The Beginner's Goodbye, by Anne Tyler

Borrowed audio version from my local library. Read by Kirby Heyborne.

This book hooked me with its first line: "The strangest thing about my wife's return from the dead was how other people reacted."

The narrator, Aaron, works for his family's vanity press, which specializes in "Beginner's Guides" that aim to help readers cope with all the trials of life. But what about death? How does Aaron cope when his beloved Dorothy's life is cut short by a freak accident, changing the course of Aaron's life? Anne Tyler has laid out a soothing, healing path for Aaron, and for us, to take.

Catch #248!

The Panera Bread community bulletin board in Greensburg, Pa., has been a great place for journalled catches this year. My latest one is "Dead Aim," which I released there on May 1. Sixteen days later, new member leatherman says: "Found this book in Panera Bread while on a layover in Greensburg. Have another book to finish first but looking forward to reading this very soon. It sounds like a good book." Thanks, enjoy, and welcome to BookCrossing!

Argo, by Antonio Mendez and Matt Baglio

Borrowed audio version from my local library. Read by Dylan Baker.

I was a self-absorbed pre-teen when the Iran hostage event was taking place, so it was really interesting to me to hear the background and details as an adult who can better understand them. Very well read, too. Dylan Baker has a nice conversational tone. The book was quite different from the Ben Affleck movie, but in an OK way. I appreciated the history lesson.

Catch #247!

It was a beautiful day at Frank Lloyd Wright's Fallingwater in Mill Run, Pa. I have toured the house several times, so today I got a grounds pass and explored the woods and trails around the iconic home. Around Noon today, I left "Love Among the Ruins" in the crook of a very interesting tree. It was caught and journalled about 10 minutes later, by new member Rayjay22, long before I got home to make release notes! As of today, this is my last release, most recent catch, and the shortest stretch between a release and a journal entry (my previous record had been 23 minutes). A good day!

The Art of Racing in the Rain, by Garth Stein

Borrowed audio version from my local library. Read by Christopher Evan Welch, who has the perfect voice for a Golden Retriever with an Airedale sire.

I'm surprised I enjoyed this as much as I did. I was expecting a schmaltzy, sappy, mainstream, Oprahesque story with more surface than substance, but the story really spoke to me. It probably has a lot to do with how well read it was by Christopher Evan Welch; I don't know if I would have felt the same connection to the story without his voice leading me through it. I liked the racing bits, and the family drama bits, and the novelty of hearing a story from the dog's point of view.