October Reading List

 Autumn deepens and this month's books read list grows by one - eight this month.

The Queen's Secret by Karen Harper was one of two books I read the first part of October that are set in the same time period and locale - WWII, England. Narrated by Queen Elizabeth (the Queen Mother), wife of King George VI and mother of the current Queen Elizabeth, it is what I think of as a gossipy type of novel and while I may have 'learned' of a couple things I hadn't heard about the Queen Mother before, it wasn't that good. Looking back I see I had the same reaction to the last book of Harper's that I read: "very little plot and real substance - not my kind of book."

The Splendid And The Vile by Erik Larson is 'my kind of book', coincidentally set in the very same time period and locale as the previous read. But whereas Harper attempts to write about England and, mostly, London during WWII, Larson's book focuses on Prime Minister Winston Churchill rather than the Royals and more of England, not just London. Larson's book is also factual, based on archived material from that time, including the diaries of those living through it on both sides, England and Germany. This was my favorite read this month.

the book of two ways is Jodi Picoult's latest novel. There was a time in my life (50+ years ago), when I was extremely interested in Ancient Egypt - the Pyramids, the Pharaohs, the hieroglyphics, the gods and the excavations, but now I only find them mildly interesting so at first I wasn't that into this book. But Picoult has a way of pulling you into her storyline regardless of the setting. Once you begin knowing the characters, you are engrossed and learning so much more than you realized about more topics than the principal one. Picoult is a master writer.

A Question of Betrayal is Anne Perry's second book in her new Elena Standish series. The time period is the pre-war years of WWII and our heroine is a photographer in the secret intelligence service of England's MI6. I'm hooked on Perry's new series and character .

Falling Together and the precious one are the last two Marisa De Los Santos books I hadn't yet read. This author's storylines and settings are vastly different, yet always interesting. Her novels are about friendships, family secrets, second chances and the redemptive power of love. Santos stays on my 'Authors To Read' list. I look forward to any and all new books by her.

The Oysterville Sewing Circle by Susan Wiggs. After reading The Lost and Found Bookshop last month, I knew I wanted to read more by this author and I didn't have far to look as this book was on the new book shelf when I went to the library. There really is an Oysterville at the tip of a narrow peninsula between the Pacific Ocean and Willapa Bay in the Southwest corner of Washington. Whether there is a real sewing circle there or not, I don't know. Wiggs writes good stories about old wounds, new beginnings and the healing power of friendship. I seem to be needing these uplifting types of books right now and the library has plenty of Wiggs' books just waiting to be read.

Dead Wake by Erik Larson is subtitled The Last Crossing of the Lusitania.  Yes I learned about the sinking of the Lusitania by a German U-boat when I was in school and how that disaster played a part in the United States entering WWI, but only the bare facts. In Larson's deft writing, I learned more about the ship, the background of some of the passengers and the politics being played. I love history and I love the way this author writes about it. 

I already have a number of books lined up to read in November - the start of my 'real' reading season. 😁💛

The Wind Wags Its Many Tails

There were any number of trees with gorgeous Autumn leaves in the neighborhood two weeks ago - like this one near Union County's Freedom Rock. But the wind has been having its way with them and they are nearly bare now. As with all of life, we must enjoy it while we can.

The tree that has held my attention recently is this one on the far side of the hill. Before this fall, I hadn't noticed it at all.

It is those tippy top branches with their smattering of leaves. How are they holding on? Why are they holding on? Every morning, as the light comes up, I glance out the window -- still there.              

I am intrigued.

Song for Autumn 

      By Mary Oliver

Don't you imagine the leaves dream now

     how comfortable it will be to touch

the earth instead of the

     nothingness of the air and the endless

freshets of wind? And don't you think

     the trees, especially those with

mossy hollows, are beginning to look for

the birds that will come -- six, a dozen -- to sleep

     inside their bodies? And don't you hear

the goldenrod whispering goodbye,

     the everlasting being crowned with the first 

tuffets of snow? The pond 

     stiffens and the white field over which

the fox runs so quickly brings out

     its long blue shadows. The wind wags

its many tails. And in the evening

     the piled firewood shifts a little,

longing to be on its way.

Driving 33 Miles To Walk 2 In The Woods

Being in a timber, walking in the woods at any time of the year has always been one of my most redolent pleasures, but especially in the Fall. It didn't use to matter what the terrain was like, now it does, so a walk in the woods for me becomes, "Where can I find a smooth, level path through the woods and how close is it to home? 

