You're most welcome ( I wasn't sure that a last share would be of interest, as homeschooling extras seem to have changed a lot, with online/typeable pdf things.)

There were quite a few of us, back in the day, creating pages for fun for our own children and them sharing them for free on blogs and homeschooling sites. Grin. Love the crusty neo-luddite wording... I think I must be one too.

I'm not sure if Jill, one of the contributors, is keeping the list updated on her blog

I created quite a few free downloadable pdfs during our years homeschooling and will be dismantling much of my blog. I thought I'd give a last heads up here, just encase anyone here wanted to download anything before my dropbox files disappear into the ether - middle of next month - and my domain name goes back into use for someone else in 2024. http://www.last-in-line.info/p/our-free-pages.html

More like lured in .... my Dd read this and kept telling me how much I'd enjoy it.

Not including ongoing sip-reads, my current, summer time, reads: Northbridge Rectory ~ Angela Thirkell God and Churchill ~ Wallace Henley , Jonathan Sandys The Eye of the World: The Wheel of Time Bk1 ~ Robert Jordan

Thank you @Robin M for creating another great thread for us. Creativity ...... with our ongoing house build - we're building it ourselves and have at least two more years to go at this pace - and having a leadlighter and artist (Dd) working from home it feels like my space is bursting with it. 🥰 I read quite a few titles for The Crime Spree Challenge, and, thank you (!) Sandy and Amy, I have really enjoyed this challenge. Here are a few of the titles I've listened to, just sharing the ones that ended up being more than three stars for me. Grandparents of Crime: Armadale ~ Wilkie Collins, narrators Nicholas Boulton, Rachel Atkins, David Rintoul, John Sackville, Lucy Scott (4-) (30h 2m) Romantic Suspense: Airs Above the Ground ~ Mary Stewart, narrated by Antonia Whillans (4+) (9h 13m) Golden Age: ( I read the most in this sub-genre, and so have included two books Brat Farrar ~ Josephine Tey, narrated by Carole Boyde (5) (7h 55m) (Josephine Tey focus), and, The Gazebo: Miss Silver Bk27~ Patricia Wentworth, narrated by Diana Bishop (4.5) (8h 37m) Classic Children's Mysteries: Patterns on the Wall ~ Elizabeth Yates, narrated by Abram Felsch (4) (5h 10m) (I listened to this as my nod to Classic Children’s Mysteries) Historical Mysteries: (no titles rated over 3 stars) Religious Characters: A Nun in the Closet ~ Dorothy Gilman, narrated by Roslyn Alexander (4) (6h 37m) The Americans: (no titles rated over 3 stars) True Crime: Constable Among the Heather: Constable Nick Bk10 ~ Nicholas Rhea, narrated by Philip Franks (4) Police Procedural: Persons of Interest: DC Smith series Bk4 ~ Peter Grainger, narrated by Gildart Jackson (5) (10h 30m) Unreliable Narrator: (no titles rated over 3 stars) Around the World: Maigret and the Minister & Other Stories: Inspector Maigret (Dramatised) ~ Georges Simenon, narrated by Maurice Denham (4) (2h 57m) Christmas/Holiday Themed Mysteries: Hercule Poirot's Christmas: Bk18 ~ Agatha Christie, narrator Hugh Fraser (4) (6h 31m) ________________________________________ I'm still relistening through Peter Grainger's D.C Smith, Police procedural, series. One book I finished recently that has had me thinking about it long after I've finished it. I've been mulling over the content and the impact the events in the book have had on the author. The Uncaged Sky: My 804 days in an Iranian prison ~ Kylie Moore-Gilbert, narrated by author (5) (14h) N/F. This is a very gritty memoir of a harrowing, life imploding, nightmare. Well written, and the audiobook is narrated so well by the author. Extra: quite a few f.bombs. I appreciated the interview by Sky News Australia, it precedes the writing of the book, and can currently be found here on youtube

Thank you. ( I think of you all often, especially when it's near the end of the week and could be a check-in time.) Agreeing! I prefer to listen to this series more than reading it. Gildart Jackson is the best narrator for this series. For me, he is D.C Smith

