Rain-out Theater

As I’ve said many times, I’m not a fan of written mysteries, although I enjoy them on film. All but a handful I’ve read have been average, merely time-fillers. Recently, I was pressed for something to read. Despite the child in danger cover art that makes the work seem standard, I gave Thomas Altman’s Kiss Daddy Goodbye a shot and was surprised at its psychological depth. Copyright 1980, set in the ‘70’s, it’s the story of a 30-something woman mad with grief over the death of her daughter and a miscarriage, both of which occurred several years earlier. Separated from her husband, she broods, neglects her blind invalid father. She joins a fledgling baby-sitting co-op whose leader has a ten-year-old blond daughter that reminds her of her own. That woman is the main character. Her 13-year marriage has gone stale. She is prone existential angst, as is the precocious child. Early in the narrative, she muses: “… the inactive mind creates its own demonology.” Later, upon realizing her father has lied and probably has a mistress, the little girl muses: “Adults did that to each other all the time, didn’t they? They destroyed each other. They cheated and they lied and they damaged themselves on their own actions.” Most of the novel focuses on domesticity. The thrills don’t occur until very late. It is an unconventional thriller that would probably disappoint those who crave repeated murders. Readers who enjoy exploration of the human condition would likely admire it. The prose and dialogue are solid. Only one other reader has rated it at Amazon, giving it five stars. I’ll go with four. There is no biographical info on the author, although one source claims it is a pseudonym. Since Wiki doesn’t list any of Altman’s five books under that writer’s name, I will not mention it.

Headline from nypost.com: “New Yorkers’ plan to illegally vote by shaving heads foiled.” Imagine the staggering amount of fraud that goes undetected.

Headline from foxnews.com: “Thousands flock to Halloween parade in Wuhan, China.” I wonder if any wore a lab technician costume or hospital duds.

In an ad in the New Hampshire Union-Leader, NHL Hall of Famer and two-time Stanley Cup champion Bobby Orr urged residents to look past President Trump’s tweets and look at his policies. Thank you, sir.

From foxnews.com, a nice quote from Wyoming Senator John Barasso: “GOP wants to grow economy, Dems want to grow government.” If, as his name implies, he’s a goombah — “Hai fatto bene, signore.”

Another rain-out for the floating book shop. Really looking forward to tomorrow’s session.

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My thanks to Marie, who emailed this to me: