One man will now decide whether or not China invades Taiwan.
That could lead to a World War.
It’s very possible that the dictator will need something to distract the population as Covid continues to drag down the economy.
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Economist was at the Party Congress.
A very good book.
It kept me guessing.
Ariel Pryce wakes up in Lisbon, alone.
Her husband is gone—no warning, no note, not answering his phone. Something is wrong.
She starts with hotel security, then the police, then the American embassy, at each confronting questions she can’t fully answer: What exactly is John doing in Lisbon? Why would he drag her along on his business trip? Who would want to harm him? And why does Ariel know so little about her new—much younger—husband?
The clock is ticking. Ariel is increasingly frustrated and desperate, running out of time, and the one person in the world who can help is the one person she least wants to ask.
Google Books
Not sure I can recommend this acclaimed British TV series.
It’s 94% on Rotten Tomatoes — but I found it somewhat confusing.
To be fair, however, Erin Doherty deserves all the acting awards. This is a challenging role.
A mystery about obsession, deceit, identity, and grief …
A lonely twentysomething, Becky Green, becomes obsessed with the suicide of her estranged childhood friend Chloe and assumes a new identity as Sasha to investigate how Chloe died.
Becky starts an affair with Chloe’s widowed husband, Elliot; whereas the rest of the group including Elliot’s mother disapproves of their relationship.
Becky is a confused, unreliable narrator. Her web of lies painful to watch.
And the plot sometimes strains credulity.
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Click through to see the River of Light installations, each with a Gymnastics theme.
A big fan of Krueger’s Cork O’Connor series, it took a while before I tried his masterwork, the 2014 Edgar Award winner for best novel.
It’s fantastic.
Other candidates that year included Ian Rankin and Louise Penny.
Krueger was raised in small town Minnesota. The same age as the 13-year-old narrator of this book.
My main takeaway — at the end — is that two of the characters I’d include in my list of best all time. Frank’s father, Nathan, a Methodist minister. And Frank’s younger brother, who eventually also becomes a minister.
If you asked me to name great Christians in fiction, I’d include those two.
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New Bremen, Minnesota, 1961. The Twins were playing their debut season, ice-cold root beers were selling out at the soda counter of Halderson’s Drugstore, and Hot Stuff comic books were a mainstay on every barbershop magazine rack.
It was a time of innocence and hope for a country with a new, young president. But for thirteen-year-old Frank Drum it was a grim summer in which death visited frequently and assumed many forms. Accident. Nature. Suicide. Murder.
Frank begins the season preoccupied with the concerns of any teenage boy, but when tragedy unexpectedly strikes his family— which includes his Methodist minister father; his passionate, artistic mother; Juilliard-bound older sister; and wise-beyond-his-years kid brother— he finds himself thrust into an adult world full of secrets, lies, adultery, and betrayal, suddenly called upon to demonstrate a maturity and gumption beyond his years. …
Goodreads
If you like Wes Anderson movies, it’s worth checking out this family friendly TV show. It looks very much like it could have been done by his cinematographer ➙ Robert Yeoman..
If you like smart, quirky dialogue, this TV series is for you, as well.
The Mysterious Benedict Society stars Tony Hale as Mr. Benedict, who gathers four children to stop a global emergency.
Hale also portrays Benedict’s twin brother, Mr. Curtain, who is the founder of the school the children infiltrate.
My favourite character is Marta Kessler as Constance Contraire. Her last name, Contraire, is appropriate for her contrary opinions and personality. 😀
I recognized the school instantly ➙ the Emily Carr University of Art + Design in Vancouver.
86% on Rotten Tomatoes. It’s won a number of awards for children’s programming.
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Book #3 in the series featuring Benoît “Bruno” Courrèges, master chef, devoted oenophile, and, most important, beloved chief of police in the sleepy village of St. Denis, France.
This story deals with crime and murder in the truffles trade.
As usual, Bruno has woman trouble.
I was no fan of Ronald Reagan, but he was certainly far finer a citizen than ReTrumplicans in 2022.
And as a fiscal conservative, he was very supportive of immigration.
The opposite of ReTrumplicans.
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The 13th in the Inspector Gamache series (2017). Excellent writing, as always.
BUT I am fed up with the absurdity of her plots.
This nonsense must be the most unlikely yet.
Gamache is now the Head of Surete du Quebec — yet finds himself in court risking perjury. Why is never made clear (to me) though it seems to have something to do with saving young Quebecois. From drugs.
Every less likely is a mysterious masked person in black standing in Two Pines. For a couple of days.
Could drugs be smuggled through a tunnel in the church basement? Right after a murder in the same basement?
Readers are expected to believe it.
Dopesick is based on the non-fiction book Dopesick: Dealers, Doctors, and the Drug Company that Addicted America by Beth Macy. …
At the 74th Primetime Emmy Awards, the series received fourteen nominations …
Dopesick focuses on “the epicenter of America’s struggle with opioid addiction” across the U.S., on how individuals and families are affected by it, on the alleged conflicts of interest involving Purdue Pharma and various government agencies such as the Food and Drug Administration and the United States Department of Justice, and finally, on the legal case against Purdue Pharma and their development, testing and marketing of the drug OxyContin. …
Michael Keaton is great as Dr. Samuel Finnix.
Rotten Tomatoes 88% approval.
It’s non-linear but — happily — not confusing as the years flip past as it switches on the timeline.
There’s no question the Sackler family and Purdue Pharma are EVIL.
On October 21, 2020, it was reported that Purdue had reached a settlement potentially worth $8.3 billion, admitting that it “knowingly and intentionally conspired and agreed with others to aid and abet” doctors dispensing medication “without a legitimate medical purpose.” Members of the Sackler family will additionally pay US$225 million and the company will close.
Some state attorneys general protested the plan. In March 2021, the United States House of Representatives introduced a bill that would stop the bankruptcy judge in the case from granting members of the Sackler family legal immunity during the bankruptcy proceedings.
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I read half of another book on the evil Sackler clan — Empire of Pain by Patrick Keefe.
Arthur Sackler (born 1913) was an impressive person in many ways. The eldest son of Jewish grocer immigrants in New York.
“No single individual did more to shape the character of medical advertising than the multi-talented Dr. Arthur Sackler. His seminal contribution was bringing the full power of advertising and promotion to pharmaceutical marketing.”
He did many, many things. But the Sackler empire was mostly built on how Arthur popularized dozens of medicines including Betadine, Senaflax, Librium, and Valium through direct marketing to physicians during the 1960s.
Rick McCharles 