Updating with my book run since my last check-in, in week 35. For Crime Spree crime-spree/ unreliable narrator: The Death of Roger Ackroyd ~ Agatha Christie (BBC Radio Drama) (3) I’m not a huge fan of the narrator being the one hoodwinking everyone, well dramatised though so that helps this version earn itself stars. A-Z Challenge X=The Phoenix and the Carpet ~ E. Nesbit, narrated by Johanna Ward (3-4 ) I loved reading E. Nesbit’s books about the Bastable children, The Treasure Seekers, and, The Wouldbegoods to my children, years back, but never got around to reading very far in the Psamead triology to them – the first book The Five Children and It just tanked for us. I decided I’d listen to this well narrated audiobook for our a-z reading challenge. I rather enjoyed this book, it just isn’t as good as the Bastable books. Extra: Island people are referred to as savages. Other books Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH ~ Robert C. O'Brien, narrated by Barbara Caruso (4) This was on a list of books we were reading aloud to our children during our years of educating at home: we never got to this one. I couldn’t help noticing a lot of things that could have made this a good book to discuss, back in the day, as a family. I love how faithful, and brave, and giving Mrs. Frisby was for and to her family, and, to those about her. Extra: experiments on rodents for ‘science’. The author gives her thoughts on monkeys in the jungle evolving into men Kate Hardy ~ D.E. Stevenson (3 ) An undemanding, before sleep read. I liked Kate as a character, but found many of the other characters one dimensional or just tiresome. (Spooktacular October) Dracula ~ Bram Stoker, narrated by Tavia Gilbert, J.P. Guimont (4- ) I’ve never read through the original, and while I don’t think I’ll ever be doing a repeat read, listening to this on audio was the best choice for me and kept me interested in the lengthy story. I didn’t realise there was as much churched (Catholic?) contented in the story as there is – it was nice to find references to God and praying in amongst Dracula’s demonic blood-swilling escapades. The Borrowers: Bk1 ~ Mary Norton, narrated by Rownea Cooper (4 ) (4h 5m) Late-night listen. My daughter is a huge fan of Studio Ghibli's adaptation of this story and after watching The Secret World Of Arrietty with her awhile back I decided I needed to go back and relisten to the original story. Still good, but I liked The Secret World of Arrietty more. Pod and Arrietty are great, well fleshed out, characters in this book. Extra: Homily isn’t the most courageous mother. “Borrowing” is used to explain away stealing. The housekeepers intent towards the boy has abusive undertones. Mrs. Harris, Goes to Paris and Mrs. Harris Goes to New York ~ Paul Gallico, narrated by Juliet Stevenson (4 ) I really enjoyed the first book, and can see why it’s stood the readers test of time – it ended up being comfort, feel good, reading, and, is perfectly narrated by Juliet Stevenson. Bk:1 earnt all 5 stars from me. The book set lost points in the second book for me, the story centres around a child being abused in care, abandoned by his parents, and Mrs. Harris going to America to find his father. I would definitely listen to book one again, but not book two – it was a ho-hum, okay-ish listen for me. Extra: Lots of stereotypical jokes/satire, some n.bombs. Camilla: From Outcast to Queen Consort ~ Angela Levin, narrated by Julie Teal (4) (9h 45m) 4 stars for the audiobook ( some of the editing becomes a bit mangled towards the end of the book). I enjoyed this biography more than I thought I would, and have come away appreciating how hard working and resilient Camilla is. An Accidental Death: DC Smith Bk1 ~ Peter Grainger, narrated by Gildart Jackson (4) (6h 52m) I’m doing a repeat listen through this series for Crime Spree/ Police Prodecural But for the Grace: DC Smith Bk2 ~ Peter Grainger, narrated by Gildart Jackson (3.5) I convinced myself it was a good idea to relisten through this even though I find the subject matter a challenge. Not a favourite in the series, but still well written.

Happy Thanksgiving to those of you here that celebrate it.

Happy Birthday Robin. Love the stash of birthday books your family has gifted you with.

