Rundell's Why You Should Read Children's Books

WHY YOU SHOULD READ CHILDREN'S BOOKS, EVEN THOUGH YOU ARE SO OLD AND WISE by Katherine Rundell was not what I expected. Honestly, I thought there would be many more references to favorite children’s books, perhaps like Believe in the World or The Enchanted Hour or the classic Read-Aloud Handbook. Still, at only 80 pages Rundell (fellow at Oxford and writer) provides a series of essays about the value of reading in general and stresses the history and key role played by children’s books. It’s a bit on the academic side and would have been improved with more childhood anecdotes (think back to your favorite books as a child). I especially like the conclusion drawn by the Wall Street Journal reviewer: “head straight for the nearest library to see for yourself what all the fuss is about.”  

Age-specific state awards list numerous quality titles each year; an older wonderful resource – covering multiple states and ages and compiled by Cynthia Leitich Smith – is provided here. Reading Rockets also provided some fun links recently at the start of the new school year: Interviews with Children's authors and illustrators and Read Across America calendar and booklists.

Most Ardently Yours by Freya Sampson

MOST ARDENTLY YOURS by Freya Sampson is another rom-com of sorts from this creative author (Nosy Neighbors, The Busybody Book Club) and a LibraryReads selection for July. My favorite of Sampson’s titles, The Lost Ticket, also took place in London and dealt with issues that happened decades earlier. In her latest, Sampson draws on events from centuries earlier … and fictional ones at that. Imagine avid romance reader Zoe Knight’s surprise when a man appearing to be Mr. Darcy arrives at the café where she works in modern day London. She convinces him that he has time traveled there - rather than being summoned by magic related to a copy of Pride and Prejudice which Zoe stole from the grumpy, but handsome bookstore owner, Nick Baskerville. See where this may be going? Library Journal says, “The many book lovers who have dreamed that their favorite fictional characters could leave the pages of a novel and join them in the real world will want to pick up Sampson's latest.” Perhaps, but only if they are willing to endure Zoe’s almost constant crisis of self-worth. Publishers Weekly calls MOST ARDENTLY YOURS “a charmer,” citing Darcy’s amusing reactions to present day culture. In addition, there are numerous references to romance novelists and the plot of Pride and Prejudice. A reading group guide and author interview are included.

Whistler by Ann Patchett

It was just announced that Ann Patchett won the Library of Congress Prize for American Fiction, to be officially awarded at the National Book Festival in Washington on Aug. 22. Her latest novel is titled WHISTLER and Booklist (“tale of complicated marriages, secret love, fear, fury, courage, and reconciliation”), Kirkus (“evocative and moving”), and Publishers Weekly (“one of her best”) all gave WHISTLER starred reviews. This book tells the story of Daphne, now 53, meeting her former stepfather, Eddie Triplett (now 76), by chance at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Eddie and Daphne had both wanted to be writers – he edited books for years and years and she teaches literature at a girl’s school. It takes a while for Patchett to explain the background to their surprisingly deep and affectionate relationship that was suddenly severed by Daphne’s mother after Eddie and Daphne were in a serious car accident when she was nine years old. Daphne’s Mom remarried for a third time long ago and Daphne and her sister, Leda (a psychiatrist), have two adult half-brothers. Patchett herself had an “abundance” of fathers (also three) as she wrote several years ago in The New Yorker and her collection of essays, These Precious Days.

Book groups will adore WHISTLER, filled as it is with reflections, “There is so much randomness to youth. The person assigned to share your room becomes your friend, the girl you pass on your way out the door becomes your wife, and from these random encounters our entire lives are built, four beautiful children come into the world, and they, in turn, found the people they were meant to spend their lives with.” 

Or, contemplating death: “‘It's okay,’ her father said. ‘You'll be back later.’ ‘We'll still be here,’ Jeffrey said. ‘You won't believe how fast it goes. Might as well be a minute.’ ‘You'll look after everyone?’ she asked her son. ‘No,’ he said. ‘We'll look after you.’”  And Robert Frost’s Wild Grapes: “And the life I live now’s an extra life / I can waste as I please on whom I please.”

Or, simply Patchett’s wry wit: “We write each other notes, back and forth, back and forth. It's like texting for people with large collections of stationery.” Ann Patchett is the narrator for the audio book version of WHISTLER and she does an excellent job, gently evoking the characters and their complex emotions.

