A Thriller on the Swedish Railway

You may remember last year, I got my hands on  The Arctic Railway Assassin. It's part of the Adventures on a Train series, some crime fiction and adventure novel for children. Of course, I thought it would be for Wolfie, but it's really a book to be enjoyed together, father and son. It has a lot of things I love: a crime story, set in a train, during Christmastime and in a wintery landscape. What more can I ask for? We didn't have time to read it last Christmas, but we have started now. And there's another thing I discovered about it that makes me really like it: it's actually set in Sweden. What more can one want for a Christmas thriller?

Les bûches de Première moisson

 Photo prise sur la page Facebook de Première Moisson. Ils ont bien entendu sorti leurs bûches de Noël, qui sont un peu carrées à mon goût, mais bon. J'aimerais quand même y goûter. Je ne sais pas si je vais avoir l'occasion cette année.

Christmas Activities

Sometimes, I buy things for Wolfie, but truly, I buy them for me. I went to town a few days ago, and I saw Usborne Christmas Activities in a shop. I bought it right away. It is a great book of games for the Christmas holidays, but it can also be used as a sort of Advent calendar. It should keep us entertained until Christmas, in any case.

Village de Noël

 Nous sommes allés dans un magasin la fin de semaine dernière et nous y avons vu bien des patentes de Noël, dont ce village de Noël. C'est une condition quand vient le temps des Fêtes: les commerces montrent des scènes hivernales hyper typiques, montrant un Noël qui n'existe pas ou plus, avec de la neige, des sapins de Noël et, dans ce cas-ci, des skieurs (ou des gens qui se prêtent à d'autres activités hivernales). C'est une nécessité au pied de l'arbre de Noël également, d'ailleurs j'essaie de convaincre petit loup de bâtir le nôtre.

White the Husky Dog

 No, no, we didn't buy a dog. Last year, when we went to the petting zoo and visited Santa's Grotto in the North Pole, Wolfie had the right to build one plush toy for Christmas. It's the same every year: one toy, one plush toy, which he builds himself. Every year he goes for a different teddy. As the family's menagerie is full of bears already (and bears of all sorts), he went for the husky dog, As it seemed both original and fitting with Christmas somehow. He called him White because his belly is all white.

Les Bouquinistes durant Noël

 Photo prise sur la page Facebook des Bouquinistes. J'espère pouvoir y aller durant les Fêtes...

Everything Train for Christmas

You may remember that last year I blogged about the Christmas presents you could buy at the shop of the the National Railway Museum in York. My wife spoiled me last Christmas with, well, lots of train related gifts, among them a Christmas train jumper (which you can see on this picture) and scarf. I think most of the presents she bought me were from the NRM, actually. You know how much I associate Christmas with trains. It is even more so now.

Ciné-cadeau est commencé

Je veux faire un petit rappel pour mes lecteurs du Québec, surtout ceux qui ont des enfants: Ciné-cadeau est commencé depuis le 5 décembre. Il me semble, je me trompe peut-être, que ça commence beaucoup plus tôt que quand j'étais jeune. Pas que je m'en plaigne (ou pas que je m'en plaindrais si je vivais au Québec): ça fait durer le plaisir et ça nous permet aussi de patienter d'ici à Noël. Mais sinon, dites-moi ce que vous pensez de la cuvée 2025 et si vous regardez Ciné-cadeau déjà.

Spiced Mulled Wine

I went to a local Christmas fayre recently. Our little town has one every year, I try to go there if I can. It's pretty much the same every year mostly a night of shopping for Christmas, but it is also the opportunity to eat and drink. And, often, to drink the first cup of mulled wine. There were stalls selling it everywhere. I took a glass from The Spiced Wine Company. Not sure why this one or another, as it was a quid more expensive, but I enjoyed the drink anyway. All warm and spicy and seasonal.

Neige encore

 Une autre photo de la neige à Chicoutimi, rien que parce que.

Crime Fiction during Advent

 I found this picture thanks to Books Are My Bag. Although I did not get my hands on this issue of Booktime, its cover got brought my attention to Murder By Christmas. You know I associate Christmastime with crime fiction, so I spent Advent reading crime fiction. I am kind of kicking myself that I did not buy this book to have as my literary Advent calendar. I have been wanting an Advent calendar related to crime fiction since, like forever. Maybe for next year.