@mumto2 thank-you, we are really hoping to. Yes, I have read the Kingslake Investigation series (post D.C Smiths retirement). I enjoyed books one to three more, than book four - still gave it three out of five stars, though for me there was something lacking in that book and I couldn't quite put my finger on what it was - understandably Smith is being mentioned less and less as this spin off series evolves. Listening to them on audio is my preferred way to gobble them down (I've read on few on kindle too though). Nodding in total agreement with your comment on the Tom Bower book and the press on MM this week. Looking forward to reading your thoughts on Nine Coaches Waiting ( it ended up a favourite listen for me during 2020)

Apologising for bombing the thread with multiple posts ( one post would have been enormous) Other books Death In Soho: Augusta Peel Bk1 ~ Emily Organ, narrated by Sarah Nichols (3.5 ) The conclusion to the mystery was a little ho-hum, but I like the main character, book binder, ex. WW1 spy(?)/collaborator, Augusta Peel, and, though the narrator is just okay-ish, the story itself was interesting enough that I might try the next one in the series. Q: Has anyone read books five and six in this series? The Queen's Thief Series by Megan Whalen Turner, narrated by Steve West The King of Attolia: Bk3 (5) A well told tale! This is a wonderful story, and my favourite in the series out of books 1-4. It reminds me of The Goblin Emperor, and the storytelling in this book earnt all five stars for me. Extra: some cursing in this book (no f.bombs) A Conspiracy of Kings: Bk4 (3-4) I think I enjoy the stories with Eugenides as the central figure more than this one. A Conspiracy of Kings has Sophos and his story as the central theme with Eugenides included as a supporting character, and Sophos' romance with Eddis written in as a secondary story. Steve West is such a good narrator for these books. Extra: Some swearing (no f.bombs though) Each next book in the series, so far, seemed to have more swearing in it than the preceding one. Revenge ~ Tom Bower, narrated by Andrew Wincott (3-4) non-fiction/journalistic I’ve gifted this audiobook three stars for the writing and a solid four stars for the narration. The writing style is a bit clunky in places and there is repetition of complete paragraphs throughout the book – I initially thought the audiobook had jumped back on those repeated excerpts. Andrew Wincott does a good job narrating this. I am not usually interested in books about the younger royals, yet, since others in one of my online book groups have read it, and all have definite opinions 😉 about the content and Meghan, I wanted to read it for myself to better understand what was driving their conversation. My personal takeaways from the book: no member of the royal family comes away unscathed in this book. Sorry Harry, Meghan is definitely not Diana 2.0 – she is her own person marching to the beat of her own drum. I dislike her ongoing disrespect to the Queen, whom I admire greatly. Extra: f-bombs and cursing. Current reads (not including sip-reads) Kate Hardy ~ D.E. Stevenson. Undemanding, before sleep read. My late-night audiobooks have been repeat listens through a few of the less intense stories in the Mrs. Pollifax series. Just started another Nicholas Rhea book the library has, Constable Among the Heather, while also listening to the beginnings of a few other library loans, Midwinter Murder by Agatha Christie, and I will then have to choose between Lucky Man By Michael J. Fox, or, Adventures Of The Yorkshire Shepherdess by Amanda Owen and return the other one.

A-Z Challenge The Oaken Heart ~ Margery Allingham, narrated by Georgina Sutton (5) non-fiction/ WWII memoir I flat out enjoyed listening to Georgina Sutton narrate this, and then followed up the audiobook with a speed read through an online version later: https://www.fadedpage.com/showbook.php?pid=20210714 This book is an unvarnished reflection of the era Allingham was raised in, wrote, and, lived in - definitely not pc – and made me wince in a few places. I think Margery explains her telling of details best, “This book seems to be full of delicate subjects but it is an attempt at a history of a delicate time and I do not see how I can avoid it if I am to tell the truth, which is my object”. I enjoyed the first person narrative, it almost reads like a long, story-formatted, letter. Having already read the “thriller” (Traitor's Purse: Albert Campion Mystery Bk11) that Margery mentions writing at the time events in this book are going on about her made both books so much more interesting for me. My parents, both deceased, were in their teen years during WWII, so reading about the events in this small village is like viewing a portion of their world back then. Extra: includes a few curse words. The Freedom Circus ~ Sue Smethurst, narrated by Harriet Gordon-Anderson, Sam Smith (4) The story telling in the first chapter was a little underwhelming – it read a little like a teenaged romance, accentuated by the duel narrators – I’m pleased I kept listen as the story of this family’s harrowing journey as Jews through WWII to finally settle in Australia is interesting and hopeful.

