The Midnight Library 2022#21

Wednesday, March 9, 2022

評分:1 分,滿分為 5。

Matt Haig

“Between life and death there is a library.

Up until now, Nora Seed’s life has been full of misery and regret. She feels she has let everyone down, including herself. But things are about to change. When she finds herself in the Midnight Library, she has a chance to make things right.

The books in the Midnight Library enable Nora to live as if she had done things differently. Each one contains a different life, a possible world in which she made different choices that played out in an infinite number of ways, affecting everyone she knew as well as many people she never met. With the help of an old friend, she can now undo every decision she regrets as she tries to work out her perfect life. But things aren’t always what she imagined they’d be and soon her choices place the library and herself in extreme danger.

Before time runs out, she must answer the ultimate question: What is the best way to live?"

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While reading it, I kept asking myself, “What am I reading?", “Do I really want to continue?" and “Can I give it up?" And finally, I decided to give it up. It was a very depressing reading experience. I hate being depressed. And yet worse, I was forced to feel depressed every time I picked up this book!

Life is never easy. You just have to try your best to live it as good as you can.

Nora doesn’t like her root live. She tries to kill herself, and then she ends up being caught between live and death. I didn’t expect her story to be like an Aesop’s fable in which you will learn a lesson, and the result will turn out good. But I didn’t expect all those disappointments. Yes, she can choose a life to undo a decision. Yet every life she chooses ends up a big disappointment, and then she is sent back to the library. Again and again. And so, we readers have to read about all her meseries in each life with everyone in her family. Are there no one decent, according to Nora, in her family? Everyong who Nora tries to make up with becomes someone who causes her more regrets. Wow!! How pathetic it is!!

I just can’t waste my time reading all these … NO WAY!!

京華牛肉麵 – 吃在淡水

Tuesday, March 8, 2022

評分:3 分,滿分為 5。

幫學生訂的參考書, 有幾本一直沒到. Christine 決定退了, 我自己去買. 接到她的來電時, 我已出門, 沒辦法去住家附近的書店買. 有考慮是否去中正紀念堂旁那家, 但真的不順. 我還要去還書 … 就是一個措手不及的行程就是了. 然後記得淡水有家墊腳石. 若是墊腳石, 應該有賣參考書. 雖然不確定有沒有賣, 就算有, 也不確定存貨夠不夠. 但還是決定賭一下.

順利買到書後, 想說順便去上次扼腕沒吃到的牛肉麵吃吃看. 順順地找到了京華牛肉麵, 正在找 QR code 時, 店裡的人以為我在猶豫, 好心地說已開始營業. 進去才知道, QR code 放在裡面桌上.

點了一份牛肉麵, 一份燙青菜. $200.

青菜先上來. 看著青菜上一圈蒜泥, 心中有不祥的感覺. 因為八方雲集的燙青菜就是拌蒜泥, 很難吃. 麵上來之後, 遍尋不著酸菜. 問店員, 居然說 “我們沒有酸菜!!" ㄟ………… 我以為找到的牛肉麵館, 都是有酸菜的!! 看來, 是我疏忽了. 好失望啊! 然後第一口就咬了一塊牛肉. 好鹹! 真的很鹹. 雖然肉很嫩, 但很鹹. 趕快喝一口湯, ㄟ, 這個湯頭我喜歡, 有淡淡香香的中藥味. 再吃一口青菜, 驚為天人!! 油蔥酥好香, 配上蒜泥, 好好吃.

本來覺得應該可以給四顆星, 但吃完牛肉麵, 到晚上下了班, 一直覺得口好渴. 想來是味精放很多??

只能給三顆星了.

吃在中和-泰北小館

Saturday, March 5, 2022

評分:3 分,滿分為 5。

我啊, 太多遊記, 食記, 閱讀記錄沒寫. 又有一堆書該還了, 趕快來交功課吧.

周末, 爸比問要外食還是自己煮。 我說都行。 小孩自動翻譯, 對她爸比說: “媽咪的意思就是, 反正外食也是你出錢, 自己煮也是你出錢, 然後你煮。 所以她沒意見!" 哈哈哈哈… 口憐的一家之主.

晚上還是選擇外出覓食. 今天吃泰北小館. 每次經過每次都說下次可以來吃吃看, 每次都沒認真考慮. 今天是剛好經過, 往內看尚有空桌, 我們就直接走進去了。

今天點了: 大薄片, 麻辣炸豆腐, 炒空心菜, 四季豆, 蝦仁烘蛋, 還有一條沒出現過的魚.

老實說這家還算不錯吃, 生意超好的. 可是我們點的魚一直沒上, 催了也沒跟我們說是忘了還是怎樣. 我們菜都吃得差不多了, 各剩一點飯, 想配魚一起吃. 可是真. 的. 等. 好. 久. 爸比不耐煩先去結帳, 才知道他們忘了, 才剛備下. 就退掉啦.

給三顆星.

ps. 上傳的照片又沒蹤影, 真煩!!

The Girl Who Lived 2022#20

Saturday, March 5, 2022

評分:3 分,滿分為 5。

Christopher Greyson

“Ten years ago, four people were brutally murdered. One girl lived.