ALA and RUSA award lists and more ...

It is that time of year so here are some wonderful links for even more reading choices ...

ALA Youth awards:
https://www.ala.org/news/2026/01/american-library-association-announces-2026-youth-media-award-winners   Plenty of choices for young people in our lives AND the ALEX awards are adult books suitable for teens. 

 

Notable Fiction

https://rusaupdate.org/2026/01/2026-reading-list-years-best-in-genre-fiction-for-adult-readers/ 

The ten fiction choices from that list are shown here with their covers:

https://pcin.bibliocommons.com/v2/list/display/1612157240/2946217557

 

Listen List … Includes The Correspondent, Mailman, and The Names

https://rusaupdate.org/2026/01/2026-rusa-listen-list-revealed/

 

And Ron Charles, The Washington Post book reviewer, just shared his readers' favorite humorous books ... we all need a smile or a laugh ...  

·       Jeeves & Wooster series, by P.G. Wodehouse

·       “A Confederacy of Dunces,” by John Kennedy Toole

·       “Straight Man,” by Richard Russo

·       “Dear Committee Members,” by Julie Schumacher

·       “Lucky Jim,” by Kingsley Amis

·       “Bridget Jones’s Diary,” by Helen Fielding

·       “I See You’ve Called in Dead,” by John Kenney

·       “Let’s Pretend This Never Happened: A Mostly True Memoir,” by Jenny Lawson

·       “Squeeze Me,” by Carl Hiaasen

·       “Lamb,” by Christopher Moore

 

And see A Year-by-Year Look at 4-Star, Beloved Books of the New Century, published on GoodReads: 
https://www.goodreads.com/blog/show/3040-a-year-by-year-look-at-4-star-beloved-books-of-the-new-century 

This Book Made Me Think of You by Libby Page

THIS BOOK MADE ME THINK OF YOU by Libby Page came to my attention because of being a LibraryReads pick for February and I am SO glad it did. In contention for my favorite book of the year, the heartwarming story centers on Matilda (Tilly) Nightingale whose husband, Joe, has recently died. While battling a fatal diagnosis, Joe arranged with the local bookstore owner, Alfie, to give Tilly a book a month after his death. Each title prompts Tilly to take a step forward and, to me, Libby Page was “spot on” in her characterization of the feelings of grief and loss: “There's a darkness to her that wasn't there before, that sometimes feels like a fog and others like a stone lodged in her chest. She carries the darkness with her everywhere, all the time, even if on the surface she might look the same as before.” A new friend who is further along in her grief journey says, “My grief is un regalo -- a gift. He gave it to me. it is our memories. Our love. I don't want to put it down. I carry it gently.” Described as a “love letter to bookstores,” THIS BOOK MADE ME THINK OF YOU is truly a joy to read, featuring friendship, sisterhood, a sense of wonder, romance, and, importantly, growth by several characters. Plus, it reinforces the power of reading to transform us (“‘But isn't that one of the great things about fiction?’ he says. ‘It's an escape. Somewhere to go when you don't want to be where you are.’”) and this story is full of ideas for other books to read, including monthly themes and recommendations from Alfie’s bookstore.

THIS BOOK MADE ME THINK OF YOU received starred reviews from Kirkus (“The perfect cozy read for book lovers, sure to break and heal hearts.”), Library Journal (“Readers of all kinds will be captivated by this tender exploration of loss, healing, and the enduring connections that books create”), and Publishers Weekly (“Page crafts a taut plot and makes her characters achingly real”). ENJOY!!

Best of the Year in Books ...

Here (in no particular order) is a compilation of some of the “Best of the Year” lists, updated for 2025: 

National Public Radio provides “Books We Love,” 1000s of titles (from 2025 and earlier years) and shows their covers in a fun, very interactive way. Please do not forget to consult the Indie Next Lists - recommendations from independent booksellers – like this one for book groups. 

More ideas from National Book Awards or public libraries like Chicago Public Library, Lake Travis Public Library Staff made a video featuring their favorites,  and New York Public Library published the year’s 10 most checked out books. Keep searching – these lists often lead to others with suggestions for all ages. 

Best of 2025 from School Library Journal; including Sisters in the Wind on its Young Adult list. And there are multiple state award lists to consult, too, like the Texas Lariat Reading List, its 2026 suggestions should be coming soon. Plus professional choices from Publishers Weekly – I am excited because I am not very familiar with their Top 10 or Mystery choices so plenty of new ideas to explore. Kirkus Reviews also has a variety of lists.  A separate Kirkus list is provided for best young adult books which can be further subdivided by genre. 