Updating with my book run since my last check-in, week 30. I’m hoping to get back here later in the week to go back through the threads and catch up on what you’ve all been reading. For Crime Spree The Princess Spy ~ Larry Loftis, narrated by Kate Reading (3) This started out as an interesting read, I thought the content was going to be more 'spy' orientated that it ended up being. This book, unfortunately for it and the author, is being compared to his earlier book, also about a spy, Code Name: Lise, which I appreciated much more as far as spy biographies go. I think the author did a good job trying to balance what he could find as fact about Aline Griffith, against the conflicting events in her own books. The Princess Spy reads more as a US WWII operatives worker - as opposed to being a hard core spy, sans Lise - with Aline living and working in Spain until she lands the Count she's in love with: from there on out the book is more about their high society life and acquaintances. Makes for easy listening, and I'm pleased I went through it as an audiobook. * our local library had this listed in the True Crime section, and I originally picked it up to read for the True Crime reading challenge, I’ll have to count it as that. Brat Farrar ~ Josephine Tey, narrated by Carole Boyde (5) Repeat listen: I originally listened through this in 2017 as a possible listen for one of my young teens, i noted that it had Mature themes and though i enjoyed the story noted that one of the characters had a really casual attitude to pre-marital relationships …. I didn’t notice that portion so much this time as I was listening for my own enjoyment. Carole Boyd’s skilled narration made Tey’s wonderful word crafting a solid five star experience. The Franchise Affair : Inspector Alan Grant, Bk 3 ~ Josephine Tey, narrated by Carole Boyd (3) (Josephine Tey Focus) I’ve always sidestepped this as I don’t like stories with young women kidnapped and enslaved. Seeing it as a BBC radio drama on youtube I thought I’d dip my toe in to see if I liked the way this story ran: I did. Tey gives that theme a twist, not scary, or sickening, and I ended up enjoying this mystery with its nice ending so went on to listen to the unabridged version; Tey writes so well, yet I think I enjoyed the abridged version more. Extra: a 15 year old girl – street savvy and as wily as a fox - runs away from home and starts travelling about with a married man. The author includes her opinion on social, moral, and political topics in her era.

Hello to everyone here, and thank you to @Robin M for another great baw thread. A police procedural that has a few of my favourite titles in amongst the series is the D.C. Smith series by Peter Grainger on audiobook. Warning though, some of the books are very gritty in places, and can be quite violent (well, they are for me 🙂). Hoping it's okay to random book topic chit-chat first, and then post books read next…. Dh’s birthday and Father’s Day are back to back for our family this weekend – we’re so looking forward to his birthday as it includes a day away from work and our self-build and to go riffling through second-hand and antique shops: while he browses for treasures, I’ll hunt for books. Two of my more recent finds in a second-hand bookshop, that are really hard to source here in NZ and at a reasonable price, were two Georgette Heyer books I’ve been wanting to read through: The Great Roxhythe , and, Helen. Neither book is wildly popular, she supressed them both during her life time, yet they are would-like-to-reads works for a Heyer fan like myself.

No, I don't, but I'm sure given time my games loving (!) son will try his hand at it... and our family will get roped in too. I've see it mentioned in quite a few historical era books and, beyond a small google search, I've never looked deeper into how the game is played.

Just completed Death In Soho: Augusta Peel Bk1 by Emily Organ on audio. The conclusion to the mystery was a little ho-hum, but I like the book binding, ex. WW1 spy(?)/collaborator, Augusta Peel and, though the narrator is just okay-ish, the story itself was interesting enough that I might try the next one in the series.

Appreciating your review, you've just protected my book buying allowance - others on Goodreads are seconding what you've said, - but I'm sort of disappointed as that was a tile I was interested in. That sounds like a really interesting challenge! @Kareni, do you play Mahjong?

