tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1680901681738005078.post455167358576966231..comments2023-11-03T05:50:35.618-07:00Comments on Field Notes from Alex's Wonderland: Mysterious DisappointmentsAlex MacKenziehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14121919349442258779noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1680901681738005078.post-75298650312181101272014-09-12T13:19:57.106-07:002014-09-12T13:19:57.106-07:00By the way, I can't believe you THREW AWAY any...By the way, I can't believe you THREW AWAY any books at all. Just because you didn't like them doesn't mean that everyone would hate them. Donate them for crying out loud - Wah!! (That's me crying out loud.)7 Deweyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07501338357444489028noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1680901681738005078.post-41007064189638445342014-09-11T14:31:28.260-07:002014-09-11T14:31:28.260-07:00I'm quite enjoying the book so far though I on...I'm quite enjoying the book so far though I only read a chapter or two during lunch. My favorite so far is the Belted Kingfisher. Very interesting bird. The only drawback is that the illustrations, while lovely and by Audubon, are in black and white. Phooey. I've been looking up each bird on allaboutbirds.org as I go. 7 Deweyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07501338357444489028noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1680901681738005078.post-5165459852203524402014-09-11T09:20:26.731-07:002014-09-11T09:20:26.731-07:00I finally started re-reading the first one in the ...I finally started re-reading the first one in the series, "The Man with a Load of Mischief" today. So far, so good! <br />The Armchair Birder, huh? Hah. You can't be a birder without getting out of that chair, though! Well, except for bird feeders in the yard, I guess....Alex MacKenziehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14121919349442258779noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1680901681738005078.post-68761107523159795762014-09-10T14:08:34.475-07:002014-09-10T14:08:34.475-07:00It is a factor in four or five of them, I'm af...It is a factor in four or five of them, I'm afraid. Some have no aspect of that at all, but several do. There's a scene in <i>High Country</i>, less than two pages, that I just skip on rereads. It's seldom a huge factor, but it does happen.<br /><br />P.Pamela Deanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12653260363510225892noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1680901681738005078.post-78388126464704837892014-09-10T13:04:49.105-07:002014-09-10T13:04:49.105-07:00Thank you for reminding me of those -- a friend re...Thank you for reminding me of those -- a friend recommended them many years ago and I never took her up on it, probably because of the violence issue. I'm especially sensitive to violence against animals -- don't know if that's a huge factor in these? Alex MacKenziehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14121919349442258779noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1680901681738005078.post-53078600827771544762014-09-10T10:30:20.058-07:002014-09-10T10:30:20.058-07:00I have the vague notion that I suggested this befo...I have the vague notion that I suggested this before, but can't find a record of the comment, so perhaps I only meant to. I've been having trouble myself finding mystery authors I like, and my mother finally got me to try Nevada Barr's Anna Pigeon books. The protagonist works for the National Park Service as a law enforcement ranger. The books take place in various national parks around the country. Anna is very funny and snarky and there's lots of nature, though sadly mostly she likes mammals more than birds.<br /><br />The books have a higher level of violence and occasional psychopathy than I like in my mysteries, and I'm still working on figuring out why I can put up with it here where I stop cold in other books and get rid of them mostly unread. I think it's partly the viewpoint, which is sufficiently feminist that women aren't always victims, and when they are they aren't helpless. Anna is the very opposite of helpless, which is extremely refreshing. Anna likes animals better than she likes most people, and I can really get behind that in the context of murder mysteries.<br /><br />Anyway, I'm not sure what you'd think, but it might be worth trying her books. The first two are <i>Track of the Cat</i> and <i>A Superior Death</i>. The only one I had serious issues with comes late in the series -- <i>Flashback</i>. It takes place half in contemporary times and half during the Civil War, and I'm afraid that while the facts seem good, the language isn't really Civil War language, which is something that always annoys me, especially if there's an epistolary component, which there is.<br /><br />PamelaPamela Deanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12653260363510225892noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1680901681738005078.post-46663200277715532082014-09-10T10:08:27.667-07:002014-09-10T10:08:27.667-07:00Go back to Grimes! I'm reading "The Star...Go back to Grimes! I'm reading "The Stargazey" and enjoying it immensely. Also went to the library a couple of days ago and picked up a baseball book and something called "The Armchair Birder - Discovering the Secret Lives of Familiar Birds" by John Yow. I liked the cover. What could this possibly mean? Closet birder in the making? Ye Gads.7 Deweyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07501338357444489028noreply@blogger.com