La légende de Saint Nicolas

C'est la Saint-Nicolas aujourd'hui. Je partage donc une vidéo que j'ai trouvée aujourd'hui, qui raconte la légende sinistre que j'aime tant, ainsi que bien des choses sur le Père Fouettard et Krampus, ainsi que quelques légendes locales sur Saint Nicolas.

Grieving for Mozart

Sad anniversary which I commemorate every year: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart died on the fifth of December 1791. His Requiem is  played all around the world to commemorate, I am doing the same here on this blog. It's been centuries, but the grief is still fresh: Wolferl died young, he died with an unfinished masterpiece. And I also thought this is a good opportunity to share a picture from our last trip to Austria. His statue in Salzburg. Sadly we didn'y visit his grave, even though he does not rest in it. Be that as it may, Requiem Aeternam, Amadeus. Dead, but truly immortal.

Neige

 Photo de la neige au Saguenay, à Chicoutimi. Elle date un peu, mais je la partage rien que parce que c'est l'hiver pour vrai au moins quelque part dans le monde.

Time for Christmascrimes

 'Tis the season to be reading, and, in my case, to read crime fiction. Especially crime fiction set during Christmas.  We had #Noirvember last month, I think there should be a #Christmascrime. But I am currently stuck when it comes to crime fiction: I am a bit bored with the novel I am reading, as I feared I would be, and it's not in season enough. So I am wondering if I should take a break from it and reread one Christmas crime novel I already read. Ed McBain's 87th Precinct series has a few titlesset in the Season, including The Pusher. Just for the very first sentence, "Winter came in like an anarchist with a bomb", I think I want to get back to it. But there are so many others to rediscover. And I could check in my TBR list if there isn't one set during Christmas, or at least in winter.

Les Bouquinistes durant les Fêtes

Photo prise sur la page Facebook des Bouquinistes. Ma librairie régionale préférée se met dans l'esprit de Noël et ils observent l'Avent en faisant des tirages de bouquins, notamment. Les Fêtes, c'est souvent pour moi les librairies, surtout les librairies locales. Alors donc je vous encourage à aller faire le plein de cadeaux aux Bouquinistes, si vous pouvez.

North Star Bucks Coffee

During our last family trip to a near(ish) petting zoo, which lead us to the North Pole through Christmas magic (or so said the elves who were not very little), we made a few discoveries. Wolfie was very skeptical it was the real North Pole, but I think it was. Asit turns out, they have their own coffee shop for Santa's helpers and anyone else living there: the North Star Bucks Coffee. Not related to a certain coffee chain. Of course, the bucks are meant to be reindeers and the North Star the actual North Start. I took a picture for proof of its existence.

Des rennes

 Noël ne serait pas Noël sans quelques rennes pour tirer le traineau du Père Noël. Même des rennes artificiels. Enfin bref, lors de notre dernière visite à la ferme pour enfants, où nous avons semble-t-il magiquement voyagé au Pôle Nord (petit loup est sceptique sur ce dernier point), j'ai pris cette photo des rennes qui tiraient un traineau immobile. Avec les sapins en arrière-plan, ça fait plutôt joli. Qu'en pensez-vous? Mais bon, j'ai hâte d'en voir des vrais. Je partagerai les photos dès que possible.

Wishing Tree

 Last weekend, we went to a nearby(ish) petting zoo for their special Christmas event, which included a visit to the North Pole to see Santa. Wolfie loves it. We think it might have been the real Santa, but we cannot be sure. Wolfie thinks he was, but he thinks this wasn't the real North Pole, even though the helpers told us we got there through magic. Anyway, there were many wonders there, including this WIshing Tree: you pick up the North Pole snow at its base, you blow it and make a wish. I don't know why there was a bear in the branches, but why not. Maybe the bear was the guardian of the tree? In any case, I'm sure this was a real magical Wishing Tree.

Murale de Noël

Photo prise sur la page Facebook de la Bouquinerie du Plateau hier. Je crois comprendre que la librairie a réouverte. Mais je partage parce que leur murale, même si elle est visible à l'année, est vraiment une murale de Noël.