And Goodreads has its Choice Awards across several categories for 2025: https://www.goodreads.com/choiceawards/best-books-2025 With titles like this year’s top fiction choice (My Friends by Bachman), this is always a “go to” list since reader votes and word of mouth have built interest. Amazon, of course, offers its own list of editor choices for 2025, with best seller (and my personal favorite of the year) Heart of a Stranger. LibraryReads: primarily for public libraries, this group has stopped issuing overall favorites, but  has an impressive archive with Top 10 choices by month. 

Name a publication and you are likely to find a best book list. For example, The Washington Post offers several lists. The Wall Street Journal has a best of 2025 list for books, both from their reviewers and fifty “luminaries.” In addition to an article about Five Breakout Books (that is a gift link) of which Theo of Golden is one I have on hold currently, see 100 notable books of the year from The New York Times; there is also a top ten list on their site. Overwhelmed? The blogger at LitHub has compiled a chart which lists the titles that appeared most frequently on recommended lists (Memorial Days is on eight and The Correspondent is on five) … and my “to-be-read” pile grows ever taller… Plenty of overlap and some delightful selections on these many lists. … Ah, so many books and so little time. Once again: Happy Reading!!! Enjoy!!!

The Secret Christmas Library by Jenny Colgan

THE SECRET CHRISTMAS LIBRARY by Jenny Colgan has such a beautiful, festive cover that I was immediately drawn to it. Other readers in my book group have recommended titles by her, too, and this was a wonderful cozy holiday read with a great setting – castle in Scotland filled with hundreds, no, thousands, of books. The castle is home to Jamie McKinnon, a kind, young (and attractive) laird who is trying to save the estate. His plan is to find a special book which his puzzle-loving grandfather apparently hid before his death. As a result, Jaime invites experienced “book hunters” Mirren Sutherland and Theo Palliser (attracted to each other in a past adventure) to join him in the quest. Jaime’s sister, Esme, turns up as well, joining the group and housekeeper Bonnie as they each contribute to solving a rather involved riddle. I loved the description of the snow-bound, chilly castle and couldn’t wait to get under the covers and read each night. THE SECRET CHRISTMAS LIBRARY, which the author calls a “fairy tale of sorts,” is that as well as a fun mystery with a touch of romance. Enjoy!

Every Day I Read by Hwang Bo-reum

EVERY DAY I READ by Hwang Bo-reum contains a series of essays which describe “53 Ways to Get Closer to Books.” There is room for disagreement (the author even advocates both Read Bestsellers and Read Beyond Bestsellers). Throughout, there are many, many suggestions of book titles and authors and I found myself highlighting several to consider, although some are not as readily available here as they would be in Asia. I also highlighted and starred several passages; here are just a few: “by insisting on finishing a book you no longer want to read, you're taking time away from the books you're truly interested in.” OR “We change as we read books. We just don't realize it. And this change may have an impact on the course of our lives.” Publishers Weekly reviewed EVERY DAY I READ and concluded, “Dedicated bibliophiles and casual readers alike will adore this.” I concur. So do the voters at LibraryReads: EVERY DAY I READ was a December 2025 selection.

As a related aside, The New York Times just published an article called, “Kids Rarely Read Whole Books Anymore. Even in English Class.” It refers to a forthcoming study by Jonna Perrillo and Andrew Newman; Uncensored will be published in March, 2026.

