Books

Think before you speak. Read before you think. – Fran Lebowitz

Here are a few series that I enjoy.

Benjamin January Series by Barbara Hambly

  1. A Free Man of Color (1997)
  2. Fever Season (1998)
  3. Graveyard Dust (1999)
  4. Sold Down the River (2000)
  5. Die Upon a Kiss (2001)
  6. Wet Grave (2002)
  7. Days of the Dead (2003)
  8. Dead Water (2004)
  9. Dead and Buried (2010)
  10. The Shirt on His Back (2011)
  11. Ran Away (2011)
  12. Good Man Friday (2013)
  13. Crimson Angel (2014)
  14. Drinking Gourd (2016)
  15. Murder in July (2017)
  16. Cold Bayou (2018)
  17. Lady of Perdition (2020)
  18. House of the Patriarch (2021)
  19. Death and Hard Cider (2022)
  20. The Nubian’s Curse (2024)
  21. Murder in the Trembling Lands (2025)

Masked balls, duels, and murder: musician, sleuth, and free man of color Benjamin January is caught up in a shocking crime in this gripping nineteenth-century mystery set in New Orleans.

February, 1841. It’s Carnival season in New Orleans. Free man of color Benjamin January – a surgeon turned piano player, with a talent for attracting trouble – is playing at an opulent masked ball when, little to his surprise, a quarrel breaks out between two guests, and his services are requested at a duel. Young planter Bastien Damoreau has accused a recent arrival to town of passing himself off as white – an insult not to be borne. (amazon.com)

This is one of my favorite cozy series by Alexander McCall Smith.

The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency Series

  1. The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency (1998)
  2. Tears of the Giraffe (2000)
  3. Morality for Beautiful Girls (2001)
  4. The Kalahari Typing School for Men (2002)
  5. The Full Cupboard of Life (2003)
  6. In the Company of Cheerful Ladies (2004)
  7. Blue Shoes and Happiness (2006)
  8. The Good Husband of Zebra Drive (2007)
  9. The Miracle at Speedy Motors (2008)
  10. Tea Time for the Traditionally Built (2009)
  11. The Double Comfort Safari Club (2010)
  12. The Saturday Big Tent Wedding Party (2011)
  13. The Limpopo Academy of Private Detection (2012)
  14. The Minor Adjustment Beauty Salon (2013)
  15. The Handsome Man’s De Luxe Café (2014)
  16. The Woman Who Walked in Sunshine (2015)
  17. Precious and Grace (2016)
  18. The House of Unexpected Sisters (2017)
  19. The Colours of All the Cattle (2018)
  20. To the Land of Long Lost Friends (2019)
  21. How to Raise an Elephant (2020)
  22. The Joy and Light Bus Company (2021)
  23. A Song of Comfortable Chairs (2022)
  24. From a Far and Lovely Country (2023)
  25. The Great Hippopotamus Hotel (2024)
  26. In the Time of Five Pumpkins (2025)

In this newest installment of Alexander McCall Smith’s beloved No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency series, Mma Ramotswe takes on a number of perplexing situations, and while she tries to maintain her usual impartiality, it’s difficult when one of the cases involves someone so close to her heart. (amazon.com)

Here’s another series I enjoy:

Easy Rawlins Series by Walter Mosley

  1. Devil in a Blue Dress (1990)
  2. A Red Death (1991)
  3. White Butterfly (1992)
  4. Black Betty (1994)
  5. A Little Yellow Dog (1996)
  6. Gone Fishin’ (1997)
  7. Bad Boy Brawly Brown (2002)
  8. Six Easy Pieces (2003)
  9. Little Scarlet (2004)
  10. Cinnamon Kiss (2005)
  11. Blonde Faith (2007)
  12. Little Green (2013)
  13. Rose Gold (2014)
  14. Charcoal Joe (2016)
  15. Blood Grove (2021)
  16. Farewell, Amethystine (2024)
  17. Gray Dawn (2025)

