Pages & Paws

Writing, Reading, and Rural Life With a Border Collie


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Sink Your Teeth into New Box Book

Three – Inch Teeth

By C.J. Box

(Putnam, 2024)

Genre: Fiction/Crime Thriller

Pages: 369 (Print)

Via: Library

If you’re ever in a tight spot in the wilds of Wyoming, Joe Pickett’s your guy. Especially when facing down not one but two rogue killers – human and animal – in this riveting new crime thriller by Western author C.J. Box.

All is not well in Twelve Sleep County, Wyoming. A rogue grizzly bear has gone on a rampage, killing, among others, the potential fiancé of Game Warden Joe Pickett’s daughter. Meanwhile, ruthless con Dallas Cates is released from prison. Joe put him there years ago. Cates makes skunks look good. He has a special list tattooed on his skin. Has Cates really figured out how to kill the people he blames for ruining his life and make it look like a grizzly attack?

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Suspense Thriller a Rousing Ride

By S.F. Baumgartner

Genre: Fiction: Thriller/Suspense

Via: Kindle

Pages: 345 (Kindle)

Note: We received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Buckle up and hold on tight for a white-knuckled ride through murder, mystery, money-laundering, and mayhem with S.F. Baumgartner’s latest suspense thriller, Tangled Secrets.

Is a strange car following school teacher Grace Benson home from work? Why? Sheila Mitchell is middle-aged wedding planner. Her ex-husband is FBI agent Ron Peters. Their son Kyle is also an FBI agent. Sheila enlists their help when she suspects her current hubby, Doug, of espionage. Is Doug living a double life? Why?

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Fiction & Non Two-Fer!

She Who Must Be Obeyed (sort of) says we’re doin’ a ‘two-fer’ today! I’m thinkin’ bacon and more bacon! Or peanut butter! But nooooo! Her Momness says we’re doin’ two books by two different female authors. One fiction. One non. Both have strong female characters or POVs.

They are She Left Me the Gun: My Mother’s Life Before Me by Emma Brockes (non-fiction). The other is On Mystic Lake. By Kristin Hannah.

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THIS MS Fiction Will Knock Your Socks (and Phone) Off

Alone in the Woods

By Rebecca Behrens (Sheridan Books, 2020)

Genre: Middle School Fiction/Children’s Friendship/ Children’s Action & Adventure 

Pages: 301 (Hardback)

Via: Library

Cold. Defenseless. Hungry. Bleeding. Sick. Lost.

It’s not a good day for two middle school girls lost in the vast untamed wildness of Wisconsin’s Northwoods during the shank end of summer. The two ex-best friends must find a way to put their differences aside and work together in order to survive. Can they? Will they?

Uh-Oh

Jocelyn (Joss) and Alejandra (Alex) have been BFFs since kindergarten. But after two weeks at summer Spanish camp with uber cool Laura Longbottom hanging on her every wood, Alex isn’t interested in brainy and “nerdy” Joss. But their families have been taking joint vacations to “Allard’s Roost” family cabin on Wisconsin’s Buttercup Lake for years. So Joss hopes that their upcoming trip will provide an opportunity to restore and rekindle the friendship.

Will it?

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RED ALERT: The REAL Story on Our Story

Incoming! Incoming! Grab the helmets and flak jackets! RED ALERT! Cuz Her Crankiness is on the warpath today! Like, Super-Duper Cranky.

My baby picture. I know. I’m adorable.

Why? Cuz yesterday she received her *promo* copy of a book she contributed an article to about Yours Truly. It’s an anthology called When Love Wags a Tail: Inspiring Stories of Love, Loyalty, and Laughter.

And we Totally Hate it.

What the “author” did to our story ranks right up there with pre-chewed bacon.

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Perspicacity Prevails in ‘The Perilous Voyage’

The Perilous Voyage

A Professor Goodsteam Adventure

By Michael Wegner (Indie author, 2023)

Genre: Fiction – Historical Fiction/Action & Adventure/Steampunk Fiction

Pageg: 331 + Epilogue (Paperback)

Via: Author request

Note: We received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

“But it’s only a two-day trip. What could possibly happen?”

The answer is plenty in this lithe and lively combination of travel, technology, geography, adventure, romance and levity by Michael Wegner.

Mom: With a little old driver so lively and quick, I knew in a moment it must be…

Kimber: Earth to Mom. Come in, Mom. Methinks you’re in the wrong season.

Mom: Well, let’s not get picky here, okay?

Kimber: Speaking of “picky” – sort of – The Perilous Voyage thingy reminded me of that story where Caractacus Potts rebuilds that old race car for his littleuns after buying it for thirty shillings to prevent the car from becoming scrap metal.

Mom: You mean the book by Ian Fleming?

Kimber: Naw. I was thinkin’ more the movie with that Dick van Dyke dude.

Mom: Funny you should mention that. I was thinking Jules Vernes’ Around the World in Eighty Days.

Kimber: With Phileas Fogg and Passepartout?

Mom: Exactamundo!

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Why a Good Book is Like Filet Mignon

“Eureka!” says Mom the other day, coming home from the library. With both arms full of books. And then some.

I have no idea why Mom says this. But she says it a lot. Especially when she’s lugging home another truck load of “books” from The Book Place.

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Books to Grow By

Books to Grow By:

Have you seen the list of Books Everyone Should Read that floated around Facebook awhile back? Her Momness and I read that list. Someone musta forgot to eat their Wheaties says The Old Curmudgeon after reading that list. (You know Mom, right?)

So we put paw and hand together and came up with our own list. We’re callin’ it Books to Grow By.

Classic, contemporary, and just for fun titles are included, plus some surprises.

Note: With apologies to high school English teachers everywhere, neither of us can abide ‘stream of consciousness’ prose a la Faulkner. That’s one reason The Sound and the Fury isn’t included. Ditto Wuthering Heights and The Great Gatsby. And no, you won’t find The Most Over-Rated Book in the English Language on our list either. Hint: Catcher in the Rye. Gag me with Meow Mix!

You will find evidence of our conviction that some of the finest literature ever written can be found in the Children’s Section. Selections appear in alpha order by title.

How many of these have you read? What are YOUR favorites?

Click here for the list. :)

One other thing: This list originally appeared in 2018. What would you add?


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GUEST POST! Not Just a Walk in the Woods: Animal Rescues

Well bow-wow and pass the bacon! Cuz we’ve got a real treat for your today! Yes siree, Lassie! Our favoritest park ranger, Ranger Rose the Pawsome, is bringing you a guest post about her experience with animal rescues. So I’d listen up ‘fize you.

Ready? Set? Take it away, Ranger Rose!

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NEW! DNF List 6.0

Long, log ago in a galaxy far, far away….

… One of us felt obliged to finish every book she started. Or accepted for review. (Hi, Mom.)

Not anymore.

Too Short

Life’s too short to waste valuable time on lousy books. Snoozefests. Garbage runs. Stuff you wouldn’t feed your pet rock. Especially when there are so many other worthy reads from which to choose. These days we’ll typically give a book three to five chapters to hook us and reel us in. Or about 50-60-ish pages. Kinda depends. But one thing we don’t have time for anymore is, “Wait till it gets better.” Like another 100-ish pages. 

Not playing that game anymore. We just don’t have that kind of time to burn.

So we Did Not Finish (DNF) at will these days.

You can play, too. In fact, here are a few titles we recently sampled and gagged on. So you won’t have to. Cuz your time’s valuable, too. You’re welcome:

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