More Cara Black

I've already shared Cara Black's "Murder on the Ile St. Louis" with you. I've read this one set in the Marais as well. It was Black's first mystery and introduces Amy Leduc, her strong woman character who gets involved in more murders than cats have lives! You can purchase your own copy of this fun mystery here, but you can also win one if you're lucky and a talented photographer. Click over to EyePreferParis; Richard's offering a free copy of Black's book to the winner of his 'photographs of the Marais' contest. While you're there, be sure to check out Richard's blog...he has some gorgeous photos of hidden Paris courtyards, some great interviews with interesting Parisians, and recommendations for yummy places to eat.

A Redbird Christmas

Okay...I know it's 'way beyond the holiday season, but really, you need to get this book now! Tuck it away until next Christmas, if you must. It's not exclusively a holiday book, though; it spans a whole year in the life of a small community, Lost River, in very rural Alabama. You can read it anytime of year. Miss Fannie Flagg is one of my very favorite authors. I love Southern genre books in general; Miss Flagg does 'southern' to perfection! I can just hear my Mom and her sisters speaking Fannie's dialogue as they sit in Mabel's kitchen eating grits, sipping sweet tea and gossiping about the rest of the 'generation' as they called the family. "A Redbird Christmas" is a feel-good story about community, love, and a rascally redbird named Jack who touches the lives of everyone who sees him. Little Patsy loves Jack, Roy, the grocer, loves Jack, even Mildred who thought she hated Jack, really loves him deep down inside. Miss Flagg hasn't written a totally syrupy-sweet story, however. Oswald T. Campbell has a drinking problem; Roy and Julian LaPonde have vowed to shoot each other on sight, and Tammy Suggs is the very worst kind of 'white trash.' Here's my confession: I drag out my copy of "A Redbird Christmas" every December. I pick a snowy Sunday afternoon and let the story transport me to warm and wonderful southern Alabama; I can almost smell the magnolias and the musky river, taste Frances' scuppernong jelly, and hear Jack chattering away with Patsy in the back room.

Other books by Fannie Flagg: Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistlestop Cafe,Standing in the Rainbow,Welcome to the World, Baby Girl,Can't Wait to Get to Heaven (Random House Large Print),Daisy Fay and the Miracle Man (Random House Large Print (Cloth/Paper)). They're all good!

Murder on the Ile St. Louis

I always like to have a good mystery tucked away in my bottom drawer for those days when I feel a bit bored, a bit out-of-sorts, maybe a bit blue. They're usually an easy, fast read; they keep me engaged. And I always like the challenge of seeing if I can figure out 'whodunnit' before the author reveals the real culprit. When I can combine a mystery with my favorite city in the world, Paris, life gets even better. Cara Black's mysteries take me there. Her main character, Amy Leduc, keeps me on the edge of my seat as she investigates murder in some of Paris' most famous arrondissements. This mystery set on Ile St. Louis combines fast paced action, environmental concerns and remnents of a faded Polish monarchy. Learn more than you'd ever want to know about how the Seine treats its corpses and explore the sewers and underground tunnels of the City of Lights. Trust me, you'll like this one!'

PS...I know I'm weird, but I like to read Black's mysteries with my Michelin Paris Par Arrondissements Plan Atlas: Nouvelle Edition (Michelin Maps) map book in hand. I trace the action along the rues and boulevards and into each place she mentions.

Little Saint

Welcome to Red Bell Reads, my blog about words and images that I find intriguing. My first offering to you is Little Saint by Hannah Green, a book I've actually read twice. My first encounter with Little Saint occurred deep in the heart of la France profounde during my month-long stay in the Lot. It was Laury's book; she recommended it as it is about Conques, a pilrimage village that I planned to visit during my stay. It is about Conques, but more importantly, it's about the saint venerated there in the Abbey Church....Sainte Foy. Martyred in 303 AD as a 12 year old child, Foy captured the imagination of the author, Hannah Green during her many sojourns in the village. This book is as much a memoir of the author as it is her rapture with the child-saint. When I returned home, I bought my own copy of the book and read it again. Each word, each sentence took me back to Conques, now a beloved memory of my trip. I'm as charmed by Sainte Foy as Ms. Green was. I can't wait to get back to Conques to visit her church again and light a candle to her.