In this thrilling mystery from “master of craft and narrative” Walter Mosley (National Book Foundation), Detective Easy Rawlins has settled into the happy rhythm of his new life when a dark siren from his past returns and threatens to destroy the peace he’s fought for. (amazon.com)

On my September 2025 reading table

  • Never by Ken Follett 
  • The Great Alone by Kristin Hannah
  • With a Vengeance by Riley Sager
  • Culpability by Bruce Holsinger 
  • Death of an Ex: A Vandy Myrick Mystery by Delia Pitts
  • The Fate of the Day: The War for America, Fort Ticonderoga to Charleston, 1777-1780 by Rick Atkinson
  • Who Is Government?: The Untold Story of Public Service by Michael Lewis (Editor) 
  • The Black Wolf by Louise Penny
  • The Impossible Fortune by Richard Osman
  • The Ministry of Time by Kaliane Bradley

My evening book club is reading this for September.

In this million-copy international bestseller from Korea, the owner of a corner store takes in an unhoused man who does a good deed, a kind soul whose presence will transform the whole neighborhood—a heartwarming tale of community and redemption reminiscent of the bestselling novels of Matt Haig and Gabrielle Zevin. The Second Chance Convenience Store is a moving and joyful story of a woman fighting for her community and a man who has lost everything except the will to try again. (Amazon.com)

Barack Obama’s 2025 Reading List

The Ministry for the Future is a masterpiece of the imagination, using fictional eyewitness accounts to tell the story of how climate change will affect us all. Its setting is not a desolate, postapocalyptic world, but a future that is almost upon us. This extraordinary novel from visionary science fiction writer Kim Stanley Robinson will change the way you think about the climate crisis. (amazon.com) Bill Gates writes, “The Ministry for the Future does a better job than any other book I’ve read of playing out, in a dramatic but realistic way, how high temperatures can literally kill people.”

I am reading it now, and am riveted. This does not read like science fiction, speculative fiction, or any kind of fiction. Good audio book choice, too. (WCW)

Traditional Black American cultures present the crossroads as a place of simultaneous difficulty and possibility. In contemporary times, Kimberlé Crenshaw coined the phrase “intersectionality” to explain the unique position of Black women in America. In many ways, they are at a third crossroads: attempting to fit into notions of femininity and respectability primarily assigned to White women, while inventing improvisational strategies to combat oppression. In Misbehaving at the Crossroads, Jeffers explores the emotional and historical tensions in Black women’s public lives and her own private life. (amazon.com)

I can only say – read this if you have even one black woman friend.

Want a HEA? Here’s a good choice.

Cielo “Lo” Valdez doesn’t believe in second chances. Surviving cancer taught her that life is too short to spend time on someone who wronged you. But Aidan O’Toole is determined to show her life is best spent together. (Amazon.com)

This New York Times bestselling novel tells an exhilarating World War II epic that chronicles an extraordinary young woman’s heroic frontline service in the Red Cross. Drawing inspiration from his mother’s own Red Cross service, Luis Alberto Urrea has brought to light an overlooked story of women’s heroism during World War II.  (Amazon.com)

This is a great book club read. We are reading it, and I expect the discussion to be lively and profound. Here are some discussion questions to get you started.

Prize-winning historian Rick Atkinson provides a riveting narrative covering the middle years of the Revolution. Stationed in Paris, Benjamin Franklin woos the French; in Pennsylvania, George Washington pleads with Congress to deliver the money, men, and materiel he needs to continue the fight. In New York, General William Howe, the commander of the greatest army the British have ever sent overseas, plans a new campaign against the Americans—even as he is no longer certain that he can win this searing, bloody war. (Amazon.com)

If you are interested in the story of the American Revolution, Atkinson may be the writer for you. This is the 2nd book in a trilogy. The first is The British Are Coming.

An often-banned book.