Agreeing with @Negin, @Robin M: to both the lasagna and peach pie, and, link hopping later. Waving hello to everyone, and looking forwarding to reading your book posts. Since my last check-in I’ve listened to a few more books: The Physicists' Daughter - which has a really nice cover - by Mary Anna Evans, narrated by Kimberly M. Wetherell . This ended up as three plus star read, once I’d finished the story. Portions of the story and the characters involved in those portions felt a little unclear at times, and there are plenty of the red-herrings to keep the waters muddied about who the undercover saboteur at the plant was ..... stick with it as those things are cleared up at the very end of the book. Extra: Some physical attraction scenes (kissing). A creepy stalker, and, sexual harassment. Some heavy drinking at a nightclub degenerates down into the beginnings of a jealous brawl - not surprising when the MC is stringing the two men along until she makes up her mind which she likes best. For Crime Spree / The Americans, I found it so hard to settle on a book I felt like listening to and so decided to just stick with The Fourth Postman: John J. Malone Bk9 by Craig Rice, narrated by Johnny Heller. It ended up as a two out of five stars. This reads like a 1940’s B grade movie complete with screwball, slapstick comedy. The comedic portions were fuelled by alcohol, lots of alcohol - even the dog drank. A redeeming feature of this book, for me, was that I listened to it on audio and the narrator did a really excellent job. Extra, for others that like to know things like this too: some bawdy talk, lots of cussing. Currently listening to, and enjoying both these titles: The Oaken Heart ~ Margery Allingham, narrated by Georgina Sutton (non- fiction/memoir) Death In Soho: Augusta Peel Bk1 ~ Emily Organ, narrated by Sarah Nichols (historical, cosy mystery)

https://archive.org/search.php?query=creator%3A"Seredy%2C+Kate" probably not the audio quality you are wanting: Internet archive have sight impaired, or assisted reading copies of Kate Seredy's books (from memory, you do have to sign up before you can access the books).

Putting these in a separate post to trim the length of the first one a bit. Other books completed: Miss Buncle’s Book: Miss Buncle Bk1 ~ D.E. Stevenson, narrated by Patricia Gallimore (5 ) repeat late-night listen. This made for a good palate cleanse after choosing to abandon a few books. Cromwell vs the Crown: God’s Revolution: A BBC Radio 4 Full-Cast Historical Drama ~ Don Taylor, full cast, Bernard Hepton, Nigel Anthony, Christian Rodska, Graham Blockley (4) This BBC audio drama was well done, and I enjoyed the overall experience. Where it lost points for me: Jack and Francis' voices were a little hard to distinguish between in places - if they weren't there together in the same scene; and, some of the story felt a little anachronistic, portions of the story concerning Penelope White, and, her father. Never Surrender: Winston Churchill and Britain's Decision to Fight Nazi Germany in the Fateful Summer of 1940 ~ John Kelly, narrated by Gordon Greenhill (4) The blurb is exactly what this book is about – told in an engaging and interesting style. Excellent narration.

Thanks for another great thread @Robin M and all the effort you put into to getting these up each week; and seeing the note about the letter ‘z’ for this week ….. I’m with @mumto2 and also enjoy the a-z challenge though I’m doing just one run through of the alphabet for my a-z challenge and have letter n, o, q, t, v, x to read through. I do enjoy seeing what you’re each reading or commenting on, or link sharing, during my dash through reads on these threads. I’m still in the throes of re-listening to a few crime spree / religious character mysteries, and enjoying them and here are the books I’ve completed since my last check-in , and towards the Crime Spree challenge : Historical mystery: A Few Right Thinking Men: Rowland Sinclair by Sulari Gentill (3 ) I have read all the other books in the series, so I came back to the first book knowing how many of the things introduced in this story would pan out. I knew this mystery series could get brutal and gritty, and that Edna was emotionally damaged and slept around (I’m removing the spoiler I inserted over at Goodreads) and that the series was set in amongst the political unrest in Australia, and global uprisings, as the world headed towards WWII so none of that was new. I didn't know in detail what had transpired with Eric Campbell and Rowly, or the complete details surrounding Rowly's uncle murder, nor how Edna had actually come to accidently shoot Rowly: I do now. Even though this is the first in the series, it's not a favourite and I'm not sure I would have kept reading if I'd started here. Golden era mystery: The Crime at Black Dudley: Albert Campion Mystery Bk1 ~ Margery Allingham, narrated by David Thorpe (3) Relisten. I think I must have learned to navigate Allingham’s zany handling of Albert Campion mysteries, as this listen through the book earnt itself an extra star: I liked this mystery more this time and didn't mind the narrator so much. Religious Characters: A Third Class Murder: A Cozy 1930s Mystery Set in an English Village ~ Hugh Morrison, narrated by Charles Johnston (3) This didn’t read like a cozy mystery, for me it felt more like a golden era styled whodunit. Unlike the female writers who lived and wrote in the golden era, and I really enjoy, in this book the author has injected a heavy dose of objectifying of females with attitudes, actions, and comments men in the story make. The Reverend Lucian Shaw is one of the few decent blokes, and solves the mystery. Religious Characters: Wicked Autumn: Max Tudor Bk1 ~ G. M. Malliet, narrated by Michael Page (2 ) The perpetrator of the crime was too convenient, and had a trope I don’t appreciate (can’t say more here as it’s a huge spoiler.) This is my second attempt at going through this book. I did end up liking the back story about Max and his MI5 past. I don't think I'll continue with the series as I loathe stories with F.bombs injected to make the book seem grown-up.

