Kate's Virtual Kitchen is Moving

 Can't find some of my older posts? That's because I'm moving them, oldest first, to their very own page at http://katetompkinsbooks.ca/. Figured it would be easier for everybody if all of my stuff was in the same place.

Some of the posts will be updated, and I'll be dropping the product reviews as a lot of the products are no longer around.

Come on over and check it out.

My book on tour

 Great news! Tales from the Matthewsburg Manse is on tour for the next three days. A blog tour, that is. Follow the link to join in and read interviews, excerpts and more. Plus a chance to win a $20 Amazon gift card and discover some great book bloggers.

 

https://justreadtours.com/2024/09/11/welcome-to-the-tales-from-the-matthewsburg-manse-blog-tour-giveaway/

 

Book Review: Mrs. Wiggs of the Cabbage Patch by Alice Caldwell Hegan Rice

Judging by other reviews on Goodreads, I'm one of the few people that didn't like this book, and I generally do enjoy old books. Probably because I was expecting from the title that it would be a jolly, upbeat book suitable for small children, and it wasn't.

Any book that has two deaths (one from alcohol, one from starvation and exposure) and a fire in the first few chapters isn't what I'd call upbeat, even if the main character maintains a cheerful disposition in the face of all disaster.

Most children's books centre around one or more children. This one is more about their mother. And death due to alcoholism (two different people), is a hard topic. Not to mention the romance subplot tacked on which probably wouldn't interest young children.

I also don't enjoy humour revolving around people who do or say things incorrectly because they don't know any better and most of the laughs in this book are that kind. Mrs. Wiggs naming her three girls Asia, Australia, and Europena because she likes "jography" names is a good example.

That's as far as I'd gotten in my thinking when I started reading Marm Lisa by Kate Douglas Wiggin, an author I enjoy and who was mentioned by several reviewers of this book as writing similar things. What should I come across but a set of twins named Atlantic and Pacific? A quick Google search showed Marm Lisa to be published earlier by five years, so if there was any influence, it was running from Wiggin to Rice.

I was telling my husband about this when he pointed out the similarity in the last names--Wiggs and Wiggin. Maybe we're looking at parody/black humour. Mrs. Wiggs IS rather over the top for the strong, independent but poor widow trying to raise her children--so independent that she'd rather let a child die than ask someone for help.

Right or wrong, I'm sure there's an English lit thesis in there somewhere, but I have no intention of going back to school to write it.

Book Review: A Place for Annika, by Rebecca Velez

While I review just about everything I read over on Goodreads (mostly a lot of old books from Project Gutenberg), I only put up reviews of books here that I think other people might enjoy. I came across this one in a Goodreads group I belong to, and thought it sounded like something I'd like to read. I was right.

Four Stars

Things haven't really felt like home since her mother died. Seventeen-year-old Annika lives on a small farm in 1800s Germany with her father. She dreams of a husband, children and a home. She even has the man already picked out, but there are hurdles.

By the time the book is over, Annika has had to deal with shattered dreams and doubts, but maybe, just maybe, with the help of good friends and family, God can work good out of it all.

I thought this was a good read. I found myself hoping and worrying along with Annika, which is always a good thing in a book.

While there's nothing graphic, there is some abuse in the book, so be aware if that's a trigger for you.

I'm hoping there's a sequel. I want to know what happens to Annnika next.

Book Review: Corduroy by Ruth Comfort Mitchell

My rating: 3 of 5 stars (worth a read but not a reread) I don't normally read romances, other than the Regency variety, but because I'd picked this up on Project Gutenberg, I didn't know it was a romance--they can be chary of detail sometimes. By the time I'd figured that out, I was invested in the characters and the plot.

It's mostly set in California just after the First World War. Half Scottish and half Spanish, Ginger, practically born in the saddle, is the sole proprietor of a large cattle ranch. Dean is a proper Bostonian who is more into mental activities. They meet because he and Ginger's brother were buddies in the war and he was there when her brother died. Once he's partly recovered from his own wounds, he travels across the country to deliver her brother's last message.

Throw in the local Spanish rancher who's always planned to marry Ginger, Dean's lack of interest in the great outdoors and Ginger's lack of culture, and I'm sure you can see where this is going. But getting there is half the fun. If you enjoy romance in a western setting, it's worth a read.

Book Review: Lord Peter Views the Body by Dorothy Sayers

Another gem found on Project Gutenberg. I rated it 4 stars on Goodreads because 3.5 wasn't an option

I enjoyed this collection of short stories featuring Sayer's rich aristocrat/amateur sleuth Lord Peter Wimsey. There was quite a selection of plots, from a really ingenious ghost story to a treasure hunt, blackmail, jewel theft, murder (of course), odd wills (three different stories), spies, and even a criminal secret society. If you don't like horror (I don't), skip the first story. The rest are fine.

These were obviously all written before Lord Peter developed a social conscience, and I actually like him better this way. Some of the stories I did figure out before I got to the end (yay, me!) but I have to admit the crossword puzzle one left me clueless. Fortunately, the answers are in the back of the book.

Book Review: Four Girls of Forty Years Ago by Nina Rhoades

Seems I can post book reviews I do on Goodreads here as well, so why not?

I gave this children's story five stars. That means I think it's worth telling other people about and worth rereading.

This was really good! I think that younger fans of Anne of Green Gables would like it.

While the four girls aren't technically orphans, with their mother dead, their father working far away, and the fact that they're living with a step-grandmother who's not fond of children, this does feel like that kind of book.

Dulcie, the oldest, is an avid reader and teller of tales, and believes that the fictional stories she reads reflect real life. This is forever getting them into trouble, for example, when they decide a young girl they see on the street is a stolen child and needs to be restored to her rightful family. While they often go astray, their hearts are in the right place.

For those who are concerned about political correctness, there is one character in the book (not one of the girls) who firmly believes that the higher class you are, the better person. And there is an unflattering description of the home of an Irish family living in poverty, though the family itself is portrayed as loving. And a fistfight between two boys, if that sort of thing bothers you. All perfectly normal for the period in which the book was written.

Sportsmanlike Conduct

The winter I was eight, we must have had a lot of snowstorms followed by thaws. There was a small paved patch near our house, and that year it got covered with a layer of ice, turning it into a mini rink. While it was small, it was much more convenient than going to the official rink a few blocks away, which was also outdoors. This was especially so since we always had to walk to the rink wearing our skates (with guards on the blades, of course).

I was out on the mini rink by myself one morning, skating slowly around, when I saw a group of boys headed my direction and carrying hockey sticks. Since the ice wasn’t big enough for them to play on and me to skate on, I started moving faster, determined to enjoy the last few seconds before they kicked me off. After all, I was a girl and I was alone. I understood the laws of the playground.

The boys arrived, and we eyed each other warily. Though they must have been from the neighborhood, I didn’t know any of them, not surprisingly since they were a little older than me and we hadn’t been living there that long.

Finally, one of them spoke. “Do you know how to play hockey?”

I shook my head. I barely knew how to skate.

They looked at each other. Here it comes, I thought. “Okay, why don’t you play goalie?” he said. And so I did. They marked off a goal at one end with piles of clothing, and I stood in front of it, while they skated around and took shots. I even managed to stop a few. I felt pretty good about it as I walked back to the house.

Looking back, I realized the boys were probably happy to have someone else in net—that gave them all the chance to try and score goals. It was still very generous of them to share the ice with me (even though I was there first). Their willingness to share the game they loved, even with a girl, has left me with a fond spot for hockey in my heart ever since.