The bestselling first installment of the graphic novel acclaimed as “the most affecting and successful narrative ever done about the Holocaust” (Wall Street Journal) and “the first masterpiece in comic book history” (The New Yorker) • PULITZER PRIZE WINNER • One of Variety’s “Banned and Challenged Books Everyone Should Read”

A brutally moving work of art—widely hailed as the greatest graphic novel ever written—Maus recounts the chilling experiences of the author’s father during the Holocaust, with Jews drawn as wide-eyed mice and Nazis as menacing cats. (Amazon.com)

Books for kids starting pre-school

  • I’m Smart! by Kate McMullan; illustrated by Jim McMullan
  • Daniel Goes to School (Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood) by Becky Friedman (Adapter), illustrated by Jason Fruchter
  • Alphabet Mystery by Audrey Wood; illustrated by Bruce Wood
  • Build! Written and illustrated by Red Nose Studio
  • Maisy Goes to Preschool: A Maisy First Experiences Book written and illustrated by Lucy Cousins
  • Scarecited on the First Day of School by Alliah L. Agostini; illustrated by Lala Watkins
  • What to Do When You’re Not Sure What to Do by Davina Bell; illustrated by Hilary Jean Tapper
  • Preschool, Here I Come! by D.J. Steinberg; illustrated by John Joven
  • Pete the Kitty’s First Day of Preschool (Pete the Cat) by Kimberly Dean & James Dean; illustrated by James Dean

Looking for something interesting to read? Here are some authors I enjoy, along with the names of their primary (detective/police/spy) characters and the titles of the first books in their series. Happy reading!

AUTHORCHARACTER/ 1st BOOK IN SERIES
Tracy ClarkDetective Harriet Foster; Hide  
Lindsey DavisFlavia Albia; The Ides of April
Kellye GarrettDayna Anderson; Hollywood Homicide
Barbara HamblyBenjamin January; A Free Man of Color
Rachel Howzell HallDetective Elouise Norton; Land of Shadows
Attica LockeDarren Mathews; Bluebird, Bluebird
Walter MosleyEasy Rawlins: Devil in a Blue Dress
Barbara NeelyBlanch White;  Blanche on the Lam
Richard OsmanThursday Murder Club; The Thursday Murder Club
Sara ParetskyV I Warshawski; Indemnity Only
Louise PennyChief Inspector Gamache; Still Life
Delia PittsRoss Agency Mysteries: Lost and Found in Harlem
Daniel SilvaGabriel Allon; The Kill Artist
Dana StabenowKate Shugak; A Cold Day for Murder
Valerie Wilson WesleyTamara Hayle; When Death Comes Stealing

Fabulous children’s books

  • Hot Dog (Winner of the 2023 Caldecott Medal) by Doug Salati
  • Little Big Man by Varian Johnson (Author), Reggie Brown (Illustrator)
  • The Wild Robot on the Island by Peter Brown 
  • When God Made You by Matthew Paul Turner (Author), David Catrow (Illustrator)
  • The Day You Begin by Jacqueline Woodson (Author), Rafael López (Illustrator)
  • Jabari Jumps by Gaia Cornwall
  • Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People’s Ears: A West African Tale by Verna Aardema, Leo Dillon, et al.
  • M.C. Higgins, the Great by Virginia Hamilton
  • The Day the Crayons Quit by Drew Daywalt (Author), Oliver Jeffers (Illustrator)
  • Corduroy by Don Freeman
  • Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? (Brown Bear and Friends) by Bill Martin, Jr. (Author), Eric Carle (Illustrator)
  • All Are Neighbors (An All Are Welcome Book) by Alexandra Penfold (Author), Suzanne Kaufman (Illustrator)

I enjoy female detectives. Here are 3 I’ve recently read. All information is from Amazon.com.

I loved this. I read it in one sitting. Have read some of her other books and was impressed. Not “literature” but an excellent crime novel.