No one believes her story. The police think she’s crazy. Her therapist thinks she’s suicidal. Everyone else thinks she’s a dangerous drunk. They’re all right – but did she see the killer?

AS THE ANNIVERSARY of the murders approaches, Faith is released from the psychiatric hospital and yanked back to the last spot on earth she wants to be – her home town where the slayings took place. Whacked by the lingering echoes of survivor’s guilt, Faith spirals into a black hole of alcoholism and wanton self-destruction. Finding no solace at the bottom of a bottle, Faith decides to track down her sister’s killer – and discovers that she’s the one being hunted."

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I could have given it four stars, but the ending was too sad, when Faith realized who was really behind the murders.

I felt like crying when Faith’s best friend’s aunt showed her the photo she took. It was a photo taken on Faith’s best friend Anna’s birthday. In the photo, veryone was so happy. But then they were all gone, except Faith.

The reason why they were all murdered ten years ago was unbelievablly selfish, and so, the person who was behind the murders was really hedious. Too bad she was shot to death!!

I’d like to read the Jack Stratton series, also written by Christopher Greyson. However, I couldn’t find any copies in the library. So … sigh …

The Lost Man 2022#19

Thursday, March 3, 2022

評分:4 分,滿分為 5。

Jane Harper

“Brothers Nathan and Bub Bright meet for the first time in months at the remote fence line seperating their cattle ranches in the lonely outback. Their third brother, Cameron, lies dead at their feet.

In an isolated belt of Queensland, Australia, their homes a three-hour drive apart, the brothers were one another’s nearest neighbors. Cameron was the middle child, the one who ran the family homestead. But something made him head out alone under the unrelenting sun.

Nathan, Bub, and Nathan’s son return to Cameron’s ranch and to those left behind by his passing: his wife, his daughters, and his mother, as well as their long-time employee and two recently hired seasonal workers. While they grieve Cameron’s loss, suspicion starts to take hold, and Nathan is forced to examine secrets the family would rather leave in the past. Because if someone forced Cameron to his death, the isolation of the outback leaves few suspects."

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This was the second book I read that was written by Jane Harper. The first was The Dry. The lives described in both books were so surprisingly different from our lives here in Taiwan. In The Dry, I first realized that water supply is such a big issue in Australia. The dry season can last for years!! In this book, I found it amazing that it takes hours just to drive to your nearest neighbor!!

I felt so sad to read about a mother who was forced to murdered her son, so that she could save her family.

恩仇鎮魂曲 2022#18

Wednesday, March 2, 2022

評分:4 分,滿分為 5。

中山七里

翻譯 李彥樺

獨步文化

" ‘若法律能夠制裁我的罪, 才是我最大的幸福.’

一趟號稱史上最便宜的韓國渡輪旅行,碰上暴風雨沉沒。倖存者中,有人拍到一段驚駭的影像:一個男人毆打一個女人,搶走救生衣。儘管警方迅速逮捕男人,卻因符合「緊急避難」原則,被告無罪定讞。

多年後, 遭媒體揭穿 ‘屍體郵差’ 的黑暗過往, 正值事業低潮的辣腕律師御子柴, 注意到一篇報導: 安養院的老人與看護起爭執, 失手殺死對方. 那老人居然是他在少年院的恩師! 於是, 他千方百計成為老人的辯護律師. 可是, 所有證據都指向老人行兇, 而且老人全盤認罪, 頑固希望服刑.

第一次遇到如此棘手的委託人, 御子柴不甘放棄, 實地走訪安養院, 當場感受到詭異的氛圍, 入住者充滿恐懼, 證人說詞亦有微妙差異. 背後究竟隱藏什麼內幕? 與十年前的船難又有何關聯? 無良律師能成功打開恩師的心防, 找到贖罪的意義嗎?"

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每次翻開御子柴系列的書, 都在想 “我真的要再繼續看這個系列嗎?" 每每都要看到他為了贖罪, 拚了命找線索證物時, 才覺得 “他其實是個很獨特的律師."

然後, 他那揮之不去的深沉罪惡感, 就一直在文字間遊走. 頗多無奈呀.

倒是我發現了一個很可愛的角色: 御子柴的助理日下部洋子. 她那連御子柴都提防著 (ㄟ, 可以這樣說嗎? 哈哈) 的正義感與道德潔癖, 真的很好玩. 可惜在這個系列中, 中山七里讓她出場的機會, 少之又少.

吃在永和 – 牛下來

Sunday, February 27, 2022

評分:3 分,滿分為 5。

小孩中午吃太飽, 晚餐不想吃. 我們倆就很隨興. 爸比說他常去買炸雞的附近有一家牛滷肉飯, 他很想吃吃看. 立刻出發, 我最好商量了, 哈哈

下了車, 才發現居然有這麼有味道的老店面. 是我很喜歡的老宅.

