5/5 stars World of Wonders: In Praise of Fireflies, Whale Sharks, and Other Astonishments , by Aimee Nezhukumatathil (2020), Illustrator: Fumi Nakamura This is a beautiful debut of nonfiction essays about nature, how the author relates to the world around her, and how and what animals and plants can teach us. The essays include very cool facts about animals and plants, side by side with anecdotes about the author's past - where she grew up, the many different places she live

I am finally getting around to posting these photos! I went to Las Vegas in June 2025 for a conference, but, as always, I found time to explore a bit as well. The flight in (there was a brush fire at a park near Vegas): Airport, conference, hotel, and The Sphere from the ground: The conference rented out the High Roller Ferris Wheel for a night! Great view of The Sphere (with my coworker Konnie). The Venetian: “Wow - The Vegas Spectacular” at the Rio Hotel: Bellagio Fountain

2/5 stars The Staircase in the Woods , by Chuck Wendig (2025) I cannot recommend this book because of all the needlessly disturbing content. Honestly, if there's a trigger, this book has it. TW: Blood & gore, Extreme violence, Sexual abuse, Pedophilia, Self-harm, Drug & alcohol abuse, Death of a child/parents, Torture, Rape, Incest, Addiction, Domestic abuse .... you can view them ALL here: Storygraph - Content Warnings . With that in mind, it's hard to review this book beca

2/5 stars Somewhere Beyond the Sea , by T.J. Klune (2024) I wanted this to be great, because The House in the Cerulean Sea was great. In the end, though, we really did not need this sequel. I'll just say at the top here - if you loved Cerulean Sea , don't bother with this one. Just treasure your happy memories of the first book! Here, we return to Marsyas island to rejoin Arthur and Linus and their ragtag gaggle of magical children, who are all up to the same old antics. A

3/5 stars Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil , by V.E. Schwab (2025) This is a story about three women. In 1532 in Spain, Maria, a young tomboy who has begun to blossom into a beautiful young woman, is forced to marry an older man who cares nothing for her. She dreams of escape, and finds that dream realized when she meets a mysterious, seemingly immortal widow, Sabine, who shows her a way out. Maria accepts, and, in so doing, takes more from Sabine than was on offer. In 18

3/5 stars My Best Friend's Exorcism , by Grady Hendrix (2016) TW: The one part I actually had to skip was the torture of a dog. You can fully skip over those pages and not miss anything. The second there's a dog in a bathroom - flip forward a few pages! "Like Beaches meets The Exorcist , only it's set in the Eighties." This book was recommended to me by a local librarian, and I had a lot of fun reading it. It's a quick read. Kind of spoofy and silly with a dark sense of hum

3/5 stars Model Home , by Rivers Solomon (2024) TW: Racism, homophobia & transphobia, child sexual abuse, emotional abuse, parent death,...

3/5 stars How to Solve Your Own Murder and How to Seal Your Own Fate , by Kristen Perrin (2024 & 2025) How to Solve Your Own Murder ...

Arnett Branch Library 310 Arnett Blvd, Rochester, NY 14619 This branch of the Monroe County Library System (MCLS) was founded in 1923 (though the current building is more recent, having been completed in 1973). That's over 100 years of serving the 19th Ward community! One major highlight, which you'll see before you even enter the library, is the collection of outdoor book spine murals. These originated in 2017, but have been added to since then. They were painted by local ar

4/5 stars Make It Scream, Make It Burn , by Leslie Jamison (2019) One of my favorite nonfiction books is Leslie Jamison's The Empathy...

3/5 stars Strange Pictures , by Uketsu (2022) Translated by Jim Rion This is an unconventional little murder mystery that has the feel...

3/5 stars The Last Murder at the End of the World , by Stuart Turton (2024) "Solve the murder to save what's left of the world..." It's...

4/5 stars The Language of Thorns: Midnight Tales & Dangerous Magic , by Leigh Bardugo (2017) Illustrated by Sara Kipin I guess I'm...

3/5 stars Magic for Liars , by Sarah Gailey (2019) Private investigator Ivy Gamble's meat-and-potatoes work is mostly following cheating...

4/5 stars Green Frog: Stories , by Gina Chung (2024) Short story collections can be tough for me. Often I feel like some are great while...

I'm starting a new series on my blog! In 2025 I aim to visit and "review" all 31 libraries in the Monroe County Library System (MCLS). Spoiler alert: They're all 10/10 stars! I've already been to about half of them, but want to learn more about what each has to offer - and share it with you! First up is the Webster Public Library. The library has been in its current location since 2002, though there was a major renovation in 2016, which moved the entrance and added an additi

3/5 stars The Antique Hunter's Death on the Red Sea , by C.L. Miller (2025) Not quite as fun the first book, An Antique Hunter's Guide to...

5/5 stars The Girl in Red (2019), and Lost Boy: The True Story of Captain Hook (2017) , by Christina Henry Trigger Warnings (both...

4/5 stars Chain-Gang All Stars , by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah (2023) Trigger Warnings: Graphic violence, Imprisonment and enslavement,...

1/5 stars The Enigma of Room 622 , by Jo ël Dicker (2020) Translated by Robert Bononno If I were the translator I'd take a biiiiiiig...