The Lost Story of Eva Fuentes by Chanel Cleeton

THE LOST STORY OF EVA FUENTES by Chanel Cleeton is one of my favorite reads of the year so far. The story takes place in three distinct time periods: 1900 when Eva, a Cuban school teacher, travels on an exchange program to the United States; 1966, when librarian Pilar and her husband, Enrique, struggle with the changes and oppression of the Cuban revolution; and 2024 when Margo and her ex-husband Luke combine efforts to locate a missing book originally written by Eva. Cleeton does a good job of evoking the characters and their respective time periods, but I would have liked to have learned even more. The mystery involving the lost story and a violent murder were well done with a twist at the end. But the aspect which I truly enjoyed was the way in which Cleeton repeatedly spoke to her readers about lost love, emotions like grief, and about the value of books and stories. She writes, “If the roles had been reversed, if something had happened to her, Enrique would have taken solace in the company of others. She took hers in the cocoon she placed around herself that kept the world at bay” … “Fear and anger wound their way through her like twin snakes, and in her grief, she did the only thing she knew to do. She read.” Another example: “The reader was promised the possibility of sinking into another world, of escaping their problems, the weight of life subsiding for minutes, hours, days at a time. They were promised a story, a fiction, a sleight of hand, a shuffling of letters that altered reality. And yet, in that make believe world the reader looked for truth - for the words on the page to resonate, for the characters in the scene to make them feel seen, for a thread that they could hold on to, for the book to sink its hooks into them and carry them on an unforgettable adventure.” 

The CIA Book Club by Charlie English

THE CIA BOOK CLUB by Charlie English was a LibraryReads selection for July and received a starred review from Booklist. Its subtitle is “The Secret Mission to Win the Cold War with Forbidden Literature,” but a fellow book group member and I agreed that it focuses more (sometimes graphically) on the resistance in Poland. This sentiment was echoed in The Wall Street Journal review which, while praising the book, noted: “The title of Mr. English’s book is somewhat misleading” due to its sole focus on Poland and on its book smugglers, noting that the CIA’s main role was financial support and smuggling equipment. The tales of dissidents and courage seem especially poignant as the world awaits the outcome of meetings on the war in Ukraine. Interesting, too, to note the books which were smuggled and circulated (Camus, Orwell, Vonnegut) in light of recent commentary like David Brooks’ opinion piece “When Novels Mattered.” Ironically, reading the entire text of THE CIA BOOK CLUB would likely be too much for most book group participants, but an excerpt could prompt discussion on international policy and funding cuts, on the role of truth in light of social media, and on domestic book banning efforts. “Literature, together with language, protects the soul of the nation.” ~Solzhenitsyn

An additional reviews is available from The Washington Post (“This true story of CIA book smuggling reads like an Ian Fleming novel”) and a portion of THE CIA BOOK CLUB was published recently in The New York Times (“‘1984’ Hasn’t Changed, but America Has”). 

The Martha's Vineyard Beach and Book Club by Kelly

THE MARTHA'S VINEYARD BEACH AND BOOK CLUB by Martha Hall Kelly (Lilac Girls) was a popular topic at our book club last week – everyone who had read a preview copy was independently recommending it. The story takes place primarily in 1942 (with some modern- day chapters, too). Two sisters, Briar and Cadence (lovely names) and their brother Tom’s girlfriend Bess are trying to run the farm after Tom enlists with the Army Rangers. Meanwhile, Martha’s Vineyard is being used as a training base for amphibious landings so some romance with a soldier is sparked. Suspense develops, too, due to rumors of a local spy and the presence nearby of an enemy submarine. The young women are distinctive and strong characters; the story reads quickly – highly recommended. Praised by writers like Charmaine Wilkerson, Adriana Trigiani, and Kate Quinn, THE MARTHA'S VINEYARD BEACH AND BOOK CLUB is a LibraryReads Hall of Fame selection for May 2025. In her Author’s Note, Kelly explains that Cadence is based on her own mother who grew up on Martha's Vineyard and other characters echo friends and family. In addition, Kelly references Books in Action by Cole which recounts the introduction of Armed Services Editions of books for troops during WWII; interested readers should also look for When Books Went to War by Molly Guptill, another non-fiction account filled with fascinating information about censorship and the publishing industry at that time.  

Ordinary Time by Annie B. Jones

ORDINARY TIME by Annie B. Jones is subtitled “Lessons Learned While Staying Put.” Reading this collection of story essays made me feel as though Annie Sue Butterworth Jones was a dear friend sharing her wise observations on life. Readers will learn that she is a talented writer and the owner of The Bookshelf, an independent bookstore in Thomasville, Georgia. One of my book group members also says she “meets with her weekly” since Jones hosts From the Front Porch, a regular podcast about books, small business, and life in the South. In ORDINARY TIME, she writes about family, her dreams, marriage, best friends and so much else (the only section which seems to be oversharing is about religion and her crisis of faith). She offers numerous self-reflective insights: “playing was silencing the perfectionist inside me” or “I am a finisher. But life requires a lot of opening. And I am not so good with the opening, the starting of something new.” Jones herself describes ORDINARY TIME as “a collection of stories about a life rooted in place, the blooming of possibility that can happen there, but also the hardship, the loneliness, the longing for more.” I especially liked her comments on childhood, “our childhood obsessions like basketball or The Baby-Sitters Club can save us. They can remind us of who we were before anything mattered, … before everything felt heavy and hard. When life is overwhelming and challenging and our joy is stolen or hard to find, I think the things we once loved can bring us back, center us, make us whole.”

