindle, I'm taking a break from Wiking (though I still have one book from him left on my virtual shelf) and diving into Souvenir, which has been on my wish list for a while as a paperback, but I finally purchased the ebook version for free, thanks to all those lovely Amazon credits I mentioned earlier. And so on we go...traveling the world through books. No mask required. 

What's on YOUR nightstand?

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And what would YOU add to my "must read" list?  

The Social Dilemma (A Review)

During the fall, I noticed a little bit of chatter by some of my (virtual) co-workers about this Netflix documentary called, The Social Dilemma. I brushed it aside, as one, I didn't have Netflix, and two, it wasn't going to tell me anything I didn't already know after using and working in social media for over a decade. Then a couple of weeks ago, a friend updated her reading list on Goodreads and the title of what she was currently reading grabbed my attention: Ten Arguments for Deleting Your Social Media Accounts Right Now by Jaron Lanier. Intrigued, I sent her a text asking for a review of the book after she'd read it, and she told me that she was reading it after hearing it mentioned in The Social Dilemma. 

Being a typical INTJ, I decided to research this documentary, and ended up spending the next couple of days watching it (hey, I have five kids, meaning I don't usually have 1.5 hours of undisturbed time available, so everything takes longer). I work online, I've had Facebook since 2007, I've used Pinterest since 2011, I've been on Twitter since 2012, and I have a 16 year old daughter who is glued to her phone. I thought I knew it all...but as it turns out...I just had a rough idea.   

{Image Credit Robin Worrall via Unspash}

First things first...I don't have Netflix, so I did a quick internet search and found a site online where I could watch it. Honestly...this should be readily available for everyone to watch, but that would require putting it on YouTube, and...well, if you watch the documentary, you'll realize why that will never happen. But I digress. The point is, even if you don't have Netflix, you can find a way to see it. And you should. 

The list of people featured in this film reads like a who's who of the social media world, including former social media CEOs, design managers, software engineers, design consultants, early employees of the top social media sites, the creator of the Facebook "like" button, and more. In other words, they know what they're talking about when they begin to share insights into how the framework of social media was designed to manipulate you and use your data as a product for others to buy. It sounds like a crazy conspiracy theory when stated in that way, but after an hour and a half of this, I was ready to close everything, including my Google-hosted blog. But I haven't...yet.

I really enjoyed the fact that it was both documentary and film (fun fact: one of the main characters of the film portion is played by Skyler Gisondo, who played Young Shawn in later seasons of Psych). I appreciated how the side story clearly demonstrated what the experts were saying, and could very well play out in real life. In fact, as I watched the film portion, and considered what was being said in the documentary, all I could think about was role social media played in the 2020 BLM/white extremist clashes and ensuing riots, the fiasco masquerading as a presidential election, and even the spread of Coronavirus information (and misinformation). I didn't have to be convinced that this was taking place, but the confirmation of it by so many who genuinely knew what they were talking about was, indeed, sobering.

To sum up: Social media is the seller. Various causes, parties, nations, and officials are the buyer. And we, ladies and gentlemen, are the product being offered up to the highest bidder. One of the quotes/ideas from the film that stuck out to me the most went something like this...

If you think that everyone thinks like you, then social media has done its job, because they have tuned the buttons, based on your likes, clicks, searches, and purchases, until you are convinced that you are absolutely in the right, and everyone else is either insane or stupid for not seeing the truth.

Gone are the days when rational discourse and actual facts won the day. Gone, too, are the days of innocently clicking around the internet or liking a page on Facebook and thinking if you make your likes private, no one will know. If you click on a YouTube video suggestion, pay attention to the fact that you suddenly start to see suggestions for similar videos, usually leading farther and farther one direction or the other. When a former Google software engineer says he will no longer use Google as a search engine and recommends European-based Qwant, you might consider listening. 

George Orwell's 1984 is upon us, in more ways than one, and while it's never time to panic, I do believe it's time to get our heads out of the sand. While any information shared and any time spent online will always put you at risk, gaining a better understanding of what it is we're facing and the beasts we're dealing with gives us one leg up in the game, and not voluntarily playing it...well, that's always a viable option as well. 

Have you seen The Social Dilemma? 

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What did YOU think?

Let's Talk About Compromise...