我點一般牛滷肉飯, 爸比點麻辣牛滷肉飯. 牆上有文字, 說明原原來的老闆是在圓環開店, 收了之後多年, 子女在這裡開店. 恩, 他們提到的老味道, 我們並不熟悉. 吃起來無感. 但牛滷肉比起一般滷肉, 柴了點. 對爸比來說, 份量也少了點. 沒有覺得很驚艷.

給三顆星.

The Alienist 2022#17

Tuesday, February 22, 2022

評分:3 分,滿分為 5。

Caleb Carr

“The year is 1896. The city is New York, and a serial killer is on the loose. Newspaper reporter John Schuyler Moore is summoned by his friend Dr. Laszlo Kreizler – psychologist, of ‘alienist’ – to view the horribly mutilated body of an adolescent boy abandoned on the unfinished Williamsburg Bridge. From there the two embark on a revolutionary new effort in criminology: creating a psycological profile of the perpetrator based on the details of his crimes. They’re soon joined by Sara Howard, the first woman hired by the New York City Police Department. The team’s dangerous quest takes them into the tortured past and twisted mind of a murderer who will kill again before their hunt is over.

Part Arthur Conan Doyle, part The Silence of the Lambs, The Alienist conjures up Gilded Age Manhattan, with its tenements and mansions, corrupt cops and flamboyant gangsters, shining opera houses and seamy gin mills. It’s the book that proved Caleb Carr a master at depicting the unsettling forces that trmble beneath everyday life."

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I quite like the story, the team without the Alienist (haha, wierd, right? I really don’t like him.), the great house they use as their headquarter, and the good food. All those worth four or more stars. However, I can’t stand the gabbling on and on about so many little things, at leas to me, they are little things I don’t care about. And I don’t like Dr. Kreizler.

I gave it three stars.

偵探冰室 2022#16

Thursday, February 17, 2022

評分:3 分,滿分為 5。

陳浩基. 譚劍. 文善. 黑貓 C. 望日. 冒業

蓋亞文化

<重慶大廈的非洲雄獅>

來自非洲的十二人暗殺小組悄悄入駐重慶大廈, 追殺一名藏匿在內的非洲廚師, 並封鎖所有出入口, 救援者該如何在七十二小時內讓他逃離生天?

<李氏力場之麻雀移動事件> <李氏力場之欠交功課事件>

八號風球高高掛起, 一切謎團卻漸漸浮現…

一名背景神秘的中國學生, 為何每逢懸掛八號風球的周末, 隔日必定欠交作業?

<二樓書店>

老牌獨立書店店主懷疑書店打烊後有小偷潛入, 但並沒有任何財物損失, 是她的錯覺? 還是小偷另有目的? 或者… 跟她賣的某些書有關?

<太陽黑子少年少女>

動漫節 Cosplay 會場驚現怪盜!

扮演戰士的少年, 扮演偵探的少女, 扮演女巫的仙女座人, 扮演公主的偽娘, 五名 Cosplay 網友首次會面, 便要一同解開謎團, 找出兇手…

<來自地下>

港島線理應空無一人的回廠車廂, 卻出現一具男屍, 身上的車票只從朗屏搭至天水圍, 而不久前與死者碰面的三人都聲稱見過他. 究竟誰在說謊? 誰是兇手?

<豪宅>

港島南區某豪宅發生命案. 嫌犯與死者同居但沒有任何親屬關係, 也沒有過往恩怨. 他為何自首承認自己是兇手? 又為何突然在審訊後推翻自己的供述?

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因為搜尋陳浩基的書, 找到這個系列。 先借第一本來看. 嗯… 不是我的菜.

我的幸福在瑞芳學 2022#15

Saturday, February 12, 2022

評分:3 分,滿分為 5。

施岑宜

時報出版

" ‘在一個地方好好久久的 (地吧?) 活著, 才有機會好好的 (地吧?) 認識及體驗與你相遇的人.’

人, 終其一生都在追尋, 追尋的旅程, 是一趟無止境的學習歷程, 學習如何自在, 如何自處. 而在瑞芳的生活裡, 這塊土地讓人一點一滴的 (地吧?) 學會了.

Terry 碎碎念: 的地不分!! 看了很糾結…

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一拿到書, 馬上翻閱吳念真的推薦序. 文中提及自己的父親辛苦的 “移民" 年代, 我忍不住淚滿眶. 因為我也想到自己的父親. 如果不是剛好在車上, 我應該會衝到誠品, 買下這本書. 為了可以再讀這篇文章, 想買這本書, 哈哈, 我也是醉了.

我喜歡這本書的前半段, 作者描述當年毅然決然在瑞芳買下第一個房子的 “輕率" 經過, 之後整理房子的艱辛過程. 很想帶著這本書, 去瑞芳旅行一下.

後半段, 我整個棄書. 感覺, 是在幫她的新村方書院打廣告嗎?

Anyway, 我還是會帶著這本書, 去瑞芳走走. 在我的還書之前, 呵呵.

作者的先生也寫了一篇序文, 他說 “… 一直以來都在一旁默默的 (地吧? 唉…) 看著! 隨時準備出動收拾爛攤子." 我大笑. 想到我家的獅子先生, 應該也常常有這種感嘆吧. 哈哈哈.