She’s a new PI in a beautiful seaside town. It’s dirtier than it looks—and more dangerous too—in a twisting novel of suspense by the Anthony Award–nominated author of These Toxic Things. This is the first in a new series.

Rachel Howzell Hall is the critically acclaimed author and Los Angeles Times Book Prize finalist for And Now She’s Gone. A New York Times bestselling author of The Good Sister with James Patterson, Rachel is an Anthony, International Thriller Writers, and Left Award nominee and the author of They All Fall Down, Land of Shadows, Skies of Ash, Trail of Echoes, and City of Saviors in the Detective Elouise Norton series. She is a past member of the board of directors for Mystery Writers of America and has been a featured writer on NPR’s acclaimed Crime in the City series and the National Endowment for the Arts weekly podcast; she has also served as a mentor in Pitch Wars and the Association of Writers Programs. Rachel lives in Los Angeles with her husband and daughter. For more information, visit www.rachelhowzell.com

I have enjoyed her work for years. She is at the top of her game.

Legendary detective V.I. Warshawski uncovers a mystery with roots dating back to the Civil War in this edge-of-your-seat thriller from New York Times bestseller Sara Paretsky. This is #22 in the series.

Called a “genius” by Lee Child and “one of the all-time greats” by Karin Slaughter, Sara Paretsky transformed the role of women in the mystery world with her detective, V.I. Warshawski. V.I. is tough, feminine, and vulnerable, but above all, loyal to her friends and clients. Paretsky and Warshawski share a love of singing, Golden Retrievers, and Italian reds. Paretsky’s passion for social justice is reflected in her novels but also in her support for reproductive health and the welfare of women and children. She founded Sisters in Crime, an international organization that advocates for women in the mystery/thriller field. She is one of four living writers to earn both the Cartier Diamond Dagger from the British Crime Writers and Grand Master from the Mystery Writers of America. Visit Sara’s website, www.saraparetsky.com.

I read these books on the day they are released. I am never disappointed.

In this latest installment of Alexander McCall Smith’s beloved No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency, Mma Ramotswe and Mma Makutsi take on an intriguing new case and uncover surprising truths.

Alexander McCall Smith is one of the world’s most prolific and most popular authors. His career has been varied: for many years, he was a professor of Medical Law. Then, after the publication of his highly successful ‘No 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency’ series, which has sold over twenty million copies, he devoted his time to the writing of fiction and has seen his various series of books translated into over forty-six languages and become bestsellers throughout the world.

A few good newsletters to subscribe to:

For a more complete view of our nation’s history, here are a (very) few resources from my library:

  • A People’s History of the United States by Howard Zinn
  • The Federalist Papers by Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay
  • The American Revolution: A History by Gordon S. Wood
  • The Warmth of Other Suns by Isabel Wilkerson
  • The Guns of August by Barbara W. Tuchman
  • Founding Brothers by Joseph J. Ellis
  • The Color of Law: A Forgotten History of How Our Government Segregated America by Richard Rothstein
  • Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America by Ibram X. Kendi
  • White Trash: The 400-Year Untold History of Class in America by Nancy Isenberg
  • American Civil War at History.com (videos)
  • World War II at History.com (videos)
  • The American Experience series on PBS
  • 15 Unsung Moments From American History That Historians Say You Should Know About

Books Everyone Should Read (in my opinion)

  1. Angie Thomas- The Hate You Give
  2. Phoebe Robinson- You Can’t Touch My Hair And Other Things I Still Have To Explain
  3. Terry McMillan – Waiting to Exhale
  4. Nonviolent Bulawayo – We Need New Names
  5. Toni Morrison – The Bluest Eye
  6. Issa Rae- Misadventures of Awkward Black Girl
  7. Tiffany Haddish – The Last Black Unicorn
  8. Maya Angelou – I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings
  9. Francesca Ramsey – Well, That Escalated Quickly
  10. Octavia E Butler -The Parable of the Sower
  11. Jesmyn Ward – Sing, Unburied, Sing
  12. Toni Tipton-Martin – The Jemima Code: Two Centuries of African American Cookbooks
  13. Gloria Naylor – Mama Day
  14. Imani Perry – South to America

Read more here and here.