Her sections on books and reading are well worth re-reading and I wanted to note a couple of other quotes: “I wonder if this is why I love books. I can dip my toe into other lives without entirely changing my own.” and “I read books because, at their best, they make me better, more empathetic, more socially aware, more in tune to the stranger beside me. They help me imagine a better future, provide answers to my insatiable questions, take me to places I'll never get to go. I read books because they are an easy point of entry to relationship.” and “A love of books is the through line of my life, a hobby I can trace back to my earliest childhood memories and immediately weave through my middle school and high school selves ...” 

Banned Together compiled by Ashley Hope Pérez

It’s not often that one sees a title with starred reviews from Booklist, Kirkus, Publishers Weekly and School Library Journal, but a new book intended for high school students achieved just that. Dedicated to “brave readers everywhere who persist when cowards try to erase stories and communities from libraries,” BANNED TOGETHER is edited by Ashley Hope Pérez and illustrated by Debbie Fong. In order to chronicle “Our Fight for Readers' Rights,” Pérez has compiled contributions (essays, poetry, drawings) from sixteen authors like Ellen Hopkins, Kyle Lukoff, and Nikki Grimes whose work has been challenged or banned. Also included is a short graphic novel type story about The Vandegrift Banned Book Club in Leander, Texas. Booklist says, “this collection movingly reminds readers of the power they have against censorship.” Check out a copy today. 

Another tool for restricting information is to limit library funding as evidenced in a recent executive order intent on dismantling "the only federal agency dedicated to sustaining the entire museum and library ecosystem in the United States." Please see the American Libraries Association page of FAQs about the recent executive order impacting IMLS, The Institute of Museum and Library Services. The ALA suggests several actions to take now. More information is available through news stories such as those found at The Conversation, the Associated Press, and NPR or from other advocacy groups like EveryLibrary.

Kate & Frida by Kim Fay

KATE & FRIDA by Kim Fay is a novel told in letters between a Seattle area bookseller and a wannabe war correspondent living in Paris, France. Set in the 1990s, the musings reflect the time period (war in Yugoslavia) as well as the life stage of the writers (twenty-something women with plenty of insecurities). These two connected accidentally and have never met, but they share impressions of family (including a beloved grandfather, Bumpa), career goals, and significant others; throughout, readers are able to share in their growing maturity (“We owe people who are suffering to savor everything good and beautiful we have in our lives. Not that we should deny bad things or turn our backs on them. But if suffering is contagious, then why isn't joy?”). This is a very quick and largely comforting read – like having a couple of close friends sharing happenings and memories, plus questions and even favorite foods, that are important to them. The illusions to many books and authors (just a sampling: Laurie Colwin (Happy All the Time), Mary Oliver, Judy Blume, Ramona books by Beverly Cleary, Madeline L’Engle (A Circle of Quiet), Wallace Stegner) is an added pleasure. Booklist describes KATE & FRIDA as an “immensely wise and enjoyable novel,” I concur and here is a brief example: bookseller Kate says, “I think being able to recommend the right book at the right time is one of the most important things I can do with my life.” Or “Every book is a conversation we can have around the world. Every book is a conversation we can have with ourselves.” 

Please also look for Fay’s Love & Saffron which is also told through letters, although set in the 1960s.

