A Serene Weekly Link Round-Up

 

I've written something in this space FIVE times and erased it all FIVE times. Whatever I write sounds as though I'm pontificating, and I'm not in the mood for that. So... I'll confine myself to two things.

One, thank you to my Secret Santa. You know who you are, you sweetheart, you.

Two, just a mention that this holiday season is undoubtedly a strange one for most of us. One for the books, so to speak. But no matter how strange it is, I continue to be blessed by your fellowship. You are all such amazing people, and I'm glad that my blog has connected us all in some small way.

However we're feeling this holiday season, we're all in this together, so let's have a virtual group hug for those who are celebrating, and for those who are not. For those who are happy, and for those who are not.

Whatever your circumstances, here's a heartfelt hug.

Peace.

►Books & Other Interesting Tidbits◄

• Kathryn Elliott talks about the joy of reliving her childhood bookshelf.
• Stephen King has thoughts about Stephen King TV shows.
• A grim history of Nob Hill's mansions and the horror novels they inspired.
• He is back-- Indiana Jones 5 to start filming next spring.
• The Game of Thrones prequel series, House of the Dragon, has finally cast its major Targaryen characters.
• The amusing names of the Scottish snowplow fleet.
• Curses! Nicolas Cage will be examining the history of swearwords for Netflix.
• Oxford Dictionaries: 2020 has too many Words of the Year to name just one.
• How German librarians finally caught an elusive book thief.

 

►Channeling My Inner Indiana Jones◄

• A missing Great Pyramids artifact was found in a cigar box in Scotland.
• Freed of 1,000 years of grime, an Anglo-Saxon cross emerges in stunning detail. More on this from The Guardian.
  
• A $340,000 surrealist painting was found in a recycling bin at a German airport.
• A 2,400-year-old Greek helmet was found buried next to an "elite warrior."
• The Aztecs constructed this tower out of hundreds of human skulls. More on this from Science Alert.
  
• The Isaac Newton notes that were almost destroyed by a dog sell for $516,000.
• Gardeners unearth coins inscribed with the initials of Henry VIII's first three wives.
• A stunning mosaic found in England shows some lived in luxury during the "Dark Ages." (Are we supposed to be surprised?) More on this from The Guardian.
  
• Ancestral Puebloans survived droughts by collecting water from icy lava tubes.

 

►Channeling My Inner Elly Mae Clampett◄

• Watch a clever dog repeatedly turn off a Roomba.
• A beautifully disconcerting monkey slug caterpillar disguises itself as a big hairy tarantula spider.
• San Antonio, Texas has unveiled the largest highway crossing for wildlife in the U.S.
• How Denali National Park's sled dogs prepare for winter.
• Four-month-old ravens rival adult great apes in a battle of the brains.
• At a Kentucky farm, champion thoroughbreds live out their retirements.
• This study offers hope for Tasmanian devils, once thought doomed by infectious cancer.
• These conservation stories prove 2020 was not all bad news.
• What hibernating squirrels can teach astronauts about preventing muscle loss.
• A humpback whale was spotted in New York Harbor near the Statue of Liberty.
  

 

►Some Holiday Spirit◄

• Famed mystery writer G.K. Chesterton proudly, sincerely believed in Santa Claus.
• What the pandemic Christmas of 1918 looked like.

 

►The Happy Wanderer◄

• The Miss Jean Brodie Steps in Edinburgh, Scotland.
• Celebrate Jane Austen's birthday with a 360-degree, interactive tour of her house.
• Is Mount Everest really two feet taller?
• In praise of literary tourism done well.
  

 

►A Crafty Gem◄

• This artist encases incredibly detailed miniature worlds inside antique pocket watches.

 

►Fascinating Folk◄

• One of my favorites: Wes Studi has been named on of the twenty-five greatest actors of the century by the New York Times.
• Jean-Patrick Manchette: inside the decades-long effort to bring a master of French crime fiction to American readers.
• Mahinda Dasanayaka of Sri Lanka runs a mobile library for children.
• Retired school teacher Antonio La Cava operates a tiny mobile library in remote areas of Italy.

 

►I ♥ Lists◄

• The sexiest moments in literature that aren't sex scenes.
• Eight novels featuring group misdeeds.
• Five good books for a lousy year.
• The ten best children's books of 2020.
• Twenty-two books for fans of The Queen's Gambit. (I loved this Netflix series-- and I don't particularly care for chess.)
• Ten books that are small but mighty.
• The five best vigilantes in fiction.
• Seven novels that trace the evolution of Gothic heroines.
• The new voices of country noir.
• Maine in crime fiction.

That's all for this week! Don't forget to stop by next Friday when I'll be sharing a freshly selected batch of links for your surfing pleasure.

Stay safe. Stay healthy. And don't forget to curl up with a good book! 

(Hopefully you received some today.)