A Man Lay Dead - Ngaio Marsh (Inspector Alleyn #1)

This is the first in a series of novels revolving around the detective skills of Inspector Alleyn. In total, there are 32 mysteries.

In this particular adventure, the inspector has to solve the murder of a man who was involved in a weekend party. A murder game was being played, but a real dead body wasn't part of the plan. A strange angle to the wound and the alibis and motives complicate matters.

I enjoyed this book. The mystery was unique. So unique as to almost be on the edge of fantasy. At least the way I was reading it, the murder was committed in a super unusual way. I give credit to the inspector for figuring that out. I thought I had it figured out a couple times, but then something would happen to make me second guess myself.

The writing was easy to read, and the book wasn't weighed down with unnecessary language and scenes. I'd say that's pretty good for a book that was written in 1934.  I really liked it and hope to read more in the future. Good Book!

Farewell to Manzanar - Jeanne Wakatsuki Houston

One of the darker things that happened on American soil was the internment of the Japanese Americans during WWII. It's a subject we don't like to talk about, something we don't like to admit we let happen. But it did happen, and it's something we shouldn't forget.

Jeanne was a little girl when she was taken to one of these camps. She spent a few years there, and she watched the toll it took on her family. It also affected the way she saw herself and her heritage. The book does a great job exploring the thoughts and feelings she went through. She just wanted to be accepted.

I liked this book. I feel like it was a common experience for the Japanese Americans of the time. I can understand why they would feel rage, confusion and betrayal. Some of them adjusted to the circumstances, and others adjusted too well to the point where they didn't know what to do when they were freed.

I'm glad I read this book. I've read more than one account of life in a concentration camp, and it's more of a "popular" topic. By that I mean more people are aware of it, but it's still becoming something that isn't common knowledge. It's a shame this topic isn't more widely known. I feel like it's our job as parents to make sure the next generation is aware of things like this so they aren't forgotten. This particular account was easy to read and well written. I appreciate the author coming to terms with her feelings and being brave enough to share them with the world. It's an important story, and I'm glad she shared it. Good Book!

The Colour Out of Space - H. P. Lovecraft

I found this short story on the Gutenberg.org website and decided to read it. In the past, I've read a story in a collection and The Call of Cthulhu. One I wasn't fond of, and the other one I really enjoyed. I was curious to see where this one fell.

A barren valley is being surveyed before being flooded. It has an eerie history, and the story behind it involves a meteorite falling onto a farmer's land. It doesn't take long before there is evidence of strange things going on, and a family experiences the deterioration of their lives.

I'm not going to say much more about this one. It's a short story after all, and I try not to spoil things. This story definitely fell on the good side for me. It was tense and spooky, and I was invested in what would happen. I loved the imagination Lovecraft injected into this story. It was written in 1927, and I'm not sure it was appreciated at that time. I don't even know what kind of exposure it gets now, but I'm sure it's not enough. Good Story!

The Last Enemy - Richard Hillary

Hillary was a pilot with the RAF during WWII. 

I would separate the book into three sections. The first is Hillary's life before the war. The second is his flight time, and the last is what happened after his injury. I felt like the flight time was not as detailed as I was expecting, but I was invested in his story.

Hillary suffered severe burns and underwent multiple surgeries to reconstruct his hands and face after a serious crash. The experience was trying, and I felt a huge amount of sympathy for him. Eventually, he decided to write down his experience, and this book is the result. It was published in 1942. The amazing thing is that he worked his way back into the war and ended up being killed in a crash in January 1943. 

I found the writing style very good. I was engaged with his story, and the way he focused on all three of the aspects of his experience really struck me as unique. If you're looking for an autobiography focused on dogfights and ace pilots, you may not find what you're looking for here. If you want to read a man's evolution from a carefree young man to a man with a purpose, you might enjoy this book. Good Book!

The Picture of Dorian Gray - Oscar Wilde

I read this book a long time ago, but after watching a movie adaptation, I wanted to read it again.