Buy your books from an independent (or less dependent) bookseller. Here are leads to a few bookstores that ship, are good for a road trip, or are brick-and-mortar:

Here are some good books and blogs for recipes for one or two:

  • The Complete Cooking for Two Cookbook by America’s Test Kitchen
  • Taste of Home’s Dinner Ideas for Two
  • One Dish Kitchen (blog)
  • Healthy Cookbook for Two: 175 Simple, Delicious Recipes to Enjoy Cooking for Two by Michelle Anderson
  • Good Housekeeping Dishes For Two: 125 Easy Small-Batch Recipes for Weeknight Meals & Special Celebrations
  • The Essential Air Fryer Cookbook for Two: Perfectly Portioned Recipes for Healthier Fried Favorites by Gina Kleinworth
  • Table for Two (blog)
  • Fix-It and Forget-It Cooking for Two: 150 Small-Batch Slow Cooker Recipes by Hope Comerford and Bonnie Matthews
  • The Heart Healthy Cookbook for Two: 125 Perfectly Portioned Low Sodium, Low Fat Recipes by Jennifer Koslo and Sarah Samaan
  • Baking for Two: 200+ Small-Batch Recipes, from Lazy Bakes to Layer Cakes by America’s Test Kitchen
  • Our Favorite Recipes for One or Two by Gooseberry Patch
  • 101 Cooking for Two (blog)
  • All-Time Best Dinners for Two by America’s Test Kitchen 
  • Cornbread Recipe For One or Two by Lynda Self
  • Chocolate Cobbler by Christina Lane
  • The Ultimate Cooking for One Cookbook: 175 Super Easy Recipes Made Just for You by Joanie Zisk
  • 10 small-batch recipes perfect for two from King Arthur Baking
  • Cooking for Two from The Spruce Eats

Picture Books for Children (and adults)

No Place for This In My Cookbook Collection

I was looking at cookbooks and came across Rage Baking: The Transformative Power of Flour, Fury, and Women’s Voices: A Cookbook edited by Katherine Alford, a former vice president at Food Network, and Kathy Gunst of NPR’s Here and Now, This collection of recipes and stories was published in 2020, and I vaguely remembered some controversy about it. Ah-ha. Blogger and baker Tangerine Jones published an essay on Medium titled “The Privilege of Rage,” outlining how she coined the phrase “rage baking” back in 2015, and watched as Alford and Gunst’s book was published to great acclaim as her work went unacknowledged (taken from Jaya Saxena writing for Eater.com). Saxena continues, “It’s not hard to find instances of black people, specifically black women, being erased from their own work. One has to simply look at all the work activist Tarana Burke has had to do to remind the world she coined the phrase #MeToo. Or the erasure of black trans women from an art exhibit about HIV/AIDS. Or how Mark Bittman was called out for ripping off the name and design of a feminist magazine, Salty, for his Medium publication, which has since been rebranded to Heated. Jones never claims to have invented the phrase “rage baking,” but her post taps into this history.”

Best New Cookbooks on My Shelf

  • Sweet Tooth: 100 Desserts to Save Room For (A Baking Book) by Sarah Fennell
  • Our South: Black Food Through My Lens by Ashleigh Shanti
  • The King Arthur Baking Company Big Book of Bread: 125+ Recipes for Every Baker (A Cookbook)
  • My Egypt: Cooking from My Roots (A Cookbook) by Michael Mina
  • An African American Cookbook: Exploring Black History and Culture Through Traditional Foods by Phoebe Bailey
  • The American Beach Cookbook by Marsha Dean Phelts
  • The Cake Bible, 35th Anniversary Edition by Rose Levy Beranbaum& Woody Wolston (I have the original, and it is fabulous)
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