In this year of the unknown, I've set several smaller goals to focus on: personal, physical, and spiritual. In addition to reading the stack, I'm choosing to make healthier eating choices and pay closer attention to my compromises with the world, the little things that slowly erode the foundation over time. Compromise is the common denominator among these three—the choice to waste time online or make progress in my stack of books, to indulge my craving for sweets or drink another glass of water, to actively obey God's commands rather than following after what the world says is okay. It all comes down to choices.

Photo by Nathan Boadle on Unsplash

Choices. We make them every day. I've been a Christian for most of my life, and in that time I have knowingly turned a blind eye on a lot. Whether it was towards my sexual purity as a teenager or my mental purity in what films and television shows I watched as an adult, I have not always walked the paths of the Lord, or considered His counsel. I have been judgmental when I should have been introspective and contrite. I have sought to follow Christ...while keeping a foot (or feet!) firmly planted in the world. 

About a decade ago now, God started convicting me in many of these areas, and change began to take place, despite my protestations that "it wasn't really that bad!" I recall the time when I loaned our complete set of James Bond films to a young man, later regretting our choice as we thought about what he would be seeing—hardly edifying for a young, single, male with intentions of remaining sexually pure until marriage. For that matter, when the Hubs and I watched 007, we excused the language and violence, but most importantly, we excused the flagrant sex with multiple partners and Bond's self-indulgent usage of women, because as as a married couple, "it didn't bother us." Oh how blinded we were! 

Over time, I've realized that things that I enjoyed for the first 30+ years of my life—movies, music, even some books—now hold little interest, and things that I found humorous no longer make me laugh, as I consider the ways in which they contradict what God declares to be holy and good. And yet, despite the growth, including purging our extensive film and television DVD collection, the little compromises have continued. Sure, we traded in our 007 adventures for credit at a local shop, and we purged most of the movies where they misused the Lord's name, but there were still the odd few that we just couldn't bring ourselves to ditch. 

Little compromise by little compromise, the world and it's point of view sneaked into my daily life. During the holidays I noticed it in many of the Christmas songs that I've always enjoyed and sung along to, even classics like, "Baby It's Cold Outside." It first caught my attention when I heard the kids singing along, and I started thinking about the words of the song and what it was advocating. I have four girls. Do I really want them thinking, even subconsciously, that letting a man talk them into doing something they know is wrong, is actually okay, just because it's cold outside and he's a smooth talker? There will always be excuses beyond weather, but is this what I want them to listen to and accept as normal? I have a son as well. Are these the kinds of ideas I want him to go into his teenage years with, that to sweet talk a girl into compromising on her integrity is a cool thing?

You may be sitting there thinking, "Come on, Carrie. Really? It's just a song! Don't put too much focus on it!" But that's the point, and that's where God has really been leaning on me in the last few weeks - that one compromise leads to another. It's all the little things, the seemingly harmless bits, that sneak in the quickest and take root in our hearts and minds. Titus 2:12 reminds us that the grace of God, through His offer of salvation, "teaches us to say 'No' to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age." If we want to live and look like Christ, then we must first pay attention to the little compromises that we make without even thinking.

Food for Thought:

Do you have "little compromises" in your life that need to be squashed?

Weekly Update: The "Ravi" Edition

Long week, but the weekend is off to a great start as the Hubs and I attend a conference put on by Ravi Zacharias International Ministries. If you've read our story, then you know the role that Ravi played, even though he'll never know it. 

What Books I Recently Added to My Never-ending Stack:

The Greater Journey: Americans in Paris and The Path Between the Seas: The Creation of the Panama Canal, 1870-1914

   

What I'm Listening To:
Beethoven and Mozart to help with concentration

What I'm Watching:
Elementary

What I'm Studying in Scripture:

1 Samuel, Psalms, and Isaiah

Special Verses of the Week:

Isaiah 26:3-4

What I'm Loving:

The Hubs 14 year old, but new-to-us car: a station wagon named "Sophie"

What I'm Thinking About:

The state of the church in North America, and my role in it.

What's new in your life this week?

Weekly Highlights: January 10 Edition

Just 9 days into the new year, and I'm already blown away by the lessons I'm learning. Here's to year of getting out of ruts and embracing growth!