Dorian had a portrait made. He's a handsome, pure, young man. While he's with the painter one day, he meets Lord Henry. He is fearful that he'll lose his youthful appearance and makes a sincere wish he could remain the way he is, and the painting could age and reflect his sins instead. He briefly finds love, but she isn't what he thought, and he dumps her. She takes drastic measures, and his reaction to it is unnatural.

After her death, he dives into the world of corruption and sin. When he notices his wish has been granted, and the painting is changing, he feels like he's off the hook. Eventually, his sins will catch up with him.

For the most part, the book was pretty good, but I do have some issues. There are sections of the book that are unnecessarily descriptive. It'll get philosophical and stay that way to the point of confusion. Toward the end, I feel like the whole section describing (in great detail) Dorian's hobbies could have been summed up. I don't care about specific embroidery examples that fascinated Dorian. Also, the sins are hinted at. Instead of talking about art and beauty, I wish they had been slightly more specific about what he did. What was on the paper Dorian gave Alan?

Overall, the book is worth a read. I wish parts of it weren't there to make a smoother flow to the narrative, but it is still a Good Book! Side note: I'm not sure why the movie added a whole woman for Dorian. It softened his character in a way that didn't happen in the book. The paranoia and way he got into his own head was well done, and I really enjoyed this book. In case it got buried by my additional thoughts, I am giving this a Good Book! review.

RIP Basil.

Six Faces of Courage - M. R. D. Foot

Michael Richard Daniell Foot was in the intelligence arm of the military. He's written many books about the topic, specifically the SOE (Special Operations Executive) in WWII. In this particular book, he tells the stories of six people: Jean Moulin, Marie-Madeline Fourcade, Harry Peuleve, Victor Gerson, Andree de Jongh, and Witold Pilecki.

Each of these people did their part to resist the invaders. They didn't fight for one day or one week. It was months and sometimes years. Some of them lived through the war and some died. The ones that lived were never the same. I was familiar with a few of the stories, but I still learned a lot.

The writing was easy to follow. Each section starts out with an overview of the situation and a bit of background to the person's life. You're not getting the full biography for obvious reasons. It helps to remind me of the hardships that people of all ages endured during a terrible time. Even if you're familiar with the people listed, the other books referenced would give you more information if you want to dive deeper.

On a personal note, this book was well annotated. So that means I ended up with a whole list of new books to look into. I'll never be make my way through my list. Oh well. I'll never run out of things to read! I'm giving this one a Good Book! review.

The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde - Robert Louis Stevenson

I am going back to some of the classics. I didn't realize Robert Louis Stevenson wrote this, but I was excited to read the famous story.

I'm not sure it's necessary for me to go over the plot, but I'll sum it up real quick. A man is leading a double life, but when his darker side starts to take over, will he be able to regain control?

The book isn't very long, and it is easy to read for the most part. Towards the end, when it was getting philosophical, it had moments where it was a bit harder to follow. A couple things struck me. First was Hyde's stature. I expected him to be larger, but he wasn't. The other was when Jekyll attempted to split man into good and bad, he ended up with a good/bad composite and evil. Interesting.

It's a quick, easy read, and I recommend it. Good Book!

Hitler's Interpreter - Dr. Paul Schmidt

Schmidt was the main interpreter during many of the important talks leading up to, and during, the second world war. In this book, he relates many of those meetings.

The book was a pretty decent insight into the talks, but I feel like there's a major piece missing. He mentions Hitler's issue with the Jews once or twice, but Schmidt doesn't go into what he knew or heard during this time. I know he's supposed to be a silent part of the proceedings, but that didn't stop him from mentioning how he felt about other meetings. This was written in 1951, so maybe he didn't want to add too much information.

He was arrested in 1945 and released in 1948. He testified during the Nuremberg Trials and was interviewed by a psychiatrist. After that, he opened a school to create translators and interpreters.

While the book gave an insight into the talks, and Schmidt did insert his opinions here and there, it still felt like a surface level or somewhat sterilized version. It was a decent book, but I wanted more from him.