Review: Lessons from Cats for Surviving Fascism

Lessons from Cats for Surviving Fascism by Stewart Reynolds
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Lessons from Cats for Surviving Fascism by Stewart Reynolds is a very timely work.  You can learn a lot from observing cats.  Unlike dogs, cats have somehow learned to coexist with people without completely losing their connection to their wild ancestors. Cats are the original disruptors.  Reynolds keenly points out a number of their natural behaviors that make them perfect models of anti-fascist behavior.  If you are currently despairing about the fate of our nation and wondering what you can do, take some tips from our fellow felines as observed by Stewart Reynolds.  You might be inspired to action, or at least, you will have a good laugh.  

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Review: The Official We Do Not Care Club Handbook

The Official We Do Not Care Club Handbook by Melani Sanders
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The Official We Do Not Care Club Handbook by Melani Sanders is a companion piece to Melani's online videos of the We Do Not Care Club meetings.  If you are not already familiar with the We Do Not Care Club and are a person perimenopause, menopause, or post-menopause, I highly encourage you to look them up.  I also urge you to get this book.  I got the ebook, but I think a hard copy would be better because it is interactive.  Also, you may want to make copies of the badges and things like that in case you start your own club or just award yourself.  If you are someone who may one day have to experience menopause, you might also want to read this to prepare yourself.  It may not make sense now, BUT IT WILL.  I am putting you all on notice right now that I am a card-carrying member, and I do not care anymore. Thank you.

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Review: How to Invent Everything: A Survival Guide for the Stranded Time Traveler

How to Invent Everything: A Survival Guide for the Stranded Time Traveler by Ryan North
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

How to Invent Everything: A Survival Guide for the Stranded Time Traveler by Ryan North is written as a reference guide for someone who took a time machine into the past and got stuck and now needs to rebuild civilization (as we know it).  However, this book could come in very handy in the future in case we need to rebuild civilization (as we know it) due to some major catastrophic event.  I suggest buying a hard copy and putting it in your bunker, safe room, or fire/water-proof safe.  You are not going to speed read your way through this. You also don't even need to read it in order.  You read the parts you need when you need them.  It will tell you if you need to read another section to accomplish your goal.  This is a very comprehensive distillation of just about everything.  Even without a background in engineering or basically many skills, I feel like I could take on the challenge of building a whole new world.  It is also done with humor which makes getting through the really dense parts easier.  

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Review: Fourteen Days: An Unauthorized Gathering

Fourteen Days: An Unauthorized Gathering by Margaret Atwood
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Fourteen Days is an unusual collection of short stories by 36 authors edited by Margaret Atwood and Douglas Preston.  Douglas Preston provided the overall narration with contributions of so many great diverse authors across all genres.  I liked that you don't know who wrote what unless you skip to the very end and look.  I didn't.  I was so excited to read this.  It is set in New York City at the start of the COVID pandemic which is shortly before I moved there.  That made it all the more meaningful to me.  My building residents did not gather though.  We didn't exchange stories.  The setting did bring up a lot of feelings for me.  My mom died from COVID in a nursing home and having a main character with a father in a nursing home during that period really got to me.  And while the stories are the meat of the book, there are also some mysterious things happening in the building that hint at something bigger going on. 

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Review: Fancy Dogs

Fancy Dogs by Tini Malina
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Full Disclosure: I received an Advanced Reader's Copy of Fancy Dogs by Tini Malina from NorthSouth Books via NetGalley.  This book will be published around October 6, 2026.

Fancy Dogs by Tini Malina is considered a children's book but is delightful for anyone who loves dogs.  I enjoyed it so much I recently read it to another friend while we were on the phone together.  That friend is also not a child, and we had quite a good time with hit.  Whether you know a child who likes dogs or just anyone who does, this is a nice uplifting gift.  

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Review: The Wrong Plane

The Wrong Plane by Robin Sloan
My rating: 4 of 5 stars



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Review: Digitocracy

Digitocracy by Andy Weir
My rating: 5 of 5 stars



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Review: Three Bags Full

Three Bags Full by Leonie Swann
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Three Bags Full is the first book in the Sheep Detective Story series by Leonie Swann.  They did just make it into a movie (which I haven't watched).  You can read this as a standalone.

When their shepherd is murdered, his flock takes it upon themselves to solve the mystery because they feel they owe it to him for being good to them.  Also, they are a little afraid of ending up on the butcher's block if they don't.  They can tell that not everyone has their best interests at heart.  The sheep are fun and interesting characters.  We get to delve into their inner lives and back stories.  They all bring something to the table to help solve the mystery.  While it is mostly funny, it was also sad.  Whether people believe it or not, animals do grieve.  There were some very touching moments.

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Review: Letters from an Imaginary Country

Letters from an Imaginary Country by Theodora Goss
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Letters from an Imaginary Country is a collection of short stories by Theodora Goss.  I was already a fan of Goss, but this is also a great introduction to her work for those that might not be familiar.  She tends to look at "monsters" through a different lens.  I also like that she explores language, especially Hungarian which is so unique.  If you like the L. Frank Baum books, vampires, Mary Shelley, or sometimes feel like an alien in your own culture/country, I highly recommend reading this book.  

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Review: The Rabbit Back Literature Society

The Rabbit Back Literature Society by Pasi Ilmari Jääskeläinen
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The Rabbit Back Literature Society by Pasi Ilmari Jääskeläinen is possibly the first book I've read by a Finnish writer.  It was translated into English by Lola Rogers.  I was drawn into this mysterious secret society of famous Finnish writers who all come from this small town of Rabbit Back.  How is it possible for one place to generate nine incredible authors across a variety of genres?  That they are cultivated by a mysterious woman who may or may not be real or a witch or something from a C.S. Lewis story makes it even crazier.  There are several mysteries going on and the answers are revealed as the various authors spill their stories or some story.  Maybe not a story?  Maybe the truth?  You'll have to decide whether you believe them.  While there are fairy-tale elements, this is an adult novel.  There are graphic discussions of people's bodies and sex.  It was very frank which you don't see frequently.  

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Review: The Crone Zone: How to Get Older with Style, Nerve, and a Little Bit of Magic

The Crone Zone: How to Get Older with Style, Nerve, and a Little Bit of Magic by Nina Bargiel
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The Crone Zone: How to Get Older with Style, Nerve, and a Little Bit of Magic by Nina Bargiel is worth reading for the illustrations alone.  Just kidding although they are fantastic.  I've always known I would be a crone.  Even when I was younger, I liked to wear a caftan, preferred the company of animals over people, and read lots of books on witchcraft.  When I saw this book, I knew it was for me.  I am in my crone era!  I live woods-adjacent with my animal familiars.  I discovered that Ross has a caftan section.  A whole section!  I bought two...for now.  So while The Crone Zone didn't have a lot of revelations for me, it was enjoyable to read the insights of a fellow crone and know I am in good company.  It is also nice to embrace the positive aspects of aging.  Be yourself, unapologetically.  I also liked that there is not just one way to crone.  You can mix it up!  This is perfect for the aspiring crone, somebody looking for a mid-life pick-me-up, or the seasoned crone who wants a laugh.

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Review: Penny: A Graphic Memoir

Penny: A Graphic Memoir by Karl Stevens
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

If you like cats in the least bit, you will want to read Penny: A Graphic Memoir by Karl Stevens.  The illustrations are great, but Stevens really gets at the inner life of Penny.  If you have or have had a cat, you have probably wondered what they were thinking.  Cats are often enigmatic.  This is a fun exploration of the cat mind.  

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