A Dangerous Idea by Debbie Levy

A DANGEROUS IDEA by Debbie Levy is subtitled “The Scopes Trial, The Original Fight over Science in Schools” and has been mentioned on this blog previously. It covers a very relevant topic, not only due to the centenary nature of the events it describes, but also because of the contemporary debates related to science (e.g., vaccine efficacy) and book banning. Levy, a best-selling writer of books for young people, vividly transports readers to the 1920s through her words and visuals like images of the high school textbook, Civic Biology, that helped spark the lawsuit from ACLU. She begins by describing how local leaders in Dayton, Ohio encouraged the trial so as to promote visits and spur the local economy. Of course, she also focuses on the backgrounds of the two prominent lawyers, William Jennings Bryan (multiple times Presidential candidate) and Clarence Darrow, and on the trial, its media coverage, and the religious fervor – once again, so many parallels to today. Levy spoke about the book with School Library Journal, saying “What made this book fun to write—and I hope will make it fun to read and maybe to teach, or at least to talk about—is it’s full of surprises.” One I spotted: the court case began with a prayer at the invitation of the presiding judge. A DANGEROUS IDEA received multiple starred reviews, including ones from Booklist, Horn Book, School Library Journal and Shelf Awareness. The text is extensively researched - Levy includes a helpful timeline, source notes, and selected bibliography; together they comprise roughly twenty percent of the text. Interested readers (especially middle and high school students) may also want to read a fictionalized account related to the Scopes Trial featured in Monkey Town (2006) from Ronald Kidd. Some adult titles include the play (later a movie) Inherit the Wind by Jerome Lawrence and recent non-fiction Keeping the Faith by Brenda Wineapple.  

Best Books 2024 – lists and lists

Here (in no particular order) is our compilation of some of the “Best of the Year” lists, updated for 2024:

National Public Radio provides “Books we Love,” 1000s of titles (from 2024 and earlier years) and shows their covers in a fun, very interactive way. Please do not forget to consult the Indie Next Lists - recommendations from independent booksellers – like this one for book groups.

More ideas from National Book Awards or public libraries like Chicago Public Library, Lake Travis Public Library Staff made a video featuring their favorites,  and New York Public Library published the year’s 10 most checked out books. Keep searching – these lists often lead to others with suggestions for all ages.

Best of 2023 from School LibraryJournal; Looking specifically for Young Adults, several titles are on my “to read” list, including: Kill Her Twice by Stacey Lee. I have already enthusiastically reviewed others on the list like Everything We Never Had by Randy Ribay; This Book Won’t Burn by Samira Ahmed offers fictionalized perspective on book banning trends. And there are state award lists to consult, too, like the Texas Lariat Reading List, its 2025 suggestions should be coming soon.

Plus professional choices from Publishers Weekly – I am excited because I am not very familiar with their Top 10 or Mystery choices (other than Osman’s We Solve Murders) so plenty of new ideas to explore. Kirkus Reviews also has a variety of lists; I won’t be forgetting the Science Fiction choice The Stardust Grail by Yume Kitasei.  One of the Kirkus mystery choices that I liked: Horowitz’s Close to Death, plus my 2025 TBR list is going to include the Attica Locke books; and The Unwedding by Ally Condie. A separate Kirkus list is provided for best young adult books.

And Goodreads has its Choice Awards across several categories for 2024: https://www.goodreads.com/choiceawards/best-books-2024 This is always a “go to” list since reader votes and word of mouth have built interest. Amazon, of course, offers its own list of editor choices for 2023. LibraryReads: primarily for public libraries, this group has stopped issuing overall favorites, but  has an impressive archive with Top 10 choices by month.

Name a publication and you are likely to find a best book list. For example, The Washington Post offers several lists (including 50 notable works of fiction or non-fiction). The Wall Street Journal has a best of 2024 list for books, including The Anxious Generation by Jonathan Haidt. See 100 notable books of the year from The New York Times; there is also a top ten list on their site.

Plenty of overlap and some delightful selections on these many lists. … Ah, so many books and so little time. Once again: Happy Reading!!! Enjoy!!!  

Booked for Murder by P. J. Nelson

BOOKED FOR MURDER by P. J. Nelson is a LibraryReads selection for December 2024 and received a starred review from Library Journal. This murder mystery is entertaining but a little disjointed, including multiple fires, a stabbing, threatening phone calls, and accusations of drug dealing. The main character is Madeline Brimley who has just inherited a Victorian house and bookstore in Enigma, GA, the small town where she grew up but left for the lights of New York almost twenty years ago. As noted, there are several traumatic events, and Madeline also struggles with reconciling her memories with the changes that have occurred. For example, she keeps repeating how she doesn’t have faith in the local cops (just because she used to babysit the policeman?). Instead, she relies on support from her aunt’s dearest friend, Dr. Philomena Waldrop, and Enigma's new Episcopal priest, Gloria Coleman, in order to investigate the murder. Taking unnecessary risks, Madeline confronts more than one suspect, but, of course, her efforts soon point to the killer … or do they?