Reading Around the World - Don't Ask Questions! It's a Dystopian Oakland!

With this book, I've moved south from Davis, California, to the city of my birth, Oakland.

The book is Gun,With Occasional Music by Jonathan Lethem and it's a very strange Oakland indeed. It takes place in an unspecified future in a dystopian Oakland. As I say in my review: "It's an Oakland where you need a license to ask other people questions. It's an Oakland where drugs are not only legal, but de rigeur. It's an Oakland were "evolution therapy" has made not only intelligent animals, but also intelligent toddlers, or "babyheads"." 

This is also a noir mystery that Chandler would be proud to call home. I really enjoyed it. 

My next book I will move across the bay to one of my favorite cities, San Francisco.

Reading around the world -- reading Jane Austen in Davis, California

Moving south from Lassen Volcanic National Park in northern California, I have arrived in the Sacramento Valley in Davis -- "the most bicycle friendly town in the world". 

For Davis, I read Karen Joy Fowler's book The Jane Austen Book Club. Other literary Davis natives are Peter S. Beagle (The Last Unicorn), John Lescroart (the Dismas Hardy novels), Deborah Madison (cookbook author), Kim Stanley Robinson (the Mars trilogy), Sean Stewart (Resurrection Man trilogy), and Zach Weiner (webcomic Saturday Morning Breakfast Cereal).

The biggest employer in Davis is the University of California which has campus there. It is also the home of the California Northern Railroad.

The average temperature (year-round) is 47.8-74.7 Fahrenheit. The highest temperature ever recorded was 116 F in July 1925 and the lowest was 12 F in December 1932. 

Indeed, in the book, the climate is described as follows: 

"The climate in the Valley was classified as Mediterranean, which meant that everything died in the summer. The native grasses went brown and stiff. The creeks disappeared. The oaks turned gray."

The book is very entertaining, especially for a fan of Jane Austen like me. The book even came with a couple fun appendices, one all of quotes of people's opinions of Austen and her works.

The sense of place in the book was very good in places, not so good in others. Essentially the book is a book of people all linked by the wonderful Miss Jane. 

Please check out my review at Goodreads!

The mere habit of learning to love is the thing.

~Jane Austen

Reading Around the World: Northern California's Lassen Volcanic National ParkThe

I've moved out of the Beaver State and into the Golden State - California.

When I searched for a book to read for Northern California, I was always directed to the Bay Area - San Francisco/Oakland and the environs. Yet, looking at the map, that seemed more like Central California. 

So, I looked at a map and one of the most northern places in California is Lassen Volcanic National Park. And, sure enough, Nevada Barr sends her character Anna Pigeon there in book #4 of her series that take place in national parks. 

What's more the book takes place in a wildfire at the national park.

In this book, Anna is working as an EMT for firefighters fighting a wildfire at the park. She and a group of firefighters get trapped after a flashover when a murder occurs. (Don't you hate it when that happens?) As she's trapped, she also has to investigate a murder while keeping herself and her fellows alive. 

Apart from the plot, which I really enjoyed, the scenery of the park and the description of fighting wildfires take central stage. Lassen Volcanic National Park is one of the oldest in the national park system and will celebrate its centennial next year. The volcano, Lassen Peak, last erupted in 1914-15. A fire actually occurred at the park in 2012. 

There are a few lakes near the area and quite a bit of geothermal activity. Lassen Peak is the dominant feature and the largest plug volcano in the world. There is also the Cinder Cone volcano. Additionally, there are boiling springs, mudpots, and fumaroles at the park.

I really enjoyed this mystery and can't wait to read more in the Anna Pigeon series. You can find my review of the book at Goodreads. Next I will be travelling south to Sacramento!

Reading Around The World -- Let's Visit the Rose City -- Portland, Oregon!!

I'm a little behind on this stop. I actually finished the book last month. But we took a real road trip to Boston to see my brother tie the knot!

This whistle stop is the city of Portland, Oregon, the most populous city in the Beaver State. Portland is also known as the Rose City or the City of Roses. It's had this nickname since 1888 and even has had a Rose Festival since 1907.

The Grand Floral (or Rose) Parade is the second largest all-floral parade after the Rose Parade in Pasadena, California.

The book I read that featured the fair city of Portland, Oregon, was Murdermobile by B.B. Cantwell

This was a fun cozy mystery with engaging characters and a touch of romance. I've already purchased book 2 in the series, Corpse of Discovery.

The main character in the book is librarian Hester McGarrigle who works in the magenta-colored Mobile Library Unit (bookmobile) for the Portland City Library. This is what it looks like now, but the book is set in 1990's Portland.

Hester's route takes her down Skyline Boulevard "offering a 360-degree view of forested hills."

When she got done with her route, Hester liked to relax with a glass of Oregon pinot noir.

Another stop Hester has is at Mt Tabor Park, "home to the only extinct volcano inside city boundaries in the United States."

Unfortunately, Hester's day was interrupted by finding the former head librarian stuffed in a cupboard in the bookmobile (hence the title of the book Murdermobile). The murder is where Hester meets her love interest, Detective Nate Darrow who was "several inches taller than Hester, who stood 5-feet-11 in her Birkenstocked feet. His slim build accentuated broad shoulders and a thatch of prematurely graying hair contrasted with luxuriant, chestnut-colored eyebrows.")

Hester has a roommate a huge Maine Coon cat named Bingle T.

Hester's friend, Pim, likes to go to Dogs Aplenty for a kielbasa-on-a-stick for her lunch.

Unfortunately, Pim gets arrested for murder and Hester has to get involved to save her friend. One place she meets handsome Nate Darrow is for coffee at Pioneer Courthouse Square.