What I'm Reading:

The Attributes of God Volume 2: Deeper into the Father's Heart



What I'm Listening To:
Abiding Radio - Instrumental

What I'm Watching:
Father Brown

What I'm Studying in Scripture:

1 Samuel and Psalms

Special Verses of the Week:

Ephesians 6:10-18

What I'm Loving:

Cashmere turtlenecks on chilly days

What I'm NOT Thinking About:

Being an INTJ

What's new in your life this week?

Thankful For :: Week 12

Lessons learned this week:

You cannot  make everyone happy

Facebook is, in fact, a for-profit company (a.k.a. stop complaining about the ads!)

It is possible to find comfort in filing paperwork (clearing clutter)

This week, I am thankful for:

1321. A husband who encourages me to walk

1322. That I didn't throw up, even though I felt like it all day (for the record, I HATE throwing up)

1323. That we're not going to have to pay as much in taxes as I was fearing

1324. Weekly trash pick-up

1325. A fun, unexpected meal with friends - cooked over a real fire (mmm...)

1326. Another good week of my parents adjusting to their "new normal"

1327. A nice filing cabinet

1328. YouTube

1329. I know this is on here all the time, but...The flexibility of my job!

1330. Reliving my childhood by watching The Cosby Show



What are YOU thankful for this week?
Do you have a favorite Cosby Show episode?

Ode to Tolkien

I'm very much a fan of J.R.R. Tolkien's books - specifically the Lord of the Rings Trilogy as well as The Hobbit. And despite my complaints about what was cut and what was added in the Peter Jackson films, I'm also a fan of them (and the soundtracks), and I'm looking forward to the theater release of The Hobbit this Friday. 

It's no secret that I'm also a fan of The Piano Guys (and that I think they should pay me to promote them - though, why would they? I already do it for free!), and this is such a fun rendition of the film soundtracks, I couldn't help but share it in honor of the release of The Hobbit this week.

P.S. I apologize in advance, but for some reason, they have decided that certain sites cannot play the video, so you will have to click through and watch it on YouTube in order to see it. NOTE TO PIANO GUYS: That stinks.

Will you be standing in line this Friday to see The Hobbit?

Haunting TPG

I hope you've been enjoying these weekly visits with The Piano Guys. I don't intend to continue it forever, but it's a fun filler for the time being. In the future, I hope you continue to follow them as they come up with creative new ideas to bring music to the masses. Most of their songs are available on Amazon or through their website, so take advantage of the "instant" feature and download some of your favorites from the past few weeks.

Today being Halloween, I thought it was fitting to listen to the piano work of Jarrod Radnich playing the theme from Harry Potter. You may recall that he started us out on this multi-week journey, when I shared his version of the Pirates theme. He's amazingly gifted, and whether you watched the Potter films or not, I hope you can appreciate the fact that he has taken a piece written for a full orchestra, and simplified it to one instrument without loosing any of the flavor.

What has been your favorite Piano Guys song so far?
Any Halloween plans?

It's Peanuts for TPG

Charlie Brown, Linus, Lucy, Pigpen, Snoopy. Charles M. Schultz created memorable characters that became ingrained in my childhood memories. I can't pass one of the major fall and winter holidays without thinking about (or watching) one of the classic Peanuts gang films. Halloween is coming up, and you can be sure that It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown is on my list to watch.

I'll be honest, this video made me cry. Perhaps it's because I'm reminded of my long-gone grandparents. Maybe it's because I'm in the midst of watching my parents grow older. I like to think it's because God has given me an appreciation for human life, and a realization that growing old doesn't disqualify you from living that life. Each person on this earth has a purpose - young and old alike. I love seeing these delightful people perk up as they listen to The Piano Guys play a Charlie Brown Medley (available on Amazon).

What's YOUR favorite Peanuts film?

May The Cello Be With You...

In case you didn't know this about me - I like Star Wars. The original trilogy will always beat the "new" trilogy. Although I enjoy a good Star Wars marathon in our basement, I'm not one of those nuts fans who dresses in costume and waits in line for three days before the release of the newest DVD version of the films.

However, you don't have to be fanatically attached to the films in order to enjoy Cello Wars by The Piano Guys. While I find the entire piece to be enjoyable, my favorite part actually comes at the very end of the video. If you like it, you can download it from Amazon for just $0.99. FYI.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I  feel the urge to go take some cello lessons...

Just out of curiosity - what's YOUR favorite Star Wars episode?

