Smart Moves: a Toby Peters mystery by Stuart Kaminsky

In ten words or less: Peters is hired to prevent assassination of Albert Einstein.

Review: It's World War II and a group of Nazis is setting up Albert Einstein as a traitor, hoping to assassinate him and black actor Paul Robeson. Einstein hires Los Angeles private detective Toby Peters to investigate and prevent the attempt on his life.
Peters is hampered by the incompetent dentist, Shelly Minck, who tags along on the trip to New York. Peters meets a comely switchboard operator who tries to trap him into marriage. Dr. Minck attempts to get Einstein to endorse a new line of false teeth.
An untalented actor, two G-men named Spade and Archer, and a hotel detective with an Irish brogue he turns on and off at will complete the cast of characters.

Why bother? A slapstick comedy of a mystery. Even if you're too young to get the author's references to ration coupons, scrap metal drives, and 1940s slang, it's a fun mystery.

Bury Me Deep by Megan Abbott

In ten words or less: Naive woman is lured to dark side of life; all suffer.

Review: Edgar Award winning author Abbott tells the story of Marion Seeley, a young woman left to fend for herself in Phoenix. Dr. Seeley, Marion's husband, is in Mexico seeking treatment for his drug addiction, which has cost him his medical license. This has happened before, and he always returns to the drugs.
Marion has a job in a medical clinic, where she meets Louise, an outgoing, fun-loving nurse, and her sickly roommate Ginny. Until now, Marion has led a quiet life, but the two party girls draw the shy Marion into their world of parties, music, booze, and men--mostly married men.
Although she disapproves, Marion likes the girls. They then introduce her to Joe Lanigan, handsome, charming, a successful and connected businessman with an invalid wife. Marion finds that she is drawn deeper and deeper into a world that she doesn't understand, but can't say no--not to Joe Lanigan.
This noir tale is based on the true story of Winnie Ruth Judd, the notorious trunk murderess from the 1950s.

Why bother? Megan Abbott draws the reader in to the world of 1931--the world of narcotics, women living on the edge of the law, single women trying to keep afloat in the days of the Depression. The dark, grimy side of society is vividly drawn--as you read you're busily plotting how to buy a bus ticket out of town.

Gimme Five! Football Movies

Leatherheads

Dodge Connolly is a charming, brash football hero. He is determined to guide his team from bar brawls to packed stadiums. But after the players lose their sponsor and the entire league faces certain collapse, Dodge convinces a college football star to join his team. Dodge hopes his latest move will help the struggling sport finally capture the country's attention.... With George Clooney and Renee Zellweger.

Remember the Titans

A drama of forced high school integration in Alexandria, Virginia in 1971. After leading his team to fifteen winning seasons, white football coach Bill Yoast is demoted and replaced by African-American Herman Boone, tough, opinionated and as different from Yoast as could be. The two men overcome their differences and turn a group of hostile young men into champions. A rousing celebration of how a town torn apart by resentment, friction and mistrust comes together in triumphant harmony. Denzel Washington stars.

Good Luck

Wheelchair-bound Bernard "Bern" Lemley (Gregory Hines), determined to enter a white-water rafting race on Oregon's Rogue River, labors for months to create a raft that will suit his needs. When he hears about Tony "Ole" Olezniak (Vincent D'Onofrio), a former football star who has lost his eyesight in a freak accident, Bern chooses Ole as his teammate....

Brian’s Song

A drama about the deep friendship between Gale Sayers, black halfback for the Chicago Bears, and his white teammate, Brian Piccolo, who died of cancer in 1970. Starring James Caan and Billy Dee Williams.

The Longest Yard

Filmed on location at the Georgia State Prison, semi-pro football is played with the cons as the heroes and the guards as the heavies. This is the 1974 film, not the remake with Adam Sandler. Starring Burt Reynolds.

With this Puzzle I thee Kill by Parnell Hall

In ten words or less: Cora plans to wed again; Sherry's best friend marries Dennis.

Review: The many-times wed Cora Felton is planning to tie the knot again with the mysterious Raymond Harstein III. She's asked her niece Sherry to be her maid of honor. Sherry's best friend Brenda is getting married too, and has asked Sherry to stand up for her. But when Sherry discovers Brenda's finace is Sherry's abusive ex-husband Dennis, she wants nothing to do with the wedding. Threatening cryptograms arrive, warning Cora to cancel the wedding.

Why bother? Fans of the series will enjoy the opportunity to get to know one of Cora's husbands before he becomes an "ex."

Treasure Hunt by John Lescroart

In ten words or less: Is lovely Alicia telling the truth about Como's murder?

Review:
Gorgeous Alicia Thorpe is a driver for Dominic Como, a man known for his involvement in many local charities and considerable political clout. When Como is murdered, private investigator Wyatt Hunt becomes involved by vetting the calls for a tip line offering a reward for information.
Mickey Dade works for Hunt, mostly doing office work, but wants to be more involved in the investigations. When he meets Alicia, he is immediately attracted to her. Is his attraction clouding his judgement? Alicia's scarf is found at the murder scene, and she admits she lied to the police. Is she playing Mickey to cover her involvement in the crime?

Why bother? Lots of characters call the tip line with information for the reward. The payoff is an intelligent mystery set in the colorful streets of San Francisco.

November's Books

Peter Walsh, from TLC's "Clean Sweep" and the "Oprah Winfrey Show," presents a workbook. "It's all too much," to help you organize your living space. It's a guide to help you think about what you expect your house to be, and how to achieve it in manageable steps.

Unnatural causes by P.D. James
Bury your dead by Louise Penny
With this puzzle, I thee kill by Parnell Hall
It's all too much: an easy plan for living a richer life with less stuff by Peter Walsh
Dead man's puzzle by Parnell Hall
Puzzled to death by Parnell Hall
Squirrel seeks chipmunk by David Sedaris
The civility solution: what to do when people are rude by P.M. Forni
Why? Because we still like you: an oral history of the Mickey Mouse Club by Jennifer Armstrong
Frankly my dear, I'm dead by Livia J. Washburn
Djibouti by Elmore Leonard
Simple times: crafts for poor people by Amy Sedaris