Poetry Says it Better

 

Poetry Says it Better: Poems to Help You Wake Up / Ellen Burstyn
NY: HarperOne, c2026.
258 p.

This intriguing book is a hybrid memoir/book of poetry. Actress Ellen Burstyn shares her favourite poems throughout the book, but also tells stories of her life, and why and when certain poems gained their importance in her life. She also talks about the power of memorizing poems, to have them with you when you need them. 

I loved it. I had no idea what I was getting when I picked this book up by chance. I didn't even realize that it was by Burstyn until I read the intro. I just saw that it was a book about poetry and how it can help you live life well -- definitely something I believe. So I wanted to check this out. 

It was so engaging! I just didn't want to put it down. Her stories were gentle and compelling, even while she was talking about some hard times in her life. And then she would share a poem, the one that she'd been explaining. So you can read the poem immediately, and if it touches you, take her advice and try to memorize it right there. 

Her passion for poetry was infectious. She talks about sharing it with people in her life who were sure they didn't like poetry, until she found just the right poem to reach them. I love that feeling when I'm suggesting novels in my day job and the right one hits -- I'm sure it's just as satisfying for her when she converts someone to poetry! 

Many of the poems she includes are ones that may already be familiar to regular readers -- Invictus, a few Mary Oliver choices, some Yeats, Edna St. Vincent Millay and so on. But there were also some that were new to me. I absolutely loved this book. I love seeing people share the things they are passionate about, and poetry is definitely that for Ellen Burstyn. This book is inspiring and uplifting -- highly recommend it. 

Canadian Book Challenge at 20

The Canadian Book Challenge is chugging along into its 20th year -- I still read along, to keep myself aware of reading and reviewing Canadian fiction here, alongside everything else. Anyone can join in - you just have to read and review 13 Canadian books between July 1 and July 1! So easy.

Over the last year I read quite a number of mysteries but also some general fiction -- aiming to repeat that for this year's reading. I want to catch up on my Margaret Millar mysteries, and there are some new releases tempting me also. Lots to pick from :) 

Mrs. Pollifax Unveiled

 

Mrs. Pollifax Unveiled / Dorothy Gilman
read by Barbara Rosenblat
Recorded Books, 2023, c2000.

So I have come to the end of my Mrs. Pollifax adventures. This is the final book in the series, although it doesn't read like a final book - the author died before she could write any more, so there is no big tying up of any story here. It gives us the opportunity to imagine Mrs. P continuing on with her many adventures. 

In this book, Mrs. P and John Farrell are once again travelling together. They are heading to Syria, where Mrs. P is posing as an American lady looking for her missing niece -- a girl who averted a terrorist attack on a plane, got off in Syria, got into the wrong car at the airport, and hasn't been seen since. The CIA isn't sure whether she was kidnapped or part of the plot. Mrs. P. has to find out. 

She and Farrell are supposed to be working together, but he gets himself arrested almost immediately, leaving Mrs. Pollifax to continue on her own. She can't give up on this delicate mission. This gives us a chance to really revel in Mrs. Pollifax alone on a mission, finding ways to get to where she needs to be. Her strength at really connecting with people is so key here - she gets help from locals who she is kind to, who she simply talks to, and they always know someone to help her out. And she always seems to have what she needs to trade with others to smooth the way. 

Eventually she and Farrell are reunited, they find out where the girl is being held (in a camp in the middle of absolutely nowhere) and come up with a slightly ridiculous rescue mission, one involving a lot of sheep. Fortunately there is a camp of archeologists nearby, and Mrs. P's age makes her the perfect 'visiting aunt' who crashes the camp with the help of one of the young scientists, giving her a base of operations. 

It's a fine close to Mrs. Pollifax's adventures. It highlights her on her own, it ties in with her previous adventures with Farrell, and it really gives her a chance to both shine individually and reminisce about her past adventures right in the middle of this one. I really liked this one, with the only letdown being that is the last fresh Mrs. P. book I will ever read for the first time. I feel that this is a series I will reread in a few years, though! 

Mrs. Pollifax, Innocent Tourist

 

Mrs. Pollifax, Innocent Tourist
Dorothy Gilman
read by Barbara Rosenblat
Recorded Books, 2011, c1997.

Nearing the end of the Mrs. Pollifax series, and feeling a little sad at seeing Mrs. P to her finale. But this one is well suited for nearly the end -- here Mrs. P meets up with old friend John Farrell, to take an "off the books" trip to Jordan, where he hopes to retrieve a manuscript smuggled out of Iran. 

Jordan plays a big role in the story; Mrs. P is almost run away with by an out-of-control horse on the road to Petra -- current events are mentioned (Saddam Hussein, which puts the series timeline out of whack and would make Mrs. P nearly 90 in this book if it was going by the beginning novel -- so you have to let the suspension of disbelief stay strong here!) -- and the political status of borders and politicians is so important here. We do get to see various 'sights' of Jordan via Mrs. Pollifax's travels, and she and Farrell reminisce quite a bit about their past adventures together. For someone who has read the whole series in order, this is a nice way to recap some of the earlier books and see Mrs. P's character development. 