Hi all! I don’t always have time to post, but have been trying to keep up with reading these book sharing threads most weeks; and, to find out what I should be reading for the Crime spree challenge. Here is a basic copy and paste post of the titles I’ve read during the last six or seven weeks. Most of the books below are audiobooks and for the Crime spree or A-Z challenges. I haven’t included late-night or repeat listens The Port of London Murders ~ Josephine Bell, narrated by John Telfer (4) A Sunlit Weapon: Maisie Dobbs Bk17 ~ Jacqueline Winspear, narrated by Julie Teal (4) This Rough Magic ~ Mary Stewart, narrated by Helen Johns (4) for the audiobook Wildfire at Midnight ~ Mary Stewart, narrated by Lucy Paterson (4 ) The Man Who Didn't Fly (British Library Crime Classics #87) ~ Margot Bennett, narrated by Seán Barrett (3) Susan Settles Down ~ Molly Clavering (3.5) (library loan) Yay! I finished a physical book! Extra: The church organist is a rapist on the make. Walking with Henry: Big Lessons from a Little Donkey on Faith, Friendship, and Finding Your Path ~ Rachel Anne Ridge, narrated by Xe Sands (3+ ) CC I loved the donkey’s story, and, appreciated those portions and the last few chapters the most. Sherlock Holmes and the Three Winter Terrors ~ James Lovegrove, narrated by Dennis Kleinman (3+ ) Smoke Signal ~ Marie Benedict, and, Kate Quinn, narrated by Nicola Barber, and, Saskia Maarleveld (2) Willy and Alvirah: Collection of #1 Bestselling Short Stories ~ Mary Higgins Clark, narrated by Carol Higgins Clark (3) Giving the whole collection 2* for quality writing, and 3* for enjoyable bubble-gum. These all playout like episodes from a B-grade TV series, in an audiobook format – no brainwork required: Death at the Cape (2-3), Plumbing for Willy (3+), The Body in the Closet (2) Stowaway The lame, busted, romance ruined this story for me (2) and Milk Run (3) Patterns on the Wall ~ Elizabeth Yates, narrated by Abram Felsch (4) Y/A CC Murder in an Irish Cottage: Irish Village Bk5 ~ Carlene O'Connor, narrated by Caroline Lennon (3) About to start listening or reading: Missing Pieces: Kings Lake Investigation Bk4 ~ Peter Grainger, narrated by Gildart Jackson (9h) A self-gifted reward for achieving a rather epic, gnarly (!), work task. A Few Right Thinking Men: Rowland Sinclair Bk1 ~ Sulari Gentill ( ) I’ve never been through the first book in this series and will be counting it towards the historical mystery challenge I’m also enjoying relistening to the BBC radio dramas of the Lord Peter Wimsey mysteries and am about to start the collection of mysteries in volume three.

I'm keen to read this picture book The Incredible Painting of Felix Clousseau By Jon Agee - I love picture books(!) and wholehearted agree with what Kristin Cashore wrote to go with the mention of this book: "I would like to humbly suggest that if your reading habits don’t extend to picture books, you may be missing out. It’s an art form I adore.."