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Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2585 KP) rated Encyclopedia Brown Shows the Way in Books

Jul 15, 2024  
Encyclopedia Brown Shows the Way
Encyclopedia Brown Shows the Way
Donald J. Sobol | 1972 | Children, Mystery
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Ten More Mysteries with the World’s Smartest Ten-Year-Old
What is Encyclopedia up to this time around? He helps his father prove who stole an electric drill. He helps a kid get his harmonica back from Bugs. When a girl wants to figure out who got her kicked off a baseball team, Encyclopedia Brown takes the case. He figures out who stole a rattlesnake rattle from a display at a museum. And he helps a friend who thinks he saw a ghost.

The ten stories in this book are fairly short, which makes them easy to breeze through. I still find I rarely solve the case before Encyclopedia does, but that’s okay. I have fun with them. There isn’t time for much in the way of twists here, and the characters are fairly thin. I don’t think kids will mind either one. What they might find off putting is the dated elements of the books. Like, what’s an encyclopedia? Still, if they are willing to pick it up, they’ll find these stories fun.
  
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Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2585 KP) rated Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff in Books

Aug 27, 2025  
Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff
Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff
Don Bruns | 2010 | Mystery
5
5.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Finding Danger at a Pop Up Carnival
Best friends James Lessor and Skip Moore are spending the weekend at a traveling carnival so that James can get a feel for it in his new job as their marketing director. Then the owner asks them to put their new PI license to use finding out who is sabotaging the rides. There have been injuries and one death due to these accidents. Will the two get the help from the carnies they need to solve things?

My love/hate relationship with this series continues. I do like the characters and want to see them succeed. But I also wish they were a little smarter and that Skip would stand up for himself. The mystery was good, but the ending could have been stronger. The suspects were interesting. Do keep in mind that these books aren’t cozies and are just old enough for the technology to be dated. I’m hoping some growth we saw here carries over to further books, but I’ll find out when I get to the next book.
  
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Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2585 KP) rated Antihero in Books

Mar 13, 2026 (Updated Mar 13, 2026)  
Antihero
Antihero
Gregg Hurwitz | 2026 | Thriller
7
7.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Evan Must Control Himself
Evan’s latest call for help comes from a witness. A woman was taken off a New York City subway by four young men. When Evan manages to find the woman, she’s been horribly violated. Evan immediately goes after the men who did this to her, but she makes him promise not to kill them. Will he be able to keep his promise?

While this series is always more violent than what I typically read, this one felt darker than it needed to be. Then again, that might have been what helped me fully feel with Evan’s struggle to find another way to bring justice. I felt one subplot was recycled, but overall, I felt the character development was good. And the supporting regulars were good as always. We even saw a couple who hadn’t been around for the last book or two. And the plot kept me engaged. Other readers like me might want to think twice before picking up this book, but those who enjoy thrillers will love it.
  
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David McK (3814 KP) rated The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes in Books

May 18, 2025  
The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes
The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes
Suzanne Collins | 2020 | Young Adult (YA)
5
7.2 (5 Ratings)
Book Rating
I read the original Hunger Games trilogy back in the early to mid 2010s, before I saw any of the movies.

I watched the movie of this one first, before reading the book.

And, I have to say, that a prequel for President Snow - as portrayed by Donald Sutherland in the movies - was not my first thought on how Suzanne Collins could expand her world.

But that's pretty much who this centres on, with one whole section of the 3-part novel also set during the 10th annual Hunger Games which, here, are still relatively new and with large parts of the novel concerning how said Games could be made more 'entertaining' for the viewers in the Capitol.

Note I said 'for viewers in the Capitol', as their children are never selected in The Reaping to take place in said Games ...

Personally, I found Cornelius Snow (and Lucy Gray Baird, who he is chosen to mentor) to not be as strong or engaging a protagonist as Katniss Everdeen was. YMMV, of course.