― Jorge Luis Borges
Well, the holidays are over, and South Florida is starting to get back to a semblance of normality. For those of you who are not familiar with the concept of "snow birds," many Northerners avoid the freezing winter months by migrating down for our amazing winters. The highs are generally in the seventies and the lows in the sixties. The sun is always shining and outdoor eating is almost mandatory. It is difficult to resist these beautiful surroundings, and Floridians truly appreciate these wonderful people and their boost to the economy, but between December and April traffic becomes impossible and restaurants become unbearable.
April is the time Floridians can actually start going back to their favorite restaurants without making reservations at least a month in advance. We can go to malls, movies and museums without fighting traffic, and life in general feels easier. This is a perfect time to go to the beach or one of our many parks and get lost in one of the books we are meaning to read. I spent a few days on the patio overlooking our lake with Andrew Gross' newest book in hand. One Mile Under brought Ty Hauck back into my life, and not a minute too soon. I really missed this honest detective who never looks for trouble but it always seems to find him. This book was exciting and helped me understand fracking a little bit more. Ty is such a comfortable character to spend an afternoon with that I didn't even notice the clouds beginning to cover the sun.
Because Passover was celebrated this week I decided it would be the right time to review Mrs. Kaplan and the Matzoh Ball of Death by Mark Reutlinger. Some books are just fun to spend a few hours on, and this one qualifies as a perfect cozy mystery. You certainly don't have to understand Yiddish to read the book...Reutlinger does a great job explaining each term used without breaking the continuity of reading, but for those who know a bit of the language...an added bonus. The main character, Matzah Ball Queen Rose Kaplan, finds herself a suspect in a murder that she and her sidekick go all out to solve. A great story for the holiday season.
I don't think I will get much reading done in the days to come. We pick up son Michael tonight from PBIA and celebrate Zachary's Bar Mitzvah all weekend long. Lots of eating, dancing and family time for us. I hope you all enjoyed your holidays if you celebrated, and I wish everyone a great spring filled with flowers, warm showers and a pile of good books.
Happy Reading,
- Beverly