Joining Kat and friends. Go see what the others are up to.

Knitting.

The problem with Unraveled Wednesdays is I generally take photos of my knitting on Tuesday so you are seeing the latest. But my Tuesday was very busy, and I didn’t remember the photo duty until I was in bed. Occasionally, I have gotten up to finish a post, but not last night. Too tired.

So I will tell you about it instead.

I finished hats #1 and #2 for DIL, but was having a real problem deciding on a pattern for #3. I knew I wanted it to have cables, and I knew I would knit it from some ivory Knit Picks Gloss DK, a luscious merino-silk yarn in my stash. I used the Rav advanced search function, and found a few patterns, none of which grabbed my fancy. I even ventured into patterns calling for sportweight or worsted, figuring I could fudge it. Still no joy. Finally, a couple nights ago I had it down to three patterns. Along the way I had considered the Iola hat, the Ruby Cabled Toque, JJason’s Cashmere hat, the Lina hat,and too many others to name.

Next week: the reveal!

Reading.

sd

The Winners / Fredrik Backman. This is book 3 in the Beartown trilogy. I read book 1, Beartown, a couple years ago. When I learned that it was a trilogy, I requested books 2 and 3 from the library. For some unexplained reason I thought this book was #2 so I started it. What a story! Backman is, imnsho, a master storyteller. Here, Beartown and its neighbor, Hed, are fighting to the death over pretty much everything, not just hockey. There are major characters from both towns, ensuring that our sympathies are divided. 5★

sd

sd

A History of Present Illness / Anna Deforest. I read every book that I come across that deals with life as a doctor/resident/med student in my ongoing effort to empathize with Elder Son. I mistakenly thought this one was nonfiction, but it is actually a novel. However, it did not grab my attention as I read, so it is a non-finish for me. YMMV. 2★

sd

sd

as

Neanderthal Opens the Door to the Universe / Preston Norton. I reviewed this one a couple weeks ago, but I wanted to add something: these teenage boys are incredibly inventive with the curses and nicknames they throw around. It is worth the read just for that. The story ain’t bad, either. 4★

df

sd

df

aa

The World Played Chess / Robert Dugtoni. A story about the Vietnam war told in three time periods: when an 18-yo volunteers for the Marines and is immediately sent to Nam; 10 or so years later when an 18-yo high school graduate works construction alongside him and hears his stories; and 20 years later when the 18-yo is a married man with chidren of his own. A thoughtful story of what that war — or any war — does to its participants. The title comes from an unattributed quote, “The world played chess, while I played checkers.” 4★

as

as

Chasing the Boogeyman / Richard Chizman. A mystery that is part fact and part fiction. I was surprised when I read in the afterward what was fact and what was not. Teenage girls are disappearing, their bruised and beaten bodies found a day or two later. The protagonist is a would-be writer returned to his hometown after college graduation. He and a local reporter follow the story and attempt their own investigation. The author is a good friend of Stephen King; they have written a book together. That is a pretty good recommendation for an author. 3.5★

a

A

as

Fox Creek / William Kent Krueger. This is book #19 in Krueger’s Cork O’Connor series. Many of the same characters appear, older and more mature now. Henry Maloux, the 105-yo Native healer, walks into the wilderness with Cork’s wife and another woman who is being pursued by Bad Guys, no one knows why. The Bad Guys are vanquished, the Good Guys triumph, and all is well once again. 3★

sd

as

The Ink Black Heart / Robert Galbraith. I almost left this at the library when I picked it up — it is almost 1,000 pages! That is way too long for a detective/romance novel. But Galbraith/Rowling is apparently so successful that her editors dare not edit her tomes. I am about a third of the way through it and am finding it a bit difficult to keep the characters and plot straight. It would have made an excellent 350-page book. 3★

sd

sd

Listening.

sd

A Life in Stitches / Rachael Herron. This is the 10th anniversary edition of Herron’s book, and she updates a few of the essays. I used to read her knitting blog, Yarn-A-Go-Go, back in the day. She is a delightful writer and reads her own book very well. 5★ (if you are a knitter; 4★ if not)

Watching.

sd

The Great British Baking Show. The final of season 10 is this Friday, and I predict Syabira is gonna win. She has been consistently excellent all through the season. The other two have had high spots and low spots. Stay tuned…

sd

a

The Manchurian Candidate. I came across a reference to this 1962 movie and realized it was a classic I had never seen. Library to the rescue! Smokey and I watched it Saturday night. There is a reason it is a classic, although the Communist/Russian enemy was a bit dated. 4★

sd

as

as

a

The Lincoln Lawyer on Netflix. This will keep me interested for two seasons; season one is done and season two has been announced. 3★