Hooked on TPG

If you haven't heard of The Piano Guys by now, then please, let me introduce you! They have a delightful assortment of musical talent which I will be sharing on Busy Nothings over the next few weeks because:

1. I'm looking for filler as my calendar is a tad bit overwhelming at the moment
2. I love their music
3. It will save you from getting sucked into the YouTube vortex for hours at a time - all you have to do is come here each Thursday for your weekly fix of Piano Guys. You can thank me later.

So without further ado - may I present The Piano Guys, Jarrod Radnich, with his amazing rendition of the Pirates of the Caribbean theme. You don't have to be musically gifted to appreciate those who are! Enjoy!

Pretty amazing, eh?

Things That Make Me Laugh

This week, someone found my blog by googling, "boots for fiddler on the roof". I say that anyone who is searching for two of my favorite things (boots, and "Fidder on the Roof") deserves a giant "Welcome" - and if you are that person, would you please say hello in the comments? I'd love to meet you! And I hope you found the "Fiddler on the Roof" boots that you were seeking.

***

Speaking of combining favorite things...yesterday, I took a break from the chaos and allowed myself to waste time on Pinterest. When I first found that site last year, I was sucked in for hours at a time, seven days a week. I'm happy to announce that I have learned to control that urge, and I now check Pinterest a couple of times a week, and usually spend less than 10 minutes on there (most of the time it's to pin an idea that I've found or an outfit that I want to remember). However, yesterday I was so glad that I spent time looking around because I found this...

Source: redbubble.com via C.G. on Pinterest

If that isn't hot, buttery goodness, then I don't know what is. And just in case you are completely lost, it's a combination of a movie that is tied tightly to our courtship story ("The Princess Bride"), and a Pixar film that is loaded with great life lessons ("The Incredibles"). Whoever did this - brilliant.

***

And while we're on the topic of movies, I might as well end this thing with one of my favorite scenes from another one of my favorite films: You've Got Mail. I shared this clip on my Facebook page yesterday, but for those of you who are visiting from Twitter, or haven't followed me on Facebook (BTW, how arrogant does that sound? Or is that just me?), I wanted to share it here as well. Let me go on record as saying that you might be able to find a "defining sense of self" the next time you walk into a Starbucks, but good luck finding a "tall, decaf, cappuccino" for $2.95. {sigh} I think this movie makes me feel old. I went to see it when it was new in theaters, then again (at least 3 times) when it made it to the $2 theater that was down the road from my college (and across the street from Target - hello, perfect location!).

What's making YOU smile today?

Mystery Fan

Last week, I shared about my journey from TV addict to nominal television watcher. Despite the drastic change in my attitude and habits, I can guarantee that both Peter and I will be glued to the TV for two weeks, come August. {Olympics: London 2012!!} And as long as I stay on top of my professional work, household cleaning, and 2 squares a day (Peter handles breakfast), I also allow myself some down time to check out shows like Monk, Psych, House, Poirot, and Sherlock.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sherlock_holmes

Besides the obvious connection of them all having one-word titles, the other recurring theme seems to be mystery and detection - did anyone catch that? I think I was around ten years old when I picked up my first copy of The Complete Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. I had already worked my way through the various Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys stories in our home library, but Sherlock was the real deal. He solved mysteries that I could sink my teeth into, and Dr. Watson simply came along for the ride.

After reading every Holmes story that I could find (and getting over the disappointment I felt when I realized Doyle was dead, which meant no new stories by the original author), I moved on to Agatha Christie's vain little Belgian detective, Hercule Poirot. I started with one of the most famous Christie books, Murder on the Orient Express, and quickly worked my way through Poirot and, eventually, Miss Marple. Christie was, in my humble opinion, a mystery writing genius.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poirot



Since that time I have tried other authors and their sleuths, including Margery Allingham (Albert Campion), Rex Stout (Nero Wolfe), Tarquin Hall (Vish Puri), Michael Stanley (Detective Kubu), Shamini Flint (Inspector Singh), and Lisa Lutz (Izzy Spellman), just to name a few. Through trial and error I discovered that I actually enjoy the simplicity of Mma Ramotswe's deductions in the charming No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series (Alexander McCall Smith), and the quirky 11-year-old aspiring chemist in Alan Bradley's surprisingly likable Flavia de Luce Mysteries.

