MADreads

For the last part of 2019 the mystery book group read a modern mystery classic, a generation-spanning, family crime story and a twisty thriller. Of the three the twisty thriller was my favorite, the group's favorite and our best discussion item, so we ended the year on a high note.

After 30 years together, Mia’s husband Boris announces that he needs a “pause” in their marriage. This sends Mia off the deep end and she is locked up and medicated in a mental hospital for a week and a half. Once discharged, she realizes she can’t stay alone in her Brooklyn apartment, so she leaves to spend the summer in her Minnesota hometown where her mother is living in a senior community.

Looking for a way to help your child find their own quiet place in a busy, noisy, clambering world? Charlotte and the Quiet Place by Deborah Sosin takes a gentle look at how to find quiet and peacefulness inside your own self. Charlotte, the young protagonist in the story, lives in a noisy house, a noisy neighborhood, and a noisy school. She has trouble finding one spot that’s quiet and peaceful. Then, one day while she’s walking her dog, she finds a place in nature – that’s quieter than quiet.

In 2017 a painting, the Salvator Mundi, was sold at auction for $450 million. The question remains, was it painted by Leonardo da Vinci?