The plot is a bit weaker than earlier books, and Mrs. P doesn't really save the day here - she is more being saved, which is a bit of a letdown. But there are some great local characters who take her and Farrell to the desert, and their time at a Bedouin camp is a wonderful element. This really adds to the atmosphere of the book - Gilman is back to embedding real places and politics into the series, which is very welcome after the imaginary African country of the last two books. 

I enjoyed this one and am only sad that the series is concluding in one more installation... 

Crafting a Knock-Off

 

Crafting a Knock-Off / Barbara Emodi
Concord, CA: C&T Pub., c2026
232 p.

I love this series of cozy mysteries set in Nova Scotia, written by a Canadian craft legend :) When book 7 became available, I grabbed it! This details the further adventures of Valerie Rankin, middle aged craft and general store owner, as she once again gets involved in a mysterious death -- and like usual, goes off on many misguided suspicions before the truth is revealed. 

In this volume, she encounters Murray Nunn, a big talker who is trying to push business development and an export scheme. He won't leave anyone at the local craft fair alone, and while Valerie is talking to him, he suddenly drops dead. On camera. She has a wide range of suspects, from local craftspeople to those who have just arrived in Gasper's Cove for their own purposes, and even including her boyfriend's nephew -- which causes some relationship bumps. 

But Valerie must continue on her sleuthy ways no matter what, and with the involvement of the local RCMP and her crafting ladies, they eventually solve the mystery, and Valerie's fears of the end of her relationship prove unfounded. 

I love these books for their characters and the Nova Scotia setting -- and of course the inclusion of craft content! There are upcycled quilted coats, tartans and kilts, piecework sewing and craft fairs as integral parts of this mystery, and they are important. I thought this one was well constructed and entertaining. Always a treat to revisit Gasper's Cove! 

(Review first appeared at Following The Thread)

Short Canadiana Mentions

As some of my readers may recall, I also review books for work, in Library Journal. I can't review those ones fully here because of that, but I wanted to mention some of the Canadian titles I've read for them in the last while. You can read bits of the original reviews at LJ, just follow the links :) 

Definitely Thriving by Kerry Clare 

This is a modern "women's novel", inspired by the work of Barbara Pym. Anyone who can mix Bridget Jones with Barbara Pym has a unique viewpoint! Set in Toronto, this is an entertaining book with some thoughtful themes. Clementine Lathbury gets divorced, moves back to TO and a crummy apartment of her own, gets a part-time job in a book store and tries to figure out her "Eat Pray Love" journey, without the "love" part. Things get complicated!

The Mystic & The Missing Girl / Vikki VanSickle

This one isn't released until September 8, and my review isn't up yet for LJ. But I just read this one and wanted to let you know about it -- it was such a fun read! Drew Benson goes home to her small town to take over her late Aunt's metaphysical shop. And she gets involved with a cold case going back 20 years, while discovering her own psychic abilities. This one was unique and entertaining and will be particularly interesting to readers who are into psychics, tarot etc. 

Leave our Bones Where They Lay / Aviaq Johnston

Memorable read for sure! This collection of linked short stories follows Jupi, an old man who must tell a story to a demanding spirit, Kupik, each solstice. He's getting old so brings in his young granddaughter to train her in the family tradition. Fabulous look at the contemporary North. I thought it was fresh, unusual and a fascinating read.

A Box Full of Darkness

A Box Full of Darkness/ Simone St. James
NY: Berkley, c2026.
337 p.

I'm a big fan of fellow Canadian author Simone St. James. I read all of her books as they come out. This one is another spooky story told in her ghostly family drama style. But it's even more about families than usual. 

St. James returns to Fell, NY, the site of her previous novel The Sundown Motel (a fave for me). Strange things happen in Fell. There are drownings, children having heart attacks at far too young of an age, and finally the disappearance of six year old Ben, the youngest sibling of the three Esmies, a family who left Fell 18 years previously but are now reconvening thanks to a reported sighting of a ghost who may be Ben. 

The three siblings have all dealt with their childhood trauma differently -- Violet, the oldest, sees dead people and has had her life upended because of it in so many ways. Vail, the middle, used to be a diver but he is now a UFO true believer and drifts around the country searching for proof of aliens. Dodie, the youngest, is a brittle personality, living in NY City and working as a hair and hand model, but keeps people far away from her, emotionally. They have to come back to Fell and face up to who they were then and in the intervening years when they didn't really stay in contact too effectively. 

I really liked this. The characters were interesting - the interactions between siblings was unsettling, they were all so prickly and independent, but had to depend on one another as they are pulled back into their childhood trauma. Returning to a childhood home is always a great plot device but here it is to a mostly abandoned, haunted childhood home -- even less likely to lead to warm fuzzies! It had ghostly bits that were scary, but also real life encounters with nasty people. And the need for the siblings to break down and be honest with one another was another plot driver. It was fun read even if the plot wasn't quite as tight as some of her earlier books.