Kittling: Books: A No Scintillating Here Weekly Link Round-Up

It's been a week in which nothing much has gone on. That's a good thing, actually, since I was ill over the weekend and needed some time to recuperate. I'm still missing some of the zip in my doodah, so when I have this round-up compiled, I'm going to do something strenuous... like retire with a nice cup of tea and an issue of The Strand Magazine.

I'm just about to finish up Tim Sullivan's The Politician. I really like this series, so I don't mind reading the books at a much faster pace than I normally would. What's next on my reading list? Sujatta Massey's The Star from Calcutta, and then... Steve Cavanagh's Two Kinds of Stranger. From police procedural to historical mystery to legal thriller. Book add so many different spices to life!

We've had a bit of rain this week-- California shared, so that should help all the flowers that bloom this time of year. My nieces from the UK will be visiting next month, and it should be just about the right time for a trip to the Desert Botanical Garden.

Wherever you are, I hope you're warm, safe, and loaded with plenty of provisions (food, drink, and BOOKS). Virtual hugs to you all!

Enjoy the links!

►Books & Other Interesting Tidbits◄

What do you do when the biggest platforms for readers are kind of evil?
Why you should watch Santosh (2024).
A movie deal is a writer's dream-- or is it?
The secret Afghan women's book club defying the Taliban to read Orwell.
Google won't stop replacing our news headlines with terrible AI.
How the Easy-Bake Oven, an appliance that allowed kids to heat treats with a light bulb, revolutionized the toy industry.

►Channeling My Inner Indiana Jones◄

Seabird poop may have fueled this pre-Inca kingdom's rise to power in South America.
A metal detectorist unearthed this heart-shaped Tudor pendant. Now, the British Museum has raised millions to put it on public display.
Ancient rock art depicting hunters and geometric shapes have been discovered in Egypt's Sinai Desert-- and it spans a period of 10,000 years.
Why do these Tudor-Era portraits of Anne Boleyn and Elizabeth I look so similar?
Luxury steamer Lac La Belle disappeared on a stormy night in 1872. Nearly 150 years to the day, it was found at the bottom of Lake Michigan.
A 2,500-year-old "primitive prosthetic" was found on the jaw of a mummified Scythian woman who survived complex jaw surgery.

►Channeling My Inner Elly May Clampett◄

Birdwatchers flock to Montreal to catch a glimpse of Canada's first known European robin.
An elephant's trunk is covered in whiskers-- and they're unlike those on any other animal.
A gray wolf visited Los Angeles County for the first time in a century, marking a major milestone in the species' recovery.
An extraordinary photo captures the first appearance of a Siberian peregrine falcon in Australia's arid center.
Some polar bears have been getting chunkier despite losing their main hunting grounds to climate change.
A photographer traveled 900 miles to capture an unusual orange snowy owl.

►The Wanderer◄

China's emissions are flatlining-- and may be falling-- in a critical turning point for the world's biggest emitter.
Canada could remove 5 times it annual carbon emissions by planting trees on the edges of boreal forests.
How do thousands of clear blue lagoons end up in these Brazilian sand dunes?
How France invented the restaurant and started a food revolution.
250 places to celebrate America.
The breathtaking Hermitage Museum is now the second largest in the world, filled with treasures like the Kolyvan Vase and the Peacock Clock.

►Fascinating Folk◄

14-year-old Miles Wu is using origami to imagine emergency shelters that are sturdy, cost-efficient, and easy to deploy.
Sylvia Moy, the female songwriter who saved Stevie Wonder's career.
Remembering John Enright, the beloved author of the Jungle Beat mysteries. (One of my favorites.)
Meet the Marquis de Morès, the father of modern European fascism.
Civil Rights activist Jesse Jackson has died.
Mark Haddon on the unlikely origin of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time.