Where's my green shirt?

Today (March 17th 2026) is Saint Patrick's Day!  They say everyone is Irish on Saint Patrick's Day.  Well, I hope everyone likes corned beef and cabbage.  Or maybe you would rather have a nice Shepard's Pie.  Whatever you are eating don't forget the green beer.  

Four Leaf Cleaver by Maddie Day

Robbie has Pans 'N Pancakes all decked out for St. Patrick's day.  Which is perfect for the cooking competition show she will be hosting.  Everything is going great until someone ends up dead.  Now it's up to Robbie and the local police to find out who wanted the producer dead.

This is the 11th book in this cozy mystery series but the first one I have read.  It is easy enough to follow everything but I felt I was missing a lot of back story that would have been nice to have while reading.  It is a fun mystery with lots of clues and red herrings and misleading information like all good mysteries should have.  There is a long list of quirky and interesting characters that keep the reader interested.  There is a lot of talk about food, what Robbie is making for the restaurant and how, and what everyone is eating, along with some recipes in the back of the book (none of which I tried so you are on your own with those).  But if that doesn't interest you this might not be the book for you.  I liked how the police included Robbie and she wasn't going around behind their backs doing her own thing.  It was a clever mystery and a fun read that makes me want to go back to see how it all started.

Bacon Anyone?

Today (March 1st 2026) is National Pig Day!  If you are not already a pig fan, you should be.  They are cute (especially the baby ones) and smart and have a lot of personality.   I did live with a pig for years (not one as big as in the book reviewed here) so I know a thing or two.  I'm glad I did it but I don't think I would ever do it again.

Esther the Wonder Pig by Steve Jenkins and Derek Walter, with Caprice Crane

Steve Jenkins and Derek Walter took in what he thought was a small pig.  It turned out that Esther (as the pig was named) was a full size commercial pig who grew to 600 pounds.  This is the story of how they went from tiny pig, to redesigning their whole house to accommodate Ester, to buying a farm and starting an animal sanctuary.

I love a good animal story.  I love how these people were willing to go through all they went though for a pig they fell in love with.  But it all started on the wrong foot with me.  When Steve decides to get a pig (even if he thought it was a mini pig) without telling his partner I instantly didn't like him.  And the humor for me quickly got old and annoying.  There were a lot of stories of the messes Esther made (by the way how do you clean cooking oil off every surface in your home, like ever, never mind in a couple of hours?) and how she liked to eat but not much more about her.  She liked to cuddle but what else?  I wanted more Esther and less Facebook page and what it takes to become vegan.  It is a quick read and somewhat interesting but I can't say I would recommend it.