Winter Weekends and Whodunnits

Many days librarians are faced with taking on tasks that are not exactly in the job description. (Cleaning up after people in the public restroom, for instance, and that's just about as gross as you would think.) Cleveland is currently buried under The Second Coming of the Polar Vortex. This morning, our snow removal crew was backed up trying to clear other locations so I bundled up and grabbed a shovel. As much as I would have relished in a snow day, I totally respect the library's commitment to our community. Especially to those members in need of an escape from the elements. So here I am after shoveling our walkways...

I don't have my shovel because I borrowed it from a really nice patron (he offered to do the job himself!) and he had to go home. I enjoyed the time spent outside and the only downside is the hat hair I'm sporting for the rest of the day. Here is a picture of the awesome job my coworker did at one of our other branches. As you can see, I wasn't kidding about being buried...

We're kind of like the postal service. Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these librarians from the swift completion of their appointed rounds! Access for all!

It is pointless to gripe about the weather when you live in a place like Cleveland, so you might as well make the best of it, right? Last weekend Husbando and I, along with a couple friends and some family went up to Lake Chautauqua in New York. The majority of our summer weekends are spent on the dock soaking up the sun, floating on the lake, and playing lawn games, but this was the first winter weekend I had visited the lake. Chautauqua turns into a completely different world covered in snow and ice. The green and blue summerland with which I am familiar has given way to a gray-washed frozen tundra occupied only by townies and ice fisherman. A certain quietness only achieved by a thick blanket of snow has enveloped lake, lending a completely different but just as beautiful experience.

There are plenty of winter activities in which to participate (sitting by the fireplace with a book being my personal favorite) and after a few debacles with turning the heat and water on, Husbando took a trip around the lake on cross country skis.

I should mention he was actually skiing on the lake...

Though we were going to make it a downhill ski/snowboarding weekend, we decided to forgo the trip to Peek'n Peak for a few hikes, a great dinner, games, and a walk across the lake. It was an incredible experience to be standing in (on?) the middle of a frozen lake... that is, as long as I didn't think about it too hard.

So! Books! With all this talk of snow, I would like to suggest a few whodunnit series. I always like reading mysteries in the wintertime. Get ready to curl up with a heavy blanket and a cup of tea in front of the fireplace after your exciting cold weather adventures. As said earlier, fireside reading is by far my favorite winter sport.

Agatha Christie's Poirot

The Queen of Mystery herself takes us to London where the world-famous Belgian detective, Hercule Poirot, uses his little grey cells to solve unsolvable murder mysteries. Agatha Christie writes the type of mystery you can't solve up until the very end (or at least I can't). I also highly recommend the movie renditions staring David Suchet. You could even *gasp!* skip the reading and just watch from your fireplace post. 

The Cat Who... by Lillian Jackson Braun

In a small rural town, reporter Jim Qwilleran, known for his over-sized mustache, solves murder mysteries with the help of his unusually intelligent Siamese cats, Koko and Yum Yum. The series falls into the cozy mystery genre. Basically the equivalent to beach reads, you can enjoy a cozy mystery without feeling like you are doing homework. Kind of turn-your-brain-off books, which let's face it, sometimes is just what you need. Usually they have some sort of cute theme such as food or knitting or tea. In this case it's cats. My grandmother, the woman who inspired the avid reader/librarian in me, was a huge fan of The Cat Who... books, therefore they hold a special place in my heart. Gorgeous, wasn't she?

Speaking of cozy mysteries...

I haven't read it but the cover is awesome.

Hamish Macbeth by M.C. Beaton

Set in the Highlands of Scotland, charming and instantly lovable police constable Hamish Macbeth keeps the peace in his small town of Lochdubh. A little on the lighter side, but not too light.

Bonus! 

Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte

Though not a mystery,  Wuthering Heights is totally a winter storm book. Set on the Yorkshire moors, the novel tells the story of a passionate love affair between Heathcliff and Cathy.

Um. And then there is this: 

Oh, Kate Bush, a red dress version too?

Yep. Hope that just made your day...

What is your favorite genre to read in the winter?