In anticipation of a more frugal existence, I recently rediscovered the local public library as a source for (free!) magazines and books. While you do have to wait in line for the more popular titles (I’m currently No. 122 in the queue for Malcolm Gladwell’s “Outliers”), there is a wealth of titles to choose from. And all available for the cost of a $2 library card if you don’t carry one already.

I recently finished reading a murder mystery by first-time novelist Amy MacKinnon titled “Tethered”. The title wonderfully captures a plethora of the themes explored in the book: how past events can weigh us down, how our earthly connections and relationships can ground us and keep us from drifting, how the ties that bind us are what make us tragically and beautifully human. Once I started reading, I couldn’t put it down, even when I had an idea midway through that not everything was what it seemed.

Stand by for reviews of books I recently picked up: “The Court of the Air” by Stephen Hunt and “The Secret Adventures of Charlotte Bronte” by Laura Joh Rowland.