If Nate, Pim, or Hester were so inclined, one place they could visit in Portland is the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry.

Nate likes pizza. He orders "sumptuous, huge slices of herb-laced cheese and tender crust" from "Escape from New York" pizza and paired it with a Thomas Kemper root beer.

Hester and her friend Karen attend a meeting of "Women Who Care About Children" at the Mumfrey Mansion, "a historic eyesore in the west hills of Portland." (I couldn't find MM when I looked on-line, but I did find the Pittock Mansion.)

The history of the fictional Mumfrey Mansion is that the home was "erected with grand pretense but a minimum of expense 60 years earlier by Captain Mathusalum Mumfrey, a founding member of the Columbia River Pilots Association." These pilots help guide ships "into the mouth of the mighty Columbia" otherwise known as the "Graveyard of the Pacific."

Karen and Hester prefer to go to Jitters Coffee Co., "Portland's local rival to Seattle's snooty purveyors of caffeine." Apparently, Karen orders a "Black Ocelot espresso that made your ears waggle." That sure sound interesting. 

Karen's husband is an architect who isn't doing well, even though "all over Portland, architects are doing wonderful things like the Portland Building; KOIN Tower; RiverPlace."

Pim lives out on the edge of the Sandy River where she can hear great horned owls hooting. This is where she is when she is arrested. 

She is taken to the Portland Justice Center or "chokey" as she calls it.

Hester has breakfast downtown at the Heathman Pub and Bakery on Friday morning. It seems very ritzy. Hester has a "nine-grain bagel smeared with ricotta cheese and tart gooseberry preserves" and "strong Italian coffee ... served in mugs almost as generous as their pint ale glasses."

Hester walks past a statue of Teddy Roosevelt on horseback while contemplating the murder. She also walks past St James Lutheran Church and sits on a park bench watching Salmon Street.

Karen convinces Hester she needs a "Girls Night Out" to take her to Six Tepees Over Oregon, "a glitzy combination of Indian casino, thrill-ride park and rock-concert amphitheater." This is a fictitious place. However, there are plenty of places like this in the Pacific Northwest. The closest one to Portland is Spirit Mountain Casino in Grand Ronde, 60 miles SW of Portland. 

The casino Karen and Hester go to is "20 miles up into the scenic Columbia River Gorge." The Gorge is a wonderful and beautiful place to go to. 

On their way to this fictitious casino, they pass a "one-truck fire station" for Multnomah County in the fictitious town of Corbin.

The casino was ostentatious, as they walked on a Pendleton rug.

When Hester goes to work she can see "Mount Hood's shark-tooth peak" and "the low hump of Mount St. Helens."

Hester's favorite breakfast spot is in the Pearl District.

Nate likes to go running in Forest Park.

For lunch, Hester's co-worker suggests Char-Burger in Cascade Locks

In the climax, Hester and her co-worker pass some famous sights in the Portland Area.  Such as Bridal Veil Scenic Highway, Multnomah Falls, Wahkeena Falls, Vista House, Shepperd's Dell

After the climax, Hester and Nate go to Tad's Chic Dump on the Sandy River, "a venerable rural roadhouse dedicated to good old-fashioned comfort food."

I hope you liked this trip to Oregon and the Rose City. For my next book, I will be travelling down to California. My first stop will by Lassen Volcanic National Park in Northern California in Nevada Barr's Anna Pigeon Series, Firestorm!!

Bon Voyage!!

Reading Around the World: Getting Hot and Bothered in Seattle, Washington!

On this stop, I read Come Away With Me by Kristen Proby - a contemporary (and erotic) romance set in Seattle. I originally planned to read Truth Like The Sun by Jim Lynch.

Seattle is known as the Emerald City and is named after Chief Sealth of the Duwamish and Suquamish tribes.

Seattle is ranked the most literate city in the country. It has the highest percentage of residents with a college degree or higher. Seattle had the first general strike in the country in 1919 -- the Seattle General Strike.

Seattle is known as the Rainy City. However, its annual rainfall is 37.1 inches. This means it receives less rain than New York City, Houston, Atlanta, and most cities on the Eastern Seaboard! It was also NOT listed on the list of the 10 rainiest cities in the United States.

Seattle is currently home to four professional sports teams, the Seattle Seahawks of the NFL, the Seattle Sounders FC of the MLS, the Seattle Mariners of the MLB, and the Seattle Storm of the WNBA.

Wikipedia shows that 81 films have been set in Seattle. Arguably, the most famous of these is Sleepless in Seattle with Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan. 

Many television shows were set there as well, most noticeably Frasier.

I really enjoyed this romance. It was very sexy and very fun and had engaging characters. The female and male leads are independently wealthy. (She inherited after the loss of her parents and he is a former actor and a current movie producer.) So, the book had the handicap to being unrealistic to me on that bent. However, the love, vulnerabilities, and the sex were great. You can find my full review and other reviews on my GoodReads site: Kirsten on GoodReads

Places featured in the book are:

Alki Beach

Snoqualmie Falls

Salty's Alki Beach Seafood Grill

Chateau Ste Michelle

Celtic Swell

Thanks for joining me on my trip to Seattle. This finishes up my trip to my home state of Washington. I love Washington State and highly recommend people to visit. We have some great parks to visit, including:

Mount Rainier National Park

Mount Saint Helens National Volcanic Monument

Olympic National Park

Grand Coulee Dam

Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area

Cape Disappointment State Park

I hope everyone out there will consider a trip to our great state some time soon!

I will be moving on next to the Beaver State - Oregon - and more specifically the Rose City - Portland. I will be reading the cozy mystery Murdermobile, a Portland Bookmobile Mystery, by B.B. Cantwell

Thanks for joining me!

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