I remembered one of the earliest "rail to trail" paths was in nearby Mt. Ayr from my school bus driving days in the early 80's. One evening after taking one of the Corning teams there for a game, I explored a bit of the new trail from the west terminus which was nearby. A little online searching showed that we could access the trail at Poe Hollow Park just east of Mt. Ayr. That would be a perfect place to park and then have the picnic lunch I planned to take - though the picnic was scrapped because of the gusty winds.

Always the one who wants to see/do everything "as long as we're in the area", I noted two or three other spots to check out while there. But, first, Poe Hollow and the Ringgold Trailway.

My first surprise was that the path wasn't paved. Oh, well, at least it is through the woods.

Bud would walk his fast, two-mile cardio pace, while I would amble along enjoying the sights and smells and stopping often to take pictures.

I needn't have worried about being wrong about the smooth, paved, path. After a short walk on the dirt path and some bridges and stairs......

......there it was, under a carpet of leaves.

Care to follow along?

 

A conundrum:

Leaf spotted or spotted leaf?

First I noticed the large, bright green leaves then I noticed...

....how far and high it vined into the canopy. 

It was a picture taken for its color and to show how the wind was blowing,

then I noticed the last quarter of the Harvest Moon was visible in the morning sky.

On the way back, tired, achy, happy.

A final picture from Poe Hollow of the water side gazebo ....

.... and then a little sight-seeing from the car.

Liberty Lake is Ringgold County's newest park. The 40 acre park includes this 12.5 acre lake, formerly the Mt. Ayr reservoir, docks, a shelter house and disc golf. It is a pretty park along highway 169 on the northeast side of Mt. Ayr and still being developed. 

Loch Ayr is a larger lake NW of town. I couldn't understand why it was not more prominently featured until I saw all the, I assume, privately owned lots with cabins and RV's. Some weren't too bad, but others gave the area a shabby feel, run down and crowded close together. 

Just south of Loch Ayr is a nice little pond and park. Fife's Grove Park has shelter houses, a playground, camping spots and a much more peaceful feel about it.

From here it was back home for lunch, a nap, and importing my photos. One of which I neglected sharing: 

One of the first pictures I took along the Ringgold Trailway was this mushroom. It was so cleverly disguised among the fallen leaves I almost missed it. (And completely missed the other one on the right side until I had the pictures on the computer.) 

I don't remember ever seeing those little white spores(?) on the underneath side of a fungus before. Must investigate further.

Just this short trip out of town reminds me that there is still a world out there which can be enjoyed while still taking precautionary measures against Covid-19. And I thoroughly enjoyed my morning walk in the woods. 💛

(Something I didn't notice at the time was that the previous post was my 1700th. Had I realized that I would have tried making it more significant.) 😉

Pretty Predator

It's time I was motivated to post something for October. When I saw a large bird land in the tree outside my window this morning it became first a Facebook share and now a blog post.

For the past ten days I have been noticing clusters of small birds darting about in the trees and bushes. It's like they are playing a game, flitting so quickly I haven't been able to tell what they are - possibly Goldfinches, as that is about their size.

When I saw this Cooper's Hawk* land and secrete itself among the leaves, I knew I hadn't been the only one noticing those small birds - they are among the hawk's favorite meals. I can admire the hawk's beauty and stature while at the same time eschew its proclivities.

         Hawk

                      (By Stephan Dunn)

What a needy desperate thing

to claim what's wild for oneself,

yet the hawk circling above the pines

looks like the same one I thought

might become mine after it crashed

into the large window and lay

one wing spread, the other loosely

tucked, then no, not dead, got up

dazed. And in minutes it was gone.

Now once again

this is its sky, this its woods.

The tasty small birds it loves

have seen their God and know

the suddenness of such love

as we know lightning or flash flood.

If hawks can learn, this hawk learned

what's clear can be hard

down where the humans live,

and that the hunting isn't good

where the air is such a lie.

It glides above the pines and I

turn back into the room, the hawk book

open on the cluttered table

to Cooper's Hawk

and the unwritten caption:

that to be wild

means nothing you do or have done

needs to be explained.

*Chicken hawk is a common name for the Cooper's Hawk and the one my parents used for this medium-sized hawk.