Happy Birthday to My Dad

We never made a huge deal about birthdays when I was growing up, but a special dessert was always on the menu for that night's dinner. My dad was a fan of fudge brownies, so I would usually bake those. He never fussed about a box mix, and he also loved chocolate chip cookies, the standard Tollhouse ones. I am pretty sure I inherited Dad's sweet tooth along with his love of novels and poetry, but then again it's pretty common for humans to to enjoy sugary treats. Some prefer salty/savory, and occasionally that is my snack preference too. Anyway, Dad would have been 95 today (he died 12 years ago, the month before his birthday). He was a good man, and I miss him.

I watched Life or Something Like It last week, a 2002 romcom drama, and I thought it was well done. Angeline Jolie and Edward Norton starred as a type-A reporter and a more relaxed photographer, respectively. Tony Shalhoub played a seemingly crazy street prophet whose strangely coded predictions kept coming true. I watched it on Hulu or Prime (I forget), and I think it's coming to Netflix as well. Catch it if you can!

The Collective by Alison Gaylin allowed me to check off the box for New York (takes place in the state where you were born) on my 2025 Reading Challenge. I gave four stars to this psychological suspense novel for complex characters and a plot that held my attention throughout. This was also the challenge read for my online book club. It wasn't that gory; the challenge was in dealing with the protagonist's visceral emotional reaction to losing a child. It was difficult at times for me, but definitely worthwhile. If you're a person who gets enraged at some of the trite things people say when you're devastated, you may enjoy this book as well. It was a fun fantasy to immerse in a world where anger and revenge were celebrated and not trivialized with some "look on the bright side" crap.

One Day with You by Shari Low fit the Reading Challenge category of taking place in the winter. I gave this contemporary fiction novel three stars, and that was generous. There were no twists, as we knew the whole time who was cheating on whom and simply had to wait tediously for everyone else to discover it and react. What I liked about the story was the fact that it emphasized the complexity of people and that no one is all good or all bad. You can know a person for decades, and their behavior may still surprise you because people's motivations are often both tangled and layered.

The Time of the Hunter’s Moon by Victoria Holt (aka Philippa Carr) satisfied the requirement for "takes place in autumn" on my Reading Challenge (I am over halfway to 100!), and I awarded five stars to this super enjoyable romantic suspense novel. Like most of Holt's books, this story is narrated in first person, past tense by a woman in her late teens who is practical, smart, and courageous. I particularly appreciated that the ending wasn't rushed this time, and even though I personally would not have wanted to be with the man that the MC chose, the conclusion made sense for her.

I also gave five stars to Cordelia Rook's The Crepes of Wrath. I am always down for a fun cozy, and this one delivered all the goods: a murder mystery, witty narration, a cute doggy, suspicious friends, lots of delicious food, and a little romance too. You may remember or know Ms. Rook under another name, but whatever her nom de plume, she always tells a good story.

It's a quiet Saturday for me. I've already done my outside chores of picking up a library book, a few new plants, and groceries for the week, so now my day is free to do whatever. Earlier, I thought of painting, but I don't think I am in the mood now (have a bit of a headache). I've started a new book, so I will continue reading that over the weekend (it's both intense and long), but I need a little break right now. Perhaps I can find a movie on TV...