But don't be fooled - while I will always be a book-loving, mystery-reading, detective-loyal gal, I have plenty of room in my heart for TV show sleuths. Messy Lt. Columbo (brilliantly played by Peter Falk) captured my fancy as a young child on my father's knee. I loved it every time he turned to the murderer and said, "Just one more thing ..." because you knew exactly what was coming next. I spent hours watching Dr. Mark Sloane solve crimes on Diagnosis, Murder, Ben Matlock successfully defend high profile cases week after week on Matlock, and Jessica Fletcher swoop in with the how, why, and who on Murder, She Wrote.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murder,_She_Wrote

Over the last few years, I've developed a liking for some newer whodunit crime solvers, including Mr. Monk and his OCD habits, Shawn and Gus with their inane banter, and the medical mystery solving skills of Dr. House. I have utilized the free services of Hulu (Monk, Psych, House), as well as YouTube and PBS to get my fix of Poirot, Miss Marple, and my new favorite - Sherlock.

I'm not typically a fan of remaking classic characters, but I have to admit that I have completely enjoyed the modern twists of the BBC series. I love the fact that Dr. Watson writes a blog about the cases of Sherlock - a blog which has many followers, I might add. I thought it was a stroke of genius to integrate the classic "Sherlock Holmes" hat into the story by way of a total accident, and it makes perfect sense for Mycroft to be a high up government official - a position that Sherlock uses to his advantage, much to Mycroft's dismay.

He has the classic "look" of Sherlock, with all the modern day technology of C.S.I. or any number of crime dramas. Oh yes, they've changed the stories around a bit - bringing them up to date - but for some reason, it hasn't ruined the originality of the Doyle character (unlike the horrendous changes that were made to several of my favorite Poirot tales). Oh yes, I am a fan.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sherlock_(TV_series)

Who's YOUR favorite detective/crime solver?

Books or TV?

Love Is In The Air...

I've got a post going up on Valentine's Day in which I debunk some Valentine's myths, but right now, I'm recommending some of my favorite films to watch for the Holiday o' Love. We've got a whole week-end between now and the big V-Day, so there's plenty of time to get one or ten of these watched. If I've missed one of your favorite flicks, please feel free to tell me about it in the comments!

{1} 

You've Got Mail

Do I really need to explain why this one made the list? I mean, it's just one of the most romantic movies of all times, and I never get tired of seeing Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan together on screen. Plus, her clothes are so cute in this one!

{2}

Runaway Bride
This movie came out while we were living in Boston and there are lots of good memories associated with this film. Love the soundtrack, and love the idea of finding the perfect person for you, rather than becoming the person you think they want. Be true to who God made you!



{3}
Sense & Sensibility
Jane Austen's wit, Emma Thompson's faithful adaptation, and Hugh Grant's good looks. You can't loose.



{4}
Sabrina
While I like the original of this film, I think that Ford, Ormond, and Kinnear hit a home run in this 1995 remake. And what could possibly be more romantic than Paris?



{5}
Julie & Julia
While we're on Paris, I think this film is rather romantic in it's own way. It's showcases the love between Julia and Paul Child and Julia's love affair with food and cooking. It also touches on love lost and re-found in the modern day story of Julie Powell and her husband. While I'd pass on the book, I would absolutely recommend the film.



{6}
The Importance of Being Earnest
A few tweaks here and there, but over all it's a brilliant adaptation of an equally brilliant play with the perfect cast.



{7}
Be My Valentine, Charlie Brown
No holiday is complete without a little Charlie Brown, and Valentine's Day is no exception.



{8}
The Philadelphia Story
Easily one of my all-time favorite films, but then most films staring Cary Grant would make my list. I love the fast repartee between Grant and Hepburn, the overnight love affair between Hepburn and Stewart, and the snippy comments from the kid sister.



{9}
An Ideal Husband
Yes, more from Oscar Wilde - perfect for this romantic holiday with delightfully quotable lines and an outstanding cast.



{10}
Sleepless in Seattle
No list of romantic Valentine films would be complete without the movie that ENDS on Valentine's Day! A favorite of mine for many years, it seems fitting to end the list with Hanks and Ryan in one of their earlier hits. It's the reason that Peter and I say things like "MFEO" and listen to Harry Connick, Jr.



Okay, so what did I miss? What films do you think personify the holiday of hearts?